The bell finally rang for lunch, and I practically jumped out of my seat and raced to the door. The day has been going on for so long, and I'm so relieved to get a break from the crowded classrooms. Amber hasn't been much of a problem either, seeing as I completely ignore her, and I think she's finally gotten the point. It's not like I don't want to talk to her, it's just... that unhealthy desire to talk to her that scares me. And slightly her appearance. I turned down into another hall, anticipating the end of it. When I finally reached the double doors, I slammed them open and was greeted by sunlight and fresh air. The courtyard on the campus was possibly the best place here. No one came there, but it was open with trees and flowers scattered around. Benches were placed under certain trees, and cobblestones ran through the middle of it, making a pathway to the next door.

 

I always come out here during lunch break. An escape. A place where I can whip out my notebook and draw or write as much as I want. I giddily walked to the tree farthest from the buildings with a bench underneath it. Careful not to be seen, I stood up on top of the seat, and slung my bag into a dip in one of the branches. Once it was secure, I grabbed another branch and lifted myself up into the dip. Hopefully the Autumn colors of the leaves would hide me from sight. There was a strict rule against climbing the trees. Oh well. 

 

I pulled out my notebook and flipped to a blank page. It was all mostly doodles, seeing how I left my other notebook full of writing at home. I stared at the unmarked page, pencil in hand. I had already drawn the landscape and the view from the tree. What else could I draw? Unfortunately, my train of thought was interrupted.

 

"Hey Butch!" My stomach curled at the name and at the voice who said it. After taking a deep breath, I glanced down. Sure enough, Jessica Abbott stood below, hands on her hips, surrounded by Luna Darwin, Faith Richards, and Gretchen Steele. All fake blonde, fake tan, and too much make-up. I knew I smelled cosmetics.

 

"Yes?" I tried to respond like I actually cared.

 

"Heard you got a new girlfriend. Such a , already setting sites on the new girl?" Jessica's tone was innocent, but I froze at her suggestion. "From what I hear, she's been staring at you all day and your playing hard to get! What a joke. I bet the only reason she looks at you is to think how much of a useless-" I felt a hand wrap around my ankle and pull. Before I knew it, I was on the ground, wind knocked out of me. Jessica stood in front of me and pulled me up, slamming me against the tree. "Good for nothing lesbian you are." She finished, slamming me against the tree harder when she was done. 

 

"Take care of her, will you?" She asked Faith, being the biggest out of the group. I watched helplessly as the girl came closer, pulled her arm back and swung at my face. 

---

Believe it or not, Jessica and I use to be friends. Well, for about two days. We had a lot in common, and could talk freely to one another. It wasn't until she asked me if I had had a boyfriend before that things got worse. We were in our second year of middle school, and she had just broken up with her boyfriend, Jake. Or, he had broken up with her. She was extremely angry and need someone to vent too. She talked about how much time she had wasted with him, and how she really liked him. I would just reply 'I know' or 'I get it'  when I felt it was necessary. Eventually, she turned to me and asked if I had ever had a boyfriend. I said no truthfully, because I hadn't. Apparently, though, that was weird. 

 

After that conversation, she distanced herself from me. Nothing too bad. At least, not until she befriended Luna, Faith, and Gretchen. I guess she told them about me not having a boyfriend, and it went from there. I've never really had a girly fashion sense, so I kind of added to the fire. I would catch cruel words every now and then when I passed them in the hall, but they didn't start calling me a lesbian openly until we all were in LPIG together. Shortly after that, it was physical abuse. All from something they thought of me. Now, no one wants to know me or be associated with me. That's just how it is.

---

The rest of the day went by quicker, seeing how I spent the rest of the day in the nurses office, claiming to have fallen down the stairs. Thankfully she stopped asking questions a long time ago. Once the final bell rang, I thanked the nurse for keeping me and called my mom.

 

"Hello?" She answered after a few rings.

 

"Hey mom, it's me." I said, crossing the sidewalk opposite of my house trying to get to the store. 

"Blair! Oh thank goodness you called. I'm stuck at the clinic tonight. Just grab something for you to eat, and I'll pick up some food on my way home." 

 

"You're working the late shift again?" I asked in disbelief. My mom had been doing that for a few days now. 

