friends don't look at friends that way

Lunchtime was just as chaotic as before school, if not worse. Students were buzzing from being unable to talk to each other during classes, still on the high of seeing their friends they hadn't had the luxury of seeing during the summer. Freshmen gawked at the seniors - specifically the popular students - sophomores stayed separated from the rest of the classes, and juniors and seniors acted like they ruled the school. Sure, they did in a way - mainly the seniors, but they did it as if they were royalty in a town full of peasants.

Willa walked next to Wes, having run into him on her way to the cafeteria. She was silent, her mind running with thoughts consisting of her classes, her boyfriend, Chad, and now Oliver Porter - who definitely left his mark on her without even trying.

They were supposed to be meeting for lunch, and that made Willa nervous. Not only was she afraid as she's not usually the type of person to just bring a random person to her table of friends, but she was afraid of their reactions to him. She was afraid he wouldn't like her, or her friend group. That he'd decide that they're not worth being friends with, that they're people he doesn't want to associate himself with at Woodsboro High.

"Tough first day?" Wes asked, breaking the thoughts.

Willa glanced over at her twin, sending him a soft smile as he held the cafeteria door open for her. She thanked him as she walked through, her eyes immediately landing on the table that Chad sat at. 

Usually, Chad sat outside with the rest of their friend group. Today he wasn't, however, and instead sat with one arm around Liv while he spoke to his sibling.

Liv glanced from Chad to Willa, the smile on her face immediately disappearing. This caused Willa's face to grow red, but instead of continuing to stare she just looked at Wes. "It went as you'd expect any first day as a senior could go." She finally answered his question, grabbing the strap of her backpack.

"Make any new friends?" He asked, following her as she led the way toward where the tables were. They didn't need to bother with going through the line for the cafeteria, simply because they packed their own lunches.

"One, I think." She nodded.

"That's good, one more than I did." Wes smiled at her, "You still gonna be okay to walk to your shift at the theatre?"

"Of course," Willa said. "Have fun with Tara and the others. I'll be okay. If anything I'll just get someone else to walk me."

"Okay, as long as you're sure." Wes nodded, although he didn't seem to want to let it go just yet.

Instead of letting Wes change his mind, Willa changed the subject. "I'm meeting someone for lunch, I should probably get to looking for him."

Wes nodded, watching as she walked away from him. He then began to put his focus on his friend group who had all seemed to arrive before him.

"Hey, Wes, right?" The sound of a feminine voice caught his attention, and he looked over to see Chelsea Rosemary standing next to him. He hadn't even noticed her walk up due to his focus going from his sister to his friends, startling him for only a moment. "Sorry for the scare."

"Yeah, what's up?" He asked, feeling slightly awkward. His brows bunched together, confusion covering his face as he wondered why Chelsea was talking to him. They never really said much to each other unless forced to during school, so it was a wonder as to why she was talking to him now.

"I just saw that you were alone, and took the opportunity to talk to you... when nobody else is around of course." She winked, swaying side to side slightly.

"Right, why's that?" He asked, oblivious to her flirting.

"You've been catching my eye for quite a while now, I just haven't had the guts to talk to you." She reached out and touched his arm.

He glanced down at it before looking back up at her, his cheeks beginning to burn. "W-wait, you know me?" He asked. "You- never had the guts?"

"What can I say? I have the confidence until it comes to being interested in someone." She bit her lip, "Walk with me, yeah?"

Wes obliged, his palms beginning to grow sweaty as she slipped her arm through his. They walked past their group of friends, who shared a look with each other but didn't say anything. They then passed the table Willa's friends inhabited. 

Anna watched them with a sour look on her face, stabbing her tater tots harshly with her fork.

"Careful there, Lisey, you might hurt yourself." Joseph Snow, the one and only guy who was a constant in Willa's friend group, spoke.

Anna glared over at Jo, who had just sat down next to her. He sent her a slightly fearful look before clearing his throat and looking to Clodagh. "How's junior year treating you?"

