The New Friend

ELECTION DAY.

"Interesting. Miss Queen Bee appears to be winning this election as well," Aria said as she handed me a box of cold chocolate milk.

"Thank you," I said. I drank the box through the straw. "Ah, chocolate milk is delicious!" I exclaimed.

"I know, that's why we're friends; we both like chocolate milk," Aria agreed. We clapped our chocolate milk boxes as if they were wine glasses.

We are currently in the gym, counting and validating the ballots from today's election of new sets of SC. We were far away from the gym stage where the teachers were counting votes, but there was a large LED screen that displayed the automatic updates of the votes.

I am overjoyed to see Isabella advancing in the polls. She's truly unique. Students at Justice High adore her. It was unfortunate for the other candidates because their votes did not even match Isabella's.

There were two full slates of candidates for SC and one independent candidate for president.

Isabella's rival for the presidency was Clark Sanchez, a fellow junior and classmate. He was the only one who had a complete lineup. He's always in the top two between me and Isabella's academic rankings.

The other candidate is Jackson Perez, also known as Jack. Captain of the well-known basketball team.He's a senior now. He decided to run at the last minute. He was only popular with girls because he was attractive, tall, and a good basketball player. But, in general, that is all he has to offer. I despise the guy.

Regardless of their fame, their votes were insignificant compared to Isabella's. My stepsister will not be addressed as the "queen bee" of the school if she is not the true queen of the school. I'm overjoyed for her.

I was not even concerned about the outcome, and I am confident Isabella will win. Actually, I was just here to do nothing. Nah, but the truth is that I was waiting for the result, so I'll be the first to send it to our parents. Not with Isabella because I know her team will do it for her. And it's best not to call or text her if we're at school because she's always with the bullies. Those girls have no concept of personal space or privacy. So I'll just congratulate Isabella at home later.

"What are you thinking?" I overheard Aria inquire.

"Nothing, let's get some chocolate milk before we go home," I just said.

"You're smiling, but you're still a creep and weirdo."

"All right, back to you."

"Do the same feathers flock together?"

"Yeah."

I stick my tongue out. Aria did the same. We're still as childish as ever. Then we laugh. Because we're on the upper corner level of the gym seats, no one will be able to hear us. I returned my attention to the screen. Isabella won, as expected, after the counting and validation.

"I'm glad you're back," I said to Aria as I stood up. I took a quick screenshot of the screen. I immediately sent it to our family group chat.

"You should; you're a mess without me," she said.

"Pft. Conceited much?" I sat back beside her and finished my chocolate milk. "But seriously, thank you for coming back," I said somberly.

"Hey, don't thank me. I should not have left you, and I'm sorry I wasn't there when you needed me the most," Aria said solemnly.

"Aish, that's fine. What matters is that you're back, safe and sound," I said as I stood up. I extended my other hand to her.

"I'm glad to be back," she said, taking my hand in hers. We exited the gym after she stood up.

"Should we stop at the convenience store?" Aria inquired as we approached the gate entrance.

"We shall; I told you I wanted to buy and drink chocolate milk again," I said, wrapping my arms around her shoulder.

Isabella and Aria are smaller than me, so I can just do that with them. In any case, they are the same height.

"All right, you'll pay for what I'm going to buy, right?" she inquired. We kept walking.

"Are you really that broke, Bon-bon?" I joked.

"Come on, just this once, please," she pleaded.

"How many times have I heard "just this once" from you since we've known each other?"

"Aish. I smell stinginess here," she mumbled.

"I heard that," I said, jumbling her hair.

"What? Don't do that," she grumbled, trying to avoid what I was doing to her hair, but she couldn't because I was wrapping my other arm around her shoulder.

"The sight was so sweet that I think I'm going to puke."

Then I heard that familiar, bitter voice.

"They're really shameless, doing public affection inside the school grounds," said the other irritated person.

I don't need to look back to see who they are. I'm sure the girls were the charmer bullies. But instead of stopping, I just kept walking, and before Aria could respond, I gently squeezed her shoulder as a way of telling her to ignore them.

"Whoa. Is the mad girl growing some balls now? She's ignoring you, Scar," Paisley said.

I didn't hear any response from the bully's leader, but I noticed she was now standing in front of us, arms crossed across her chest. She's swift.

Scarlett obstructed our path, so Aria and I came to a halt. I attempted to walk in the opposite direction, but she followed us in the same direction. Scarlett is having a good time doing this with her usual smirk on her face.

"You're so annoying," Aria remarked. I wasn't looking at her, but I could tell she was upset.

I was just staring at the bully's leader.

"You're even more annoying," Scarlett retorted. She didn't even look at Aria. But she's still grinning at me.

I saw my stepsister and Claire standing on the other side. A few students passed us, but they didn't want to get in trouble, so they just passed us or walked in another direction.

I even heard other students congratulating Isabella on her victory and taking selfies with her.

"Do you want to fight, Lee? I'll make sure you can't get up in the morning after I punch your ugly face." Paisley, who had also appeared, was now very close to Aria and challenged her to a fistfight.

I squeeze Aria's shoulder even harder. Aria, like Paisley, is prone to rage.

