Leaving The Friendzone

Chapter 43

Elena Sergio.

The next day, I arrived at school a lot earlier than I normally did, my new tactic at avoiding Clara, who was a chronic latecomer. As soon as I got to school, I geared right into homeroom, making sure to keep my head down, so Anabel didn't spot me, signed my name, and took my seat at the far end beside the window.

I was the only one present in the room—pretty much everyone had lives more exciting than I did apparently —giving me the comfort to do whatever I wanted. Like, eat the sandwich mom had made me this morning just before I left for school.

Leaning back into my seat, I took a bite of the sandwich, my attention on the content of the phone in my hand. A text message from Megan popped up at the top as I scrolled through it. At once, I tapped the message.

I was on my way to school, and I wasn't picking Bart up today, for once, phew. Want me to pick you up? It read.

Tapping the keys on my keyboard, I replied, I'm already at school :).

What?? She sent it some minutes later. But it's still like 7:15.

I'm trying to avoid Clara, I told her.

Oh, she replied. Alright then.

We talked some more before I left the chat for Instagram. By then, the sandwich was already long gone and more people had begun trooping into the homeroom. Amongst them was Clara and a minion of hers, Malia.

At first, and much to my favor, they didn't notice me, chatting about some boy, from what I could get out of their not-so-subtle conversation. That was until Malia cast a fleeting gaze in my direction. Then, more carefully, she looked back and she neatly plucked eyebrows bunched together. All this, I made out from the corner of my eye.

"Hey, Clara, isn't that Red Face?" She said, tapping Clara lightly to gain her attention.

Clara looked up from her phone she had just begun pressing at me then, and, like it or not, my heart skipped a freaking beat. I guess I just wasn't ready for any new drama.

"How come she's so early?" Malia tattled. "Isn't she, like, always the last to arrive at class?"

It's none of your damn business! I screamed in my head, my attention still seemingly on my phone.

All of a sudden, Clara straightened up from the desk she was seated on and began weaving her way around surrounding desks, up to me. Stopping directly beside me, she leaned her weight onto her right foot so her right hip protruded, and then she crossed her arms, Malia doing the same not too far behind her.

"Whose jacket were you wearing yesterday?" She rapped. "Matthew's?"

Yeah, I was wearing a jacket I had sorta stolen from Matthews.

Ignoring her, I scrolled on through my phone silently. I was ready to do that throughout the period she stood there, until, in a flash, she reached down and snatched my phone from my hands.

"Hey!" I yelled, jumping up from my seat, an unfamiliar burst of courage coursing through me. "Give it back!"

"I asked you a question, mongrel," Clara said in a cool voice, a smirk across her lips. "You either answer it or you lose your phone. Your choice."

My angry gaze darted from her to Malia and then to the few members of the class present. Seeing it was two against one, because, clearly no one present was going to be man enough to stand up to Clara for me, I tried to think rationally. Calmed me into backing down.

"It was Matthews'," I breathed, stepping back from Clara and crossing my arms as she'd done. "Matthew gave me the jacket. Do you have a problem with that?"