4 | Amature Mistake
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Standing off to the side in the lunchroom, Cady peered around at the chaotic tables and multiple cliqued up friend groups. Not a single table looked open to new students.
"M'kay. You just need to find your group and commit to it." Damian placed his hands on his hips and looked through the students. He began pointing out a few different tables. "You have your jocks. Your corny horny band freaks."
At the sight of the band kids swapping spit and humping each other over the table, Cady turned her head and winced.
"Your classic burnouts." Damian looked back to Cady and hummed, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Do any of these feel like your people?"
"I don't...I don't think so." Cady mumbled, shifting awkwardly. She looked around the room and sighed. She couldn't see herself fitting in with any of these kids.
"Hmm..." Damian's eyes caught on someone across the room. "You know what might be cute for her?"
Janis followed Damian's eyes and frowned. "What, Grade Grubbers?" She scoffed.
"No." Damian smiled slightly when his eyes caught with another boy just down the long table from the so-called Grade Grubbers. "I was gonna say Theater Mess."
Cady gasped quietly and looked up at Damian as he exchanged a shy wave with one of the theater boys. She smiled to herself, looking around to give him some privacy.
Her posture fixed quickly when she noticed the sea of students part to their left. Reign, the pretty girl from her Calculus class, walked by with a tray of double cheese fries, fruit, and two drinks with her sunglasses covering those dark chocolatey eyes she saw earlier.
"And, who sits at that table?" Cady asked, motioning to the table Reign was settling at.
Janis scrunched up her face and exchanged a look with Damian.
"Oh, no, no, no, no." Damian shook his head. "We called them The Plastics because they're shiny, fake, and hard. Only one of them has a heart, but sadly she finally lost her independent brains last year to the training of Barbieland."
"Yeah." Janis pointed to the girl talking to Reign. "That's Gretchen Wieners. She knows everything about everybody."
"That's why her hair is so big." Damian leaned down beside Cady's ear. "It's full of secrets."
"That girl on the side closest to us is Karen Shetty." Janis rolled her eyes. "She is the dumbest person you'll ever meet."
Cady tilted her head and watched Karen try to drink her bubbly water with a straw...through her nose. "Oh."
"I once saw her put a D in the word orange." Damian giggled.
"And the other girl is–"
"Reign Akana." Cady blurted out. She froze when Damian and Janis looked at her in surprise. "We, uh, we have A.P Calc together. She's a great photographer."
"Wait." Janis frowned deeply, slowly turning to face the new girl. "Reign showed you her camera?"
"I mean, no, I..." Cady winced. "Might have looked over her shoulder."
"You–" Janis laughed loudly, throwing back her head. "Oh, no, don't let her hear you! She is not the one, Caddy. Not the one!"
"Why's Reign with..." Cady glanced toward the table. "The Plastics?"
"She's brainwashed." Janis muttered, crossing her arms and looking off toward her cousin. "She's the smartest girl in this school–"
"And an amazing artist." Damian added.
"But she was pulled into their little friend group and never escaped." Janis scoffed. "She's too blinded by...her."
"Who? Gretchen?" Cady frowned.
"No, Miss Qu–"
Suddenly, the lights in the lunchroom all dimmed and the students around the room ducked for cover.
"What's that?" Cady gasped, close to dropping her tray in shock.
"It's Her!" Janis spat, darting behind the half wall to escape being seen.
"It's the Queen Bee!" Damian ran after Janis. "Don't look her in the eye!"
"Wha–" Cady's eyes widened when a blonde walked down the aisle of tables with her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket. "Uh, wh-what do I do?"
"Run!" Janis scrambled toward their usual table.
Damian followed after her. "No! No, she's seen us!"
"My name is Regina George." The blonde stopped beside Reign's place at the table and smirked down at her best friend. "And I am a massive deal."
Reign rolled her eyes and looked down at her cheese fries. She placed a basket in front of her friend's usual spot and tugged her jacket.
"Not this shit again." She whispered, trying to encourage Regina to sit down instead of showing off to the student body. "Whore, sit your ass down."
"Fear me, love me." Regina leaned down and shoved Reign back, practically forcing the girl to eat a cheese fry. "Stand and stare at me...and these?"
Reign chewed her food and rolled her eyes as the blonde trailed her hands down her body, purposely pushing her breasts up.
"These are real." Regina smirked. "I've got money and looks. I am, like, drunk with power."
