Devil-ish

Chapter 13

           Angelisa stared down at the phone in her hand, an edge of annoyance digging into her body. She took a deep breath before responding to the text, trying to control her tone. As a form of therapy, she typed out, "seriously? I've been looking forward to this since last week" before deleting it, settling on a simple "okay:(", and pressing send. For the past couple of weeks, Luce had been eating lunch with her, with either him inviting her to join tables with some of his friends or her inviting him to tag along with Colton and Mia, but he'd already told her that he wouldn't be free today. He had some project he needed to discuss with some of his group members and their teacher. To avoid a lunch sitting alone, she'd invited Mia-- and Mia only-- to hang out, and to her surprise, she had agreed. Angelisa had been looking forward to it so much that she was pretty sure Luce was tired of hearing how excited she was in all of the limited conversations they'd had.

           The two of them had reached a sort of agreement, especially now that the deal was sealed and they both seemed to be getting what they wanted. In the two weeks that had passed since they went out for ice cream, they had formed a weird sort of symbiotic relationship. One that Angelisa didn't think she minded after all. To keep up appearances, they ate lunch together, and he drove her to and from school every once in a while (unless he woke up late, which happened on a few occasions and made her roll her eyes every time). They held hands in the hallways, he occasionally put an arm around her, but there was less flirting and as a result, less Angelisa-wanting-to-strangle-Luce-ing. That didn't mean there was none of it though. There was that time he wolf-whistled at her when she bent down to pick a pencil off the ground and then couldn't stop laughing at the glare she followed it with. Or when he continuously poked her during English class to ask her what the answer to their very independent assignment was. So, yes, he was still Luce, but he was notably less "Luce," and she hadn't realized she'd begun relying on his presence until now.

           Mia had canceled their lunch date, only half an hour before it was supposed to happen. She cited some "emergency" with Colton, and Angelisa's heart felt heavy when she realized she wasn't even surprised. She hated to acknowledge it, but a part of her had been waiting for the cancellation at any point today. But this time, she didn't have Luce to run to.

           Her shoulders slumped as she walked slowly to the cafeteria, feeling her heart speed up as she thought about trying to push her way into a pre-established group. She was sure she could find somewhere to sit, but she already feared the awkwardness. She'd done it before-- grabbed an empty seat and then watched as the crowd around her quieted, as if silenced by her presence. After that day, she would often sneak out to her and Mia's usual spot instead of the cafeteria, spending her lunches alone and watching the clouds. She would do that today too, but the transition into warmer temperatures had brought about a steady course of rain. The weather still clung to its drizzly grayness, and even if it had stopped raining, the ground outside of her house had been muddy.

           She pushed open the cafeteria door, her eyes immediately beginning to scan for any unoccupied seats. Eliore High School had campaigned for smaller, round tables instead of the long cafeteria tables other schools used. They cited increased student community and relationships, but they'd neglected to add a few "loser" tables for the people who just wanted to sit alone. Most of the tables were full or close to full, with only single seats available at most. There were a few with two open seats-- but usually they were across from each other, meaning Angelisa would have to push herself next to a friend group in whichever one she chose. Her eyes continued scanning as she tried to block out the noises around her. She hated large crowds and loud noises, especially when she was anxious like this.

           Finally, she spotted them: a set of three seats together, perfect for her to take up residence in the middle one and pretend she didn't exist. She made her way over there, trying to make herself smaller as she squeezed past a few familiar faces.