"Are you guys going to be okay?" Ryan asked Sarah, and the girl rolled her eyes.
"Ryan, I know you are head over heels for her, but stop treating her like a kid. She is a grown-up," Liam commented, and Ryan rolled his eyes, his gaze flickering to Evangeline, who was busy talking to someone over the call at some distance.
"We just need to go and talk to the coach about something," Ryan bent and kissed her forehead, making Sarah flush deep scarlet.
"Stop it. Everyone's watching," Sarah hid her face behind her hands, and Ryan smiled.
"So what if everyone's watching? It's not like I am kissing anyone else. I am kissing my future fiance," Ryan said.
"Geez, stop with your cheesy lines, will you? We are yet to declare our love, and our brother here just got his crush brutally drowned. At least think about him," Liam commented at Aaron, who rolled his eyes and looked at the girl, who had a serious expression on her face.
Once the boys left, Sarah sighed and played with her phone, waiting for the other girls to come and catch up with them.
It wasn't long before they arrived.
"What took you so long?" Sarah asked, and Wendy, Camille, and Belle plopped on the seats with a tired sigh.
"Don't ask me. They were the ones who spent so much time in the washroom because they wanted to look presentable to their boys," Belle smirked, and Wendy rolled her eyes.
"What do you know? Not everyone is as pretty as you,"
"Well, guess what? We have one more pretty girl around us. Just look at those ratios. Those long legs and her hair. Oh, I think I am switching teams for her," Sarah nudged them towards where Evangeline was standing, leaning on a pillar out of the canteen, and Wendy narrowed her eyes.
"Who is she? Have we met her?" Wendy asked, and Sarah told her everything that happened, starting from how Arron bumped into her, and how his so-called crush drowned before it could swim.
"That's interesting. I have never seen or heard Justin being so eager with anyone to directly bring her to the group," Wendy said, and they were about to go and order something to eat when they heard the familiar phony voice.
"Have you forgotten your place, Belle? You dared to go to the arcade with Ethan? How dare you?!" Tina Crate asked, and Wendy raised her brows.
"Tina, we are in no mood to deal with you. Take your nonsense somewhere else," Wendy said.
"Not only boys but you have targeted the rich girls and brought them to like you, no? Aren't you being a bit too happy by getting the same room as the rich girls? You want to mooch off their money now?" Tina said.
"Tina, I don't know what you are talking about. Why do you hate me so much? Is it because I am a scholarship girl and not rich like you? Please don't bother me," Belle asked, and Tina scoffed before she grabbed Belle's shirt in a fist, pulling her up, making others gasp.
"Tina! Have you forgotten your manners? How can you behave like this? Leave her shirt immediately!" Sarah stood from her place, and Tina scoffed.
"You want me to leave her, Sarah? Well, I should listen to you or your dog will come barking at me, no?" Tina murmured before letting go of Belle, making her fall to the ground.
"Oops, you fell. It looks like even this floor knows what's your true place. You belong in the dirt. I hope you don't forget it. Ethan is mine. Don't spread your dirt to him and try to woo him by acting like a white Lotus because you are not," Tina said.
"I said fine. I will do it. Geez, since when have you become so pestering? I am now in my college. Stop bothering me. This is not Italy," Evangeline hissed.
"Well, I don't care. You promised me that you'll always be with me through thick and thin," Gray smirked.
"And it means I'll have to do your homework now?" Evangeline groaned.
"Hey, don't call it homework only. It's our weekly assignment. You have no idea how things have become. Brother Brian has become more dangerous than ever. I think he misses you. You should call him and -"
"Stop with your nonsense. Email me the assignment and I'll do it as soon as I can," Evangeline said.
"Oh, why do you run away from this topic, we all know -" Evangeline sighed and turned to the canteen because she was feeling famished and Gray was taking forever with his gossip.
As she looked at the counter, she narrowed her eyes when she didn't see much less a crowd there.
Damn it. This is her chance to get the food quickly.
"I'll talk to you later. I am hungry," Evangeline ended the call without waiting for his reply and walked ahead, entering the canteen from the front door, oblivious to the commotion in the middle of the canteen.
"These girls are at it again. Always bullying the weak. Do poor students not deserve to study here?" The counter lady murmured, and Evangeline looked towards the counter with scrunched brows.
"What's going on? I am sorry I am new here," Evangeline said, and the counter lady sighed.
"What will happen? This scholarship girl from the rich group keeps getting picked on. It's been only ten days, and this girl has been picked on thrice already," The counter lady said, and Evangeline hummed.
She took her tray of food and walked to the table where that Sarah girl was sitting since she was the only one she knew here at the moment, which unluckily was in the same direction as the crowd.
The hell. She wanted to eat peacefully. She sighed.
Meanwhile, the boys who had gone to talk to the coach and didn't find him were walking towards the canteen when a boy rushed to them.
"Ethan, it's Tina again. Belle -" He gasped, and Ethan immediately understood what was going on.
"Ethan, wait up. Don't let your anger consume you," Aaron shouted as they saw the boy running towards the canteen.
"Do you want to drink some juice, Belle? It's for free?" Tina said, and she tilted the bottle on Belle.
"Belle!"
"Tina!" The girls shouted, shocked.
However, before the liquid could pour on the girl, someone tilted her hand, making the liquid pour on her.
"What the -!!! How dare you?!!" Tina squealed, and everyone looked at the new turnout of the events, shocked.
"Why are you giving her free juice? She didn't need it. You bought it, you should drink and use it," Evangeline said as if she just didn't pour juice on Tina.
The boys who reached there in time, looked at the girl taking Belle's stand and sighed in relief.
Meanwhile, near the canteen, Justin stood out, waiting for his brother to arrive.
"What took you so long?" Justin scowled, and Alexander narrowed his eyes.
"So now I am your errand man? I left an important meeting for this," Alexander sighed, massaging the area between his brows.
"Bro, you came all the way for me. Thanks. I was missing my gaming console," Justin grinned.
"It's all beautiful you are my favorite in the family," Alexander murmured, his gaze shifting to the canteen.
"Have you eaten yet? Want to eat something?" Justin asked, and Alexander hummed.
As they were walking to the canteen, they heard the commotion and people talking about how the girl Belle got into trouble with Tina once again, and Justin sighed.
"You know them?" Alexander looked at his brother.
"Yeah, Belle is our friend. Ethan is kind of head over heels for her, and Tina likes Ethan. Belle is a scholarship girl, and since Tina can't find anything else against her, she keeps using the same things," Justin explained.
"Shouldn't you go and help them? They are your friends," Alexander murmured, his gaze on his phone that had an incoming message from his secretary.
"My friends are there. They will handle the matter. Besides, we are going there, aren't we?" Justin and Alexander walked to the canteen.
However, they had never thought they would witness what was happening in front of them.