5 Desire - Part 5 (1/2)
Outside of the Cafeteria's front doors are many outdoor tables the school has set up for lunch. They're mostly empty due to the intense heat, but there are a few tables we can snatch under the shadow of the school building now that it's later into the lunch hour.
The two of us silently walk along as I scan the area for a place to sit down.
The entire time, I can feel Scarlet's gaze intently focused on my back.
”Chase…”
”...”
”Why?”
I ignore her as we finally approach a decent table, then I put my tray down.
She sets her tray down to sit on the opposite side of the table from me. It seems as if she isn't able to look at me directly.
”Why…? I told you not to say anything.”
Yep, I'm right on the money. She almost completely refuses to look at me for more than a full second. She's keeps shifting her eyes back down at her food with a pained expression.
”… Are you saying I was supposed to just sit there and listen to that?”
I clench my fists.
”You ignored my rules, Chase.”
”Rules? That was bullshit and you know it. Had I known things would've gotten that bad then I'd never have agreed to help you.”
”…”
I rest my cheek in the palm of my propped up hand.
”Scarlet, don't think I don't understand what you're trying to do, but you won't reach that goal by blindly going along with whatever Jennifer wants.”
”Haha, what are you even saying, Chase? Are you telling me to make her my enemy like you did?”
”No, I'm saying to stand up for yourself. You won't stay popular by just going along with whatever she says and does. If that's all you have to offer, then what happens when she starts disliking you for some reason and you end up splitting?”
”She's not like that! Don't talk as if you know her!”
For the first time, her eyes focused not on the tray of food before her, but on me.
”She promised me that we'd be BFFs! She wouldn't do something as petty suddenly disliking me!”
”… Then you're okay with being BFFs with someone who would say those kinds of things to you?”
”That's… fine.”
”Just, what part of having to deal with that is fine?”
”You wouldn't understand. All that matters is that this is between me and her.”
I sigh.
This isn't going anywhere. She's convinced herself that this is a necessary part of her popularity. She's already been completely taken in and we're only two weeks in. I'm not sure if I should applaud Jennifer or feel plain disappointed in Scarlet.
She twiddles her thumbs, not bothering to take another bite of her lunch.
”It was all going so well until you did that, Chase.”
”…”
”We aren't even really dating, so why did you have to step in like that?”
”Whether we're dating or not doesn't matter. Seeing someone you know get teased like that is painful. Especially since it was partly because you chose me as your fake boyfriend.”
”Partly, huh?”
”Geh…”
I reel back out of guilt.
I know it was more than just partly. If she chose a more popular guy then she wouldn't have had to sit through those terrible jokes. But that's exactly why I felt bad not doing anything.
How could I be okay with it? I wasn't the one being ridiculed but the guilt pained me almost as much as the insults probably pained her.
”I'm sorry.”
I can't think of any better words to offer. At the end of the day, I messed up. Apologizing is the least I can do for her.
”No, it's fine. I know it's unfair to blame you for that. You did your part well and she was okay with you.”
She looks off somewhere distant.
”… She just decided that she needed to tease me for some reason.”
”If I weren't part of Nick's circle she wouldn't have felt the need to say those things, though. I don't think Momoka was too keen on me either.”
”Mmm, maybe so. But if you were a bit more popular then I wouldn't have been brave enough to talk to you either.”
She smiles bitterly while down.
”I… guess so…”
I take the break in the conversation as an opportunity to take a bite of my lunch before continuing.
”A-anyway, you don't have to worry about that ruining everything. You could use my tantrum as an excuse to tell Jennifer that we broke up and everything should go back to normal.”
She shoots me a distrusting glare.
”W-what? Wouldn't that work out fine for both of us?”
”I noticed it while we were heading to the cafeteria but… You're kind of smart aren't you?”
She glares at me with squinted eyes.
”Umm… Scarlet?”
But after a while, she just sighs.
”So you freaking out like that wasn't as careless as it looked, huh?”
”Haha, if it were careless I would've lost it way earlier than that.”
She seems to ponder my words for a moment.
”Okay, I've made up my mind.”
”Hmm? About what?”
”I'll… ah.”
Her gaze shifts and focuses on something behind me.
I turn to follow it and find that back where we came from, a familiar figure is walking along the shadow of the school building. And that sole figure, shamelessly carrying itself with pride despite what had just occurred moments ago, belongs to…
”…”
”What the hell does she want now?”
I turn my body back to face Scarlet.
She looks like she's seen a ghost.
Come on, don't be like that. You're not in the wrong here.