Then again, I don't have to answer. It's none of their business but my own.
"Yeah," Liam mutters, "Now let's go."
I have no room for objection as Liam hops out the car and comes around to my side, opening the door for me.
I meet his eyes and bite down on my lip. I silently plead with him not to make me do this.
Liam sighs at my obvious attempt to derail him and leans closely to where I can feel his breath on my lips.
He reaches out hesitantly and carefully cups my cheek, awake and aware of the black eye I still have.
I rest my much smaller hand on top of his, letting out a shaky breath as I stare into his green hues. "It's going to be okay," He assures me, "Don't worry."
For the first time ever, I can read Liam easily. I can actually decipher what he's feeling at that moment. And it's because he allows me to see it. So I know I can put my trust in him.
I nod and manage to utter, "Okay."
Liam releases me and steps back. I take the chance to get up before the urge to slam the car door and lock myself in over powers me.
I walk beside Liam in silence.
The few stray kids in the parking lot glance at us, but they dismiss us both shortly after. They obviously don't care.
I can only pray that's how it stays.
Luck is on my side.
Through the whole morning, I keep under the radar, only talking when needed. Of course, some ask what happened, but when they realize I'm not going to answer, they turn away and go back to their own business.
I also get to talk to Ms. J about the back drops. She stresses that they need to be done in two weeks, and how I need to get on it immediately, or else she will be forced to assign the project to someone else.
And even though I have no desire to linger at school, I tell her I will work on them everyday after school.
Besides that little scare, everything goes perfectly fine.
That is, till lunch come's around.
I'm at my locker when I spot Mandy and Jessica calling to someone across the hall, shouting and hollering at the person to hurry up.
And though the hall way is crowded with people - all fighting their way to get to lunch - I still hear that familiar girlish giggle ring in my ears.
Anna's face come's into view just then, too.
She wears a broad smile on her face, her eyes twinkling at the sight of her new friends and boyfriend, who suddenly appears out of the doorway of his last class.
She's embraces Mandy and Jessica, then Cliff, who she gives a swift kiss to the lips before he wraps his arm around her shoulder and leads her to the lunch room.
With that, she is gone from my direction.
I stare after her. I almost want her to look back at me and actually acknowledge my existence.
And I know I'm completely contradicting myself - once saying I didn't want to see her and have to make up some lie - but now I almost want to, as weird as it sounds.
I suddenly realize I'm wrong.
The thing that really hurts the most is when you're gone, and you wonder if those people cared enough to notice that.
Anna hasn't.
But that's what I asked for. To simply avoid all pity filled questions, comments, conversations, everything between the lines.
Now here I am. Silently sobbing over the fact Anna doesn't care. But I had the right to be, didn't I? Anna's my best friend. In order to have the title, you have to be in the other person's life and care about them, right?
Was the same thing that happened with Adam going to repeat itself?
Once this horrid thought leaks into my head, I can't seem to get it out.
It's happening again, I think frantically, Anna's leaving me behind. Just the way Adam did.
I'm no longer in the mood to have lunch.
I turn and head on down to the art wing, where I find my place in front of the huge canvas. I spend half of my time painting, then the thoughts from earlier seem to consume me and I end up throwing the paint brush across the room.
I lean against the wall and pull on the loose strands of hair. I think about Anna more. And how I'm not ready to lose her. Not like the way I lost Adam.
I contemplate marching over to her and demanding answers on why she ditched me for her new, fake, friends. I realize it's silly after a few minutes.
If anything, Anna should be the one demanding answers from me. I've lied to her about everything in my life practically.
About my parents, about where I live, about what I am. Everything.
I don't blame her for just leaving me like that. I'm sure Mandy and Jessica are more suited friends for her, anyway.
They love the same things. Boys, makeup, clothes. Now that I think of it, Anna and I didn't have much in common. But we still got a long. We still befriended each other when we had nothing.
She had told me things that she hadn't told others. Like she secretly thought her family was falling apart, or that sometimes she hated what she saw in the mirror. She trusted me with her deepest secrets, and though I was restricted of what I could and couldn't tell her, I would talk with her about how I felt alone. About how I wasn't sure if I really knew who I am. Or what I want, exactly.
And even threw all of that, she had thrown it aside and ditched me.
As I think this, I so desperately want to be mad at her. But I can't bring myself to be.
If anything, I'm mad at myself. For letting someone get to know me and giving them the chance to make me feel a stir of emotions. All consisting of hurt and betrayal.
They make me feel weak.
And I don't like to feel weak. Though I'm pretty sure I've established that more than once.
But I'm in the same place again. The same mix of emotions and before I can stop it, the imagine of Adam telling me that he couldn't be my friend anymore plays in my mind.
"I can't be your friend anymore, Ronnie," Adam blurts suddenly.
I blink a few times, looking at him as if he's sprouted a second head. "Huh?"
"I can't be your friend." He repeats, his eyes shifting from the lake to me. "The rest of the pack is.. getting on my case about hanging around you."
I shake my head and my eyebrows furrow together. "Why?"
"Because of your dad," Adam explains, "And how he... well, you know, just dropped out of being the pack's guard."