The Girl With The Purple Giraffe

Connection

Chapter Four- Connection

"Hi boys and girl." Jade greeted us all bluntly; she glanced at me, "Oh and Robbie."

Cat gave a little giggle, "But Robbie is a boy!" she said, clearly confused.

"Maybe he looks like a boy on top, but believe me, he definitely isn't underneath" Rex jeered at me.

I felt myself go red,"Rex!" I protested.

"I'm only telling the girl the truth Rob, before she makes a horrible mistake" Rex argued back, turning his back to me and started chatting up Jade.

Oh how I hated him.

But I wasn't ready to let go of him, I didn't trust my new group of friends yet, I still need Rex to help me make conversation.

I can't help it. I know Rex would rather be out with some Northridge Girls but he's sticking around, helping me to socialize, that's what people don't realise.

"Rex are you hungry?" Cat asked, holding up a piece of pizza, smiling.

Rex shook his head, "I'm good"

Cat went to eat her pizza when Rex put his hand to her mouth.

Rex don't do this.

I know you're going to make her cry, I can feel it.

"I wouldn't eat that if I was you red head. You really don't want to be gaining anymore pounds" he sneered again.

Cat looked at Rex, looking hurt and dropped the pizza on the table, "I'm not hungry" she mumbled, she pushed it towards me, "Here Robbie, you can eat it"

"Rex! Apologise!" I demanded.

He gasped, "Are you stupid, the girl is giving you free food. I say you take it."

Beck and Andre both glared at me, "Robbie, how can you be so mean to Cat?"

Cat's head jolted up, "It's not Robbie being mean, it's Rex. Robbie can't help what Rex says" she sniffed quietly.

She gets it.

She gets that Rex isn't something or someone that I can control.

Jade snatched Rex out of my hands and ripped both his arms off and then shoved him in a bin.

Cat watched Jade as she started crying and suddenly ran off.

"Cat!" Jade yelled and ran off after her.

"Rex is just a puppet Robbie, you can't blame what you say on a lifeless puppet" Andre said, sounding angry.

I opened my mouth to speak but Beck cut me off.

"Cat's your friend…" he shook his head.

They didn't understand.

But she did.

I got up and walked over to the bin, pulling Rex out, hugging him and then trailing off to find Cat and Jade.

Stupid Rex.

. . .

"He doesn't want to be friends!" I heard a voice wail.

It wasn't coming from the janitor's closet.

It sounded like Cat.

I do want to be friends! We are friends!

Aren't we?

"Cat! He's a bloody puppet, he doesn't have feelings, and it's Robbie who chooses what he says.

You are so wrong.

He goes into my brain and chooses my thoughts and then flips them into insults.

"He's not a puppet to Robbie!" I heard Cat protest, "He's might control Rex's voice but it's Rex that thinks those things! You can't tell me not to be friends with Robbie!" I heard a door and bang and then Cat charged around the corner.

Her mascara was running and rubbed all over her face.

She wasn't looking where she was going and banged into me, "Aah!" she stumbled.

I caught her.

And then nearly dropped her.

I admit I'm not the strongest guy.

"Hey Robbie…" Cat sighed, hugging me close to her for a moment and then put one hand to her makeup and wriggled out of my arms, "Need to fix it…" she mumbled.

"Can I talk to you?" I pleaded as she leant against the lockers and got out some tissue and a mirror and started dabbing at her cheeks.

"Talk away" she replied, smiling a little, her eyes slightly red.

"Cat I'm so sorry for Rex always being mean to you-"

"I don't care. At least Rex says stuff to my face." Cat replied bluntly, brushing off my apology.

"No Cat, please. I really am sorry and I'm sure Rex is too-"

"Take me to hospital" Rex groaned.

I forgot that I was still holding him.

Cat gasped, "Did Jade do that? Is Rex okay?"

I don't care whether he is or not.

He seems determined to ruin my life so I know longer care about his feelings, "He's fine" I snapped, my anger at Rex coming out in that one short phrase.

Cat flinched, "Don't be mad. I get it, what Rex is to you. The others don't, but I do." She turned round and got something out from her locker, "Mister Longneck" she held up a purple giraffe.

I gave the giraffe a little wave.

Cat smiled, "Sometimes Mister Longneck feels more real than he really is, sometimes at night, l when it's really quiet, it's like I can hear him thinking" Cat whispered, as if she was sharing a treasured secret.

Perhaps she was.

Maybe she was telling me, because we both knew how it felt.

"I can hear the cogs in his head turning" Cat paused as if the toy was speaking to her, "I used to share secrets with him when I was little because I knew he'd never tell. People used to call me stupid for talking to Mister Longneck" she fiddled with her fingers, "Because they never heard him reply, but I always did. He only lets certain people listen." She stopped her little speech abruptly, leaning back on her locker.

"I appreciate you sharing that with me" I answered slowly.

It wasn't often you found someone who not only wanted to be friends with me, but also understood the situation with Rex and me.

"Secret." Cat answered, making it clear that I wasn't to tell anyone, "Mister Longneck wouldn't like it if everyone knew his secret"

She went back to applying makeup and then fiddled with her hair until the bell went for the next class.

"Yay!" she cried out and skipped off to Sikowitz.

A completely different girl to the serious one that I had been speaking to only a few moments ago, the one that had trusted me to share a secret, after only knowing me for a month.

The girl with the talking purple giraffe.