Chapter 5

AVA

"Honey, Amy's here!" My mom shouts.

"Coming!" I hurriedly got out of bed and dashed downstairs to meet my best friend.

Mom pulled open the door, revealing Amy already dressed up for my birthday party tonight. 

I laughed and sized her up and down. "What on earth has gotten into you?" I ask, bringing my hand over my mouth while staring wide-eyed at my best friend's costume outfit.

You wouldn't believe that Amy Darcey, the richest and most pampered girl in the whole of Wolf Academy, is wearing a full-body bear costume with her head sticking out. Even after wearing the bear costume, not a single strand of hair was compromised in Amy's head.

A tear slips from the corner of my eye. I wipe it with my finger unable to stop myself from bursting into laughter. She rolls her eyes and pulls me in for a quick hug.

"Stop being dramatic, you have NO idea how long it took for me to wear this shitty thing," She grumbles and glances over her shoulder. 

Surprisingly, she'd brought her boyfriend over wearing a matching bear costume same as Amy's. He was carrying a mountain of bags in his hand and two bear heads in the other. 

I pull away from her tight hug and giggled before shaking my head at her.

"What? You didn't think I wanted to suffer alone now, did you?" She smirked and linked her arm with Cameron's who seemed to not mind wearing the same embarrassing outfit as Amy. 

"Aww Amy, you didn't have to," I smile at the heart-warming sight. 

I knew this was Amy going way out of her comfort zone especially when it comes to picking her outfits. For her, image and elegance were extremely important.

Amy's eyes softened as she looked at me. 

"Ava, you know I had to. It's your birthday!" She squealed and hugged me one more time.

"After all, a promise is a promise." She whispers, reminding me of the time I made her promise to wear a bear costume at my 18th birthday party. But, that was like what, two, three years ago? Back then Amy and I were kind of like two people from opposite worlds. She was crazy rich while I made do with whatever's been given to me. Making me a target of the biggest bully in school. Amy Darcey. She and her big circle of friends who only clung to her side for her money and reputation used to make fun of my white hair and big, purple eyes. I was labeled 'the white whore' in school just based on the way I looked. 

Half a year later, I hadn't been able to hold myself back any longer after the constant bullying and unreasonable mockery, especially when she'd let one of her friends steal Tubby, my small stuffed bear I'd always kept well in my locker. 

Look, I know it's childish as a freshman in high school. But no one would understand how Tubby helped me overcome my anxiety during my difficult times. He became my number one supporter and most of all, my largest comforter whenever I felt down and depressed. He will always smile at me and listen to my rants without any judgment. That was why when I found out he was stolen from my locker and got replaced by a note from Amy, I went straight to her house and confronted her.

She and her friends were torturing Tubby and laughed at my face when I broke down in tears. 

Amy came up to me and ripped Tubby in two perfect halves. I saw black and slapped her hard across the face. I had no control over my body at that time and spat hurtful things I could hardly remember. I left without looking back. 

The next day Amy sat across from me during lunch. Her cheeks were still red and I felt guilty for slapping her out of hand. Nevertheless, I silently ate and ignored her gaze making me uncomfortable. 

"Look, I'm sorry about your bear." She'd said breaking the silence in the air. 

I looked up at her swollen face and her eyes were red as if she wanted to cry.

I don't know why but my heart melted when she touched my hand and told me, "I know I can't replace him, but I hope I can still be your friend. You showed me what it means to have a truly loyal friend, and I'd rather have you than be surrounded by people who couldn't care less about me." 

When our eyes met for the first time after that day, I saw her as a completely different person than before. She didn't look like the biggest bully in Wolf Academy who loved to throw food over my head and fill my locker with trash anymore. She looked like the Amy standing in front of me now. Kind, gorgeous, and most of all, genuine. 

She'd detached herself away from her old 'friends' ever since, and just like that the bullying stopped. We became so much closer and she always protected me from other bullies. Time passed and people stopped treating me as horrible as before. Although they just ignored me and did their best to stay out of my way, I was grateful. After that, I made her promise me one thing. 

"Because you killed Tubby with your own hands, you need to wear a bear costume on my 18th birthday!" I exclaimed, pointing my index finger at her. I didn't expect her to take it seriously.

She'd laughed and left me with my mouth open in shock at her next words. 

"Okay. I, Amelia Elizabeth Darcey, promise to wear a bear costume on your 18th birthday, Ava Williams." She slipped her pinky, intertwining it with mine. 

"Amy dear! Are you sure you want to wear that to the party?" Mom blurted, pulling me out of my thoughts.

Amy smiled sweetly and said, "Don't worry Auntie! I feel really cute in this outfit," Twirling around, Amy tripped but was caught in Cameron's arms.