 

"I know, I know. But whatever pays the bills. I'll see you in the morning alright?" She asked, sounding a little defeated.

 

"Okay."

 

"I love you." 

 

I hesitated before answering. Horrible, I know, but I couldn't help it. "Love you too."

 

Seeing how the trip was only for me, I ended up back at home and finished with my dinner by 6:30. If you include homework, I wasn't fully done with everything until 9:17. By that time, the sun was down, and I figured it'd be a good time to go out to my balcony and watch the stars. Cliche, I know, but I really love it.

 

I set up a plastic chair and positioned it so I would be facing woods, rather than the street lights. Some stars were scattered around, while others stayed in clumps. I've always thought they was so beautiful. Just  sitting there twinkling. I glance down at my roses, and felt the soil. Yeah, I should probably water them tomorrow.

 

"Hey." The new, deep voice startled me so much, I actually fell out of my chair. I looked up to see Amber looking down at me, a smile played on her lips. 

 

"Um, hi." I said awkwardly, getting up and brushing myself off. I looked at her again, and we stared at each other for what seemed like hours.

 

"I'm Amber. From some of your classes I think?" 

 

"Yeah." I replied lamely. "I'm Blair." 

 

Amber cocked her head over slightly. "What, no 'Welcome to Lockhart!' or something." 

 

"Sorry! Um, welcome to Lockhart?" I tried, shyly. I could feel myself blushing at the embarrassment and I was so happy it was night right now. 

 

I watched her tilt her head back and laugh, her eyes crinkling up when she did. "I was just kidding! I'd prefer it if you didn't." I nodded, watching her watch me. Her smile faded a little and she glance behind her. 

 

"Do you mind if I..." She trailed off, nodding to my balcony. 

 

"Oh! Uh, no. Go ahead." I said, moving out of her way. With one swift motion, she was out of her room and on my balcony. I got a good look at her now, up close and personal. Amber was actually a few inches taller than me, probably being around 5'8, and she was wearing a black Tap Out hoodie (I'm guessing men's) with black sweatpants. 

 

"Sorry, it's just... if my parents heard me, I'd been in serious trouble."  She smiled again, and my face flushed. "Don't take this the wrong way Blair, but your face looks messed up." 

 

Instinctively, I drew my hand up to my cheek, only to be met with a sharp pain. "I, uh, fell down the stairs. " I explained.

 

"Fell down the stairs..."She said skeptically.

 

I vigorously nodded my head. "So... Amber Liu. Liu....are you Asian?" I asked, hoping for a change in subject. 

 

"No! I just look it!" She laughed. I internally facepalmed myself for being so stupid. "But on a serious note, yes. The last name is Chinese, but I'm Taiwanese. My parents being from Taiwan." 

 

"Well, that's cool..." I said, again, lamely. 

 

"But I'm a fan of K-Pop." Now that grabbed my attention. 

 

"Really? Who do you like?" I exclaimed. 

 

"I'm a fan EXO, SHINee... Girls Generation..BoA. The list goes on." 

 

"Oh my gosh, me too!" I said, smiling brightly. Amber smiled at me, before glancing behind me. 

 

"I think someone's home..." I turned around and sure enough, my mom was getting out of her car. Glancing down at my wrist, I saw my watch read 10:56. 

 

"Oh God, you have to go." I said ushering Amber towards her window. She turned around and grabbed my wrist.

 

"See you tomorrow?" She asked so gently, I thought my heart would melt.

 

"Y-yeah, see you then." She sent me one last smile before jumping into her room. I ran into my own and quickly got ready for bed. I jumped in and pulled my sheets over my body just in time before my mom opened the door. I shut my eyes and waited for her to shut the door before opening them again. I smiled up at the ceiling. There was no way I was going to be sleeping quickly tonight.

---

A/N

​Sorry, this is kind of a short update! But it's all I have for chapter 2. My updates are going to be really random, too, because of the simple fact that school . (T-T) 

How did you guys like this chapter? I'm hoping it was alright... The story has a slightly slow build-up, but we're getting there!!

Leave your comments if you have any suggestions/questions/or just nice things to say!

Annyeong!! Awkward-Girl fighting!! ( ^-^)ノ∠※。.:*:・'°☆