Girl Meets Plus One || BOOK 2

We Meet People Change People

IDINA

"What is the secret of life?" the small boy with spiky hair, known as Yogi, stands and turns his head to my boyfriend, "I'm sorry, Mr. Farkle," then back to our teacher, "Mr. Matthews, I know I'm not your daughter, but I too have value in this world. What is the secret of life?" Farkle screams in agony as Mr. Matthews erases the words of the subject Farkle has been trying to learn all year: Belgium 1831.

"Farkle, it's okay just breath, we'll get to it eventually," I say from my seat. He looks at me passed Lucas, who's desk separates the two of us, and sighs, sitting back down.

"It's the one thing in the world I don't know..." he mumbles crossing his arms.

"Yogi has asked the primary riddle of the universe: What is the secret of life? People spend their whole lives trying to figure it out. I was lucky. I had a teacher who cared about me to make sure I knew." The bell rings signaling lunch time, and everyone files out of the classroom through the front door, except me. I quickly leave through the back. My eyes catch Lucas's for a second, before looking down at the floor, then blankly straight ahead.

LUCAS

"Third time this week," Zay says as we sit around the lunch table. Everyone's here: Maya, Farkle, Riley, Zay, and myself; everyone except Idina.

"Look! We don't know the story yet, let's know the story before you go to Rileytown," Maya remarks to Riley.

"I'm not going to Rileytown. I'm calm,"

"I like it worse when you're calm! C'mon! Be you! Take me to find our friend!" Maya shouts. I arch my brow, thinking intensely about what could be wrong with our friend.

"This is like when Idina always used to video call me during lunch and then she would always say she had already eaten, but I never saw any food and...," I stop and realize something terrible, "Oh, my Gosh."

"Lucas? What?" I sit silent, to Farkle's question for a moment. Maya grabs my shirt.

"Tell me now! That's all you have to do, Lucas. You hear me? I just called you by your actual name for the first time ever. That's how important this is to me. Because you know something, about her, Idina. Tell me now!"

"I can't."

"Do you think it's right to let her suffer without her friends when you could just tell us and we could help her?" Riley asks.

"Farkle, can you throw this away?" I ask, handing him my tray.

"S-Sure, if you need space to be able to make sure Idina's okay, then that's what I'll give you," I didn't realize he knew I was giving him a distraction, "I can take a hint. I'll be in the science lab." He throws the tray away and walks out of the cafeteria. I look at the girls.

"She eats dinner with y'all?"

"Yeah, always, her mom works late," Maya replies.

"She comes over and eats my mom's food and sits next to Auggie," Riley adds.

"And she hasn't been there for as long as she has been skipping lunch with us..." I pause, hoping they hear my hidden message.

"because she's not eating," they say realizing, Riley looks at me, "what is that called?"

"Anorexia," Farkle says from behind me, "Yeah, I came back, I care about my girlfriend, and no one is gonna keep me from helping her." he sits back down.

"So, what happens now?" Zay asks.

IDINA

"Bay window! Bay window right now!" Riley shouts, pressing her face against the glass of my window, along with Maya. I laugh and open my window.