Kyle It's late and the few people left are wasted already, smoking outside on the balcony. The light's dim and someone's put quiet music on Max's vintage record player. Jeremy's spread himself out on the big sofa in the living room, head on the backrest, his dark clothes in total contrast with the colorful furniture. I've noticed he assumes the posture whenever he's tense or uncomfortable, it's like a challenge where he says, "Here I am, come at me." He's still here for some reason, even though his friends left already; I mean even Nathan's not here, although they don't seem to be hanging out much. Now that I think of it, I've never seen them together at school and they don't even come together. Nate usually drives and I think Jeremy rides the bus, which I thought strange at first, but I guess they have their reasons. I wanted to talk to him and never got the chance, so it's a " now or never" situation, kind of. I approach and sit close to him. He flinches but doesn't open his eyes.

EvaI'm sitting by myself, finishing my lunch in the cafeteria. It's almost empty as most students have left already. I'm in no hurry - I'd rather be anywhere else but home, so I'm reading manga on my phone when I hear Nathan's voice coming from somewhere suspiciously close."Woah, are you going to eat all that?" I look up startled and see him standing right in front of my table, looking at my plate. "Um..." I'm chewing and the taste of the chocolate rapidly grows sour in my mouth. I look back down at my plate to see all that's in there- brown pieces of cake scattered all over, crumbs and fudge over the plastic dish. How many pieces are even in there? It looks like a pig's bowl. It's disgusting. I am disgusting. I push the plate away, wishing I could throw up all I've already devoured and empty myself from the heavy food in there, then turn my insides out and rinse them out. "No, I just ..." I lean back in my chair and bite my thumb. "No, I'm done." "Cool, I was wondering if you'r

KyleWhen I find him in the library, he's arguing with Eva bout something. Okay, maybe they aren't arguing, it’s more like she's pissed about something."No, take them. They were in my bag and I don't want them. " Jeremy looks at the handful of single-wrapped chocolates in her hand suspiciously."But those are your favorite." "I'll just throw them away, then. " Eva gets up, but Jeremy grabs her by the elbow and stops her. "Okay, okay. Fine, wow. I don't know what's up with you recently." "Nothing's up, I just don't want this stuff."I approach and they both pause and look at me. "Can I talk to you for a second?" I turn to Jeremy directly. He doesn't reply, so Eva squints her eyes and points a finger at me."If you're going to pick up a fight with him, be careful - you may think you're big, but you stand no chance against his black magic." Jeremy turns to her, surprised “Are you sure you're okay? "She does seem a bit off, although I can't point exactly how. It's like she slurs he

Eva"Get dressed.""What?""Just get dressed, we're going somewhere.""Where?""I'll be waiting outside in 30."It's a Friday night and we'll probably go hang out with the others. I type a message to Chris, but she doesn't reply. She's been back with Jared again and she doesn't have much time for me. I have no clue where we're going, so I opt for jeans and the new black-laced tank top I got the other day. I hid it from my mother because I didn't want to have to explain why I'd bought something I can't wear at school. I put some makeup on- I've recently started wearing it and I think I'm getting better at the whole eyeliner thing. My mother's out, still working, and I make a quick search in the kitchen. I know she keeps a bottle in the big soup pot and yes- I'm lucky, it's there. I take a few shots, the liquid burning my throat. It’s okay, it just takes a bit of time to get used to; besides it's the cheapest one out there. He's waiting for me in his car exactly when he said he'd be t

EvaI get home by the time it’s 2 pm. Damn it. Kind of. Because I can’t bring myself to be upset about it. I am just trying to prepare for the nagging I guess it’s coming. Unless my mom’s sleeping. And she isn’t. She’s sitting at the kitchen table, smoking. I pause, and she doesn’t look up once I’m standing at the entrance door. “Hey, Mom?”My mother then looks up, as if she is surprised to see me. Maybe she is. “Eva. ““Uhh, are you all right?”“Yes, I am all right. How was it with Chris?”“Chris?”Right, I’d told her I was going to be with Chris, right. “It was...it was okay. We talked, saw a movie; you know. The usual stuff.”She smiles. “It’s a good thing you go out now more often. It was about time; you’re turning eighteen soon. I was starting to get worried you don’t spend much time with people your age and…”“Yeah, “I interrupt. Half annoyed, half guilty. “Okay. I’ll be upstairs. “I head up to my room, trying not to think about the lie I had just told her. Besides, it doe