Reign waved off her friend when Regina's nails tickled under her chin, trying to encourage her attention. She didn't play the game like Gretchen and Karen, choosing to pull out her phone to scroll through her feed.
The blonde stalked toward a few students within Reign's sight. She glanced over her three friends, always double checking they understood who was the top bitch in this school. She slowly pushed a boy's chin up from its hanging position and cocked her head.
"This whole school humps my leg, like a Chihuahua." Regina slowly turned back to her group, shoving Gretchen out of her way in order to sit down on the tabletop. "I'm the prettiest poison you've ever seen. That filter you use looks just like me."
Cady gulped, watching Regina lean back on the table and look directly at her.
"My name is Regina George. And I am a massive deal." She smirked. "I don't care who you are...I don't care how you feel."
"Babygirl, hey." Reign leaned over the table and grabbed a napkin, wiping the smeared lipstick on Karen's lower lip away. "You really need to check a damn mirror after you make out with Phineas."
Regina looked over her shoulder and rolled her eyes. "Stop acting like such a Mom all the time, Reign. It's setting an example."
"Shh." Reign held a finger to Regina. "The adults are talking."
Regina made a face, glancing at Karen. "Adults? Don't tell me that includes Karen."
"Well, it sure doesn't include you."
Gretchen giggled, bumping shoulders lightly with Reign when the girl pretended Regina didn't exist. It was normal for the two to bicker more than have true conversations. Sometimes she found herself bouncing between appreciating the both of them as the center power.
"Oh, I didn't make out with Phineas today." Karen smiled gratefully at Reign when Regina turned her attention away. "I made out with Dennis!"
"You!"
"Dennis? That's disgusting." Reign rolled her eyes and settled back on the bench. She looked up when she heard Regina call toward someone again.
"Yeah, you." Regina smirked. "Come here!"
Reign leaned around Regina and frowned deeply when Cady dragged their feet in the group's direction. She sighed heavily when Gretchen stood up to stand beside Regina, Karen turning completely around for their power triangle.
"What are you doing?" Reign asked, standing up to greet Cady. She rounded the table and sent Regina a sharp look. "Don't do this shit again. It's so bore."
"Stop making bore your entire personality." Regina hissed, snapping in Reign's face and pretending to lock up her friend's lips. Once the invisible tea was thrown away, she turned back to Cady. "Why don't I know you?"
"I already told you about Caddy." Reign reminded her. "She's new."
"Well." Regina blinked forcefully, grinding her teeth for a second when Reign lifted a brow. "Introduce me to your friend, Reign."
"It's Cady." Cady tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled shyly toward Reign, turning back to Regina. "I just moved here from Kenya."
"Shut up." Regina gasped, sitting up and slamming her feet down on the bench. "Shut up!"
"I...I didn't say anything." Cady nervously smiled.
"You're, like, really pretty." Regina smirked. She glanced pointedly in Reign's direction. "Reigndeer, don't you agree? Isn't she just so pretty?"
"Jesus." Reign pinched her nose. "Not this dumb shit again."
"Thanks." Cady blushed.
"So you agree?" Regina smiled smugly. "You think you're really pretty?"
"Oh, I don't know." Cady shuffled in her place.
Gretchen stepped forward once Reign had stomped behind them back to her seat. "You're an international student! That is so fetch."
"What is...fetch?" Regina asked, shortly giving Gretchen a look.
"It's..." Gretchen nervously laughed. "It's like slang from an old movie. Juno, I think."
Karen sat up and smiled goofily at Cady. "Have you ever touched a tiger?"
"Those aren't–"
"They don't–"
Cady and Reign's eyes met as they both spoke up. The taller of the two looked down at her food and motioned for Cady to continue, shrugging as the girl blushed pink.
Something that didn't go entirely unnoticed by Regina. Although she didn't know this girl, and saw no reaction from Reign, she always kept tabs on who was looking at her girls. Like dealing with Jason, Kevin, and every person Karen slept with wasn't difficult enough.
"Tiger's aren't indigenous to Kenya." Cady finished, sparing a glance toward Reign.
"Cause that's one of my life goals." Karen smiled. "To not touch a tiger."
Regina rolled her eyes. She turned her head and felt her annoyance grow when Jason slid up beside the table and raked his eyes over the new fresh meat in the school.
"Hey, new girl!" Jason smirked. "You want to see a trick?"
