Riley's Box

Part 17

A few moments later...the meeting was still going on! 

Honestly, how long was this going to take? 

I had almost got through three whole chocolate bars! I was a chocolate bar away from getting a first-class ticket to the chocolate factory. 

My stomach grumbled at the thought. 

Well, I hoped that was the case. 

"I can understand that some of you appear to be getting a little fidgety," Susie said, though she only looked in my direction, "So, it is now time for us to end the meeting." 

Huzzah! 

There were a few claps and statements of gratitude and then it was time for us to exit the meeting room. 

When we were back out in the hall, Jason had a quick chat with Whit. 

I watched the two of them for a moment, before I felt a presence right beside me. 

Susie Caern, of course. 

"Riley," she said. 

"Yes, Susie?" I asked, with my friendliest smile. 

So what if I was envious? Susie was a great girl and I knew that I shouldn't be rude to her regardless of how I felt! 

That didn't stop these horrid feelings from bubbling away inside of my chest, though. 

"I felt as though I should come over here to talk to you," she said, "Instinct, maybe." 

Yeah. My instinct was telling me that was a bad idea. 

"Uh...I did some thinking and I wanted to make sure that there were no hard feelings about me getting the head girl role?" she asked me. 

Heh. Now, there was a question. 

"Of course not, Susie!" I said. "Don't be silly, Susie! I just am really, really mad," was what I felt like saying. 

"I think this just means that we're going to have a lot of time to become closer friends!" she said. 

Okay, so maybe now I felt a little bad. Only a little. 

"And I'll admit, I haven't really had a proper friend for a while. I isolated myself last year because-" she cut off, then. 

A nasty rumour had been spread around the school about her. I wasn't entirely sure what it was, but I knew that it had something to do with her and a bra. 

"I guess I just needed some time to myself- to think about everything," she said. "At least it gave me some time to focus on my writing." 

From our previous English lessons, I knew how imaginative Susie could be. 

Her imagination was pretty impressive, I could admit that. 

"You know, I've been writing and painting a lot recently, actually. The whole works!" she said, with a smile. She paused herself, then, as though she felt that she would be bragging if she continued. 

I supposed that was where she and I varied. 

If I did something that I was proud of, I had a tendency towards telling, well, just about everyone. 

"That speech you made the other day was well-written and spoken, too," my lips seemed to form the words before I could prevent myself from speaking them. 

I didn't want to feed her ego! 

"Thank you! As a matter of fact, I've been working on my writing recently," she told me, "Poetries...novels. I think it allows me to reflect." 

The only thing she was reflecting was my own envy, right back at me. 

"I know I don't usually go for council roles and things but...I felt that now was the time. You know, I'm always open to trying new things. Change isn't this scary thing. It can be really positive, whether you realise it or not in the moment," she said. 

Yeah. Well, it was alright for her to say. 

"Anyway, I think it was wise of me to apply in the end. If I hadn't, then I would have been left wondering what could have happened," she said. 

I already knew what could have happened. I would have won the election! 

I didn't voice this sentence out loud, however. 

"Do you want one of my cookies, by the way?" she asked me then, changing the subject entirely as she sifted around in her bag. 

Did I? 

"I need to control myself- if I go for one, I usually end up eating two. So, you may as well have one," she said. 

She definitely had more self control than I did, despite that statement. 

I hadn't demonstrated much self control when I had chowed down on three chocolate bars, over the course of that meeting! 

My stomach rumbled, anyway. "Traitorous beast," I thought out loud. 

I only realised what I had done, when Susie's voice sounded in my ear again. 

"Uh...what?" she asked. 

"I wasn't talking to you. I was thinking about...a band name. I'm thinking about starting a band," I said. 

Her eyes sparkled with wonder, in response to that comment. 

"You know something, Riley? That could be an excellent idea for the school council! You will have to voice it, at the next meeting," she said. 

Was she being serious? 

Judging by the expression on her face, it would seem that she was being serious. 

"So...cookie, no cookie?" she asked me. 

"No cookie," I said. 

Screw the cookie! I wanted some damn answers as to how she had been picked over me. 

Susie shuffled a little nervously on her feet, then. 

I wondered why before I caught my reflection on one of the doors nearby. 

I was glaring. 

Settling my features quickly into a smile, I spoke again. 

"What are you up to this afternoon?" I asked. 

"I have a lot of responsibilities, as head girl," she said. "I'll probably get to work on those and then get to sleep early! Got to be well-rested for tomorrow." 

"That sounds like a pretty good decision, actually," I said. 

She smiled. 

"Thanks, Riley," she said. 

God. Why couldn't she be mean to me? That would make this easier. 

What did I mean by 'this', you might ask?

Well, in all honesty, I was still figuring that one out. 

"Talking to you has made me feel better, Riley, honestly. When I'm sad, I don't make good decisions. I better go and get started on some of my school council work in a minute."