Unseen Connections

The following week passed in a whirlwind of regular school activities—math assignments, lunchroom gossip, and a string of questionable Instagram posts that Ava seemed to find both hilarious and mildly concerning. It was business as usual for most of the class, but there was something different in the air now. Beatrice, for the first time in a long while, found herself at the center of some very strange attention.

It wasn’t so much that she wanted this attention, or that she particularly cared for it—it was more that she couldn’t exactly avoid it anymore. Everywhere she went, someone was whispering about the debate. J.C. had been a topic of conversation for days, and now, Beatrice was officially the one to watch.

“Did you hear about Beatrice? She totally shut J.C. down last week in front of everyone!” one girl from the class whispered loudly in the hallway as Beatrice passed by.

“Isn’t she, like, always so quiet? I didn’t know she had that in her,” another voice piped up.

Beatrice barely flinched. She wasn’t the type to care about school gossip. She was the silent observer—the one who preferred to stay under the radar. It’s just how she worked. But lately, it felt like the radar was turned up to full blast, and no matter how much she tried to fade into the background, she kept getting pulled back into the spotlight.

She was making her way to the library after school to meet Lilith, who had convinced her to join her for a “quiet afternoon of homework.” Beatrice had immediately suspected this was code for “let’s get snacks and complain about life,” but she didn’t mind. Lilith’s company was one of the few things that could reliably make the school day bearable.

As she walked down the hallway toward the library, she saw a very unexpected figure standing in front of the door.

Ava Silva.

Beatrice stopped mid-step, caught off guard by the sight of her. Ava was leaning against the wall, casually scrolling through her phone as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Beatrice paused, her heart doing a strange little flip in her chest. Ava had been... persistent lately, but Beatrice never thought she’d find her at the library.

Ava, however, seemed to notice Beatrice standing there before she even had the chance to slip away. She pushed herself off the wall with a grin. “Hey, Bea! Fancy running into you here.”

Beatrice gave her a slight wave, trying to act as nonchalant as possible, but she couldn’t help the way her voice came out a little more unsure than she intended. “Uh... hey, Ava. What are you doing here?”

Ava held up a stack of textbooks, almost like a trophy. “Math. Social science. And—wait for it—geometry. You know, just the typical amount of homework every perfect student needs to do.”

She gave Beatrice a wink, and Beatrice raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like a ton of fun.”

“Totally,” Ava said with exaggerated enthusiasm. “But, like, I can’t do it alone. So, uh... I was wondering, since we’re both in the same boat, maybe you’d like to help me out? You know, study together?”

Beatrice blinked. Study together?

This was... unexpected. Was she really trying to recruit her as a study partner?

Beatrice’s instinct was to say no, to keep things low-key, to avoid spending more time with someone who—let’s be honest—was a walking disaster waiting to happen. But then she remembered that she had always been good at math. Really good. And as much as she hated to admit it, it was almost impossible to ignore the fact that Ava had a way of making everything seem so easy. So fun.

She sighed, trying to keep her composure. “Okay, fine. But only because I really don’t want to do this alone either.”

Ava’s eyes lit up, and Beatrice had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. “Sweet! Let’s get started.” She dramatically opened the door to the library and walked inside, leading the way to an empty table in the back corner.

Lilith, who was already sitting at a table with a snack bag in front of her, raised an eyebrow as Beatrice sat down across from Ava. “You two teaming up for world domination now?” she asked, voice dripping with sarcasm.

Beatrice sighed. “Just trying to get through the homework without wanting to die.”

Lilith threw her hands up in mock surrender. “Alright, alright, I’m not one to interrupt your studiousness.” She smirked, taking a large bite of a granola bar.

Beatrice glanced at Ava, who was already unpacking her textbooks and notebooks with a kind of precision that seemed almost unnecessary. “So,” Ava started, flipping through her math book. “Do you, like, have a strategy for this stuff? I’m... okay with numbers. But the equations sometimes, you know... they just look at me like I’m stupid.”

Beatrice suppressed a laugh, biting her lip. “You’re not stupid, Ava. You’re just overthinking everything. Just break it down step by step. Like this.” She leaned over and grabbed the notebook from Ava’s hand, quickly scribbling out a couple of equations. “See? It’s just basic algebra.”

Ava stared at Beatrice’s neat handwriting, her brow furrowing slightly as she tried to keep up. “Right, right. That makes sense. But like... why does math always feel like it’s in another language?”

“It’s called ‘math language,’ Ava. You’ll learn to speak it.” Beatrice’s voice was dry, but the hint of a smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Ava wasn’t the worst person to study with. In fact, she was almost fun.

Ava leaned back in her chair, completely undeterred by Beatrice’s quiet teasing. “Okay, but for real. You’re, like, so good at this. I feel like I need to get on your level.” She raised an eyebrow. “Can I borrow some of your genius?”

Beatrice shot her a deadpan look. “You’re not getting off that easily.”

Ava just laughed, clearly enjoying herself. “Alright, alright. I’ll just settle for being your study buddy for now.”

They continued working through the problems, Ava occasionally breaking the silence with some offhand comment about the next question, or her utterly random thoughts about the weirdness of high school life. Beatrice, surprisingly, didn’t mind. Ava’s chatter was far more tolerable when they weren’t surrounded by a hundred people, and Beatrice was realizing that maybe—just maybe—she could get used to this.

Meanwhile, across the table, Lilith was quietly observing, a smug smile creeping across her face as she ate her snacks.

“I see you two are getting cozy,” she murmured to Beatrice. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed.”

