Community: To Have a Friend
Title: To Have a Friend
Author: arliddian
Rating: G
Fandom: Community
Characters/Pairing: Abed/Annie (friendship)
Summary: Middle school AU. Abed and Annie bond over lunch.
Word Count: 1143
Author's Note: Written for the prompt ribbon.
Warnings: Nil.
Disclaimer: Don't own it; don't sue me.
Annie hovered near the door of the cafeteria, clutching her tray and scanning the room. She was faced with the usual dilemma: where should she sit?
Most of the tables were full, and she was too scared to join any of the ones that weren't. Most of them were made up of other sixth-graders who didn't like her. She'd heard some of the girls talking about her in the bathroom once. She's a suck-up, one had said. I know! And she thinks she so smart, another had agreed. Teacher's pet. Know-it-all. No matter what she did or what she wore or what she said, the names followed her around. She had only been at this school for two months and everyone had already made up their minds about her.
She walked slowly over to a nearby empty table, unable to stop herself from hoping that someone, anyone, would call out to ask her to join them. Nobody did. She sat down with her back to the rest of the cafeteria and tried to pretend she didn't care that she was all alone.
"Hey! Weird kid!"
Annie swung around and shrank back when she saw who had spoken: Jack, a seventh-grader, one of the worst bullies in the school. He was accompanied by two of his buddies. All three of them were tall and mean and scary, and on the very first day of school they had played keep-away with her backpack and laughed at her when she cried.
To her great relief, they marched past her table and continued on to another lone kid a couple of tables down. The boy looked up as they approached. Annie was sitting opposite him and could see his face. He was another seventh-grader, a quiet boy whose name she didn't know. She'd heard other kids talking about how he thought his life was a TV show, but she'd never spoken to him before. He didn't seem all that weird to her.
"Aren't you forgetting something, weird kid?" Jack growled at the boy, pointing a threatening finger. His friends scowled at him with their arms crossed, making them seem somehow bigger and more menacing.
Annie swallowed, anxiety and pity forming a tight ball in her stomach. She was surprised by how calm the boy seemed. There wasn't a single flicker of an expression in his dark eyes.
The boy looked up at Jack, blinked once, and handed over his bagged lunch without a word. Jack snatched it out of his hand and divided it up amongst his cronies immediately. He leaned over and took a big bite out of the boy's sandwich, right in front of his face. Then he laughed with his mouth full and left.
The boy kept staring blankly at the table. Annie looked around, and if anyone else had seen what had happened, they obviously didn't care. She felt her throat tighten. She knew how it felt to be bullied every day, to be ignored and made into an outcast. she looked down at her own lunch, then back at the boy.
Before she could lose the nerve, she picked up her tray and walked quickly over to him.
"Hi," she said shyly. "Can I... Can I sit here?"
He stared at her for a long moment and blinked, but finally said "Okay."
She sat down across from him. After a moment's hesitation, she pushed her tray forward.
"Do you want to share?" she asked, her heart pounding. "I'm, um... I'm not really hungry, and I thought you might..."
Her voice trailed away into nothing as he continued to look at her. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, and she began to panic. What if he hated her like everyone else did?
But before she could apologise and retreat, he reached out and picked up her apple.
"Thank you," he said. The corners of his mouth turned upward for just a second, and Annie relaxed.
"My name's Annie," she offered after a brief pause.
"I'm Abed."
"Nice to meet you, Abed." She smiled at him, and he smiled back.
They ate Annie's lunch together in silence, and Annie wondered if this was what it felt like to have a friend.
* * * * * * *
The next day in the cafeteria, Annie looked around for Abed, but she couldn't see him anywhere. Her heart sinking, she walked over to an empty table again, resigning herself to yet another lunchtime spent alone.
She was already halfway through her tuna sandwich when Abed slid into the seat opposite her.
"Hi," he said.
"Hi!" she responded happily, sitting up a little straighter. Her smile faded when she took in the big bruise on his cheek. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Abed merely shrugged and said, "It was Jack. Don't worry about it, I'm fine."
"Okay," Annie replied doubtfully. Abed didn't look upset, and aside from the bruise, he seemed okay. She decided to let it go, and held out the other cut half of her sandwich to him.
He stared at it with his head slightly tilted, and Annie suddenly felt foolish. Maybe she was assuming too much. Maybe he had just come here to tell her that he didn't want to be friends. All the hopes that she had built up from yesterday started to burst like balloons. She tried to swallow past the lump forming in her throat as she lowered the sandwich.
