all that glitters » david dobrik au

twenty eight

Walking in with David's arm draped casually, yet protectively over my shoulder was an interesting start to an otherwise dull Wednesday morning. Well, maybe I shouldn't say dull. It wasn't an hour after I left Starbucks that David got a notification for "Abernathy Snitches", Carly and Erin's so aptly named gossip blog.

Some would call it gossip, but I wouldn't feel wrong in calling it an exposé about me. Not only had they "exposed" me for being broke, but they also had somehow figured out my parents were dead and tried to tie that into why I was a "manipulative, psycho bitch". Last but not least, they talked about my whirlwind romance with David and how I was entirely in over my head in the whole situation. It was honestly an entertaining read, and I applauded whoever it was that wrote it (my bet was on Kristen). Even Erin seemed a little disgusted with the entry, her reply being only do we have to bring her dead parents into this?

I expected a lot more backlash than I received, but I guess as their leader's arm candy, no one could hate me. In fact, it was the complete opposite. I was officially queen bee.

Arriving to my first class was when the bucket of ice water was dumped over my head. Where I once sat with Kristen and Liza in a group of desks was empty; they had moved to the complete opposite side of the room. I was alone. David couldn't protect me in class. I was alone. 

Not for long, though. Luckily, through our work on the project, I had formed an actual friendship with Todd. Whether he was sitting with me because he liked me or because he was looking out for David, I don't know, but as soon as he saw me sit in my usual seat alone, he and Scott chose to join me.

It was the same for all my other classes. Though Zane and Heath seemed a little more remorseful in their rejection, it was nonetheless the same. The spots where we used to sit were empty, and they were giggling like it was still funny (after the third time) in a corner. My third period, math, was by far the worst class. I was stuck with Alex and Alex alone, who I was sure only sat with me because David told him to. We had never talked, and I wasn't even interested in talking to him. Needless to say, our walk to my fourth and final class (that he was also in) was more than a little bit awkward. We both knew we were going to the same class, and we both felt like we had to walk together, but it was silent the entire way.

"Hey," David smiled as soon as I smoothed out my
skirt and sat down in my seat. "How has it been?"

"I could do without the snickers, but... eh," I shrugged indifferently, tucking some of my hair behind my ear. "I honestly just can't believe Heath. Or Zane. Liza and Kristen, oh yeah, I believe they are vindictive, crazy, mean people, but Zane? Heath? They are angels. I love them. That's what I'm going to miss."

Scott looked away when I mentioned Kristen's name, as if pretending he wasn't listening was going to make him feel less bad.

"Scott, you're done with her, right?" David asked, and with a sigh, he nodded. "Good. She's a fucking bitch. You can fuck Gabbie if you have to fuck someone."

It was amazing how much David ran the group. Of course, if Scott would've said he wanted to keep dating Kristen, David would've let him, but Scott knew what David wanted and he knew what he had to do to achieve that.

Our lit teacher came into our classroom, so with a smile, David swiveled around in his seat to face the front. We took a ten minute, multiple choice reading check, then sat through a lecture about the art that was Orwell's 1984 (yes, I cried while reading it), and once the class ended, David waited for me at the doorway to head to lunch.

"Head up, sweetheart," David smiled lightly, grasping my hand in his and giving me a reassuring squeeze. "Your crown is falling."

"You get that one off Tumblr?" I giggled at his idiotic inspirational quote. That was one of my favorite things about David. No matter what, he had the power to make me laugh.

"Pinterest, actually," he smiled cheekily, grabbing the cafeteria door with his free hand and pulling it open for the both of us.

It was straight out of a movie, what happened next. The hush that fell across the cafeteria as David and I entered, followed by all of his friends, was intense, and even worse were the glances from where we stood to where my friends of the past sat, watching us. David spoke four words ("Are you done staring?"), and immediately, everything fell back into place. Eyes turned, chatter picked back up, and everything seemed normal. Well, as close to normal as things could be on a day like this.

I didn't eat lunch, but I did sit next to David, thankful for the soothing circles he was rubbing with his thumb on my knee. He said, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I shrugged. "Just sucks. Right before my birthday, too! Isn't that pretty shitty?"

"Your birthday?" Todd raised his eyebrows. I nodded. "When is it?"

"The twenty eighth," I told him. "Like, a week away. Now I have no one to party with."

"We're always down for a party," Corinna told me with a smile. "Don't worry about being alone. We will throw you the best party imaginable."

"You guys are sweet," I awkwardly blushed, looking anywhere but their eyes. The truth was, despite the fact that my friends who warned me about David's group turned out to be just as evil, I was still a little uneasy around my newfound friends. I had heard things and seen things and I knew they weren't good people. Was I just supposed to forget the fact that they were assholes and move on like nothing happened? I wasn't sure.

"Is it true that your parents are dead?" It was Gabbie that asked the totally invasive and unnecessary question, followed by a totally snarky and unnecessary, "Is that why you were crying at David's, like, a month ago?"

I sighed in frustration and nodded.

"Wow," she nodded, raising her eyebrows and picking her nail polish like she didn't quite care. "Cool."

I looked over to David for some kind of help, maybe a really, Gabbie? or a is that necessary?, but he wouldn't even meet my eyes.

"Yep, really cool," I sarcastically replied, grasping David's wrist to remove it from my thigh, placing it on his own lap instead. "I'm gonna go. I'll meet you at my house, Todd, okay?"

"Yeah, see you then," Todd nodded half heartedly, still eating his string cheese like his life counted on it. I grabbed my bag, tossing it over my shoulder and exiting the cafeteria in a rush.

David didn't even try to follow me.

ughhhhh i just want to make them in love but he kinda has to be a dick sometimes for everything to make sense :/ how boring

xoxo abby