Apologize

New Girl

Ash's PoV

"Damn, is she new here?" Asked one of my friends from his seat across the table from me. I turned and saw who he was talking about. A girl with honey brown hair, dark eyes, and naturally tan skin was looking for a place to sit. Wasn't she in gym class with me today? I realised I might have been looking for too long so I turned my attention back to Kayla, who was talking casually to Ben about the baseball game last night.

I sat quietly, twirling a strand of her hair around my finger loosely when a small clatter of a tray hitting a table sounded near to me. I looked up to see that very same girl sitting next to me. I noticed the three distinct freckles that dotted in a zigzag pattern on her cheek. Kayla coughed quietly, creating tension in our silence. It seemed like the whole cafeteria was staring at our table, though that's not really anything new.

"Ciao, mi chiamo Carina," the girl greeted. I panicked because I have absolutely no idea how to speak Italian. The table simply waved at her. Kayla pulled out her phone and tapped it quickly, looking something up. I took a bite of my apple quietly, waiting for someone else to talk.

"She said her name is Carina. Uh.. Parli inglese?" Kayla said, using Google Translate to help.

Carina giggled before apologizing, "Oh, sorry, I do. Hi, I'm Carina, the new foreign exchange student from Italy." She smiled, showing her straight, white teeth. Kayla held out a hand, which Carina quickly shook.

"I'm Kayla. This is Ashton," Kayla introduced, elbowing me in the ribs. I waved quietly, unsure of what to say.

"Uh, hi. I'm Ash, nice to meet ya," I said insouciantly. There's no reason for me to get worried over some girl who I don't even know yet.

"Why is everybody looking at us?" Carina asked in a hushed tone. Kayla laughed and explained how usually people don't sit down at the same table as someone super popular because our school loves to run on stupid clichés. The explanation reminded me of the first day that I called her over to sit at this table. The slightest look terror that hinted her face, the sneers she got from a large number of girls, the fact that our relationship all basically started with that.

My trance was broken as I heard a familiar yelp, lots of laughter, and several cameras going off. I looked over to see Kayla on her bum, a scowl clear on her flushed face. One of the boys was holding a dead lizard for her to see. I scoffed and extended my hand for Kayla to take, which she did.

"Not funny, Jim," she growled, slapping the lizard out of the laughing boy's hand and into his mashed potatoes. Carina faked a gag and looked away, smiling at me in the process.

"I didn't know you were scared of lizards," I joked, earning a death glare from Kayla. She flicked my chin, making me laugh, which only annoyed her more.

"It's dead! How was I not going to try avoiding it?" She threw her hands up in the air and shook her head.

"So, Carina, when did you learn English?" Ben asked, wise enough to change to topic. A couple of the boys stopped talking with each other to listen.

"Oh, about four, maybe five years ago? My family still speaks Italian at home, though." She was looking down at her phone, typing something with her long, manicured fingers.

"Neat! Where in Italy are you from?" Ben continued. For someone with a girlfriend, he seemed awfully interested in her. I guess it's excusable because she's from another country entirely.

"Venice," Carina answered shortly. I took a bite of my chili, listening quietly to Ben asking questions and Carina answering them apathetically, never looking up from her phone. Kayla's phone dinged several times, and Carina's did too, which made me slightly suspicious.

The lunch bell rang and everybody promptly rose to toss out their styrofoam trays and leftover food. I rose with them and was among the first to make it to the bins, throwing my tray in and searching for Kayla. I found her already making her way to the doors and ran to reach her.

She saw me and waited, an unimpressed look on her face. I reached her and immediately was pulled to the girl's bathroom and into the first stall.

"What the hell, somebody's going to see me walk out!" I whisper yelled at Kayla. She rolled her eyes and opened her phone again.

"I don't like that girl. Look at these texts," she growled. I took the phone and scrolled up to the beginning of the texts. How did Carina get Kayla's number in the first place?

Holy shit, is the cutie sitting next to me single?!😍😍

No, he's my bf

I'll take him off ur hands😉

Excuse me?

I honestly think im a better fit 4 him

Says the bitch who can't spell "your"😒

There were plenty more texts, but I was so surprised by the first six that I couldn't bother reading them. I looked up at Kayla with a cheeky grin. "Looks like someone's jealous," I teased. She scoffed and took her phone back, turning it off and shoving it into her jean's back pocket.

"No, I just don't like girls who constantly try to take someone else's boyfriend," she said, though I swear I heard her mumble, "but maybe just a little," under her breath. I pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her forehead.

"It's not my fault I'm so irresistible." She huffed and pushed me away, a small smile evident on her face as she ruffled a hand in my hair.

"Let's go, we're going to be late for class," she said, opening the stall door. I walked out quickly, not wanting to be caught in the girl's bathroom. Thankfully, it seems like nobody saw me. I walked down the hall to my last class of the day.

"Whatever you say,princess.