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Kyle carried his tray, jerked his chin at the student beside me:
"Swap seats."
The student didn't argue, silently got up and left.
Kyle plopped down, slamming his tray onto the table in front of me.
"Hey, Emo Girl, gonna wear that depressed face all day?"
He poked a green pepper on his tray with a fork, but his eyes flickered to me.
"Y'know, that linebacker from the other class? Knocked one of our guy's noses bloody during practice. Yesterday after school, me and the guys cornered him. Guess what? Dude pissed his pants! Funny, right?"
He talked on, dropping a rib onto my tray.
"Try it. Lunch lady wasn't stingy today, decent meat."
I didn't touch the rib, didn't look at him.
Kyle tapped the edge of his tray with his fork.
"What's with the face? Cafeteria suck? Or just me?"
Kyle talked more, getting hoarse. My tray was empty.
I wiped my mouth, stood up, picked up my tray, and walked away.
"Hey! You're done? That rib—"
Kyle's mouth was still full, his words muffled.
I didn't look back, headed straight for the dish return.
Just as I neared the return window, a figure rose from a nearby table, following me.
Head down, back slightly hunched, shoulders drawn in, jersey still stained.
Ryan.
I could feel him behind me, keeping a careful distance—not too close, not too far.
The next second, a sneaker-clad foot shot out from behind, tripping Ryan.
Caught off guard, Ryan, lost his balance, about to sprawl face-first onto the greasy floor.
The students nearby were already starting to laugh in anticipation.
I instinctively reached out an arm, blocking him—
An instinct honed over seven resets.
I froze for a second as my hand moved.
The futility washed over me, and I pulled back.
But that hand grabbed my wrist faster.
It was cold, bony, gripping tightly.
Ryan used my slight support to steady himself.
The would-be audience groaned in disappointment.
I stared at him, stunned.
Ryan still held my wrist, looked up.
A pair of pitch-brown eyes, startlingly bright.
Hopeful.
Ryan's lips moved slightly, softly, slowly forming words.
The sound almost drowned by the noise:
"...Thank... you..."
Then Kyle rushed over, tray still half-full.
"The hell you doing?"
His gaze fixed on Ryan's hand gripping my wrist, his face darkening.
"Let go!"
Ryan didn't let go.
He stood still, unmoving, eyes locked on me.
The gaze was heavy.
"L... Lily."
His voice was low, raspy, trembling.
"I... I think I remember... a lot."
"In the future... we have... a baby, right?"
