you belong with me - Olivia Rodrigo

that was a hard watch

Sitting alone at a table during lunchtime, I realised I'd been too preoccupied with looking for Jenna and annoying Olivia to form any real friendships.

God damn it, I don't have any friends to scab food off of. My stomach growled loudly from being empty all day.

Throughout the day, a few people had greeted me with a warm "hey, Y/N, you're back!" but no one had actually invited me to join them for lunch.

So now, I'm just the 'new but not new girl,' sitting alone at the lunch table.

I scanned the cafeteria, my eyes shifting from one occupied table to another, each filled with different cliques. Then, my gaze fell on Olivia, who was sitting across from her friends—the same ones I had seen in the photo booth picture on her wall.

Next to her was the boy from the polaroid picture, her boyfriend. He had his arm around her, animatedly sharing a story. Olivia seemed fully engrossed in what he was saying, while the other two at the table struggled to hide their boredom.

I focus more on the boy. I recognise him from three years ago, but we never talked. I think his name was Josh? He seems more like a typical jock douchebag now, obnoxiously bragging about his weekend. Olivia's friends are clearly uninterested, but Olivia is staring at him like a lovesick puppy.

"Y/N? is that you?" I hear a familiar voice from behind me, interrupting my thoughts.

Standing before me was a fair-skinned girl with long, golden-blonde hair cascading in loose waves down her back. Her green eyes, which I had sorely missed were lit up and a genuine smile spread across her face.

"Oh my god, Isa!"

I stand up to hug her, and we both squeal, grabbing the attention of those around us, including Olivia's table.

"I heard the rumors that you were back, but I couldn't believe it myself!" she exclaimed, taking a step back, holding my shoulders, and scanning my face. "I missed you so much!"

I pulled her into another hug, my voice filled with warmth, "I missed you so much too, Isa. You have no idea. I've been looking for you and Jenna all day." Her face slightly dropped at the mention of Jenna's name. Oh no. Did something happen to her?

"Oh yeah, about Jenna..." She looked down and bit her lip.

"Where is she? She's still at this school, right?"

"Yeah, she still goes here... But we don't really..." Isa's voice trailed off as her gaze moved behind my shoulder.

I turned around to see what she was looking at, and there she was.

The petite girl with jet-black hair and expertly applied winged eyeliner had just strolled into the school hallway from the front entrance, a late slip in her hand. Her confident stride came to an abrupt halt as her striking hazel brown eyes locked onto mine.

Her appearance hadn't changed significantly from the last time I had seen her. She remained undeniably gorgeous. However, there was a noticeable shift in her style. Her demeanour had taken on a more serious tone, quite different from the carefree girl I remembered.

I couldn't help but glance down at her wrist, a small part of me secretly hoping to see the bracelet. Unsurprisingly, it wasn't there.

It's been three years. Why would she still be wearing a childish beaded bracelet we made when we were 14?

I couldn't help the smile creeping onto my face. I call out to her, "Jenna!"

In a split second, her eyes widened, and her mouth slightly opened in shock. Immediately after, her expression turned stoic. She began walking toward our direction with a faster pace.

I expected her to walk up to me, so I opened my arms for a hug. However, she continued walking straight past me and Isa, skillfully avoiding my arms, with her shoulder just barely grazing my outstretched hand.

I stood there frozen with my arms out like an idiot.

Well that was embarrassing. I just got snobbed by the girl that's been on my mind for the past three years.

A few onlookers couldn't help but stifle snickers as they observed the awkward encounter. Olivia's table, in particular, took notice. Olivia herself commented loudly, "That was a hard watch. What a loser." The rest of her table laughing along with her.

Isa turned to me with a sigh, her eyes filled with sympathy. I glanced at her, bewildered. "Why did she ignore us? Are you two not friends anymore?"

Ignoring my question, Isa suggested, "Let's go somewhere else and catch up, shall we?"

--

Isa and I skip last period and sit in a secluded spot in the field, spending the last hour filling in each other on the details of our lives. We sat down, facing each other, with her lunchbox placed between us. She split her sandwich with me. 

God bless her, we all need an Isa in our lives.

She proceeded to fill me in on all the school happenings I had missed. Olivia and her squad had ascended to the status of the 'popular group.' Her friends' names were Iris and Conan.

I was right - her boyfriend's name is Josh, and he was the captain of the basketball team. Isa said that Olivia was the most popular girl in school. I wasn't surprised, she was gorgeous after all.

Isa explains that despite Olivia's reputation for being coldhearted, everyone deeply admired her. In school, it seemed like everyone either aspired to be her or be with her.

I learn that Olivia and Josh had a rather rough relationship, frequently breaking up and making up every other week. Nevertheless, they were universally regarded as the cutest couple in school.

Really? The cutest couple? In my opinion, Olivia was way out of Josh's league. Maybe their personalities matched each other, but it still struck me as somewhat surprising.

"Wait you're telling me that your next door neighbour is the most popular girl in school?"

I nodded and shared the details of our dinner the previous night and the humorous encounter I had with Olivia this morning.

Isa feigned a look of offense and playfully slapped me on the arm, saying, "Y/N! Seriously? You have the chance to get on the good side of the most popular girl in school, but you choose to annoy her every chance you get?"

"What? I wasn't gonna let her think she's better than me. I don't care if everyone else in this school looks up to her. She shouldn't be acting like a bitch" I laughed, and she started laughing with me.

After a moment of silence, I clear my throat and bring up the awkward situation that happened not long ago.

"So, are you gonna explain the whole Jenna thing?"

She let out a sigh, sitting up with reluctance, and finally answered, "Right. You deserve to know what happened."