When I arrived at my new lunch table, there were six sets of eyes glued to me without any subtlety whatsoever. Kai had left to go buy food, leaving me to face the firing squad alone. I turned desperate eyes on Cora, pleading silently for her to save me, but she only had time to offer a sympathetic smile before Isabelle Delaney was grabbing my wrist and hauling me into the seat beside her.
"Valerie!" she said enthusiastically, and her smile was megawatt. "So nice to see you. Is it true that Tommy and Sydney slept together? That sucks. Want me to cut his balls off?"
I blinked at her, lost.
Will Kennedy, Kai's best friend, put a hand on shoulder, leaning over Zara to do so. "Cool the jets, Izzy. You'll scare her off."
Isabelle shook his hand off with a simpering smile and turned back to me. Kai's little sister was gifted with the same dark good looks and easy charm. Long black hair fell in a waterfall over her back, and her legs were a mile long. She had the same angular features and stunning eyes, and would've been intimidating if she wasn't so friendly. "So, balls. On or off? Totally your call."
Behind her, Will rolled his eyes with exasperation. Will Kennedy was just as good looking as Isabelle and Kai, but in a far less graceful way. He was all broad shoulders and dark skin, with deep intelligent eyes that betrayed the easy, relaxed smile he always wore.
"Can I say on?" I asked.
Izzy shrugged. "Totally your call. But this is not a limited time offer. You just say the word, and they're gone. I'll feed them to Will's dog."
I smiled nervously at her, wishing that Isabelle had let me claim the safe seat next to Cora. Instead, Cora was tucked neatly between Jameson and Sebastian, tucking into her roll and oblivious of my plight. These were her friends—her social circle outside Sydney and I—and this interaction would be far easier if I could use her as a human shield. They were intimidating in their effortless coolness, but then again, so was Sydney.
"Thank you, I think?" I said to Isabelle. And then I just waved. "Uh, hi. I'm Valerie, by the way."
"We know," Jameson said with an amused smile. "We've been to school together for years."
"I mean, yeah?" I said lamely.
Objectively, I knew that they all had to know me. For over a decade we'd attended the same school, been in the same classes. But they were bright and loud and funny, and I was far more quietly sarcastic. Every school report since I was eight years old had called me a quiet achiever. I'd spoken to them—I wasn't really shy, just not really boisterous in the way that gets you attention and notoriety—but I'd just never really thought of myself as someone who they'd remember or properly recognise. It was stupid, but I'd grown so comfortable with Sydney and Tommy and our friends that I'd forgotten to consider the rest of the year level.
But I certainly knew them.
Will Kennedy was known for being charming, beautiful and good at everything. He was a sporting star, an academic star and a social star, but he never seemed to need to try to achieve any of them. He smiled reassuringly at me now, and in that small move, I knew why he was Kai's best friend. There was something similar about them; the way they exuded comfort, despite the volatility of their fleeting interests.
Jameson Miller was either friends with you or sleeping with you, and seemed to know everything about everyone. He was just grinning at me with an amusement that seemed permanent with him; as if he loved watching stories unfold, and wanted a front row seat.
"You're weird," Sebastian Torres said, picking at the plate of hot chips in front of him. "Of course, we know you. You broke down in front of Kai's house like four times. I mean, props to you, I guess. It worked."
Sebastian Torres rounded out the rest of Kai's closest friends. He was honest to a fault, immaculately dressed at all times and somewhat of a disaster the rest of the time. Rumour said that he'd set the science lab on fire at least twice.
"Sydney's idea," I said in defence, holding my hands up. "I swear I'm not a stalker."
Zara Anderson, Isabelle's best friend, reached over the table to pat my arm comfortingly. Zara and Isabelle were a few years younger than us, so I couldn't say I'd ever spent much time with either of them, but from all reports, they were both friendly and engaging. Zara seemed a whole lot more relaxed than Kai's sister, though. She lazed in chair like a panther.
