Too Late To Confess by TomTommiy

On a weekend afternoon, three boys were seen on the beach. Of course, they were Marcell, Novan, and Erza. The three of them decided to go to that place because it had been a long time since they visited the beach, enjoying the sound of the thundering water, feeling the wind that blows to cool the body, hearing birdsong that soothes the ears, and smelling the salty air that smells so strong. Yes, it feels so good, not to mention the view of the beach that is so pleasing to the eye. 

In the afternoon, the beach was crowded with people. Of course, because it was Sunday, people were busy spending time with their friends, girlfriends, parents, and families. 

Erza saw a lot of small children playing, some were playing ball, building sand castles, chasing each other, and even swimming on the beach. 

While the boy himself sat at the far end, wandering with his own thoughts, it was different with Novan and Marcell, who were currently joking until they laughed. Erza didn't know what the two friends were discussing. 

Novan, who first saw Erza daydreaming, immediately nudged Marcell's arm. 

Marcell gasped softly, "Why?" 

"What's wrong with him?" asked Novan. He pointed at Erza using his chin gesture, making Marcell immediately follow the direction of Novan's gaze. 

Marcell himself was also confused, shaking his head. "I don't know." The boy quickly found Erza's shoulder, making him immediately gasp softly. "Hey, what's wrong with you, Za? Do you have a problem?" 

Erza immediately turned his face away, his round eyes blinking fully. "What does that mean?" 

A low sigh escaped Novan's lips. "You've been daydreaming all day, that's what confused Marcell and me. What's wrong with you? You're daydreaming." 

"I'm not daydreaming," Erza quickly denied, followed by a roll of the eyes. "You don't have to think about what's wrong, do you? I don't have any problems." 

"But here's the thing, it's obvious from your face that you're bottling up problems and thinking about something that Novan and I have no idea what it is. Do you understand?" Marcell pushed Erza's shoulder once. 

Novan snapped his fingers, "That's right, I agree with Novan." 

Erza ignored the jolt that came to him, he chose to shoot sharply, "It's just your feelings, the proof is that I'm not thinking about anything. Never mind, just enjoy the beach atmosphere in the afternoon, which is very soothing." 

Despite having said and being very adamant that Erza was not in a mess, neither Novan nor Marcell actually believed him. They knew that Erza was lying, that was the problem that Erza couldn't avoid because his two best friends knew him too well to resist. Lying also felt very useless. 

Novan still didn't want to lose. "Za, listen to me."

Erza remained silent, his eyes drifting downward, staring at the soft sand of the beach. Erza knew these signs, and he didn't like them at all. 

"Hey, Novan is talking to you. Don't pretend your ears are clogged with stubborn germs." Marcell pressed, making Erza sigh softly, inevitably, he lifted his gaze, looking at Novan with annoyance.

"What the hell?" 

"You can't lie to me or Marcell, we both know you too well. Do you understand now?" Novan smiled wryly, pleased that Erza was provoked by his words just now. Just look at Erza's face right now, which is turning bright red. 

It was obvious that Erza was hiding something! And something was tugging at his mind, so he kept his lips sealed and his brain thinking about things that Marcell and Erza didn't know about. 

"I know that you're thinking about something, but it's not like the Erza I know, you're not usually silent like this. It feels strange and odd, everything is too obvious that you can't hide it, Erza." Novan spoke at length, further trapping Erza in chaos.

Marcell continued, he said quickly, as fast as lightning splitting the sky, "and I agree with Novan's statement. So, you can't do anything anymore, Za. You're trapped, you can't lie to me and Novan. And you only have one way out, you confess now." 

Marcell's words were like a dagger that had just pierced his heart, Erza was stuck in place. His tongue was suddenly numb, and his mind was getting complicated. 

Erza finally closed his eyes, as his breath came in long gasps. The boy needed to calm down in order to control himself. Erza needed to clear her head. 

After a few moments of silence, Erza ventured to look at Novan and Marcell with his chin up and his eyes flashing. He was ready to say something. The serious look on his face was too obvious and too obvious. 

"Okay, I confess now." Erza ventured to look at Novan and Marcell's faces, both of them looked at each other with furrowed brows and blinking eyes. 

Erza's lips quirked into a lopsided smile, and he said again, "I do have a problem, I've been thinking about it, you two are right that I've been daydreaming and mostly silent." Erza just took one long breath. "You two successfully revealed the truth, congratulations." 

In truth, Erza wanted to cover up the problems he was currently facing. But, hiding it from Novan and Marcell did not seem like a wise choice to make. Because both of them always knew many things about him. 

Besides, Erza himself was also not good at covering up his problems. The boy sighed softly.

"Well, right? What I'm saying is that you must have a problem that is being covered up because, since we came to the beach, you don't seem excited, Za," said Novan. 

Marcell continued Novan's sentence. "You already look weak, tired, lethargic, sluggish, and exhausted. How could Novan and I not realize that? We're both too close to you and know you, you can't avoid or evade if you're covering something up, and you're not good at hiding that, Erza. You have to remember that." 

"But that doesn't mean I have to tell my problems to you two, right? It's okay if I confess, but you two don't have to know my problem," Erza said.