The Perplexing Guide: Unintentionally Becoming Popular in Highschool

The Popular Opera

Candy did not help me as our conversations turned to her new obsession, Scott.

She had dropped into my peaceful lunch zone saying nothing.  Her jaws worked some fruity peach gum. Her brow was pinched and her gaze down while absent mindedly checking her nails.  It was an easy guess she was working something out in her mind.

“You don't like him?” she stated lifting her eyes to mine.  I knew she meant Scott.

“True.--- He is no good for any girl,”

was my reply while my mind built a new analogy of him. He seemed to wear girls, discard them like dirty laundry and pick them back up a couple of months later like they were warm and fresh out of the drier.

They were T-shirts to him.

“But he is so dreamy and good to everyone” she sighed, frowning at her fingernails again.

I returned to my elevation drawing of a house I had designed, falling back into the imaginary garden where I had placed the house.  

“He walked me home yesterday.”

I held my breath but continued to look busy with my work. But my eyes were not seeing and I was listening attentively.

“And?” I feigned disinterest.

“He said he thought I was beautiful.” She said still deep in her nail inspection.  

She was guilty. She valued my opinion. I was surprised when I realised it.

Eventuality she looked up at me briefly.  So much was being said without us saying anything.

“Candice, what do you think he told Samantha? Nikki? and Jessica?” I used her full name for emphasis.  

Her brows scrunched up again, She would not age well with that expression.  

Our silence continued but a commotion caught my attention across the yard.  

Candi’s friend Amber was hyperventilating and fanning her face with huge golden eyes glassy with brimming tears. Two girls flanked her, consoling her distress.

I would of thought she had received dreadful news if it was not for the group of boys behind. All smirks and chortles, the guy’s simultaneously burst into grins as Amber had whipped around blasting them with one last retort. Their reaction had her stamping her legs and marching off, with her consoling ladies in waiting trailing her.  

Candi had caught onto the situation now and abruptly ran off to comfort Amber.

The guys just seemed to be congratulating each other before breaking up as lunch had ended.

I was packing up when another human chuckled and dumped himself into seat across from me.  

Clinton Almeida, short stocky best friend to The Scott.  We had never spoken before. He was evidence my approachable vibe had multiplied its reach.  

“What is with that girl!?” he huffed out confused.   

I thought most of the girls around that day could have that question tacked to them.  I added my own query.

“Which one?”

“Amber. What did she expect from Scott?” he scoffed, revealing the cause of the upheaval.

As I gathered my pencils and books, I was compiling a list as an answer to give. Standing up, I was about to answer and leave when he pointedly looked up at me and blurted irritably,

“Why are you so tall?”

For me to answer him I had to snuff a smug and amused smile. I was more than just an inch taller than him. It was like he thought, I, woman, could suppress my growth to validate his superior ego.   

“Inherited genes” I stated academically and left.    

I passed Candi giving Amber a pep talk about worthless guys.  The heavy hypocrisy in the air could choke one.

Amber was tossed to the hamper, Candi was the new item in the store.  

Scott was over due for a severe dose life lessons.