Or so Lila told them.
It had been Marie who tried to support everyone and mend fences. When Irene and Lila would butt heads, Marie would be the one to step in and mediate. She was positive and friendly, highly well liked by everyone in the school. She was just clumsy. Forgetful. Losing things. And it just kept happening more and more often, no matter how much she tried to protest it.
She was unreliable. And clearly they didn’t mean that much to her if she couldn’t remember their hangouts and was always late for their plans because she had the wrong time despite how many times Lila reminded her. Then it all came to a head when the funds collected for a school fundraiser went missing while she was supposed to be watching it.
The teachers were furious. Why wasn’t she more responsible?
The students were even moreso. She probably spent the money herself.
Nobody trusted her after that.
Eventually, she moved schools.
Really, they were better off.
Or so Lila told them.
Noemi was dependable though. She was smart and funny. She always knew the right things to say to cheer anyone up. She was positive and upbeat. She was strong and always there for her.
Until she wasn’t.
Until she said she couldn’t deal with it anymore.
That their friendship was too much stress. Too much mess. Too much distress. And that she was sorry, but she just had enough.
And she was gone.
And…they were better off, right?
Or so Lila told her.
Then it was just her and Lila.
Until it wasn’t even that anymore.
Lila was gone. Without a word or even so much as a look back.
And suddenly, Sofia was all alone.
Her supports were gone. Her friends were gone. The one friend she had left—the only one who she could count on had left without a trace.
And Sofia found herself having to pick up the tattered pieces of her once good life.
That should have been the end of it.
Except it wasn’t.
Suddenly there was a field trip to Paris France.
Suddenly there were superheroes to learn about.
Suddenly there was a blog about them to check out.
Suddenly there was an interview to see.
And Sofia saw. For the first time, she REALLY SAW.
There was Lila, smiling like nothing had ever happened. Talking to someone she barely knew like she was telling long-hidden secrets. Telling stories about a hero that she never met—couldn’t have met. The dates were wrong. Talking about Ladybug in the same way she had once talked about THEM.
It was only when she was finally seeing it for the first time, on the outside looking in, that she finally realized the truth.
Irene wasn’t unreasonable.
Marie wasn’t unreliable.
Noemi wasn’t cruel.
It was Lila.
It had always been Lila.
And because of her, Sofia has lost all of her closest friends.
They had all lost each other.
16: Other friend
Start from the beginning
