Finally reaching our table, she cast Lucas a smile not unlike the one she used a couple of hours ago. "Hey," she tries to make her voice smooth and sweet, "I'm Sidney, and these are two of my girls." I almost laugh when I notice that even Sidney doesn't say their names.
Lucas takes another bite of his delicious steak, and then looks up into Sidney's most-likely-modified face. "You probably know my name," he says plainly, clearly uninterested.
Sidney looks surprised, but she quickly recovers, reaching to the end of her now mini-skirt and fingering it, trying to draw his attention to her bronzed thighs that are muscular, yet slender. He doesn't notice her efforts, looking to the ceiling, then back at his delectable steak. "Do you want to sit with us?" she offers quickly, "away from this reject?" I wince at the word reject, at the way she doesn't even look at me, as if I am worth nothing. Away in the background, I see three spots left open, one for Sidney and two for her girls.
"There's no spots," he tries to evade a direct answer, but that doesn't stop Sidney. With a snap of her fingers, an a-list jock is immediately dismissed, degraded to a b status. Now there is Ian, two other jocks, and one of her girls sitting at the table.
"For you," she tells him, a seductive expression gracing her features, "there is always a spot."
"I decline," he says abruptly, digging back into his meat. Sidney just stands, her mouth in a perfectly lip-glossed "o".
"B-but-t," she stutters, "no one ever declines!" Her words are forced, cheerfulness evaporating. I see a sliver of doubt enter her, a drop of low esteem slipping into her bloodstream.
"Well," he says after wiping his mouth with a napkin, "I am not no one. I can do whatever the crap I want. And right now, I don't want to sit at your table."
Her eyes widen, her voice strained. The whole lunchroom is staring at us, and I suddenly feel as if we are under a spotlight, unable to escape from it. "So you are just going to sit with this loser?" she finally casts a hate filled glare at my form. Abruptly, I start to shiver as I am turned to ice by her gaze. I can tell, at that moment, that she wants me completely and utterly dead.
Lucas stares at her face, not once wavering. "Please, Cindy-"
"Sidney," she dryly corrects, most likely a first for her.
"Sorry," he apologizes, and then continues, "It's just that Ava will be alone if I leave her to go with you, and I can't allow that." He speaks calmly and gentlemanly, respect now in his tone. I blush at his words, the redness blooming on my slightly pale cheeks.
Sidney glances at me, as if she was really looking at me for the first time. "Ava," she murmurs to herself, as if she was trying to remember my name. Then she perks up and smiles once more at Lucas. "Okay then," she says, "maybe another time." With another snap of her fingers, all three of them turn and start strutting towards the royalty table. However, when Lucas's head is turned, she looks back and shoots me a glance of pure loathing. The shivers begin again; creeping up and down my spines, chilling me to the bone.
I return my gaze to Lucas finally, my fork lingering over the last bite of steak. "Are you not hungry?" he asks curiously. I barely shake my head, the coldness freezing me silent. I eat the last piece, chewing it robotically.