Interrupted
"What about Smackle?"
I shot my head up at the mention of her name.
"What about her?" I mumbled. I heard him sigh as I kept a steady gaze on my shoes that were in front of me.
"I already know you hate her,"
"I don't hate her,"
"But you don't like her?"
"Hey where have you two been?" Lucas asked while walking toward us with Farkle and Smackle following suit. I let out a relieved breath when I saw the two silently arguing behind him.
"No where," I breathed.
Lucas replied with a raised brow before turning his attention to Anthony.
"Hey I'm Lucas," he smiled offering his hand to Anthony. Anthony simply stared at it before opting to ignore his greeting completely.
"You good Smackle?" Anthony asked looking pass Lucas, who was awkwardly pulling back his hand. Smackle stopped her glares at Farkle to nod her response to him.
"Alright well I'll see you guys around then,"
"Ass,"
I blinked in surprise at Lucas's quiet curse and chuckled inwardly at how angry he looked. It seems I'm not the only one that has a talent to manipulate others.
Earlier on the roof
"So you just don't like her?"
I chose not to answer, my silence was an easier explanation I knew he would understand. He cleared his throat after some time and I shifted in my spot uncomfortably. "Well if it makes you feel any better, I hate Lucas,"
My eyes widened a fraction and I slowly turned to look at him.
"How do you know Lucas?"
"Well he is pretty popular,"
I rolled my eyes at the annoying yet stale truth his statement was.
"So...why do you-"
"I'll spill as soon as you do he interjected.
I clamped my mouth shut before turning back to my shoes.
Forget it
"You!"
That was the "welcome home" I received that evening. I was confused by the scene.
A scared August hunched over in the corner of the couch. A pensive mom analysing a sheet of paper, and a terrifyingly giddy father slowly approaching me.
"What?"
"You can draw," the shocked statement escaped my mothers lips with great difficulty.
Its not THAT unbelievable.
I glared at my brother who visibly shrunk under my hard stare.
"Augie," I reprimanded
"I'm sorry, mom saw the drawing in my room and asked where I got it from," he mumbled dejectedly. I sighed in annoyance before dropping my bag at the door as I usually did once I arrived home.
Might as well do some thing normally.
"I didn't know you could draw," mom stated under her breath while she continued to analyse the drawing.
"Yeah I guess,"
"But you didn't-"
"Can I go out for a little?"
My parents both were taken aback by my sudden interruption but gave me the permission non the less. I bolted out the apartment and immediately steered myself in the direction of the park.
It's okay Riley its not like your talents were a hindrance to this story in the first place. It was just easier to develop my character as a talentless, tactless, air head.
Once I was at the entrance I had to calm the small panic attack I almost didn't notice I was having. It took a couple minutes of soothing breaths before I was able steady myself.
"You okay?"
I flinched from the sudden interaction and whipped around to see a worried Anthony walking toward me.
What is it with this guy? Did he put a tracking device on me or something?
I didn't answer and instead opted to walk away from him in the other direction. He followed behind me quietly until we arrived at a bench and sat.
"So you gonna answer me or what?"
"Its nothing more than a miscalculation, I just freaked out because I didn't consider a possible variable,"
"What was it?" He asked leaning in a little closer.
"Its just- I had this character for myself and I think she's slowly being ripped away- I mean the reason I made her isn't because I'm a manipulative bitch, but I thought she could be a kind of role model for what everyone wanted to be,"
He was quiet for a while and I sighed in defeat when I heard him start chuckle.
"A role model for what everyone wanted to be huh?"
"Its not funny,"
"You're so conceited," he laughed.
"I know - why do you think I made my character like this in the first place?"
"Cause you're vain,"
Redundancies aren't very charming.
The atmosphere was freezing. I turned around in my seat to look at Smackle who simply shrugged at the situation. She did always stay out of things like this.
"Zay you okay?" My father asked surprised at his student's new seating arrangement.
I looked toward Lucas who was fuming in the corner and raised an eye brow at his new seat as well.
