Never Just Friends

A Conflicted Chat

Hanna's POV

“Hey, Hanna!” Jacob pushed through the crowd toward me and pulled me out of the dancefloor, waving his arms dramatically. “It’s almost time for Finn to blow out the cake. Can you go grab him?”

I raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. “Where is he?”

Jacob shrugged, scanning the room. “Maybe somewhere upstairs. Probably avoiding the crowd.”

I nodded, feeling a slight pang of nervousness. The house was packed, and I wasn’t exactly in the mood to wade through all the people, but if Finn had slipped upstairs, that was where I had to go. “Alright, I’ll find him.”

I turned back to Emily and Elordi who were both dancing like crazy and said I’ll be back. But before I could go any further, Emily grabbed my arm, pulling me toward a quieter corner near the staircase.

“Where are you going?” she asked, her eyes still sparkling from the dance floor.

I nodded, smiling. “Yeah, apparently Finn’s hiding upstairs, and it’s almost cake time.”

Emily leaned against the wall, catching her breath from all the dancing. “Finn’s always running off when it gets too crowded. You know how he is.”

I shrugged, about to turn and leave, but Emily caught my arm again, her expression shifting slightly. “Actually, before you go... something weird is going on.”

I blinked. “What do you mean?”

She leaned in, lowering her voice. “Elordi. He’s... different tonight.”

“Different how?” I asked, feeling my heart start to race.

Emily’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “He’s been watching you, Hanna. I’m serious. The way he’s been looking at you, especially when Finn pulled you aside earlier... it’s like he’s jealous or something.”

I swallowed hard, the thought settling uncomfortably in my chest. Elordi? Jealous? The whole point of this ‘deal’ with Finn was to get Elordi’s attention, and it seemed like it was working. But why did it feel so... wrong now?

“I don’t know...” I started, but Emily cut me off.

“I talked to him,” she added, eyes glinting with mischief. “He said he wants to talk to you. Soon.”

My heart leapt at that. “He did?”

“Yeah,” she said, smirking. “He didn’t say what about, but trust me—he’s been noticing you. More than ever.”

That should’ve made me happy. It was what I wanted, after all. But all I could think about was the way Finn had looked at me earlier, during our dance. The way he held me, the softness in his eyes when he apologized.

I forced a smile. “I’ll talk to him... after I find Finn. Cake duty calls.”

Emily laughed. “Don’t take too long. The night’s still young.”

I nodded, but as I continued up the stairs, a sense of unease gnawed at me. Everything was getting more complicated, and I wasn’t sure how to feel about any of it.