• "Ivy" My friend tapped me a few times with her index finger bringing me back to the noisy lunchroom. "I thought I lost you this time" Tammy said with a small laugh.

    "Ha ha very funny" I said looking down at the mush that was supposed to be lunch.

    "Staring at Mason again no doubt" Tammy said looking over at his table as he laughed along with his friends. I sighed "They just hang over him" she muttered looking away as the cheerleaders skipped in with their short skirts, tight shirts, and fat egos and sat down next to him. They waved their pompoms in his face laughing. "You should be over there talking to him. Not Malibu Barbie over there" My eyes darted to the head cheerleader Piper who Tammy was referring to.

    "Wouldn't matter" I muttered. "He doesn't even know I exist" Tammy looked at me, her big blue eyes wide like she just saw a U.F.O.

    "Then show him you exist, jeez I swear your worse than my little sister."

    "Last I heard she has a date to the Ball" I said trying to change the subject.

    "Last I heard tons of guys asked you to the Ball but you said no. That’s N-O so if you want a date go back to all the guys who asked you out and pick one. Oh wait, you waiting for Mason to ask you."

    "Shut up Tammy" I said elbowing her in the rib. She stuck her tongue out at me and laughed. “I don’t even want to go to the Fall Ball.”

    “But if Mason asked you, I bet you would be buying the prettiest most expensive dress you could find.” I didn’t want to admit she was right, even though I already had a dress ready. “Look I don’t have or want a date either so let’s go together me and you just two friends hanging out at the Fall Ball in the prettiest dresses ever. Ok?”

    “Oh all right if this means you will leave me alone I’ll go.”

    “YAY” Tammy cheered quietly; at least in here it was quietly. Then it happened, I couldn’t hold the jumbling thoughts of everyone in the lunch room. Now all I could hear was waves and waves of thoughts, all slamming into each other in my brain. “What’s wrong Ivy?” Tammy asked as I gripped my temples between two fingers.

    “Just a headache” I told her. I turned away from her and picked up the Styrofoam tray and threw it into the trash can. “See you in social studies” I said turning to leave.

    “Ok” Tammy said as she continued to eat her lunch. I fled to the girl’s bathroom as quickly as possible.

    Mason

    Mason watched discreetly as Ivy hustled out of the lunch room he hadn’t realized his head was fully turned in that direction, until Piper pulled his face back to direction she was in. The girls continued their game of waving the pompoms in his face or just dropping them on him. Mason really wasn’t paying much attention to them, he was wondering why Ivy left so abruptly. He knew soon he would have to leave before his head couldn’t take much more and everything slipped and then all the kids in the lunch room’s thoughts would pour into his head. “Mason?” Piper asked poking his shoulder a few times. He turned his head to look at the head cheerleader, he knew what she was waiting for its too bad he wasn’t going to ask her to the Fall Ball. Mason felt his barriers weakening; he stood up and shook the pompoms off of him and on to the cafeteria floor.

    “I’m leaving see you in social studies Brian” Mason said taking his tray and walked it over the overflowed trash can.

    “Ok Mason see you then” Brian said as the cheerleaders turned their attention to him. With that he left the lunch just as everyone’s thoughts leaked into his head. Fleeing to the boys bathroom, where he would stay until he could regain control over the overflowing thoughts.