This chapter, just like lunch, is kind of short and not really productive but you can't do anything about it so!
Zach might have well been glued to my side as we were pulled among the crowd and into the cafeteria. He wants to mess with me, but I'm afraid to give him the opportunity. In all honesty, I shouldn't be the one nervous or ashamed to talk to him, hell he's only following me like a lost puppy because I'm better than him and he can't let that go. He promised to show me up some other time, and for my sanity's sake I hope it's soon.
The lunch room is so small students cascade out the door in search for more room at the same rate people push their way in. This will be a nightmare to maneuver, but crowds are what I do best, so I volunteer to go first when we reach the double doors (which happen to have two people stuck to the latches on the side, rendering only one door usable while the two fail to break free).
"I have my lunch so I can go find us a table," I announce scanning the room, the odds of finding a free table are slim to none, and Liz looks at me like she knows it. I will her with my eyes to help me out.
"I brought too, I'll help you," Liz rocks back and forth on the balls of her feet then looks at the boys. "We promise to save you a seat."
Zach eyes the ever-growing al a carte line, "Come on, Jonas, don't want to keep them waiting. Be back in an hour, Cammie."
He gives me one last peculiar smile then pulls Jonas along. The two immediately launch into a hushed conversation, it's rapid but I'm out of earshot to hear what they think is so important.
"There's Bex over there-" Liz motions and I slowly approach to the table she occupies. "We knew Macey would be with her, but who's the muscle man accompanying her?"
"Another one?" I groan, my head falls back dramatically. The boy she is referring to is a Greek god come alive. "Where are they coming from?"
"Jonas is pretty cute, huh?" Liz agrees to whatever she thinks I implied. "Hey, Bex!"
"Don't forget to introduce me," I whisper to her before we're too close to them. She stopped taking cove-ops Freshman year, a tip wouldn't hurt her.
"Bex," She stands over the three and holds a hand out to me. "This is Cammie, she's new and was in my last class."
She could've stopped there but her over-achieving self takes over and goes more in depth, "I would introduce you to the other two, but I'm not sure who they are. Oh! I'm Liz by the way! And I thought Cammie could join us to help her out because-"
She receiving strange looks from us, so I stop her, "May we sit? We brought two other guys too, but they're in the line."
Macey pats a spot my her on the circular table, "No problem, I'm Macey. Bex and I are sort of new too."
"Sort of?" I play along, mostly to see how she explains herself, but also to set up a foundation around the new, new guy we attracted.
"Well," Bex shrugs and straightens her back proudly. "We got kicked out of that snobby academy down the road."
The boy beside her laughs and gives her a once over approvingly. He still needs to be announced, but it's not my place to ask.
"I'm Grant by the way," He elbows Bex. "She promised to tell me the full story if I sat with her at lunch."
So Bex was the instigator. Why am I not surprised? She did want to get in trouble this year, and I don't have the power to stop her here.
Bex recounts the tale that never happened in her foreign accent that has Grant drooling. I'll concede that Greek God and Egyptian Goddess would make a pretty holy couple. Macey occasionally adds a detail or two, but her attention is mainly on the one "uneven" nail that just won't "surrender". It's simple for me to seem interested, I totally am because One: Bex is a great actress. Two: She is making this all up on the spot. Three: It takes up time.
From across the room, I could see Josh was at a table with his friends, including Deedee and Dillon. I kept my eyes off them so they wouldn't know I could see the stink eye Dillon was giving me or the pleasant wave Deedee was trying to get my attention with. His friends nudged him and jerked their heads to where I sit, my bet says they're trying to get him to come over to me. I slouch lower, there's not much I can do to prevent an act of defiant male bravery. Josh seems to shake his head, showing he'll keep his distance for now. That's the only time a problem will resolve itself.
"Don't look now," Macey halts her filing. "But the guy that walked with you earlier is coming over."
A.K.A. look at the what I'm talking about in the most covert way manageable through the nearest reflective surface. My water bottle suffices, in it I see Zach and Jonas walking over carrying two trays- about time, they've been in line for seven minutes and five seconds. A part of me wished the line swallowed Zach whole, I'm okay with Jonas surviving though.
"I might have accidently welcomed him to sit with us," I whisper to Macey. She pushes her head in and down and raises her eyebrows, her mouth open. She then giggles and cups a hand around my ear the same way children do when they want to reveal a secret.
"I thought you said you weren't down with civilians," Macey whisper-shouts. "He is like Operation Josh times a thousand!"
