WARNING: 
EMOTIONAL CONTENT

Includes bullying, mentions of panic attacks, emotional distress.

ANVI'S POV

Do you know that feeling when everything in your life is going great?

I've got great friends.
Tabitha recently invited me to hang out with her, Jay and Cassie to talk about the book she's writing.
I was a bit nervous, because whilst I like Cassie, I haven't really spoken to Jay that much.
He was really nice though!
Sutton and I are closer than ever.
KJ, Luka and I have sort of formed our own trio.
Jace and I get along great, which is something I never thought I'd say when we first moved in.

My classes are going well.
Ok so, they're actually a lot harder than I expected, but the content is really interesting and all of my lecturers are patient.
One of them tells the cheesiest dad jokes ever, but my classmates and I have actually come to enjoy hearing them.

My family are happy.
The first term was tough, because we had never been apart for more than a few days before.
They've settled into their new routine though, and we make time to call each other every day.

And my job.
Oh gosh, my job is the best!
I literally can't express how thankful I am that Venn took a chance on me.
And that my shifts match Bolin's about ninety five percent of the time.

Today's the exception.
He's covering a shift at his family's cafe. Tabitha was supposed to cover his shift, but she couldn't find the time to.
It's ok though.
I've gotten to know the regulars pretty well, and the other waiters and waitresses.

So yeah.
Everything's finally fallen into place.

I don't think I could be any happier than I am now.

"Oh, not you. I thought we were going to get good service today", snarled Anu, her pack of friends giving the dirtiest looks to Anvi.

Oh God no.

¤¤¤

Back at the flat, Jay and Cassie were invited over for dinner.
Sutton grabbed a stool from her room, and one from Tabitha's.
She strategically placed one stool next to KJ. When Cassie looked at both stools, unsure of which one to sit on, Jay made the executive decision for her.

"Oh Cass, why don't you sit next to KJ?", he suggested, a knowing grin appearing on his face.
Cassie shot him a look that said
'I'll kill you later'
but Jay just smiled back at her.

"Uh, ok", said Cassie.

Spaghetti hoops a la can were on the menu, courtesy of KJ.
Ok, so he had this big elaborate plan to make lasagne for the group, despite it not being that long ago that Sutton was teaching him how to poach an egg.
The lasagne sheets melted together and had an odd gummy texture.
He left the assembled lasagne in the oven for way too long, resulting in a dish as black as coal.
He did add a few seasonings to the spaghetti hoops though.
You know, for that homemade feeling.

Cassie rearranged her spaghetti hoops in a circle around the bottom of the bowl, before piling the remaining ones on top in an 'X' formation.
She looked up to see KJ looking at her, a confused expression on his face.

Cassie chuckled nervously, a little embarrassed that he saw her.

"Uh, it's just a habit that started when I was little", explained Cassie.
"My dad thought it was adorable so he never really stopped me."

"Well it is adorable", smiled Jay, making Cassie playfully roll her eyes at him.

"So, what does everyone want to talk about?", asked Sutton.

"I wanted to ask Luka about his music recital", said Jay.
"Tabitha was telling us it's soon?"

Luka nodded.
"Oh, um, yeah.
Next week."

"How are you feeling about it?", asked Cassie.
"I bet you're excited."

"Well... more nervous, to be honest with you", admitted Luka.

"Nervous?", questioned Sutton.

"It's the first big recital I'm doing here.
I don't know how the crowd will react."

"Wait but you absolutely smashed your Music Society audition, and that was in front of a big crowd", reminded Jace.

"The crowd for the music recital is going to be a lot bigger.
Plus, I had you guys there with me at my audition."

"And you'll have us at your recital too", reassured KJ.
"You're going to be fine, Luka."

Luka smiled gratefully.
He was still nervous, but it felt good to know his friends would have his back.

"And hey, if you get nervous and need help stalling, we all know how to play instruments", reminded Tabitha.
"Well, except Jay."

"Wow bait me out why don't you?", joked Jay.

"Wait, you can play an instrument, Cassie?
I don't think you've ever mentioned that before.
Which one?", asked Sutton.

"The drums", replied Cassie.
"But I've recently started learning how to play the electric guitar."

