(Au in which Liy rejoins BFB)

I can't believe Liy's gone. Actually, wait, she's not gone, she's back. But she's not here, so that makes her gone...whatever. I still can't believe the viewers would choose her to come back to BFB. I hope Foldy will be okay.

I glance at her empty desk. Her papers are still inside in an organized chaos. They're mostly doodles of her teammates, drawn on the backs of our endless algebra worksheets, but I've seen her scribble all over her papers too. She crumples up and throws those ones away. All they are are black masses of nothing in particular. Probably angry scribbles.

Soon enough, someone's going to come and replace her. I wonder if I'll get used to it. The classroom keeps getting mysteriously bigger as more contestants get eliminated. I think it's around the halfway mark, now.

I wonder how she's doing... Liy... She's only one person, but the classroom seems so much emptier without her. She used to stare at me when I was working and say how I was doing everything wrong. Other times she'd just talk about her ambitions with Pencil, or rant about the things she hated. I could never mistake the passion in her voice or the fire in her eyes. It's like she could melt me ​​with a single glare...it's almost enchanting, somehow...

Wait- enchanting? Liy ? She's not... her voice is like an angel's, though...

Oh, what the fulcrum. If my thoughts are going to wander to Liy, so be it. The locked door in the back of the room came into view. I still remember her giggle when Four left after the first rejoin, and she made a beeline for the door. Of course, I tried to stop her, but she just grabbed my hand and pulled me through the door with her. We didn't actually see anything because Four stopped us, but...

I rub my hand, and my fingers intertwine together. We actually held hands. She was cold, and kind of rough, but that moment she touched me still makes my face burst with heat and sends a chill down my spine. I...want her to touch me again. I want to feel her hand in mine. Is that wrong? I feel like that's wrong. It's most definitely wrong.

I mean...I hate her, right? It was just a one-time thing. What about all the times I caught myself staring, though? No, I was just...staring into space while conveniently looking at her. Not because I love her beautiful periwinkle blue or the intense way she glares at her work.

And sure, we kind of know each other better because of the time we spent in EXIT, but that doesn't mean I like her. I don't feel this way about Foldy, and we're best friends! What are the things I know about Liy? She's petty, she's a jerk, she's intense, adventurous, has a loud, contagious laugh, thinks horoscopes are garbage, loves abstract art, her favorite color is midnight blue- how do I even know those last few? Whatever. But I know so much more about Foldy, so why am I feeling this way?

Oh, for the love of fulcrum. No, I definitely don't like Liy. I'm just confused. This is probably just a phase because I got so used to having her right next to me all the time. That's all there is to i-

"Stapy!" Four growls at me. "Are you paying attention?"

I heat up, the eyes of everyone in EXIT on me. "Uh- Y-Yeah?"

"Hmph!" they say, but go back to teaching whatever it is we're learning this time. I try to focus on the lesson, but there's way too many equations on the board. I'm getting a headache, but I guess it's for the best. Anything to get my mind off of Liy.