Achieving Unbroken

-Chapter 18-

Achieving Unbroken
Chapter Eighteen

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"I'm not a queen, I'm not a saint, I'm not an angel;
Sometimes I'm wrong, I can be bad, act like a stranger"
Falling Slow | Tori Kelly

—

Lilla
[Monday, May 20th, 2018]

Maxwell: hey sunshine ☺️ lunch today? (7:56 AM)

I let out a heavy sigh. Piper looks up from her worksheet and looks at me, panicked.

"Shawn Mendes isn't coming to Seattle for his tour, is he?" I tense up, and mentally curse myself.

"Shit. I have to check that, but no, that's not it right now."

"Well I would put your phone away before Monroe notices it's out. She'll mount your head on the wall next to her desk."

I briefly think about this consequence, and picture it to myself... The last thing I want is for my memory to last in this bullshit science class. No thanks. I slide my phone into my purse, and Piper turns more toward me.

"'Kay, now what's wrong? You look... Conflicted." I smirk a little at how she chose that word, like she could perfectly sense how I feel.

"I've had Maxwell on read since this morning. He wants to have lunch today." Pip blinks back in surprise.

"You normally can't go a half hour without texting him back ASAP. When did that change? And if you say Jason—" She pauses, because I say Jason at the same moment she does, and she gives me the are you kidding me look. "Lilla."

"What?" My voice raises, exasperated. "I'm sorry, but last time I checked, Maxwell is not my boyfriend, and yet you all keep acting like he is. I'm one of the only people to show Jason patience and care in a long time. He needs me."

"You can't keep burdening yourself with other people's problems," she argues.

"It's not a burden."

"You're ignoring your friends!"

"I'm not ignoring Maxwell. But if he's bothered by it, he needs to get a grip."

Piper sighs, tiredly. That ends the debate, or at least slows it down. I look down, guilty that I'm upsetting her. We always try to express what we feel is best for the other person, whether it'll upset them or not. I'm just being defensive.

"I'm sorry. I appreciate you trying to get me back on course, and please keep letting me know if I'm being a total fuck up. But no offense, I'm worried about Jason sitting with you guys. Remember what Cannon said to me last week? I'm not sure he's interested in opening his heart to the new Jason. He had mentioned that he missed him, but... I guess now that the opportunity is presenting itself, he's gone back on that." She sits, listening to me quietly, nodding as I express concerns. When I'm done, she jumps in to assure me.

"Well, Cannon can deal. I think it would be good if Jason sat with us, without you. He needs to be able to swim without floaties, and I should probably get to know him better, right? And just so I don't suffocate with all of the guys around, I'll ask Raquel to come sit with us. We like her, right?"