So, this is a short story I wrote for fun.
There I was. Slow motion. Every table was one group. The writers, the kids who played Minecraft, and then the populars. I really didn't know where I belonged, but maybe today I would finally become one of something. At least, I hoped.
"I can go to the sleepover." I stated, smiling at Lucy. I couldn't help it. It was my first actual sleepover, let alone party, that I had been invited to. Lucy stared at me, mouth wide open, sitting there, like she was waiting for bugs to fly in. In my most daring dreams, she would become an ugly creature, who she was on the inside, and it would show. But unfortunately, the kindest people are generally the ugliest, according to my theory; rather than the type of people who blindly follow peer pressure and the next day walk into a public room, like a class, and treat people like pitiful grains of grass that he/she has been forced to walk on, then turns the walking into treading, or even stomping.
"Y- you..?' She started giggling. The giggling was contagious, and it went through the popular 'stomp-on-the-grass' kids. With every smirk, my self-confidence started to rapidly disappear out of humiliation into thin air. Ha-ha! The laughter echoed in my ear. "You weren't invited to my sleepover!" Lucy managed to say, without bursting into laughter. "But…. but how come….?" I slowly reached for my backpack, dug through uncomfortably. Everyone in the cafeteria had eyes, and every one of them seemed to burn a hole into my heart. My fingers clasped on to something. Paper. I pulled the thick piece out, my fingers trembling. It was the one. The big, hot-pink, M on it, that seemed to mocking me. What did I do? She looked at it blandly, as if she had all seen this coming and that there was no shock. "Madison, this WASN'T for you!" My brain twisted, turned, and stretched out of puzzled thoughts. "B-b-but…? M…?" I shyly pointed to the snobby M on the front. "YEAH, I know your name starts with an M!" She rolled her eyes, somehow as if she had been trying to teach my something, and she had just given up. What was she trying to teach me?
The answer came, without me having to ask aloud. "When are you ever going to get that YOU are NOT popular? You're NOT in our group. Gosh, Mallory, I know you're the new kid here, but can't you EVER pick things up?" I didn't even attempt to correct her, in spite of the fact that I am too terrified of her and also because she has a billion friends, who could make me fall to pieces; this was like one-on-ten. My name is Madison, thank you very little. I bit my lip. Lucy continued her lecture, with out a simple second of hesitation. "This was for Megan Davis. Julia-" She glared at her innocent and petrified follower- "Must have made a mistake, and put it in YOUR locker instead."
Everything came together, just like a puzzle now. Megan's locker is right next to mine, and Julia must have put it in mine instead. Sigh. "Now I know why she hasn't been talking to me lately. Thanks a lot, Mad- Mall- Molly! You should have known that you would NEVER, EVER, BE INVITED TO ONE OF MY PARTIES! EVER!" She was right. I should have known that I was not her priority. Her 'responsibility'. The anticipation crumbled, and with that the room seemed like it was before the wicked witch of the west, also referred to as Lucy, accused me of being clueless- sentences flying back and forth, sometimes getting lost in the journey from the brain to the mouth. Her groupies surrounded her. "Oh my God- like, that Madison girl is SO crazy!"
The comments had hit me hard. What was it? Why did I care? Lucy is so intimidating, but inside the rugged mountains of emotions, I secretly wanted to stand up to her, even though I would never have the courage.
I shivered as the leaves crackled. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. They were yellow, draped in red. There was something different about this morning. The birds chirping reminded me of Lucy's evil laughter. Sorrow was spread in the air, and the words that I wanted to say to Lucy were dangling above my head, but just out of reach, in spite of my worthless speck of self confidence.
"Like it?" Lucy excitedly asked her friends, holding up her 'Victory-Red' lip-gloss as if it were a trophy.I sat down, staring in secretive awe of how many friends she had. I had none.
"Class!" Mrs. Willson caught our attention. "I'll be handing back your English tests right now. After that, please get started on your books….." Her voice muted out of my brain, leaving me to drown in anxiety. And I'm going to be a lamb to the slaughter when Lucy walks by, eyeing everyones' tests, as if it were her business.
Slide.
The test slid face-down on to my desk, waking my senses. I turned it over, knowing what I got was probably a D. I was close- D-. Right on que, Lucy casually pranced over to my cluster. I shut my eyes, knowing that she would see my score. "Whoa, Mall- Maddi- you know what? On second thought, I'll just call you Dumbo. Your score, is like, the worst ever! What, do you have, like, a reading issue?"
Yes.
"N- no."
She smirked, and the other populars joined in. I turned hopelessly to Mrs. Willson's desk, but her short figure was nowhere to be seen.
The bell rang, saving me.
"Heh… hey, look! Dumbo's turning red!" Lucy pointed. She obviously took pleasure in my faults. "Heh!"
I ran out and pulled out a book about a land that didn't have Lucy living there. This was too much.
"Hey, Dumbo!" The magic wardrobe vanished, and in came the blinding image of Lucy and her followers. I stood up from my reading spot, perched under the big tree. I nodded. "I got to pass out the spelling tests before recess today. You know what you got? A D, again! Ha!" She chucked. "You are, like, the worst student ever!"
That was it. I snapped.
The fire inside me ignited. "You know what, Lucy?" I asked. She blinked. "You should really look inside a mirror one day. Yeah, maybe on the outside, you're pretty, and you have lots of friends. But they aren't your friends because you're nice, or kind, or even somewhat decent. They're scared of you. And one day, you won't see the outside you. Inside, you're a cold being. You don't have a heart. And you know what? Before you start making fun of me and other kids, you have to change yourself." She frowned. "You, you- you're- you're just a freak! You don't do well in anything, and I bet you have a disability , and-" I took a deep breath.
"I admit, I have trouble reading. But, you know, everybody has disabilities. What's yours? Actually, I know what it is."
Before I could finish, a girl in my class named Elizabeth stepped in. "You're a bully."
Maya, one of Lucy's minions, stepped in, too. "I agree with Elizabeth and Madison. You ARE a bully, Lucy!"
Julia walked from Lucy's side over to mine, without a solemn word, not even goodbye to Lucy.
"I agree, guys. Lucy, I was only your friend because you were so powerful… and I didn't want to get hurt. But now, I realized that there is more to life than popularity."
Summer.
Leah.
Casey…..
In minutes, everyone jumped over to my side. Now, it was ten on one. "I have a hard time in school, too, Madison." Lucy mumbled face down, making heads turn. "I'm- I, uh, I'm…. really sorry. I was just so ashamed…. I- I took it out on you. But now I know that I''m not alone. Friends?"
Everyone, not just me, responded. "Yes!"
Something changed in us all that day. Not only did we all become friends, but ALL of us became better, understanding people.
I didn't like being teased, but in the end, it happened for the better.