He was only trying to change the subject, not liking the look his friend had given him. Instead of answering Jo, Clodagh looked to Anna. "Anna, it's not that serious. Chelsea Rosemary would be the last person Wes would do anything with."

Clodagh and Anna weren't close at all, simply just 'friends' because they were both friends with Willa and a few others throughout the group. She just wanted to seem as if she understood where Anna was coming from with her hopeless crush, but then again she did even if Anna didn't know.

Not to mention, it was hard for Clodagh to speak to Jo. Even if it was something as simple as answering how her first day of junior year was going, that changed nothing. She still found it tough to find the words to say without looking like a complete fool in front of her crush.

Crush would be the word for it, as she'd explain. She only recently came to realize her feelings for Jo, having been around him as much as she has thanks to Willa. She knows there's no chance of him reciprocating any feelings for her, so she finds it easier to avoid him rather than speak to him as she'll just fall harder for no reason.

This was in her eyes, anyway.

"Yeah, I agree," MJ said, nodding as she cut into the conversation. "Especially with how Chelsea treats Willa, it's surprising he's even willing to speak to her."

"I don't think Wes knows about Chelsea," Magnolia mumbled from her spot on the other side of Anna. "Willa doesn't tell Wes about that stuff and we all know it, the last thing she'd do is tell him she's getting bullied at school."

"I guess you're right about that, but still. It's completely out of character for Wes to be into someone like her." MJ nodded.

"Clodagh, how is junior year going?" Anna asked, ignoring all of the comments made by her friends. She looked at the other girl with a sarcastic smile, one showing she was more than frustrated with the topic of lunch.

"Good. Being in all advanced classes is tough, but I'm going to get to graduate with you guys which is what matters." Clodagh shrugged, answering the girl anyway.

"Where's Will?" Joseph asked, looking around the table as he noticed she was missing. "She not show up today or something?"

"She should be here," Magnolia said. "I don't know where she is."

"She was just with Wes a few minutes ago," Alicia Mackenzie spoke up from her spot, cutting into the conversation. "How did you guys not notice her and I did?"

"We were busy chatting," MJ shrugged, "Plus you tend to be more observant than some of us." She sent a look to Jo, whose brows bunched together in confusion.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

MJ stifled back a laugh before her attention was caught by something else. "Willa, hey! We were just talking about you."

"Oh really?" The blonde girl asked with a smile, "Nothing bad, I hope."

Magnolia immediately looked to who was standing awfully close to Willa, taking notice that it was the same boy from the bus stop. Her eyes narrowed as she glanced at Anna, who just sent her a confused look back.

Nobody said anything as they all sent confused glances between each other, unsure as to why the boy none of them knew hid behind Willa as if he were her puppy dog. Finally, Willa seemed to catch onto what was going on and was quick to jump up.

"Right! Group, this is Oliver-" She stopped, touching his arm to catch his attention. He read her lips as she introduced him, the girl making sure he could see her mouth clearly so he knew what she was saying. "He's new to Woodsboro, we met this morning. Oliver, this is the group."

"Hi," Jo waved, being the first of the group to say something.

Oliver smiled politely, not saying anything as his cheeks turned a pink color. They sat down at the table, and Willa cleared her throat to catch everyone's attention again, smiling at her friend group.

"I already asked if it was okay that I disclose this information with you guys since it's not my place to say, but since we talked about it and he's okay I figured I should say this now to prevent confusion in the future. Oliver is deaf, so if he doesn't respond it's not that he's ignoring you-" She glanced at Magnolia, Anna, MJ, and Clodagh, hinting at their conversation from the bus stop. "He just won't know you're talking to him unless you catch his attention."

Willa gently touched Oliver's hand, the boy looking over at her with what seemed to be a nervous look. "Ollie, this is Magnolia, Clodagh, MJ, Anna, Jo, Alicia, and-" She stopped, realizing someone was missing. "Where's Mira?"

