A Tale of Two Cliques

|| Chapter Five ||

After Jake walked off, I could only stare after him for minutes before regaining my composure. I mean, he hadn't talked to me for two weeks (not that we really talked before anyway) and now he demands I meet him in the canteen? Where this whole thing started?

I knew I'd been dying for answers to his mysterious behavior, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something big had happened to prompt our recent one-sided interaction and another huge bombshell was about to happen.

Call me crazy, but I was feeling very apprehensive about this lunch time meeting.

I walked into the canteen slowly, trying to prolong the inevitable. Now that Jake was going to give me all the answers, I found I didn't want them. I might not have been happy in my ignorance, but I was definitely innocently oblivious.

It was funny how when you were handed something, you didn't want it. It was as if the universe wanted me to suffer. That wasn't right.

I must've walked up to our usual table about a million times, but this time was different. Jake's face was set grimly into a frown and Aaron Sutherland was standing right beside him, smirking.

Well, then again, I'd never seen Aaron not smirk, so maybe he was born that way. Ugly, stupid and a downright jerk, that is.

I spotted my brother standing a distance away. I could tell he knew something was up. I nodded to him; it was practically sibling code to not acknowledge each other in public. Then his gaze flicked to Cora and I rolled my eyes. That guy was so whipped. Whatever happened between them, anyway?

I approached cautiously, as if about to handle a wild animal. Well, Aaron was about as close as you got to one. He put his arm around Jake amiably, and I winced as Jake stiffened under his touch.

I mean, Aaron was a huge douche, but he wasn't that bad, surely.

Throughout the years I'd known Jake, he'd always been very cautious with the emotions he showed on his face. Throughout the school, he was known by his Mr Popular persona, but with us (at least with me, anyway), he was careful to control his actions.

I hated that about him. But in the times we got Mr Popular to loosen up, that was what I lived for.

This was not one of those moments. "Ah, Hazel," Aaron greeted me as if we were long-lost best friends. "You're here."

He clapped me on the shoulder twice, heavily, and I made it clear that I didn't want him touching me by taking a big step back.

"Don't, Aaron." Jake's voice sounded strained.

I frowned. Jake was behaving really weirdly. I was sure I wasn't the only one who noticed this when Aaron laughed and nudged him. "Come on, boy, spill."

Instantly my attention was back on topic and I demanded, "Jake, what's going on?"

He hesitated slightly before sighing. "I really don't want to do this, Aaron. Can you please just leave me and the others alone?" He all but begged pleadingly.

Aaron's happy facade immediately dropped and he pulled Jake away, snarling incoherently in his ear. It was the first time I'd ever seen Jake scared out of his wits and it showed on his face. It almost made me terrified too.

Aaron dragged him off by his collar out of the canteen, and Jake wouldn't meet my eyes as he stumbled off. I couldn't believe this. Jake, Mr Popular, was being bullied by Aaron Sutherland?

No, that wasn't right. It had to be something else. Yeah, that was it. Jake wouldn't let something like that happen to him. He had us, his friends, his parents.

As soon as they'd left, the two walked back in. Well, Aaron strutted and Jake... limped? I came to the realization that maybe the possibility of Aaron actually bullying Jake might be true after all.

"What did you do to him?" I hissed out.

For the first time that day, Jake looked dead into my eyes and said, "Hazel, just leave it alone. Please?"

There was definitely something wrong. The Mr Popular I knew had never said please in his life, and definitely not twice in as many minutes. "No, Jake, he did something and I want to know what."

By now, I was almost yelling. My voice was high-pitched and I was getting way too emotionally involved. I told myself to calm down, and I did, breathing heavily.

Aaron shot me a smug smile as Jake dropped eye contact. His feet shuffled nervously, and I couldn't help but think today was a day of firsts. First time I'd seen Jake scared, first time I'd seen him terrified, the first time he'd pleaded, the first time his confident mask shattered.

"Let's go somewhere else," Aaron suggested smoothly. "What Jake is going to tell you probably isn't for public ears."

I nodded and we all walked awkwardly out. Many pairs of eyes followed us eagerly, but soon lost interest when the two boys gave them matching reassuring smiles.

What in the hell was Jake going to tell me?