Everyone looked slightly sceptical, which was fair, given that I was spending all of my time with Kai less than three days after dumping my boyfriend of two years. But thankfully, there was nothing hard or malicious in their shared stares.
Unsurprisingly, it was Isabelle who broke the silence. "So, are you dating Kai now?"
She didn't seem particularly put off by the idea, which was a positive, at least. She just seemed curious.
Will flicked her playfully. "What are you even doing here, Buttercup? Since when did you sit with us?"
Isabelle rested her chin on her hands. "Since Jamie told me that Valerie was in a thing with Kai and she was coming to sit with you." Jameson waved teasingly at Will. Isabelle shook her hair out of her face. "Besides, I couldn't let you be the one to ask the questions. You're not nosy enough." She turned to smile brightly at me. "So?"
"I'm not dating Kai," I said. Even though Isabelle's probing questions should have been uncomfortable, she was so open and frank that it somehow wasn't. It seemed she was always like this, because all of the boys looked at her fondly. "I only broke up with Tommy on Saturday."
Sebastian shrugged. "Yeah, but he's the worst, so we figured it wouldn't take you long to move on."
Isabelle whacked his arm. "Seb, that's insensitive."
He just ate another chip with relish.
"So, what is up with you and Kai then?" Zara asked.
I looked to Cora for help, and she finally looked up from her roll and noticed the pleading in my eyes. Immediately, she jumped in to help me. "Well, I mean, we couldn't exactly sit with them anymore." She hitched a thumb towards our old table, and I realised for the first time that I hadn't even bothered to spare them a glance since I'd entered the room. I'd been too caught up in Kai and his friends.
Tommy was sitting at the table with red, bloodshot eyes, glaring at the empty seat beside me that he knew belonged to Kai, and at Isabelle's warm arm around the back of my chair. Rebecca and Jack were sitting on either side of him; Jack looking down awkwardly at his plate of food while Rebecca was squeezing Tommy's hand comfortingly. The other three guys—Peter, Samuel and Jayden—were alternating between looking over at me and looking down at the pathetic, beat-down Tommy.
Their gaze wasn't hard or malicious. They were decent enough, and couldn't fault me for dumping my cheating boyfriend. But they did look as if they wished I hadn't.
Sydney was nowhere to be seen.
Jameson hummed. "Yeah, I would avoid that table at all costs."
Cora nodded. "I mean, we had to find somewhere else to go. And I asked Kai to look after Val at Jack's party, you know, when she was smashed off her face." I buried my face in my hands at the vision of myself puking in Jack's garden, and Jameson grinned at me. "Anyway, since they seemed to get along fine, I figured since we were all tight there'd be no issue with bringing Valerie into the fold, right?"
"Right," Isabelle said firmly. "We love having you."
"You're not even in the fold, Buttercup," Will said, throwing a grape at her that she deftly caught before sticking her tongue out at him and popping it into her mouth.
Izzy Delaney was so adorable, and I could see why Kai loved her so much. She was so bright and bubbly, and it was evident that despite his friend's easy teasing, they didn't really mind having her around.
She scrunched her nose at Will. "Unfair! You can't just bring Valerie into the fold and not me and Zara."
Zara shrugged lazily. "I don't actually mind."
I laughed at them. Thank God for Cora; the thought of facing a lunch break without this easy camaraderie was unbearable. If she'd elected to stay with Tommy, Becca, Jack and the guys, I'd probably cave and reunite with Sydney. Just to assuage the loneliness that came when your social life imploded.
I so did not deserve that girl.
Isabelle was looking at me expectantly, and I realised I'd missed the end of their bickering as I pondered my sorry state.
"So, anyway, all is to say, I'm not dating Kai," I confirmed.
"Bummer," Izzy said, stealing one of Seb's chips.
I raised an eyebrow at her.
