Vi Presento a Athea (Introducing Athea)

II

Lunch break had come and the only thing playing inside Athea's head was Mean Girls. She wasn't a part of any of the clicks and had surely settled herself as an outcast that very morning. And she most definitely did not want to eat in the bathroom stall. Thankfully, her quick eye caught the fact that there were some tables set outside the cafeteria. Her lunch tray on a tight grab, she made her way through the variety of students occupying different tables, trying her best to pass by unnoticed. She safely made it to the outdoor area, noticing a path that led to behind one of the buildings that surrounded it; following it, she came across a large oak tree, under which she sat and peacefully ate her lunch, away from all the fuss and noise and away from all eyes. There, she also started her diary entry, which she would probably only finish at the end of the day – but still, she wanted to note down what she had experienced so far. And boy, there was a lot going on inside that little head of hers.

The rest of her lessons went by without many more surprises: your occasional nagging and picking on, always completely ignored... although it did not mean it didn't hurt. In an attempt to prove to herself she was strong, she ended up bottling up just how much those "jokes" affected her. It was frustrating simply because her only goal was to make a friend. Instead, she became a laugh matter and it was highly unlikely someone would take her seriously.

She sighed, thinking about how in the old days these types of situations would easily make her cry. But not now. Not since Brie. It was... harder now.

She made her way down the staircase she had walked that same morning with Mrs. Caldwell, humming the Mario theme song that she had heard so much in the corridors it had stuck in her head. Distracted in her sad thoughts, she was more than surprised to feel a tap on her shoulder. She turned back a little overwhelmed: who in the world would want to talk to her? It didn't take long for her to recognize him, though. Blue eyes. Keeping a poker face as an answer to his awkward smile, she turned back again and started walking away.

"No, wait up!" He shouted, running towards her. She sighed deeply, stomping her feet hard against the ground, refusing to turn to look at him. "C'mon, I just want to talk to you." He made his way to stand in front of her, and so she looked at him dead in the eye, like her mother always taught her to do when dealing with people who are haughty. He seemed a little taken aback by her ferocity but quickly got back on his feet. "I just wanted to ask you out. Y'know. Do you want to maybe grab a bite tonight?" He put his hands inside his pockets, stretching his arms so that his body leaned on and backwards slowly.

"You do realize I have the best of reasons to believe this to be a prank or a joke, right?" Athea crossed her arms over her chest, shifting the weight from one leg to another.

"Hey, your English is really good! You have no accent!" He widened his eyes and smile, pointing at her surprised. She snorted in indignation, rolling her eyes.

"Really?" She spat out to him, impressing herself with her own bravery, and started to walk away once more.

"No, hold on, I-" He turned on his feet. "Sorry." He looked her in the eyes as she stopped and stared him back, her arms still firmly crossed. "Look, I'll be honest with you: this is a dare. My friends dared me to ask you out because you're the new girl. They thought you would deny it and I would look stupid – which is their goal, basically." He explained, hands clasping one another.

"Well, they thought right." Athea uncrossed her arms, now moving them to her hips before walking away once more, this time with no intention of stopping again – even though she was a little touched he had been bluntly honest with her.

"No, they may not be!" He dashed, managing to catch up with her, and started to walk by her side. "Look, all I'm asking is for you to cooperate so I can rub it on their stuck-up faces." He begged.

"And what could I possibly gain out of this?" She asked while still looking straight forward.

"A free dinner!" He opened his arms, quickly closing them back into a praying position. "I'll pay for everything in exchange. Please, will you be my friend on this one and help me out?"

That word rang in her ears for a moment. She was so defensive but maybe this could be a way to find a new friend and finally start the so called "friendship" she dreamed of. She held tight onto her bag strap before aswering.

"Fine."

"Yes!" He seemed excited, opening his arms in front of her. "Say, let's meet at S&K Burgers at 6? Is that okay?"

"Sure. See ya there." She said as she climbed up on the bus, seeing that they had already arrived at the stop during their walk-talk. "Oh!" She stopped herself on the middle of the steps. "You didn't tell me your name."

"Oh, yeah. Right." He seemed slightly reluctant. "It's Jason."

"Okey dokey!" She said, regretting it grievously afterwards. "Meet you there then, Jason." And entered the bus under the driver's angry stares.

A/N: hey, everyone! xmoondevilx here. i've been thinking about maybe starting to put some little fun facts or little bits of story trivia at the end of every chapter under the name of "VPA's VPI" (Vi Presento a Athea's Very Privileged Information). so look forward to those in the next chapters!