Olivia sat at her bed staring up at the white ceiling, filled with neon stars painted over from her childhood.

She had known this boy almost her entire timeline.

If he would have liked her, he would have already.

He would have for sure, when they were twelve, and she confessed to him in Visual Arts Class... Which she later covered up as a joke.

Or maybe, when they were juniors, and after deluding herself again. She had tried to tell him about her feelings. He had laughed, telling her she should stop joking.

It was hard to tell if her feelings were a joking matter for him or whether he thought she was so similar to him that their brain synapses fused into one. Very friendly and extremely up close.

But Olivia did not want to disappear. She was her own person, with valid and big feelings to express. 

And well, that was Serina's role in this story. To be heard, and shine a light on the perfect shadows she cast.

Serina did not have to be perfect. She was herself, and that was why Olivia did not hate her. Olivia might have envied her, but they were fundamentally different.

She was a footnote on Mile's life. A possible invite to his wedding. An instagram story he would watch. A person he met at the supermarket. She was his life until he met Serina. And if all the novels she read were right she would be the rest of his life.

Serina was the one star that escaped being covered by paint. Even Olivia was surprised how bright it was, Miles must have been fascinated. As for Olivia she was a common star, painted over and over again to make the ceiling smooth.