A small fic set after the May 9th episode, where Esther takes Jen and Tilly's photo. May turn into a longer story.
...
"Hey, why don't you come for a coffee with us all later?" Ruby gave Tilly's shoulder a comforting squeeze. They were still perched on the low wall across from the sixth form college main entrance, where they had been since Tilly had confronted Ruby over spreading the rumours about her and Jen.
"Yeah…give everyone a good chance to gawk at me you mean?" Tilly scoffed bitterly. "Thanks, Ruby. But, I don't think so."
Ruby sighed and dropped her hand back into her lap. "I didn't mean it like that, Tilly."
Ruby glanced around at the students milling around them, all not so stealthily trying to catch some part of their conversation. Probably hoping for some extra piece of juicy information they could run off and tell everyone about. She slid a little closer to Tilly in an effort to keep their privacy and lowered her voice. "I just meant...that maybe the best thing to do, is show people that you don't care what they think."
"It doesn't matter if I care or not." Tilly said, rubbing her neck wearily and staring off into the distance. "Just the fact that they are talking about it means..." Tilly caught herself, letting the sentence trail away before she let something slip. She didn't feel fully in control at the moment, and the last thing she needed was to add more fuel to the already rampant rumours.
Ruby was confused. "Means what?" She asked, leaning forward to try and catch Tilly's eye.
'That she's done with me.' Tilly thought dejectedly. 'That everything we have shared, every touch, every lingering glance, this tentative thing we had been building, means nothing now.'
"Never mind..." She said out loud, shaking her head. "Doesn't matter."
Tilly stood up. "Look...could you tell Maddie that I've gone home and ask her to grab my bag for me, please?"
"You're leaving?" Ruby asked, surprised. Tilly voluntarily leaving before the end of school was like...was like...well, Ruby didn't know what to compare it to, it had never happened before. She was pretty sure that people would notice her absence. God knows, Maddie certainly would.
Bloody hell, Esther!' Ruby cursed the small blonde for ever bringing up the subject in the first place. Today was supposed to be the start of something new for Ruby, a place to build from. The last thing she needed was Queen Bee Maddie furious with her for upsetting her best friend so much that Tilly had to go home. 'Well, that's just fucking great!'
"Honestly, Tilly. This will all have blown over by tomorrow." Ruby said breezily, in a last ditch attempt to persuade the red head back inside. It wasn't just about fearing the wrath of Maddie. Ruby did genuinely feel bad for Tilly. It was hard not to. The poor girl looked like her puppy had died. 'Actually,' Ruby contemplated, wincing as Tilly absently scuffed her perfectly shined shoes across the concrete. 'She looks like every puppy in the world has died...twice.'
"Yeah, right." Tilly laughed in disbelief as she started to walk away. "I'll see you later, Ruby."
"Wait…what about college?" Ruby called out, rising to her feet. "The open day isn't finished."
"Yeah it is." Tilly glanced over at the building just in time to see Jen turn away from one of the ground floor windows. A fresh wave of hurt and embarrassment at the earlier rejection washed over her, and she wrapped her arms protectively across her stomach in a vain attempt to ward off the pain.
"It's over." Tilly whispered, lowering her head and walking numbly away from college, oblivious to Ruby's concerned gaze.
Inside the building, Jen pulled back from the glass once more, unable to watch as Tilly walked away.
The End?