Chapter Four: The Problem With Knowing Someone
1606 Words
Lena Carter believed there were two types of people in the world.
People who woke up early because they were responsible.
And people who woke up early because they had made terrible choices and were now suffering the consequences.
She belonged to the second category.
Her alarm had gone off at 6:00 a.m.
She had ignored it.
Then 6:15.
Ignored it again.
Then 6:30.
At that point, her alarm was no longer a reminder.
It was a personal enemy.
“Lena!”
She opened one eye.
Her younger brother stood in her doorway, holding her phone.
“You have five minutes before Mom starts yelling.”
Lena sat up immediately.
“Why do you have my phone?”
“Because your phone was making noise, and unlike you, I respect technology.”
“You’re fourteen.”
“And somehow still more responsible.”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Careful.”
He grinned.
“Threatening your little brother before breakfast? Very mature.”
Lena grabbed her phone from him.
“Get out.”
“Love you too.”
He left before she could throw a pillow at him.
She looked down at her phone.
One new message.
From Atlas.
Atlas:
Good morning. Rate your day so far.
Lena smiled.
She didn't even mean to.
That was becoming a problem.
She typed while walking toward her closet.
Lena:
4/10.
Atlas:
That bad?
Lena:
I woke up early.
Atlas:
You say that like it’s a tragedy.
Lena:
It is.
Atlas:
Interesting. I thought tragedies involved more dramatic events.
Lena:
Have you ever woken up before your alarm?
A pause.
Atlas:
Yes.
Lena gasped.
Lena:
Monster.
She could almost hear his laughter in her mind.
It was strange she never actually heard him laugh before, yet somehow she could already imagine the sound of it.
By the time she took her last steps into West Bridge campus, she was surviving on nothing but caffeine, stubbornness, and sheer determination.
Mostly caffeine.
The hallway was already loud.
Someone was arguing about a chemistry test.
Someone else was complaining that the cafeteria had changed their pizza recipe.
A group of freshmen were gathered around a locker like it contained a national secret.
High school was strange.
People acted like every small event was the end of the world.
Then again...
Sometimes it felt like it.
“Carter.”
She didn't need to turn around.
She already knew.
“Brooks.”
Ethan walked beside her.
“How do you know it's me without looking?”
“Your confidence enters the hallway five seconds before you do.”
He looked impressed.
“That was almost a compliment.”
“It wasn't.”
“Still taking it.”
She rolled her eyes.
They reached their classroom at the same time.
Unfortunately.
“After you,” Ethan said.
Lena looked at him suspiciously.
“What are you planning?”
“Nothing.”
“That’s exactly what someone planning something would say.”
“I was being polite.”
“You?”
“Yes, me.”
She studied him.
“You know, this whole pretending to be a normal person thing is very convincing.”
Ethan laughed.
Actually laughed.
Not the confident smile he gave everyone.
A real laugh.
For half a second, Lena forgot she was supposed to be annoyed.
Then she remembered.
“Don’t do that.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“Do what?”
“Act like you're likable.”
“That's unfortunate.”
“Why?”
“Because I am.”
She shook her head.
“Your confidence is exhausting.”
“And your refusal to admit anything nice about me is impressive.”
They entered the classroom.
Neither noticed that several students had been watching.
Because to everyone else, the constant arguing between Lena Carter and Ethan Brooks looked very different.
It looked less like hatred.
And more like something waiting to happen.
---
During English class, their teacher announced the next assignment.
A partner project.
The room immediately erupted.
Everyone began looking around.
Lena already knew her luck was terrible.
She looked at the board.
Then at the assigned pairs.
Then she froze.
Lena Carter & Ethan Brooks.
“No.”
Ethan looked over.
“Strong reaction.”
“I’m requesting a new partner.”
“You haven’t even tried working with me.”
“I have spent three years observing you.”
“That’s slightly concerning.”
“It was research.”
“On what?”
“How to survive around you.”
Ethan smiled.
“Sounds like we’ll work well together.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re already passionate.”
Lena stared at him.
She hated that he had a point.
And she hated even more that somewhere in the back of her mind...
She was curious.
Because if there was one thing she had learned about Ethan Brooks recently...
