"They're all good." Riverpaw smiled. "I refilled all the food and water bowls before I closed their house up last night."
A voice caught her attention as two girls came around the corner. One of them was looking down at her phone and seemed to be talking to herself about something, but her friend grabbed her arm and pulled her back down the hall across the one they came from. They both had looked right at Charlie before panicking. "Wow…you…weren't joking about people being afraid of you, huh?"
Charlie chuckled quietly. "I'm glad to hear that. They're very lucky to have you as their owner." She states before looking up as well. She noticed their talking, and then them looking at her, seeing the fear flashing over their faces. She watched them run and she fet her heart crack. She wanted nothing more then to have friends, to not be as intimidating.
"No. I wasn't." Her voice came out cold, almost strangled. Her fist clenched before easing and she glanced at the other, offering a kind smile. "I need to head to class. See you around, Myshka."
Riverpaw sighed a bit shakily, giving a slight nod. "See you." She said. Maybe sooner than later? Part of her added hopefully.
She smiles a bit at that before nodding and heading off to her class. She sighed and hung her head. She was glad that at least now she had someone she could talk to.
As soon as Charlie disappeared around the corner, Riverpaw exhaled and relaxed against the wall, her legs shaking. She gripped her jacket above where her heart was. Why was Charlie so worried about her, anyway? It's not like she deserved such compassion, especially from someone she barely knew. Then again, that was how she and Danielle had become best friends, the bunny having protected her from Dax. Shaking her head harder this time, she headed down the opposite hall for her math class.
(Ye. To when, like, lunch?)
(coolio)
"Dude!"
Riverpaw was snapped out of her thoughts as she turned to the dark-toned shifter to her right, who had smacked her arm. She had been daydreaming for most the morning and Danielle had been trying to get her attention for the past…how long had she been talking? And what was she talking about? Where were they walking to? She glanced down at the pastel green and white lunch bag in her hand…right. Lunch. Riverpaw rubbed her arm and stood a little straighter. "S-sorry, what?"
"You've been spacing since first period, that's what. Are you okay?" Danielle asked, and Riverpaw stared for a second before giving a little nod. "Yeah, I-I'm… Sorry; You-Know-Who cornered me this morning and…"
"Oh. Ugh, god, I'm sorry. He didn't hurt you did he?"
He would've if Charlie hadn't been there. "No, but my shoulder's a little sore now." She shrugged. "A-and don't apologize for him; you can't control your cousin." Danielle scoffed at that, but nothing else was said on the matter, as usual.
They entered the cafeteria and spotted the other two members of their little group waiting by the doors to the courtyard. The four of them headed outside and settled in their usual spot under a big tree at the side of the school.
Charlie was stressed by lunch, her eyes glaring daggers into anyone who even looked at her in any kind of way. She hissed through her teeth as she settled where she always sat, under a tree away from most people. She pulled out her lunch and she sighed, eating slowly. It was a salad, water bottle, jerky, and an apple. When finished she stood and walked to the gym, waving to the coach before entering the weights room. No one was in here usually, so she had time to herself. She began working out, blasting MCR in the background.
Riverpaw was explaining what had happened after they'd left her alone during Homecoming.
"And that was it? How did you not, like…freak out?" Neil asked her, and she sighed heavily. "I…I mean, i-it was scary talking to someone new without help, but she…she was nice." She smiled a little. "She was really sweet. A-and this morning, she came and stopped the Sinister Four when they cornered me." Marcus almost choked on his drink. "W-wait, really!? How did- I mean-…s-so, even they're scared of her?"
"I-I guess so; as soon as she appeared, they got all nervous and…w-well, she was scary. But then she was really sweet and worried about me after they went away." Riverpaw took a bite of her sandwich and blushed a bit at the memory. She heard Danielle snicker and whisper something to Neil, who grinned and shrugged. She knew better than to question it.
