T W E N T Y E I G H T

There I was, sitting alone in the gym class on a Friday, watching Reeve Whyte sit alone too on the other side of the hall, probably reminiscing about the locker times we would have been having right at that moment. He wasn't looking at me. He hadn't spoken to me since Monday and I could tell by the way his eyes drooped low and way he hunched over, he was pretty damn depressed.

What was he expecting? The way he spoke to me on Monday in the cafeteria was beyond anything Reeve-like. Or perhaps that was just the real him. We couldn't continue.

I watched as Coach ordered everybody to run five laps around the large hall, hoping he would let me slide. Caleb was with James and another dude, slapping each other's backs to stand up and run. Kira was with Lola, sitting down a few feet away from Reeve.

By what I had been observing, Caleb and Kira were not on speaking terms, just like Caleb and I. The way Kira had her knees up and was hugging them, made her seem small and innocent, especially with that new hair-do. But if I trailed my eyes to her face, she looked angry at the world. Her eyes were rimmed with black eyeliner, as usual. She didn't look like she had been crying but she was staring intensely at Caleb as he ran with his friends.

Caleb was nearing my side of the hall, his shouts and remarks echoing through the hall. I braced myself and prepared to look away so we wouldn't make an awkward eye-contact. But I couldn't move. When he passed me, he gave me a look and then a large smirk. I frowned, watching him run. He did look good when he ran.

"Hey, Stella. Why aren't you running?"

I turned around to see Jen. Her blonde hair was put into a messy bun today. It suited her. "Hi Jen. Why are you wearing sunglasses?" She was wearing sunglasses on her head as if she needed them. Perhaps she thought she looked cool.

She raised an eyebrow and then frowned. "Huh? Oh." She took the sunglasses off and discarded them at the side. I wondered how much they had costed.

"I don't feel like running," I mumbled, leaning back. I realised this was one of the first times I had had a conversation with Jen alone.

"Same," she said and plopped down beside me. She waved at the Coach across the hall who gave us a roll of his eyes. Lola and Kira weren't running either. The rest of the class was. I looked over at Reeve but the spot where he was perched was empty.

"What does it feel like to take a droplet?" I asked her out of the blue. Mostly because I felt she wouldn't judge me the same way as Caleb or Lola.

"Nice," she said, leaning back and looking up. She smiled. "Like chocolate unicorns and Gucci socks."

I made a face. Jen wasn't exactly the brightest mind out of them all. Perhaps she wasn't the one to talk to about this. It was hard to imagine her dealing with all these chemicals and drugs. "How do you give people their droplets? I mean you have literally a lot in your mirror."

Jen frowned. "You saw that?"

"Yeah."

She shrugged. "They come to my house. Andrew deals with it. They come with lots of money too," she said, smiling as if she were satisfied with herself.

"Your parents know?"

Jen nodded. "Of course. It's not exactly easy to hide."

"And they don't care? Isn't it illegal?"

"They're fine with it. It makes us rich."

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I was sitting at the dining table, alone, finishing off my homework on a Friday night. I preferred to be out here with more of a chance to be with my family than to do it in my bedroom. Two tall candles were sitting in the middle of the dining table and the majority of the lights were off apart from the kitchen and living room. The candles were giving off a pleasant scent that smelled of purple flowers in a field.

A smile came over my face as I thought about running and laughing in field with forests surrounding me. I would laugh until tears spilled my eyes and I rolled on the grass, staring up at the setting sky. I had originally imagined being alone but when I would sit up to look around, I'd hear a voice. Caleb was standing there in a white shirt and messy hair, holding a flower between his lips with a glint in his eyes.

My eyes quickly adjusted to the essay staring back up at me from the dining table. I rubbed my eyes, wondering what was wrong with me.

"Whose car is that?" Lilly spoke, leaning against the kitchen frame and wiping her hands dry on her apron.

I put my pencil down and turned around, squinting to look outside the windows. There were bright headlights outside, nearly blinding me. It was neither Mum nor Dad's car. I shrugged at Lilly.

"I'll go check," I said and stood up hastily. With a swallow, I made my way to the front door, suddenly hating the fact that the house lights were low and gloomy.

The car lights turned off and so did the engine. I could hear it from inside of the house. When I opened the door, gust of wind blew in my face and I stood there, cold and confused. The car was turned off and there was nobody there.

I stepped out.

"Surprise!"

I screamed and stumbled over but caught myself, steadying myself on the walls. A few laughs were heard and I turned to see Lola and Jen, both carrying bags of shopping. Confusion ran through my mind.

"Since Jen and I have noticed you feeling down, we thought it would be nice to treat you!" Lola exclaimed, her cheeks pink and flustered from the cold. She wasn't wearing an outfit she would normally wear. From head to toe she was dressed baggy. Her feet were stuffed inside some fluffy boots and she wore sweatpants and a large sweater and a smile.

Jen was wearing pyjamas shorts and a large fluffy coat, smiling too with her cheeks puffed up.

"You guys," I said, my shoulders dropping in awe. I beamed and pulled both of them in for a hug. "What do you guys think you're doing? You shouldn't have!"

Jen grinned. "Spa and nails? I bought you some clothes from Gucci."

I rolled my eyes. I swore Jen had an obsession with the Gucci store. I pursed my lips and pushed open the front door, walking in. Lilly was standing there, eyebrows raised and curious. Her eyes landed on Lola and Jen and she smiled.

"This is unexpected," Lilly said, smiling.

I pushed the front door shut and sighed at the warmness that surrounded me. Lola and Jen obviously did too because they shook their coats and shoes off gladly.

"Beauty time!" Jen beamed, grabbing all the bags and making her way to the living room. Jen turned around and grinned. "And Lilly, what colour do you want your nails?"