He yanked his arm out of the hands of the cat-eyed man with colorful hair who had yanked him away from the cafeteria, “what’s your problem!”

“Aish! I believe your first words should have been thank you little miss ungrateful,” the cat-eyed man retorted. “I had it handled,” Emerald said as he tried to go back into the cafeteria to obtain his bag but the guy pulled him back.

“If you go back in there your dead,” cat eyes said with a hint of worry in his eyes.

“Oh yes and a couple of unlocked doors will keep me safe, you know I really don’t understand your logic, and you never know, maybe I’m a black belt in Taekwondo,” Emerald said with a shrug. Cat-eyes waited for a moment, “actually they will cuz Mr. Student Council President can keep him in there until the principle comes, which is one of the reasons I got you outa there.”

He gave a mocking smile, “so you would protect a criminal from the police?” The guy sighed, “oh please it was self-defense, you didn’t do anything wrong.”  

Emerald gave up going to rescue his bag and started walking towards his next class with Mr. Rainbow in tow, “and you would know this because……”

Emerald smirked finally thinking of something to call this man. While he smirked Skittles leaned in closer to him and narrowed his eyes, “I was watching you.” Emerald backed up kind of freaked out, “look Skittles I’m flattered, but back it up.” He said finally understanding why he was still talking to him.

Skittles snorted, “sorry little Ms. New girl but don’t get your hopes up, I was only watching you because that guy with his arm wrapped around you just so happens to Mr. Jackass who tends to do as he wants and won’t take no for an answer. Wanted to make sure you were okay,” he paused, “and why skittles?”

Ah, so he had already caught the attention of the main bully in school. Great. He shrugged it off, “Thanks but I can take care of myself,” he said putting in one of those y eye rolls he had practiced countless times in front of the mirror, “oh and do you really have to ask why your name is skittles? Do you not own a mirror?”

Skittles huffed at him and walked off, obviously upset.

Emerald spoke to himself, “well, Tae-,” he sighed and started again, “Well, Emerald first day and you already made 3 enemies! I think that’s a record!” He walked into the women’s restroom so he could sit in one of the stalls for hours pretending he had a stomach problem. He walked in and the first thing he saw was himself, and he stopped.

He really did look like a girl, and it made him hate himself. No man should look this girly, ever, no matter what their uality.

He swallowed the ball forming in the back of his throat and pushed that thought away as he ran into one of the stalls and slammed the door shut, refocusing on why he had come in here in the first place.

Emerald had already made three enemies: Skittles, Mr. Jackass, and probably that Minho guy. He needed to find a way to get them to hate him enough so that he could get expelled. But the annoying thing was that he wouldn’t be able to predict how they would do it….. Well Mr. Jackass will probably try to him, but more than likely that would result in the expulsion of him rather than Emerald.

He sat there for five more minutes before he heard a group of girls walk into the bathroom talking, “Minho is such a hero,” Oh great they were swooning, “he practically saved that girls life.”

One of the girls defied her, “oh please, all he did was stop him from marching after her. Key’s the real hero. Racing her out of the cafeteria before anything bad happened.”

It took him a moment to realize that they were talking about him. He wasn’t too surprised seeing as having noodles poured on a guy’s head was not an everyday occurrence, but he still didn’t want to hear it.

Another girl spoke up, obviously pissed, “I can’t believe you guys bought that act. They obviously set it up to make the new girl look better. And if they didn’t then she was probably just trying to make people like her for standing up to Seba like that, make them think she was little Ms. Brave.”

“Oh please Mira, do you really think that Minho, Key, and Seba would all work together just to get some girl popularity. You couldn’t even get them to stay in the same room together, if you tried I’m pretty sure Key would be the first to jump out a window on the seventeenth floor. Besides Minho would never talk to another girl without my permission, that’s like cheating, he wouldn’t risk losing all this,” the first girl who spoke said.

Oh. He felt a ping of sadness. He has a girlfriend. He knew it wouldn’t matter even if he didn’t but it was still reassuring to know that he didn’t.  The other girls started laughing as he heard them walk out the bathroom door.

He slumped against the back of the toilet, trying to force himself to not care.

He sat there until the bell finally rung before he was able to peel away from his safe spot and force himself into learning mode. After he retrieved his bag from the cafeteria.

As he picked it up from its spot, avoiding the noodles that still lay on the ground, he was met with the face of Minho looking at him from across the cafeteria. He shouted, “The principal wants to see you!”

He rolled his eyes and started walking towards him. Minho fell into stride with his steps as they walked on towards the principal’s office.

Minho cleared his throat, “so you never really answered my question.”

He looked at him not having then slightest memory of him asking any sort of question, “what question?”

He laughed light-heartedly, “I asked if you wanted to be my lab partner.”

Emerald looked at him confused, “but it’s biology there is almost no lab to do.” Minho smiled, “trust me, Mr. Dave tends to appreciate labs just as much as we do. He always finds at least fifteen labs for us to do a year.”

Emerald asked another question, “okay, then why me. I’m sure there are a bunch of other people lining up to be your partner, why don’t you pick one of them?”

Minho stared at him surprised, “wow, people don’t normally ask so many questions before they say yes.”

Emerald glared his eyes at him, “well I’m sorry I’m not your average girl.”

 He looked panicked, “no, no, that’s not what I meant at all. I’m just surprised. And besides all the other people in the class normally do absolutely nothing about either the labs or studying. You were the only other person in taking notes during class.”

Emerald was surprised to know how little people cared for their grades. It was frustrating. “Well then I guess that leaves me no other choice. Sure I’ll be your lab partner.” He didn’t want to be stuck doing all the work on a project.

Minho smiled as he opened the door to the principal’s office. As they walk in they see Seba sitting in a chair in front of the principal acting like he couldn’t care less about the situation. But when he turns around to look at Emerald he could see the anger flare in his eyes and it amused him.

“Ms. Emerald, good, have seat please,” he walked passed Minho and took a seat next to Seba. “So do you mind telling me your version of the story?” the principal chimed.

He shrugged, “there’s nothing else to it. He sat down next to me, d me, and I poured a bunch of noodles on his head in defense.”

Seba shouts out, “Bull ! I didn’t do anything to you and your formless body!” Emerald fanes a look of shock and takes a dramatic breath, “how rude! I’m so offended by the words of a meat-head!”

The principal shushes them before Seba can say anything else, “Well then Mr. Velera please explain to me, in detail, what about Ms. Chan’s version of the story is so outrageously false.”

He folds his arms over his chest, “for starters she was the one who d me, all I did was sit next to her, God and she calls me the one,” he rolls his eyes.

The principal looks behind them at Minho, “and Minho what side of the story did you see occur?”

“Well I didn’t see much of what was going on but when the sports team sat at her table she got up but they pulled her back down. Then Seba put his arm around her. That’s all I saw.”

 The principal eyes Seba, “Seba would you like to recant your statement?” He crosses his arms, “I would if I believed lying was a good way to get out of this.” Emerald and Minho snorted while the principal smirked, “Well then, your punishment will be to clean the cafeteria every day for the next 3 weeks.”

He tries to say something against it but the principal silences him.

He jumps out of his seat and leaves the principal’s office before anyone can get in another word