"Mira, who's your friend?"
The voice came from behind her, smooth and casual, with an undercurrent of something that made Bella's skin prickle.
She turned.
Three guys stood in the hallway, leaning against the lockers like they had nowhere else to be. The one in the middle was handsome. Sharp jaw, perfectly messy dark hair, eyes that held a lazy confidence. His friends flanked him like accessories, smirking, watching.
Mira's face lit up. Her whole posture changed. Shoulders back, chin up, a breathless quality to her voice that Bella had never heard before.
"Noah! Hi," Mira said, her words tumbling out too fast.
Noah smiled at her, but his eyes slid past her face, past her glasses, past her eager expression, and landed on Bella.
"Just h-elping a n-ew stu-dent. I mean-- she is my friend," Mira said, stammering slightly, gesturing toward Bella. "This is Isabella. She just started yesterday."
