Quit Bugging Me

Chapter 8

Taylor prodded Eliza's arm as they waited for science class to start. "Do you really not want to be my friend anymore?" she asked.

Jack and his friends stared at them from the back of the room. Their laughter was uglier than his boar's snorting.

Eliza unzipped her backpack and pretended to search for something. "It's complicated," she muttered.

"But we've been friends since kindergarten! I know my flies aren't that great, but I'm still the same person."

"That's not how they see it." Eliza cast a quick glance behind her, shrinking under the other kids' glares. Taylor's flies tried to block them out, but they couldn't erase their classmates' obvious opinion about the bugs. "Now that you've changed, they'll think I'm changing for the worse too if I don't stay away."

"Why do you care what they think?" Taylor crossed her arms. "Anna says jerks aren't worth listening to."

"You're still hanging out with her and that guy with the termites?" She winced. "You know you're making things worse."

"How does spending time with my friends make things worse? If you'd give them a chance, you'd see how awesome they are for sure."

Eliza pulled out her notebook and buried herself in her notes on the latest textbook chapter. "Drop it. If they're really that great, then you don't need me."

"But—"

"Quit bugging me!"

Taylor cringed as if she'd been struck.

Eliza took a shaky breath as the rest of the class snickered. Her hummingbirds formed a trembling wall between them. "Please leave me alone."

A familiar chattering noise filled the room as Mr. Woods and his ferrets finally arrived. "Sorry about the delay, everyone. I had to check on some stuff I ordered for the 8th graders. They're dissecting sharks next week!"

"Maybe he'll let your pig eat the leftovers," one of the boys muttered to Jack, only to receive a thump on the arm.

"For the tenth time, he's a boar, and he's got much better taste than that. Those flies on the other hand..."

Mr. Woods cleared his throat. "Alright folks, settle down. I've got a question for you. If you were part of a group of animals and another member of the group got hurt, what would you do?"

Nobody raised their hand. Taylor kept trying to meet Eliza's gaze, but her former friend wouldn't look her in the eye.

"Come on, guys. There's no wrong answer to this one." Mr. Woods paced from a poster of a pony saying "No horseplay in the lab!" to the fish tank at the other end of the room. "You're a meerkat. You're out there minding your own business, digging for grubs, when BOOM!" Taylor leaped halfway out of her seat as Mr. Woods slapped his desk. "The meerkat next to you gets bitten by a snake."

Mr. Woods smirked as the class leaned forward in anticipation. He had them now.

"He manages to escape, thank goodness, but now his leg's badly injured and he's in too much pain to forage for himself. So, my little meerkats, what do you do?"

"Drive him away!" Jack yelled. "It's not my fault that idiot went and got himself bit. If he's that stupid, I wouldn't want him attracting more predators to me."

"Would anybody like to raise their hand," Mr. Woods said emphatically, "and give me another answer?"

Eliza obliged. "I don't think I'd drive him away, but I don't think I'd do much for him either." She rubbed the back of her head. "I mean, why would I? They should be able to take care of themself. I would feel bad for him though. A snakebite's gotta hurt."