𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐀.ᐟ 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗺 𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀

seven

"They're just annoying." He grumbled.

From the way Vera reacted, widened eyes and a scoffed expression, he elaborated. "They think they're better than everyone else because they were in the Goodwill Games."

The girl took a small sip from her juice box, narrowing her eyes at Hayden. "How?"

His mouth opened, though nothing came out. The boy glanced back behind him, noticing the group sat directly behind him. He rolled his eyes, a long-suffering sigh escaping from his lips.

"They-well..., I just know." he snapped.

Vera rested her head in her palm, a look of uncertainty stamped to her face. Her lips rubbed together, recollecting all the times she interacted with them. "Julie is pretty sweet." She said, earning a small glare from the boy.

"The cat lady?" He spat, a repulsed chuckle erupting from his mouth. "Oh please."

The brunette crinkled her nose in disgust at her friends behavior. She couldn't understand why he was acting this way.

What did they do?

"Okay, whats up, Hayden?" She asked defensively. "Why're you being like this."

He crossed his arms. "Like what?"

"A douche." Vera retorted. "You're being so rude and for what reason? Did they do something to you, or what?"

Hayden pushed his back off of his chair, leaning forward and keeping his arms crossed as he rested them on the table. "Actually," he started, "They did do something. They took my spot in the Goodwill Games."

So that's what this is about.

"My team was supposed to go." A sour expression had overtaken his face, and his overall body language seemed bitter. "But then our supposed 'sponsors' heard about this sob story and threw us aside."

Suddenly, his shoulders slumped inward. His jaw was still clenched, but something shifted inside of him. "It was supposed to be me, Vera." She swore she heard a small crack in his voice. "I was supposed to be showing the world that I was the greatest."

Vera felt for him. After all, he was her best friend. But she couldn't help but not ignore all the nasty stuff he'd said about them. "You shouldn't be judging them. It wasn't their fault, Hayden."

There was a sudden jolt of betrayal that had flooded through the boy. His jaw twitched, "You're really defending them? Vera, they took an amazing opportunity from me."

"I understand that." Her tone was soft. "But you can't take it out on them. They're good people."

Shaking his head, Hayden leant back in his chair. "Unbelievable," he muttered, though it didn't go unnoticed by the girl. "I'm roommates with the two boys. They're total asshats."

Vera's brows furrowed, and her nose slightly crinkled. "How?"

"The night we walked in, the Banks kid didn't bother acknowledging Pierce and I. He just took off with a phone call-"

"Maybe it was important." She cut in, surprising herself with how defensive she sounded. "He's nice. I'd just talked with him a few hours ago."