hidden | ethma

twelve

ethan eyes me from his desk, the hazel in his irises darker than usual. he chews on the end of his pen.

i focus on my work. i'm still mad at him for what he said to me last night. i suppose i may have been irritable as well, and i try to push the confrontation out of my head. i don't care what ethan thinks of me.

right?

it's two o'clock, lunch break has just ended. i ate with perla, zeke, lana and jade as usual. i settle into my desk and begin my work for the afternoon.

a piece of paper coming from lana's direction lands on my desk. i unfold it quietly.

why does dolan keep staring at you?

i look up at lana, who raises her eyebrows. i shrug and toss the paper into the trash. i honestly don't know why he's staring at me. i had been trying my best to ignore it.

a phone rings from the HR section in the office, and the quiet hum of work carries through the environment. of course, aside from ethan, who continues to chew on his pen like life depends on it.

i circle an error in my manuscript, sighing. suddenly, a loud sound emits from ethan's desk. i lift my gaze to him.

he picks up his phone from the desk, eyes scanning across the screen.

"shit," he breathes. he stands quickly, grabbing his coat and packing his things hurriedly. he doesn't give anyone a second glance as he walks into mr. greenman's office, shutting the door.

"what was that about?" i ask zeke.

zeke shrugs, not looking at me.

ethan bursts out of mr. greenman's office and out the door, obviously in a hurry. curiosity sparks inside of me. since he knows so much about me from my damn file, shouldn't i be able to find out a few things about him? i purse my lips and collect my things.

i walk into mr. greenman's office.

"afternoon, emma," he greets me.

"hello," i say. "i was wondering if i could leave early today? i have a doctor's appointment." i'm shocked at how easily the lie rolls off my tongue.

"sure, no problem."

"thank you." i turn and speed walk out of the office and into the elevator before i can psych myself out.

i step out of the elevator at the ground floor, my eyes sweeping the lobby for ethan. i see him step outside and i quickly follow, making sure i stay out of sight. if he sees me, my mini mission will fail.

he walks past the parking lot and turns down the street, rounding the corner. i walk behind other people on the sidewalk, keeping my eyes on ethan. he ducks into a small alley off the street, looking around him cautiously. i step behind a tall man talking on the phone as ethan's eyes pass where i am. once he continues walking, i hurry into the alley, stepping behind a parked car.

ethan walks up to a tall blonde man. he has multiple scars on his face, one on his chin and a jagged one across his forehead. i almost shiver at his appearance.

a boy with brown hair and dark blue eyes stands next to him, arms crossed over his chest.

ethan sticks his hands in his pockets, his expression hard.

"i got your message," he says.

"good," the scarred man says.

"i don't know what this is about, alec," ethan says. "i've been going over the numbers-"

"the numbers are down, dolan, that's what this is about," the scarred man snaps.

"i can't control what the numbers do," ethan says.

"no," the man, alec, agrees. "but you can monitor them so they don't get so low."

"i was dealing with something at crystal," ethan says. "they'll be up by next week."

"we've gone over this," alec says. "us first, crystal second. you hear?"

"it won't happen again," ethan says.

"we're losing money, and fast. if you're as smart as you say you are, you better step up your damn game," alec says.

ethan clenches his jaw. it's weird for me to see ethan actually listening to someone for a change, he's usually so defiant and disobedient. the way he looks at the ground now makes him seem so submissive.

alec and the other boy swiftly turn and start walking toward where i am. shit, this must be their car that i'm hiding behind. my heart races and i rapidly move out of the alley at lightning speed, standing on the sidewalk and pulling out my phone, pretending to have been there the whole time.

the black car pulls out into the street, speeding away.

ethan exits the alley moments later. i turn around. if he sees me, it's over.

i give it a few minutes and turn around slowly. ethan's gone. i sigh in relief and begin walking back to crystal to get to my car.

what was that whole encounter all about? why did ethan act so weird? and what are the numbers?

i hate feeling like a little nosy bitch, but curiosity bursts like fireworks in my chest.

but the way that man looked was so... serious. what if this isn't fun and games? what if this is a dangerous thing that ethan's involved with?

i finally make it back to crystal, making my way to my car. i notice ethan's is already gone.