Showdown
A bone-shattering, ear-splitting, blood-curdling shriek echoes throughout the cafeteria, a banshee-like scream which causes many in the vicinity to bring their hands up and shield their ears.
And then…
Silence.
Absolute, utter silence.
A thick blanket of it falls upon everyone in the cafeteria, as if some giant in the sky muted everyone's voices. Every single pair of eyes are trained on us, alternating between us: her, frantically trying to pull up her tiny black miniskirt to cover her exposed butt and the lacy black thong made visible to all. I groan mentally. And then me, the new blonde girl at her feet. I'm practically lying on the floor, one hand covered in some questionable substance found on the cafeteria floor, and the other hand…
Well, the other hand, I belatedly realise, is still clutching pathetically at the hem of her skirt. Her disgusted gaze burns craters through my skin as I let go absurdly slowly; as if any quick movement will cause her to erupt. Absolutely horrified with what's happened and anticipating my imminent slaughter, I get to my feet, my face so warm and red with mortification, it seems to be radiating heat.
I will myself to look up. There she is, standing there, her skirt finally back up to where it should be, flanked by her two cronies. My eyes travel behind them and widen in disbelief. Fate is so not on my side today – did I do something terrible in a past life to warrant this? Is this bad karma?
Behind Penelope and her girls stand… the boys. And right at the front, closest to Penelope, closest to me, closest to this whole damn showdown? Yeah, you guessed it. Ten points to your Hogwarts house.
Of course it's Zachary Goode.
He's looking at me with thinly veiled amusement, mouth quirked in that insufferable smirk and eyebrows raised, shaking his head as if he can't believe what I've managed to get myself into, while still looking unsurprised that I have – if it's even possible for him to wear an expression like that. His friends are making no effort to hide their mirth at the situation either: Nick is almost crying with suppressed laughter, fist stuffed in his mouth; the one who I suspect must be James has turned away from the scene and seems to be trying to calm himself down, and Grant is trying to keep a straight face. Jonas and Preston just look appalled, sharing a look.
Neither of them, however, are annoyed about the fact that their best friend's girlfriend had just been half-undressed in front of half the school population – least of all Zach, who is (or isn't? Apparently it's hard to keep track of this relationship) the boyfriend of the girl in question.
The girl's eyes are narrowed dangerously at me, her cheeks flushed angrily, her deep burgundy lips clamped shut. She's seething, and if this was a cartoon, I have no doubt smoke would be billowing from her ears. All I can do is marvel at my gobsmacking stupidity, unable to draw my eyes away from Zach's, and work up the courage to say something.
Already, phones have been withdrawn from pockets, and the bright winks of light coming from them very much indicate that this spectacle is being videoed and photographed by some vicious teenagers just waiting to put it up online. How wonderful.
I look everywhere for the girls, and finally spot them a little to the left of me. Liz has her head in her hands, shaking her head, Bex looks half-excited, half-terrified, and Macey has a hard look on her face, one foot forward as if she means to come and, for want of a better word, rescue me. However, when she catches my eye, I give a quick shake of my head: I don't want her to get dragged into whatever little feud I've probably started. She gives me a half-hearted smile, dragging her finger across her neck in an exaggerated motion, mouths 'Okay, but you're screwed', and then slowly steps back. Michaela and Adam are stood some way behind them, quite close to the doors as if they were just about to leave the canteen before shit hit the fan. Adam seems to be holding a very irritated Michaela's shoulder firmly, whispering something in her ear. I wonder what that's about.
Penny the she-demon finally speaks.
"What the hell is wrong with you, you little bitch?" she snarls.
The enormity of what I've done – namely, forced the Queen Bitch (or Bee, whichever you prefer) of the school to practically strip – hits me. I stand there, quite shocked.
"Oh my god, oh my god, I am so, so sorry…"
Her hand twitches as if she'd like nothing more than to slap me, but I can only stare at her beseechingly – she has to believe I didn't do that on purpose. My hands flutter about awkwardly; at one point, I even try to smooth down her skirt. She jumps back and glares at me, disgusted.
"Get your hands away from me, and stop looking at me!"
"I'm sorry!" I hurriedly try to explain what happened, as it's evident she thinks I did it on purpose – although why I would do that is completely beyond me. "I-I tripped over someone's foot and you were in front of me so your, uh, skirt was the only thing I could grab onto –"
"I don't care, you fucktard," she cuts in, her voice venomous.
I stand there for a second, stunned at what she just called me. Michaela looks positively livid and Bex and Macey spring up from the tables they were resting on. I feel the anger gradually setting in, the injustice of that insult ringing in my ears.
My mouth opens of its own accord and I start speaking before I can stop myself.
"I told you, you idiot! It was an accident! I've already apologised: what more do you want me to do?" My hands curl up at my sides, and now that I've started, I can't seem to shut up. "I know it was stupid of me but you went too far with that one, you crazy cow."