Beatrice shot her a glare. “Shut up.”

The following week, it became clear that things between Ava and Beatrice had shifted, though neither of them would outright admit it. The school had a strange way of making things obvious to everyone except the people who were actually involved.

For the first time in weeks, Beatrice found herself walking into the cafeteria and not immediately searching for an empty corner table. Her eyes instinctively scanned the room, but instead of heading to her usual spot, she found herself looking for… someone else.

Ava.

It wasn’t that Beatrice had developed a full-on crush or anything—god, no. But after that impromptu study session in the library, there was something about Ava that wasn’t as obnoxious as she’d originally thought. Sure, she was still loud, overly enthusiastic, and kind of relentless—but there was also something charming about the way Ava could make everything feel lighter. And, as much as Beatrice hated to admit it, she didn’t mind the attention.

“Beatrice! Over here!”

Beatrice’s head snapped to the side, and she saw Ava waving enthusiastically from the far end of the cafeteria, her usual group of friends around her. Chanel was rolling her eyes, while Camila seemed too deep in conversation with someone on her phone to notice the loud attention-seeking that was happening.

Beatrice hesitated. She did have the option to go sit by herself—she’d done it every day since she’d been in high school. But for some reason, this time, the idea of sitting with Ava and her friends didn’t seem as bad. Maybe it was because Ava had become… well, tolerable. Maybe it was because Beatrice had actually started to kind of like the girl. Or maybe, just maybe, Beatrice was tired of hiding in corners.

She walked over, reluctantly taking a seat at the edge of their table.

“Look who’s gracing us with her presence,” Chanel said with a teasing grin, her voice as dry as ever. “Bea, right? Don’t think we’ve formally introduced ourselves.”

Beatrice raised an eyebrow. “You know my name, Chanel.”

“Oh, right,” Chanel said dramatically, putting her hand on her chest as if wounded. “Of course, I do. But what I meant was, we need to get to know you. You’ve been, like, missing from the social scene.” She leaned back in her chair. “So, tell us: what’s your deal?”

Beatrice shrugged, trying to act aloof, but her curiosity piqued. “I don’t really have a ‘deal.’ I’m just here to eat my lunch and avoid drama.”

Ava, sitting next to her, grinned. “Same. But honestly, Bea—don’t let Chanel scare you. She’s all talk. She’s secretly a softie.”

Beatrice glanced at Chanel, who was pretending to look offended. “Is that true?” Beatrice asked, smirking.

“Of course not,” Chanel said with a dramatic eye roll. “You don’t want to know what happens when I get serious. Just ask Camila.” She pointed across the table to where Camila was eating her lunch while looking at her phone. Camila gave a small wave, clearly uninterested in joining the conversation.

Beatrice didn’t mind. She was already feeling a little out of place, but it wasn’t as awful as she thought. Ava was surprisingly easy to talk to, and the whole lunch table atmosphere, which would have been overwhelming for most, seemed oddly comfortable.

“You know, you’re not so bad to hang out with,” Ava said, giving Beatrice a sidelong glance. “I thought you’d be way more… mysterious.” She shrugged. “But you’re like, cool. Chill.”

Beatrice glanced at her with a raised eyebrow. “Thanks? I think?”

Ava laughed. “I mean, you’re not that weird. You’ve got that low-key, like, ‘I don’t care about school politics’ vibe going on. I respect that.” She paused. “Also, I think I made you laugh once. That’s a pretty big deal. No one laughs at my jokes. Like, ever.”

Beatrice snorted despite herself. “Yeah, that was a solid dad joke you pulled on me. I was laughing for sure.”

Ava looked mock-hurt. “Hey, I thought it was funny! I’ll have you know my sense of humor is very much underappreciated around here.”

Beatrice smiled a little, shaking her head. “Uh-huh. Sure.”

Just then, J.C. entered the cafeteria, his usual smug expression in place. He walked over to their table and, of course, dropped his gaze on Beatrice immediately.

“Hey, Beatrice,” J.C. said in a too-casual voice. “How’s life after getting your moment of fame?”

Ava, sensing tension immediately, shot J.C. a look. “Leave her alone, J.C. She doesn’t need your ‘congratulations.’”

J.C. ignored Ava, clearly intent on poking Beatrice for whatever reason. “What’s it like, being the girl who shut me down in front of the whole class? I bet you’re just loving the attention, huh?”

Beatrice just looked at him, unamused. “I’m sorry, do you think this is still the debate? Because last time I checked, this is the cafeteria, and you’re kind of cramping my vibe.”

Ava tried to stifle a laugh, but Chanel snorted. J.C. clearly wasn’t expecting this response, and for a second, he stood there, dumbfounded.

“Yeah, that’s right,” Beatrice added, leaning back in her chair. “You’re cramping the vibe, J.C. And nobody likes a vibe-crusher.”

J.C.’s jaw tightened, but Beatrice could see the edge of a grin threatening at the corner of his mouth. He was too proud to admit defeat, but even he couldn’t help the tiny flicker of respect that flashed across his eyes.

“Alright, alright. I’ll let you get back to your lunch,” he said, turning away with a half-smirk.

As soon as J.C. was gone, Chanel burst out laughing. “Beatrice, you are honestly my new favorite person. Like, that was amazing.”

Ava leaned in with a mischievous grin. “Bea, I think you might’ve just stolen my spotlight. We might have to renegotiate who’s in charge of shutting down people around here.”

Beatrice rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at her lips. This wasn’t as bad as she thought. In fact, it was kind of… fun.