I was picking at my food as I sat with the rest of our friends during lunch break. I haven't spoken to Shelby since that stunt she pulled on Denise in Biology class, and I still don't wish to.

I know Denise can be a bitch most of the time but she didn't deserve that.

The silence that surrounded us was so uncomfortable as I watched my friends looking back and forth between Shelby and I, including Miles who was sitting right next to her. Everyone was walking on eggshells, looking around the table awkwardly, with a glint of curiosity and unease in their eyes. They were eating incredibly slow and silently that you could hear a pin drop.

"Hey, if you don't want your fries, can I have them?" Spencer whispered next to me, not really reading the room, and I glared at him.

"No." I said firmly as I finally ate one of them.

"Geez Ty, just the no would have been okay. You're honestly breaking my heart right now." Spencer said, with mock sadness.

I just gave him a side glance as my only response.

I almost swallowed harshly when I found Shelby's unwavering and icy gaze on me. Before I could even take my eyes off her, she turned to Miles.

"You know, babe, I just realized that some people are just ungrateful." She said, giving me a small glance to make sure I knew that she was talking about me, before she went back to her salad. "I mean, you go out of your way to help them then they just plain ignore you instead of thanking you." She continued before taking another forkful of her salad.

Miles silently turned to look at me, his face unreadable as we exchanged glances, along with unspoken words. We needed to talk and I was in trouble with him. I knew that. But that will be dealt with later. Everyone else at the table looked at me questioningly, seemingly invested to see what my response would be to Shelby.

Then someone else who wasn't reading the room suddenly decides to speak.

"Are you talking about Tyler? Because she's the only one here who's been ignoring you and the only one you are giving a death glare right now." Oliver ignorantly said.

Derrick roughly nudged Oliver, who was too occupied with his bagel.

"OWW!" He shouted out, "What the hell is wrong with you man?"

"You deserved that." Miles said aloud.

Shelby quickly swallowed her food and shook her head. "No he doesn't. He's completely right. Tyler is acting like an ungrateful bitch right now."

I grabbed the sharp knife I just used to cut my burger in half and plunged it into the table, missing Spencer's hand by a mere centimetre. The man practically screamed when the knife landed.

"Shit! Tyler, your anger is directed at the wrong person." He said with a panicked voice.

I swallowed the last bit of my burger and turned to everyone on the table, and sure enough, they were giving me fearful glances, their eyes widened.

"You know, I think that there's a prissy heartless bitch sitting among us." That's when I turned to the one and only person. "Yes, that's you Shelby," I started. "Unlike you, I will not beat around the bush and not address you directly."

Spencer slow-clapped and leaned back in his seat as he smirked, eating his food slowly as he enjoyed the show.

"You are the most fake and selfish person I know! You know you did that to Denise for your own benefit. All Denise did was say a couple of rude things, but what you did..." I shook my head, "You could've ruined her entire life over some stupid high school feud! Shelby you know I love you, you're my best friend, but I won't support what you did today."

I was honestly hoping that the words I used right now would soften her heart up, that she'd finally realise her mistake. But obviously, I was wrong.

"And right now, you're a fucking pain in my ass." She said venomously as her cold sharp gaze remained on me. "Up until now, you're the only girl to stay on my good side for this long. Don't fuck up for yourself over some bitch who doesn't even give a fuck about you. You know how I am with traitors."

I laughed to myself in disbelief.

"You should know me well enough to know that I don't like pussies. So get your fucking act together." She ordered, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

"You conniving, conceited, selfish, two-faced asshole." I gave up on holding back any longer and her jaw dropped, along with everyone else at the table except Miles, as he looked down with a small smile.

"Oh shit." Spencer laughed as he relaxed further into his chair.

"The only person here who needs to get their act together is you." I told her. "Use all those beauty products on your face and maintain that figure all you like, but it still doesn't change the fact that you're ugly and rotten on the inside."

She clenched her jaw as her eyes hardened, the heat rising in her cheeks. Reaching for the bottle of juice on her table, she was about to throw it my way when Miles instinctively held onto it.

"Let go." She gritted her teeth in anger, as she struggled against his hold.

"No. Stop it."

She scoffed. "Fuck, are you seriously taking her side after what she just said to me? What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"You're not going to throw that bottle at her." He said with finality as he took the bottle out of her hand.

"And why the hell not? She deserves it." She talked back.

