My body felt sore. In my entire seventeen years of existence, I still couldn't understand the reason behind P.E. class. Miss. Kate said it's fun and helps us get fit but, how is getting hit by balls fun? It's only fun when your hitting, not getting hit. The only way Wednesday made up for its great abomination, was the fact that it was pizza day. And that's exactly where my haggard self was rushing to.

I smiled and thanked the lunch lady as I paid for the food.

Now to find Joy

My legs automatically went towards our usual seat, but before I could reach it, I already heard Joy calling out to me. I turned in the direction of her voice.

Fuck

And there she was, happily waving towards me while sitting with Karla and her friends at the other end of the cafeteria. Joy being a natural extrovert was gossiping and chatting her life away, that she didn't seem to read the social situation. Hell, there were five empty benches surrounding them for a good reason.

My legs reluctantly went towards the bench they were seated on, and by the time I reached them, Joy and Karla were already talking.

"Yeah, we've been friends for almost ten years now. He was really kind to me when I first moved here from Nigeria." Joy said.

"Awww, I knew he was a classic kuudere."

AN: For non-anime-obsessed readers, a kuudere is someone who acts cold on the outside but is actually nice and caring

I frowned at them calling me a kuudere and Karla glanced up at me and called me cute before looking back at Joy. I would have blushed, if not for the fact that my sharp ears and eyes didn't miss the snarl one her friends made.

"Why are you sitting here?!" I whisper screamed at Joy as soon as my butt hit the bench.

Karla cocked her head to the side, a habit I noticed she had, and spread her arms pointing to her friend "Well, I wanted our friends to get to know each other."

My eyes moved round her friends. Joy always said that I shouldn't judge people on face level, but with the amount of tattoos these guys had, it was hard not to judge at face level.

"OK. I'll go first. Am Joy and I look forward to knowing you guys." Joy said happily.

After Joy's cheery response, the rest started to introduce themselves. Nose ring was Stella, piercings was Ryan, Tattoos was Jake and normal was Emily. Everyone was done with their introductions, except for the silent mafia boss behind Karla.

"Hi um, you didn't introduce yourself."

Ugh, Joy just had to go and poke the lion.

The boy glanced up at Joy and growled. "It's none of fucking your business."

Joy shrank back in her seat and looked like she was about to cry.

Oh hell no

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Oh. So the weird mute and his freaky paint friend talks." He laughed at us and turned to Karla. "Karla I don't why invited these losers over here. Just tell him to do your homework if that's the problem, you don't have to be a good person and be his girlfriend."

My chest contracted, I was expecting Karla to at least say something but she just sat there. I should have known all romance novels were liars.

"Says the retard. It's a miracle you can even form those words." I faced Karla now. "And you, don't talk to me or come over to my friend again." She looked broken at that, but I wasn't in the right mental capacity to give out sympathy.

"Or else what? You'll beat us up" Nose Ring said.

My heart boiled. The fact that I couldn't was making me mad, and in a burst of anger, I grabbed a fork and jabbed it in the mafia dude's shoulder.

His scream cut through the cafeteria. Joy instantly pulled me away, and Karla rushed over to that dick to help him. It had seemed my noodle arms gathered enough strength to go deep.

While Joy was dragging me somewhere to calm down, Karla and her friends were going with the bleeding idiot. With us going in opposite directions in such chaos, a superstitious person might say the fates were not on our side.

---------------

It didn't take twenty minutes, before it reached the principal's office that the school's pushover had stabbed the resident bad boy, in a bid to steal his girlfriend.

The boys looked at me in shock, the girls looked in thanks for opening up a spot for them, and the people who shipped James, the guy I stabbed,  and Karla, which was basically the entire school glared at me.

Our parents had come to the school, to have a meeting with the principal. Mr. Chase's office didn't seem so welcoming after all.

"Astro, I am shocked that you would do such a thing." Mr. Chase said in a disappointed tone, and that's what scared me, he wasn't angry, but disappointed in me.

"Are you seeing the state of my dear child!!!" James' mother screeched. She turned towards me and pointed one of her expensive manicured nails at me. "That boy could've killed my son, he should be expelled."

I froze, the gravity of the situation suddenly dawning on me. My hard work could get flushed down the drain, and because of James, I could be expelled, or even worse arrested.

No this isn't  James' fault .... It's Karla's

And as I sat there sweating under the harsh stares and points, all the things I might have felt for her, burned away in my anger. I turned to glance at my dad, expecting him to say something, but he was silent, a bad sign. If he didn't say anything, I might really get expelled.

"Now, now, Mrs. Lawrence. Mr. Winston is a model student and I personally feel that although what he did was wrong, it was a mistake." The principal offered.

"M-m-mistake," her eyes burned wildly with anger. "Well, I guess it's just an innocent mistake that our donations will stop coming soon." She leaned back in her chair, Sure, she had grabbed the principal by the balls now. Who in their right senses will choose one student over millions of dollars in funding?

The principal gritted his teeth. "Was that a threat Mrs. Lawrence?"

Now everyone sat up straight. The oppressive aura that filled the room was just too much.

"May I remind, you that your son, has assaulted over ten students and is suspected to be part of a gang, but what did we do with those cases? We 'settled it', so why can't we settle this one?" If I thought Mr. Chase was kind before, my mind was definitely changed now.

Mrs. Lawrence turned white and cleared her throat, calming herself down in a bid to save her last shred of dignity and son. "We won't press charges, but I demand a one-week suspension."

"Deal"

She grabbed her Chanel purse and stormed out the door with James in tow before anyone could even say a word.

The room was weirdly quiet now and Mr. Chase turned to me. "Now, even though from what you said you were provoked, there were better ways to handle it." He turned to my father. "I know you angry but please do try to be reasonable with him."

"Of course sir." My dad finally spoke, although I could already imagine the hell I would go through.

"Very well then. Astro you will return to school by Thursday next week.

********
AN
Do you guys still ship Astro and Karla now?