Forever and Always • cel

Chapter 4

“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.” 

                                                      ― André Gide, Autumn Leaves

||Paige's POV||

"Want more fries?" Matt asks, pushing his fries toward me. I scrunch my nose in reply. He shrugs and pulls it back towards him. I pull out my phone and check my social stuff. There are lots of notifications and I'd only been able to check a few before I feel Matt nudge me. He points to something behind me and I whip my head around to see Chloe running past my seat and out of Mason's, tears rolling down her eyes, followed by Josh, who was yelling her name. Josh's inner shirt was tucked out on one side and his outer shrit was crumpled. But what was most significant was the smear of bright pink lipstick across his cheek. Chloe doesn't use that shade of lipstick, neither does anyone close to me. The only person I know who wears such bright-colour lipstick is Madison Ziegler. 

My suspicions are confirmed when I turn my head a few more centimeters to the left and see Maddie walking towards her table, a victorious smirk plastered across her face. I nearly puke. It suddenly comes to my attention that Chloe gets into a lot of trouble every time her mind is in a blur. She's definitely not in the shape to think straight right now, which means...

I push my chair back and dash towards the door without waiting another second. The bell jingles as I barge past it. I can barely see Josh's back, but since I have strong, long legs, I'd be able to catch up in no time. I run as fast as my legs can carry me towards the other two. Soon, I'm near enough to hear Josh's endless yells. I can see the pavement ending just a few meters away. But Chloe doesn't realize it. She just keeps running. "Shit!" I yell as I realize how much danger Chloe is in as her foot touches the first bit of road. It's just a small junction, but there aren't any traffic lights or zebra crossings and drivers aren't expecting 16-year-old girls to suddenly appear in front of their vehicle.

Time seemed to slow down. I hear the blaring of horns and screeching of tires. Chloe's head turns toward the advancing van. Josh yells Chloe's name again, but this time it seems different. It sound more worried and frantic. Josh steps off the pavement and grabs Chloe's hand, pulling her into his arms and turning so his back is facing the road. The van screeches to a stop just a little past the couple as I reach them. 

Had Josh reached a moment late, Chloe would have been knocked down. Tears come to my eyes at this thought. It's sometime weird how you don't realize how fragile life is until you're that close to death. 

Chloe pushes away from Josh and into my arms, her head buried in my shoulder. I shoot Josh an angry glance and he looks away sheepishly. He caused all of this after all. Chloe's bawling like a 6-year-old, but I can't blame her. I wipe away my tears and take deep breaths before trying to clam her down. 

When Chloe is finally just quietly sobbing, I check my watch and realize it's nearly the end of lunch. "We have to get back Chlo" I say, already starting to walk back to school. Chloe follows, trying to stop her sobs before we reach school. The hallways are empty when we walk to the toilet to wash our faces and get prepared for our lessons, which meant touching up our makeup and putting on a fresh layer of lip gloss. I walk out of the toilet ahead of Chloe to find Josh leaning against the wall next to the entrance. "You're not needed here. Come on Chloe, let's go!" I say stiffly, not even glancing at Josh. Chloe has collected her self and was back to normal. "That's right Paige. Not like I need him." she says bitterly, giving Josh a sharp glance. We walk away with linked arms before Josh can say another word.

*A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in awhile. I'm gonna attach Josh's outift in the multimedia bar later on btw. Hope I'll be able to update agin soon!*