"I need you to talk to Felicity," I heard Charlie say when we were close but not close to his room, and I had to glance at Bryson to make sure that he couldn't hear what was being said. "She tried to put Cassidy under a truth spell due to protocols of this school, but that shouldn't have happened, especially since she doesn't understand exactly what is happening here."
There was a pause while the person on the other end of the line said something, and even with my advanced hearing, I couldn't hear what was discussed.
Charlie sighed, and I had a feeling he rubbed a hand across his face. "It didn't in the beginning," he said tiredly. "She was able to block the spell and still had that fiery look in her eyes, but when I asked her how it felt..." He trailed off, and I had a feeling that he shook his head. "The look in her eyes had me pissed and wanted me to blow my cover." His voice cracked, and I felt guilty for making him so pissed.
But what does he mean about blowing his cover..? I silently wondered. Was he one of the tree people that was sent to "protect" me?
As soon as that entered my brain, I had this gut feeling that what I thought was true.
Charlie was one of the tree people that watched over me, and unlike the others, he never swapped out, not unless he had to be at school for whatever reason or did something that I told him to do.
He was the one that followed Xav home to make sure that he got home safely.
I paused midstep when I realized that, and my eyes grew wide when that realization dawned on me.
"Cass?" Bryson asked when I stopped mid step. He frowned and turned towards me, his gray eyes filled with concern and worry. "What is it?" he asked and stopped in front of me. "What happened?"
I shook my head and cleared my throat, deciding to worry about that later and see if I couldn't get Charlie to confess to being a tree person. "Nothing," I said, glad that my voice didn't shake like I thought it would. I cleared my throat again just in case while I looked at Bryson. "I just realized how hungry I was."
My stomach growled as soon as I uttered those words, and a blush started at the base of my neck and slowly made its way up my face.
"See?" I asked. "My belly sounds like a dying whale."
It let its presence known again, and Bryson smiled amused.
However, I could tell that a part of him didn't believe me, but he wouldn't push as if he knew that I wouldn't tell him the real reason why I froze.
"Was that your stomach?" Grayson asked, walking over to us with the rest of the group. He smiled amused, and his eyes were filled with humor. "Or am I imagining things?"
I groaned and dipped my head closer to my chest. "That is my stomach," I said and gestured for Bryson to continue towards Charlie's classroom. "Don't ask me why it sounded like that because I don't know, but it does when I am super hungry."
"So I take it that it has happened many times?" Grayson asked and raised an eyebrow.
I raised an eyebrow, mimicking him before I nodded, my cheeks turning a darker shade of red. "It has," I said. "Jack calls it the signal of me needing food." I wrinkled my nose and pursed my lips. "It gets louder the longer it goes on, and I don't want that to happen..."
Reggie moved to my other side and glanced at me before he looked forward. He was nervous; I could tell, but he knew that I'd be able to talk to him, which was why he was willing to speak. "Müssen Sie täglich viele Kalorien zu sich nehmen? (Do you have to eat a lot of calories every day?)" he asked.
"Ja, ich muss, weil ich jeden Tag viel verbrenne. (Yes, because I burn a lot every day.)" I shrugged. "Es hilft auch nicht, dass ich super aktiv bin. (It doesn't help that I'm super active either.)"
"What did he ask?" Grayson asked. "No one can understand him, but I think that Bryson is learning..." He glanced at Bryson, and he shrugged.
I didn't respond because we were getting closer to CHarlie's room, and I had a feeling that he was still talking about me with whoever.
"I am not sure, Antonio," Charlie said with a sigh in his voice, and I couldn't help but wonder what they had been talking about. "I can see if I can't find out, but I am sure that she won't tell me, not unti-"
I picked up my pace to the surprise of the five people with me and barged into the room in which Charlie was seated on a desk, looking shocked while he was on the phone with someone, who was trying to get his attention.
I pointed at the door when both Bryson and Grayson barged through the door, both with panicked looks on their faces because I didn't answer them and ran. "There," I said, "I brought people with me, so stop worrying about me."
