Do You Still Hate Me?

3. Unexpected Friendship

(Charlie's POV)

After class, Ash, the guy with curly hair, kept talking to me. I thought it was weird that we had the same people in every class - it got pretty boring. But Ash was friendly and chatty, and he talked to me in almost every class, except when he sat with his friends. I didn't mind, though - I actually liked listening to him. And his pink cheeks were pretty noticeable, especially when he got excited about something.

During passing periods, Ash would stand next to me, which was a bit weird but also kind of nice. He seemed to be trying to make me feel more comfortable since I was new and didn't know many people. When the lunch bell rang, Ash grabbed my wrist and pulled me along, then quickly let go and apologized. I followed him and his friends to the cafeteria, and Ash kept looking back at me like he was making sure I was still there. It was like we were trying to avoid something, but I wasn't sure what.

Ash, his friends, and I grabbed lunch together. The food looked unappetizing, nothing like what I was used to at my old school. I started to miss everything about my old school - the food, my friends, and all the fun events we had. I zoned out, lost in thought, until Ash said something that snapped me back to reality.

"Hey, you okay?" Ash asked as we walked to a table.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just missing my old school," I said, sounding a bit down.

"Come on, cheer up! You'll make friends soon," Ash said, trying to help me feel better. I smiled at him.

We sat down with his two friends, who seemed pretty cool. I sat next to Ash, and they sat across from us. "Guys, this is Charlie, the new student." Ash said.

"Who's the new guy?" Beto asked, looking at his phone. He didn't seem to notice me until then. "Oh, sorry about that! Didn't know you were sitting with us," Beto said, smiling.

He hit Danny's arm, who was blasting music on his earphones. The music was really loud, and everyone at the table could hear it. Danny's phone almost fell, which made him a bit grumpy, but it was kinda funny. "What the frick, dude!?" Danny asked, looking back at Beto with an annoyed face. Beto pointed to me, and Danny looked back, put away his phone, and said, "Oh, hi!"

We introduced ourselves, and they were really outgoing. We laughed a lot during lunch. They were really funny guys.

Out of nowhere, Danny snatched Beto's food and slammed it onto the table, sending Beto into a rage.

"What's wrong with you? Have you lost your mind?!" Beto demanded, his voice echoing through the stunned silence.

The entire table gazed at Danny in disbelief, their faces frozen in shock.

"Sorry Pookie, but you weren't going to eat it anyway," Danny replied nonchalantly, unfazed by the commotion he had caused.

This only infuriated Beto further, who grasped Danny's shirt with both hands, pulling them face-to-face, their eyes locked in a fierce stare. It almost seemed like they were about to share a passionate kiss. But then, without warning, they burst into a spontaneous song, their voices blending in a cacophony that left me bewildered.

"Come on, guys, stop acting so weird! You're embarrassing yourselves in front of him and the whole lunch table. No wonder you're not popular," Ash muttered, turning away in embarrassment.

I was shocked and surprised, but I couldn't help but laugh at how random it was. My laughter quickly got out of control, and I felt like I was losing my balance. My face scrunched up in a silly way as I stumbled and fell. But Ash grabbed my arm and steadied me just in time. We both ended up laughing, with Ash chuckling at the funny face I made while falling. Everyone else looked at us with judgmental stares, but for the first time, I didn't care. I was too caught up in the moment, and it felt great to not worry about what others thought.

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