Chapter 39: Principal Snoop
Eira considered Orla’s words. She knew people like Arabella—people who were hurting and, instead of finding a way to heal, spread their pain like poison.
Malia, still grinning, gave a mock applause. "Bravo, Orla. Looks like someone’s got her claws out today." She leaned back, her eyes sparkling with amusement.
Cyran, however, wasn’t amused. He set his fork down. "That’s harsh. You don’t know what it’s like for her. You don’t know what she’s been through."
"And neither do you," Orla shot back, crossing her arms. "But I do know the kind of person she is. I’ve seen her bully others for no reason, pick fights just because she’s angry, and treat her so-called friends like disposable objects. A tragic backstory doesn’t justify being a terrible person."
Eira felt a tug of discomfort at their words. It was a sentiment she had wrestled with herself, towards her sister —where the line was between understanding someone’s pain and excusing their actions. There was no clear answer, only shades of grey that seemed to twist and blur the more she thought about them.
"That’s enough," she said quietly, cutting off the tense silence that had fallen over the group. "Whatever her reasons are, she’s clearly going through something. And from the looks of it, things are only going to get worse for her but it doesn’t have anything to do with us."
Malia nodded, "Yeah, let’s eat. We’ve been talking about things that are spoiling our mood."
"Weren’t you the one who brought them up?" Orla stared at her sister and shook her head.
After lunch, they returned their trays to the cafeteria bin and headed to class. But less than ten minutes later, a student entered, announcing that the Principal wanted to see them.
Malia gaped. "Why would the principal call us? It can’t be about what happened in the cafeteria, right?"
"Let’s go find out," Orla replied, leading the way as they all made their way to the Principal’s office.