Page 16 of Let's Pretend I'm Okay

I crumble up the paper and toss it into the garbage as I leave. I can guarantee I will not be reading our homework tonight.

I hate standing around in the hallways, surrounded by everyone. Every laugh and smile makes me cringe because it’s a reminder that not everyone’s life is as crappy as mine. Their voices overwhelm the space as everyone tries to talk over each other, but I force myself to ignore it the best I can.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a familiar figure.

“Hey, Olive!” someone shouts, hurrying up to her. He puts his arm around her. “What’s with the costume?”

“Get lost, Josh.” Olive tries to wiggle her way free, but he doesn’t let her go.

“Did you forget to look in the mirror before you left?”

“Get off me,” she says.

He laughs. “Don’t act like you don’t like it.”

Olive and I aren’t close, but I don’t like seeing her being picked on.

She pushes him away, but he pulls on the strap of her dress.

Anger builds in my chest, and I speed up to catch them. I tug Josh back by the collar of his shirt.

“Hey!”

“She told you to get lost,” I say with a glare.

Olive gasps. “It’s fine.”

Josh smirks. “See? She said it was fine.”

I push him against the lockers.

He wipes his mouth with the back of his sleeve, and his blond hair falls into his face. “What’s your problem? Can’t a guy have a little fun.”

I can’t believe he thinks this is okay. Olive might not be my favorite person in the world, but he has no right to treat her that way. “If you know what’s good for you, you’d shut up.”

Josh’s lip curls up in disgust. “Oh come on, the freak had it coming.”

Without thinking my fist flies through the air, smashing into the locker beside his face. “I said shut up!”

Josh pushes me. “You jerk! Back off!”

“Stop it!” Olive yells. “You’re embarrassing me.”

I pull my fist back, ready to swing—

My arm freezes mid-air, held back by some unknown force, making it impossible to punch Josh in the face.

I turn slowly, expecting to see a teacher or some other faculty member, but instead, I’m met with the big brown eyes.

It’s the girl from the first day of school who hid behind me. Her brown eyes bug out. Her dark-brown hair is chopped short, and her face is twisted in a sour expression, glaring at me. “Leave him alone.”

I jerk myself free from her hold, shaking out my arm just as Josh shoves me one last time, knocking me to the ground. Then, he heads down the hallway.

My head is heavy, and I lie on the ground trying to catch my breath.

“Are you just going to lie there?” says the brown-eyed girl.

I didn’t expect her to still be here. I figured she’d run off.

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