Bullied and the Bitch

Chapter 14: How to Go Steady

I finish keeping away my school bag, an old one ransacked from El's closet, and hurriedly take out my books. I slam my locker shut, then speed-walk to where El is. I make it just in time.

I hold on to El's locker door, holding it still so it doesn't slam into her, and glare at the chicks behind it, who had used their collective strength to shove it into El's head. They stare up at me fearfully, then disperse quickly, whispering.

"Oh. Were they there again?" El asks.

"Yeah," I say. "You should tell them off."

"It won't work. If I did that, they'll just do it more. Might as well just tough it out until they get tired of it," she says. I don't like it, but I see her reasoning.

"Hey!" Someone pats my shoulder. I turn around and am faced with Allen. "What's up man? You had a good Christmas and New Year's?"

"Yeah," I reply. I had an amazing New Year's, but I didn't exactly want to tell Allen that, in case he asked why.

"You should have come to our New Year's party! It was the bomb. I invited you." He did, but I had ignored it. I glance at El, who is looking at me curiously. I hadn't told her that I had been invited to the party and decided not to go. I don't regret it though – I had the best New Year's ever.

"Nah. I wasn't up to it. Glad to hear you guys had fun, though," I say, more politely than I ever had in my life. The Brookes were rubbing off on me.

"It's cool. We have parties all the time. You should come to the next one," he says. "Hey, hang out with us today. We haven't seen you around lately."

"I don't know..." I hesitate, glancing at El, who's resumed tidying her locker, looking like she wasn't eavesdropping on our conversation. Even though I know she totally is.

"You can bring your girlfriend," Allen tells me, the ends of his lips pointing upwards. He seemed to think El and I were a cute couple.

We were not a couple... were we?

Wait. What the hell were we?

I'm about to decline, I don't want El involved in the world of fakeness and corruption that was the popular group of our year. Then I realise... won't that be the best way to stop the bullying? To make them think she was one of the A-list?

"Sure," I say.

"Cool. See you in class," Then he holds his fist out to me so that I can bump it with mine, a gesture which I only get away with because I've seen Trent doing it with his friends so many times... between all the eye rolls, that is.

"Um. What just happened?" El asks, closing her locker.

"Got you an exclusive invite with the in-crowd," I inform her.

"...Huh." She looks so stunned that I laugh at her face.

"You're not scared, are you?" I tease.

She rolls her eyes. "Of course not," she says, and I wonder if she's faking bravery, because she seems to be fidgeting more than usual. She gathers up her books in her arms.

"Don't worry, they won't bite," I say, then take her books from her, adding it onto mine. The extra weight is basically nothing, what with my muscles from all the construction work.

"Wow. Taking the boyfriend facade a little far, aren't we?" She comments.

"Facade?"

"Oh. It means an act, you know? Like a fake appearance of some-"