All Alone

Chapter 10

Avianna's POV

Aiden never seemed to tire of bugging me, I think that I am a 'plaything' to him. I wonder if that is all the little clique sees girls as, toys. I would like to think that I would resist their advances, but I don't really have a backbone anymore, and I am not afraid to say that I am a really weak coward. I lost a lot of self-respect, only maintaining the barest amount of pride, but that never helped me stand up to Them, so what was the point?

My rapid strokes slowly formed a cigarette, I thought that would be it, but somehow I ended up adding smoked skin next to it. Angry figures loomed in the background, and I realized how true this was. Smoking was one of the things that struck the biggest chord with me, and I have the scars to prove it. The activity represents my anguish and disgust, and continues to be a haunting memory, sparking one of my only remaining emotions.

I don't think that I hid my drawing enough because hot-n-cold started commenting on it.

"That's a rather specific picture, does this mean that you are mute and a stick in the mud?" I look over at his own paper, only to see a stick figure with tape over the mouth. "This is to represent how much I hate people that don't respond." Well, that hurts, and I know that he is directing the underhanded comment at me. I look at him for a while, and he eventually tires of the continuous glares, leaving me to shade and add final touches to my drawing.

The teacher reminded us that final drafts would be due next class, and we all fled to our next period as the bell rang. I headed to the front bathrooms, where I was told to wait for Libby, and then we would go to A Lunch.

"Hey, Avi! We are going to meet up with my boyfriend and another girl in the cafeteria, but don't worry, they are very down to earth." I let out a short breath in surprise; I hadn't realized that she was behind me. Why does everyone else have the capability to be an assassin?? Turning around, I try to match her enthusiasm, I don't want to wreck my chances of having friends.

" Well let's go silly", she laughed and linked my free arm with her own, thankfully I was wearing a jacket, so she couldn't feel the scar tissue. We walked through the hallways, though I think Libby was skipping. After going through more twisty hallways, we finally reached the cafeteria. I hate cafeterias. I used to bring lunches every day, because there was no quick way for me to order my food, that and the taunting was unbearable.

Libby was still dragging me around when we got into the lunch line that was apparently devoted to pasta, still grinning as we got closer to the Rotini. "Do you have money with you, or did you bring lunch?" She tilts her head at me, and I grab my whiteboard, writing the response in a messy scrawl. 'I think Ms. Victoria put some in the account, is my lunch code on the same paper as my schedule?'

After skimming through my message, Libby smiles again. Does she ever stop smiling? "Yeah, your code should be in the bottom right corner. I smile a little, putting away the whiteboard and grabbing my schedule; I can just point at the food.

After we grab the food and pay, Libby leads me to a table near the center of the room, where a tall guy and a blonde girl sat. " Hey, David! Hey, Jessie! This is Avianna! Avianna, this is David and Jessie!" How can one person stand to be so perky all of the time?

"Hello Avianna, I heard that you don't talk much, my name is Jessie, I'm the head cheer captain", Jessie was speaking very quickly, though surprisingly she seemed less perky than Libby. "I'm David, this goof's boyfriend", David got up to shake my hand, then pulled Libby into a hug. I should call her Mad Lib since she says the weirdest stuff.

After we sit down, the trio settles into some light conversations about sports, and I learned that David is the state champion in swimming. "So Avianna, were you shocked by the idiots?" I look over to Jessie, rather confused at her words.