Your POV

I awkwardly slip into the cafeteria, feeling rather lonely now that I had gone back to this place of terror without Shu.

For a short moment I feel warmth spur in my chest at the thought that we held hands. We actually held hands! Even if it wasn't under the most desirable conditions, we still held hands.

But the warmth disappears the further I walk into the cafeteria. 

Lining up to get my slice of lasagna and a milk carton, I can feel the tension. It's almost palpable. 

"Thank you," I quickly smile at the lunch lady before going to the area with all of the tables. I stand there for a moment, observing the room as a whole. And the tension heightens. 

Everyone is divided by their place in the horrid school hierarchy, and it's painfully obvious, even more so than usual. Not only that, but I'm not the only one feeling the tension. Everyone is on edge ever since Ashley had her meltdown for reasons I'm still wondering about. 

Speaking of Ashley, she's nowhere to be found. Same with Harper and whoever her closest friends are. I distinctly notice Layla, alone with some other girls I don't recognize, trapped in an awkward silence with each other at the top table.

I glance at the teachers' table and as expected, only one young teacher has been left in charge of the cafeteria. The higher ups, even Ms Caprit had gone somewhere. 

In the midst of this silent chaos among students and teachers, I slide into a chair in between Chanel and Esme at their table. Nobody outside the table notices the late student who had been missing for about twenty minutes until now.

"(y/n)!" Chanel says in hushed tone. "Where have you been?"

"Um," I blush briefly, figuring that there was no point in lying. "Amare?"

Esme's eyes widens. "If you're going to say that, keep your voice down. Don't look, but I'm pretty sure everyone is trying to pick up gossip from other tables. Especially those people near Layla."

"When did everyone become so nosy?" I sigh, eating a mouthful of pasta.

"Well, you can hardly blame them," Chanel primly. "Their Queen Bee has gone crazy like some...savage!"

"I know right!" I agree. "She yelled at me and I have no idea of what I did."

Just when I finished saying those words, Brittany gasps from across the table, staring at her phone. Celeste leans over in curiosity to see screen only to react like Brittany.

"What happened?" Chanel demands in a way that reminds me she once ruled this school. When Esme raises an eyebrow at her she says loftily, "They can't just gasp like that and expect me to mind my own business!"

"Here's the phone, then, thanks to your kind manners," Brittany says sarcastically, but the corner of her mouth twitches.

"Haha," Chanel replies with equal sarcasm until she sees the screen. "Holy sh-"

She shuts her mouth quickly, realizing that eyes have been attracted to this table. When the stares go away, Chanel shows the screen to me and Esme.

It's on Instagram, Brittany's direct messages with her brother over at Amare. He had sent over a quick video along with a text. Deciding to watch the video later, I skim over the text, Esme reading it in a whisper next to me.

"Apparently Jack dumped Ashley," Esme reads out. "Over text too. Rumor has it that he dumped her for that girl (y/n) from your school who kissed that alien. They've been seen together more than once at the bus stop."

When she finishes, her eyes are wide and it's obvious that she's shocked. I, however, slightly expected this. Why else would Ashley be mad at me? 

Well, actually a lot of other reasons, like the fact that I could expose her family's wealth status that she keeps lying about. But if I did do that, then all those Elites still wouldn't be supporting her. 

Besides, her relationship with Jack has probably been strained for a while. The last time I saw them together was at the socials, and they were interested in each other's bodies more than the actual person. 

And despite my obvious refusal at Jack's flirting, he's continued to do so each time we're on the bus. I wouldn't be surprised if the people on the bus would start believing the rumor going around. 

Also, why do people keep on referring me as the girl who kissed the alien? 

"No wonder Ashley's so mad," Chanel noted. "She hasn't even been Queen Bee for a month, and she's already gotten dumped!"

"You're focusing on that part of the text, Chanel?" Celeste raised an eyebrow. "What about (y/n) and Jack?"

Esme leaned forward, eyebrows furrowed. "Celeste has a point. Do you two really have a thing going on?"

"No," I say immediately. "Well, I guess we kinda did before the social. But after that it was one-sided."

Then I think about the times we were on the bus. The first time he had grabbed my hand. Taken out of context, I could see why people would think we had a thing. "Let's just watch the video."

"Oh yeah," Esme remembered, changing the phone's position so that everyone could see the screen. She clicked on the video, and it began playing.

Though the camera was shaking slightly, I could instantly see the scene before us. Ashley is at Amare, standing at the front courtyards. Unlike how she was with me, right now Ashley just seems anguished and disappointed. 

Though, that doesn't seem to stop her from demanding an explanation from Jack.

"You had it coming," Jack was saying angrily. "I don't care how pretty you are, because your personality ain't it. You keep on pressuring me to be in a relationship even though it was just a hook-up. And don't get me started on how rude you are to (y/n) and Chanel and everyone else in that school!"

"I knew this was about (y/n)," Ashley hisses, recovering some of her anger. "She and everyone else deserves it. Anyways, don't act all goody-two-shoes yourself! People have told me what went on in the bus. Although I don't like (y/n), never keep on going after a girl who has told you no, Jack!"

Although Ashley and I aren't good terms, I do agree with that last sentence. 

