Bleak Winter -

Chapter 2: A Lunchtime Battle Royale!

**TW: This Chapter contains Verbal/Parental Abuse. Viewer Discretion is Advised!**

Wednesday, December 19th, 2001 - 12:00 PM

Inside the cafeteria, the kids in the front of the line had just gotten out of the kitchen and started to gather at their usual tables so they could hang out with their friends over a lunch of moist carrots, stale cookies, cold pizza with a hint of mold, and expired chocolate milk. Julie and Chloe head toward a circular table at the front of the row, what many would class as the popular table, which Ash happens to be sitting at as well. The kids at the table all chatter among one another, though Julie, Chloe, and Ash aren't really engaged in the conversation. Ash and Chloe sit there in silence, looking over at Julie occasionally and both trying to avoid eye contact with each other. Julie, on the other hand, is looking around the whole cafeteria, making note of Deputy Susan Besteman standing at the entrance with her arms crossed and her eye on every student in the room. Once Rory comes out of the kitchen pushing Cassie, Susan does give a small wave towards her daughter, which Julie takes special note of and proceeds to duck her head down.

"You okay, Julie?" Chloe asks

"Yeah, I'm just trying to stay out of the sight of the Little Shit and the Angry Shit" Julie nudges Chloe in the direction of Rory and Cassie looking for their own table.

Julie's so fixated on the two of them that she's caught off guard when she feels a finger tap on her shoulder, and audibly gasps, bringing the whole table's attention to her. Both Julie and Chloe turn around to see two boys standing behind them who they unfortunately know. In the back was the school's wannabe bad boy and bully, 14-year-old Mark Baxter. He has a self-cut blonde mohawk and is wearing his usual attire of a wrestling t-shirt, a leather jacket, ripped blue jeans, and a smug smile despite his face and beige skin being covered in cuts and bruises. But what's unusual was that Mark is standing in the back and up front was his sidekick, 13-year-old Matt Clay. Matt's a bit of a dopey-looking kid with light skin, bleached frosted tips, as well as a few zits already starting to grow. He's also wearing some ripped jeans, along with an open plaid shirt and a brown t-shirt that reads "Whatever it is, I didn't do it!" with a picture of a manic monkey waving around a slingshot in front of broken glass. "H-hey, J-Julie..." Matt says as he holds out his hands, presenting a small vanilla cupcake with pink icing. "H-happy Birthday!"

Julie confusingly stares down at Matt's shaky hands holding the cupcake out to her. She honestly doesn't even know how to react, so she slowly reaches her hand towards the cupcake, grasping it as Matt gets even more jittery and his face starts to turn red. She's about to give an awkward thanks when suddenly-

"Um, excuse me!?" A girl's voice loudly rings out as Chloe is pulled around to face Piper Hailey, a popular mean girl with red pigtails and decked out in a lot of pink, carrying the closest thing to healthy food on her tray, a styrofoam bowl of chicken noodle soup and a carton of orange juice. "What are you doing sitting in my seat!?" She continues to belch.

"Well uh, we don't have assigned seats and I was just sitting with J-"

"Well Uh," Piper mockingly imitates Chloe, "Maybe that's how things are with the other nerds, but here, I get to sit between Julie and Brad, and if you get your cheap store brand nail polish in my space, I'm gonna-"

SPLAT!

Piper opens her eyes to find her face covered with wet icing and the crumbs of a smashed cupcake rolling down her torso. Matt nearly falls back in shock, Mark starts to laugh loudly, and Chloe stands straight up in amazement. Piper looks over and sees Julie with closed eyes dusting off her hands "That's no way to treat my best friend, Piper! Especially one who's a million times cooler and way less of a bitch than you!" Julie says while putting her hand on Chloe's shoulder.