A Good Friend

Chapter 2 - Quitting School

She followed me the whole way to class and we talked about what we might expect when we get there. She was not at all interested in going so I got the feeling she was returning the favour by doing something I wanted. She was really trying to get me to like her and I sort of felt bad for her. Perhaps her outrageous personality was just too much for most creatures and she just couldn’t make a good friend. Nevertheless, she wasn’t completely unlikable. She had saved me from the bullies and she did seem to care about me to some extent although she wasn’t the best at expressing it. I guess I should give her the benefit of the doubt and let her stay with me for now. It was nice to have company on a hard day like today anyway. 

Then we finally got to class. When we got there I opened the door for her but she was no longer behind me. I was worried for a second before I then remembered she had done this before so I let it be. The teacher however was not happy with me. It was very embarrassing when the teacher not only blamed me for being late but pointed out the spilled curry on my legs. I blushed and shuffled to my seat as the class laughed at me. I wanted to curl up tight within myself as if once I had done that tight enough I might disappear altogether. Class was indeed rather boring and mostly consisted of telling us where things were and who the teachers were etc etc. I usually try to stay engaged in lessons but even I found this lesson particularly boring and pointless. 

After a while I felt something prick my shoulder. I looked past my shoulder but didn’t see anyone. Then I felt a paw touch my knee and I looked down to see that girl yet again but this time under my desk!

“what are you doing there!” I whispered at her in panic that the teacher might see.

“This lesson is boring as shit!” she whispered back.

“Get back to your desk!” I yelled back at her

“Fuck off! You’re not the boss of me!” she whispered back. I kinda felt bad for upsetting her but at the same time I desperately didn’t want to get caught doing this.

I wished I could join her under the desk yes but that doesn’t mean I should! While I was contemplating what to say the teacher told me to sit up. I did as I was told immediately.

“For fuck sake! You are like a robot!” she whispered to me. I tried not to respond. If I ignored her perhaps she would get the message.

“Oh ignore me again sure” she said sounding very irritated. I didn’t want her to feel bad so I waited for my moment and bent down again to speak to her.

“Just leave me alone please. I don’t want to get in trouble. Go back to your desk” I whispered to her, trying to reason with her.

“I don’t know what you are talking about. What desk?” she asked looking rather puzzled. Now I was also puzzled.
“You mean you are not a student!” I whispered in shock.

“haha no! Of course not! What makes you think I want to learn shit!” she said a little too loudly it seemed because the teacher noticed again.

“What on earth is so interesting under there which is more important than my class” the teacher said sternly. I just looked down in shame, wondering what on earth to say but I didn’t have to respond because a classmate did do for me.

“she was talking to the gum underneath the desk!” a fellow classmate cried.

The rest of the class laughed and I just curled up tighter and tighter. I told myself in my head over and over not to take offense. Not to listen to them. Not to be upset but it didn’t work.

“Nice try” the teacher said to the other student.

“But it’s true! She was talking to herself! She’s a freak!” At that moment my heart broke.

I could feel my deepest fears and sorrow coming from deep within me and manifesting themselves as tears in my eyes. I tried to look away to the window of the classroom to find anything to take comfort in and I saw her yet again looking at me. This time she looked pretty upset and not angry in any way. She looked like she felt sorry for me.

This however, only made me more upset. “oh fuck off!” I yelled at her without thinking before crying my eyes out and running out the classroom.

It was the only thing I could think of doing and I ran and ran and ran away all the way to the other end of the school. Then I ran out to the playground and sat and cried and cried. When I had cried for some time and calmed down, I looked up to see her right there staring at me but when I looked at her she turned away.
“What?! Do you hate me to now?!” I cried in anger.

“No! of course not!” she cried back. Not sounding angry in the slightest.

“Why are you here? Why are you ruining my life?!” I screamed at her and she just stood there looking down at the floor. I don’t think she knew what to say.

Then after a while of silence she knelt down to my level and gave me a hug. Something about it felt very genuine, unlike any hug I have ever had before. I found my anger just melting away and I put my arms around her and cried some more. After a while she pulled away quickly and stood up as if desperately wanting to get out of this situation.

“What am I going to do now?” I asked her. I really had no idea. She stood looking sadly at the floor and said nothing.

Then she suddenly yelled “I got an idea!” she said out loud and sounding much happier all of a sudden. 
“what?” I asked, my voice still croaky with tears.

“Let’s just go home!”

“no we can’t. as much as I would like to we can’t”

“why not?!” she cried.

“we will get in trouble”

“Oh come on! What do you think we are here for!” she cried and she did have a good point. But I tried not to let her influence me again.

“This only happened because...” I found myself getting angry again and I stopped myself before saying something I regret but she knew what I meant.

