The trick is to be nice

One Shot

So while Carlos isn't present here in the fic, his and Uma's relationship is mentioned several times so I just went ahead and decided to tag the fic as 'carma'. To all tuning into this fic, I hope y'all enjoy it.:D Feedback of any kind is very much appreciated.:)

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"Well, my darling, how you make friends is by simply being nice."

            Audrey inhaled, eyes honed in on the school's only pirate crew Lost Revenge, the advice her mother had given her when she had been a friendless child yearning for companionship ringing in her mind. Momma always gave the best advice. Her advice always worked. She had her advice to thank for her being able to successfully befriend Janice, Opal, and Pam all those years ago, after all. Oh, and the kindly Ben, too, of course. She could do this. But geez, it sure would be nice if her nerves would stop making her sweat all over. There was nothing she disliked more than sweating, after all. The others at the table may be strangers to her but Uma's presence should at least instill a bit of ease within her. They were roommates, after all but Audrey didn't want that to be all there is to their relationship. She wanted to be Uma's friend.

            Clutching her books close to her chest, the redeemed princess began walking forward in the direction of the cafeteria table the pirate captain and her crew were sitting at. Audrey decided as the distance steadily thinned between her and the group that she'd take the empty spot directly next to Uma.

            "Hey there, everyone," Audrey greeted, a friendly smile on her face as she set her belongings down before settling down next to Uma.

            As a puzzled Uma stared at her roommate, she felt Harry's eyes on her who was sitting at the left of her. But it wasn't just Harry's eyes who was on her but the entire table's save for Gil who had departed for the bathroom not too long ago. "Prissy... Hey."

            Harry had gone quiet, his countenance quizzical as his eyes switched from his pirate captain to the elegant beauty sitting next to her. He didn't have a problem with Audrey but it's just that he'd been unaware that she was now a friend of Uma's. And something in him sizzles at his lack of knowledge on that fact because his reaction to being told by Uma that he hadn't been the first to be told she was dating Carlos was a petty, childish one.

            Audrey tries maintaining a positive attitude because she knows that if she doesn't, the awkward atmosphere that had befallen the formerly lively table would get to her. Smiling from ear to ear, the princess says, "So—"

            "I'm back, guys!" a grinning Gil exclaimed, sitting across from Uma. It took a few moments for the slow-witted pirate to notice that Audrey was sitting right next to the girl he considered to be his family. The grin that had disappeared from his face returns. "Oh, hi, Audrey!"

            Audrey beams at him. "Hi, Gil."

            Some part of Uma was thankful for Gil's reappearance because now the air wasn't as thick with awkwardness.

            "I didn't know you were friends with Uma," Gil says.

            Uma lets out a sarcastic, internal laugh. Yeah, neither did she. She liked Audrey, though so her presence wasn't much of a disruption.

            Audrey decides not to disprove or approve his statement, continuing to simply smile at the well-meaning boy. She certainly wants to get the point where Uma sees her as a friend and well, she wouldn't mind befriending them either. After all, Uma was as cool as they come and if she thought they were cool enough to be her friends and a member of her pirate crew, then she's sure they'd make for good friends.