broken home - j.f✔️

three.

Elizabeth caught sight of Clay, entering and searching the cafeteria. She stood up, grabbing her bag and slinging it over her shoulder. "Thank you, guys. It's so lovely to meet you all." She thanked.

"Where are you going?" Zach asked. "You're hanging with Jensen?" She nodded, smiling cheerily over at Clay, who waved his hand at her. "Why?"

"He's nice, and I said I would help him over lunch. I can always see you tomorrow, or sometime out of school." She suggested, the table staring up at her. She'd been the new girl enough times to get bored of the shyness, replacing it with friendly confidence. "I'd have to get your numbers."

And the whole table moved, fishing their phones from their pockets and handing it to her, or ripping paper from their textbooks and hassling the nearest student for a pen. She felt overwhelmed with the screens shoved in her face, so she sat back down. "I'll read out my number, if you manage to write it down in time, great news. If not, hard luck." She read her number aloud, repeating it once more before making her way over to Clay and Tony.

"Hey, Clay," she chirped, sitting opposite him. He had opened his lunch box and pulled out the contents of it. "Ready to discuss your date?" He nodded, rolling his eyes at Tony.

"Where are you taking her?" Tony asked. "And, I swear to the man upstairs, if you say the robotics room, I will walk out and never come back." Clay displayed a look of horror on his face, shaking his head. "I will give you my mustang for the night, just promise me it's not the robotics room."

As the trio were giggling at their table, the group of jocks she'd just left had started a conversation. Bryce and Monty making their usual chauvinistic and objectifying jokes. Zach had ignored their boyish remarks, watching as she flipped her hair and giggled with them. Memories has resurfaced of his wonderful summer, a sad smile on his face.

"Am I the only one who didn't get her number?" Justin asked Zach, pushing his shoulder as he sat adjacent to him. "Everyone else got it the first time, she repeated it twice and I only got about 4 digits." Zach shook his head and laughed heartily at the boy beside him.

"Why do you care? You have a girlfriend, why do you need a new girls number?" Zach questioned. Speak of the devil, she had approached the table and asked for Justin, who rolled his eyes and followed Jess. Every so often, Elizabeth would look over to Zach, smiling and waving, yet still invested in Clay's stupid questions.

"So I just say, I really enjoyed tonight, what if I didn't?" Clay asked, annoyed at how frigid he was with dating.

"It's common decency, but if you really didn't enjoy it, just don't be too blunt." Elizabeth mentioned. "Maybe blame the pressure, the place, your nerves."

"Thanks, you guys. I'll report back." Clay spoke, placing his lunchbox back into his bag. "You have my number, I'll text you both." As he walked off, Tony and Elizabeth were gossiping about the date and their predictions, placing bets on who kisses who. She was so entranced by her conversation that she didn't hear Zach call her name. Only when he cleared his throat, she looked up.

"I'm gonna go, speak later, Reyes." Tony mumbled, leaving the table to just Elizabeth and Zach. He sat down opposite her, crossing his arms and hoping his nerves weren't so visible. Before he could even speak, the wolf whistles had erupted and chanted Zach's name, as if he were a King.

"I'm not sure what's happening, but I need to get to class." Elizabeth spoke, uncomfortable with the situation she was in, and wanting to get out immediately. He stood up and followed her, calling out her name as she began to walk away.

She turned and smiled at him. "Text me, Dempsey. I don't want to talk around your entourage."