The Pauper  

[Kelly]

"Egh? You're not coming to Karaoke?" Hilde asked Kelly for the nth time. "There will be lots of boys there. Rich and handsome boys from other schools!"

Kelly chewed a jawbreaker, hoping the crunch would drown out Hilde's piercing voice. Why does she have to be so loud? It was not like she was deaf. "I have other stuff to do."

"Work again?" Jennie made a face. She ran her teeth over her bottom lip and teased, "How much is your day? I'll double it."

Kelly chuckled, hiding her anger over fisted hands. "It's fine, really. It's just I have been absent from work too often, and that fat woman is threatening to fire me."

"Fire then!" Hilde exclaimed with an exaggerated wave of her hand. Her tan was as fake as everything else in her body.

She was a sweet girl once, and then puberty hit, and Hilde wanted to be this and that until her innocent face was lost behind buttocks, nose lifts, lips injections, and things that Kelly could only dream about.

In truth, Kelly didn't even know what the real Hilde looked like anymore. Even her blazing red hair color was faker than her concerned face right now.

"It will do you good to leave that place! It wrecks of cheap food and sweaty diners," Hilde blinked slowly and spoke gruffly.

Jennie sweetly smiled and gently placed a hand on Kelly's shoulder. If Hilde was brutal, brash, and honest, Jennie was calm and collected, hiding her real feelings behind cold smiles and snarky remarks.

"Hilde's right." Jennie lifted one shoulder in an elegant half-shrug. "The pay isn't simply worth it."

Kelly wanted to shout at their faces. What do they know about wages when they haven't worked a single day in their life?

Instead, she found herself agreeing and giving curses to make them laugh. She was the jokester in the group. That funny woman. That errand girl. That girl who made Hilde and Jennie look good.

She took up little deceits, flattering when necessary, teasing when effective. She could be anything as long as the pay was right. Sticking to the two was rewarding, true. She just had to have a lot of patience and endured their spoiled ways and rich girl mindset, and everything would be fine in the end.

Oh, and also forgetting about her pride every time they were together. It was better to be one of the IT girls even if you're that errand girl than be the target of their bullying. Kelly decided the moment she was accepted into Fate Academy on a scholarship.

Her poor upbringing made her study hard, and she had to put a hundred effort into juggling work, studies, and social life and make sure that she stayed out of trouble by allying herself with the one causing it.

His brain also saved her numerous times, for it was exactly why Jennie and Hilde befriended her in the first place. To make their projects and assignments and become their cheat friend.

Kelly made sure that she pleased them, and when they agreed that she was useful to them, the rest was history.

Rich students here like to bully everyone whose status was lower than theirs. Why wouldn't they? They have the money to bail them out of trouble.

And so far, Kelly hadn't been in the Principal's office for a bad record. Jennie and Hilde made sure of that. She was their ticket to an easy school life, while they were her ticket to an easy school life.

Their relationship worked both ways, so Kelly wasn't complaining.

Still . . . Kelly hated and envied them for being rich and privileged. Their future was set in a stone while she had to crawl, lower her head, and burn candles to get what she wanted.

The two talked on and on, and Kelly joined in the conversation, making sure to hide her scorn from her honey tone, Suddenly, Hilde pulled out from their conversation when someone entered the door.

It was Shizu, a girl their age of nineteen but shorter and skinnier that she could passed out as fourteen. She was of foreign descent and on the skinnier side. Her hair was in pigtails, shiny black and straight. It was long before, but Jennie cut them on a whim.

Kelly knew that it was because Jennie was jealous of Shizu's straight long natural hair, shining and bouncing, while Jennie had to pay good money to straighten and shine her hair every week.

Such was the brutality unchecked envy could make others do.

Jennie didn't like to be contended with, not with her hair or any parts of her body. Jennie might portray a kind front, but she was quick to anger, and her anger was a terrible thing when aroused.

Shizu walked wordlessly to her desk and sat with heavy awkwardness in her seat. Her round glasses perched on her nose, the glare blocking her almond-shaped eyes that slanted towards the outer corner.