"I think she might be with a coach or something. Something about the upcoming sports seasons or something like that." MJ responded.

"Right, well-" Willa turned back to Oliver, "This is the group. You're welcome to hang with us whenever you'd like."

"Thank you, I appreciate it." Oliver softly told Willa, smiling at her.

"I need to leave lunch early today," Willa announced as she began digging into her lunchbox. "Need to see the office about some scheduling conflicts."

"Didn't you make your own schedule?" Jo asked.

"Yes, but I've decided I don't need to take an art class since I'm not an artist. I'd like to replace it." Willa answered as she began to dig into her sandwich, smiling to herself as Jo looked at her.

"What are you thinking of taking instead?" MJ asked as she cleaned her spoon of the peach yogurt she was eating.

Willa stayed silent for a moment as she finished the bite she was eating, setting her sandwich down on the ziplock baggie she brought it in. She wiped her fingers on a napkin as she glanced between her group of friends, who were patiently waiting for her to answer. She then looked to Oliver, who hadn't been paying too much attention to the conversation.

He was focused on eating the chicken noodle soup he packed for lunch, blowing on the steaming substance before eating it.

"Um, doesn't matter." She answered, waving it off. "Let's talk about something else. What was the topic of conversation before we got here?"

"Wondering where you were," Anna answered.

"And before that? You didn't spend ten minutes talking about me, that's for sure." Willa pushed, continuing to eat her sandwich again.

"Well, actually, we were-"

"Nothing, it was nothing." Anna was quick to cut Jo off, ignoring the confused look from the boy.

Willa didn't say anything, quickly catching onto the fact that whatever they were talking about was something they didn't want her to know. She didn't want to be that person to push, so she just put her focus on her food as Alicia was quick to come up with another topic to talk about.

As she finished her lunch, she made sure to clean up her space. Her eyes wandered over to Chad's table, immediately catching his eye. He looked guilty, sad, and angry all at once. The look made Willa's chest hurt, but instead of focusing on it she just avoided his eye. She searched the table for her brother, frowning as she failed to see him anywhere.

"Hey-" She quickly turned to the table, cutting into the middle of something that Alicia had been saying. "Sorry to interrupt, did you guys see where Wes went?"

The others shared a look, proving to Willa that they knew something. Even if it wasn't where he went, they knew something and she could read right through them with the way they looked at each other.

"He went off somewhere with Chelsea," Jo said, seeming to be the only one who didn't notice the look.

"Jo-" Anna mumbled next to the boy, but it was quickly cut off by Willa's hand slapping down on the table.

"What?"

"Yeah, just waltzed right by," Jo answered anyway, motioning at the aisle separating their table from another. "Arm in arm, too. Quite odd, right?"

"I should find him." Willa quickly stood in her seat, catching Oliver's attention.

"Will, I don't think that's a very good idea-" Magnolia tried to tell the girl, but she was already out of the bench and walking in the direction Wes and Chelsea left in.

She ignored the people staring at her, her focus on figuring out why Wes was with Chelsea. She didn't get very far, however, as a body quickly stepped in front of her. This caused her to come to a complete stop, her confused expression quickly changing to one of worry.

"M-Marcus, I-"

"We need to talk," He quickly cut her off. He grabbed her by the hand and pulled her to the entrance of the cafeteria, his long strides causing her to stumble over herself.

Willa glanced back at her table, seeing all of her friends looking at her with worry. She just smiled at them to give them a bit of reassurance, not wanting them to worry over something not worth worrying about.

As soon as they got into the hallway where nobody else stood, Marcus stopped. He turned to her, his chest rising and falling quickly as he caught his breath. He looked angry, far too angry for Willa's liking.

Not only was she now going to have to wait until later tonight to figure out why Wes was with Chelsea Rosemary of all people, but she was going to have to deal with Marcus sooner than she preferred.

