The Dreaded Period

The bell rang for the fifth time today, the bell she dreaded. Ringing to announce to her that it's time for her lunch period to begin. She didn’t have any real friends in her lunch and just sat with a friend group that she tried to fit in to. The friend group had their jokes and conversations so she always just stayed to herself, trying to talk when she felt that she fit in. It bothered her a little that she didn’t have a real friend group at lunch but it was better than nothing. The four other girls she sat with were nice and weren’t mean to her so she worked with what she had. 

“Let's go throw out our garbage” Becky said to the table. 

She was the “leader” of the table. Everyone liked her and she had the looks to be the most liked. Mila admired how outgoing she was and how people practically flocked to her. Mila followed the girls emptying their trays, trailing a bit behind. 

“I don’t think she knows what a mirror is, do you see what she looks like right now? How embarrassing.” 

Immediately Mila knew someone was saying that about her. She knew for a fact it was a group of girls that sat at a table diagonal of hers. Not many people liked her, though she didn’t know why. It’s not like she did much, she mostly kept to herself and only had a select few friends. The girls that constantly talk about her are people she doesn’t even know. But here they were, sitting at a table near hers, saying something about her. 

“Seriously she looks like she just rolled out of bed” Another girl chimed in at the table of girls who were saying stuff. 

Mila was just fed up at this point. Never in her life did she speak to any one of those girls, and didn’t do anything to them. One thing that she always remembered her grandma saying was to always choose to be kind because everyone hides their own battles. So she wasn’t going to stoop to the girls level and say anything back, it was not worth it in her eyes. Just another lunch period she had to get through. But deep down it did start to affect her, she just tried not to show it. 

The next day when the bell rang, she didn’t dread it as much as yesterday. This morning she woke up fifteen minutes earlier and styled her hair, picked out an outfit and put on some makeup. A baby blue crew neck with some new black leggings. Freshly washed hair straightened with hair oil applied on it. She figured that if they weren’t going to change how they acted then she could change how they see her. With a little bit more confidence today, she went to her table and let herself be open and talk. 

“Well look who finally decided to make herself look presentable” is what she heard when she walked to throw out her garbage. 

Well, that's better than yesterday she thought. 

“When she actually tries she is kinda pretty guys” Another girl chimed in, which completely threw her off guard. Someone was actually saying something nice about her? Maybe some of the girls weren’t as mean as she thought. This made her walk back feeling a bit better.

Each day she tried more and more to make herself look “presentable” as the other girls would say. Mila heard less and less insults as the days went by. Some girls actually smiled at her and seemed like decent human beings. Getting ready everyday actually made her more confident and made her days go by better. This new confidence also even let her grow the courage to join a club which some of the girls were in. Even though the way she was made fun of wasn’t the best way to change herself, it opened a new activity for her. 

The club she joined was the Gardening Club. They met after school every Tuesday in one of the art teachers' rooms before heading out to the community gardens on the school grounds. Each week she talked with the lunch girls and realized that they weren’t actually mean, they were just following one girl's lead. 

“I’m sorry Mila, I didn’t really mean what I said.” Willow said as she picked some ripe tomatoes from the green vines. Her face carried a load of guilt and she really just wanted to be her friend. 

“I forgive you. Can we start over?” Mila reached her hand out and Willow eagerly shook it. Both girls grinned and continued to pick ripe fruits and vegetables. 

Mila, Willow and a couple more girls decided to create their own lunch table and own friend group. A strong bond was created between them and they became inseparable. Hanging out on the weekends, doing after school activities with each other and having their little friend group at lunch. They even went to homecoming together. Mila finally felt like she fit in. She smiled, laughed and even sang more. It was crazy for her to think that girls that used to say stuff about her are now her best friends. 

“I’m glad we all were able to become friends” Mila said to Willow and Ellie as they walked around the mall. 

“Me too Mila!” 

“Me too guys!” 

Mila smiled from ear to ear. The feeling of having people almost makes her heart want to burst out of her chest. 

The bond they have continues to grow each year, even on their graduation day. While they all planned to attend different colleges, their friendship never broke apart. Texting and calling any chance they got, hanging out on breaks and sending each other care packages as little surprises. It is crazy to Mila just how life has its path. She’s just glad that she listened to her grandma and never chose to be mean to the girls who she now cherishes and hopes to have around for her life.