At last, 11:50 came. I could eat lunch. I took my five dollars out of my wallet to purchase a nice meal. I grabbed a tray and patiently waited in line, seeing my options.
In such a small state like Wyoming, demand was low, so prices were low. I had to pay no more than four bucks for a sandwich, salad, a bowl of fruit, and even a can of pop. As I glanced over the prices, I didn't have enough cash for one meal. A ham sandwich was $2.75; a bowl of salad was another $1.50; and a freaking water bottle was a dollar! I was a quarter short, and that wasn't even including tax. A little upset, I settled for half a meatball sub, a Caesar salad, and asked for a Styrofoam cup so I could get water from the fountain. The total was still $4 plus tax, but I was okay with it. At least it would get me through the rest of the afternoon.
I filled my cup at the fountain by the restroom, and took a seat at a table without any people. I didn't know why, but I just didn't feel like making friends that day. Occupied with my sandwich and water with mediocre quality while scrolling through Tumblr on my phone, I didn't notice the bitchy-looking girls and guys surrounding my table.
They had to give me a nickname to get my attention. "Hey, Blue-hair," one soprano voice said.
I glanced up in shock. They were all pretty good looking, which for some reason registered as "intimidating" in my mind, even though I could likely kick the girls' asses one-on-one.
"This is our table," a blonde boy threatened.
"S-s-sorry," I stuttered, gathering my plate and bowl onto the tray. "I didn't know. I'll just move."
One girl whispered into the ear of the boy who spoke, and she giggled. The guy smirked.
God, I'm such a dork. "Here. Y-your table is clear."
A brunette cocked her eyebrow. "You left crumbs."
I looked at her. "Excuse me?" We were causing a scene by now. Tables close by turned their heads to us, and my chest tightened.
"It's dirty. Clean it up," she demanded.
Is this chick for real? I just stared, opened mouthed. She can't be serious.
Clearly she was the leader of the pack. "Well?"
I was utterly appalled. The only thing I could manage to get out in response was: "No." And as soon as the sound escaped my lips I desperately tried to shove the sound waves back into my mouth. But everyone heard it. Oh, shit.
I heard a couple kids in the background just go, "Ooooo..." and "She's fucked."
The brown-haired bimbo was taken aback by my comeback. "Hmm...Well, this is unfortunate."
At this point, I had just given up. I snatched up my tray and started walking away.
"Hey!" the boy who had first addressed me yelled.
I ignored him. These guys weren't going to get to me. They're just bullies. And, bullies they were.
I felt the splash of liquid against my back. It was cold and unwelcoming. I spun around to face them, and the whole cafeteria was laughing. But the snorty laugh of the whispering girl was the loudest.
"Oops," she said mockingly.
I was frozen in my spot. I couldn't even move when the blonde guy came to tower over me. He stole my sub off the plate, rudely took a bite, and shoved the rest down my shirt.
Tears stung the back of my eyes. Don't cry. Don't cry. You're stronger than that.
I sighed to calm myself. I just set the tray down on an empty table, pulled the sandwich out of my shirt, and walked gracefully away to the bathroom.
That's when I stopped handling it well. I burst into tears at the mirror and couldn't stop crying. After a couple minutes, I wet a paper towel and wiped my chest clean of meat sauce. I was still sobbing as I did this, and for a little longer afterwards, but I wasn't dirty. Just wet.
When I calmed down a little, I looked down at my forearms at the fading scars. And right then, I wished to reopen them. I wasn't okay. I never stopped being depressed. And now I was triggered. My fingers involuntarily touched the slight bumps the scars had, and I began to cry again.
I missed my mom. I wanted her there to tell me it was okay, and that they were just being mean. I sunk to the floor and rested my arms on my knees, hiding my face.
Just then, the door opened. A girl wearing a black and white striped dress came in. She looked to be about sixteen or seventeen.
"I'm so sorry about what Carrie and her friends did," she said sincerely, coming over to sit by me on the wall. "Anything I can do to help?"
