Chapter 3 Matching Dresses, Hidden Desire

There, at a table near the back, were Elena and Lucy. They were engaged in a conversation that Ella didn't quite catch, but it filled the space with wonderful warm sounds. Elena's face lit up when she saw Ella, and Lucy waved her over with a sort of excitement that was hard to ignore. "You!" Lucy grinned. "I thought you had gotten lost or something. We were waiting for you.

" Ella grinned as she strolled over to them. "I got caught up in something," she said, still beaming. "But I'm here now." Elena raised an eyebrow. "Caught up in what?" she asked, clearly intrigued. Ella felt her pulse quickening. She wanted to tell Elena everything that had happened with Liam, but something inside her held her back. She wanted to share with her sister not just the facts of the case but her feelings too: how upset she was, how clouded her mind had felt, and how she was still reeling from the way things had ended. But she just couldn't let her know yet.

Now-when she was still uncertain of the way forward-was not the time to get her sister involved."Just... things," Ella said vaguely, settling into a chair next to Elena. Lucy appeared not to have noticed any hesitation. "I've got tons of gossip; you guys won't believe this!" she said, the glint in her eye as mischievous as ever. "But first, you have to tell me-what's going on with you two?" Elena and Ella looked at each other.

"What do you mean?" innocently asked Elena, leaning forward. "Oh, don't act like you don't know," Lucy teased. "I saw the way Liam was looking at Ella earlier. You know, I thought he was totally checking her out. Do you think something's going on between them?"

Mentioning Liam's name sent Ella's heart into a frenzy. Ella tried to keep her face neutral. Inside her, though, a storm of what-ifs and emotions battled for dominance. Liam was a name to be careful with. Ella wasn't ready to explain anything to anyone, especially not to Elena and Lucy.

How could she explain what had happened in the hallway with him? What could she say that would be truthful and not too revealing? She just shrugged. "Maybe," she said, all casual. "But I don't know. It's complicated." Elena, the curious one, leaned in closer, her voice a soft whisper of curiosity. "What's so complicated about it?" Ella tried to hold herself together as she swallowed. "I don't know," she whispered. "It's just... a lot to work out."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "Okay, we will drop it; Ella clearly wanted to drop it," she said. Ella didn't know what to say. Her friends had been supportive of her, of course, but everything with Liam was so much more complicated than that. There was more to it than a mere crush. Things were going on-things to which she had little or no control-and she honestly didn't know if she was ready to go deeper into all of that yet. The convo then changed to other subjects, and while Ella was engaged, her eyes glanced  Back at her phone, his face came back into her thoughts.

What was he thinking? Did he have the same feelings about it that she did? There was an ominous thrill to it; she felt like she was balanced on a precipice. But for now, all she could do was wait and see where it led. Perhaps this was only the first step.

The library was full of students now, but Ella was disconnected. Her thoughts were straying from Liam. She was packing up and standing when she realized something very important was missing.Ohcrap! Where's Layla? Ella asked, noticing that her best friend wasn't at the usual study table. She glanced around, scanning the room., I haven't seen her today, Elena said, turning pages in her notebook absentmindedly. Perhaps she's feeling unwell or something.

Ella suddenly frowned, a pang of guilt pricking at her heart. Layla didn't come to school today? That's really strange.Elena raised her gaze and arched an eyebrow. Seriously, you forgot? Tomorrow is her birthday. Ella was frozen by shock and realization. "Oh no, how could I have forgotten so badly?" She poked her forehead softly. "She'll be furious with me for sure."

Elena said in a light tone but with a hint of worry, Seriously, we need to make this up to her. Ella looked at her twin. Shoot, I've completely lost track of time. We need to find her a gift. We should also buy matching dresses for the party. Ella's eyes widened as she remembered all the days Layla had spent planning this. She really told me the theme? We need to wear outfits that match.

Elena nodded, a playful smile crossing her lips. "Of course. We're wearing the same dress, like always. You know Layla, she loves that."

Ella laughed, trying to brush off her anxiety. "Right, right. Matching dresses. Of course. But I still can't believe I forgot. Let's hurry and get to the store before it gets too late. She glanced at her phone, seeing the time ticking by. We can't afford to be late. Mom will definitely be angry if we're not home on time.

Elena grinned. "Yeah, we've gotta move fast. I'm already thinking of the perfect dress."

Ella grabbed her bag. Okay, let's go. And we'll get something amazing for Layla. I'm sure she'll forgive me once she sees how hard we worked on it. With that, the two of them left the library in a hurry, parting ways with Lucy as they headed out to find the perfect gift and dresses for the night. It was going to be a race against time, but Ella couldn't shake the nagging feeling in her chest. The party was tomorrow, and there was no room for mistakes.