Chapter 2

Hal and Maddie finally came back half an hour later, laughing and joking around.

“Here you go, True. I got bored waiting for Shorty, so I got some fruit at the dining cart.”

I dropped my gaze. It was a container of pre-cut watermelon.

Maddie’s favorite.

Watermelon never agreed with me.

When I didn’t reach for the fruit, Hal practically shoved the container into my hands.

“Come on. Dig in. Then get some sleep up top.”

Hal nudged me toward the upper bunk.

Maddie settled herself on the lower bunk belonging to me and beckoned Hal over.

“Hurry up and log on. We’ll be going through a tunnel soon, and the signal’s going to drop. We won’t be able to play once we’re in there.”

I watched the pair sit across from each other with their phones held up to their faces.

Disappointment washed over me.

“I said I’m not switching.

“If you’re that concerned about Maddie getting to the top bunk, you can always trade yours with hers.”

I didn’t raise my voice.

However, the message got out loud and clear. The pair put down their phones and turned their attention to me.

“Don’t be mad, True.”

Maddie peered at Hal before uttering, with a forced smile, “Hal’s six-foot-three. The top bunk would be so uncomfortable for him. I’ll take the top.”

Even so, Maddie didn’t so much as budge.

If anything, Hal felt more sorry for her.

“Stay where you are, Maddie.”

Hal looked at me with a frown.

“True, Maddie is unwell, so it will be a struggle for her to get up and down. I’m too tall. I can’t even straighten my back up there. You’re the only one who fits comfortably in the upper bunk.

“Be reasonable for once and get up already.

“You’re just ruining the mood for everyone.”

This had been Hal’s go-to excuse.

On our rafting trip, he’d claimed Maddie’s white outfit would get dirty, so he’d handed me the grimy life jacket instead.

When we took the subway, he’d said Maddie was too short to hold on to the overhead straps comfortably, so the only available seat had been reserved for her.

Each time, I had to put up with the unfairness.

With that in mind, my eyes stung, and my voice was louder than before.

“I’m not switching.”

I walked up to Maddie to pull her up.

Before I could even reach for her, Hal pushed me off my feet, and I hit the ground hard.

“True!”

A flicker of regret crossed Hal’s eyes.

Just as he was about to help me up, the train conductor approached.

“What’s going on here?

“I could hear all your shouting from halfway down the carriage.”

Hal shot me a warning look, then smiled embarrassedly at the conductor.

“My girlfriend missed out on the bottom bunk, so she was pouting to me about the top bunk.”

Maddie jumped to her feet and chimed in.

“Fine, True. You can have my bottom bunk. Now, get up from the floor.”

Clearly, this wasn’t the conductor’s first rodeo.

Not blaming me one bit, he smiled helplessly.

“It’s not a big issue. Get up off the floor, young lady. I’ll help you check if there are available tickets for bottom bunks.”

Despite the conductor’s gentle tone, my cheeks burned with embarrassment.

Overwhelmed with emotions, I jabbed my finger at Maddie and shouted, “She stole my bunk at the bottom!”

Hal grimaced hard.

“What are you talking about, True?

“You’ve been sulking since breakfast. I figured we were finally getting a chance to enjoy a trip together, so I let it go. I guess you just won’t drop it, will you?”

I looked at Hal.

My chest ached so badly I could barely breathe.

So he’d noticed I was upset from the very beginning.

Yet, he made no effort to do anything about it. Instead, he’d spent the whole morning flirting with Maddie right in front of my face.

For a moment, the hurt nearly broke me.

I rose and handed my ticket to the conductor.

“Why don’t you check my ticket and see who’s lying?”