Chapter 37 Aria
I had barely made it three steps onto campus the next morning before Sienna practically materialized at my side like she had been waiting for me since dawn. She looped her arm through mine so tightly I almost dropped my backpack.
“There you are,” she said, exhaling dramatically. “I was starting to think you got kidnapped again.”
“I wasn’t kidnapped the first time,” I said. “I was—”
“Dragged into the woods by a giant wolf who might also be your maybe-boyfriend?” she finished brightly. “Same energy.”
“Sienna.”
“What?” She widened her eyes innocently. “I’m just being supportive.”
Supportive was not the word I would have chosen. Hovering, maybe. Aggressively attached? Definitely. She kept dragging me forward weaving us through students like she was shielding the President of the United States rather than her mildly overwhelmed best friend.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“To your locker,” she replied, as if this were a mission. “I’m sticking with you today.”
I blinked. “Since when?”
“Since now.” She glanced around the hallway with an alertness she usually reserved for spotting cute boys or surprise quizzes. “There are weird vibes.”
“Sienna, there are always weird vibes. This is high school.”
But she was different today. Too attentive and too serious even behind the playful tone.
She leaned in closer, lowering her voice. “I just, I don’t know. I woke up and felt like you shouldn’t be alone.”
That pulled me up short.
“Sienna, you’ve never said anything like that before.”
“Well, maybe I’m evolving.” She lifted her chin proudly. “Becoming a more emotionally intelligent version of myself.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You? Emotionally intelligent?”
“Rude!” she said, elbowing me lightly but her smile didn’t reach her eyes.
We reached my locker, and Sienna positioned herself beside me like a guard dog. I tried to ignore how she kept scanning the hall, shoulders stiff, and eyes darting from face to face.
“So…” she said casually, “did anything else happen yesterday? Besides the whole ‘Luca is totally into you’ thing.”
My hand froze on my locker door. “What?”
“Oh please.” She rolled her eyes. “He basically looked at you like you were the last slice of pizza on Earth. And you looked back at him like you were ready to risk lactose intolerance.”
“I did not.”
“You did!”
I shut my locker a little too hard. She jumped but remained glued to my side.
“Sienna,” I said carefully, “are you planning on following me all day?”
“Yes.”
“That’s a lot.”
“Too bad.” She crossed her arms giving me that stubborn look she usually saved for refusing to run in PE. “You’re my best friend and something is off.”
Her conviction unsettled me more than the words themselves.
“What’s off?” I asked.
She hesitated. Sienna never hesitated. Then she said, “You’ve been acting weird. Like distracted and probably nervous. Look, I’m not judging. I just want to make sure no one’s messing with you.”
Of all things, that hit me harder than expected.
“I appreciate it,” I said quietly. “Really, but I’m fine.”
“You don’t seem fine.”
She said it gently, which was strange. Sienna wasn’t gentle. She was loud and dramatic and occasionally feral. Not barely soft. Before I could respond, Nora approached from down the hallway, waving with a shy smile.
“Morning!” she called, her voice carrying that cheerful warmth she always had.
Sienna stiffened instantly, and I felt her grip on my arm tighten.
Nora raised an eyebrow. “Everything alright?”
“Perfect!” Sienna said too quickly.
Nora looked between us. “Are you sure? You look like you’re about to tackle someone.”
Sienna didn’t answer. She just stared at Nora with an expression I couldn’t decipher—part suspicion, part protectiveness, and part something darker I had never seen on her before.
Nora’s smile faltered. “Okay, um… Aria, did you want to go over the chem notes before class? I brought my binder—”
“No!” Sienna said, abruptly.
Both Nora and I turned to her, startled.
“Sienna,” I said slowly, “what’s going on?”
She blinked, then forced a laugh. “Sorry! Sorry. I just meant you don’t need notes. You’re, like, a genius.”
Nora offered a polite smile, but confusion lingered in her eyes. “Well, if you change your mind…”
She backed away and disappeared into the crowd. As soon as she was gone, I slipped my arm out of Sienna’s grip.
“Okay,” I said. “Enough! What is happening with you?”
She crossed and uncrossed her arms defensively. “I told you. I’m looking out for you.”
“That does not explain why you were glaring at Nora like she was plotting my murder.”
Sienna’s jaw tightened. “I don’t trust her.”
“You don’t even know her!”
“I don’t need to,” she muttered.
I stared at her, trying to understand the sudden shift. Sienna had never disliked Nora. She had barely even noticed Nora existed before this week.
“Sienna,” I said gently, “And you’re sure you’re not the one acting weird?”
She looked at me for a long moment, her expression unreadable. Finally she said, “Maybe I am. But I know what I feel.”
“And what do you feel?”
She hesitated again—just a flicker—but it was enough to chill me.
“That you’re not safe,” she whispered.
I opened my mouth, but the bell rang cutting me off. Sienna grabbed my backpack strap and steered me toward class like a bodyguard.
“You’re stuck with me today,” she said. “No arguments and buts.”
“Sienna—”
“Nope!” she said, overly bright again. “Best friend rule. You gotta deal with it.”
But the uneasy knot in my stomach didn’t go away. Because for the first time since I had known her, Sienna wasn’t making jokes to lighten a moment. She was covering something up.
And I didn’t know if the danger she sensed was real or if it was coming from her.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Sienna is finally shifting from comedic best friend into something more layered, and her instincts are not random—there is something deeper at play with her. I’d love to hear what you think her behavior hints.
Keep your comments coming, my lovelies😊.