Charlie studied me before a look of understanding appeared on his face while the others fell into the room. "I'll call you back later," he said and after that, he hung up the phone before the person on the other end of the line could say another word.
***
Charlie scowled, pushing the understanding away while I walked over to a seat. "Must you barge your way into places?" he asked and hopped off the desk before he went to his desk to get his lunch and extra food for me.
"Yes," I replied and sat down at my desk while I nodded. I placed my food on top of the desk before I looked at him and smirked. "I don't know why you have to ask such questions, Charlie."
Charlie rolled his eyes, and his scowl deepened while he looked at the other people gathered at the door. "Go on and sit," he said. "If you want to push your desks closer together, then you may but make sure to put them back where you get them before you leave. Trash goes into the big trash can outside."
They did what Charlie said to do and put their trays on the desks before they moved them closer to my desk. They were tense and nervous, and I had a feeling that this was the first time they had done this and thought they'd get in trouble if the Principal found out.
"It's fine that you are here," Charlie said while he walked over to the desks. He set his food down and put more food on my table. "The principal knows that some people might join Cass and I for lunch if she starts to get out of her shell and makes friends." He gave me a pointed look, and I rolled my eyes and scowled.
"Je me suis fait un ami, (I did make a friend,)" I said, switching to French, even though I didn't need to, "avant le début de l'école (before school started.)"
"Bryson ne compte pas. (Bryson does not count,)" Charlie said.
"Hé! (Hey!)" Bryson exclaimed, upset but amused at what Charlie said. "C'est méchant. (That's mean.)"
I snorted and took a sip of my drink to keep myself from smirking. "I mean..." I said after I pulled the drink away from my mouth, and Bryson sent me a teasing glare.
Grayson groaned teasingly and rolled his eyes. "I get it," he said. "You all can speak different languages. Whoopedoo. Can we please talk in English where all of us can understand?"
I bit back a smirk and shrugged. "C'est de ta faute si tu n'apprends pas une autre langue, (It's your fault for not learning another language,)" I said, and Bryson bit back a snort while Charlie cleared his throat to cover a chuckle. "But yes, we can swap over to English."
Grayson sighed with relief and wiped his head as if he was wiping away a bit of sweat, and I rolled my eyes at his behavior. "Thank, Goddess," he said dramatically. "I thought I was going to die because I didn't know what was being said."
"Of course you were," I said sarcastically and started to eat my food. I closed my eyes and smiled while I did a little jig, happy that I was able to eat something because I loved food.
"Anyway, what did Reggie ask you?" Grayson asked, sounding amused when he saw me dancing. "Before you rushed off like that?"
I shrugged and opened one eye to scowl at him teasingly. "Leave me alone," I said, teasingly. "This is my happy time because I love food." I cleared my throat and took another bite deciding that I would tell him after I finished this other bite.
Grayson scowled and narrowed his eyes teasingly. However, he didn't say a word while he waited for me to finish my bite of food, knowing that I would answer his question soon.
Reggie raised an eyebrow and looked amused, too. "Muss man unhöflich zu ihm sein? (Do you have to be rude to him?)" he asked.
"Ja, (Yes,)" I replied and picked up some more food, earning a groan from Grayson. "Ich muss unhöflich zu ihm sein. Es macht Spaß. (I have to be rude to him. It's fun.)"
"Cassidy," Charlie warned, amused. He narrowed his eyes when I was about to take another bite of food. "Tell him what was discussed."
I rolled my eyes and scowled. "You are a buzzkiller, Charlie," I said and tossed my food back onto my plate. "Do you know that?"
Charlie nodded in confirmation and smirked. "I do," he said. He gestured for me to tell Gryaon what was said, and I rolled my eyes again while my scowl deepened.
I cleared my throat and looked at Grayson. "Anyway," I said, "if you must know, Reggie asked me if I had to eat a lot of calories a day, and I told him that I did. I have to eat something unless I get hangry, and according to Charlie, I get super hangry when I don't have something to eat at a given time.'' I smiled and winked at Charlie before I looked at Grayson. "But that is according to him, not me."