Friday Barnes Oneshots!!

Case of a Backstabber

- Set in the second book

- Also by this point, Trea and Mirabella aren't friends with them all

***

The rest of the week was slow and boring. Friday and Melanie actually found themselves attending classes and doing homework. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Ian, Drake, and Rajiv had been away and only on Wednesday night did Friday learn it had been his birthday on the 25th of March which was Wednesday. She only found out because she couldn't fall asleep and went on social media for the first time in a while and everyone's stories were wishing him a happy birthday. She had found herself going through social media for an hour, watching the different stories his friends had posted and looking at the pictures of him they had put up. A post from Drake told her the three had gone to Phillip Island and a photo with Ian next to a penguin made her realise she had never seen him smile genuinely out of happiness. Reading the messages half the school had written about him made her heart pang with guilt and she put the phone down.

Thursday evening dinner was buzzing. At least that's what Melanie told Friday when they sat down next to their friends. Susan sat next to Drake which meant she sat at the table that had Ian, Rajiv, Niko, Luke, Emerick, Atlantis and a bunch of other frightening people Friday didn't acknowledge. Friday tried to indicate to Melanie that they could go to another table but Melanie had already slumped next to Wai-Yi as she half-heartedly picked off the coriander from her plate which meant there was no turning back.

The entire table was in discussion but Friday could hardly tell what was being discussed. Various names were thrown around that she didn't know, not to mention the conversation would stop and Ian would be asked to tell stories about his birthday. She couldn't tell if she was imagining it, but by his body language, he looked as though he'd rather be in bed. The conversation only made Friday feel more alone in the fact everyone else had developed deep friendships and gone through things she'd never experienced. Making friends was hard enough for her without being in the dark with people. She made it a note to go through the yearbook and memorise everyone's names and faces in her year level.

"What do you think, Friday?" Niko asked. He gave her a warm smile.

Everyone at the table turned to look at her and she felt very hot all of a sudden. She tried to focus and kept direct eye contact with Niko.

"I will be honest with you, I can hardly keep up or understand what is being discussed right now," she said sheepishly.

Delia Michaels perked up. She sat quite far away from Friday so she wrapped her arms around Luke and perched her head on top of his.

"Oh honey, of course, you wouldn't. This must be confusing as hell since you're new!" she sighed and got up, her voice in such a sweet tone it made Friday feel comfortable. Delia sat next to her, moving Melanie to the side and then proceeded to explain in detail what exactly had happened.

From what she had told, after lunch a rumour had spread throughout their year level. Delia fussed over her and picked up Friday's phone. Apparently, while she was in the library, she had been added to a group chat with her year level and the chat was still buzzing throughout dinner. Delia, with the help of the others, explained that someone had spilled the secret of Amber Clair's crush, which was apparently a big deal as the girl had gotten out of a large breakup with Drew.

"Remember Drew?" Drake asked.

"The dick in biology," Friday responded and Drake gave her a smile. "But why is that such a big deal?" she asked.

Apparently, it was a big deal because Drew was crazy over Amber. Too crazy, which led to their breakup. Drew was a confrontational guy, which meant whoever Amber liked now would have to deal with his explosive tendencies which was something everyone enjoyed watching.