Broccoli Bella
“Don’t you have anything else to do?” questions Amelia, bouncing on her toes, a giddy smile on her lips, trying to feign curiosity yet failing miserably.
“Like what?” I enquire, putting my pen down, waiting for the dreaded answer.
A mischievous grin takes over her face and just from that I already know what she’s going to say
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Here we go,
“Like getting a life, doing something other than sitting in the classroom with a sunken face?” she giggles, forcing me up and dragging me to the cafeteria.
My sneakers screech against the tiled floor of our high school, fading amongst the clamor and tumult of hungry and agitated teenagers.
“Oh my god Amelia! This is the best decision ever, leaving a peaceful room just to eat in a place full of sweat, odor, germs and of course crack heads.” sarcasm drips heavily from each word as I resentfully sit on a table, opening my lunchbox, an annoyed expression dominating my features.
But within a split second, a broad smile took over me, as I saw a precisely sliced broccoli pizza resting royally in my plastic container.
“I get it that you are a little unstable Sofia, but this right here is outright blasphemy.” She exasperates, dramatically clutching her heart while heaving rapidly.
“It’s really not that bad trust me. It’s delicious.” I say smacking my lips together, trying to prove my point.
Just as she begins to open her mouth again, snickers erupt from our side table, and I just know that it’s going to be a very long week for me.
“Pose for the camera ‘Broccoli Bella’” a sneer bounces off the walls, as Michael waves his phone across my face, his lackeys laughing behind him.
‘Great! A nickname already’
“One with the pizza” Camilla’s high pitched voice pierces my ears, as she motions for me to pick it up.
“One last, just take a bite will you?” another mocking request shoots towards me.
Time passes dreadfully slow, but the topic becomes a rage within a second, all of my social media handles are blowing up with hash tags like ‘broccoli babe’, ‘veggie vogue’ and what not.
Just as all of it begins to get to me, and I feel my eyes welling up, the whole cafeteria goes silent.
The doors burst open, and I swear it feels as if the gates to heaven opened as well because in walks Michael, the most beautiful angel in all of his glory and that mesmerizingly devilish smile.
He doesn’t say a word because he doesn’t need too. He simply sits on one of the tables, pulls out his lunchbox and bites into his broccoli pizza and I get a feeling that my week is not going to be so long after all. But maybe my night is going to be, because Michael peers up from his food and looks straight into my eyes, flashing his gorgeous smile.