Butterfly, Spencer White

𝟏𝟖. idiots for friends

BUTTERFLY
Act One: Chapter Eighteen
❝ Idiots for Friends ❞

DELILAH WOKE TO THE SOFT murmur of voices, confused by the dim light and the odd sense of unease in the room. Darren and Quinni stood over Amerie and Dusty, who slept beside each other. Her brother was slumped against the copier machine, snoring softly, while Spider's head rested against her, his arms wrapped around an inflatable vagina. She shook her head at the sight.

"Something's wrong with Missy," Darren whispered, their eyes scanning the room before landing on Delilah. They offered a faint smile, but it flickered awkwardly as they noticed Spider beside her.

Amerie stirred and sat up, her movements sharp and alert. Delilah, still groggy, nudged Spider and Ant awake. "Come on, get up. Something's happening."

"My back hurts," Ant muttered, stretching his back. The boys groaned, rubbing their eyes.

The group shuffled towards a room that seemed to be a storage of some sort where Missy was sprawled on a chair, a stapler hovering inches from her face. Her mouth was smeared with what looked like juice, her eyes unfocused. Amerie leaned down, voice soft but urgent. "Missy, are you okay?"

Missy blinked at her, dazed. "Excuse me," she muttered, pressing the stapler closer to her ear as if it were whispering secrets to her.

"What the fuck did she take?" Delilah arched an eyebrow at Cash as he appeared behind them.

"Red cordial," Cash replied with a chuckle, the others at the back stifling laughter at Missy's glazed expression.

"She needs water," Darren stepped forward. Delilah caught Spider's eye, who shrugged, not wanting to give their group's stock of water. Amerie threw an empty bottle at Ant then opened the window, jumping out.

"Oi! Be careful with my brother!" Delilah snapped, arms crossed as Ant followed her out.

A few minutes later, Amerie returned and marched at where they sat in the office—Ant was nowhere in sight. Delilah's stomach clenched with worry. "Where's Ant?" she demanded, ready to go off on Amerie if anything had happened to him.

Amerie pushed past her. "Move!" she barked before rounding on Dusty. "Say it, Dusty! I need to hear you say it!"

Delilah blinked, caught off guard by the harshness in Amerie's voice. She stood beside Spider, who subtly edged backward toward the wall, as if distancing himself from whatever was about to erupt. Delilah narrowed her eyes at him.

"Say what?" Dusty asked, feigning innocence.

"That you fucked me over just to get out of doing a class, that you made up a rumour about me and Jojo. Actually, that the whole thing was your idea!" Amerie's voice echoed in the room, firm and clear. "Say it!"

Delilah's breath caught in her throat as Spider shifted uncomfortably beside her. Dusty hesitated, guilt written across his face. Instead of answering, he pushed past Amerie, heading straight for Spider and Delilah.

"How did she find out?" Dusty hissed at Spider, but Delilah caught every word.

Without thinking, she punched Dusty's arm. "What the hell is wrong with you two?" she snapped.

"We're so fucked," Spider muttered under his breath, already heading toward the door with Delilah close behind, disappointment radiating from her.

"We're going to talk about this later!" Delilah called after him, but her tone softened abruptly as her eyes landed on her mum. They were so screwed.

Later that day, Delilah found herself sitting across from her mother, negotiating her and Ant's freedom. It was tough and she almost cried, but she figured it was worth it. The deal was that they'd go to church every Sunday for the rest of their lives (or at least until their mum forgot about the agreement). In exchange, they'd still be allowed out, though with a curfew.

They both agreed reluctantly because it was either that or nothing at all.

Now, sitting in her car by the beach with three guilt-filled boys, Delilah exhaled slowly. Ant had already warned Spider and Dusty that a lecture was coming, so they sat with their heads down, waiting for it.

"Why the fuck did you guys do that?" Delilah finally asked, her voice tight with frustration. "How could you not think for even a second? We spent the entire night at that bloody school for nothing!"

Ant shifted uncomfortably before mumbling. "Well... I might have called DOCS." He quickly scooted back in his seat, knowing full well Delilah would try to pinch him.

"Oh my God," she muttered, rubbing her temples. "You fucking dickheads..."

"Listen—" Spider began, but fell silent when Delilah shot him a death glare.

"We're sorry, okay? We didn't know it would cause this much trouble. We just wanted to cancel SLTs." Dusty spoke up, putting on his puppy look that he used on girls, but he knew well enough that Delilah had been immune after their years of friendship.

"Oi, get rid of the ridiculous look on your face," she scoffed, the boys snickering. "I just wish you guys would let me in on stuff like this. So I could talk you idiots out of it!"

Dusty grumbled something about that being fair, while Ant and Spider nodded in agreement. Delilah rolled her eyes but smiled faintly. "Alright. Let's go get some milkshakes."

She moved to start the car, but Spider slid out of the passenger seat and gestured for her to move over. She huffed but obliged, sliding into the passenger side as Spider took the wheel. This was his own way of apologizing to her, she knew that. With that, he pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the diner.

Delilah leaned back, letting out a long breath. The chaos wasn't over, but at least for now, they could breathe.

GEM TIME !
fillerrrr chapter ! but literally a few more chapters until act one is done 😣

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