Lauren POV
"Lo, wait." I slow my pace down to let Alexa catch up with me.
"Did you need something?"
"Do I need something to talk to you now?" The hostility in her voice was clear. "What has happened to you?"
I look at my friend completely puzzled. "What do you mean what happened to me?"
"You've changed Lauren. You are not the same Lauren I used to know."
Here we go. "From what, When we were 13? Obviously I'm not the same as I was five years ago! Let's not forget that I grew up and also I have a toddler."
"Those changes are not what I'm talking about."
I stare at my friend as I walk down the hallway with her. "Then what are you referring to, please enlighten me."
"For the last week Lucy, Keana, and I have barely seen you." Alexa complains. "You haven't sat with us at lunch. You have ditched us for Normani and the other cheerleaders."
Is she being a jealous friend or is she really pissed off? "You know Normani and I are best friends. Why does it matter if I sit with her at lunch?"
"You never talk to us Lauren! Lunch or the hallways are the only chances we get to talk and lately we don't get any of those."
I sigh in frustration. "I'm sorry. It's not like you ever text me or call after school. I don't see you dropping by my house to see me."
"Because of Carter."
I tilt my head to the side as I come to a stop. "What about Carter?"
"It's weird." She comments. "It's weird being around a little kid. We want to hang out with you, not entertain or babysit a three year old."
My blood starts boiling. "So you have a problem that I have a kid? What did you think would happen when I decided to finish my last year in public school? Did you think Carter would be out of the picture?"
Alexa gives a nod. "I mean yeah. He wasn't here when you first got back and it was nice. When you said he was coming to live with you, I thought your parents would be taking care of him."
By now, most of the students are in class or lunch. Good thing, because I'm about to kill Alexa.
"Carter is my son, not my parents. Why would I make them take care of him when I'm around?" I questioned. "He is not their responsibility. He is mine and I will spend as much time with him as I possibly can."
"Why wouldn't Zayn keep him longer?" She has the nerve to ask.
Why would she even ask that? "I don't want Carter out of my life! Why do you think that is best? I am miserable when I am away."
Alexa lets out a huff. "You act as if Carter is the only important thing in your life. What about your friends and your life?"
"Carter is the most important thing to me." I clarified once again. "My friends realize that and accept it. Well, I thought they all did, but clearly I'm wrong."
Alexa throws her hands up in the air. "We are friends Lauren but I can't pretend your mistake hasn't affected our friendship."
Mistake... She is calling Carter a mistake.
"I thought when you came back here everything would be perfect but it's not. I barely saw you all in high school. I want my best friend back, but I think too much time has been lost. We aren't the same people we were when we were thirteen, you are right."
I don't understand where this is going... "Are you telling me you don't want to be friends with me?"
Alexa gives me a frown. "No... but I guess I'm not like Normani, Lucy and Keana. I can't pretend that you having a kid doesn't change our friendship, because it does."
