Little Miss Nosy

Chapter Three: And You Are?

-Edited-

My least favorite part of the school day may come as a surprise to most. No, it's not the part where I dissect crawfish and pigs in zoology. It's not even gym, where we're forced to change back into our normal clothes despite hot and sweaty skin because the school doesn't have workable showers for their students. 

It's lunch. 

But there are factors that contribute to the level of dislike I have for it. 

I prefer to eat in the library or in Ms. Parker's room since I have her for literature anyway. I can read or help grade assignments in exchange for the benefit of avoiding the rambunctious environment that is Summers High's cafeteria. 

But Carmen prefers that atmosphere to a serene one and wants to eat with me. So we made a deal. 

My cafeteria days are Tuesdays and Thursdays, while I split the rest of my week between the library and literature classroom. Though the more-hectic-than-normal scene in front of me is enough to have me scurrying back to the cozy fantasy corner of the library any minute now, if it weren't for Carmen and Trevor spotting me standing sheepishly in the entrance. 

The aroma of greasy pizza and cooked veggies immediately assaults my sense of smell, and I send a silent 'thank you' to mom for taking the time to prepare my lunch so I could relax and take a shower this morning. 

"Watch it!" 

I gasp as a football flies past my face, narrowly missing me by an inch and clutch the stackable food containers holding my lunch tighter to my chest. 

"Sorry, blondie," a red head says with a wink. 

His buddy that caught the football chuckles, but I don't look and instead whisper, "No worries," before walking away. 

I don't make it very far, however. One second I'm upright and the next my nose is brushing against the off-white tiles of the cafeteria floor. 

My containers fly in different directions. Luckily the strawberries stay safe in their secured bowl, but the lid covering my mini chicken wraps fly off as soon as it hits the floor. 

A leg is pulled beneath the table I just passed when I look back. It's connected to a senior I recognize from gym. Bella's hand rests on his shoulder. She slightly squeezes it; an I'm-proud-of-you gesture as she smirks from her place above me. 

It's when I'm analyzing the scene in front of me; chicken, lettuce, and mayo splattered on the floor, that I realize the cafeteria's chatter has been cut in half. 

I peek through my lashes to see people at surrounding tables staring at me, some giggling and others with concern. They stare from the perpetrators to the victim in silent contemplation. But no one helps me. 

Not like I expect anyone to, anyway. 

"Watch where you walk, Paige," Bella speaks as I pick up what I can of my ruined lunch. "It's becoming easier and easier to trap rodents nowadays." 

Half of the cafeteria lights up with laughter. The familiar sting of tears blossoms under my eyes and blurs my vision, but I swallow them down and blink them away just in time to see the clear picture of a pair of sneakers in my line of sight.