I giggle back to hide my annoyance and whisper in her ear in return, "I said accidently! And this is so not Operation Josh!"
"You want to let me in on the gossip, girls," Zach smothes himself next to me to make room for all of us. Jonas sits down next to Liz, but they don't get as close, because, little to Zach's knowledge, there really is enough room for seven people to sit comfortably, personal space intact.
"Macey this is Zach, he's bitter he can't graph as fast as me," I roll my eyes, while I really only introduced him to her, the others join in so were all in the same conversation.
"Zach being put in his place- I wish I could've seen that!" Jonas laughs. Even though Grant doesn't know Zach, he finds the image of him loosing incredible too and chuckles.
"I told you I would show you up some other way," Zach says with a mouthful of whatever the lunch ladies served. In other words: Gross. I could not begin to thank Chef Louise enough for making me an artisan sandwich for my lunch.
"Good luck with that, I only had one class with her and I can tell she's stubborn," Liz tells everyone then takes a bite of her apple innocently. She's completely egging me on, but I give in.
"I am not!" The best person to defend myself.
"I see what you mean, Liz," Bex's retourt makes everyone laugh in unity, including me. Zach's arms brush against my own as he rocks back and forth, laughing a little harder than the others and nodding vigorously. He has a nice laugh, real throaty- not like I'd ever tell him though.
The rest of lunch is nice. My friends and I work as a team naturally and every piece of our cover falls into place with the civilians. They aren't like other ones though, none of them ask about my reputation here or what I've done. Either they don't care, or they don't know, I couldn't care less as long as we stayed on a light topic.
Sitting down, it was clear how smitten Liz and Bex are with their respective boys. It's worse than I thought, in the end It will only be Macey with me to remain immune. Her lifestyle has shown her multitudes of models or athletes she would rather pick from.
"What are y'alls next classes?" Liz askes two minutes till dismissal, her accent comes through sweetly and full of drawl.
"I've got gym, can't wait to see how that goes," Bex's sarcasm is mostly directed towards us. Regular P.E. wouldn't be half as entertaining or challenging as our P&E.
"I have gym next too," I share a smile with Bex, it's perfect that we have that class together.
"Surprise, Surprise!" Zach puts an arm around me, pulling me closer, I resist the impulse of elbowing his crouch, I have such a perfect angle right now. "We have another class together."
"I have it too, I heard we're doing some physical fitness tests. Maybe I can see you get even with her, Zach." Grant looks at him slyly, I get a strange feeling that they're in on something.
Bex smiles at me like we're in on something too, and we are. Anything a regular teenager could do, I could do better (exclusions apply). Maybe it would be better in the long term if I let Zach repair his damaged ego though, I might be able to get rid of him that way. Zach stills has his arms hanging loosely on my shoulders when Macey gives me a completely different-not as fun- look.
"I'm going to Computers- Alone to top it off," Macey rolls her eyes, undoubtedly feeling like she is subject to the most heart-breaking tragedy.
"You'll be with Jonas and I- We already discussed our schedules," Liz pipes up then blushes, pulling at her strawberry blonde locks that were once trapped in a stud. Aw, freaky-smart nerd crush! It's so bad, but so cute!
"Come on then, Morgan," Zach pulls me up with him, I pretend to be weak and not protest this one. "Let me prove to you you're not all that."
"Neither are you, Goode," I remind. Bex whoops and Grant sucks in a breath, shocked by my sass. My plan to appear weak was quickly dissolving.
"You know bloody well girls do it better!" Bex hypes up no one in particular and stands up to take my side.
"Zach, man, I don't think we should take it easy on them anymore," Grant warns us, but his threat doesn't work on a Gallagher girl, especially Bex who hits him for even considering treating us like inferiors.
"Bex, girl, I don't think we should take it easy on them anymore," I mock grant, still serious about what I said.
Bex cracks her neck then moves on to her knuckles, pops emitting slowly as she moves from thumb to pinky.
"Way ahead of you," Bex's expression deadpan. The boys should be scared, but they're ignorant.
The three that weren't in the stand-off watch in amusement. Liz looks scared for the boys while Jonas looks confidant. Macey shakes her head tisking, probably thinking something along the lines of "Those poor babies don't know what they're getting themselves into!"
I agree.
The saddest thing about Zach not knowing Cammie is a spy, is how he can't call her Gallagher Girl. Let us shed a tear.