Early Bird | ✓

10 | dove

She joined Reece, throwing her purple lunch sack onto the table and sitting across from him. "Mateo and Teagan usually sit by me, just to warn you," Lizzy notified him before revealing her microwaveable pizza rolls and sliced apples that she would dip in caramel.

Reece was already devouring his chicken patty sandwich and baby carrots. He swallowed before speaking: "Mateo is in my physics class but I don't think I've ever met Teagan before."

Lizzy resisted the urge to chuckle knowingly. If Reece didn't know Teagan, he was in for a real treat. "She's...an interesting human."

Reece didn't appear to be listening. His attention was averted somewhere else, his glasses slipping forward from their typical perched spot. Lizzy searched to see what was holding his attention. Then, she witnessed it too and her heart lapsed deep into her chest until it was difficult for her to breathe. Reece voiced the display they both were currently scrutinizing as though they were in a museum: "I thought you said Mateo usually sits by you?"

Mateo was sitting at the popular kids' table, plopped right next to Paisley. He was laughing at some joke one of the admired boys, Wyatt, must've told. Lizzy's voice was lodged in her throat and she was unable to articulate her thoughts on the matter. Anger surged through her like a tidal wave, enraged at Mateo who had decided to abandon her and Teagan. Every year since she could remember, she, Teagan, and Mateo had sat next to one another. All it took was one day and he had thrown all of those years, their joyous childhood, out the window like a piece of garbage. Lizzy and Teagan clearly weren't good enough for him anymore with Paisley around.

As Lizzy and Reece were gawking at Mateo and his betrayal, Teagan sauntered up to their table, throwing her lunch on the surface. "What'd I miss?" she asked chirpily, clearly unaware of Mateo's new lunch location. When all she received was silence in response, Teagan examined the cafeteria in the same direction of Lizzy and Reece. "What're you—" she paused midsentence, her concentration coming in contact with Mateo and Paisley like a punch in the stomach. Without a word, Teagan collected her lunch and bolted from the lunchroom, sprinting like a flash of lightning.

Lizzy and Reece finally unglued their stare, similar to Lizzy's raggedy doll whose eyes eventually became unhinged from constant use. They exchanged worried expressions, wondering to where Teagan had absconded. "I should probably go find her." Lizzy stood awkwardly, feeling awful that she had to leave Reece.

Reece quickly grabbed Lizzy by the edge of her striped sweatshirt, bewilderment still lingering in his expression. "What was that about? Like I get that he's your friend and all and that it must suck having him sit at another table but she just...stormed away like it hurt her more than you." Lizzy hesitated, unsure of how much information she was allowed to relay to Reece. His gaze obviated from hers and he returned to his lunch after Lizzy became dilatory for a few minutes and stayed silent like a hush that falls over a crowd when an important person is about to speak.

"Let's just say that Teagan doesn't care about a lot of people but the few that do, like Mateo, reign over her heart like a king who isn't conscious of his subjects' thoughts and feelings," Lizzy described for Reece who gave her a knowing look and waved her off to search for Teagan.

Lizzy hurried in the direction that she remembered Teagan had headed, swirling about the various corridors of the labyrinth of their high school. She investigated every classroom, a rapid peek before moving on, checked every shadowy corner and janitor's closet, and rifled through every room, nook, and cranny as though she was at home looking through her dresser's drawers for an outfit for the day. Lizzy gasped, breathless, her face flushed with sweat dripping down her forehead like a melted ice cream cone. She finally reached the final bathroom of their high school. It was her last resort—if Teagan wasn't inside, Lizzy wasn't sure where she'd inspect next.