Our Secret Diary

Our Secret Diary - One Night, Six Different Personalities

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Dear Diary,"

"I think friendship is strange.

Sometimes you meet someone and immediately like them.

Sometimes you meet someone and immediately know you will never get along.

**And sometimes...

you argue with someone so much that you don't notice when the arguments start becoming something you look forward to.

**Maybe that's how some friendships begin.

**With irritation.

**With jokes.

**With two people constantly insisting they don't care about each other.

Maybe I'll understand someday."

The project deadline had officially become a problem.

Professor Harris had mentioned it several times during class, but somehow, the six students had convinced themselves that they still had plenty of time.

They didn't.

Two weeks.

That was all they had left.

And although Lena and Ethan had already completed most of their project, there were still several sections that needed editing.

Maya and Noah were struggling with their conclusion.

Chloe and Jason were arguing over the final design.

By Thursday afternoon, they had all reached the same conclusion.

They needed to work together.

Not during class.

Not for an hour after lectures.

They needed an entire evening.

"Tonight," Maya announced.

Noah looked at her.

"Tonight what?"

"We work."

"I thought we were already working."

"We're pretending to work."

Jason nodded.

"She's right."

Noah looked offended.

"I've been working."

"You've been staring at the same paragraph for forty minutes."

"I was thinking."

"You were sleeping."

"I was thinking with my eyes closed."

Maya laughed.

"Exactly."

Lena shook her head.

"Can we just choose a time?"

Chloe checked her phone.

"Seven?"

"Too early," Noah said.

Maya looked at him.

"Why?"

"Because I have things to do."

"What things?"

"Things."

"Very specific."

Ethan laughed.

"Eight?"

Everyone agreed.

They decided to meet in one of the university's study rooms.

Each person was responsible for bringing something.

Lena brought snacks.

Chloe brought drinks.

Jason brought extra notebooks.

Noah brought absolutely nothing.

Maya stared at him when he arrived.

"You came empty-handed?"

Noah smiled.

"I brought myself."

"We didn't ask for that."

Jason laughed.

Ethan shook his head.

"You're going to regret that."

"I always regret knowing you people."

"You haven't even been here five minutes," Chloe said.

"Exactly."

Everyone laughed.

The evening had officially begun.

---

By eight-thirty, the study room looked less like a place for academic work and more like a small party.

There were snacks spread across the table.

Bottles of drinks stood beside laptops.

Notebooks were everywhere.

Music played quietly from someone's phone.

And surprisingly, they had actually managed to get some work done.

For about twenty minutes.

Then Maya noticed Noah eating her snacks.

"Excuse me."

He looked up.

"What?"

"That's mine."

"No."

"Yes."

"You left it there."

"Because I was writing."

"Then you should have eaten it."

Maya stared at him.

"Put it down."

"No."

"Noah."

"Maya."

"Give it."

"Come and take it."

She reached across the table.

Noah moved his hand away.

"Stop!"

"You started it!"

"I was protecting my food!"

Lena covered her mouth to hide her laughter.

Ethan wasn't even trying.

He was laughing openly.

Chloe shook her head.

"You two are exhausting."

Jason nodded.

"I've known them for years and I still don't understand how they function."

Maya pointed at Noah.

"He's impossible."

Noah pointed back.

"She's dramatic."

"You're annoying."

"You're worse."

"You're—"

"Guys," Ethan interrupted.

They both looked at him.

"What?"

"We're supposed to be working."

Maya folded her arms.

"Tell him."

Noah immediately said,

"Tell her."

Ethan sighed.

"Never mind."

Everyone laughed.

---

A few minutes later, Chloe noticed something.

"Wait."

Everyone looked at her.

"What?"

She pointed toward Maya and Noah.

"Didn't you two start arguing before the project even began?"

Maya nodded.

"Yes."

Noah shrugged.

"She's been annoying since day one."

"And you've been irritating since day one."

Jason laughed.

"So basically nothing has changed."

"No," Maya said.

"It's worse."

Noah smiled.

"You secretly enjoy arguing with me."

Maya stared at him.

"Dream on."

He grinned.

"You didn't say no."

She rolled her eyes.

"You're unbelievable."

Lena watched them.

There was something different about their arguments.

They weren't really angry anymore.

At least, not most of the time.

It was almost like they had created their own strange language.

Insults.

Teasing.

Sarcasm.

And somehow, they always ended up sitting beside each other.

Lena smiled to herself.

Ethan noticed.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You're smiling."

"I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Maya and Noah."

He glanced toward them.

"They're strange."

"Very."

"They'll probably become friends eventually."

Lena smiled.

"Maybe."

Neither of them noticed Maya suddenly looking over.

She caught Lena smiling.

"What?"

Lena laughed.

"Nothing."

Maya narrowed her eyes.

"You were talking about me."

"No."

"You were."

"No."

Noah leaned over.

"They were definitely talking about us."

Maya turned to him.

"Why do you care?"

"I don't."

"Then stop listening."