“of me. yeah” she said with a sigh as she looked out to the great outdoors beyond the school yard.
“I-I’m sorry but it’s true. I really didn’t want to get into trouble today of all days” I said.
“Well what’s done is done. What matters now is what we do next”

“why are you here” I asked again

“I told you I don’t know” she said as if she wished she did

“but how do you not know?”

“you tell me! I only know as much as you do!” she said.

“But someone can’t just appear for no reason”

“can’t they?” she said as she looked me straight in the eyes.

“No no come on now. I don’t want to offend you but you clearly can’t be real”

“oh great. I’m not real now am I?”

“I’m sorry but I can’t think of any other way to explain this”

“explain what?”

“Well like how you disappear and then reappear all the time. How people either don’t notice you or they do. It makes no sense!”

“Well it’s not hard to slip past you without you noticing. It’s like you are barely awake half the time”

“I guess so. Are you saying you are real?”

“Do I really have to answer that?”

“YES!”

“What is wrong with you?” she said sounding rather concerned and confused

“I don’t know!” I yelled at myself before sitting down again and realising I didn’t have something to sit on.
I fell backwards and slammed by bottom half pretty hard on the hard concrete floor. “Woah! You OK?!” she immediately asked as she came to my aid. I started to laugh uncontrollably and she quickly realised I wasn’t ok.
She knelt down to me again and shook my shoulders to get my attention “come on. Don’t freak out on me ok?” she said with a nice degree of kindness.

“oh god” I said to myself I tried to calm down.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be fine. Creatures have survived worse” she was right yet again. I took a deep breath and collected myself before letting her help me back up.

“ow my ass” I said as I got up. “oh goodness now you have me swearing” She laughed cheerfully and I admit it made me smile. “So. If you are so full of ideas what do we do now then?” I asked her.

“Like I said. Go home!”

“mum will be furious”

“well then lets waste some time before we go home. What do you want to do?”

“I want candy” I said, perking up with the idea

“Damn right! Let’s go get some then!” she said.

“But those guys took my money”

“Did they?” she said as she pulled out my money from behind her back.

“You didn’t think I would beat the crap out of them and then just leave the cash right?”

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“ermmm” suddenly she looked rather guilty. I had an idea what she was thinking. She quickly changed the subject. “Let’s just go! Come on!” She said as she dragged me along with her yet again.

We went to many different shops and got way too many sweets. I had never done something like this in all my life and yet somehow the day felt rather good at the end. We saw the sun going down as we drank the last of our soda and it took us a moment to realise our mistake.

“Oh shit!” she yelled as she realised and I screamed in unison with her. We ran as fast as we could home but mum was waiting at the door looking worried sick. I had never been around the shops on my own before so it was no surprise she would be worried about me.

I looked to my side to see my friend but she was already gone. “Oh great you go now?!” I yelled at her but forgetting my mother was right there.

“You didn’t get detention did you?”

“errrr. Noooo...” I tried to avoid the truth but not lie. I couldn’t tell her what actually happened but it was true it wasn’t detention I was late for. No doubt I would get one some other time.

Mum knew I was a terrible liar so she didn’t believe me “oh my goodness, on your first day?!” she sounded more concerned than angry. I hung my head in shame. I couldn’t argue. It was a better excuse than what the real reason was. “Nevermind, it’s getting very late. Your dinner has gone cold” she said with a sigh as she went back inside. I just followed her and hung my head.

Luckily, mum avoided too much talk about school and I was able to not talk about it. I didn’t like the bad feeling though and I went to my room feeling rather down. I also had stomach ache from all the candy and I had to tell mum after all this time I didn’t want my dinner. She just sighed and told me to go to my room early so I did. When I got to my room that stranger I had got so strangely familiar with was there above me. She keeled down to see me on my side on my bed.

“Hey. At least the candy was awesome” she said, I think in an attempt to comfort me.

“Yeah. It was pretty fun actually” I said before wincing in pain from my stomach.

“Ah sorry about that. Can’t have everything I guess but it was fun while it lasted”

“umhum” I murmured in agreement.

“You look tired. Probably should just try to sleep”

“Yeah I guess so” she went and closed my window blinds and turned the light off for me as I lay in bed.

“Where are you going to sleep? Wait...why are you in my house?!” I tried turn to yell at her but moving made my stomach hurt more.

“Just shut up and sleep. I don’t have anywhere else to go so I’m gonna stay here. At least for tonight. Besides, I can’t leave you alone can I? You can barely handle yourself”

“oh really?”

“yeah really!”

“I guess you are right” I sighed.

“I’m fucking knackered! Good thing you have a spare blanket” she said as she curled up in it.

“I admit. I like your company. Thanks for staying with me when I was upset. Even if you were partially the problem to begin with” I said as her back was turned.

She didn’t bother to turn around as she said “shut up and sleep already!” I got the feeling she liked to hear that although she didn’t respond directly. So I let my eyes close and I was surprised with how quickly I fell asleep.