Chapter 4: Reactions

On Monday morning, I walked into school, in through the gates, as normal. But something was different. I looked towards the corner that Rin usually sat in, on his laptop. He wasn't there. Instead, he was sitting on my picnic bench, right by the gates - the one that I usually sat and had lunch at. He was draped across the table part, lying on the varnished wood, twirling a daisy in his hand. The sight nearly made me laugh, but I decided against it. Instead I walked up to him and smiled.
"Hey," I said. People were already staring, shocked that I was talking to him.
"Hello, Alexiel," Rin replied. "For you." He finger-combed my hair out of the way and slid the daisy into my hair. I smiled and blushed lightly.
"Thanks." Now, nearly everyone was frozen to the spot, gaping. Rin Wakely was talking to me. It was unheard of. Impossible.
A group of three girls marched over, like queens. They were standing tall, chins slightly raised, back arched. They swung bags of Juicy Couture and Chanel and walked in Jimmy Choos.
"Oh, how sweet. Alexiel Stevenson and Rin Wakely. I would never of suspected," the tall blonde one said.
"Ralexiel," giggled the small brunette. They all slapped high-fives.
"So tell us, Lexi, what made you choose him?"
"Yeah, you're such opposites," the skinny redhead said.
I blinked at the girls. And again. And again.
"Alesha, don't be so rude," Cele laughed, punching Alesha in the arm.
"Yeah, Lexi has the right to go out with who she wants," Lani said innocently, and did the biggest fake-smile in the history of the world. All three of them cracked up.
Were these really my friends? Were they really this mean? Had I never realised it before? I shook my head and sat down next to Rin, close to tears.
"Why are you such *****es?" Rin asked, edging closer to me protectively. "Aren't you supposed to be Alexiel's friends?"
"Ooh, he used the B word!" Lani squealed.
"How rude," Cele sniffed.
"Totally rude," Alesha agreed. I narrowed my eyes and stood up.
"I can't believe I used to hang out with you," I hissed at them.
"What are you gonna do? Love us to death?" Cele asked. I narrowed my eyes even further, and pushed her. Hard.
Cele fell to the ground. "Ehmagawd, Lexi! What a joke!" Alesha exclaimed. I pushed her, too. She tripped over Cele's leg and fell.
"Well, you're nawt gonna push me," Lani declared, folding her arms across her chest. I folded my arms across my chest, mirroring her.
"You wanna bet?" I said, and shoved her harder than Cele and Alesha. She shrieked, and threw her hand out to grab onto something. I quickly looked over to where she was throwing her arm around, and gasped in delight.
Lani's hand went straight into the compost bin. She screeched, and lifted her arm up. It was covered in smelly compost, bits of apple, mushy banana and banana skins, leftovers from yesterday's roast dinner... she squealed in disgust and I slapped high-fives with Rin.
I couldn't believe I used to be one of them. They weren't my friends. Evidently, they never were. Friends didn't do this sort of thing.
So I grabbed Rin and marched off, leaving my ex-friends strung across the ground and covered in compost.