"What's your deal, Willa?" Marcus quickly started the conversation before she could, his tone snappy and harsh.

"What are you talking about?" She softly asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she attempted to catch her breath.

"Saying the nasty shit you said and leaving me in the hallway. You made me look stupid." Marcus mirrored her actions by crossing his arms and leaning his weight to one foot.

"I didn't say anything nasty. I was tired of hearing you and Chad argue. I didn't make you look stupid, what you looked like to everyone was yours and Chad's own doing." Willa remarked, her eyebrows pushed together.

Marcus quickly stepped closer to her, an even angrier look on his face than before. "You're the reason it even happened in the first place, Willa. If you hadn't just stepped into something that was none of your business, then the Knight in Shining Asshole wouldn't have stepped in."

"So you're- you're telling me that it's my fault?" Willa softly asked, at a loss for words.

"Yes, are you not listening? Had you just listened to me in the first place none of that would've happened, I wouldn't have had to step in, and this argument wouldn't even be happening right now." Marcus responded, "You need to think before you just do things, it's childish and stupid."

Willa felt tears build up but refused to cry. She just glanced at the ceiling, blinking the tears away. "I'm sorry," She said. "You're right, I shouldn't have done it."

"Good. I'm sorry for being so rough." Marcus' demeanor switched completely, almost as if someone had turned a switch on. He reached forward and wiped a stray tear away, ignoring the way Willa tried to flinch away from him.

It wasn't that she didn't want him to touch her, she just didn't like that he was acting as if this was all her fault. She didn't like the way he switched from what seemed to be one personality to the other just like that, showing a side of him she'd never seen before. Not once has he acted like this in front of her friends, his friends, or even Wes. Not once, until he realized how close she and Chad were.

Technically speaking, Chad and Willa hadn't been close for a while. They drifted when Chad became one of the most popular guys at Woodsboro, despite the fact that he swore they'd always stay close. Then, when she began dating Marcus and he began dating Liv, it all changed.

It's just not the same as it used to be.

"Can I walk you to class?" Marcus asked, bringing Willa out of her thoughts.

"Can't. I'm needing to go to the office," She mumbled, picking at her nails.

"Why?" He questioned, "I thought you didn't have any issues with your classes."

"I'd like to switch one around, changed my mind about what I want to take," Willa said with a shrug.

"Which one?" Marcus pushed.

"I would like to switch my art class for sign language," She softly admitted.

His brows bunched together in confusion, "Why would you want to take that?"

"I've just realized how useful it can be," She told him, not wanting to tell him the full reason. She wasn't lying when she said it could be useful, but she didn't want to tell him that Oliver was the reason she realized this.

It's probably so hard having to deal with something so tough, and not having people who can communicate clearly. She didn't say anything in front of her friends, because it didn't feel like it was an important conversation to have with them - especially with Oliver sitting right there. Not to mention, she wasn't sure if Oliver would find that weird. She'd just met him earlier that day and was already doing something as big as this. But from the bit of experience Oliver has had at Woodsboro, she couldn't help but want to help make it a bit easier.

Sure, he can read lips, but surely that's gotta be exhausting, having to guess every little thing someone is saying. And he's pretty good at it, but even Willa noticed that some of the things she told him he misread when reading her lips. He mentioned he usually communicates by sign language to those who know it, and it wouldn't hurt to get out of an art class and take something worth taking.

She wasn't into art. Art wasn't her thing, and to her, there was no point in taking it. But with sign language, not only could she learn to communicate better with Oliver, but also with her great-grandmother if she ever got the chance to see her again.

"Right. Well, I guess I'll see you after, okay?" Marcus asked, finally letting it go. She nodded, her eyes shutting as he pressed a rough kiss to the top of her head.

She watched as he walked away, disappearing somewhere around a corner. She stayed in the silent hallway, giving herself a moment to feel all of the emotions running through her. Just as she found the strength to find her way to the office, a familiar voice stopped her.

"Why do you let him treat you like that?"

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