Why did she have to be so meek? Kelly lamented, pity stirred in her chest. It was like she was asking everyone to bully her. And why did her desk have to be in front of Jennie's?

And as Kelly had expected, Jennie was quick to pick on the poor girl.

"Hello there, Shizu." Jennie blew hot hair on the back of Shizu's ear that caused the latter to shudder and hold tight to her bag like her life depended on it.

Jennie's fingertips played with her lips, face amused. Her smile was foul and sweet as flowers on a grave. "See you later at break, okay? At the usual place."

"You'll be there, right?" asked Hilde, the corners of her mouth turning down, lower lip pucking out. "We hate to see you alone, so we will accompany you on breaks. Aren't we good friends?"

". . ." Fear dried Shizu's mouth. It shortened her breath. Kelly could see it.

"RIGHT?!" Hilde snag a hair from Shizu's braid and yanked it tight when the latter didn't reply.

Shizu bobbed her head up and down, deliberate and forceful.

Hilde was quick on her hand, while Jennie was quick to take offense. Add them together, and what did you have? Stupidity at best and vileness at worst. They were stupid as they were cruel.

Kelly shuddered. She dreaded the school break and the end of class. It was where the ugly things happened most of the time. But it was either her or Shizu.

"She'll come," Kelly forced herself to say and faked a giggle. "Shizu is a very good girl. She knows what will happen if she doesn't."

They made jokes and hooted and bristled, though Kelly felt her heart sinking when the tears willed in Shizu's eyes. She quickly brushed those unfallen tears with the back of her hand, though.

Damn it! Shout at us! Fight us! Kelly wanted to scream at her.

She was so meek and quick to cry. Kelly cursed inside her head. It would only make Jennie and Hilde feel good and the bullying would never stop.

Luckily, Leon appeared with a bang.

"Good morning, classmates!" Leon's boisterous voice attracted all attention to him.

Kelly breathed an inaudible sigh when Jennie and Hilde's attention flickered to the new arrival.

Kelly usually found Leon loud and annoying, but at this moment, he was a lifesaver, she could kiss him . . . but quickly changed her mind when Leon went to his friend and talked about this game, their voices loud overshadowing the others.

Leon had long green hair that reached his shoulders that he often wore in a casual ponytail. He was a lean tan youth of nineteen who found everything amusing. There was little that he took seriously.

Then came in the Princess.

Announcing her arrival was gasps and silence. All mesmerized by her beauty, everyone had just to pause what they were doing and give her their undivided attention.

Lina did everything prettily. Kelly thought with dull resentment.

Once Lina was seated, the world resumed, and all those who wanted to be her friends clamored to her, asking about her day, her hair, and her makeup, that it made Kelly's lips go sour. Strands of envy twisted even tighter around her stomach.

Strip her from her money, and she would be like Shizu in no time. Kelly thought to make herself feel better.

Despite all those who surrounded her at school, Lina didn't seem to form a deep connection with the others and didn't have someone to really call her best friend.

There was one girl, though, who bravely self-proclaimed herself to be Lina's beastie, and that was the class President, Meryl.

Kelly had never known anyone to be as irritating and annoying as their president. Hilde and Jennie might be bitches, but she found Meryl on another level of annoyance.

Meryl like to lick boots. From teachers, rich classmates, and influential people, and she would often save herself and wash her hands from sticky situations. She always had this look like she was above the rest. Her pouty lips and the bored, disdainful way she looked at everyone were evidence enough.

The only reason why she wasn't Hilde and Jennie's target of interest was because her family came from a great political dynasty. Else, Meryl would often find herself wet with urine and wastewater.

But amongst her classmates, Kelly hated Lina the most.

Not because she was beautiful, rich, good at academics and sports, and just plain perfect by just breathing – it was for the simple reason that the man she likes was dating her, and the fact that she couldn't even hope to compete with Lina was beyond maddening.