POV: Rebel Reid

This weekend has been uh… interesting to say the least. Dillion keeps sending me like 20 texts a minute. Turns out the girl has a lot to get off her chest. Some of it like super dark and serious, some of it is... well… Dillion. For example, last night she went on a rant about how tv and film ratings were pointless and stupid. This rant was triggered by her dad blocking all the “inappropriate” content on the tv, which led to the little mermaid being blocked. Yes, the little freaking mermaid. This caused Dillion to be livid, she couldn’t blow up at her dad or ask him to take the restrictions off so she vented out to me. I can kind of piece together the real girl under all the pink painted fakeness. Her personality is still, um… challenging, but she isn’t as awful as I first thought. She’s just misunderstood.

With this new insight into her life, I have made my decision. I am going to forfeit the rematch. The forfeit clause is basically someone admitting defeat. It is an automatic loss on their part. You still get reduced four points and the other person gains, but it’s a lot less brutal to lose like this. So when I see Dillion today, I am going to do the right thing. I will Forfeit and I will tell her the person she’s been talking to all weekend is me.

Sure she’ll be pissed, but once she realizes I come in peace maybe I can start to help her change. My first assumption was right about her all along, she just needs a friend. A real friend. Sure she’s difficult to get along with, I can tell just by her text, but I know if I work hard I can help make her a decent human being. It will just take time.

I walk into the school and scan around for her. I don’t see her anywhere, but I do see Birdie and Scooter. They were looking at me. I have to avert my eyes. I still can’t believe they think I had something to do with their demise. I would never.

Birdie and I have been friends since forever. Her ebony skin and kinky hair often left her the victim of bullying when we were younger. I, of course, had to do the right thing, and I became her friend. Then we met Scooter, a scrawny boy always being picked on for wearing “girly” clothes, he really liked sailor moon when he was younger and often wore shirts with the scouts on it. The three of us became the oddballs, inseparable. We do everything together. They still haven’t even texted me or anything. I can’t believe them.

I quickly walk to the library.

I wave hi to the librarian and walk over to my usual bench. I glance at my phone to see if I have any new text from Dillion, I don’t. Weird, maybe she only wants to talk to me on the weekends. I put my phone on silent and pull out my book.

I only get to read one page before I hear someone clearing their throat.

I look up and Dillion is standing over me.

Her hair is dyed pink at the tips again. She has on a pink corset looking top, and tight black skinny jeans. She wore flats today.

She clears her throat again and I snap my eyes to her face.

She smirks.

I quickly move to make room for her to sit next to me.

“Um Dillion, I have to tell you something,” I say.

“Let me go first.” She holds up her hand.

Oh boy, this should be good.

“I’m sorry, for kissing you out of nowhere. That was stupid of me. I shouldn’t have teased you like that.” She averts her eyes. I can see a blush forming on her cheeks.

“Right, well, I uh, get it. I guess. Anyways, I wanted to tell you I’m forfeiting the rematch. You win. So we don’t have to destroy each other anymore.” I quickly pull out my phone and open the app.

“Wait.” She stops me.

I eye her.

“I’ll do it,” she says.

My eyes go wide. She’s willing to give up her unbeatable record for me?

“It’s uh, the right thing to do. Besides, no one is perfect.” She shrugs.

She pulls out her phone and opens the app. Her finger hovers over the forfeit button, I can see her inner struggle.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to. I can do it. Besides I don’t really have anything to lose anyway.” I shrug.

“I’m not… I don’t want you to think I am a monster. I can be nice sometimes too.” She rolls her eyes.

I find myself smiling at her.

Looks like my weekend of interesting conversations paid off after all.

She blushes when she sees my smile.

Then with her new resolve, she presses the forfeit button. On my phone, an animation plays with confetti flying down the screen. You win! Flashes in red.

“There it’s done. Truce?” She looks at me.

“Sure, on one condition.”

“Don’t push it.” she narrows her eyes.

“If you really want to prove to me you are a better person than I think you are, then don’t challenge anyone ever again. They can challenge you, but I don’t want you to challenge them.” I say.

She bites her lip in thought.

