She glared at the back of his head. His blonde hair was a halo, and Faith's darker tresses complimented it perfectly. They sat so close, and Lennox itched to walk lean between them. Sure, she felt happy for Faith and her crush. However a part of her, a surprising part, was concerned for Faith. If Trey, a semi-popular boy, hurt her, Lennox wasn't sure what she would do. Maybe that's what concerned her the most.

She set behind them, smiling as they passed notes. She could tell they both liked each other. It was obvious in the sparkle in both of their eyes. She hadn't realized Trey had this class until she entered late for second period. Faith hadn't even noticed her. She was too caught up with passing notes to Trey. As Lennox was about to get back to her work, Faith finally caught a glance of her.

Lex! I'm so sorry! I thought you had left or something!

She laughed. "No. I had to use the restroom." That was the whole truth, too. The one time her bladder decided to nag her, and she was late for class.

Faith gestured to Trey. This is Trey. My crush. Gosh I'm so glad he doesn't understand sign language.

Lennox smirked as Trey turned back to look at her with a confused expression. His blue eyes seemed to twinkle as he glanced at Faith.

He totally likes you, Faith!

Faith blushed. I don't know. Maybe as friends.

Lennox shook her head. Trey looked so confused that she nearly laughed.

"I'm Faith's friend, Lennox." And here she was, introducing herself to even more people.

Faith nodded as to affirm Lennox's words.

Trey held out a hand, offering Lennox a dazzling smile. "Nice to meet you. Faith has told me about you, actually."

Lennox raised an eyebrow, and Faith offered her friend a smile. What can I say? You're an important part of my life.

Lennox wasn't sure how to react to or feel about her signed words. She hadn't felt like an important part of anyone's life for a while. Trey's hand still dangled in front of her. Reluctantly, she shook it. For Faith, she'd make a good impression. For Faith, she'd try to act like she didn't dislike social interactions. 

Trey looked her up and down, and something flashed in his eyes. He recognized her as the recluse. As the girl who had a falling out with Isla. In Lennox's mind, this was exactly what he had to be thinking. She clenched her hands into fists in her lap as they began to tremble.

"You're better off without them, anyways," Trey whispered. "You're pretty cool, Lennox."

She started at him for a second, then shook her head. "Yeah. I'm sure you really think that."

"No. I really do, Lennox." Trey smiled.

Faith grinned. They both turned around, Faith scribbling furiously on a paper in front of her. Lennox let out a breath, then leaned back in her chair. She pulled out a random journal, then flipped to a random page. She began writing, but not a short story. She began pouring out her feelings. All of them, all the way from the being. Glancing down at the page, she realized some of the ink had been smeared by her tears. She clutched her pen, staring at the raw emotions that had tumbled out of her. She had been more affected than she ever wanted to admit. Maybe isolating herself had been a self-defense rather than an act of strength. Maybe it was really time for her to make a change in her life. Not cry about it. Not make excuses. Not think about everything that was happening.

She swiftly swiped the back of her hand against her eyes. She closed the journal and shoved it back in her bag. She stared at the back of Faith's head. Stared at the half-finished assignment in front of her. Stared at her desk. Glanced at the people around her, all of them minding their own business. Glanced at a few of Isla's friends that shared this class with her. Offered one a smile when she met their gaze. Decided that she wasn't going to let Isla win. Remembered that not all of Isla's friends were rude to her, and that maybe she should stop shutting people out. For real this time.

Lennox pulled out her phone. She decided to send her brother another text. Maybe I'm not okay. I know that's not what you want to hear. Or- read. Don't worry about me, Don. Just- I'm going to try, okay?

She pocketed her phone, then focused on her work.

🤘

Lennox rolled her eyes at the texts her brother had been sending her. His way of attempting to cheer her up when she was down was sending her puns. Did it work? More than she cared to admit. She had this class alone, so she stared at her phone as it buzzed on top of her journal. Sure, she was supposed to be taking notes. However, learning didn't matter in that moment as much as her brother's puns did.

She placed a hand in front of her mouth, trying to suppress a laugh.  The last thing she needed was for her phone to be taken away from her. She texted Donovan back, playfully scolding him for making her laugh in class. He was probably in class as well, and it meant a lot to Lennox that he was texting her instead of paying attention.

Once the teacher finished his lecture, Lennox scrolled through her social media. She surprisingly had a message from Candice. She decided to open it, but only because she hadn't minded Candice much. Maybe befriending Faith had loosened her grudges a bit. A bit. A little, teeny bit.

I'm happy for you, Lennox. That you found a friend, I mean. Protect her at all costs, including your friendship. Isla can be overly annoying, and one thing she holds onto for dear life is her grudges.