When they were done, Danielle had to break away for something, so the rest of them were left to go to the gym - none of them had anything to do after lunch and Marcus liked to watch Neil work out before actual gym class started…and Riverpaw liked to watch Marcus watch Neil. When they got there, it took Riverpaw moment to realize who else was there. Oh. Oh dear. She followed the boys to the opposite side of the room, and neither of them seemed to notice Charlie as Neil set himself up, but her eyes kept drifting to her new…friend? She had let the girl into one of her houses just the other night, so she supposed that's what they were at this point. She hoped that was how Charlie saw it too, but a stronger part of her mind doubted it.
She was doing bench presses when she was vaguely aware that people entered. Charlie thought nothing of it as she exercised. She had changed into her usual work out clothes, a v-neck t-shirt and shorts that were supplied by the schools volleyball team. They were a bit short for her taste, but it was fine as long as she got to work out. pumped to the beat of the music, which was a faster song. By this time she was sweaty and her cheeks were flushed since she was working so hard. She had a lot of weight on her, about 400 lbs… on each side. Her record had been about 812lbs, but she wanted to break that. She had been asked by the coaches if she wanted to do wrestling or even boxing, but she had explained that she preferred weight lifting. It was only when she had finished her reps that she noticed anyone in the room with her. Charlie unplugged her headphones and smiled a bit. "Heya there, River." She greets politely. "Didn't expect you to be in here. It's pretty empty during lunch." She gulped down her water, wiping at her lip. She nods at the other two. If you looked carefully, soft blue scales rippled in the light, they were thin, but they were there. "I finished my reps, so I'm gonna hit the shower."
Marcus gave a little wave to Charlie as Neil nudged Riverpaw, seemingly trying to get her to talk. "U-um, yeah." The wolf squeaked. "I, uh, sometimes I come in here to watch Neil o-or to help out when Marcus or Danielle can't." Neil clicked his tongue and nodded his head at Marcus, who grabbed Riverpaw by the shoulders and pushed her over to Charlie. He smiled nervously at her and started whispering to Riverpaw. "Ask her if she wants to go out with us to-"
"Go out!" He was cut off by Riverpaw's exclamation, so he sighed and looked up at the tall girl. "Um, h-hiya. You wouldn't happen to be free later, would you?" He asked.
Charlie sips at her water as she stood there, waiting patiently for the other to speak. "That's sweet. Your friends are lucky to have someone like you watching their back." She says kindly. She raised a brow when one of the boys pushed River forward and whispered in her ear. She couldn't tell what they were saying but she jumped slightly.when River said two blatant words. "Go out?" She looked at the boy in a confused manner before listening to his words. A small smile twitched at the corner of Charlie's lips before she nods. "Yeah. I'm free later." She shrugged.
"Then would you uh, w-would you want to come to the park with us after school?" Marcus tilted his head a little, rubbing Riverpaw's shoulders to try to comfort her and get her out of this somewhat dazed state. He was only about two inches taller than her, so he didn't have to lean far to rest his head on her shoulder, his golden, cyan-highlighted hair brushing her cheek to help ground her. She subtly reached back and tapped his stomach to let him know she wasn't totally out of it.
Charlie shrugged. "I might as well. Sure." She offers a kind smile towards them and rubs the towel over her face. "Thanks for the invite." She sets her hands on her hip before raising a brow at the two of them. They seemed awfully close- No. Absolutely not. None of that. She sighed quietly and ran a hand through her hair. "I'll see you after school then. But I need to take a shower."
"O-okay." Riverpaw squeaked. Marcus moved aside, gently taking Riverpaw with him, so they weren't blocking her way. "Sure thing. Just, uh, meet us by the apple tree at the side of the school later." He said.
Charlie smiled at them before nodding. "Apple tree it is." She agrees before walking towards the showers, glancing at Riverpaw and smiling a little bit. She quickly showered before heading to her next class. She hoped things would be better soon.
