Chapter 125 Chapter One Hundred And Twenty Five
Nicole rattled off her order, something with extra cheese and no olives, while I studied the menu board, knowing full well that I wasn’t actually going to pick anything new and I would just stick to what I’d had before. Playing it safe as usual.
“Margherita, please,” I said finally. “Medium.”
Noah made a face and said, “Are you sure you can finish it?”
I considered it for a second. Yeah he was probably right, the portions here were gigantic. “On second thougt, Marco. Please make that a small.”
“Coming right up!” Marco disappeared into the kitchen, yelling orders in rapid Italian.
We all found our way to Tabitha the table and slid into the worn vinyl seats. I ended up next to Noah, with Nicole and Jake across from us.
The conversation picked up where it had left off, but now I felt the weight of it pressing down on me.
“I don’t know about the social media thing,” I said, anxiety creeping into my voice.
“I have far too much on my plate already. School and tutoring and cheerleading… I can’t possibly keep up with updating my feed with what do you call it? Content? and all that stuff.” I puffed out a small breath of air.
Nicole leaned forward, her elbows on the table while she studied me seriously, “That blog post spiraled into a series of events that ended up with you in jail.”
Her words hit me like a punch and I winced. “When the next person comes out of the woodwork to talk shit about you and ruins your reputation, what will you do then?” she asked, raiding an eyebrow at me. “Are you going to sit back and watch it happen?”
Silence fell over our table. Around us, the restaurant buzzed with life, families laughing happily, the hiss of the pizza oven, and Marco’s cheerful shouting over the din.
But in our little bubble, everything had gone still and tense.
She had a point. God, she had a point.
That single blog post had basically destroyed everything. My relationship with Noah, or what I’d thought was our relationship. My friendship with Nicole and Jake, my reputation and my freedom, however briefly.
All because someone else had controlled what people believed about me while I folded my arms and watched it happen.
“It seems like so much work though,” I admitted quietly, overwhelmed just thinking about it.
“Don’t worry,” Jake said, his tone lighter, clearly trying to ease the tension. “It’ll be a walk in the park. Just look pretty and keep being the same nice girl you always are, and everyone else will fall in line.”
Noah shifted closer to me, taking both my hands in his. His thumbs traced gentle circles on my skin.
“This way you can actually stand on your own two feet. You won’t need me constantly in your corner to stick up for you, because you’ll have a whole crowd of loving fans who’ll do it for you.” He assured me.
“Loving fans who we can pit against Allison and her army of trolls,” Nicole added with a wicked grin.
“And even bring enough of them over to our side then turn them against her.” Jake finished.
I looked between the three of them, each of them somehow seemed so certain this would work. “But why would they leave her for a stranger? She’s cool and popular and beautiful and rich.”
I swallowed hard. “They didn’t even recognize me at the party. I’m basically an impostor.”
“You’re also an actual human being and not a plastic bitch,” Nicole said bluntly.
“Look, I know about these things. And I can tell you the tide is turning away from fake influencers toward real, relatable people.” Nicole said, passionately gesturing with her hands.
“Besides, everyone loves a good comeback story. Nerd returns out of the blue to steal the queen’s throne? You’re going to be a star, Lena. Get ready.”
Marco appeared with our pizzas, setting them down with a flourish before disappearing again.
The smell was heavenly, but my stomach was too tied in knots to appreciate it.
“If this blows up in my face, guys…” I bit my lip. “I mean, there are a lot more people on the internet than just Westbrook students.”
Jake laughed, reaching for a slice and taking a gigantic bite. “Imagine if the drama gets so big the whole state is involved? Or the whole country? How weird would that be?”
“Stop scaring her, Jake,” Nicole snapped. “I’m trying to make a point here.” She turned to me, her expression immediately softening. “Don’t worry. There’s no way it’ll ever get that far. I promise you. We’re only focusing on the bullies at our school, right?”
“Are you sure?” I asked, my voice small.
“Of course. What’s the worst that could happen?”
Famous last words, a little voice in my head whispered. But I pushed it aside.
Noah pulled me closer, practically into his lap, his arms wrapping around my waist.
“You’re being so brave about this, I’m so proud of you.” he murmured against my hair. “You’re stronger than you think, okay Lena? You can do this. I believe in you. Just let us help.”
The warmth of his words, the solid presence of him against me, that was more than enough for me tip the scales in his favor.
“Okay,” I said, exhaling slowly. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
I pulled out my phone with shaking hands, staring at the screen as though it might bite me. “So… how do I create an account?”
Nicole’s grin could only be described as wicked. She held out her hand expectantly, wiggling her fingers. “Pass it over, babe. Let an expert handle it..”
I handed her my phone, watching as her fingers flew across the screen, clicking away fast as lightning.
Her smile grew wider with each passing second, her eyes gleaming with a dangerous look.
“Perfect,” she said finally, looking up at me with triumph written all over her face. ,”You’re all set.”