cover above made by satanismic
ღ Finding Cinderella- 28 ღ
-Kylie-
I glared at Tristan, and he glared back at me.
We were sitting at our respective tables in the cafeteria, twenty-feet or so away from each other. Neither of us were willing to get up and go to the other, so we settled on exchanging text messages and throwing glances at each other. I had told him that I wanted to invite Julianne and Lacey to hang out with us after school, and this was what he had replied:
You can't.
Breaking the staring contest with him, I returned to my phone and typed: Come on. They're your friends, too. Besides, they say the more the merrier!
Him: No.
Oh, Jesus.
Me: WHY
Him: Don't ask. You just can't bring them.
Ugh. This whole thing would look like a date! Didn't he think it was awkward? We were not kids anymore. I considered canceling the plan, but canceling was the worst thing I could do.
Me: WHY
Him: Do you have words to say other than why?
I snorted a laugh as I typed back: No. Why?
He made no immediate reply. Without turning back to him, I could see him making a heavy sigh and hitting his face with his palm.
A minute later, he sent me: Fine, suit yourself. Bring whoever you want, I don't care.
Breaking out into a huge grin, I responded: YAAAYY and turned my head to stick my tongue out at him. Tristan sent me his pursing-lips-and-deadpan-look combo, and I laughed before facing back my table where I was met with Julianne and Lacey's inquisitive stares.
"What?" I asked.
"Oh, nothing, sis," Lacey sang and popped a slice of carrot in her mouth. "I notice you're blushing a lot lately."
I didn't even realize I was blushing until she made that remark. A crafty smile passed over Julianne's face, and she continued to eat her lunch in silence.
"I... I am? It's only because of the heat," I said, trying to sound nonchalant, though I was not quite sure why I was trying to be nonchalant. "Anyway, you guys are coming with me after school."
Lacey's eyes sparkled. "Are we finally going to shop for your clothes?"
"No, Lacey, I'm broke," I said. "We're just going to hang out at Crest."
"No. Nah-uh." Julianne waved her hand at Lacey to get her attention. "Don't accept her invitation."
"Why?" Lacey asked.
Julianne turned her head to me. "It was Tristan who asked you to hang out, right?"
"Uh..." was what I could only say. Damn it. She was sharp.
"Right. So he actually asked you out on a date. We're not going," she said.
Lacey emitted a loud squeal, and my body temperature rose significantly.
"It's not a date!" I blurted out. "Besides, I don't like him like that."
"So then... how do you like him so far?" Julianne crooned, placing a hand under chin and grinning from ear to ear.
I looked at her in disbelief. When would she ever drop her teasing? "No way in a million years would I ever date him. Even if he's the last man on Earth, still—hell no," I swore.
She wiggled her eyebrows at Lacey, saying, "Yeah, that's what they always say."
"Just please come with me," I implored with a sigh. "I just think it would be fun if there were many of us."
Julianne puffed out air in an exasperated manner. "Fine, fine. We'll come with you."
"But what about their—" Lacey uttered, but she was cut off when the table jerked. "Err—okay."
I curled my lips, narrowing my eyes at them. "You guys had better not ditch me."
"Ditch you? No one's gonna ditch you," Julianne replied and went back to eating.
After a while, someone cleared her throat loudly, and we turned to see Ronnie carrying a tray in her hands. "Um, I know this may come as a surprise"—she hesitated for a second before continuing—"but can I sit with you guys?"
I exchanged glances with the other two. Julianne avoided my gaze and only sipped on her juice while Lacey shrugged, leaving the decision to me. I turned to look at Ronnie's old table and caught Fiona glaring in my direction. Ronnie had officially become her nemesis, and about half of the student population might have had the same feelings. Letting Ronnie sit with us would be like signing an agreement for war, but seeing the miserable look on her face made me feel bad.
"Sure," I said.
"Oh, thank you." Relief eased the worried lines of her face. She sat in the space beside me, and I could smell her strongly-scented perfume.
"No problem," I replied.
After that, silence fell on the table. Lacey busied herself with the rest of her salad while Julianne still pretended that she didn't see the newcomer. The atmosphere didn't feel awkward; Ronnie's debonair cheerleader presence was just quite intimidating that it felt like we had to move carefully around her.
On her tray was a plate of tossed salad and a bottle of water, and I wondered where the rest of her lunch was. She ate her salad in a very selective way. Pick. Watch. Munch. Pick. Watch. Munch.
A moment later, Lacey broke the silence by burping aloud. Her hand flew over her mouth as she looked at us and mumbled, "Oh, sorry. That was... unladylike." It was her habit to make loud burps, and she had always thought it was funny. It was my first time to hear her apologize for it, but I figured it was because of Ronnie, who was giving her a strange look.
"It was," she said in a serious tone. Then she added with a quick wave of her hand, "But don't worry about it. I always do it at home, and I swear I can do much louder than that."
A small chuckle escaped Lacey. "No way. I thought I had it the worst! Oh, by the way, I love your earrings."
"Thanks, they're Arabella. I love your dress."
"Thank you. Forever 21."
"I know, right? I have that one, too."
Seeing them exchange compliments on their branded clothes and accessories, I gazed down at my own and wondered what I would say if I ever had a conversation like that with someone. Perhaps it would be like, "Thanks. I got this from a yard sale."
"Okay, now don't blink because I'm about to show you something," Ronnie said. "And you guys be the judge who has it worse between Lacey and me."