KJ's eyes widened when he heard that.

"You're learning the electric guitar?
That's what I play", said KJ.

"It is?", asked Cassie.

KJ nodded.
"It's pretty hard though.
Well, it was for me anyway.
Took me a while to get the hang of things, but then it was kind of like second nature to me."

"That's what it was like for me with drums", said Cassie.

"I could, uh, help you out if you want?", offered KJ.
"If you find it hard."

Cassie's eyes widened in excitement.
Jay cleared his throat, attempting to signal to his friend that she should play it cool.
KJ liked her excitement.
He assumed it was excitement at the idea of learning how to play an instrument, not about spending time with him though. Cassie came across as genuine, something KJ didn't know people his age could be, until he met his roommates.

"I'd love that!", beamed Cassie.
"How about we meet up tomorrow?
We can get dinner and see a–"

"Uh, Cass, can you pass me the salt?
I'm desperate for it", interjected Jay, hoping he'd get the message across to her.

"Oh, is it not seasoned enough?", asked KJ.

"Oh!
Nah, it's lovely KJ", assured Jay.

"Why'd you need salt then?", asked Cassie.

Frozen—his hand somehow suspended in mid air, Jay stared at Cassie.
How was she not getting what he was saying?

The roommates chuckled, clearly catching on to the situation.
Sutton dabbed a tissue on her lips to muffle her laughs, while Luka resorted to just shoving spoonfuls of spaghetti hoops into his mouth.
Jace chugged water to suppress his laughter.
Tabitha didn't even try to hide her amusement.

Jay's phone vibrated, offering him sweet release from the awkwardness he seemed to have created.

"Oh!
Guys, I'm so sorry.
My mum wants me home to help her with something", apologised Jay.
"After getting something sweet from the Baked Potato of course because my mum gets a kick out of teasing her diabetes apparently."

"Oh, are you sure you can't stay a bit longer?", asked Tabitha.

Jay shook his head.
"I'm sorry.
Maybe another time though.
Listen, thank you, all of you, for inviting me. And obviously, you guys know you're welcome at mine any time."

"Thanks, Jay", said Luka.

Sutton smiled.
"Yeah, that's really kind of you."

"We'll take you up on that offer", said Jace, before looking at Tabitha.
"Hey, maybe we could do a game night with Jay and Cassie?"

Ordinarily, the idea of sharing something as sacred as game night with anyone else would've disgusted Tabitha.
But Tabitha had grown to really love Jay and Cassie's company.
She definitely saw them as worthy.

"Yes, that would be amazing!", smiled Tabitha.

Just as Jay was about to leave, Jace rushed over to him, a small metal lunch box in his hand.

"Hey, do you think you'd be able to give this to Anvi when you go to the Baked Potato?", asked Jace.
"She's working late and I know for a fact that she won't eat unless someone makes her, so... that's for her."

Jay nodded.
"Yeah sure, I'll make sure she gets it."

¤¤¤

Loud, ear-drum bursting laughter erupted from Anu's table.
One of her friends had been pelting customers with rolled up pieces of paper straws.
Well, not all of the customers.
Just two in particular.
Anvi recognised them as Luka's friends. They always had their heads in books, and were very timid.
Anvi couldn't get more than a few words out of them.

"Anvi, we need to get that lot out of here", said Elodie, one of the waitresses.

"Yeah, they're annoying the other customers", said Wren, another worker.

As the oldest employee on shift, the other employees looked to Anvi to sort it out. Elodie had only been working there for about a month and despite Wren working here for almost two years, this was the eighteen year old's first ever job, so he didn't want to risk losing it.

Anvi just stared at Anu's group, hoping that they'd somehow leave that way.
Jay walked into the Baked Potato, his smile brightening when he saw Anvi.

"Hey, Anvi!
You alright?"

Anvi quickly plastered on a small smile when she saw Jay.

"Hi.
I'm good thanks.
What can I get you?"

"Uh, just a box of four stawberry donuts please", replied Jay, placing the metal lunch box on the counter.
"Jace said to give you this."

"What is it?", asked Anvi, taking the box.

"Some food.
He wanted to make sure you were eating."

