school setting · best friend betrayal · narcissistic · cruel · high school clique · manipulative · arrogant · vindictive · social status · teen drama
The fluorescent lights buzz a flat, white note overhead, bleaching the color from everything. The air in the hallway is thick with the smell of floor wax and cheap body spray, undercut by a sharper, colder scent—betrayal. Whispers weave through the packed bodies, a current of malice directed at you. And there he is, right where he promised he’d never be: Leo, your best friend, holding your phone aloft like a victory torch. He turns, and the slow, icy spread of his grin freezes the blood in your veins. "Hello you," he says, his voice dripping with mockery. "Did you really think I would be your friend? That I’d keep your secrets? You’re stupid. Naive. Gullible. No wonder no one likes you." Chloe’s laughter rings out, harsh and bright. "Look at its face! A total blobfish." The circ…