“It’s a small change, but it’s a start,” I add.

She looks at me and then nods.

“Okay, I can do that.”

“Good now unless you are going to kiss me out of nowhere again, I think our business is done.” I tease.

She blushes.

I don’t think I’ll tell her just yet that it’s me. If I do it might undo all our progress. I want to gain her full trust before I tell her the truth.

“You’re not going to tell anyone I did that are you?” she asks.

I can hear the fear in her voice.

“Of course not. A girl never kisses and tells.” I playfully bump her shoulder.

I mean she is really pretty, and cute, and wait! What the heck? Focus. No way I could ever like someone like her. Even if she is just misunderstood. She still has a long way to go before she is even close to being considered a decent human being.

“Right,” she laughs nervously. “Um about all that Flynn gang bang stuff. I’m sorry. I’ll tell people it’s not true. Besides Flynn is an asshole. I will take joy in ruining him.” she smiles.

See. Still, a long way to go.

“You don’t have to. I don’t care what people think of me here. Soon I’ll graduate and I’ll never have to see their faces again. I know the truth and you know the truth, that’s enough for me.”

She frowns and looks at the floor, kicking her feet around.

“I wish I could be like you.” She finally says.

“Why’s that?”

“I wish I didn’t care what people thought of me. That I could just let it roll down my back like you. Life would be so much easier.” She nearly whispers.

“Well, you already took the first step. You forfeited, now you just got to show everyone you don’t care. Even if you do. Hold your head high and look them in the eyes.”

“Easier said than done.” She grumbles.

“Well, there really isn’t much you can do besides take it one step at a time. If anyone can do it, it’s you.”

“You really think so?” She turned to me with a vulnerable look on her face.

Her diamond blue eyes seemed to be sparkling at me. Why does she have to be so pretty? If she was ugly it would be a lot easier to hate her. She just has a beautiful face, one of those people you look at and automatically know they are gorgeous.

I nod.

She smiles.

For a moment we sit in awkward silence. She scoots closer to me and I am already at the edge of the bench so I have no choice but to stay in place. She is breathing hard and looks to be in deep concentration. Maybe she’s about to come out to me.

She must be terrified.

I place my hand on top of hers to reassure her. I can feel her shaking.

“I won’t tell anyone,” I whisper.

She looks at me, really looks at me. Her eyes make my heart stop. There is so much raw emotion there. I have never, ever, seen anyone so terrified. She looks like she could be sick or pass out at any second. I almost think she might be having a panic attack with how fast and short her breaths come.

She must really have it hard at home to be this terrified.

I interlock our fingers and smile for her.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to say anything if you aren’t ready,” I assure her.

She takes a big shaky breath and shuts her eyes tightly, maybe she is having a panic attack. It takes her a second to get control of herself. She grips my hand tightly as if it was her lifeline. Seeing her like this, I wonder if anyone but me has ever seen her like this. She tries so hard to be something she’s not, it makes me sad.

“You wanna hang out some time?” I ask.

She turns to me and gives me a confused look.

“It can be just the two of us, we can go somewhere where no one will know us. Just be whoever we want. What do you say?”

She averts her eyes I can tell she wants to say yes, but her predetermined status prevents her from doing so immediately.

“Why would you want to hang out with someone like me? After what I did to you…” she asks.

“I don’t know, but I guess everyone deserves a second chance. Even you.”

“What would we do if we hung out?” she asks.

“Well, what do you want to do?”

She thinks about it.

Before she can answer the bell rings. For a moment we just sit there. She glances down at our conjoined hands; I quickly retract my hand. I can feel a blush spread on my cheeks. She gives a small smile.

“Maybe in another life.” She stands to leave.

“Why not this one?” I ask.

“You know why.” With that, she grabs her purse and walks off.

I frown after her and grab my backpack. When I walk out everyone is looking at me, and I do mean everyone. Whispers and murmurs fill the halls. Girls eye me as if I had grown a second head. I duck my head low and keep walking.