"Fuck off, Jason." Reign chewed her cheese fry and threw the boy a look. "We don't like sleaze bags here. Stop station hopping and commit."
"Rei." Gretchen whined.
"Bitch." Reign pointed a dark purple nail at her friend. "Stop painting your nails red to match all the flags sticking out of these bastards. Paint them pink and claw their eyes out already."
"I can guess any girl's bra size." Jason smirked. "All you gotta do is jump one time."
"Ew, Jason!" Gretchen gasped, spinning around to swat at the boy.
"Do me!" Karen grinned.
When Karen went to jump, Reign shook her head and turned her finger on the younger girl.
"Don't be a whore. Sit down and eat your lunch."
"Oh, don't kill the fun, Akana!" Jason threw up his hands. "Buzz kill."
"Easy, Mamas." Regina chuckled at Reign's death glare, following its path straight into Jason's skull. She rested a hand on Reign's shoulder and twirled her lion's mane as she stood up. "I got it."
Reign shoved Regina's hand away from her and rolled her eyes. "Don't touch the hair."
"Oh, my God, Jason." Regina looked the tall boy up and down. "You do not come to a party at my house with Gretchen and then skeeze on the new girl right in front of me."
"Hm." Reign yanked Gretchen down in the seat beside her, forcing her eyes away from the scruffy looking boy.
"Do you want to have sex with him?" Regina looked to Cady.
"Oh, uh..." Cady rubbed her arm. "No, thank you."
"Caddy." Reign raised her brow. "Don't be scared to tell a man no."
"N-No." Cady turned to Jason and smiled apologetically. "No?"
"Jesus." Reign groaned, pushing her cheese fries around with a fork. "This is–"
"Okay, so it's settled." Regina smiled smugly. "Jason, no one thinks you're funny. Okay?"
Reign leaned around Gretchen and threw her arm over her shoulder. "And this thing you're doing where you lower your voice when you talk is making people really sad!"
Regina grinned. She turned toward the lunch room and looked around at her student body.
"Excuse me!" Regina grabbed the room's attention. "Anyone who would like Jason Weems to go back to his normal speaking voice, please raise your hand!"
Cady awkwardly looked around the cafeteria as the entire lunch room filled with raised hands.
Regina narrowed her eyes when Reign didn't raise. "Eh-em?"
"Bitch." Reign threw a fry in her mouth. "It was an observation. Not my opinion."
"I can't deal with you right now." Regina grumbled, waving Jason away until he stormed off in a whiney fret. She spun until she was face to face with Cady again, smirking at her discomfort. "You're really gonna get noticed around here. We should help you."
Reign sighed. She hated when Regina wasted their time messing with freshmen or new kids. It was partly her fault for tuning Regina in on the new girl, but her messy radar always went off eventually. Evil always took another form inside Regina George's love to mess with the fresh meat.
"Can you give us some privacy for a second?"
"Okay." Cady frowned. "Yeah. Sure."
Regina turned toward her friends and made eye contact with each of them. She smirked, waiting to see if anyone objected. She knew who did. Grentchen was the little dog humping her leg at all times and Karen went along with just about anything they did. Her only issue would be Reign.
So, before Reign could open her pretty little mouth and bitch like she enjoyed it in these fun situations, Regina turned back around to face Cady. She slid back up onto the table top and kicked her leg over her knee, examining the flannel wearing junior curiously.
"So, we've never really done this–" Reign rolled her eyes. "But you're invited to eat lunch with us for the rest of the week."
"All week!" Gretchen grinned.
"Oh. Um..." Cady blinked in surprise. "That's okay."
"On Wednesdays, we wear pink!" Karen clapped enthusiastically.
Cady tried to keep her smile up. She glanced behind her at Janis and Damian and frowned, looking back toward the girls.
"Well..." Cady's lips wobbled in amusement when Reign shook her head behind her friends.
"Run!" Reign mouthed, trying to shoo away Cady, but the girl unfortunately seemed to only find their group more enticing with her attempt.
"Thanks." Cady nodded. "I'll, uh, I'll wear pink tomorrow."
"Great." Regina threw a look to Reign and smirked at her best friend's irritation. "We'll wear pink too."
"Because it's Wednesday." Karen clapped her hands. "And on Wednesday, we always wear pink!"
"So fetch." Gretchen smiled.
"Right." Cady slowly nodded. "So...fetch."
Reign groaned, sinking down in her to enjoy her cheese fries.
"Bore."