4 Chapter Three

Mark came running. "America!"

- - MARK - -

(a couple minutes earlier)

Once I was out of the car the first thing I saw was everyone going into the school. Emma and America, walking together as always, and James. I honestly don't know where James goes. Probably to tutorials.

I walked into building 500 and immediately I am blasted with the screams of my girlfriend, Alicha.

"Mark! You're late!" Alicha ran over to me and yanked me by the arm over to a table of her friends. "You had me worried that Arby or Etsy-"

"America and Emma"

"-whatever their names are. You had me worried that they 'distracted' you and your car was somewhere wrapped around some stop sign." She brushed off my shirt and removed an invisible piece of lint. "But here you are! Healthy and.. in a barely acceptable outfit." Giggles scattered throughout the table.

I adjusted my beanie, looking around at the people staring. Alicha took a moment, staring at me. It almost felt like she had asked me a question in an encrypted language I am supposed to know about.

"America and I wore matching outfits for an audition we have tod-"

"Excuse me?" Shoot, I messed up. She leaned in so close that I could see exactly how much make-up she had on, and harshly whispered, "Do you know how this makes me look? My boyfriend twinning with some other girl?" Her words did not match the smile plastered on her face. "Not even some other girl, but FREAKING America Stevens! Dis you even wonder how this would make me feel?"

A girl with long black hair tapped on Alicha's shoulder and "Alicha, isn't America the girl who owns that locker?"

A girl with curly blonde hair jumped up from her seat and snatched the other girl by her arm and whispered, "Shut up Liv! God, can you keep a secret?"

"What's going on?" I asked, darting my eyes around the table, "What locker? Alicha?"

"Nothing!"

"I seriously doubt that."

"Really, it's nothing, someone just took the liberty of putting that Arby girl in her rightful place." Alicha spoke while scrolling through her Mstagram feed. "Slathered her locker in all sorts of crap."

"And where were you?"

"Does it matter? And why do you care? She's just another worthless piece in the machine that is our school." She handed me her phone, which was open to America's account. "She's a bitch. This is your chance to ditch her." I got up from the table and started to walk away. "Where are you going?"

"To go be a good friend." I shot back. "It's what us 'worthless' cogs do when something like this happens."

- -AMERICA- -

(present time)

Mark came running down the hallway. Emma detached her arm from mine and disappeared into the crowd. I was frozen. I knew what had happened. This all happened a couple of times before.

It didn't take the crowd long to notice I was there. Once Mark got to me, the crowd split like the red sea. Leaving Emma in the middle, trying to clean the locker. The whole thing was slathered in fake blood. Black sharpie calling me out.

"Pig"

"Slut"

"Whore"

I've learned a long time ago that letting things like this get to you was not the way. All you would be able to do is breathe in the box given to you. It's funny how time seems to stop when all you want it to do is just move faster. Mark was talking to me but I couldn't make out the words. It all was a blur. Instead, I wiped down my face with my sleeve and picked up my backpack (Which had apperently fallen from my shoulder during when I had first seen the crowd) adjusting the straps so that is fit perfectly on my shoulders.

"Emma, lets go to photography." Mark seemed stunned, almost as if he was hoping for me to fall apart. Emma hesitated, looking around at the people watching, looking back and forth between them, Mark, and me. After a couple of moments she grabbed hold of my arm and we took off towards the photography class.