Honestly, I was speechless. No one was ever nice to me after I was bullied. And I probably made her uncomfortable by staring at her, open-mouthed for a few seconds.
Seeing my shocked expression, she introduced herself. "I'm Savanna, sixteen, junior."
After processing that, I replied a little too quickly. "I'm Tegan."
"Nice to meet you," she smiled.
"Thank you," I said softly. "You, too."
"Again, I'm sorry you got involved with Carrie's group. They're all sort of—" She stopped in the middle of her sentence. "Do you cuss?"
A little taken aback by her odd question, I answered cautiously. "Yes...?"
"Okay." Savanna frowned again. "They're all bitches."
I nodded in agreement.
"Would you like to borrow my jacket? It'll help hide the Coke stain," she offered.
"Thanks, but I think I'll be fine." Why is this girl being so nice to me?
"Okay, just let me know if you change your mind."
We sat in silence for another moment or two. I enjoyed it. And I thought I was making a friend.
"You didn't go here last year, did you?" she asked.
I chuckled. "How'd you guess?"
"Well, first of all, you sat at the Carrie Crew's lunch table. And then you challenged them...And then you walked away from their threats."
"Damn, I've been discovered," I smirked.
She laughed a little too enthusiastically for that pathetic joke. Clearly, she was trying to get on my good side. "You're hilarious."
I didn't really think I was that funny. Sure, I had a sense of humor, but I was no stand-up comedian.
After that, another silence settled in. I began to think about my mom again. I remembered how she would crack a joke whenever one of us was feeling bad, and it always made me feel better. Perhaps I had inherited that from her.
"Are you okay?" Savanna asked in concern.
I must have been tearing up or something. "Yeah, I'm alright. Why don't you go back to lunch? You're friends are probably wondering where you are."
"That's a good idea. Why don't you come?" she suggested.
My stomach lurched. Somehow that didn't sound like a great plan. "I think I'll just wash up a little bit, and then I'll find you out there in a bit," I lied.
She grinned cheekily. "Okay! Sounds awesome!" Savanna skipped off and waved to me. Then she disappeared behind the swinging door.
Wow, she's happy.
I went into one of the stalls and pulled out my phone, wanting to tell Alex about what happened. When I opened Kik, I read all my missed messages from them.
>> [image] This is Frisky the kitty. I'm going to adopt him.
>> I'm so excited to give Frisky a place to stay
>> OW HE CLAWED AT ME
>> STOP IT
>> I AM NOT A CHEW TOY!!!!!!!
I shook my head at the ridiculous behavior of my dear friend.
<< Don't hurt your new cat. I'm sure he wants to see the light of tomorrow
>> OMG YOU'RE HERE HELLO HOW IS YOUR DAY
<< Well, guess who just earned herself another mortal enemy
>> Oh no. What happened?
I filled in Alex on what happened, and this was the reply: "What a bitch." Everyone, apparently, thought that Carrie was particularly bitchy that day. Once I mentioned Savanna, though, the mood lightened.
>> Yay, you're making a new friend!!! I knew you would!!!
<< Lol. I'd better get ready for next class. Text you after school
>> Kk. Talk then
I shut down my phone and stepped out of the bathroom to organize my locker better. But I still felt guilty about leaving Savanna. I just didn't want to go back to that cafeteria.
After another twenty minutes of making mental notes of how to display my binders, the bell rang and seniors began to file into the hallway. My eyes caught Parker as he sauntered over to me, and his stupid blue eyes twinkled when he grinned at his friend.
When he reached me, he immediately grew silent, and his friend hushed as well. I grabbed another blank binder for Mandarin as Parker's buddy walks away. I shut my locker door a little more forcefully than I intended and was just about to walk away when Parker stopped me.
"I see you're drier." He forced a chuckle.
I glared at him and pushed him away.
"Wait, Tegan," he insisted. It was the first time he had actually used my name. "I'm really sorry."
He seemed sincere, but I just couldn't believe him. "Doesn't matter," I muttered and shoved him off me and sped to my class, not letting anything he could do stop me.