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34 | Some Secrets Shouldn't Be Kept

Something about the way he said it sent a weird feeling crawling up my spine.

I blinked. "Wait. What?"

Sean didn't look at me.

"So, all that time, Lyla and I were helping you try to get with Jenn... and you didn't even like her?"

A muscle in his jaw twitched. His gaze flickered toward me for half a second before quickly dropping to the floor. "Yeah, I guess so." His voice was quieter now, like he was admitting something he didn't want to. "I wasn't thinking straight about it."

I just stared at him. "One second, you were all over her, acting like you couldn't shut up about her, and now... nothing?"

Sean exhaled through his nose, his shoulders stiff. "Doesn't matter anymore now."

Holy. Shit.

Lyla would lose her mind over this. She'd probably act like it was the biggest plot twist of the year.

If... everything was still normal.

Sean rubbed the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable. "I didn't mean to make it complicated, Zaira. I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I just... convinced myself it was what I wanted."

My thoughts were still catching up.

I had spent so much time helping him get together with Jenn, thinking that's what he needed. And now it turned out it wasn't even about her at all.

It was about something else. Something I hadn't realized.

"If you didn't want her," I said slowly, realization hitting harder than I expected, "then what were you doing all this time?"

Sean didn't answer.

He just shook his head.

Like the whole thing didn't matter.

And in that moment, I wasn't sure if it was because he'd finally figured something out... or if he was still too scared to face it.

Daniel groaned loudly, throwing his hands up. "Can we please stop talking about this? My brain is literally melting."

I chuckled, but a part of me couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to what Sean wasn't saying.

He'd avoided it again, just like everything else. Whatever was on his mind, it was clear he wasn't ready to face it yet.

Clearing his throat, Sean straightened up and walked over to Daniel and me, clapping his hands to break the moment. "You ready?"

"Aww, but the episode's almost over!" Daniel groaned, clearly stalling before the inevitable bath.

Sean smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Nice try." He flicked his hand toward the bathroom. "The water's hot. Come on."

Daniel rolled his eyes with dramatic flair. "Yeah, okay. I'm going..." He made it sound like the worst thing in the world as he grabbed Mushroom and dragged her along.

Just as Daniel reached the bathroom door, he froze, eyes wide with exaggerated surprise. "Oh my god! Whoa! So many bubbles!" He glanced back at Sean, a mischievous spark in his eye.

"Try to keep them in the tub," Sean said, his voice serious, clearly still haunted by the aftermath of the last bubble disaster.

"I will! Promise! Thanks!" Daniel replied, his voice dripping with mock sweetness.