The next day, after another exhausting day from a different experiment in Physics class, Andrea would say, the girls got together in the cafeteria during lunch time, sitting in the same seats as the year before and the days within the first week of school. When discussing a topic to talk about, Andrea decided to express her feelings about her lab partner.
"I can't believe her! She is so incompetent. I mean, why go to school if you don't want to learn? That is such a waste of time. Besides, she is always gluing her eyes to her stupid magazines. Like, who brings those to school? School is a place that involves concentrating and she has an inability to do so. If she paid attention as much as she did her fake nails, maybe she would have more common sense. I can't stand her. Maybe if her parents spelled her name correctly, she wouldn't have so much trouble following instructions. School is there so you can learn. Learn! And Jessika can care less about that. So incompetent."
The girls stared at Andrea with blank expressions, as if she was a different person.
"What?"
"Earth to Andrea, where are you?" asked Debra.
"Guys, I'm serious! Jessika is basically the most irresponsible person I have ever met."
"There are a lot of irresponsible people in this school," said Madeline, "and frankly, we can't stop them."
"You want my honest opinion, Andy?" asked Skye. "Jessika kind of almost reminds me of you. Like, how you used to be... or how you are."
"I couldn't agree with you more, Skye. The way that you describe Jessika, she does kind of sounds like you. No offense."
"You really think so?" said Andrea.
"Yeah, it's like 'looking into a mirror' type of way," responded Debra.
"What does Jessika look like?" asked Lizzie.
"She looks like you but Korean," answered Andrea.
"Then she must be fabulous."
"I thought she was. Until she said I pencil on my eyebrows."
"You do pencil your eyebrows sometimes," said Madeline.
"Yeah, but I didn't think people would notice."
"Andrea, this might seem like a stupid question," started Debra, "but why you change?"
"Because we're juniors. And like what Skye said, we have one more year and we're free adults. I want to take school seriously this time because if I do slack off, I won't be able to graduate with all of you. I don't even know how I made it to the eleventh grade. But I'm not going to let people or things stop me from doing what I got to do. I don't want to grow without you."
"That's so sweet, Andrea," said Madeline softly.
"We're not going to grow without you either, Andrea," admitted Debra.
"Yeah, that's right," added Lizzie. "We're a team."
"Forever and always," smiled Skye.
"Thanks, guys," Andrea tilted her heads. "What would I do without you four?"
"Become friends with a four?" inquired Lizzie.
The girls laughed.
"You always know how to make me laugh," smiled Andrea.
In response, the girls put their hands out across the table to a point where all of their hands touch. Andrea was the last to place her hand over her friends' hands. But when she does so, the girls all took a look at her hand which was crimson red and forming tiny blisters. Seeing Andrea's deformed hand made the girls flinch and jolt back. Andrea looked at her friends confused.
"What happened to your hand!" asked Madeline, balling her hands into fists and burying them in her chest.
Andrea glimpsed down at her hand. "Oh, this? There was a little accident in my Physics class which involved Jessika spilling a suspicious liquid."
"Oh, my God!" said Skye, her eyes wider than ever.
"That's what I said when it spilled on me."
"And the teacher didn't give you a bandage?" asked Madeline.
"Oh, no, he did give me a bandage. It just disintegrated."
"Wow," whispered Debra, locking her eyes on Andrea's hand.
"Excuse me but I got to go throw up," said Lizzie, before getting up and walking out of the cafeteria.
"Just wondering, why do you seem so calm about your hand being red and bumpy?" questioned Madeline.
"Because in my head," started Andrea, "I'm beating Jessika senseless. Imagination seems to get me by."
"I see."
"Don't you want to go to the nurse for a band-aid or something?" asked Debra.
"Nah, I'm good."
"Andrea Gonzalez, you are the strongest person I have ever met," confesses Skye.
Andrea put her hand on her chest. "Thank you."
"Now we don't want her chest to disintegrate, now don't we?" said Debra, almost quietly.
Soon, a brown-haired, attractive boy, out of nowhere, rushed up towards Andrea and slowly kissed her on the cheek.
Andrea grinned. "Good evening, Kevin."
"Good evening," he responded in his suave voice, looking down at Andrea.
"Hello, Kevin," all the girls greeted.
"Hello, ladies."
"Babe, I heard you called me a dog to one of your friends," said Andrea. "Would you like to explain yourself?"
"Uh... who told you that?"
"Some weird blond kid."
"Cory. Uh, I didn't call you a dog; I said you were feisty like a dog. And you know I like that, baby."
"Then say 'cat' next time."
"I will. Sorry if it felt insulting to you."
Andrea giggled. "No, that's okay."
"Sweet. I got to go. Who's the best?"
"Me."
"That's right." Kevin dropped down and pressed his lips on Andrea's lips. "Later, baby."
"Later, papi."
Kevin smirked at Andrea then walked off through the cafeteria.
"Why doesn't he sit with us?" questioned Debra. "He's your boyfriend, of course."
"He loves to sit with his 'cool' friends," answered Andrea. "I can sit with him but he can't sit here unless he's with his friends."
"Why does he need to be with his friends to spend time with you?" asked Madeline.
"I know, right? But when we go on dates, it's completely different."
"Well, if he starts to mistreat you, just know that you can take him," said Skye.
"I know."
Lizzie began to come back, entering the cafeteria and sitting back down in her seat.
"What I miss?" she asked after letting out a short belch into her hand.
"Kevin has to be with his friends in order to hang out with Andrea during lunch," answered Madeline.
Lizzie gasped. "What? That's not right, Andrea. You should not take that. Dump him."
"I'm not going to dump him," said Andrea.
"Then shoot him. You know, do a little dribble then swish."
"What?" Skye responded.
"She doesn't want to dump him so why don't she 'swish' him?" Lizzie said, flattening out her hand then curving it in like a hook.
"I think you mean 'dunk'," corrected Madeline.
"Yeah, it's 'dunk', not 'dump'," Andrea agreed.
"Really?" responded Lizzie. "It's 'dunk'? Geez, no wonder I'm failing physics."
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