"Before you say anything more, I…" Sadie forced herself to look into the boy's eyes. She had to be straightforward. After all she'd probably put him through, she owed that to him. "I'm so, so sorry."
She watched his expression change, a parade of emotions crossing at once. Relief, some degree of anger, and then…
Sadness.
Why was she so stupid? Why couldn't she put herself in others' shoes? That's just my flaw, she thought bitterly. Carter has made that clear quite a few times.
"Hey…" suddenly, Anubis reached across the table. A slender, pale finger caught a tear.
"I'm sorry, I just—"
"Stop apologizing," he said with a ghost of a smile. "It's alright, I'm not hurt, really. We're friends, right? I'll help you with anything." He marveled at how even his voice was as he said those words, how utterly easy it was for those lies to spill from his lips. Was this why Sadie had fallen for that other guy and not him? Anubis, the God of the afterlife, of mummification, of toilet paper. Gloomy all around. Distant. There was no wonder.
But it doesn't matter. Not anymore. His hands balled into tight fists under the table. He was looking for closure. Maybe this is it, and now he just has to face it.
"Don't misunderstand me," she said, tears flowing freely and cheeks flaming red. "I lied to you. I don't like someone else."
"W-what?" he couldn't believe his ears. He didn't know whether or not he should be angry. In fact, his brain seemed to be functioning at half its normal speed. What was she saying, again? She lied?
"I love you."