The Downsides Of Popularity ✓

Chapter 15

TRUST, A FRAGILE LITTLE THING.

 THE EYEBAGS UNDER my eyes will not go unnoticed today. I spent my entire weekend shouting and screaming at the top of my voice, calling out to Ms Walker but in vain.

This is a nightmare.

Additionally, I woke up on Saturday morning to see she had turned my room back to pink again and I despise it.

'Shweta! Your driver's here,' my mom calls out ever so sweetly, from the living room downstairs. I wear my glasses instead of the new pair of contact lenses my father bought me last Friday evening and head downstairs.

Wearing my shoes I head out the door and drop my bag in the car, take a seat, and shut the door. I search my backpack and realise that I left my phone in my wardrobe.

Yes, you heard it right. I tossed my phone in the wardrobe 'cause I wasn't in the mood to talk or see anyone. Plus, the constant buzzing is frustrating.

By the time I come to this realisation, we've already arrived at school. We're early today but I don't feel like going back to that house to get my stupid phone, so I zip the chain of my bag and get out of the car. I don't even thank my driver 'cause I'm too tired to do so.

I bet that witch is still draining my energy for her evil purposes.

As I enter the school, I see a lot of kids running around in front of the building while their parents are busy gossiping. When I'm walking down the hallway, towards my class, I hear someone call my name and I turn around to see my "boyfriend" Utkarsh Sharma trying to catch up to me.

'Oh- woah. Did you sleep last night?', he asks, slightly out of breath.

'Doesn't matter', I say and wheel around to enter my classroom.

'Hey, wait,' Utkarsh blocks my way and says, 'I need to talk to you about what happened last Friday. I tried to call you but-'

'Please, not now Utkarsh. Maybe some other time?' I request him and that's when Sreyansh shows up at the door, eyeing Utkarsh before asking me, 'Is something wrong?'

Utkarsh leaves with a disappointed look on his face as I turn to Srey to tell him, 'Nothing's wrong. Stop pretending to be my bodyguard or something.'

He's a little taken aback by the tone of my voice but before he says anything more, I walk towards my desk and take a seat. I turn around to see that Meera hasn't come yet, so I just put my head down until a teacher arrives to ask us to head to the Assembly Hall for our morning prayers.

***

'There you are,' Sreyansh says as he enters the classroom and takes a seat in front of me.

It's lunchtime and everyone's having fun in the cafeteria while I'm feeling too low to join them. Plus, Meera is down with a fever which is why she skipped school today. Lucky her because if I fall sick, I bet my "Mom" would still coax me into going to school by giving an entire speech on discipline and education.