The moment Charlie was gone, Riverpaw's ear pinned back, and she covered her face and groaned while Neil and Marcus laughed at her. "Oh, you poor, useless lesbian." Neil chuckled. "Shut up!" Came a muffled yip. Marcus led her to a bench to sit down and wait for Neil to finish his workout. Once their time was up and people started filing into the gym, Neil bid goodbye to his younger friends as they headed off to meet Danielle for their next class.
By the time dismissal came around, Riverpaw was muttering to herself as the quartet exited the building and walked to the tree. It was only a little far out, on a hill that overlooked the courtyard.
Charlie hummed softly as she walked down the halls, seeming in a better mood then she was this morning. She didn't have her terrifying scowl or hatred in her eyes. She seemed relaxed, content. Her chin was held high, her shoulders squared up, and confidence around her aura. She settled in for her next class, handing her assignments in and letting her mind wander about the cute girl named Riverpaw.
When she was released from school she scurried up to the hill where the apple tree was. She saw the group and waved a bit, shouldering her bag.
"See? There she is." Marcus said to Riverpaw, who smiled and nodded. "Hey!" Danielle called, waving back. As much as Riverpaw tried not to, a small part of her had somewhat expected Charlie to bail on them. It wasn't that she thought the girl was that kind of person, but…she barely knew Riverpaw, let alone her friends, so why did she even consider hanging out with them? It confused her greatly but, regardless, she wasn't complaining much.
Charlie walked to their group and offered a kind smile. "Thanks for offering me the option to hang out." She smiled a little at Riverpaw. Part of her throughout the day made her wonder whether or not it was a joke that the four of them were pulling- she knew that those kinds of thoughts were irrational, but she couldn't help but fear it. She blew out a breath through her teeth and sighed.
"Of course." Neil said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his dark red jacket. "River said you protected her from the Sinister Four this morning, so it's the least we can do for helping out our girl." He, Marcus, and Danielle turned to walk down the path that led off-campus. Riverpaw looked up at Charlie and gave a little smile. "Hi."
"Sinister four?" She asks curiously. "Ah, the idiots." She shakes her head before looking down. "Got it." She chuckles, "So where to?" She asks as she tilts her head to the side before looking at the two of them. Charlie smiled warmly at Riverpaw. "Hello. How are you?" Her eyes are gentle, kind.
"Silver Flower, the second-best bakery in town. Another friend's mom owns it." Neil answered over his shoulder. "Only rivaled by The Golden Carousel." Marcus added, a bit of annoyance in his voice. Riverpaw walked alongside Charlie, the other three in front of them. "I-I'm fine. How are you?"
"Sounds delicious." Charlie replies softly, her eyes shutting happily. "I've never been." She rubs the back of her head. "But sounds like there's a rivalry going on." She laughs before looking towards Riverpaw. "I'm better, now at least." She sighed. She looked away.
"Good." Riverpaw looked ahead, watching Danielle's ears flop about to distract herself. "Actually," Danielle called over her shoulder, "it's less of a rivalry and more so a bunch of borderline pompous jerks flaunting the fact that they have a recommendation score that's like, half a star higher than Silver Flower."
"And only because the daughter of the owner is friends with the family that owns some company who are totally biased," Neil said.
Charlie smiled a little. "I don't usually have sweets. Gotta keep in shape if I want to get into the Olympics." She hummed a little before glancing at Riverpaw. "You okay? You seem a bit flushed." She chuckles quietly. She looks at the others and laughs softly. "I probably couldn't tell the difference. Sweets taste the same to me." She shrugged hopelessly.
"Hm? Oh, uh, I'm fine." Her voice shook a little, which made her clear her throat in hopes that Charlie didn't take notice.
"Trust us, there's a difference," Neil said. "We can go to the Carousel, too, if you wanna see."
Charlie glanced at the other and stopped, placing her hands gently on Riverpaws forehead. "Are you sure?" She asks kindly. "You're a bit warm." She gently pulls away. "Tell me if it gets worse and I can take you home, okay?" She looks up and slowly pulls away. "As for visiting both, that would be fun. I'd really enjoy that."
