Silver Lining

Chapter 18 - 7 years ago (1)

*7 years ago - Riverdale High School's Dormitory"

Clara's POV

"Clara, are you ready to go off?" Veronica Cadwell, my roommate asked me as she looked at herself in the mirror with a satisfying smirk of her own sexiness.

I didn't want to reply her because I wasn't interested in late night wild parties that most high school students would attend.

"Clara...? Come on, the night is still young, get out of your pyjamas and join me at Jake's party now!" Veronica persuaded me once again and attempted to get me off my bed.

"No... I don't want to go, I don't belong there. You will have fun without me," I went back to bed and pulled the sheets over my head.

"This is exactly why you have no boyfriend till date, you need to get yourself out there so that guys can know you. Come on, stop wasting your youth and stop living a life like an old maid, get out of the bed now and get dressed!" Veronica folded her arms and yanked at me with an annoyed look.

Even though I was used to the cold treatment I get from being a plain jane, it still hurts me every time when I heard nasty words hurled at me, I'm a human with feelings after all. Of course, I would love to be shower with attention from guys, but it's hard...being me.

Veronica finally managed to pull me out from bed after much persistence. She made me sat in front of the dressing table so that she could help doll me up. I pushed my full frame thick lens glasses up the bridge of my nose and looked at the reflection of myself in the mirror. An awkward short-haired adolescent in braces with cowardly slouched shoulder that shows zero self-confidence was none other than me.

The presence of Veronica next to me lowered my self-esteem even more. Her comely curves were accentuated in that body-hugging short dress she was in. She was blessed with a beautiful face of sharp features that looked like Megan Fox. The dark red lipstick and smoky eye shadow makeup that she wore tonight made her looked even more sultry and attractive. She was like a model from Victoria's Secret with long silky curls. It's no wonder why she is the hottest commodity in school while I was a nobody in contrast.

I know Veronica want me at the party out of good intent, I couldn't reject her further since I owed her quite a few favours ever since I knew her. She was smart so I've always turned to her for help in school work. She would always bring me around to mingle with the different social group of friends that she has even though I would always end up being treated like an invisible being. Although sometimes she forces me to do things against my will, I still appreciated her efforts in making a difference for my mundane high school life.

*Jake Lewis's Party*

"Veronica!! Where have you been? We've been expecting you for so long!" Jake Lewis along with a bunch of his drooling football team-mates from our school hurriedly scooted over to Veronica to welcome her while I got shoved aside. They acted like a pack of wolves surrounding Veronica in a matter of seconds, they couldn't wait to get near to her and "eat" her up.

I could see that Veronica enjoyed basking in their attention as she flashed out her beguiling smiles and winks along with giggles that made the guys enslaved their hearts to her within an instant.

"Oh guys, I almost forgot to introduce, this is Clara Mitch, she's my roommate," Veronica tried to introduce me to the guys but they all gave me a perfunctory nod and turned their focus back to Veronica. So here I am...like the lyrics from Taylor Swift - Enchanted:

There I was again tonight forcing laughter, faking smiles
Same old tired, lonely place
Walls of insincerity

I could sense that they don't want me here when Jake turned to me and said, "Oh, er...Cathy, go help yourself with some drinks at the back, there's juice box too if you don't drink." The rest of the guys laughed at Jake, which was an indirect mockery at me, when Veronica said, "Hey, her name is Clara, not Cathy!"