There was something soothing in the way one could bend and shape clay so easily. It was easy to mess up, but it was simple to start from the beginning. Anything could be made from it if patience wasn't lacking.

The creative side of it, rarely found in Alice's lessons, was her favourite part. She had been taught a thousand different ways to do vases and plates, but she preferred to let her hands lead the process, creating something spontaneous.

"That's not what I asked you to do," her teacher noted, passing by.

"Mmm." Alice nodded, keeping her eyes on her project. The woman sighed, used to it, and left her.

She recalled hearing something about a tall vase, but in her hands was the beginning of a figurine. Some details were already in motion as she had stolen a toothpick and was using it to carve them, but it was far from finished.

"Are you getting it?" she asked, not bothering to look at the disgrace that was Giovanni di Pietro.

He was by her side, struggling with the clay. It had taken a lot to persuade him to join her, but he had come. It might've been the fact that she banged on his door until he joined her, but he was still there. His face was smudged, getting dirtier and dirtier every time he wiped his sweaty forehead with the back of his hand.

"Totally," he answered, "If the assignment was to make a mountain, I'm the best of the class."

She stopped to look at him. His glasses had slipped to the tip of his nose and the place where the frame connected both lenses was brown and sticky. He was a mess, and she was trying not to laugh at his state.

"You look adorable."

He scrunched his nose, trying to force the clay into the shape he wanted. It was another failed attempt, but he refused to give up.

"Let me help," she giggled and sat in front of him, abandoning her project. Her hands guided his, and though he offered resistance at first, they made a hole in his mountain.

"That is... progress. That is progress," he said, nodding to himself.

She giggled and kept helping him, moving his fingers up and down, at different angles, until a small pot took shape. He stared in awe as she pulled their hands away and stopped the spinning wheel.

"That is magic. It has to be magic."

She shook her head and went back to her seat, grabbing her figurine once more. He turned to her, wiping his hands on the grey apron that didn't save his shirt. That was probably his cue to clean himself, but he kept still.

"So, when are you moving?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," she muttered. "Dad said he would get me an apartment, but I haven't heard from him since that dinner."

Giovanni had heard all her complaints about it and how her sister left at the beginning of the dinner, how she was being so sceptical. He was quite grateful that she was getting her own flat, since now he had a place to stay when Jaime and his boyfriend were in his dorm.

"Do you think he saw through your scheme?"

She shook her head. "Please, he'll do anything to make up for the lost time. Nicole will be so proud of me."

It wouldn't have surprised him if she said it was all her friend's idea. Alice always portrayed her as a cunning, fiery person. He didn't exactly doubt it, but he held a dear memory of her in his mind. It was easier to think she was more complex than that.

"You haven't told her?"

"Nope," she said, popping the P. "She's been busy at work and with school. And there's the Andy thing."

He frowned. That one was new. "The Andy thing?"

Alice only saw her friend in French class nowadays, but she could still talk to her for a bit. Especially now that he was no longer there. It hurt her a bit at first; she had planned to rebound in that time, but maybe it was for the best.

"He is mad at her. Like real mad."

"Why?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. She wasn't in the mood to share, but to be honest, she never is."

He spun his chair slowly to the right, shoving it to the right again with an impulse of his feet. It kept spinning in silence for a bit, and then he had to push it again. The lights on the ceiling blinded his eyes and soon he felt sick. His feet hit the ground, and he stopped, staring at her.

"Why not?"

"Because she doesn't enjoy talking about herself anymore. And don't ask why. I would tell you if I knew."

She laid the figurine back on the wheel, and clapped her hands together, assessing his state. He looked like he had just come from a mud bath. Even his sandy hair was glued with the brown paste in some spots.

"Why don't we go have lunch, leave them cooking this up, and come back later to paint?" she offered. "You need to take a shower, though."

He looked down, at his dirty trousers and shoes, and blushed. "Yeah, you're right. Just help me untie the apron, okay?"

She got up and pulled the strings undone, taking it off him and hanging it along with hers. They washed their hands and his face, getting as clean as possible before leaving.

"Do we have lunch at The Bookmark?" he asked, offering her his arm. She took it, guiding him outside.

"Why not? It's close to your place."

🖤🤍🖤

Juliana was sobbing on the sofa, hugging her knees, and rocking back and forth as if that would help her. Jenny sat opposite her, in a chair she pulled from the kitchen table. She was expressionless, a blank stare digging into Juliana.

"You talked to her almost a week ago. Why are you only asking now?"

Jenny shrugged. At first, she was trying to make some sense of the new information. What Nicole told her made her realize that Ana's story didn't add up. Then, she could never find a moment to talk to her roommate. Either there was someone else around or she was out working until late. Five days had passed, and they still hadn't talked.

"No reason." She leaned forward, resting her chin in her hands. "I was friends with him, you know? Before I sided with your fairy tale. So, it's best if you explain exactly why you had to lie."

The girl scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Friends. Right. You were just next on the list of girls in his bed. And I bet you wouldn't have minded it."

The brunette kept quiet. That was not how she remembered, but it didn't matter. She wanted to know the actual story, the real reason Juliana kept the lie for so long.

"Don't look at me like that." Ana rolled her eyes. "I was drunk, okay? And so was he. I thought he would fall in love with me eventually, and if he didn't, I could just give him what he wanted. But I wasn't a girl on the list."

Silence fell on them, only the sound of the kitchen's leaking tap filling the room. Jenny's eyes fell on the carpet. She should've been with her to assure nothing happened. She should've taken care of her. Ana wasn't prepared to deal with men like Miguel.

"You lied because he didn't sleep with you?"

The girl threw a pillow at the floor. Jenny frowned. "It was a humiliation! He kept giving me drinks and talking to Nicole about how hot some blonde in a hooker's dress was. He didn't even talk to me once, only to that bitch. I bet he slept with her, too." Her hands were wild, gesticulating around as she paced back and forth in the room. "And when she left with some random guy, I thought he would talk to me, so I made a move. I- The thing is, he didn't like it. He made a scandal about it and called me awful things because I thought he was joking at first and ignored it. And I was so ashamed... I couldn't tell you what happened when you asked."

"Juliana-"

"I'm sorry, okay? You put a target on his back the next day, so I couldn't tell you what happened. I was afraid you would be mad at me."

She stopped and sunk back into the sofa, hiding her tear-stained face. Jenny only sighed, cleaning her glasses on the fabric of her t-shirt as Juliana started sobbing all over again. It was getting harder to know if those were true tears or not.

"Get your shoes," she demanded, getting up and putting the chair back in place.

Her roommate eyed her with a frown. "Why? Where are we going?"

"To the car shop. You're going to apologise to Miguel."

The blood was drained off her face. Jenny would have thought it was funny to see her paralysed like that on any other occasion, but this wasn't one of those. She had lost a friendship, and she didn't know how to get it back. She didn't even know if she wanted it back.

We just reached 1K guys! Well, actually I think it was in the last chapter but who cares. Thank you so much! Y'all are so great!

Also, guess who won 3rd place in the Savant May Awards? Yupe, it was me.

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