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"NO WAY," MABEL loudlysnorted as she slapped her hand over her mouth in pure amusement at her four friends, who were all sporting detailed Ghostbusters-themed costumes. "You guys look so stupid."
"Wh- hey." Lucas furrowed his eyebrows at the girl in offence.
"What's wrong with our costumes?" Mike obliviously frowned as he glanced down at his carefully constructed attire before facing Mabel again.
"When you guys planned this out months ago, I thought you were kidding. No way you actually went through with it," Mabel couldn't prevent herself from releasing involuntary, humoured giggles as she surveyed each of the boys' outfits. "You all do know you're gonna get bullied for this, right?"
"Maybe with that attitude..." Dustin scoffed as the group's attention was steadfastly stolen by the sound of the school bus screeching to a halt right in front of them, Will's eyes darting between the group members as he just silently observed their repartee.
"Well, we'll just see about that, won't we?" Mabel tauntingly raised her eyebrows as she gestured to the school bus before placing her hands on her hips, eliciting the boys to follow the direction she pointed to.
"Why is no one else wearing costumes?" Dustin's slow words conveyed the group's collective dismay and embarrassment, and Mabel felt her lips quirk upwards with an entertained smirk as she smugly patted the boy's shoulder.
"Told you." Mabel quipped.
"Crap." Lucas blew out an elongated breath.
•
Athena lifted her head up from its previous position wholly invested in her textbook, observing Steve lightly guiding Nancy towards a secluded office in the library.
She would've looked away and not have given the action a second thought if Nancy's face wasn't stricken with a complex mixture of apprehension and remorse.
Athena knew her best friend way too well to simply brush off the unusual expression—something was eating at Nancy, and Athena's intuition was telling her it was related to Barbara's parents and the previous night's dinner.
After Nancy came out of the bathroom that same night, the whites surrounding her, usually sapphire-toned, irises were tinged with a rouge hue, her eyelids puffy, albeit, barely visibly but still somewhat swollen, and her cheeks were suddenly adorned with a pale maroon blush that could have only occurred as a result of a sudden burst of emotion.
