Forsaking Lilly

Chapter Twenty Three

After Lunch, I made my way to Home Ec like a zombie. I only say that because I know that's how I must have looked. I couldn't do anything but look at my feet, simply because it was like staring at my heart. Pain that I couldn't quite understand fogged my thoughts, and all I could see was the way Cooper walked away from me. This didn't make much sense to me, because I'd been denying feeling for him for weeks, why would things change now?

All around me, there were eyes. everyone one wanted to see the girl who'd made a fool of herself in front of half of the student body. Everyone wanted to laugh, wanted to gasp, wanted to pity, and it made me sick. Beside me, girls that I didn't know were talking to me, saying things like: Oh my god, are you okay? So what happened, what were you guys arguing about?  I guess they figured that since they had followed me around saying hi and shit, they were entitled to my personal life. Unfortunately for them, I've never been one to keep up unneccessary drama. So, I walked away from them, leaving all of their questions unanswered.

I brushed my mood aside once I walked into Home Ec. I was a firm believer in bringing my fullest potential to class, just not when it came to homework. As I walked towards my usual counter, the sweet aroma of baked goods met my nose and I sighed. This day just gets better and better. I pulled up a stool and placed my bag on the counter. As I slid myself onto the stool and placed my arms on the counter, I focused on making myself look untarnished. I didn't want a soul to know just how much fighting with Cooper was killing me. Hell, I didn't even want to know it myself!

I watched with a plastic face as other students filed into the room, some looking at me, some not. I watched as they all slid into their stools and turned to chatter to each other. I envied them for some reason, they were able to go through their day like nothing happened while I sat here and burned.

I stared down at the countertop and wondered where I was to go from here. It wasn't like I was just done with Coop, which made things more difficult than they had to be. Me and him had formed a routine, a strict one. He picked me up, took me to school, he talked to me, walked me to class, ate lunch with me, sat beside me in health, helped with health shit that I didn't grasp, took me home, and a lot of other things. Would all of this cease? Well, sure it would be pretty awkward if we continued, but for some reason, I was reluctant to let everything stop.

" Hey, Calla, I'm talking to you. Can't you hear?" My head shot up and I looked into the cold grey eyes of Mark. Seeing him startled me, but I swallowed away the feeling. Instead, I gave him a stunned look. He sat perched on the stool next to me, looking at me like I bored him. He looks at everyone like they bore him, even Corrie sometimes. I shook my head, focusing back on him.  His brows were raised at me, emphasizing that he was waiting on a response. 

" Um, I'm sorry. I spaced out. What?" I tucked a stray curl behind my ear and tried to give him a small smile, but my lips barely pulled upwards.

Mark rolled his eyes at me, huffing low in his chest. " I asked what the hell happened between you and Coop." I sighed, not wanting to get into this. I could barely understand what this had to do with him, but I didn't want to be rude. Mark was Cooper's friend, and I'm pretty sure that he knew him long before I came here. It wouldn't be right if I told him to mind his own business, but, at the same time, I didn't want to start a whole nasty, dramatic, tango.

" Didn't he tell you?" The words rolled out carelessly and almost half-polite. I turned back in my stool, facing the front of the class as the bell rang. I noticed that Mark didn't get up to leave, instead he turned forward too. Didn't he have a class to get to,certainly we didn't share this class together. Right?

He gave an audible sigh this time, which was way more rude than the huff he'd released a minute ago. I didn't say anything though, mostly because I was shocked that he was speaking to me at all. In all the time that I had been eating lunch with these guys, not once had I ever held a conversation with Mark. And, to be honest, now that I saw how rude he really was, I wasn't sure that I wanted to ever again. " If he had told me, I wouldn't be asking you, now would I?" Alright, fuck that not being rude crap.