"Was that supposed to be clever?" I rolled my dark blue eyes at the boy across from me, shrugging off his comment about how I talked too much. "Really Terry, I don't care what you think anyway." I rose from the table and went to join Cho by the fire. She closed the book that was resting on her lap when I approached and ran her slender fingers through her raven hair.
I didn't say anything when I flopped down on the sofa beside her. I simply watched the flames as they danced in the hearth, pondering Terry's words.
"Did you have something you needed to tell me Marietta?" Cho questioned me; she leaned forward on her elbows as she spoke.
"No, what makes you think that?" I queried, turning my gaze toward my friend.
"Well, you always have something to say, don't you?" She wasn't trying to be mean, I know, but her words still stung.
"No," I tried to shrug off her words. "I'm sorry if I bothered you Cho. I think I'm just going to go to bed."
I felt my friend's eyes on me as I climbed the stairs to the dormitory.
I knew that I talked a lot, but my friends' words had still struck a nerve. I never realized that my input had bothered them. Actually, I never even knew that my input mattered to them.
Really, that was the reason I talked so much. I just wanted something I said to mean something to someone. I hoped, the more that I spoke, the more people would listen. I had hoped someone would care about what I had to say. I felt pressured to be best at something. Cho was the best as being beautiful, Terry was the smartest, Luna was the best at being herself. I had hoped I could be the best at giving advice, at holding a conversation
Obviously, I wasn't.
Challenge: Minor Character BC: pressure.