I clamp my mouth shut before I can spew any more nonsense, and stand there, astounded. Did I just…? Yes. I think I did. I called her a crazy cow. A crazy… cow. One part of me is doing a victory dance. The other… well, that part is currently wishing I was on the next plane to Antarctica.
Two hundred people collectively breathe in; Macey smacks her forehead; Michaela groans; my heart drops ten million miles southwards. Even the evil people filming the exchange give me a sympathetic look, and a few people near the doors actually scarper.
Penelope steps closer, and her two companions, Bitch No.2 and Bitch No.3, follow her, wearing identical looks of distaste and shock.
"What did you just say to me?" she whispers vehemently, right in my face.
I lean away from her. "N-Nothing." Great. I'm stuttering again.
"N-Nothing." she imitates, her voice high and squeaky, obviously in an attempt to recreate my own. Her hand shoots forward and she grabs hold of my wrist in a vice-like grip, her manicured talons scraping the skin. A few beads of blood bubble up on the underside of my wrist and I let out a small, quickly suppressed gasp of pain. I try to wrench myself free, but she's far stronger than she looks. She moves closer, almost twisting my wrist backwards. Nobody moves; everybody stares.
"Listen to me, you stupid little bitch," she spits. "If you ever speak to me like that again, if you touch me, if you so much as look at me, I'll kick you out of this school before you can even blink. Nobody crosses me and gets away with it. Nobody," she enunciates slowly, as if I'm hard of hearing and mentally slow. "You'd do well to remember that, new girl. Understand?"
She gives me a long, calculating look, before finally withholding her death-grip on my wrist. I bring it close to my chest, willing the few tears that prick the corner of my eyes to go away. But damn, that hurt. I wipe away the blood on my skin with my index finger.
"I said," she hisses. "Understand?"
I nod slowly at her, once, and she looks at me, seemingly satisfied.
"With the company you're keeping, I'm not surprised at your behaviour," she says offhandedly, locking eyes with Macey. Macey narrows her eyes at her, and flips the middle finger.
I'm pretty sure somebody just went 'Oooh.'
Penelope just turns away and gives a tinkling laugh, as if she's in on a joke nobody else I aware of, and draws one plum-coloured nail tip across the top of her lips. She stares at me unnervingly for a few long moments, before suddenly speaking.
"Oh, honey," she says, her voice sickly sweet and filled with fake concern. "You might want to go wash yourself up." She gestures towards the blood still leaking out on my wrist, smirking, and then swishes her curls over her shoulder and swivels round on the stiletto heel of her lace up Jimmy Choo boots.
She marches towards the boys, who are looking decidedly less amused, and hooks her arms through the elbows of her girls. The boys all look pretty much stunned. Nick has his mouth slightly open, now, and each of them step away slightly when they see her coming towards them. I spot Zach reaching out to the crazed banshee, however, and I feel a spark of hatred towards him, stemmed from my very hateful feelings at the moment. He clasps her hand in his, and although I see the small flicker of revulsion pass his face, I choose to ignore it – I refuse to acknowledge that he may feel bad, especially when he didn't do anything to stop his lovely Penny humiliating me in front of everyone. He meets my eyes, spring green pools of guilt and pity trained on mine.
I look away. It's not my fault he's with that hag.
They leave the canteen, followed closely by the rest of the boys, and the moment they leave, Bex runs towards me, Macey and Liz right behind her. The rest of the cafeteria goers slowly start to trickle out, too, leaving because all the drama is over, no doubt. I sigh deeply. What the hell have I got myself into?
"Cammie! Are you okay?" Liz gasps, checking my wrist. Bex throws her arm around my shoulder and gives me a squeeze.
"You handled that brilliantly, Cam. Loved the part where you called her a crazy cow," she laughs. "Except… how did you even manage that?"
"Well, that bitch is an exceptionally crazy cow," I mumble.
Macey lets out a bark of laughter, which sounds somewhat forced. "Tell me about it," she says darkly.
"And, to be completely honest… I have no fucking clue how I tripped and ended up yanking on her skirt and exposing her little Vicky's Secret."
Liz gives me a look tinged with sympathy, shaking her head. "Huh, well this is definitely going down as the most interesting first day of school," she murmurs to herself.
I see Michaela making her way towards us, Adam at her heels, and carefully nudge out of Bex's grasp. She gives me a slightly hurt look, but I gesture towards my approaching friends and she nods in understanding.
"Oh, right. We'll just wait for you here, then."
She glances towards Liz to confirm the decision, but Liz widens her eyes in a form of silent communication. She tilts her head towards a weirdly blank-faced Macey and shakes her head vigorously, indicating no. Bex grimaces, dawning comprehension on her face, as if the eye-widening explained it all. What's going on?
"Sorry Cam, we have to go," she frowns. "But we'll meet you at Macey's locker."
"Wait, what? Why?"
"I promise we'll explain later… just not now," she mutters, with a worried glance at Macey, who doesn't say anything and seems to now be holding in tears. I think back to her forced laugh and dark tone – something's definitely up with her.
