His Rotten Apple

19 ~ This Isn't a Game of Dance, Dance Revolution

Wednesday morning, Zailey got up earlier than usual, preparing two bottles of water and comfortable clothes to dance in. As she rode the bus to school, she encountered Nick once again, only to discover that he and Jacque were finally in a relationship.

"What the actual heck?!" Zailey said. "Why didn't I know about this?"

"Dunno... Don't you hang out with her like everyday? We've been going out for like a week now," Nick said.

"I guess I haven't really been hanging out with them as often," Zailey bit her lip, "But, I'm happy for you guys!"

"Thanks... And next time you see her, can you tell her I miss her?"

"Ew... I never saw you as a mushy kind of guy, Nick."

"Zai, let me tell you something. I didn't know I was either. But, Jacque... She just... Unlocked something in me that I didn't know I had. I'm totally different. She brought out some weird person hiding inside me, y'know?"

As he said this, a million thoughts surged through Zailey's head as Connor came to mind.

"What about you, you're in love too, aren't you?" Nick asked.

The mere question caused her stomach to whirl, as she remained caught up on one word, "L-Love?"

"Gotcha," He smirked with confidence.

"Hell no, I just spaced for a while..." she said, abruptly facing down to hide her flustered expression.

Bidding goodbye to Nick, she ran out of the bus to meet her friends. She spotted them at the front of the school, acting as if they didn't hear the bell ring.

"Zai! You ditchin with us today?" Josephina called out to her.

"Ugh, sorry, can't... I need to make up the test I missed from the last time we ditched," Zailey said.

"That was two weeks ago, how long does it take you to make up a test?" Elizabeth asked bitterly.

"Sorry, my mind's just been everywhere these days," Zailey ran her fingers through her hair.

"Come on, who the fuck cares? Henry offered to drive us downtown!" Josephina said.

"Josephina, just drop it. We lost her already," Jacque said.

"Lost me? What's all this crap about losing me?" Zailey asked.

"No biggie, Zai, we're happy you set your priorities straight. But we're not down for that yet," Jacque said.

"Don't you guys think it's about time to start focusing on your futures?" Zailey lectured them, "It's senior year for God's sake! You all need to get your shit together!"

"Oh my God, shut up already! You start hanging out with Connor and all of a sudden you think you're so great. Don't be coming here giving us some stupid lecture on how we should live our lives," Elizabeth uttered in a voice filled with rage.

"Connor? Fucking finally, Elizabeth... After ages of waiting for you to respond to me, you finally bite," she leaned forward, taunting her. "Can we please talk about it now?"

"What the fuck do we need to talk about then, Zai? The fact that you straight up lied about being in a relationship and failing to clear it up? Or that you felt free to eavesdrop into a conversation that I don't remember welcoming you into?" Elizabeth spat back.

"Yes. I wanted to apologize for everything. The misunderstanding was my fault... And I can't live with this current situation between us."

"Lucky you, living life without issues with other people. Because you're just so fucking good at luring them in."