Rose Petals ✿ Remus Lupin - Discontinued :(

Chapter 40

"Would you please stop shaking the table?" Safrina Rookman hissed from across Belle. Belle had been bouncing her leg and the small action was causing the table to jolt every once and a while. Belle didn't bother responding.

"Calm down, you'll ruin this." Rylen sighed, sending a side glare to Belle, which only made Belle roll her eyes. She had gotten used to the Slytherin 'tongue' as the students like to call it. She had heard almost every insult from Safrina, Sierra Lillen, and Cynthia Wilkes in the past week and now they just bounced off her. Spending time with Wilkes had been a struggle for Belle, someone who loathed the Wilkes girl more than anyone else in the world, but she had kept up with it knowing it would pay off in the end, but was it really worth it?

"I can't do this anymore!" Belle blurted, drawing the attention of a few nearby Slytherins, who after noticing nothing interesting was happening, turned back to their conversation.

"Gryffindors are so dramatic..." Sierra sighed.

"Says the girl who started crying yesterday because some random fifth year didn't pick up your quill when you dropped it!" Belle retorted, standing from the table, only to be brought back down by Rylen's arm. He secured his arm around her waist, keeping her locked to the bench.

"Let me go." She demanded, "I've changed my mind about this."

"We have a deal—I haven't done all this work just for you to drop out now. Don't you want to get back at him?"

"Not anymore, it was a stupid plan."

"Belle, don't break this deal. You don't wanna owe me something, trust me..." His voice faded out as her friends entered the hall.

-- -- -- -- --

"That's disgusting James!" Eileen laughed as James recalled his story about how he broke his arm last Quidditch match.

"I swear it looked like an S! Pomfrey said I broke every single bone in my left arm—every single bone!"

"I think you're bluffing, Potter." Lily pursed her lips at an offended James.

"Bluffing?!" He scoffed, "I, the Great James Potter, have never once bluffed."

"I'm pretty sure that was a bluff..." Rose chirped from her position next to Sirius. She sent him a worried look, knowing that after dinner they'd be coming clean to Belle about the whole situation.

"Do you even know what a bluff is?"

"Guys..." Remus mumbled.

"Of course I do! It's faking!"

"So you're accusing me of faking?"

"Guys."

"C'mon, James, you fake all the time! Your whole life is fake!"

"Ohhh, burn," Eileen giggled.

"What do you mean, 'burn'? That doesn't even make sense!"

"Guys!"

The conversation was silenced immediately at the sorrow in their friend's voice. They followed Remus's stare toward the Slytherin table, where Rylen had an arm wrapped around Belle so tightly that they were pressed against each other. Rylen was whispering something into Belle's ear, and every once in a while, he'd look back up at the group in a taunting matter. Belle was staring directly at the group, her eyes seemingly neutral but Lily could tell she was scared by the way her jaw tilted slightly upwards. Remus would've noticed too if not overwhelmed by the grief of seeing Belle with another person who'd break her heart.

No-one said anything as they gazed over towards their friend. It wasn't like last time, where they were all enraged at Belle for sitting with Aiden. No, now they know exactly why Belle sat with the Slytherins, and everyone blamed themselves.