"What are you trying to prove?" Trish interrupted. "Tyler's not wrong. You fucked up today and you're getting angry because you're not getting the validation you wanted from all this."

Shelby glared at her. "Shut up and stay out of this. Whether you all agree or not, it doesn't change the fact that it happened and I don't care what you fucking think."

I shook my head and turned to leave. "I can't stand to look at you right now."

I walked past the other unsuspecting kids in the cafeteria and closed the door behind me.

As soon as I left the cafeteria, I made my way to the nearest locker and kicked it hard, letting out a groan of frustration. Sometimes I just don't get Shelby. How can she be so heartless that she's practically making Denise pay her entire life for their petty high school feud?

Suddenly feeling like I want to throw up, I headed towards the bathroom. Practically running, I head into a cubicle and lock the door behind me while I threw my guts out.

It's only after a while of puking my guts out that I realise that I can hear a cry. It's a sad cry, one that seems like it's already been exhausted as it's been let out for too long.

Grabbing a tissue and wiping my mouth thoroughly before flushing it, I made my way out and saw a figure in the corner of the bathroom all hunched up. I saw the dark hair and immediately recognised Denise's figure. I quietly walked over to her and stood beside her as I bent over slightly to rub my hand on her back soothingly, unable to stop myself. I felt the muscles on her back tense as soon as my hand touched her.

She immediately stopped crying and brought her head up quickly. Along with that, her arm came flying towards me which I couldn't duck due to being caught off guard. So the back of her hand immediately met with my nose.

The sudden impact caused me to lean back and my hand immediately went to my nose.

"Okay, ow!" I said aloud as I removed my hand from my nose.

"Oh... sorry." She apologised. I was about to tell her it was okay but something seemed to have shifted in her as her eyes turned into slits as she realised it was me. "Actually, no, I take it back!" She said, coming up to standing and closing in on me as my back hit the wall.

She angrily pushed me against the wall. "You and your best friend are the reason I'm like this and you want to come and pacify me? For something you've done? You have some nerve!" She raised her voice in anger, her tears long dried up.

The streaks were still visible on her cheeks and her mascara was all smudged. Not a pretty sight, if you ask me.

"Let's talk about how you and Shelby got me in shit for something I didn't even do! I know I give you a lot of shit but I honestly didn't think you'd retaliate in this way!" She gave me a look of disbelief.

"Denise—" I started.

"Shut up!" She rudely ordered.

I pursed my lips. "Look, Denise I really didn't—"

"Again, shut up!" she shouted out in anger, making me sigh and roll my eyes as I dropped my folded arms to my sides in hopelessness.

"You should have spoken up and told Miss Roberts that you and Shelby were lying about me at that time in the classroom," She let out a frustrated breath.

The guilt consumed me. "I know I should've. I'm sorry—"

"You always only talk when it's not needed! Like right this fucking moment! Like how you think speaking up now will change anything about the mess you've gotten me into. Like how you found it convenient to run to Shelby instead of facing me alone. You're such a coward!" She held the top of my t-shirt in her fists, her knuckles firmly planted on my neck.

Okay, now I was getting offended.

I removed her hands from my shirt. "Hands off! Are you not familiar with the ideology of personal space? I am not a coward. Shelby just happens to be my best friend and I tell her everything – well, not everything, but still! I did absolutely nothing to get you into trouble except for keeping quiet. I had no idea that Shelby was planning to do that, so you have to cut me some slack. You know I've never been involved in your feud with her, so why would I start now?"

Her eyes slowly started to soften as she took in my words. She knows it's true. The one she really has a problem with is Shelby. I've never gotten involved in their issues, neither did I want to. I've just been a silent spectator. The one time we had a fall out was during that argument in class, which she started.

"You didn't do anything?" She asked, surprisingly shocked and I shook my head as a response.

"Denise, I'm really sorry for what Shelby did. She took it too far but she doesn't want to acknowledge that. You know how she is. I'm apologising to you on her behalf, sooner or later, I know she will apologise too."

Denise clenched her jaw.

"Bullshit." she spat, "That bitch will soon get what she deserves. I sure hope someone close to her comes over and steals her man. That will get her off her high horse. Whether she gets dealt with by me or Karma does everything for me, she will definitely get what she deserves."

That touched a nerve within me as I swallowed hard at that. She unknowingly sent a shot straight to the heart. Because I know that the close person is me. The one who is betraying Shelby. The one who is stealing her man behind her back.