trash star - punznap

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"i still think this is a dumb idea-"

"no, it's a great idea, just trust me."

sadie rolls her eyes, shaking her head in disapproval. they're already receiving stares and sneaky glances as they zig-zag through the rows of occupied lunch tables. nick is carrying the tray with their food on his forearm. his other hand is busy holding onto sadie's.

"where do we sit?" he wonders.

"maybe in the corner over there?" sadie suggests, pointing towards an empty table further ahead. it looks discreet and peaceful enough.

"sure," nick shrugs, continuing to drag her along with him.

admittedly he does feel a little bad for using sadie again. she's already put up with so much of his bullshit, and now he's pulling her into this too. she deserves way more. she deserves a guy who'll treat her right, not an asshole like nick who keeps taking advantage of her kindness.

he sets the tray down, letting go of her hand while they take a seat. sadie makes sure to stay as close as possible to him, just to sell the act. he wouldn't even be surprised if she decided to pick up a fork and start feeding him right there, in front of everyone in the cafeteria.

"why are we even doing this?" she grunts, "you haven't given me a proper explanation yet."

"dude, i wish i could, but it's just-" he pauses, "it's complicated, okay? i'm sorry."

sadie sighs.

"you're lucky i'm such a good friend."

"yeah, thank you, for real, you're amazing."

he takes a bite of his food before continuing.

"i owe you. i can take you to dairy queen every week if you want, i can-"

"and you'll pay?" sadie questions.

"yeah, of course, my treat."

she nods, satisfied.

"alright then, whatever."

nick smiles, chewing on the dry, overcooked chicken. school food is never a hit, but he doesn't have a choice. it's either this or starve for the rest of the day.

they stay quiet as they eat, neither of them eager to converse when they're being observed from left and right. nick didn't even think it would be this big of a deal; they're just another couple sitting together at lunch. though as nerve-wracking as it is, it's also a nice surprise. it means that everything is going according to plan.

another tray is slammed down in front of him on the table. baby blues greet him when he looks up. his breathing stops for a moment. everything is going according to plan.

"babe, over here!" luke calls out, waving his hand.

lucy appears confused when she saunters over. her fake nails glitter and her shoes are probably worth more than nick's entire life. it almost scares him. he glances at sadie beside him, who looks just as puzzled as lucy does.

unlike himself, sadie isn't a total nobody. she has friends, many of them higher up on the social ladder. but luke and lucy coming to sit at her table during lunch? that's something out of the ordinary.

nick puts his fork down carefully, as if doing it too fast would cause an explosion. luke's confident stare burns, makes him sweat. at first he doesn't dare to meet it, afraid that he'll break if he does. but when the blond boy keeps trying he can't avoid it anymore.