Beauty and the Blonde

2

Since the day she wrote the poem about Joyce, everything has been different for Karen. Every single day felt nearly the same- Arnold bored her, school was terrible, she knew she'd never have Joyce, and that was that. They were friends, but being with her hurt because she wished the time she spent with her was as more than just friends. Regardless, seeing Joyce was always the highlight of her day.

It was 7th period. Karen took her seat next to Joyce as always, and gave her a kind smile before class started. Mr Duffer talked on and on, and both girls were bored out of their minds until Joyce whispered, "Hey, I was thinking we could hang out tonight. I thought it'd be cool to have fun outside of school."

Karen already knew the answer to Joyce's question. "Yeah, that sounds great- where do you want to hang out at?", Karen replied with the happiest look possible on her face.

"I was thinking maybe just grab some quick dinner and then go back to my place and hang out, does that sound good?", Joyce asked as she combed her fingers through her dark brown hair.

Karen smiled and gave her a nod, "Sounds perfect to me, see you tonight." Minutes later, the bell rang and they were off to their next class. Tonight's going to be great, you'll be able to be with Joyce outside of school. But it isn't a date Karen- stop telling yourself it'll happen one day. She's with Hopper.
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Joyce was in the computer lab for 8th period, and her class had a substitute that day. She sat in the back with a few of her classmates, and they talked the whole time. Being high schoolers, their favorite thing to do was to talk about other people. "Karen Wheeler," David said, as the group went around and said what they thought of her.
"Boring."
"Basic."
"Stupid."
"Annoying."
"Rude."
"Ugly."

Everyone in the group looked over at Joyce, the only one who didn't answer yet. Who would think these things about Karen? She's the sweetest person I've ever met, I could never imagine her as any of those things. Joyce then chimed in, "I actually think Karen's really nice, she's a really great friend."

The students just looked at her for a minute in silence, when Diane broke out into laughter. "Karen fricking Wheeler? You're kidding," she said in all seriousness with a sneer.

Joyce wasn't going to let people tell her what to think of her friend, and she didn't. "No, I'm not kidding. You guys don't even know her- she's beautiful and kind, and I really don't see how anyone could think those things of her."

Louis then added, "Well if you love her so much, why don't ya marry her?" His comment made the group laugh hysterically, but Joyce just rolled her eyes at them.

Luckily, Joyce was then saved by the bell, and she went on to her next class. Why was I so quick to defend her? We aren't best friends. But something about Karen was different than any friend she's had. Joyce was always looking for a way to spend time with the fun blonde girl, more than she's ever wanted to spend time with any other friend. What was it about Karen that was different? Moments later, she passed her in the hall and locked eyes with her. While looking into her deep brown eyes, she realized what she truly wanted.
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Minutes later, Karen stood against the wall in the women's bathroom as Arnold locked lips with her. Though he was so passionate with every single kiss, she still truly felt nothing anymore. All she wanted was Joyce, that's the only person she wanted to kiss.

Karen pulled away and took a breath before saying, "Arnold. I really need to get back to class, sorry." She then grabbed her books and began to head out the door.

Before she left, Arnold stopped her. "Babe, wait." Karen turned around to look at him. "Will I see you tonight?", he asked with a grin.

Karen looked down for a second before answering, "I'm hanging out with Joyce tonight, sorry. I promise we'll hang out Saturday, okay?"

Her boyfriend looked at her as if she had three heads. "You're really choosing Joyce over me?" Karen's face then went from kind to annoyed, she's never seen him so angry over something so small.

"Don't put it like that Arnold, we wanted to grab some dinner tonight and relax. We see each other every day, I want to spend some time with friends," Karen replied defensively.

"Are you even hearing yourself? You'd rather hang out with her than your own boyfriend, I don't know what's gotten into you," he snapped back.

Trying to hold back all she wanted to say about how she felt towards Joyce, Karen's brow furrowed and she looked down. "Arnold, I cant do this anymore. I can't stay and let you be jealous of me spending time with somebody besides you." She paused, then added, "If I'm being truly honest, I haven't felt anything with you for a while. It just isn't the same as when we first got together." Karen bit her upper lip and said, "I'm sorry," and she headed out the door.

"Stupid bitch!", he yelled after she left, as he kicked the wall. Karen didn't turn back to listen to him. She proceeded to her class holding back tears, yet she felt like there was a weight off her shoulders.

The rest of the day was a blur for Karen, who only wanted to go home and cry. But things changed when she passed Joyce's locker, where Hopper stood next to her. The short girl looked up at her friend who towered over her and said, "People keep thinking we're together Hop. When are you going to tell them about Bob?"

(I apologize that this chapter is a mess, I just needed it to make headway in the storyline. If there's any confusion in the end, most students think Joyce is dating Hopper. She doesn't want people thinking that, because Hopper is with Bob and nobody knows besides her. I just wanted to add that as a small joke xD, hope everyone enjoyed the chapter!)