Wesley

seven

The lunchroom is exactly the same as I saw it last. People pile up in line eager for food and then others sit at tables with sack lunches, saving seats for their friends with their foot or a backpack. The room is very hot, and the pungent smell of pizza radiates the room. I feel my stomach growl. Lots of people don't like the schools pizza but I love it and I honestly can't wait to get it.

I get in line, walking almost too slow for the people around me. I search the room for Wesley. I don't see him.

The line got smaller and smaller and I still didn't see Wesley. The suspense is building up in my chest. A lady with a hair net and long pink fingernails slaps a piece of pizza on my plate and I thank her slightly with a smile. I start to move down the line, grabbing an apple.

He probably forgot. He probably is talking to Ivy instead or is talking with one of his friends somewhere. I let the suspense break down little by little as I watch the people in front of me paying for their food.

I feel a tap on my shoulder.

I twist my head quickly, heart pounding in my chest. For some reason I expect it to be Hanna standing before me, but instead its Wesley. His eyes still look tired but overall he looks very attractive to me. I smile softly while I grab a milk, not breaking eye contact. He awkwardly smiles back. I guess he didn't forget.

"Hey. Aren't you Kirsten?"

I squeeze my tray. "Yeah." I'll tell him my name is Kendall when I'm not handing money to the lunch lady.

"Do you want to sit with me?" He asks. He has no food in his hand and I wonder if he's eating.

"Sure." I croak. I try not to let my nervousness show, but the small smirk on his face tells me I'm not doing so well. He nods and I follow him over to a table.

Once I sit down with him, I feel eyes pressing against my skin. I look over to the table next to us and I doubt that girl who is pointing directly at me and giggling is saying anything nice. Wesley follows my gaze and they look away quickly, pretending like they weren't saying anything. I know Wesley noticed though because when I look back at him his jaw is clenched. Sometimes I wonder if he wishes people would stay out of his business and stay in their own. Everyone treated him and Ivy like they were celebrities, and now that they're falling apart, people can't get enough of it. It's like they feed off of it. And now I'm part of it, too. But not for long.

"I just wanted to say thanks." He said, resting his arms on the table and crossing them by his chest. "I mean, I don't know completely what I said, but I remember everything with..." He trails off and finishes the sentence in his head. "And I remember you. And you driving me home." He pulls his stare to me.

"It's not a problem, really. I have a friend that has problems like that a lot." My heart swells at the thought of Hanna. I would tell her this if I still talked to her. I'd tell her that he thinks my name is Kirsten, and that his eyes still sparkle like the did in the eighth grade, just not in the same way. I bite my apple as I get lost in my thought. "I've gotten pretty good at that stuff, I guess."

"Are you talking about Hanna? Hanna Wilson?" He asks, suddenly interested.

"Yeah. That's the one." I say shamefully, losing my appetite. I think back to that picture of her and Andrew and the way his hands were tangled in her hair. I lose my appetite, setting down my apple.

"Oh, God." He rolls his eyes. "I've heard more about her more than I probably need to." I'm guessing Andrew has talked about Hanna to Wesley. In squirm in my seat.

"Not that she's a bad person or anything." He tries to reassure me.

"No, no, it's fine. We're not exactly... on the best terms." I say, playing with the lid on my milk.

I can tell he's awkward about this. I can tell he wants to try to talk to me about it, almost like he wants to return a favor. Like what I did for him was a favor. I drown in anticipation to see if he will say something. He doesn't. Instead he wipes his hands on his jeans and gets up.

"Well, I have to go." He says. "It was nice talking to you, Kirsten. Thanks again." He fakes a smile and then walks away.

"It's Kendall." I whisper to myself.

***

The rest of the day went by with a blink of an eye. Syllabuses were handed out, awkward eye contact was made, you know, the typical first day of school. After the bell rings for my last hour, I see an unexpected person leaning against the locker next to mine.

Hanna.

Her eyes get wild when she sees me, but then she settles down.

I start twisting my dial for my locker. I refuse to say something first so I want for her to acknowledge me.

"Hey, Kendall." She says softly.

"Hi." I shortly say.

Lockers slamming and chatter fill the gaps in our conversation. "I'm really sorry." She says, looking down at her folder. She hasn't been to her locker yet.

"You know, Hanna, it's okay. It's okay that you're with Andrew, in fact, I'm happy for you! But why didn't you tell me you were leaving with him? You had me worried sick I even walked into the-"

"I know." She interrupts me. "I just lost track of time and was with Andrew and..." Her voice is lost. I don't know if she continued talking, if I couldn't hear her, or if my ears just refused to listen anymore. I don't want to hear about Andrew.

I don't say anything except for "It's okay, I forgive you." It didn't sound too convincing, but Hanna took it. She stands up straighter at my words, the smile I've always loved seeing growing on her face. God, how could I stay mad at her? She's my best friend. "I don't want to talk about it anymore. Do you want to get ice cream?"

Her shoulders slump. "I can't. I'm going to the park with Andrew."

Okay. That only slightly hurt. But the rest of me feels worry. I don't want her to give all she has to Andrew and then him throw it all away. He just gives me a bad, bad feeling in my gut. "Okay." I say, trying to hide the worry in my voice. "Maybe tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow for sure." She says, her bright white teeth shining even in the dim light of the hallway. "And then you can tell me all about your lunch date with Welsey." She winks and waves bye before spinning around and starts running in her direction, ponytail bouncing.

I roll my eyes before shutting my locker and hanging my bag over my shoulder.