The Moonwalkers

Paranoia

"Hey, Luna stomped off shortly after you left," Barbara said as soon as she returned to class. "She didn't bother you or anything, right?"
"We'll, other than ambushing me in the library, grabbing my collar, then chasing me to class when I pushed her off, nope," I said.
Barbara gasped. "She ambushed you in the library, then tried to fight you?"
"Yeah, but then she fell in front of our class and I had to help her to her class," I shrugged. "She's fine now, just that she sprained an ankle. Also, why does she keep coming at me? Can't she abuse you guys for a change?"
"Well, because we know her too well to actually be offended by her antics," Barbara sighed. "So she decided to target the newcomer instead."
I frowned. "Whose idea was it to make me join you guys again?" I couldn't help but ask.
"It was me, and I had no idea that she would do this to you. Please, just ignore her."
I realised how apologetic and concerned Barbara looked and sighed, nodding. "I will. But she should be grateful for having friends who care about her like Lydia and Kayla."
Barbara nodded. "Yeah. Those two really do care for her."
Yeah, but it seems like she doesn't actually deserve them at this point. I mean, I know that she's dealing with stuff, but that's still no excuse to act like a psycho. I moved schools to have a new start but what I'm getting is more drama.
Well, at least I have Barbara, but judging by my first few interactions with her, she's got a crack in her head too. Maybe just a slight, hairline crack, barely visible, but it's still there.

I looked around to make sure there was no Charles or Barbara about before hurrying into the house, pulling Chris along with me. I locked the door behind us and heaved a sigh of relief, much to Chris's surprise.
"Are you okay?" Chris asked, looking confused.
I nodded. "Yep. Just a little paranoid with the turn of events."
"Turn of events?" Chris repeated, raising his eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Like that Wastebasket Charles, then that Barbie girl, then there's that other one," I sighed. "That Luna girl."
Chris shook his head in disgust. "That psycho who tried to chase you? Well, didn't she already pay the price?"
"Yeah, she sprained her ankle while trying to attack me," I sighed. "Not my fault, all I did was sidestep."
"She deserved that," Chris shrugged. "Anyway, wanna order something for lunch? Mom gave us permission to order something meaty since there's nothing to eat."
I nodded, a smile spreading across my face. "That sounds good. What should we buy?"
Chris grinned as he pulled his phone out, plopping down on the loveseat. "Aight, so there's chicken chop, grilled chicken, pork chops... oh! Sauce-grilled pork!"
"Oh..." for some reason, I started slobbering as I said that. "Darn." I wiped my face and sat down on the armchair. "That last one sounds amazing. What kind of sauce is it?"
"They just said... sauce," Chris shrugged, reading on his phone. He gasped suddenly when he found something. "Oh! It's spicy! It's a Thai restaurant."
"Mmm... Thai food..." I imagined the tasty Thai food, sauce-grilled pork... yummy. "Take that!" I exclaimed. "And ask for extra meat if possible."
Chris nodded but frowned. "They're asking an additional five dollars just for meat."
"What?!" I took the phone he handed to me. I zoomed in on the picture and realised that the original helping already had more meat than rice. "I think it's fine, no need for the extra meat. The portion is big."
"That's what I was thinking," Chris nodded. "Alright, let's order some."

***

I yawned and sat up, crossing my legs on my bed as I stared at my room. I had a good sleep last night, but I still can't help feeling tired. I massaged my scalp, grimacing at how dry and tangled my hair felt, and pulled myself out of bed. I made my way to the dressing table and groggily rummaged for my hair oil, applying a generous amount all over my hair before pulling it up into a bun. I then staggered my way downstairs.
Charlene was watching some reality modelling show, even nibbling on some potato chips as she did. She was so engrossed in watching the bikini-clad models trash each other while throwing profanities in different languages that she didn't realise how I hadn't actually brushed my teeth yet, even offering some of her chips to me. I quietly helped myself to a handful and crunched on them as well.
I still have no clue what's going on in this show. They're always either fighting, explaining each scene in an individual interview, having an exotic photoshoot, or trashing each other like what they're doing now.
"What's for breakfast?" Chris said as he barged in. He plopped down beside me and frowned at the screen to see one of the models getting interviewed, complaining about one of her housemates who allegedly started the fight. "Seriously, why do you watch this stuff anyway? It's stupid."
I shrugged. "I don't even know how it works. Like do they pull them out mid-scenes to interview them, then throw them back in, then pull them out again?"
Chris snorted. "Who knows."
"The interviews usually take place after the scenes are recorded," Charlene said.
"Then why do they look exactly the same in the interview and in the scenes?" I asked, chomping on my chips. "Like, they even wear the same clothes in both shots, same hairstyle. How does this actually work?"
Charlene sighed. "Just let me watch."
"Cannot!" Chris exclaimed, grinning.
"Did you brush your teeth?" Charlene changed the subject, a direct attack on him.
And at me as well, but I ain't gonna say anything.
Chris grinned in reply to her attack, showing his squeaky clean teeth. "Yeah."
To my dismay, Charlene then turned to me. "What about you?"
I stopped mid-munching and swallowed my mouthful, realising that I had been caught.
"Have you?" Charlene asked again.
I quickly got up and bolted towards the upstairs bathroom without a word. I heard disgusted sounds echo from downstairs as I shut the door behind me.

"If the doorbell rings, none of us are answering it, aight?!" Mom warned us, almost threateningly. "I'm not gonna let another day of ours get spoilt like yesterday."
I nodded. "I second to that."
Everyone did. I also had another threat in mind aside from Charles. And that was a school friend. For some reason, I have this odd feeling that one of them would choose to ambush me now when I'm off guard.