Anvi smiled at Jace's thoughtful gesture. "Great, I'll tell him thank you."

Anvi glanced over at Anu a few times, something Jay picked up on.
The pair had only had a handful of conversations since meeting, but Jay saw Anvi as the kind of person who really focused on listening and investing their time in other people she was conversing with. Something just felt off here.
He followed her gaze to Anu's table, an 'ah' escaping his lips.

"I see.
That's Anu, right?
So I'm guessing that group of trolls are her friends?"

Anvi nodded.

"Are they giving you a hard time?"

"They're giving everyone a hard time", said Anvi.
"And now my co-workers are looking at me to get rid of them."

"Can't Venn do it?", asked Jay.

Anvi shook her head.
"He's not in."

"I could talk to them for you?"

"No, I... I appreciate it, but that'll probably just make things worse."

"Well... don't let her win."

"That's easier said than done", said Anvi, letting out a long sigh.
"Things were finally going well for me."

"Well then you can't let her ruin that.
She doesn't deserve to have that kind of power over you.
No one does."

Anvi frowned.
"That's what I told myself when she came to our party.
I told myself I wouldn't let her scare me anymore."

"It's not like it's easy to forget about the way she made you feel though.
But think of it like this—she's just trying to live out her mean girl fantasy.
She's living in the past, but you... you're actually thriving now.
You're living your best life.
So, really?
You've already won."

Anvi smiled.
"I... I never really thought about it like that. Thank you, Jay."

"You're welcome.
Now go over there with your head held high, mate."

After Jay left, Anvi turned back to Anu's group.
Customers close to them, specifically ones who hadn't ordered yet, were getting up and leaving.
Anvi looked at her colleagues, who were staring at her with expressions of desperation.
She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply.
She felt a sense of calm wash over her.
She clenched her fists before opening her eyes.
Determined, Anvi walked over to Anu's table. 

"Are you going to order?", she asked. 

Anu's smile dropped.
Her top lip curled up in disgust. 

"When we're ready", she replied. 

"It's just, you've been her for a while and you haven't ordered anything", said Anvi. "Paying customers need those seats."

Anu scoffed.
"What, are we not good enough to meet your standards or something?"

"People come here to dine or work.
You guys aren't doing either of those things. If you're not going to order I'm afraid you're going to have to leave."

Anvi felt a sense of power when she said those words.
In her mind, she wasn't just telling her to leave the cafe.
She was telling her to leave her life. 

Anvi's demand caught other people's attention.
Some of the nearby customers were nodding in agreement, and Elodie and Wren were smiling.
Anu looked around at all of the people siding with Anvi. 

"She's right.
Don't waste their time", said a customer. 

Anvi smiled. 

Her blood simmering, Anu stood up.
⁰She took a step closer to Anvi, their faces only a few inches away from each other. Anvi wanted to take a step back, but she knew that Anu was encroaching on her personal space with that exact goal in mind. She refused to give Anu that satisfaction. 

"You think you're so special, don't you?", asked Anu. 

"I'm just trying to do my job", responded Anvi. 

Anu held Anvi's gaze for a few more seconds.
She broke away, looking around at the other customers.
A smirk appeared on her face when she looked at one of the nearby tables.
She reached out and grabbed the untouched raspberry and mango smoothie that was on the table.
Seizing it, Anu poured it all over Anvi's head, not missing a beat. 

Anvi's whole body tensed up as Anu's friends laughed cruelly.

¤¤¤

Meanwhile, the other roommates were tidying up.
Luka and Jay were cleaning the table, while Tabitha and Sutton did the dishes.
Cassie had just finished saying her goodbyes.

"Uh, thanks again for the food", said Cassie. "I had a really nice time."

"So did we", said Sutton.
"We definitely need to do this again some time.
Are you walking back home?
It is kind of late."

"No, I'm gonna call a taxi", replied Cassie. 

"Wait!
You shouldn't walk down all those stairs by yourself", said Tabitha. 

"I can use the lift–"

"I know!
KJ, why don't you walk Cassie down?", suggested Tabitha. 

