Outcasts

Chapter 6.

— Alyssa's POV —

It's been three weeks since I got outed at school, my parents never found out thankfully and the news died down quicker than I thought, thanks to Scarlotte who broke it to her team that she's leaving cheer - two weeks before the homecoming game - and that's all people talked about.

We barely passed with our project, it taking two attempts to even look semi okay, but we took the B like a pat on the back and moved on. It wouldn't effect our grade too massively anyways.

The homecoming game was a huge success, Scarlotte sat with me and the others outcasts under the bleachers during the game. We ended up winning for the first time in four years, and the after party was huge. I wasn't interested in it in the slightest, so Scarlotte left us for that, and me and the gang ended up splitting off eventually, all of us going home.

That was the first and only time Scarlotte has hung out with me at school, and not that I didn't enjoy it - I did - it was just very odd. Rory and Ollie was specifically confused as to why she was with us for the game, and honestly so was I.

My only guess is that now she's not cheer captain, the girls don't respect her anymore and she just doesn't hang out with them anymore.

And although, I'd like to spend more time with Scarlotte, I am so thankful we haven't had any more assignments. Without the excuse to hangout though, we haven't seen each other as much as I'd like to. I don't have the courage to just go up and ask her if she wants to come over to mine, so silence has all that's been between us lately.

It's still quite strange between us, I'm not sure if we're friends or not, and maybe I read into it too much, but the night we shared together, opening up about dark shit, I thought it meant something.

I force myself out of the delusional thought path I'm going down, looking around at the people in the library. Life at home has been slightly chaotic, dad's been spending more time golfing than being with my mom, so lately it's just arguments. I thought living in a big house would benefit me, so I wouldn't hear their constant bickering, but all fails when it comes to their screaming matches.

So, I've been doing some last minute homework in the library after school, it's so quiet here and it's like my brain can finally focus and everything around me finally shuts off.

No one else matters in this moment, all I care about is the music playing through my AirPods, and the notes I'm writing out for our last final exam of the year.

"Oh, thank god." Scarlotte races over to my table, sitting in front of me, and I pause my music, putting my headphones back in their case. Where did she come from? "It's my moms birthday, Jeremy has taken her away for the next few nights for a bender, and my brother's with his girlfriend, so I'm home alone."

I don't know where this is going, but I give her a puzzled look, sure enough to give her the sign for her carry on.

"I wouldn't ask if I wasn't desperate, but I don't want anyone seeing where I live." She says, "It's kind of a rough neighbourhood and I don't feel safe staying there overnight on my own, and I was wondering if you wanted another movie marathon?"

I wouldn't judge her for where she lives or how she lives in fact, but the fact she doesn't feel safe there worries me. "You do realise you can just stay with me, right? If it's not safe-"