CHAPTER 9

Cat Appreciation Group Chat

Jade: hi you guys! I’m so glad it’s finally friday! what are you both up to?

Gory: not much. mostly playing on my Xbox & trying to avoid being dragged out on a walk with my mum.

Tally: I had to say goodbye to layla after school

Jade: oh tally, i’m so sorry. that must have been really hard.

Gory: saying goodbye is horrible

Tally: I don’t want to think about it

Jade: have you got any plans for the weekend?

Tally: I’m going shopping in town tomorrow. lucy invited me to go with them all, remember?

Gory: I thought you were going to cancel? why are you still going? I bet their shopping trip is going to be as horrific as they are.

Jade: that’s not very nice, gory

Gory: they aren’t very nice

Jade: true

Tally: they’re not that bad, you guys

Gory: yeah right. so it wasn’t lucy and ayesha who told everyone that your dog only has 3 legs & then every time you walked into a room you had to deal with kids hopping around, pretending to be rupert?

Tally: I don’t know why I even told you about that. it was fine. he’s just a stupid dog and he does only have 3 legs.

Jade: tally! you can’t say that – you love rupert ☺

Gory: fine? are you serious? they made you cry & you ended up hiding in the toilets. you’re always telling us how awful they are.

Tally: …

Jade: tally?

Gory: and wasn’t it lucy who put that note in your bag, pretending that it was from ameet asking you out on a date?

Tally: …

Jade: that’s enough, gory. tally knows them better than we do and if she wants to go shopping with them then we should support her.

Gory: thank god cos if I had to go to kingswood academy & get to know them any better then I’d be totally miserable. I don’t know why you didn’t just tell her how upset you were.

Tally: it was a joke. lucy put fake notes in other people’s bags too.

Gory: did anyone else believe it, though?

Tally: yes, actually. aleksandra believed it so it wasn’t just me. and it was quite funny when she went up to ameet & asked him what time he was picking her up.

Jade: no wonder you and aleksandra don’t talk any more

Gory: oh great. I take it all back – they are excellent friends.

Tally: get over yourself, gory. it wasn’t lucy’s fault that we were so gullible.

Jade: well it definitely wasn’t your fault – and it wasn’t a very nice thing to do to either of you, tally. maybe you should tell them that you don’t like it when they do stuff like that?

Tally: they’re my friends. they’re not going to like me if I can’t take a joke, are they?

Gory: it’s not actually a joke when it makes you feel bad. and what about standing up for aleksandra? she was your friend too. She seemed really nice at camp.

Jade: can’t you just talk to them? you did that last year on the trip and it worked really well.

Tally: it’s different this year. nobody ever listens to me so there’s no point in saying anything. and if I don’t fit in then I’m going to be all on my own, especially now layla has gone.

Jade: you’ve got us. and we like you.

Tally: you aren’t here. you don’t count & it’s different for you – you don’t care that you don’t have any friends.

Gory: ouch

Jade: she doesn’t mean it like that, gory

Gory: how does she mean it then? cos she’s sounding a bit like one of them right now.

Tally: you just don’t get it

Jade: so tell us

Tally: what’s the point? you won’t understand.

Gory: I get it. you care so much about being accepted by them that you’re letting them do whatever they want to you and anybody else.

Tally: it’s called having friends, gory. not that you’d know anything about that.

Gory: apparently not

Jade: come on, guys, let’s not fight ☺ if tally wants to hang out with all of them then that’s her decision.

Gory: I’m not fighting. it’s not me who’s breaking bits off myself just so that I can fit in.

Tally: what’s that supposed to mean? I’m not breaking anything.

Gory: yeah, ok. only the tally I met last year wouldn’t stand by & let other people get away with being so awful. what’s more important? being you & speaking up or being part of the group & staying silent?

Tally: …