Jealousy, Jealousy (Part 1)

23 - Amelia

"Are you okay?" Noah immediately asked Lauren, once we've entered the school again. Surprisingly, none of us were injured, just a little startled.

"Why are you only asking her?" I wanted to know. "I was the one who fought."

Noah looked at me. "Okay, okay. Are you okay, then?"

"I'm fine, thanks for asking," I said.

Lauren hugged me. "I'm so glad." She pulled away and checked the time on her phone. "Wait, I have to go. I'm late for broadcasting club. I promised to meet Spencer there right after school!"

"Nerd," I replied. She rolled her eyes at me and left.

Noah put on his backpack and waved at me. He seemed agitated, for some reason. "I'm gonna go now. See you."

"Uh... bye," Thanks for checking up on me. Not like I forced you to. Why was Noah always just concerned about Lauren? I headed home afterwards. The minute I got home, Father called my name. "Hey, Amelia! Come into the kitchen and help me!"

I walked into the kitchen and saw so many pieces of paper scattered across the dining table.

"What's all this?" I questioned.

"It's Lauren's birthday in 3 days. Did you forget?" Father chuckled.

I froze. Wait, it was? "I did... forget. So, are you planning a party for her or something?"

"Yup! I told her to invite all her friends. Here's the list of who's coming," he said, handing me a piece of paper. On it, said my name, Sasha, Spencer, Noah, and Esme? Why was Esme on the list?

"So, what do you need my help with?" I asked.

Father pointed to a stack of nicely printed invitations. "Give those to the people on the list tomorrow. And then, maybe get Lauren a gift? Thanks, dear."

"Okay."

So, the next day by lunch, I had handed out all the invites except Noah and Esme's. During lunch, I saw Esme eating with some of her friends. Do I want to give it to her now?

I decided not to. Instead, I bought a cookie from the cafeteria, walked up to where Noah was and sat beside him.

"Hey, Noah. Here," I said, giving him the invite. Some of his friends took a look at what it was.

"It's Lauren's birthday on Friday?" he asked me, perplexed.

"Yeah, you didn't know? I forgot, too. But do you want to go get gifts for her after school today?"

Noah nodded. "Sure, but then I have to quickly go to Shakelicious for my shift afterwards."

"Sure, I'll meet you after school at the front, okay? Also, I got this for you." I handed him the cookie I bought him earlier.

Noah smiled at me. "Thanks, Amelia. You always know what I like."

"Since we haven't been hanging out lately, do you think you would want to go to the skate park this weekend?" I asked.

Noah thought about it. "Yeah, maybe. I'll let you know." Then, he quickly ate the cookie and stood up. "I have to go now to meet with Mr. Angel about my missing homework. See you guys later."

His friends looked at me. "You know Noah likes your step-sister, right?" one of them laughed.

What? I gulped. "How would you know that?"

He shrugged. "It's obvious."