It was that maybe she didn't know him as well as she thought.
---
Lena had worked with difficult people before.
She had worked with classmates who forgot deadlines.
People who copied assignments five minutes before class.
People who said, “I’m not really a writer,” after volunteering to write half the article.
But Ethan Brooks was different.
Ethan was difficult in an almost impressive way.
He was prepared.
He had ideas.
He actually listened.
Which was annoying.
Because Lena had spent years building an argument against him, and he kept ruining it by not fitting into the version of him she had created.
They sat across from each other in the library after school, their project notes spread across the table.
The assignment was simple:
Analyze how public figures are shaped by reputation.
The irony was not lost on Lena.
Especially because she was sitting across from the most publicly recognized person at Westbridge.
“You’re staring at the topic like it personally offended you,” Ethan said.
“It did.”
“It’s a piece of paper.”
“Exactly. It should know better.”
Ethan shook his head.
“You’re impossible.”
“And yet you’re still here.”
He paused.
A small smile appeared.
“That sounded familiar.”
Lena looked up.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
She narrowed her eyes.
Ethan was hiding something.
That was strange.
Usually, he had no problem saying exactly what he thought.
“Did you just realize I was right?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Because your face says otherwise.”
“My face does not talk.”
“Your face is very expressive.”
“That’s rude.”
“That’s accurate.”
He laughed.
And again, Lena hated that she noticed.
---
After an hour of working, Ethan leaned back.
“You know what’s funny?”
Lena looked up from her notes.
“Your confidence?”
“No.”
“Your haircut?”
“Also no.”
She smiled slightly.
“Then what?”
“That everyone thinks they know who someone is.”
Lena became quiet.
It was an oddly thoughtful thing to say.
Not the kind of thing she expected from Ethan Brooks.
“What does that mean?”
He shrugged.
“People see one thing and decide that’s the whole story.”
She studied him.
For a moment, she wondered if he was talking about himself.
Then she remembered.
This was Ethan.
The football captain.
The guy everyone knew.
Except maybe they didn’t.
“Is this your attempt at being deep?” she asked.
He looked offended.
“Wow.”
“I’m asking.”
“It’s hurtful.”
“You’ll survive.”
“Probably.”
The answer was playful.
But something about it sounded less certain.
---
That night, Lena was lying in bed when Atlas messaged her.
Atlas:
How was your day?
She smiled.
Lena:
Strange.
Atlas:
Strange good or strange bad?
She thought about Ethan.
The project.
The conversation.
The way he had sounded almost vulnerable for a second.
Lena:
Strange confusing.
Atlas:
That’s a very specific category.
Lena:
I invented it.
Atlas:
Should I be worried?
Lena:
Probably.
She laughed quietly.
Then she typed:
Lena:
Do you ever feel like you’ve decided who someone is, and then they do something that doesn’t match?
The typing bubble appeared.
Stopped.
Appeared again.
Ethan stared at the message.
Because he knew exactly what she meant.
Atlas:
Yes.
Lena looked at the answer.
Short.
Simple.
But somehow, it felt honest.
Lena:
What happened?
This time the pause was longer.
Atlas:
I think sometimes people are more complicated than the version we create of them.
Lena stared at the words.
She didn't know why that felt important.
Maybe because she was starting to realize something uncomfortable.
Maybe Ethan Brooks wasn't the person she thought he was.
And maybe that was a problem.
Because she had built an entire argument around disliking him.
What happened when the argument stopped making sense?
—
The following morning,
Ethan got to school and spotted Lena immediately.
She was outside the newspaper office deep in a conversation with Mia.
Her expression was serious.
Determined as always.
The same focused look she always carried.
Then her phone buzzed,
She glanced at the screen, and a smile appeared on her face.
A smile that Ethan recognized.
The one she reserved only for Atlas, and for a moment Ethan felt jealous.
Which was ridiculous.
Because he was Atlas.
He was the person making her smile.
But he was also Ethan.
The person she couldn't stand.
Two versions of himself.
And Lena only loved one of them.
The problem was...
He wasn't sure if he wanted to keep them separate anymore.
---
End of Chapter 4
- Writer
