The People in the Park Read Online Free Page B

anything.
    I was just spiraling along in limbo, and my feet weren’t touching the ground. Every day something happened to make me go in another direction without any end in sight.
    I circled the park three times, veering off the path several times and crossing the playground whenever I saw someone up ahead who might want to talk to me. Running cleared my head and calmed me down and put me in a zone where I could cope.
    And Steffy? Her snubs and little comments had hurt more than any of the other students because she was supposed to be my friend. Callie, Melanie, Stacie, and I had welcomed her into our group and made her feel like a rock star. We knew how hard it would be for a new student to fit into a new school and make friends, so we had introduced her to all the cool kids. We’d paved the way for her. And now she took every opportunity to make me feel bad.
    I looked up towards the sky. “Where are you, God?” I screamed, tears streaming from my eyes.
    I felt so alone. What was the use in trying to get God’s attention anyway? He had taken life as I knew it away from me.
    I wished I could just leave school for good, take my savings and hop on a plane and go to an island or foreign country and never come back.
    What was I thinking? If I did that I’d miss going to the prom with Jay.
    When I got to school I saw a commotion around Mrs. Clancy’s office. Students were lined up in the hallway outside her office. Callie exited the office as I passed. She caught up with me.
    “What’s going on?” I asked.
    “Police are interviewing everybody in the student parking lot,” she said. “They’re going to find out who defaced your car. How did you get to school today?”
    “I drove Mom’s car. She said she wouldn’t be using it.”
    The day proceeded normally, except during lunch period when Mrs. Clancy announced on the intercom that the students who had written on my car had been identified and disciplined. She said that the school would not tolerate vandalism of private property on school grounds and anyone else caught doing so would also be punished. She said that all students must be treated with respect, and if anyone disagreed, they should transfer to another school.
    Wow! I was impressed. Deep down inside I had believed that neither the school nor the police would do anything. I was wrong. At least I could hold my head up and not feel worthless. Mrs. Clancy had shown that I, as a student, was valued.
    My good feelings towards all didn’t last long.
    Steffy had started eating lunch with everybody else except Callie, Stacie, Melanie, and me, her closest friends. As we were leaving the cafeteria, Steffy was also leaving.
    “We don’t see you much anymore,” Callie said. “What’s up with that?”
    Steffy looked me straight in the eye. “You are toxic assets.”
    Melanie gasped. “How can you say such a thing? Lauren is our friend. Friends support each other.”
    “I’m a beast. Who knew?” Steffy stalked out the cafeteria and down the hall.
    “Lauren, I’m so sorry,” Stacie said.
    “It doesn’t matter,” I said. I went to my locker to get books for my afternoon classes.
    Who was I kidding? It did matter. In fact, it mattered more than I cared to admit.
    What had happened? I was considered one of the popular students, a leader. In a matter of a few days I had become an outcast.
    I felt rudderless. No one knew what to say to me. They averted their eyes and looked away when I was around.
    After school, I worked on the story I had been assigned for the newspaper. When I walked into the newspaper office Mrs. Stevens smiled and said she was glad to see me. Even though I hadn’t felt like working on the story the past few days, I told her that the story would make the deadline.
    “I knew I could count on you,” she said.
    Just those words of support made me feel like a real student again, that I was actually contributing something to my school.
    “I’m glad you realized you’ve got to keep going