Unwanted stares

Amora was not angry; she was furious. The audaciousness of that raven-head outraged her. The whole class she was thinking of various ways to condemn him to the worst levels of hell.

The first kiss that she had deliberately, painstakingly saved for seventeen years, in wait of her special someone, was stolen from her within the blink of an eye. Reminiscing of her loss made her want to cry, but she also couldn't forget the feel of his lips on hers. His lips were as soft as they looked, and though it was but a simple peck, it sent pleasant shivers down her spine. She could still remember the brief pause of her heartbeat before it picked up the pace of a racehorse. Her flustered state had also contributed to her heated reaction.

She felt like dying under the stares of her classmates. She had clearly felt the glares of the minority female population of the class, which made her fear for her future.

Why did it feel like her monotonous routine of high-school life was coming to an end? She had never asked for an eventful high-school life full of drama, but seems like fate has made different, exotic level plans for her future.

The bell rang, and the teacher dismissed the class before students began moving out of the classroom. Since it was an AP classroom, the students were relatively more well-behaved than the common population of average students. The dispersal was calm as students made their way out of the classroom and before long Amora was out of the suffocating room.

This continued for two more periods. Amora attended her AP classes that she shared with Inigo and Joel. After feeling fierce stares on her back when she sat in the front seats, she felt thankful initially for her fixed seat at the last row. But that didn't last for long. Students kept turning around to eye her with different emotions reflecting on their faces before returning their gazes towards the teacher.

Though Amora ignored all the judgmental stares, she couldn't shake off the feeling of two gazes fixed on her from either sides of her seat. She didn't bother to check who they belonged to because she was suffering from post incident crisis.

After her anger finally cooled down a little, though only a bit mind you, she wrapped her head around the fact that it was Inigo Nowell who stole her first kiss and that she slapped him, in front of the entire class. She felt like counting the remaining minutes that she had left to live.

The bell for lunch period rang and Amora quickly escaped the classroom to make her way towards the school's senior canteen area.

The senior canteen area was a special privilege that students in their senior year got to enjoy. It was larger than the normal canteen; the food was tastier and it could be accessed any time of the day, not being limited to just during lunch periods.

Walking through the hallways, Amora didn't dare to stop by her locker, fearing the heated gazes that followed her every step of the way. The news of her apparently 'assaulting' Inigo Nowell had travelled too far, too quickly.

She felt like shouting indignantly at the injustice; she was the victim, not him!

The case of unwanted stares got worse when she entered the cafeteria, making her small appetite disappear completely. She entered the spacious room filled with students to buy a drink- a chocolate milkshake, her favorite flavor.

Standing in line, she ignored all the surrounding busybodies who were no doubt gossiping about her.

"Some people are brave, while others are stupid and delusional. It isn't hard to guess which one she is, is it?" A high-pitched, sultry tone entered her ears, making her close her eyes and breathe deeply. The school slut has entered the scene. The situation can only get worse from here.

Kayla Patton, the popular cheerleader of the school and the typical snobby, mean harlot who likes to bully the weak and the 'ugly'. With her three trusty cronies always behind her, she thought she ruled the entire school, given her father was a major donor of the school.

Those who were bullied by them named them the 'Ersatz quartet,' meaning the artificial four. Their personalities were pretentious and fake, and their faces were plastic surgeries gone wrong. By caking their face with make-up and their skinny yet voluptuous bodies, they managed to look decent, but their skimpy outfits neutralized the small positive effect in their appearance. Still, they acted as if they were beauty divas who were gracing others with their stunning looks.

More like cursing others to put up with their ugly selves, is what Amora always thought.

The name 'Ersatz Quartet' quickly became famous and its use by the other students grew, while the four girls basked in the feeling of popularity. They didn't know the meaning of the word nor did they even try to find out. They weren't very gifted in the brains department either.

Amora knew she was talking about her. She had more or less known beforehand that she would become a target for many of Inigo's fangirls, out of which Kayla was at the number one spot.

'Time to face the music' she thought in her mind as she took her milkshake from the cafeteria staff and thanked him.