The sky's not blue all over

Jade poked her in the back. "Hey, Reda," Jade teased, "Do they still call you pizza face? Your acne hasn't cleared up yet, has it?" She sniggered. Jade couldn't see Reda's face, but from the shocked silence that followed, Jade thought Reda would start crying. But instead, Reda turned around. Jade was startled to see Reda's normally bright, friendly eyes, had turned cold.

"Oh Jade, will you get LOST!" Reda screamed at her, "your so insensitive, all you ever think about is yourself! It's bad enough trying to get through life without everyone jeering at you, did you ever think about that? I don't see YOU with a huge, ugly, spotty face!" Tears of rage and frustration stinged Reda's cheeks, and her face was slowly turning the colour of beetroot. "Just, for one minute, will you leave me in PEACE!" Reda roared, and then turned on her heel and ran down the path, covering her face with her hands. Jade stood there, her mouth opened, gaping in shock at Reda's outburst. Just then, Ello came walking down from the school,

"Hey Jade, what's going on? I was trying to do my math homework, when I hear Reda screaming bloody Murder - what happened?" For once in her life, Jade Lagoon had absolutely nothing to say. Instead she just shook her head, and dragged Ello off to their next class; at least she wouldn't have to face Reda for another two classes.

"Hey, Reda - wait!" Mr. Shopnick, the school principal was almost knocked over as Reda came sprinting down the corridor.

"Oh! I'm s, so sorry Mr. Shopnick!" Reda gasped between sobs.

"Oh - it's fine, Reda, why are you crying?" Mr. Shopnick bent down and helped Reda to pick her books up. "Now Reda, listen" he began, but Reda interrupted; she knew he was about to tell her off for running, but she couldn't help that,

"No Mr. Shopnick, you listen to me." Said Reda. Mr. Shopnick was so surprised that a student had interrupted him, that he spilt his coffee all over his bage trousers, and didn't even notice. "Mr. Shopnick," Reda continued, "I was only running because, well, I was trying to get away from my friend."

"Oh?" Said Mr. Shopnick, "and which friend would that be?"

"Err" Said Reda, she wondered if she should give Jade away or not, "Oh, just a friend." Mr. Shopnick's eyebrows rose up his brow and under his fringe of dark, messy hair.

"Just a friend eh?" he said, but just then, he was interrupted for the second time by a frightened first year running down the corridor, yelling something at the top of his lungs.

"FIRE!"