Trouble in paradise Zay?
"You think cow boy over there beat the shit outta Zay?" Anthony whispered to me from his new seat diagonal from mine. I glared at him before telling him to shut up under my breath. After what seemed like hours of angry silence and father finally began his lesson.
"Hiroshima!" He bellowed.
Oh god where was he going with this?
We all walked out of what had to be the most awkward class ever and headed to the cafeteria. Zay was behind Lucas, trudging beside me with an annoyed face. We purposely walked slower as we had a silent agreement to talk to each other alone. I could see in his posture that he was fuming. At what exactly?
"It's all your fault!" He seethed
" oh do explain," I smirked as I watched him pace the empty class room we both slipped into earlier before going noticed.
"He was chill up until he met you, now he's a freaking time bomb"
"That loveable teddy bear?"
He halted his movements before running a frustrated hand through his hair.
"He hit me yesterday,"
Okay so he wasn't overreacting.
"What did you do?"
"Well we were talking, joking around, just hanging at his place and then the topic of you came up,"
Idiot
"He was basically worshipping you, saying how nice you were,"
Freaking dumb ass
"Long story short, I called you a manipulative bitch,"
"Are you brain dead?" I growled in annoyance. "Of course he'd kick your ass for that, did you forget I'm his girlfriend?"
He flinched at my word, probably realizing his blunder even more before shaking his head. I let a heavy sigh escaped my lips as I thought about how another character I tried to develop was slowly reverting back to his old self. My story is sure to fall apart at this rate.
"Look, we don't like each other-"
"Ever since I saw how you got that idiot rapped around your pinky, I started to hate you," he explained.
"Yeah pinky whatever, look you like Lucas all nice and not punchy all the time right?"
He sighed before nodding in defeat.
"Good me too, so just do as I say and every thing will work out,"
We made our way into the cafeteria, I looked over to my petrified friend and I bumped his arm with my elbow for assurance - more like a way to say "don't mess this up"
"Lucas," I greeted once we arrived at our usual table. I didn't bother to sit as my plan called for more space than my usual squished seat. Zay took his stance behind me for some sort of protection, but stood firm non the less. Lucas looked up at me with a smile, but it faltered when he saw Zay.
Smackle seemed amused by the situation and nudged Farkle to indicate my presence. He simply rolled his eyes before getting up and walking pass me.
"Don't make too big a scene," he mumbled as he walked away.
"Lucas I heard you hit Zay," my voice was soft and riddled with disappointment.
He immediately glared at Zay, who simply hid behind me more.
"Well did he tell you what he said?" He asked almost growling.
Yikes
"Lucas I don't like you, this way,"
"Riley he called you a-"
"What?" I challenged
I knew he couldn't throw his friend under the bus, its not in his nature.
"Forget it," he sighed.
I gave him the best disapproving face I could muster before sitting next to him.
"You guys are friends, promise me you'll make up,"
I blinked up at him and he simply stated at me in disbelief and snorted before getting up and walking away from us.
"Seems like you're losing your touch," Smackle laughed.
"Shut it,"
I turned to look at Zay who was gnawing on his finger nail.
"Hey don't be nervous,and just go with the flow," I said trying g to comfort him some what.
"I'm not nervous, just pissed - I mean you are a manipulative bitch, its not my fault he can't see it,"
I simply shrugged my response before taking my lunch out my bag.
"You know, if you were a little smarter you wouldn't be in this situation," Smackle added.
"You don't even know what's going on," Zay countered.
"It doesn't take a genius to figure out your blunder."
"Hey Smackle did you ever get to reading that etiquette book?"
"No, because I was to busy shoving it in your-"
"Okay!" I interrupted their little squabble.
"Zay leave, Lucas isn't even here so your presence here isn't necessary,"
He stared back at me, shocked by my dismissal of him and scoffed.
"Fine," he sighed defeated before trudging out the cafeteria.
"Wow he's so in love with the cowboy its sickening."
"Nah he's just trying to be a good friend, he's just really bad at it,"