Chapter 53 Something Was Off
Mia's POV
"Good morning," I greeted softly as I slid into the passenger seat, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "Is everything okay?"
Liam didn't respond right away. His fingers drummed once against the steering wheel before he turned to look at me, offering a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Yeah," he said after a beat. "I'm fine. My parents are back in the country."
I blinked. "Oh." Then, more gently, "Aren't you happy about that?"
He gave a noncommittal shrug, eyes flickering toward the windshield as if the road might offer a distraction. "I should be."
"But you're not," I said, tilting my head slightly as I studied him. "You look... I don't know. Sad. Or like something's bothering you."
"It's nothing to worry about," he said finally, forcing another smile. "I just wanted to spend more time with you, that's all. But now that my dad's back, there's stuff I'll have to take care of. I might need to be home early most days. And... I might not be able to drive you to the restaurant for your shift."
My smile faltered for a heartbeat, but I recovered quickly. "Liam, I've been riding buses and public transport. I'll be okay. Don't stress about it."
He reached for my hand and slid his fingers between mine, holding on like it was the only thing grounding him to the moment.
I glanced down at our joined hands, then up at him, my heart doing that annoying flutter again. For a second, everything felt normal.
But something in his touch gave him away. It wasn't just a goodbye for the day kind of touch, it was the kind that lingered, hesitant and heavy, like he was holding onto me while he still could.
And I felt something was off.
I could sense it in the way his thumb rubbed slowly across the back of my hand, in the way his silence filled the car like fog. But I didn't ask. I was afraid that if I pressed, I'd hear something I wasn't ready to know. So I said nothing.
I smiled instead, leaned back in my seat, and let him hold my hand all the way to school. Pretending, just for a little while longer, that nothing had changed.
Even if the weight in his silence told me it already had.
"Can you not work later?" Liam asked softly the moment we settled into our usual seats by the window. The classroom was still mostly empty, sunlight spilling through the glass and casting golden streaks across the floor. I loved mornings like this, quiet, undisturbed, with just enough time to breathe.
I turned to him, a bit surprised by the question.
His eyes were already on me, hopeful yet calm, the way they always were when he was trying not to ask for too much.
My heart gave a little flutter.
"I don't know," I said, arching a playful brow. "That depends... may I know why?"
I tried to sound sweet, teasing, even, but the truth was, any time Liam asked me to stay, my heart betrayed me every time.
Liam leaned a little closer, lowering his voice. "Because I want to take my girlfriend on a proper date, and I want to be alone with you." He whispered.
I blinked. For a second, my thoughts scrambled.
He looked so earnest. So boyish in that moment, even though he carried the weight of a name and legacy most boys our age couldn't even comprehend.
I smiled, my voice soft now. "You make it sound hard to say no."
"Is that a yes?" he asked, that familiar smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
"I can't stay long," I warned gently, "but I can try. I need to be at the restaurant by seven."
"I know," he said with a nod. "We'll make the most of the time we get."
Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he took my hand beneath the desk and lifted it to his lips. His kiss landed on my knuckles, soft, completely unexpected.
The way he looked at me afterward made my stomach twist with a thousand butterflies. I looked away, trying to hide the blush rising to my cheeks.
And in that quiet moment before the classroom began to fill, I allowed myself to forget every ache, every cruel whisper, every part time shift waiting for me later.
Because right now, I was just a girl with a boy who wanted to take me on a date.
The bell hadn't even rung when the door to the classroom burst open. All heads turned.
And there she was, Chloe, with her perfect glossy waves, glittering phone in hand, and a triumphant smile painted across her face like victory itself.
"Guess what, everyone?" Chloe sang loudly as she walked into the room like she owned it. "Your new Juliet has officially arrived!"
The whole class reacted. Some students looked surprised. A few clapped half-heartedly. Others just stared.
I froze in my seat.
Chloe lifted her phone in the air, showing everyone an email from the theater department. "Official casting results, straight from the director. Juliet, me. You're welcome."
Then she slowly spun around, acting like she was already on stage, waiting for people to praise her.
Liam's jaw tightened. He hadn't even looked up when she entered, but now he slowly raised his head and stared directly at Chloe.
His face changed. The warmth and softness he usually showed me disappeared. Now he looked calm, cold, and dangerous.
Chloe didn't care. She walked closer to the front of the room, moving like she wanted everyone to look at her. "Oh, and guess who's playing Romeo?" she said, fluttering her lashes even though nobody asked. "Liam Alcaraz. And I knew it was fate."
My chest tightened. I saw Liam's pen snap in his grip.
He still didn't speak. But his eyes stayed locked on Chloe.
Chloe finally turned to him with a smile that looked sweet but felt sharp.
"You ready to die for me on stage, Romeo?"
I reached for my bag, trying to distract myself. But Liam spoke first, his voice low and firm.
"I didn't audition for Juliet and Romeo," he said coldly. "I auditioned because I was supposed to be Romeo to Mia's Juliet. But someone locked her in the restroom and made sure she never got to audition."
The entire room went silent.
Chloe's smile shook for a moment, but she forced it back. "Oh? Too bad she didn't get the part then, huh?"
My cheeks burned, and I tried not to shrink into my seat. But Liam didn't even look at me. He kept staring at Chloe.
"It won't change who I want to share the stage with," he said calmly.
Chloe's gaze flicked to me, just for a second. Her eyes narrowed. "Well, I guess we'll see who belongs up there when the curtain rises."
Then she turned, walked to her seat, and crossed her legs like she'd won.
I looked down at my hands. But beneath the desk, Liam reached over and touched mine, just once, a brief squeeze.
"Hey," Liam said, catching up to me in the empty hallway after class. His voice was low, urgent. "I can talk to the committee. About the play. I'll tell them what happened."
I shook my head immediately, forcing a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. "Don't, Liam."
He stepped closer. "But it's not fair. You didn't even get to audition..."
"I wasn't there." I looked away, swallowing hard. "Chloe got the part fairly. She showed up. She read the lines. She'll be your Juliet."
My voice cracked on the last word, just enough to make Liam wince.
"We both know that's not what happened," he muttered, anger flaring in his chest. "Chloe made sure you didn't show up. She's the reason you were locked in the restroom."
My jaw tensed. "We don't have proof. We can't go around accusing her without it."
"So what?" he snapped. "We let her get away with everything again? She's manipulating the whole school, Mia."
"I'm not asking you to fight my battles," I said, quieter this time. "Let her have it. Let her be Juliet. It's just a role."
Liam stared at me. "That's not why I'm upset."
Silence stretched between us.
"This is why I'm falling for you," he whispered.
My breath caught. And before I could respond, before I could think of anything to say that wouldn't unravel me completely, he leaned in and kissed me.
I stood still, heart thundering, lips trembling against his, because this moment, this kiss, was real. Not a scene on stage. Not scripted. And I'd rather have this version of Romeo, even if I wasn't the one onstage wearing Juliet's dress.
Later that afternoon, after the final period...
"You ready?" Liam asked, waiting for me just outside my classroom, that boyish grin lighting up his face.
I smiled back, my chest aching in all the right and wrong ways. "Yeah... I've been thinking about this date all day."
"Me too." He took my hand gently, lacing his fingers with mine.