I bump into someone as I round the corner. I look up and meet the eyes of Clover. Her face is cold and her eyes say she wants to eat me for breakfast. I take a few steps back.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here? Rebel Reid, the girl who ruined Dillion Smiley’s perfect record. Tell me, what was it that finally became her undoing? What dirt did you get on her? Why didn’t you take her down?”

I glance around the hall and everyone is looking at me.

“I don’t know what you are talking about. She did that on her own. If you want to know why just ask her. You’re her friend right?”

She narrows her eyes at me. Her dark brown eyes seem almost black as they scan over my body. She smirks and starts to walk around me like a shark circles its prey. I stand my ground and don’t let her see that she is getting to me. Dillion is one thing, but Clover Baker is a whole other thing. She is ruthless, whereas Dillion likes to play with her prey, Clover likes it over fast. She is cut throat and wants everyone to know it, including Dillion.

“I see, I think I get it now.” She says.

“Get what? There is nothing to get.” I say.

“Sure, sure. If you say so.” She winks at me.

“Just leave me alone.” I try and walk off.

Suddenly Alaska appears in front of me. Blocking my path to freedom. She must have been watching the whole thing. I feel like a seal in a tank of sharks. Clover is the tiger shark, Alaska is the hammerhead. I guess that makes Dillion the great white.

While I was distracted with Alaska, Clover comes up behind me and snatchers my phone out of my pocket.

“Let’s see what we have here.” She turns to walk away.

“Hey! Give that back.” I grab her by the shoulder and held her in place.

Just then I see my phone light up with a new text from Dillion. Oh shit. No! I can’t let her see that. I do the only thing I can think of in desperate times like this. I punch her in the face.

I am so dead.

Everyone around us gasps as Clover tumbles to the floor and drops my phone.

I quickly grab it and try to make a run for it.

Alaska is faster, she grabs me by my backpack and yanks me down to the ground. I drop my phone and it goes sliding across the floor.

“Ohh!” The crowd reacts.

I try to get up and crawl over to it but Clover is faster. She snags it up. I tackle her to the ground and wrestle her for it.

“Let go!” I grunt.

“What are hiding!?” she shoves her hands into my face in attempts to push me off.

“I’ll take this.” Alaska snatches the phone from both of us.

I jump to my feet but it’s too late, she sees the new text message alert. Her eyes go wide. Lucky for me she can’t read the message unless I unlock the phone.

The late bell rings causing me to flinch.

I look around for a professor to help, but they all just disappear into their classrooms. What is wrong with these people? Give me a break will ya.

I try and grab my phone from Alaska but she teases me by holding it above her head.

“Give it back!” I demand.

“What’s on it.” Clover dust her self off.

“It’s a text, from Dillion,” Alaska says.

Clovers eyes go wide.

“It’s not who you think, it’s my cousin Dillion.” I lie. I don’t even have a cousin Dillion.

They eye me.

“I’m serious.” I stand firm.

“Prove it, call him.” Alaska hands me my phone.

I look at the screen. My heart is racing.

“I sense a liar.” Clover teases.

“Fine. I’ll prove it.” I unlock the phone.

I go to my contacts and hover over Dillion's name.

Damn it, I should have changed her name! Idiot move! If I call her she’ll know it’s me, or worse it will go to voice mail and they will know it’s her.

“Why are you hesitating?” Clover raises an eyebrow.

I should have told her when I had my chance, now she’ll never trust me. I can’t, I can’t do this. It will destroy all of our progress, she’ll come after me full force.

I lock my phone again.

“I don’t have to prove anything to you two,” I say before quickly walking away.

“We’ll find out the truth, one way or another!” Clover calls.

“Get a life!” I shout back.

When I turn the corner I quickly break into a run and walk into class late. My heart is pounding in my ears. The first chance I get I quickly unlock my phone and change Dillion’s contact name to D-boss. Not exactly perfect but it was all I could come up with on such short notice, I will probably change it later.

Finally, I look at her new text.

‘I need your help to determine if I am being stupid. This cute girl wants to hang out with me, I said no because well, I’m popular, I can’t be seen with her. Is that dumb?’

I sigh and slam my head on the desk, all that trouble for this. Dillion… I hope I am doing the right thing.