"See! You yourself know that (y/n) did nothing wrong," Jack says, ignoring the meaning of the last sentence. "So stop being so angry towards her. She did nothing wrong. She doesn't even like me! She likes Kurenai!"

The video ends and I silently groan, angry at Jack who just had to blurt out my feelings. However, everyone seems to be preoccupied with everything else. 

"That was so immature of them," Brittany begins softly. "Arguing over private matters like that in public when they know they will be watched!"

"Even when they're mad they can't help but seek attention," Esme murmurs. "I can't help but wonder if they did the whole thing for attention."

"No, they wouldn't have," I slump in my chair, burying my face in my hands. "It's doing them more harm than help. Ugh, how did I get stuck in the middle of this?"

Before anyone else can say anything, the doors to the cafeteria fly open again. Inquisitive, everyone glances towards the doors. As I had expect, it is Ashley who walked in, surrounded by suspicious teachers that probably had to drag her down from Amare to stop her from making a scene.

As she passes by our table, I notice her blue eyes had never seemed so dull. She did like Jack a lot, after all. 

"Eat your lunch and then we're having a talk in my office," I hear Ms. Caprit say sternly. "I've also decided to call in your parents. Throwing a tantrum over a boy, unacceptable. They will be arriving in about twenty minutes."

"No, wait!" her eyes widen before she drops her voice to a whisper. And although I can't hear what she's saying, I know what she's trying to do.

If her parents are called in, then everyone will have the opportunity to see who they are. A lot of rumors are already going around about her parents' occupation, and I know many are anxious to satisfy their curiosity. 

Nobody has seen them before, so if they come in dressed like the commoners they are, that will crack Ashley's reputation for the second time in this day. 

And twenty minutes later, that's exactly what happened. 

Lunch has already ended, and my current class (English) is being led to the library to borrow some textbooks, which coincidentally takes place near the stairs that lead to Ms. Caprit's office on the top floor.

The class lines up in an orderly fashion, waiting politely in the front area of the library while our English teacher converses with the librarian on which textbooks we need to borrow. 

The library, like the rest of this school, is ridiculously luxurious. Two-story bookshelves reach the ceiling with ladders laid against them. Marble staircases shows readers up to the second floor balconies which house even more books. 

There are plush armchairs, a fire place, a TV and even some bay windows with curtains drawn so that students can get the concentration they need, away from the world. But however beautiful the library is, no one is paying attention.

Not when Ashley's parents arrive.

Ashley failed to stop them from coming. 

They're walking in the hallway escorted by the deputy principal towards the stairs that lead to Ms. Caprit's office. Both of them are dressed in plain clothes; her mother in jeans and a plain, striped t-shirt with absolutely no jewelry and her father wearing plaid shorts and a white singlet as if he was down by the beach.

Majority of the class stares, even Hannah who seems intrigued that Ashley's parents are not who she assumed them to be. Ashley's parents wave and smile towards us, oblivious to the fact that they single-handedly destroyed their daughter's image. 

However, when they catch sight of me, they both rush over to everyone's surprise.

"(y/n)! I mean, Ms. (l/n)," Mrs. Holdfar excitedly shakes my hand and everyone stares. "It's so nice to meet you! Your parents almost never take you to headquarters!"

I nearly say that I in fact visits the company's buildings every month, but my parents don't bother to show me where the lower employees work. 

"Ms. (l/n)," nods Mr. Holdfar. "You look exactly like your mother. Beautiful, that is."

"Oh, thanks," I awkwardly laugh, not sure how to feel about this compliment from Ashley's father of all people. 

"Mr. Holdfar, Mrs. Holdfar," the deputy principal stalks over in her heels, her voice clipped and posh. The Holdfars are now standing next to someone of wealth, and the gap between their lifestyles is more than clear now. "The principal awaits you."

"Ah, right," Mrs. Holdfar rubs the back of her neck in embarrassment.

I glance around at my classmates, especially the Elites and those with great wealth. Ever since we were young, we've gotten used to how the rich adults talks, behaves and looks. And I'm sure several of my classmates can tell that the Holdfars do not fit into that category.

Ashley keeps on telling everyone that her father is a CEO of a foreign company and is rarely home. She says that her mother is a model, which is where she gets her looks from, and is also barely ever home. 

Even if I didn't know before about Ashley's parents' true occupations, I know from just looking at them that they are not a model and a CEO. Her mother, with her split-ends, bitten nails and poor posture is not a model. Her father, with his too-happy attitude and failure to recognize some of my other classmates who are daughters of important companies does not belong to a CEO, no matter how foreign.

Everyone in my class who is part of the upper class can tell that. 

Which is nearly two thirds of the class. 

Several students are frowning and whispering to each other, others have their phone out and have already decided to text their friends from other schools or other classes. Some girls even have the nerve to take a sly photo of the Holdfars. Even Ashley's closest friends are confused. 

And I can see the shock on Chanel's face, which reminds me of the times in which she used to be Ashley's best friend.

Mr. and Mrs. Holdfar ascend up the stairs, clueless that because of them, their daughter's legacy as an Elite is about to get rocky.

[ word count: 2108 ]