"I wasn't listening."

"You just said they were talking about us."

Noah paused.

"...Lucky guess."

Maya shook her head.

"You're ridiculous."

---

Around ten o'clock, the room became quieter.

Everyone was tired.

Chloe was editing her section.

Jason was checking their references.

Maya was typing while Noah looked over her work.

"That sentence doesn't make sense."

Maya looked at him.

"It makes perfect sense."

"No."

"Yes."

"Read it again."

She did.

Then she frowned.

"Okay..."

"What?"

"It doesn't."

Noah smiled.

"I told you."

"Don't enjoy this."

"I'm enjoying it."

She laughed despite herself.

"Fine. Help me fix it."

Noah leaned closer to the laptop.

"Change this part."

Maya listened.

For once, there was no argument.

No teasing.

Just the two of them working together.

Across the table, Lena noticed.

She smiled.

Ethan noticed her again.

"You really like watching them."

"They're funny."

"They are."

"You think they'll become friends?"

"Probably."

Lena looked at him.

"You're very confident."

"I know people."

She laughed.

"Do you?"

"I know you."

Lena's smile faded for a second.

"What?"

Ethan realized what he'd said.

"I mean..."

He looked away.

"We've spent a lot of time together."

"Oh."

She smiled.

"Right."

Neither mentioned the strange little moment.

---

At eleven, they took a break.

Maya opened a bag of snacks.

"Everyone gets one."

Noah reached for two.

She slapped his hand away.

"One."

"Why?"

"Because you already ate half of mine."

"I was hungry."

"That's not my problem."

Noah laughed.

Then he quietly pushed one of his own snacks toward her.

Maya looked at it.

"What's this?"

"You like that one."

She stared at him.

"You remembered?"

He shrugged.

"You complain about everything. It's hard not to remember."

Maya smiled.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

Neither noticed the looks exchanged between Lena and Chloe.

Chloe whispered,

"They're becoming friends."

Lena smiled.

"I think so."

---

Near midnight, everyone was exhausted.

The project was finally looking much better.

Ethan leaned back in his chair.

"I think we're actually done."

Jason looked at the screen.

"Almost."

Chloe nodded.

"We still need to proofread."

Maya groaned.

"No."

Noah laughed.

"You can't be tired already."

"I've been working for four hours."

"Three."

"Four."

"Three and a half."

"You're annoying."

"You've said that before."

"And I'll keep saying it."

Jason looked at his phone.

"Wait."

Everyone turned.

"What?"

He stared at the screen.

"Professor Harris sent a reminder."

Chloe immediately opened her phone.

"Oh."

Lena looked at her.

"What?"

"Submission is in two weeks."

Silence.

Maya slowly put down her snack.

"Two weeks?"

Noah nodded.

"Yep."

She stared at the others.

"We're finished."

Everyone burst into laughter.

Ethan shook his head.

"We have plenty of time."

"No, we don't."

"We'll be fine."

Maya pointed at him.

"That's what people say before everything goes wrong."

Lena laughed.

"She's not wrong."

"Thank you," Maya said.

Noah looked at her.

"For once."

She glared at him.

"Don't ruin it."

---

When the night finally ended, they gathered their things.

They were tired.

They were behind.

They had argued more than they had expected.

But somehow...

They had also gotten closer.

Outside the study room, the six of them stood together.

"We should do this again," Chloe said.

Maya looked at Noah.

"Not if he's coming."

Noah laughed.

"Don't worry. I don't want to come either."

"Good."

"Good."

They stared at each other.

Then both smiled.

Lena noticed.

So did Ethan.

Jason shook his head.

"Those two are hopeless."

Everyone laughed.

As Lena walked toward the hostel with Maya and Chloe, she looked back.

Ethan was still standing with Noah and Jason.

He looked up at the same moment.

Their eyes met.

He smiled.

She smiled back.

Then she turned away.

---

That night, Lena opened her diary.

"Dear Diary,

Tonight was chaotic.

We barely got any serious work done at first.

Maya and Noah argued about everything.

But somehow, I think they're becoming friends.

They'll probably deny it if I say that.

Chloe and Jason are much easier to understand.

They're calm.

They're comfortable around each other.

And then there's Ethan.

I don't know how to explain what happens when I'm around him anymore.

He's becoming familiar.

Comfortable.

Important.

Maybe that's why I'm scared.

Because I don't think he's just a project partner anymore."

She closed the diary.

Across campus, Ethan sat at his desk.

He opened his.

"Dear Diary,

Tonight was probably the most chaotic study session I've ever had.

Noah and Maya spent half the night arguing.

But I think they actually like each other as friends now.

Lena looked happy tonight.

I like seeing her happy.

I also realized something.

I don't want our project to end.

Not because of the grade.

Because when it ends, I'll have one less reason to see her."

He paused.

Then he closed the diary.

The project had brought six students together.

But none of them knew just how much their lives were about to change because of the friendships forming between them.

And somewhere in that little group...

Feelings were beginning to grow.