"Anyway, it'll just be awkward if we hang around in the background. We don't really know those two that well," Liz adds. She looks at me desperately.
"Alright then…" I concede. I nod towards Macey and raise my eyebrows at Bex, telling her she better tell me what's going on with her. She mouths 'later' and gives me a warning look. It must be something to do with Penny. Liz and Bex both give a little wave, walking out of the cafeteria, Macey accompanying them like a zombie. I stare after them, confused. What just happened?
Michaela and Adam approach, so I'm spared wondering about why they left so suddenly.
"Do we smell or something?" Adam asks flippantly, pointing towards the departing girls.
"Nah," I smile. "Something was up with Macey."
"Ah," he says, pushing up his glasses. Michaela shoves him out the way, instantly taking hold of my arm and pulling my wrist towards her, inspecting it closely.
"You're okay?" she asks concernedly.
"Yes, yes – everyone needs to realise that the only thing hurt here is my pride," I say. "I mean, I did just do some very embarrassing things." The only response she gives me is a sceptical look.
"Alright, fine," I grumble reluctantly. "My wrist may also hurt a little too."
"That stupid little…" Michaela mutters hotly, before turning to glare accusingly at Adam. She whacks him on the arm, and his hand flies up to rub the spot.
"Ow! What was that for, you madwoman?" he says resentfully.
"You should've let me at that psycho!"
I butt in before he can respond, and he gives me a grateful look, glad to be saved from his best friend's rage.
"Hey, while I'm very touched by your anger on my behalf, I wouldn't want you to get in that witch's line of fire. It's my fault for being so dumb. As if I actually did that..." I say, trying to wrap my head around the fact.
"What? You think I can't handle her?" she responds indignantly.
"Quite the contrary, Mi-Kay-Kay – she couldn't handle you." I give her a wink, feeling so much better, despite my throbbing wrist, my mortification, my confusion at Macey's behaviour, and, of course, my anger at Zachary.
She gives me a horrified look at the nickname, and Adam bursts into laughter. I crack a grin, unable to help myself at the look on her face.
"Don't you ever call me that again, Cameron."
A/N Thank you for all your amazing reviews, as ever, they brightened my day! I appreciate them so much. What did you all think of this chapter? I really enjoyed writing this one, it was so fun. Penelope is such a great character to write. Zach, you little betrayer! Holding her hand... tut, tut. We'll be seeing more of the rest of his little gang later on, but note that my favourites are Nick and James ;) And oh, what was up with Macey? We'll see next chappie! Please leave a review if you have time, tell me what you thought! Adios, amigos 3
childofhecate (it won't let me put the fullstops in): Hopefully this chapter will have stopped the state of being bothered that little cliffhanger created?
BooksLover2000: Haha, I like all the gossippy bits too! Thank you! And ah, I know, but I do hope the drama was worth waiting for!
Selena: OH my gods! Divergent is amazing, even though Allegiant's ending is not. Hope this chapter satisfied - thank you!
lovewords: Thanksssss! I cannot wait for the boy drama either! I think it's gonna start soon ;) And yay, glad you liked Michaela's friends! I have a feeling the purple haired one will be my fav (after Adam, of course). As usual, your review made me smile so much! YOU'RE JUST TOO NICE TO ME.
BookkWorm: Haha, hope you liked it! Was it worth being psyched over?
fangirly662: Thank you! And oh, don't worry, there'll be plenty of jealousy! And I'm not sure about the twins having a thing for her, but I do like the idea... I may file it away for future use! I will be doing a bonus chapter for Zach at the end, which I'll explain more fully nearer the time.
TiggerandCammieandPercy: Thank you, thank you, and thank you! Glad you get what I mean, haha I just find it a bit hard to be honest. I'm looking forward to writing that bonus chapter, too! I hope I'll do it justice :)
Ella: That is so amazing! I'm so flattered you were reading this at 2:00am! I can't believe that... It's actually so weird to think people like to read my writing. So thank you! Hope you liked this update!
LifeIsGoode: Thank you so much, oh my gosh! It means a huge amount! I'm just so glad you LIKE it! That is like the biggest compliment ever - you're way too kind! YOU KILLED ME WITH YOUR COMMENTS. It's so NICE OF YOU DAMMIT. This review made me smile like a maniac. And you're welcome :)
gabergirl: Thank you! So glad you liked the little backstories, and I hope you liked this update!
Hailey: Thank you!
HippieGuru: You amazing reviewer, you. You're too kind! I'm so happy you liked it, and I love all the friendships, so I don't mind who you prefer! Thank you so much, and oh my, I completely forgot people from other countries read my fanfiction. It's actually mind boggling. So you're in... Australia? Bye for nowww :)
Guest: Thank you so much! Really hope you liked this one :)))
nilesalt: Thank you! It's so nice to hear that people like how I've done the characters, and I'm always worried they're really two-dimensional. I have loads of improving to do, but your comment made me feel like a pro, haha! And that's what I was aiming for... So thank you!
Thank you all for your support and awesome reviewing! See ya next time :)