To all the people out there who are sweet as sugar.

SarahattheDisco168

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I was relieved that he was here and that he had done what he had done. I'm not sure if I would've done it. Scratch that, I know that I wouldn't have done it.

I'm glad he was there to stop me. I felt even more guilty about it now and despite the fact that I wanted to hang my head down in shame, I continued to stare back at him.

"My camera!"

I blinked at the screech and spun around to find Molly crouching down, examining the broken remains. Her sister joined her, staring wearily at Ace. And the surprised group of girls slowly released their victim, which caused Jesse to fall to the ground.

Everyone was silent for a second.

Then, Ace walked up to Jesse and helped her stand up while she started to hastily cover herself up. She was still crying silently, the soft sobs echoing in the hall now. She didn't even bother putting her jacket back on as she turned around and ran out the hall.

Then there was silence again and I could feel everyone's eyes on me. I didn't meet their eyes because I wasn't sure what I was going to find.

Possibly accusation. Or anger. Or maybe they'd understand.

I couldn't help but look at Ace again. He met my gaze with that disgusted look in his eyes. "Could've just as easily been you too, Wilson," he said, his lips barely moving. "You wouldn't like that, would you?"

And with that, he left, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

I glanced towards the floor and involuntary shuddered a little. It could've been me too...

I could've been the one being humiliated and stripped of my respect and dignity. I could've been the one who ran out of the hall, crying.

"Shìt, it's ruined," Molly whined, interrupting my thoughts. "And I bought this just last year too."

I took a deep breath and suggested that we all leave, in case Ace decides to inform the authorities about what we were doing here.

Lottie shrugged. "Eh, he doesn't look like a tattle-tale."

"He definitely doesn't look like a knight in shining armor either but that's what he just did," Tasha responded, tapping away on her phone as if nothing had happened. "Makes one wonder whether him and Jesse are getting serious with each other."

Addy snorted. "Serious? With that hōe? If that's true, then Ace has some pretty low standards."

"And that he's grown soft," Tasha looked up from her phone, her eyes dancing wildly. She lived for this kind of gossip and evaluation. "We're talking about the Ace Trainer, bad boy extraordinaire and the guy who sleeps with a different girl every week. And for him, to just grow soft, especially for Jesse, is almost unbelievable."

Holly looked up at Tasha, frowning. "And Jesse and Ace haven't even been together for that long, even unofficially. I mean, I saw Jesse with him only a few days ago. It hasn't even been a week."

"Which is why this makes me wonder," Tasha nodded, looking off into space.

There was a pause and then Lottie exclaimed, "Girls, I don't know about you but I'm hungry so I'm gonna be heading to the Shake Shack. Anyone wanna come?"

Everybody except me jumped onto the invitation and even Molly, who was still mourning her camera, nodded slowly.

"I'm gonna see you guys tomorrow," I told them, as I retrieved my bag. "I just wanna go home now and sleep."

Which was true, I was exhausted, more mentally than physically. And for some reason, my stomach was still twisted in knots and I couldn't even think about eating anything. I didn't understand how these girls were able to shrug off something like this so easily but I guess I should've expected it. Guess that meant that I still hadn't shut off my conscience completely.

"Girl, you sure?" Lottie asked. "It's Shake Shack."

I rolled my eyes at her. "Yes, I'm sure and for the record, I don't really like their mango shake."

She gasped, a hand to her heart. "Girl, you take that back or I'll disown you."

----

"I'm heading out to work!" I put my hand on the front door handle and waited for my mother's response. She had been taking a nap while I looked after Mary for a while.

"Okay," I heard her mumble from her pillow.

I opened the door and locked it behind me.

Every afternoon when I came home from school, I would rest for about an hour before getting ready and heading out for work. The drive there in my not-so-brand-new grey Toyota Corolla took about twenty minutes. Thirty, if there was traffic. The car was still as precious to me as it had been when I had first received it from my mom as a birthday present.

She had saved up for months just to get me this and I always treated it with great care.

I ran my hands over the steering wheel as images from earlier this morning flashed in my head. I really had gone too far. I wondered if Jesse was okay and whether she would tell anyone. More importantly, if she'd tell the school staff. Would they believe her? If they did, that would mean serious trouble for me and everyone in the squad.

However, I didn't think that she'd tell. She'd be too embarrassed to or she would take this as a warning and keep her mouth shut. Either way, I was starting to feel sorry for what I'd put her through.

I got to the mall in a few minutes and after parking my car, I headed inside. It was almost three in the afternoon and so the mall was filled with teenagers around this time, rather than families. It was time when everyone hung out after school. Which is why I had to walk with my head low, allowing my blonde hair to fall around my face, shrouding me.

I couldn't even sign up for a different shift because I had school in the mornings and then I had homework and other social media activities to take care of at night so the afternoon shift was my only option.

I climbed onto the escalator and then headed right on the first floor. Zara was the fifth store and I pushed the door open, greeting Dylan. He was standing by some clothes, as he arranged them on their hangers and waved back, pushing the glasses up his nose.

I went in the back and put on my uniform. A black half sleeved shirt with matching jeans and my name-tag attached on the right side of my shirt. I pulled my hair back in a ponytail and after checking myself in the mirror, I stepped out.

By this time, Yui had come in too and I waved at her, smiling wide. She returned the gesture with equal enthusiasm. Yui was one of the sweetest people on earth and she was the reason I had started to develop a liking for anime, something I used to call 'cartoons' before.

She was talking to a customer and I went to stand behind the counter. I liked to stand back and observe the store every once in a while.

I could easily watch the customers in the store for a long period of time, just imagining what their life was like. Some people that came in the store had a arrogant aura around them as they would go over piece by piece, sometimes shaking their head in disapproval. They were hard to please but they ended up leaving with a purchase or two.

Other times, there were people who would glimpse at the price tags and slowly, move on, all the while eyeing that piece of clothing. I understood these people.

I've lost count about the number of times I've stared at something in the store and watched as a customer left with it. The number of times I would glimpse into a customer's wallet and see all those multiple notes and feel so jealous that I wouldn't even wish them good day before they left.

Working at Zara was great, the pay was reasonable and the co-workers were friendly but it also took its toll on me. I would go home some days and cry in my car, wishing that I had it better, wishing that I was a customer instead of a worker.

Today was no different. I watched as a pair of fourteen year olds walked in the store, their mouths literally moving in sync as they continue to chew away.

Dylan approached them and asked them if they were looking for anything specific. They said something back and Dylan pointed towards the left, leading them into the dresses section.

Several minutes later, I checked their items and they paid for it with their 'Daddy's' credit card. They had gotten a total of four dresses, two mini skirts and a tank top. I gave them a tight lipped smile as I discovered that I wouldn't be able to pay for these items even if I worked at the store for two years.

Yui came up to me after they left and leaned on the counter. "What's on your mind, Megan?"

"Nothing," I sighed, shrugging. "I was just wondering if there was a certain site where I could sign up for a sugar daddy."

She wasn't sure if I was joking and I wasn't sure if that was such a bad idea.

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