Colin sat down on Logan’s right, inspecting his friend’s face. He could tell something was wrong. He rarely saw Logan unhappy since Logan usually had limitless battery power.
Colin glanced at the other party for answers whose eyes were already on him. Colin pointed his head over Logan’s direction in question. He merely received a shrug in response.
Whatever Logan worried about had to wait. Colin knew he would be mad if he didn’t greet him.
“Logan” Colin started, “Made a new friend, buddy?”
He mumbled, “No, not yet.”
A snort came from the other side of the table.
…
…
…
Logan’s head snapped up when he realized what had just happened. He looked towards Colin and his pitiful expression brightened instantly. Colin smiled to himself. There was the expression he was looking for.
All of Logan’s troubles flew out of his mind and in came the joyous feeling of reuniting with a long lost friend.
“Colin!” Logan grabbed his shoulder and shook him, unable to control the burst of high energy, “Long time, no see, dude! How was Australia? When did you get back?”
Colin sighed. He knew his question earlier went over Logan’s head but he felt happy to see him back to normal. He patted the hand on his shoulder and said, “Nice to see you too, man. We got back yesterday.”
Logan’s eyes widened, “Why didn’t you contact me? I would have ditched class to see you”
“No, you wouldn’t.”
“You’re right. I wouldn’t” Colin chuckled at his answer, “But! I would have come straight away!”
“Dude, as much as I wanted to see you, I needed sleep” Colin explained then, lifted his burger to his mouth, “It was a long flight. I barely slept on the plane.”
At this point, Logan had also forgotten his lunch entirely and had focused entirely on Colin’s return. He had been looking forward to it since Colin left. Realizing he missed his chance to hang out when he landed really bummed him out.
He frowned, unable to accept the circumstances, “Still, I could have—”
“No, he didn’t want you to pick him up this morning either” someone supplied for Colin, “He has his own car, you know.”
Jae sat on Logan’s other side. Despite his brother’s glare at him, Jae smiled cheekily, “Remember how you wanted to have your own car rather than share with me? Colin probably wants the same privilege too.”
Colin held up his burger in Jae’s honor and said, “Thanks, Jae.”
Jae responded by raising his own burger. Together, they tapped them in each other’s direction and ate them.
Logan watched the whole affair. He nudged Colin’s side with his elbow, pouting, “Hey! I’m supposed to be your best friend.”
“Then, why does it seem like Jae knows me better?”
“What do you—eat your own food, Jae!”
Logan pushed Jae’s hand away from his plate. It did little to stop him. Jae attempted again and again to snatch a few fries. Done with his brother’s antics, Logan stood up with his lunch tray and walked around to sit next to Alex.
Amidst the chaos, Alex ate her spaghetti quietly. Her head remained low but her ears stayed alert. She listened to the conversations and recalled the identities of the newcomers. Then, she peeked around and as she expected, they had an audience. Even when she tried to scare them off with a glare, they persisted to keep staring.
Alex sighed inwardly. The moment the guys came to her table was the moment that changed her life. She was now associated with them.
Since her first day at Woodlands Academy, Alex built an unapproachable reputation. Oh, she’d talk if approached but if the person tried to dig deeper, she’d cut the person off.
It was one thing to have Logan stick to her but to have two more people do that was a different level. Not to mention, the extra weight they carried as the school’s most popular guys.
Colin Hale was the boy-next-door, friendly… overall, the nicest guy on campus. Alex had nothing against him. If it weren’t for Colin, she wouldn’t have been able to escape most of the student council’s activities. They were scouted right away. One was intimidating and the other one was likable, a balanced pair in their opinion.
Reluctantly, Alex agreed in order to appease her mother. She thought it was a great opportunity to make friends but Alex had none of it. She barely attended meetings. No one outside the council even knew she was in it.
Later on, she discovered Colin actually covered for her as much as he could during the beginning of their new membership. He never told her about it nor did he interact with her. They simply acknowledged each other in the hallways when they pass by each other.
Jae Parker, on the other hand, was notoriously popular among the ladies. With his square jaw and striking blue eyes, it was undeniable. He excelled in sports the way Logan excelled in academics. He was voted as the basketball team’s new captain starting their junior year.
That was as far as what Alex knew of him. The rumor mill hadn’t been something she frequently kept up with. Most of the time, she happened to overhear a few things. She didn’t believe most of them. They were third hand information. By default, they were all skeptical. Despite that, it seemed Jae had a mysterious side to him.
At least, that was included in his reputation.
Alex’s shoulders slumped. She felt defeated. Intruders had an infiltrated her space.
Maybe she could…, she began to think but then, the voices of her mother and her aunt rang in her head. Make a friend… hm…
Curiously, she assessed each person around her but none of them seemed like a good candidate.
When her gaze passed over Jae, she caught someone closing in on her table. When their eyes met, the person smiled at her. Her eyebrows shot up immediately. Oh, hell no…
Alex lifted her fork, aiming it at Max Peyton who now stood next to Jae, “No! No more guests!”
“That’s just mean, Alex” Max sat on the bench, a pout on his face, “We practically spend a whole day together. Our schedule is exactly the same.”
Alex growled, “I don’t see why that’s relevant, Peyton, when I’d rather stick you out the window.”
Max Peyton was the last person Alex wanted to be connected to. Better yet, he wasn’t even on the list. Out of all the students in school, Max was the only person who pestered her. Whether he was wanted or not, Max never stopped. Alex figured he had attention issues. Either that or he had a death wish.
Jae heard Alex’s words. It took him by surprise… but in a good way. He had guts and he respected that. Teasingly, Jae told Alex, “I don’t know you yet but I like you already.”
Alex frowned in response, “I’d really rather you didn’t.”
Logan sneaked in the conversation. He draped a protective arm over Alex’s shoulders, “Don’t you dare, Jae. He’s my best friend.”
Alex shrugged it off and glared at him, “I thought Colin was your best friend?”
“I thought so too” Colin added. He threw a fry at Logan’s face and shook his head, a look of betrayal on his face. Logan tried to reach a hand over the table to apologize but he was too late. Jae already took possession of Colin’s shoulders.
“You can be my best friend, Colin” he offered in comfort. Colin merely smiled and placed his head on Jae’s shoulder.
“Thanks again, Jae. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Hey! Don’t shove me aside like a toy” Max helplessly whined beside them but they weren’t listening. Colin and Jae had their own world.
Logan came back to his senses and joined Max on the protest, “Don’t keep stealing my people, Jae!”
If anything else happened after that, Alex was unaware. She already left. The noise had given her a headache. Once she was outside the cafeteria, she welcomed the silence… but she felt the effect of the incident right away.
People seemed to see her now. She could feel their eyes on her. She could hear their whispers. Quickly, she power walked away. Their words invaded her mind. Even though she didn’t want to hear them, she did. They were talking about her. Naturally, her instincts listened.
When she stood outside Ms. Smith’s class, she pressed her shaking hands against the wall. She closed her eyes.
Memories swirled around her vision…
… of smiling faces and of whispers
… of angry eyes and of harsh voices
… of betrayal and of pain.
Her breaths rushed in and out of her mouth. Something popped in her ears. Her head became light. She felt her consciousness start to fade.
No! The thought boomed against the murky cloud in her brain.
Alex closed her mouth and forced her nose to inhale slowly. She held a breath. She counted the seconds then, she let it out. Her hands clenched into fists. Carefully, she pushed herself off the wall. Her back straightened. Her chin rose higher.
I will not lose, she chanted in her mind.
I’m stronger than this.
She opened her eyes and the place seemed to burn brighter.
This wasn’t over.
