Love Above all Else

4. Let's Be Friends

"Are you okay?"

"Yes. You can go back to lunch now Isabelle. I'm fine."

"But... do you want to talk about it?" Silence. "If you don't that is okay too. But I know you aren't okay right now Riley. So I am going to stay with you until we can leave this bathroom together." I sit down across from the stall against the wall. After a second, the door opens slowly, exposing teary-eyed Riley. I give her a sympathetic smile in hopes of cheering her up just a little or at least helping her feel more comfortable with me there. I sit silently until she decides to open up.

"Jeremy doesn't like me."

"I don't really know a Jeremy but surely he wasn't rude to you, was he?" Another second of silence while she stares at the ground.

"Yeah, he was."

"I am so sorry. Do you want to tell me more about what happened?"

"I guess I just misread all the signs. He would always ask for help and randomly look at me in class. And I thought I heard him talking about me to someone. So stupid me decided it would be a good idea to tell him that I really liked him."

"Then what happened?"

"I was in the hallway about to tell him. I walked up to him at his locker and I guess he could see how nervous I was and he just made fun of me. And I tried to just laugh it off like maybe he was just joking around. So I eventually told him 'I really like spending time with you, so I was wondering if you liked me back.' " She starts sobbing again. I move closer to her and put my arm on her back, trying to ease her discomfort just a little. 

"Why is he bothering you this much? Typically you just say to us to let it go, but he seemed to really get to you."

"well...we used to be friends. Like a long time ago but still. I thought he would be nicer. Instead, he just laughed in my face. Like actually in my face. And he called me stupid for even thinking he would like me back."

"That makes sense. But hey, you really shouldn't let him get to you. Matter of fact I know just the thing to cheer you up. Dry your eyes first." We work on calming her down enough to leave the bathroom. "Come with me."

I walk Riley down to the cafeteria, determined to get revenge on this Jeremy guy. I walk right past our table, grabbing Chevy and Nates' drinks and quickly saying, "We will pay you back." After grabbing the drinks, we continue walking, Riley behind me. I hand her one of the drinks just as we make our way to where Riley tells me Jeremy is sitting. That would explain why she skipped lunch. 

"Hey, jerkwad!" I yell in his face, slamming my fist on the table getting down to his level. "This is for laughing in Riley's face."

The whole cafeteria seemed to turn towards the commotion in slow motion just as I throw the drink into Jeremy's face. 

"Okay Riley, your turn."

"Yeah! And this is for not seeing how amazing I am in the first place. Go F* off." She lifts the cup slowly above his head and pours it over his entire body. He just sits there with his hands up and his jaw on the floor. We turn around laughing. "Oh my gosh, that was so exhilarating."

"I know right. Our own Betty Rizzo moment."

~~~

"Sir! My daughter surely had a reason for this. Have you met her? She is the sweetest girl in the world." 

"I understand miss but..."

"And so is Riley. This is very out of character for them. We promise they are not normally like this sir."