Description: She had always had the feeling that she would always love him regardless of what people thought or said about her.

People were whispering about me...again. I could feel their stares on my back, hear their malicious whispers. They were condemning me, and all because I had fallen in love and was too afraid to admit it.

I sat up straight, acting like I couldn't hear them. Inside, however, my mind was full of indignity. I felt like striding over and telling them to mind their own business but I lacked the courage to do so. Instead I started writing so ferociously, my pen dug a hole in the paper. I let out a tiny cry of frustration and reached out my hand to take a new sheet of paper from the pile.

At this point, Jessica, sitting opposite me, asked, "Are you alright, Gina?" The question took me by surprise and I looked up to see my best friend as well as our other friends - Toby, Nick and Lucas - staring in apprehensive comprehension at me. They were obviously waiting for me to reply but I was too angry at the gossip to speak. I jerked my head minutely in the general direction of the perpetrators of said gossip, crossing my arms at the same time.

The expression must have been clear on my face because Jessica and Nick gave me looks of sympathetic understanding, Lucas looked at us all in confusion and Toby sat up to look in the direction I had gestured before proclaiming in a low voice, "I should have known... the Gossip Table!"

The Gossip Table was the nickname we had given to a group of people in our class whose main reason for existence seemed to be gossip and generally just being awful people. Nobody on our table ever had anything positive to say about them and I was almost certain that if one of them tried to mess with us, we'd give them what they deserved.

Also speaking in a lowered voice, Jessica said, "Just ignore them, Gina. They're just trying to get a reaction and if you don't give them one, they'll get bored eventually!"

I smiled, though I was still angry, knowing that I had four great friends who would stand by me. "I know..." I sighed, leaning my chin on my hands. "I just can't help it. Every time I hear them whispering, I just want to go over there and tell at them to keep their noses out of my life."

Lucas spoke up at that moment. "I'm confused. Why are they talking about Gina? Have you done something bad?" The first question he addressed to the others but the second was meant for me...and I had no idea how to answer. I looked helplessly at the others, silently pleading for assistance. Surprisingly enough, it was Toby who decided to help me out:

"Dude, it's a girl thing." He said, looking directly at Lucas. "You know, when they expect us to understand why they do things in a certain way but we can't because we'll never, in a million years, understand how a girl's mind works."

Jessica giggled at that and said, "You mean you don't understand how a girl's mind works, Toby!"

Lucas looked thoughtful and said slowly, "So we're meant to understand that Gina is upset about the gossip but we're not meant to know what the gossip is all about?"

Toby nodded, before what Jessica had said to him earlier finally sunk in, "Hey!" He cried out indignantly. "I can totally understand the minds of girls!"

I laughed as Jessica said, "Okay, prove it! What am I thinking right now?" The two of them bickering was entertaining enough to make me forget about my anger, at least for the time being.

Toby put on a mock thoughtful expression before casually draping his arm around Jessica and saying, "Well, Jessica, dear, right now you're hoping it doesn't rain later today because you've forgotten your umbrella and you don't want the rain to ruin your hair because it'll take too long to sort out and you'll end up having to rearrange your shopping trip with Gina." He looked around at us, as though expecting a standing ovation.

Jessica blinked owlishly at him, her cheeks red, before mumbling something that sounded like, "Lucky guess." At this point, none of us could keep a straight face and we all burst out laughing, prompting everyone else in the room to stare us for a few seconds before carrying on with their work.

Suddenly I sat up straight again. "Well, I don't care what people say about me!" I said in a hushed voice. "Let them talk. I'll still feel the same way, regardless of what's being said about me behind my back!" I subtly glared at the Gossip Table and let out a breath I hadn't been aware I was holding.

My friends all grinned at me and Jessica said happily, "That's the spirit, Gina!" She leaned across the table and we high-fived. "If you ignore them, they've got no weapon to use against you, like I said."

"Exactly." I smiled. "I'm going to be strong...and never give up, no matter what." I would never give up on my love...

AN: Well, I hope you enjoy this.