"Hey, let's go; we need to celebrate Isabella's victory," Claire said, taking Scarlett's arm. "There are still a lot of students. We don't want to get in trouble, right? It's bad for Isabella's reputation as well. Let's do this discreetly another time," she urged them.

Scarlett remained unmoved by Claire's words.

"Girls, let's go," Isabella said, grabbing Paisley, who was locked in a stare-down with Aria. "I just won the election. Don't waste your energy on these people. Let's do it another time," she said cautiously as some students stared at us.

"You're fortunate, mad girl, but not for long," Scarlett warned. It was only a few seconds, but I could see her glare at my hand on Aria's shoulder. Then she turned away.

Paisley was still staring menacingly at Aria. Isabella had to gently yank her away from us. They were gone, and that was the only time I exhaled. I had no idea I was holding my breath during the encounter.

"Are you okay?" Aria inquired. I noticed the concern in her eyes.

"Yes, I'm glad I was holding your shoulder when that happened," I said shyly. My knees were trembling. Even after many years, I still can't get used to bullies.

"Can you walk?"

"Of course I am. I am not disabled, but are you going to give me a piggyback ride if I can't?"

"Are you insane? Look at our height difference, plus I'm lighter than you, so you should be the one giving me a piggyback ride," she exclaimed.

I laughed softly.

"Forget about it; you know I'm weaker than you, even though I'm taller; instead, I'll buy you ice cream or whatever you want."

"Really?" she asked, her face lit up like a child. Aria is actually considered cheap. I mean that her happiness was superficial.

"Yeah."

"Promise?"

"Promise!"

"All right! Let's go!" She was almost dragging me to the convenience store.

Even though Aria comes from a wealthy family, she is very down-to-earth and practical. Maybe it's because her father is a public servant that she's like that. And if that's the case, I'm grateful to her family.

Bon-bon is just a simple, low-key, cute girl. She only appears challenging when in conflict with someone, but she is relatively easy to get along with. She's amusing, kind, and welcoming. Aria isn't all that bad in the classroom, either.

By the way, Aria is a blackbelt in martial arts and the current captain of that club. I'm not sure if Paisley was aware of it, but she's not going to win a physical fight against Aria. I know Aria will not use her martial arts skills to harm others, but you never know when a person's patience will run out. That is precisely what happened to me before.

But who knows? Paisley may be smaller, but she is always in trouble and very feisty. The irony is that Aria's father is the Mayor of Justice, and Paisley's father is the Vice Mayor.

Anyway, when we arrived at the convenience store, we were fortunate that we were the only ones there. So we decided to hang out and sit there.

"By the way, we haven't hung out in your house once since I got back here, and I really miss your room, you know," Aria said out of nowhere as she licked her ice cream.

I almost spilled the chocolate milk I was drinking.

"Ah... that... Well, my house is really messy, and your house has a lot of food and maids, so it's better to hang out there," I said, not looking at her.

Aria and I used to be best friends, and we still are. But it wasn't the same before, when I could just tell her everything. Even though I still tell her some things, hmm... You understand what I mean; I can't tell her about the other things going on in my life right now. She was aware that my father had remarried, and that was it. She hasn't met Mom Elizabeth yet, but I always talk about her and how Mom Elizabeth treats me like I'm her real daughter.

"You have a point there, and there are a lot of gadgets to play with within the game room," she agreed.

Aria's home is a mansion. So there was a lot of space and a wide range of activities available in their home.

"Do you want to go swimming or shopping this weekend?" she inquired once more. I almost laughed when I saw how messy her face was while eating her ice cream. She has ice cream all over her mouth.

"You're such a messy eater," I chuckled as I wiped the mess from her mouth with the tissue we'd bought.

"Thank you," she said casually as she drank her chocolate milk. "So, how about the weekend?"

"Hmm... I'll think about it, and if Dad isn't coming home, I'll let you know," I said.

"Let's invite Madison as well."

"That's a great idea; I thought you'd forgotten about me," Madison said. She approaches us, her tray laden with food and chips. She sat beside Aria.

Aria and I couldn't stop laughing.

"What?" Madison, perplexed, inquired.

"Are you that hungry?" Aria questioned.

"Yes, I am. I was practicing all day and forgot to eat," Madison responded, munching on her food. There were chips, chocolate milk, ice cream, and cup noodles.

"Aww, poor Madison. Is it difficult to be a celebrity at school?" I inquired.

"Yes," she said, her mouth full of food.

She was starving. But Madison is always hungry. Anyway, Madison became a celebrity at school because she was so talented and good at singing. Madison is a multi-instrumentalist who can also sing. She was actually starting to showcase her skills and talent outside of Justice by participating in talent shows and performing song covers. She also has a band at school, which she was referring to when she mentioned the practice.

Madison became our friend after she transferred. And I've proven that I completely misjudged her the first time I saw her. Madison was also very friendly and funny. She also protects me from bullies like Aria. When Madison joined us, she also became one of the charmer bullies' prey.

So much for that; she was literally eating nonstop. I just hope she doesn't choke.

We returned home after relaxing in the convenience store. I'm really enjoying high school right now. It was all thanks to Aria, Madison, and my stepsister, Isabella.

Nothing lasts forever, but I am bearing every painful event in my life because they are with me. That makes me happy and thankful.