Thinking of June

one

These last months have been torture. I've been living in the past. Every day I remember the same painful things. Those memories are also the ones that I love to remember no matter how much they hurt.

...For the love of god. You are such an innocent girl. Fine. I'll take it

I remember my (now) frenemy, Nicole, saying to me. That sentence of the best and worst weekend of my life.

I was a different person before. I was so unaware of life's cruelty. I was so full of hope, innocence and so in love with the idea of love.

Now, things have changed.

I am starting a fresh new school year and trust me when I say that is going to be very different from now on. I'm no longer that innocent girl who everyone liked to push around. That girl is dead.

Today is the first day of school. I have to make an entrance not just to prove that I'm not the same but to prove that I'm over him or at least, that's what I want Nicole to think.

I have known her for three years and I just came to realize who she really is over three months ago in that weekend. I saw a completely different side of her... her true side was revealed...her true purposes.

But I'm not going to start this year reflecting on that weekend.

I open the doors of Jensen High and everybody immediately stops to stare at me. Hailey, Stacy and Nicole, my so called "friends", were trying to ignore me but secretly looking at me with the tail of their eyes. Those eyes were filled with envy but they wanted to say something to push that smirk of my face.

"Hey, girls" I said as I winked at them.

"Hey" they said between teeth showing a very fake smile trying way too hard to control their anger. Hailey and Stacy walked away and Nicole stayed just to try to bring me down.

"So, how is he?" She asked, with a face of triumph, already knowing the answer but examining my face.

"He is totally fine and you knew that. Any luck with the test?" she looked so confused by what I said.

"What test?" I could sense that she knew exactly what it meant but I didn't want to embarrass her in front of everyone. I just wanted her to get that I wasn't gonna let her bring me down anymore.

She looked at me with what looked like fear and walked away.

There was a welcome back meeting to meet the new students joining Jensen High. The auditorium was filled with students from every grade. You could hear the conversations of everyone if you focused well enough. We could distinguish the new students from the others because they just sat there not caring about anyone else or with very lonely shy faces like the red head girl from the back.  It was red wine and it ended in what it seemed like a passion kind of red. She had red ombré. She looked lonely and scared.

Yeah, Jensen High does that to new students.

"Hey" I sat beside her and she just blushed. She was shy. I waited for her response and, fifteen minutes later, she replied.

"What's your name?" she said almost whispering in a voice so high pinched that it took me by surprise.

"June Collins and you?" I said and she started to relax.

"Adelia Rose but call me Addie"

The meeting started with Mr. Patterson talking through the speakers about the new rules of the establishment that nobody followed. Addy and I continued talking. She was so much like me but with a different tone of voice. She is very observant.