Cassie's eyes widened and she shot Tabitha a quick glare.
Sutton, Luka and Jace caught on almost immediately. 

"Yeah, that's a great idea!", exclaimed Sutton.
"You don't mind, do you KJ?"

"Nah, that's fine", he said. 

"Oh... ok", said Cassie.
"If you're sure."

KJ nodded.
"You can tell me more about what it's like to play the drums."

Cassie smiled, her eyes lighting up.
"Sure!"

As Cassie and KJ left, Tabitha and Sutton exchanged a quick fist bump. 

KJ and Cassie closed the door behind them. Cassie opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when she saw two people coming out of the flat next to KJ's.

"Oh, hey!
It's... KJ, right?", asked Tyler.

KJ barely registered what Tyler said.
His eyes were glued to Joshua, who was standing right beside Tyler.
Confused as to why KJ didn't answer, Tyler turned to Cassie.

"Hi.
Sorry, I don't think we've met before", said Tyler.
"I'm Tyler, this guy here is Josh."

Cassie smiled.
"Hey.
I'm Cassie."

"Are you two together?", asked Tyler.

"No", replied KJ, bluntly, surprising Cassie.

It wasn't like she was expecting him to say yes, but she didn't like that his response was so quick.
He didn't even have to think about it.

"Well, that's a shame", said Joshua.
"KJ never really knew when he had a good thing."

"Oh, you two know each other?", asked Cassie.

"We're... old friends", replied Joshua.

The pause, followed by the way the phrase seemed to roll of his tongue, unsettled KJ. Even when he smiled at them, KJ could tell he was being fake.

"Uh, KJ, is Sutton in?", asked Tyler.

"Why?"

"Oh, I just wanted to ask her if she wanted to see a movie sometime?"

KJ narrowed his eyes, trying to determine whether Tyler had good intentions towards Sutton.
He shrugged, before crossing his arms.

"She's busy."

Tyler frowned.
"Oh.
Maybe another time then."

"So, Cassie... do you have a boyfriend?", asked Joshua.

"We have to go", said KJ, grabbing Cassie's hand.

He surprised both himself and Cassie when he did that.
He wasn't quite sure why he did it.
Maybe he just wanted to save her from Joshua's evil clutches.
Joshua seemed like a different person from the one who teased him at the fair though.

But KJ still didn't trust him.

¤¤¤

Back at the flat, the rest of the roommates had retired to their rooms.
Jace had actually been quite productive this week, so managed to complete all of the work he had to do.
He sat back on the sofa and watched a movie.
He picked up a few grapes from the bowl he had placed next to him, throwing a couple into his mouth. 

The door swung open, revealing Anvi, who was drenched in smoothies.
The colour ended up being a sort of brownish purple, but different colours became visible the harder you looked. Anvi's eyes were red and puffy.
Jay jumped up from the sofa, his jaw dropping. 

"Anvi! .What the h*ll happened?", he asked. 

Anvi looked from side to side, her eyes focused on the ground.
Her fists were clenched.
She was slightly hunched over, as if she was about to be sick.
Jace walked over to her, his shocked expression melting into one of concern.
He gingerly placed his hands on her arms. He moved his face closer to hers, hoping she would look at him. 

"Anvi...", he said softly, as if it was the most fragile thing in the world.

Finally, Anvi's eyes met with his.
Her bottom lip started to tremble, and she felt tears fill her eyes.
Jace closed the gap between them, wrapping his arms around her.
She hesitated at first, but after a few seconds, she hugged him back. 

"Anvi, what's going on?", he asked. 

"A-Anu and her f-friends were being mean again.
I tried to stick up for myself, but she just threw drinks at me.
Then they all started laughing.
It was so embarrassing!"

Hearing the noise, Tabitha opened her bedroom door.

"Oh my gosh, Anvi!
What happened to you?", asked Tabitha, running to her. 

"Anu", replied Anvi, breaking down into tears before she could elaborate. 

"Anu did this to you?", questioned a surprised Tabitha. 

Tabitha couldn't quite believe what she was hearing.
She and Bolin had made a pact to protect Anvi.
But here she was.
Crying her eyes out and covered in smoothies.
Her blood began to boil, a huge ball of rage building inside her. 