"He's emotionally constipated," Izzy said casually. "You seem fun and sweet. And you're friends with Cora, which is always a good sign. I don't know, I thought you would be the emotional laxative Kai needs."
"That is so gross, Izzy," Jameson said. "But not wrong."
"Like you can talk," Zara scoffed. "When's the last time you were in a relationship, Miller?"
Will shook his head. "Totally different. Jamie isn't emotionally constipated, he's emotionally defunct." Jameson shrugged like this was true. "Whereas Kai definitely has feelings, he just acts like he doesn't."
"Are you guys oversharing about my emotional state?" came a voice from behind me. I whirled around to find Kai, who casually placed the potato gems and salad in front of the seat beside me before sliding into it. "Because you all talk shit too much."
"Uncork your asshole, bro," said Jameson. "Let those emotional floods pour out."
Kai stared at him for a beat, eyebrow raised, before shrugging and picking up a potato gem. Cora snorted a laugh; she was a fan of potty humour. The image of Kai bottling up emotions was so incongruous to the boy I knew. He seemed so open, so easily himself without any deep, hidden secrets.
Kai shook a few of the steaming fried potatoes into an empty container in front of me that had held my crackers from earlier wordlessly, offering a good portion of his food.
"Oh, you don't have to," I said. How could anyone call this boy emotionally constipated?
He smiled at me. "It's fine. Everyone likes potato gems."
I looked at him for a moment. He wasn't offended by Will's words; he was so relaxed, so effortlessly at ease in his own skin. Dark hair fell into his eyes, just a little bit, and he was so, so good looking, I couldn't believe he'd agreed to be my fake boyfriend. He cocked his head, meeting my eyes.
"I think they're dating," Isabelle announced.
Will groaned.
Kai looked over at his sister. "Who invited you, Squirt?"
"She did, of course," said Will and Zara in unison.
Isabelle just smiled sagely. Every insult seemed to roll straight off her back; she was like Kai in that way. But she bent forward, looking between us with curiosity, then towards Jameson, who nodded supportively and leaned forward in a similar pose. "Now that you're both here, can I have the full story?"
"She's incorrigible," Will whispered to Zara, who nodded fondly, as if it was her favourite trait of Izzy's.
I looked to Cora, lost. Hadn't we given them the full story? I'd suffered heartache, Kai had supported me and offered me a place with his friends for Cora, and that was that. Was Izzy so perceptive that she could sense the lies that I spilled?
Jameson cleared his throat. "Izzy and I have suspicions. You two are, as the youths would say, sus."
Kai just smiled with exasperation and ate another potato gem.
"We'll uncover your story, don't worry," said Jameson. "Because I'm sure there is a story."
Panic seized in my throat. What if they did find out? What if they asked Kai until he caved? What if this new group of wonderful people found out that I was sitting with them because I was so pathetic that I'd blackmailed their friend into dating me? What would they think of me then?
Kai put his hand on my knee, rubbing in small circles over the soft skin there, without dropping his gaze. Warmth suffused through me.
I was saved by Will. "Don't be ridiculous," he said. "Jamie, stop being a shameless gossip and leave Valerie alone. And Izzy—" when he looked at her, she was wiggling her fingers antagonistically at him. He sighed. "Well, you're just being Izzy, aren't you?" Will looked over and offered me a reassuring smile, those kind, intelligent eyes so perceptive it felt like he could see right through me.
Kai hitched a thumb towards his best friend. "This is why he's my favourite, you know?"
There were a series of protests, including Isabelle's "I'm your sister". Loud chattering broke out, and when I looked back at Tommy, the old table that used to be mine, I realised that I felt no pang of longing for the familiarity of years gone by.
When I turned back, Cora was laughing at something Sebastian had said, and Zara was poking experimentally at Jameson's food for interesting things to steal, while his attention was drawn to Isabelle and Will, who were bickering over the correct way to pronounce the word orange. And Kai was still rubbing those little circles on my leg as he laughed with his friends.