Undefeated

Undeafeated (chapter 17)

Undefeated (chapter 17)

// Lily \\

I shove everything in my locker but more just keeps falling out. I almost want to curse it but that just seems stupid. I stand there, glaring at the ground. Someone behind me laughs. I know it's not a friendly laugh. I don't bother to turn around. Instead I just pick up my books and leave. But she's still on my heels. "How are things going with Jamie and you?" She asks, her long paces striding so close I want to trip her. "Fine, why do you care?" I ask, trying to sound like there's absolutely nothing in between us. "Right..." She says. And she stomps out of my way with her slaves trailing behind her.

I lean against my tree at break. I close my eyes and let darkness wrap itself round me. I sit down at the trunk as I eat my lunch. From such high ground, you could almost see the forest and my house. I always sit alone. Even the such few people that walk by take a glance at me and then walk off. The closest time I ever got to getting a friend was when a girl, the same age as me, in fact she was in my Manual Arts class, walked up to me and said, "Hi, you look lonely, you wanna join my friends for lunch?" And when I almost accepted, Katie came running down and pulled her away, saying something like, "You're not supposed to talk to her, she's not even human." When she said that, I felt like life was useless.

After school, I stopped by at the nearby seven-eleven to retrieve my daily iced coffee and donuts. The line was huge so I stopped at the magazine rack to check out the latest issues of Girlfriend. I was flipping through a page when the entry beeped and I heard a group of girls laughing. I recognized the laugh. I put the magazine down and I scurried to hide in the chips' aisle. Katie's voice came clearer. "I know right? She's like the lamest creature ever!" I knew they were talking about me. Then another voiced spoke, a more man, but still gentle. I recognized it. "You shouldn't call her that." I almost tripped on nothing. Katie laughed but I could sense a scowl in between. "Fine, fine." And then I heard her mutter something about the calories in slushies and then they left. I was so startled I walked home without the donuts or the coffee.

I sat on the couch, my head in my hands. Jamie was with Katie.

Jamie.

I had to process everything before I could think properly again. Jamie was with Katie... But why? Then he stuck up for me. Maybe it was a coincident. Just then. My doorbell rings.

I open to find Jamie in a grey sweater and a matching beanie. He's holding an iced coffee and a brown bag with 7-Eleven printed on the front. He looks up at me and smiles. "Hey." He says. I stand speechless. "I saw you running out of the shop and you seemed... dazed." I almost hiccupped. "Oh, uum... Yeah, I decided not to get it coz, um, yeah?" I tried to sound calm but it didn't work. My palms were sweating. He chuckles. "You seem a little hungry-so here." He sticks his arm right out to me and I take it quickly. My fingers brush his fingers. I turn away quickly. "Uh, I have to do homework now, so - uh, you should go." He stares into my eyes for a second. "Okay." He says and leaves.

I watch him walk away into the sunset.

Slumping down onto the couch I tear open the paper bag. A caramel donut wrapped in crepe paper tumbles out. The luscious sent of the sweet pastry roams the air. There's something else in the bag. A note, scribbled in blue biro cursive, is sitting at the bottom of the bag. I pull it out.

Lily,

Meet me in the forest tomorrow morning, 8am. I hoped you liked my selection of donut ;)

- Jamie

I can't help but smile. I stuff the note into my pocket and I scoff down the donut.