Apricity

The Prickly Pufferfish, and The Gallant Gold Fish

I've always known Xavier was popular. From my first day of school, I've known that. The red-head shouting only gathered some attention towards me and Oliver, but when Xavier showed up, it got worse. Everything gets worse when he shows up. The girl fumbled, perplexed by his question.

"Well, I...I was asking Oliver's girlfriend-"

Xavier tilted his head. His smile even brighter now.

"Girlfriend?" He pointed at me, amusement in his eyes. "You mean her?"

The red-headed girl nodded, and I wanted to cover my face with my hands. If I denied it, would he believe me? Probably not. Hell, even if he knew, he wouldn't care. He wouldn't care about the truth for me. He didn't care about the truth of our situation not being my fault, because he still hated me all the same. And perhaps I hate him a little too.

"Wow, Julie. I didn't know you had a boyfriend." He put both of his hands on his waist.

"I don't. He's not my boyfriend." I said, glaring at him. The girl looked at both of us, confused. She's probably wondering how we know each other. Oliver, on the other hand, was still standing next to me. Observing the situation. I grabbed his arm and tugged on his sleeve.

"Tell them we're not dating." I whispered. He looked at me, and then Xavier. But if he was going to speak, Xavier didn't give him a chance.

"So you're saying she's lying? Are you calling this girl a liar?"

At that, the red-haired clutched her hands.

"I'm not lying. They really are dating." She said through gritted teeth.

"I'm not saying she's lying. I'm saying she misunderstood." I sighed. How long is this going to go on for? It's not even that serious.

"Julie's right. We're not dating, Carla just misunderstood," Oliver said, finally cutting in. Carla looked hurt. Betrayed, even. Upon looking at Carla, Xavier's amusement left his eyes, but then came back as soon as he looked behind him. I looked in his direction and saw Jason coming.

I think Carla saw him too and realized that this may be over her head, because she left.

"What's going on?" Jason asked, glancing at me and then Xavier.

Xavier turned to Jason.

"Julie got into a fight-"

"I didn't get into a fight." I try to stop him, but all he did was smile.

"-Over her boyfriend."

Jason's eyes went wide. He pointed at the boy, and Xavier nodded. Great, just great. They really couldn't just leave me alone? If they're anything like their parents or their uncles, no wonder mom hates them.

"No way. Really?" Jason asked, still shocked. But he quickly got over that. "Hey, Mason, Julien, come over here! Julie has a boyfriend."

"For the last time, I don't have a boyfriend."

I'm not even into guys all that much. But before I can even blink, Mason and Julien were already there. I hate this. I think I really hate this.

"Is this true?" Julien asked, while Mason stood there silently.

"Xavier told me." Jason replied. I wonder why Oliver hasn't been saying anything. Then again, he's always been a bit of a coward. Not that I hate him for it. I don't even dislike him for it.

"Xavier says a lot of things," Mason muttered. I sighed and crossed my arms.

"He's not my boyfriend. He really isn't. And even if he was, it's not any of your business. Why can't you guys just go do your own thing?" I said calmly, "If Chase and Roman were here..."