he's my hero → t . stark ( ON HOLD )

Chapter 9

"Hey Zoza! C'mere!" David called out in the cafeteria the next day. Shouldering her bag, she walked over to her friend's table. David was in between his friends Harry and Colin, and there was an open seat next to Tucker, which she took.

"Hey Z, what's kicking?" Tucker asked, leaning back in his seat. Zoza smiled as she took out her bagged lunch and set her backpack on the floor.

"Nothing much. I mean, my aunt just found out that her baby's going to be a boy." Zoza opened her sandwich back and pulled out a tuna sandwich, and she stuck out her tongue.

"Ick, tuna again." she mumbled, and Colin chuckled.

"Not a fish fan?" he asked and she shook her head. David chuckled, and so did Harry.

"Colin, you want it?" Zoza asked, handing it over.

"Yes please. Thanks Z." he grinned, accepting the sandwich. She rolled her eyes and smiled when David gave her half of his burger.

"So, which uncle packs your lunch? 'Cause you gotta tell him no more tuna." Colin said around a mouthful of sandwich.

"Usually, it's my Uncle Clint, but his girlfriend got sick last night, so Uncle Steve took care of it."

"What about Bruce?"

"His wife's got morning sickness, again. I swear, this baby will be the death of her." Zoza sighed, shaking her head.

"And Steve's wife...?"

"Perfectly normal, along with my actual aunt. And Steve's healthy, too, along with my and Uncle Tony." Zoza mumbled as she bit into the burger.

"Sorry if it's not that good. School food's pretty gross, so..." David trailed off, and she nodded.

"Totally fine. It's better than Uncle Clint's cooking, that's for sure."

The four laughed, and another girl came up to the table. They all looked up at her, and she smiled widely.

"Hi guys! My name is Faith Dunham, and I'm running Student Council President! You should know that every vote counts, so a vote for Faith is a change of pace! Have a great rest of your day!" she waved and skipped off, two other girls following her.

"That didn't even rhyme..." Zoza pointed out, and Tucker laughed so hard he snorted. She blushed, and Harry hit Tucker's leg.

"Sorry, but that was the funniest fucking thing I have heard all day. She's the biggest two faced bitch at this school, and you called her out, sorta." Tucker wiped his eyes, and David rolled his eyes.

"What Tucker means to say was, her slogan was shitty, and that his left shoe was more creativity than she does." Colin muttered, and Tucker looked at his shoe.

"Well, telling by all of the gum I've stepped in, my shoe is definitely more colorful than her." Tucker grinned, and Zoza coughed.

"Thank god I finished my lunch." she groaned, and the others laughed.

"I had no idea I could be so funny..." she said in surprise, and Harry cracked a grin as the bell rang, signaling the end of fifth period.

"Besides, this school won't pick Faith to be a part of the final two anyway." he chuckled.

***

"They fucking picked her."

Zoza slapped her forehead, and David shook his head.

"Hey, look on the bright side, our boy Marty J is going against her." Colin motioned towards the name below Faith's.

"He's got no chance against that airhead." Tucker sighed, shouldering his bag. It was the end of the day, and Steve had given Zoza permission to walk to Rita's with her friends.

"It's pretty freaking hot for October, don't ya think?" Harry asked, and the others nodded.

"I'll bet Antarctica's cold." Colin muttered, and David thumped his head.

"It's always cold there idiot." he crossed his arms, and Tucker shared a look with Zoza.

"Yes, they are always like this." he mouthed, and she nodded in understanding. They walked to Rita's, listening to Colin and David argue about how cold Canada was compared to Alaska and Antarctica's climate, and they saw Faith up ahead, a cloud of girls swarming her. Zoza rolled her eyes and walked past them with her head down, a common defense mechanism she developed from sixth grade.

"Hey Z, don't be intimidated by them, okay? They suck." Harry whispered, and she smiled.

"Thanks Harry, I'll keep that in mind. But don't turn this into Mean Girls, okay?" she laughed, and Tucker shook his head.

"We aren't going to make you infiltrate their group and make you wear pink on Wednesdays, trust me." Tucker smiled.

"Thank Christ. I hate pink." she muttered, and Tucker clapped her on the back. They made it to Rita's, and they ordered. They sat at the ladt available table, under the umbrella, talking and laughing. Zoza had ordered a chocolate ice with chocolate custard on the bottom and top. She ate happily, and she checked her phone for the time. 3:45.

"Z, what's your number? Let's exchange numbers, and we can get together this weekend." Tucker grinned, and they all pulled out their phones and swapped numbers.

"Zoza! Time to go!" she heard Steve yell, and she perked up.

"Bye guys! See you later!" Zoza grabbed her bag, dumped her garbage, and ran to meet Steve at his car.

"Hey Uncle Steve!" she chirped, getting into the car and buckling in.

"Have fun with your friends?" Steve asked, pulling away from the curb, and she waved to her friends from the window.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, I did. Thanks for letting me go." she smiled, and he moved one hand from the wheel to reach back and squeeze her hand gently.

"No problem. I'm glad you've got friends." he chuckled, and she grinned.

"Yeah, they're pretty cool. But they're all boys!" she laughed, and he glanced at her.

"I guess I'll make the exception." he teased, and she giggled softly.

"Thanks Uncle Steve. You're the best."