She signaled for us to wait. Afterward, she pulled on a scary face and let out a strong belch, one that sounded like a mixture of a fat man snoring and a bear fighting over a meal. The rest of us cracked up. Julianne spewed Coke through her nose, and I guffawed so hard that I almost choked on my spit. If this was her way of trying to earn our goodwill, it was working.
"S-stop, stop. You win," Lacey managed to say between her gasps. Her cheeks were flaming red and her eyes were close to tears.
Ronnie laughed as well and said coolly, "See? But my best doesn't even come close to that one. I did the horrible ones after a fizzy drink or two, and they were so bad that even my friends swore they could hear me several streets away."
"Hey, honestly, I never thought you could do something like that," Julianne said. She seemed to have warmed up to her. "You always seem so..."
"I seem so what? Refined? Flawless?" Ronnie took another sip of her soda. "Maybe people see me that way because I'm pretty. It's not my fault, really."
She said it so snobbishly, but in an exaggerated way that made it clear that she was joking. I let out an amused snort at the same time Julianne rolled her eyes.
"Kidding. I'm a person, and I like to do weird stuff, too. Fiona's the one that loves to look perfect. Sometimes it's hard to put..." Ronnie trailed off as if realizing something. A forlorn look briefly crossed her face before she perked up and said, "Anyway, that's it. I'm really not as shiny perfect as people see me. And... um... I may have said or done mean things to you guys in the past. Especially to you, Kylie..."
I looked at her, confused.
"I don't have any excuses for them," she continued, "but... I want to apologize. Frankly, asking you the favor of letting me sit with you guys made me feel ashamed of myself..."
I was baffled. I remembered that she used to laugh along with Tristan's jokes about me and used to give me the stink eye, but that was years ago. She'd never personally mistreated me. This was probably the first time we ever made eye-contact.
I couldn't tell what she was thinking, but I could tell she was truly sorry for whatever it was. I put on a smile to ease the awkward atmosphere.
Before I could speak, Julianne stared at her critically and made a catty remark, "That's too nice of you, Ronnie. I really didn't expect that."
"It's okay," I quickly said to Ronnie before she could misinterpret Julianne's tone. "You're free to sit with us anytime."
Her face lit up, and for a second she looked like a kid. "Really?"
"And that's too nice of you, Ky. I wonder why," Julianne deadpanned, giving me a strange look.
I couldn't deny; it actually felt weird. I guessed forgiving Tristan had mellowed me some, made me less uptight, made me accept easily the next apology I was offered.
"There's nothing to wonder about, Jules," I answered and smiled at her.
Ronnie put her hand on my arm. "Thanks, Kylie," she said.
When there was a lull in the conversation, Lacey began to open a new topic, and they babbled everything from celebrity crushes to their worst hair experiences to their plans for next month's prom. Julianne had warmed up to Ronnie again, and I was sure they'd be exchanging beauty products in the bathroom before this day ended.
Meanwhile, I simply sat there and munched my food, feeling a little out-of-place, but Ronnie would occasionally ask me about Tristan, which was a subject I tried to draw away from. In any case, I was glad to see everyone showing an amiable attitude toward each other. It wasn't bad to have Ronnie around, and I hoped this turn out of events would lead to something positive.
ღ
A couple of hours later, I grabbed my books from my locker and headed down the hall toward my most dreaded class, my heartbeat accelerating with every step.
"Hey, Kylie."
I turned around and saw Erik walking toward me.
"You look pretty tense. What's the matter?" he asked.
"Oh. It's Calculus. Mr. Cross is going to give one of the worst tests of the year, and I don't know if I'll survive this one." I made a dry laugh. "My brain automatically shuts itself down whenever I see a math problem."
"You can do it. I know you can," he encouraged. A grin spread across his face, and it looked so cute that it could possibly cure my breakouts and could shoot up my grades.
I inhaled deeply and nodded. The hallway was crowded, and occasionally, Erik's arm would bump against mine, reminding me how close we were. And it was making me more nervous.
"Anyway, I saw your sister with Clark when I passed by the library." He said it so casually that I was caught off guard.
My mood went from neutral to a bitter one in a split second. "What?" I asked, my voice deep and full. I thought Lacey was over him. Apparently not. This explained why Lacey kept disappearing at random times and making lame excuses for doing so. She was still hanging out with Clark behind my back!
Erik turned to me, his eyes wide. "You're still keeping a tight leash on her, huh?"
I suddenly felt embarrassed that I wasn't able to answer right away.
"I know you, Kylie. You always scare off any guy who tries to come to her, even the nice ones," he supplied.
"Lacey is too kind, Erik, that even the stranger danger warning almost doesn't apply to her. I don't want her running around with some anonymous guy," I said. Again, she had a reputation as being a creep magnet since she was young. I would blow my top if I saw one eyeing her like a piece of meat.
"Give her a break. She's sixteen, right? I believe she's mature enough to recognize a good guy when she sees one. I don't know her that well, but I don't think she's the type to run around with some random guy."
"But she's had so little experience..." I protested in a small voice. I might not have vast experience myself, but I knew that teenage boys were reckless and had zero sense of consequences. Maybe not all of them were like that, but... still, I didn't want my sister to deal with those asshats.
Erik clucked his tongue. "How can she have any experience when you don't even want her to hang out with a guy unless you personally know his entire family tree?"
Ouch. That stung. But he had a point.
"I'll... give it some thought," I said at last. I stared at Erik, wondering why it seemed to matter so much to him.
He only made that adorable grin again as a response. He started to jog away when we reached my classroom. "Good luck with your test!" he said.
Something was not quite right.