Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

"Oh? Is this some kind of secret I'm not supposed to know?" Vanessa asked with a playful smile, her eyes fixed on Ethan.

"Huh?"

Ethan was instantly thrown off by the question, looking a bit confused.

He shook his head and quickly explained, "Of course not, we're friends, right..."

But before he could finish, Julia jumped in.

"I think everyone has some secrets they don't want to share, even with friends. Not everything has to be told, you know."

Julia figured that since Vanessa didn't know about this, it meant Lila hadn't told her, so she felt the need to help keep the secret. Plus, she was still a little annoyed at the way Vanessa had glared at her earlier.

"This doesn't really concern you, does it, Julia?" Vanessa shot back, her gaze unwavering. "Besides, we're not just regular friends."

Julia's confidence faltered for a moment, her eyes darting between the two girls in shock. Not just regular friends? Could they be... that kind of friends?

Seeing where Julia's thoughts were going, Ethan quickly clarified, "We're just good friends."

"Exactly, good friends," Vanessa echoed, standing tall with pride.

Julia, however, couldn't help but doubt the weight of this "good friend" label. If they were such good friends, why hadn't Vanessa been told about this?

Still, she didn't voice her skepticism directly. Instead, she casually asked, "So, how long have you known Lila?"

"Three days," Vanessa replied without hesitation, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Three days? That's not long at all," Julia said, a bit taken aback. She had assumed Vanessa's attitude would be justified by at least three years of friendship.

But Vanessa just smiled softly. "You wouldn't understand."

"Huh?" Julia was momentarily stunned by her response.

Then, as if something clicked in her mind, Julia let out a small, composed laugh and continued, "Well, if you can become such good friends with Lila in just three days, then I can be her good friend too."

Vanessa's eyes narrowed at that, her true feelings finally starting to show.

Julia, unfazed, met her gaze head-on. She even took advantage of the situation, casually linking arms with the girl standing next to her.

"..."

Both girls were smiling, but for some reason, the atmosphere felt chilling.

And what was Ethan doing while these two were locked in a silent battle?

He was busy with his food. After setting aside a portion for Vanessa, he focused on finishing his own meal. He had no idea why the mood had suddenly become so tense during what was supposed to be a simple lunch.

He was terrified that Vanessa might suddenly hit him with a dreaded question like, "Who do you choose, me or her?"

So, his plan was to finish eating as quickly as possible and make a run for it.

But just as he was about to dig in again, both Vanessa and Julia turned their eyes toward him at the same time.

There was no escaping now. Ethan had no choice but to put down his salad, wipe the corner of his mouth with a napkin, and clear his throat. Trying to stay calm, he introduced the two girls to each other.

"Julia, this is Vanessa."

"Nessa, this is Julia."

In situations like this, it was crucial to take control of the conversation to avoid any further trouble.

Seeing the confusion in both their eyes, Ethan explained, "I just thought you two would actually make great friends."

But, truth be told, he was leaning more toward Vanessa with that statement. Julia, with her upbeat and optimistic personality, was the kind of person who could get along with just about anyone.

However, at this moment, it was clear that neither girl had any interest in befriending the other. Both seemed to have their own issues with each other.

Vanessa looked at him, puzzled, but still smiling. "Lil Bunny, what made you think that?"

Julia nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Lila, why would you think something so strange?"

Ethan shrugged. "Well, you two seem pretty in sync right now."

"..."

Both girls froze for a second, caught off guard by his comment.

Vanessa calmly turned to Julia and said, "Julia, could you please stop agreeing with my thoughts?"

Julia let out another incredulous "Huh?"

"Are you saying I should be begging to be your friend?"

Once again, both girls' eyes landed on Ethan.

Ethan couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. As much as he wanted to throw in the towel and say, "I'm done, let the world burn," he decided to give it one last shot.

He cleared his throat and addressed Vanessa, "Nessa, actually, Julia is really amazing."

Promoting Julia to Vanessa was a carefully thought-out strategy. After all, Julia was a bit vain—she liked being praised. And since Ethan had a good relationship with Vanessa, she was currently listening to him with a fond, indulgent expression, even though he was mostly spouting nonsense. This way, neither of them would get upset.

If he had tried to sell Vanessa to Julia instead, there was no guarantee Julia wouldn't push back. And if that happened, these two might actually end up fighting.

But as Ethan continued to praise Julia, something in her expression started to shift.

He went on, genuinely saying, "Julia was the student council president in middle school, and she even studied abroad!"

At this point, Julia couldn't sit still anymore. She quickly interrupted, "Lila, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Uh..." Ethan blinked, a bit surprised, but he didn't refuse. After giving Vanessa a quick nod, he let a somewhat flustered Julia pull him away.

Vanessa watched them leave, deep in thought. She couldn't figure out what these two, who had just met, needed to discuss privately. But she wasn't worried—this version of her Lil Bunny didn't need her to fret over anything.

What did puzzle her, though, was the information Ethan had just shared. Could it be that these two had gone to the same school before?

In a quiet corner of the hallway outside the cafeteria, Julia finally asked Ethan the question that had been on her mind.

"Lila, did we go to the same middle school?"

The fact that Ethan knew she had been the student council president and had studied abroad—those were things only her old classmates would know.

Realizing the issue, Ethan quickly tried to think of an explanation. "Which middle school did you go to, Julia?" he asked, stalling for time.

Though a bit confused as to why he was asking, Julia still answered, "Maplewood."

Ethan discreetly pulled out his phone and sent a quick message to Lila.

When he got an immediate reply, he no longer needed to come up with an excuse. Looking at Julia with genuine surprise, he said, "Wow, what a coincidence! We really did go to the same middle school!"

His reaction almost made Julia's sharp mind short-circuit.

Lila's only just now realizing we went to the same middle school?

Then how did she know all that stuff about me before?

And why did she need to check her phone to confirm it?

These questions, with no clear answers, left Julia feeling utterly confused.

But none of that was the most pressing issue right now.

Julia, clearly panicking, grabbed Ethan by the shoulders and stared at him intently. "Lila, you're going to keep this a secret, right?!"

"You mean the part about you studying abroad and then coming back halfway through?" Ethan asked.

"Aaaahhh..."