Confidence Boost? // SOUTH PARK HIGHSCHOOL FIC

CHAPTER 7 ; So this is how goths work?

NOTES:

- Another short chapter! Woops.

I head to Denny's with Henrietta. I can't help but feel a little self conscious as the goth kids stare at me when we get there. One of them, Pete Thelman, turns to Henrietta as she walks up with me.
"Henrietta? Why the fuck are you here?"

Pete and Firkle both look like they could kill me without remorse at any second. Michael just looks a little disinterested.
"We thought you weren't coming."
Michael taps his cigarette out. He was a bit scary, all that dark makeup.

Henrietta stares at them and sits down at the table, immediately grabbing a cigarette and lighting it. She looks tired as hell.
"Yeah I was at some stupid party. This is Heidi Turner, I met her there. She's one of those popular conformist kids at our school but she's cooler than she sounds... and looks."

I smile at Henrietta, sitting down next to her. I wave awkwardly.
"Hiii..."
I'm so stupid.

Pete and Firkle are staring at Heidi with looks of contempt. Michael still looks disinterested. "I don't trust her."
Michael gives me a cold stare.

Firkle turns to Pete
"What do you think? She seems kinda preppy."

Pete shrugs and takes a drag on his cigarette. "Maybe she's okay."

Pete gives me a look and then turns away.
"So what were you doing at the party?"

Henrietta rolls her eyes.
"That party was shitty as hell. So many drunk people making out and rolling around like pigs. Heidi and me were the only fucking sober ones."

I mess with my own nails, feeling awkward.
Why am I like this?

"Ugh, tell me about it. All parties are like that."
Pete laughs and looks at me and Henrietta.
"I don't know why you'd go to one of those anyway, they just seem kinda cringe."

Firkle leans back and lights up another cigarette.
"You can't trust those preppy kids, they're just playing a game with us and they'll toss you aside the moment it doesn't benefit them."

Michael is now looking at me again.
"Yeah, why were you there? You may be a preppy conformist loser but you don't look like the teenage alcoholic party type."

I look at Firkle, then look back down.
"My friends begged me to go. I didn't even see most of them during the party, they all just vanished."

Henrietta takes another drag.
"I was bored, so I went. It wasn't too bad though, got to beat up some guys. Heidi beat up like 6 guys though."

I look up and laugh awkwardly.
"Yeaahh..."

The three goth kids all look a little surprised when Henrietta says that. They look at me in astonishment.
"6 guys?! But, what about your nice girl image?"
Michael raised his eyebrow.

Pete scoffs with a bit of a smirk.
"Oh my, I didn't think you were like that!"
He takes another drag.

Firkle looks skeptical, he still can't quite read me, I think.
"She seems weird..?"

Michael keeps looking at me and starts to wonder if maybe his initial judgement was a little harsh.
"I thought you'd be kinda boring and fake, but you actually seem pretty honest. What's with the eye bleeding neon dress though?"

"My friends tend to diss on me for sticking with a more cottagecore style instead of keeping up with trends. Only reason I'm not in a long skirt, white ruffled shirt, and short green button up sweater is because my friends told me to wear this showy sparkly green one that's super itchy..."
I look off to the side.

"Not gonna lie, that cottagecore style seems like it would fit you better than whatever this 'trendy' dress is your stupid prep friends forced you into."
Henrietta takes another drag.

Pete and Firkle chuckle at Heidi's comment. "Yeah, that cottagecore stuff seems pretty okay. Not our style but at least it's different."
Pete takes a drag.

Michael nods in agreement.
"Yeah, it sounds like it kinda suits you."

Henrietta looks over and takes a drag of her cigarette herself.
"Why do your friends care about what you wear? That's weird."

"Bebe's too much of a trend fashionista for her own good. I mean, at least you look good Henrietta! That dark purple bat dress really suits you."
I smile at Henrietta. I think I might have been blushing... shit.

Henrietta is caught off guard by the comment and blushes slightly. Hm...
"Thanks, I guess. I mean, I do own a bunch of dark colored dresses. It's kind of a goth thing."

Firkle looks up at the ceiling for a second.
"Okay I think I'm starting to like you, you're much tougher than I thought you would be."

Pete and Michael nod in agreement.

I smile and checks the time. 1am. Fuck fuck fuck!
"Oh crap, I gotta go! I'll come see you guys at your normal hangout that I always see you in tomorrow at school! Bye!"
I wave and bolt out the door.

Henrietta chuckles slightly.
"She's kinda okay for a preppy."

Pete and Firkle smirk at my sudden departure. "She was kinda chill huh?"
Pete taps off his cigarette.

Michael nods.
"Yeah, I don't really know much about her but she seems like an okay preppy girl."

Henrietta looks at me bolting down the street.
"Yeah... she isn't so bad..."