RAVI (formerly Indie-America)

15

   (((Edited•)))

  Luca shifts on his seat before launching into his defense.
"I'm sorry ok? I had to do it or else Rachel would have never believed me."
I fold my arms, "why do you need her to believe you?"

   His eyes widen as he looks at me in disbelief. "She's my sister! She found out, I didn't tell her but she found out and then she told my brother and he made her follow me just to be sure I wasn't doing anything stupid."

"Stupid like what?"

"I don't know, anything? But I promise it won't happen again."

I nod and turn to face the window. "Your sister is beautiful."

He scoffs, "looks are deceiving."

"And you would know." I murmur and he arcs a brow.

"What's wrong with you today?"

I shrug.

"Your grandma?" He tries and I shake me head.

"Aunt?"

"No."

"Uncle? Dad? Mum?"

"It's Amara!"

"Mara?!" He looks genuinely surprised.

"Yes! I just, it's stupid Ok? But...she's suddenly best friends with them," I glance at him to see if he knows who they are and I'll say yes from his nod. "Like today at breakfast, she and Raman were talking with Morse codes. And she's made it pretty clear to me that she'll never teach me Morse codes. And it really hurt me.

   "And then they all stayed home today too. To help Simmi with her YouTube video."  I say, mimicking Simmi's voice and Luca grins at this.

"I take it you don't like Simmi."

  "Not that I don't like her, I just... she's just...yeah, yeah I don't like her. She is such a suck up!!! And you won't notice it at first, she's so innocent at first but then you look deeper and you see she's like the quiet version of Kendall." I blow the stray strand of hair away from my face.
"Or maybe I'm just jealous. Being left out."

Luca turns to glance at me.
"That's not stupid, and it's kind of understandable that you're jealous. I mean, you want everyone living happily together right?"

I nod.

"But it doesn't mean you want to be left out." He pauses and reaches for my hand, "I would hug you right now but." He makes a vague gesture at his wheel and I smile releasing his hand.

"Thanks."

"No problemo! Now about the juice in your bag."

I laugh as I hand it to him all the while thinking about how he knew I would have a drink in my bag.

*****

My day has been better than I expected. But I'm still crossing my fingers as I walk back from gym class. My body is soaked from sweat and my hair is sticking to my skin.
  The other girls walk to the showers but I walk straight to the lockers. Gym is my last class so if I rush, I can get home early, have my shower in a perfectly clean environment without spreading germs.

  My clothes are sprawled on the floor which thankfully are still clean so no problem there. I quickly change and head back out, less sweaty. My departure is hindered by Kimberly though, who deliberately bumped face first into me.

"Ow!" We both yelled, mine more real than hers. "God Kimberly, did your doctor tell you Wood was the new Skin?" I mutter and she scowls at me, massaging her head.

Kimberly is most probably who Rachel spoke about yesterday, a 2nd grade Kylie Jenner. Walking plastic.
I'm not sure her blonde hair is actually her hair, at least there's definitely extensions.
And her waist is quite slim, highlighting her hips. And then let's not forget those bums, probably the thing boys use to compensate for the other parts of her.
  "Hello." She says, suddenly all smiley face. I frown at her.
"Hello?"
"Listen I just wanted to thank you."
I frown deeper. "Thank me?"

She twirls her hair, obviously biting her smile.

"Yeah, it's not everyday you meet a girlfriend so understanding. I mean, it was so good, great of you to let him come over last night."

I stagger. He went.

Kimberly let's her smile go free and I force myself to smile back.

  "Yeah, yeah. He told me about it." I lie and she tilts her head.
"He did?"
"Um... yeah. When you called? I picked it but you were rambling off so I couldn't talk."

Her color's gone now. "You picked it?"

"Yeah, but I wasn't really down for him coming to see you. Either way, he's still my boyfriend. Right?" I say through my smile. Because I don't know if he spent the night there or what happened but I do know that he is still my boyfriend, whatever happened.

And this also settles on her as she raises her head with whatever dignity she has and walks away.

   I drag my way back to my locker and take my books. So he did go to her. And why does that hurt? I am the one who told him to go right? So why does it hurt? I slam the locker and turn to face Luca.

"You went." I blurt before I can think about it and it takes him a while before he understands.

"I did...are you ok?" He tilts his head to get a clearer view of me but I shove him away and walk out of the hall before we cause a scene, he follows me.

   "RV I thought it was okay with you?" He asks once he sees me resting on a pole, I glare at him.

"Yes. Yes it was–is but you could've have given me a heads up! So I wouldn't look like a fool when Kim comes sashaying to me just to rub it on my face."
"She did that?"

I scoff, "you really don't know your girlfriend."

"She isn't my girlfriend."

"Well you sure act like she is,and she probably thinks the same too."

"She is not my girlfriend." He repeats, glowering at me. I step closer to him until we're 5 feet apart.

  "Who is?"

Now his face is unreadable, "you are."

3 feet apart now. He smells like vanilla.

"I am no not but they think I am. And technically you're doing me a favor by going through with this but do yourself a favor and zip it before you ruin it all." I nearly growl before turning away and leave him with that same confused look.

   As I walk home whatever it was that made me react that way fizzles out and soon I'm myself again, almost. My clothes are still sticky, I'm going to wash up and then watch some TV after that with buttered popcorn and then I'm going to apologise to Luca.

  But when I get to the door I know immediately that that's not happening. There's music playing somewhere inside, loud metal music and there's something oozing out of the door, something thick and green. Something like paint.

...

Something that is paint. I just wanted to rest, but lately the Fates have been against me.
I swing the door open.