Chapter 5: The Opposite of Me
Noel didn’t speak much on the way to the library. He never did. The rustling of leaves underfoot and the distant hum of students filled the silence between him and Alex like background noise in a film neither of them were watching.
Alex adjusted his glasses, glancing sideways. "You didn’t tell me you had a roommate."
"Yeah he just move in," Noel replied, expression unreadable beneath the hood pulled halfway over his head.
Alex gave a quiet laugh. "You don’t seem thrilled."
"He talks too much." Noel’s tone was flat, but there was a twitch at the corner of his mouth—almost a smirk, almost nothing at all.
They stepped into the library, the familiar scent of paper and varnished wood wrapping around them like a blanket.
Rows of shelves stood in quiet order. A few students occupied tables near the windows, heads bent, the sound of pages turning blending with the soft click of keyboards.
Noel led the way to their usual corner, back near the psychology section. It was quieter there. Undisturbed.
He dropped his bag beside the chair, movements neat to the point of over-practiced, as if precision could ward off the unpredictability of everything else.
Alex sat across from him and leaned in slightly, voice low. "So what’s he like?"
"Loud. Wears his jacket open like he’s in a photoshoot." Noel didn’t look up.