23 August 2012
Chapter 6
I slip into class, late. The teacher doesn't notice, thank goodness, but that is the least of my worries. My eyes are puffy and I had cried all my makeup off. At least my hair looks decent, though, so I try to hide behind it. I feel myself being stared at and I dare to look to see who it is. My gaze meets an ice blue gaze and I feel my stomach clench. It's Shelby. Shelby Goldstone and her friends, Miranda Lee and Missy Shamrock, constantly pick on girls in the school. She is practically the prettiest girl in the high school... On the outside. She has long bleached blonde hair and ice blue eyes that seem to look right through you. Shelby is just about to turn 16, even though she is in 9th grade. She got held back a year, and ever since then she is so insecure that she bullies other girls to make herself feel better. I've tried to make her choke on her insults, but I only ended up embarrassing myself. So I just leave Shelby to her bullying and go on. Every now and then Kate will rough her, Missy, and Miranda up, though. Kate always gets in trouble. Shelby somehow kisses up to the principle and gets off the hook. It's so annoying. I know that Shelby is going to take advantage of how horrible I look and make fun of me, so I turn away and stare at my desk. I hear Shelby and her friends start giggling. As soon as class is over, I jump to my feet and speed-walk out of the classroom. I stop at my locker and shove my books inside. I turn around, nearly running into someone. I gasp and back into my locker before I realize it was Carlos. "What's wrong?" Carlos asks, taking a step back. "Oh, it's you," I breathe, relaxing slightly. "Nothing. I just thought you were Shelby." I hear some laughing and look over to see Shelby smiling at me. It is far from a friendly smile, though. I watch her and her friends turn and walk away, laughing all the while. I feel my cheeks burning. Carlos raises an eyebrow after following my gaze. "Why would she follow- Oh." He stops himself from finishing when he sees I look like I had been crying. "It's certainly nothing if you cried over it," he points out. "So what is it?" I shake my head. "It's nothing." "Sam..." I wince at the concern in his eyes and look at the ground. "It's nothing, honestly. Don't worry about it," I say, looking back at him and faking a smile. "I'm over it," I lie, trying to convince him. It works, because he looks relieved. His relief fades almost instantly, however. I prepare myself for some bad news. "Do you know where Kendall went?" Carlos asks. "No," I reply. 'Great. I don't have time for questions about his absence,' I think. "If you see him, tell him text me," Carlos says, frowning. "He won't reply to my texts anymore." I nod. "Thanks," Carlos says, smiling. He turns and heads for the school doors. I watch him go before I head for the doors myself. As I step outside, Kate comes up beside me. "Hey," she says happily. "Where did you disappear to at lunch today?" She obviously doesn't have any idea I was upset over her. I decide to keep it like that. "Oh, nothing. I just wasn't hungry," I reply without looking at her. "Ok," she says, not caring in the slightest, it seems. "So guess what!" "What?" I ask, sighing inwardly. "I called my mom earlier and she said you could sleep over tonight, if you want. I'm going to invite Nichole, too," Kate says, smiling with excitement. I look at the ground, wondering if I should accept. I really don't want to be around her, but she doesn't know that. I decide to answer quickly before she notices my hesitation. "Sure!" I say, successfully keeping the bitterness out of my voice. "Great!" Kate replies. Nichole walks by without even noticing us. "Hey, Nichole!" Kate calls, racing after her. I sigh and sit down on a bench outside the school. Why do I suddenly want to avoid one of my best friends? She's always been there for me. More than I expected, actually. I kick a rock and glance up to see Kendall walking by. "Hey, Kendall!" I greet him as he comes closer to me. Kendall barely gives me a nod before continuing on. I watch him him, shaking my head. Just then, I see Carlos, Logan, and James walk by. Carlos waves at me and gives me a friendly greeting. One in which the other two don't return. I guess James is more interested in girls that pay attention to him. And Logan... He probably just hates me now. Not that I care. I don't want him to like me. I watch them walk off into the distance, listening to their voices fade as they talk about some sport on TV. I stand up, deciding I've moped around long enough, and start toward my house to pack for Kate's sleepover.
Secrets; Chapter 6 • Opuss № I