The girl from New York

22| Gossip

"W-What?" I stammered, finally listening. The same promise he was talking about to himself at the park? Now, instead of squirming for escape, I was still. Frozen.

"I made a promise to never...Uh, to never get close to a girl. It's just that after what I learned about what happened to my mom, I just didn't want to risk accidentally doing the same, to another girl." He replied softly. I tensed. His mom seemed happy every time I talked to her...So what happened to her? "But then I met you, and it was just like I couldn't stay away. You're just so... different from the other girls. I got curious. Too curious. So I tried to block you out, to get you out of my life. And-"

The bell rang. Immediately, classroom doors flew open and I was swept away from Alex by the harsh influx of pushing students. I couldn't push back and quickly lost sight of him. Giving up, I sighed and made my way to my next class. Now I guess I'll have to wait.

But, what does he mean by "different?" Different as in clumsy, uncoordinated, pitiful, and ridiculously awkward? Or different as in... No, that's stupid. Absolutely absurd. He would never think like that. Surely, he's just making things up, so that I'll forgive him and make the mistake of giving him another chance. I may be stupid, but I have certainly learned my lesson, when it comes to trust.

I walled up to the classroom door and let my hand hover over the handle as I compensated, how much trouble I might get in for executing the plan that just came to mind. Maybe a week or so, of grounding—nothing terrible. I pulled back my hand and and shoved it in my pocket, walking nonchalantly towards the bathroom. Yes, I'm going to skip.

I opened the third bathroom stall and locked myself in it, then put down the toilet seat and sat, crossing my legs on top of it, pulling out my shattered phone to play on as I waited for the halls to clear. I've never, ever skipped. But, today I am.

After struggling through about ten minutes of Flappy Bird, I decided that it was finally safe to leave. But just as I turned off my phone, a group of girls walked in. I held my breath and waited for them to leave.

"I heard that he's dating some loser." One girl said with a laugh. Well now I'm intrigued.

"Really? I can't believe that Alex would drop his standards like that." Another girl exclaimed. I stayed still, listening carefully.

"I'm such a better fit for him, honestly." A girl with a familiar voice added. A voice that I knew too well by now. Blair.

"How can she just walk into this school and managed to get him to fall for her, when he won't even pay attention to me?" The first girl said with a sad sigh. Who?

Blair scoffed. "And what kind of name is Brooklyn, anyways? It sounds so...Uck." Oh. Oh. A bullet in my heart. Of course they hate me, it's nothing new. But talking about me like that, in the bathroom, where they think I can't hear... It's kind of hurtful.

Wait.

'Fall for her.'

Since when did Alex fall for me?! No, no, no. These are only rumours. Gossip. Lies. It's not the truth, Brook.

Somebody else walked in while the other girls continued talking. I tensed, waiting for a new bullet to come from them. "Shut up, you drama queens. It's not like she's ruining your lives by being here, and she is kind of cool when you get to know her." The voice belonged to Claire. I smiled to myself with relief. I've been talking to her less, pitying myself for falling into this situation, and yet she still sticks up for me. I guess I found my new Maggie—and this time I won't push her away.

I looked through the crack in the stall door to see what was going on. The purple haired girl and Blair stood next to each other, each holding a mean smile on their lips. Another girl, her blonde hair cut short to frame her freckled face, had Claire's arms pinned behind her back. I panicked and quickly unlocked the stall door, jumping in front of Claire, although my short self was barely a guard to her half of her face.

"Don't!" I yelled, holding out my hands desperately. I don't want to fight them. I don't want to get hit again. I can't fight back. But I can at least try to protect Claire.

"Speaking of the devil." Blair sneered, pushing both, me and Claire against the wall. I pressed myself against the wall, trying to melt into it. Claire kicked her foot out at Blair to escape. Her foot landed firmly in Blair's gut, pushing her back. I stood frozen for a moment, before Claire quickly dragged me out of the bathroom. My heart raced.

"Why were you hiding in the bathroom?" Claire asked me as we walked quickly. I stammered, fiddling with my hair nervously.

"I...was going to skip." I said so quietly that it was almost inaudible to even myself.

"What?! But you're too good to do that! Are you okay? We haven't talked much." She said gently, as if not to upset me. I nodded, looking down at my feet.

"Yeah, I'm just trying to figure everything out right now, I guess. Moving is hard, you know." Of course sh knows.

"Hah, try moving to a whole other countries." She scoffed playfully. I smiled.

"That's what it feels like. You all talk and act so differently than what I'm used to." I admitted. Claire shrugged.

"True. Come on, let's go talk over some McDonald's I'm starved." I let her lead me out of the school and we walked to McDonald's to get some shakes. I sighed, remembering Blair's words.

I guess some people can just be like that.
_______________________________

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, anyways you know the drill:
-Vote
-Follow
-Comment your theory

"How the hell did you get the tomato soup to explode all over the stove?"

-Alex