Lennox rolled her eyes, then scanned the classroom. Both Isla and Candice had this class with her. Isla's gaze was directed down at her phone. Candice, however, looked up in Lennox's direction. She surprisingly smiled. It wasn't a full-blown smile, but rather a subtle lifting of her lips. Lennox simply raised an eyebrow and turned away, looking back down at her phone. She didn't respond, simply exiting out of the conversation.

The person in front of her handed her a paper. It was her assignment. She groaned, glanced at her brother's latest pun, and got to work. That pun wasn't that funny, anyways. She finished the assignment rather quickly, running more on annoyance and curiosity than anything else.

People seemed to think she was more approachable now than before. An annoying boy with short black hair walked up to her. She raised an eyebrow in question. The boy pointed to her paper.

"Answers."

Lennox snorted, then tapped her head. "To get the answers, you'll need one of these. Sorry you don't have one since you're talking to me."

The boy rolled his eyes, then reached towards her paper. Immediately, her fist reached up to meet his face. He howled in pain, the whole class snapping their eyes in his direction. Lennox glanced from her balled up fist to his nose and smirked. It was definitely broken. She'd have to text her brother and tell him that his self defense lessons were still serving her well.

The teacher stalked over to her. She glanced at Isla, who stared at her with wide eyes. Lennox shot a glare in her direction, then looked up at the boy clutching his nose. Crimson dripped onto his shirt and a drop even splattered onto the tile. She grimaced,  then looked back up. The teacher was right in front of her now.

"Lennox, would you care to explain?"

She shrugged. This teacher had never really liked her. "Ask him. He came over to me, not the other way around."

The older man sighed, then turned to the boy who was glaring daggers at Lennox. "Care to explain, young man?"

"She. Punched. Me! My nose is broken!" He exclaimed.

Lennox innocently shrugged. "He asked for it."

The teacher sighed. "Come on, both of you are going to the office!"

Lennox rolled her eyes, but complied nonetheless. Isla smirked at her, acting as though going to the office was the worst fate imaginable. Lennox told her that she was number one, then follow the teacher and the boy out of the classroom. If the teacher what she did to Isla, he'd probably add that as another offense.

The whole walk down the hallways, the boy wouldn't stop glaring at Lennox. She didn't feel very bothered. Angry and annoyed, sure. However, she wasn't nervous or scared. In fact, she'd love to punch him in the face once again. She remember him as an associate of Isla, but she couldn't remember his name. Whatever, it wasn't worth remembering anyways.

Lennox felt like she was losing her scary front. However, she oddly didn't mind it. Maybe she'd have to punch a few people in the face. She felt it was worth it to bring her social life out of the gutter.

Finally, they arrived at the office. They walked into the sitting and receptionist area. One of the secretaries raised an eyebrow. Taking one look at the boy, she hooked a thumb in the direction of the vice principal's office. The teacher followed them in there, where the vice principal sat behind her wooden desk. She opened her mouth in shock, then gestured to the two leather seats in front of her desk. Their teachers was gone before she could open her mouth. At least he had shut the door on his way out.

"What happened?" She asked, glancing to Lennox. Her blonde hair was pulled back from her face. She was a woman in her forties. She seemed pretty in tune to Lennox's generation. However, she did not have an appreciation for violence. Lennox, however, did.

The boy gestured to his nose with his free hand.

"Oh, please grab a tissue!" The vice principal exclaimed. He grabbed several.

The vice principal sighed. "Lennox, I thought you were over the violence."

She shrugged. "And I thought people should do their own work and not demand answers from me."

The vice principal sighed, glancing to the boy. "Your story?"

"She punched me in the nose!"

"Because? Haven't you bullied her in the past?" Lennox liked the vice principal better than the principal. Why? Because she disliked Isla and her friends as much as Lennox did.

The boy's mouth opened and closed. "Define bullying."

She pointed at the boy. "Go to the nurse and fix that nose."

He nodded, then ran out.

She sighed to Lennox. "Violence isn't the answer. This time I'll give you a warning."

Lennox smiled. "Thanks, Gloria."

She sighed, then wordlessly turned back to her computer. Lennox exited the office after that. As she walked through the vacant halls back to her class, the bell rang. She let out a breath, then hurried into the classroom. She had to fight her way through her classmates to get to her belongings. She shoved everything in her bag, pocketed her phone, and walked out into the then-crowded hallway.

Someone tapped her on the arm. She turned to smile at a frowning Faith.

Did you punch someone in the nose?

She laughed. "I'll tell you over Starbucks?"

With wide eyes, Faith nodded.

___

Hey, guess who actually updated? Sorry for the wait, but I've been busy.  Also, guess who went trick-or-treating? Too old? Nah nah not yet. I hope you enjoy! Also, thank you for the support this book has been receiving lately. I really appreciate it! Please let me know your thoughts, especially on violent Lennox.

-Sarah