"I'm going to kîll that girl!", she yelled. 

"Tabitha!", called out Jace. 

Luka and Sutton emerged from their rooms. 

"What's going on?", asked Sutton.

Luka's eyes widened when he saw Anvi. "What happened?"

"That Anu witch dumped stuff on Anvi", frowned Tabitha.
"I'm gonna swing at her!"

Tabitha marched towards the door, full of purpose.
Sutton reached out and grabbed her, stopping her from leaving.
She struggled against Sutton's surprisingly strong grip.

"Let me go!", yelled Tabitha.

"No!
Fighting her will just cause more problems", said Sutton.
"Look, you think I don't want to see that demon get her aśs kicked?
But there's a time and a place, Tabitha."

Luka reached out and took Anvi's hand in his.
He guided her to the sofa, the others following.
Jace put an arm around her, pulling her closer when she hesitantly rested her head against his shoulder.
The smoothie was dripping onto his shirt, but he didn't care.
Sutton walked over to the trio.
She knelt down in front of Anvi and rested her hands on Anvi's knees.
The tear-stained girl looked at her.

"That's it, let all your tears out, sweetie", she said.

"I'm... I'm just sick of this!", exclaimed Anvi. "Why can't she just leave me alone?"

"She's just desperate for attention", said Luka.
"That says more about her than you.
She's obviously unhappy in her life, and feels like she has to bring other people down."

"Luka's right", said Jace.
"She would've done this to anyone else she was jealous of."

"But she didn't do it to anyone else!
She did it to me", said Anvi.
"How am I supposed to take back control when she lives right next door?
When she comes into my work place?
When she's on the same campus as me?"

None of her friends had the answers.
They so desperately wished they did, for Anvi's sake.
The trio exchanged a look, before nodding to each other.
They clung onto Anvi, letting her cry as much as she needed to.

Tabitha just watched, feeling both confused and angry.
Oh, and guilt.
Guilt for breaking her promise.
She knew she couldn't be with Anvi every time she was at the Baked Potato, but  Tabitha felt like the minute she found out Bolin wasn't working that shift, she should've stepped in and watched over Anvi herself.

And now, she wasn't even allowed to confront Anu.
She felt helpless, just like she did when she saw KJ having a panic attack.
This wasn't how Tabitha handled things.
She wasn't an observer.
A listener.
She was a doer.
She wholeheartedly believed in physically solving a problem.

She couldn't just listen to a friend cry their heart out.

KJ's face popped into her head.
The time she saw him having his panic attack.
The time where all she could do was sit next to him.
Let him know she was there.

It was like torture to her, but then she remembered the way KJ's face softened.
The way he let out a breath, not full of panic, but relief.

Because someone was there.

Tabitha looked back at her friends, crammed onto the sofa and wrapped in a tight embrace.
She walked behind the sofa and looked down at the others.
She wrapped her arms around Anvi's shoulders, resting her chin on Anvi's right shoulder.

And then she heard it.

A small breath of relief.

-----

Hi. 

This was not the original plot of this chapter. In fact, it wasn't until quite recently that I changed it. The group consoling Anvi wasn't going to happen, but I prefer this a lot more to what I had initially planned. In the short amount of time that they've know each other, the roommates really have become close friends. Them consoling Anvi showed the true strength of their friendship.

Some points:

This chapter focused on Anvi, but also KJ's experiences of bullying. The two of them really are going through it, bless them, and it remains to be seen how the pair will handle it moving forward. 

Tabitha's main character journey so far has been about maturing, in a sense. We saw that with her relationship with Jace, how she used to handle conflict, how she dealt with KJ's panic attack, and now this. I think a lot of people can relate to desperately wanting to help someone, but not knowing what the right words to say are. I don't always know what to say to help the people I care about. I just want to be able to hug them and take all of their pain away, but it sadly doesn't work like that. I know that's also a feeling many people can relate to. 

Jace and Anvi have come a long way, and we are seeing their friendship go from strength to strength. They're a very nice duo to write for. 

What are your thoughts on this chapter?

LeMystical-Puffle

ruesbennett

ejsandfarkleslovebot

whoizeden