"I saw on a TV show once that when someone does something nice for you, it's a good idea to do something nice for them back," Abed suddenly declared. "You were nice to me yesterday. So I want to give you this."
He pulled a long ribbon out of his jeans pocket and put it on the table in front of her. She reached out tentatively and picked it up, examining it closer. It was yellow, with little white dots all over it.
When she looked up at Abed, he was watching her expectantly.
"I found it in my mom's sewing box, and I thought you might like it because it's the same colour as the sweater you were wearing yesterday," he explained.
Annie beamed at him, touched both by his gift and the fact that he had noticed something about her. She was used to being invisible, forgettable, but Abed had seen her and remembered her.
"I love it," she told him eagerly. "Thank you."
Reaching up, she tied it in a big, bright bow around her ponytail. It probably didn't match her flowery red dress, but she didn't care.
"So, what TV show was it?" she asked him as she offered him the half-sandwich again, which he took without hesitation. His eyes lit up at the mention of television.
This time, they talked as they ate her lunch together, and Annie knew that this was what it felt like to have a friend.
Fin
Author: arliddian
Rating: G
Fandom: Community
Characters/Pairing: Abed/Annie (friendship)
Summary: Middle school AU. Abed and Annie bond over lunch.
Word Count: 1143
Author's Note: Written for the prompt ribbon.
Warnings: Nil.
Disclaimer: Don't own it; don't sue me.
Annie hovered near the door of the cafeteria, clutching her tray and scanning the room. She was faced with the usual dilemma: where should she sit?
Most of the tables were full, and she was too scared to join any of the ones that weren't. Most of them were made up of other sixth-graders who didn't like her. She'd heard some of the girls talking about her in the bathroom once. She's a suck-up, one had said. I know! And she thinks she so smart, another had agreed. Teacher's pet. Know-it-all. No matter what she did or what she wore or what she said, the names followed her around. She had only been at this school for two months and everyone had already made up their minds about her.
She walked slowly over to a nearby empty table, unable to stop herself from hoping that someone, anyone, would call out to ask her to join them. Nobody did. She sat down with her back to the rest of the cafeteria and tried to pretend she didn't care that she was all alone.
"Hey! Weird kid!"
Annie swung around and shrank back when she saw who had spoken: Jack, a seventh-grader, one of the worst bullies in the school. He was accompanied by two of his buddies. All three of them were tall and mean and scary, and on the very first day of school they had played keep-away with her backpack and laughed at her when she cried.
To her great relief, they marched past her table and continued on to another lone kid a couple of tables down. The boy looked up as they approached. Annie was sitting opposite him and could see his face. He was another seventh-grader, a quiet boy whose name she didn't know. She'd heard other kids talking about how he thought his life was a TV show, but she'd never spoken to him before. He didn't seem all that weird to her.
"Aren't you forgetting something, weird kid?" Jack growled at the boy, pointing a threatening finger. His friends scowled at him with their arms crossed, making them seem somehow bigger and more menacing.
Annie swallowed, anxiety and pity forming a tight ball in her stomach. She was surprised by how calm the boy seemed. There wasn't a single flicker of an expression in his dark eyes.
The boy looked up at Jack, blinked once, and handed over his bagged lunch without a word. Jack snatched it out of his hand and divided it up amongst his cronies immediately. He leaned over and took a big bite out of the boy's sandwich, right in front of his face. Then he laughed with his mouth full and left.
The boy kept staring blankly at the table. Annie looked around, and if anyone else had seen what had happened, they obviously didn't care. She felt her throat tighten. She knew how it felt to be bullied every day, to be ignored and made into an outcast. she looked down at her own lunch, then back at the boy.
Before she could lose the nerve, she picked up her tray and walked quickly over to him.
"Hi," she said shyly. "Can I... Can I sit here?"
He stared at her for a long moment and blinked, but finally said "Okay."
She sat down across from him. After a moment's hesitation, she pushed her tray forward.
"Do you want to share?" she asked, her heart pounding. "I'm, um... I'm not really hungry, and I thought you might..."
Her voice trailed away into nothing as he continued to look at her. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, and she began to panic. What if he hated her like everyone else did?
But before she could apologise and retreat, he reached out and picked up her apple.
"Thank you," he said. The corners of his mouth turned upward for just a second, and Annie relaxed.
"My name's Annie," she offered after a brief pause.
"I'm Abed."
"Nice to meet you, Abed." She smiled at him, and he smiled back.
They ate Annie's lunch together in silence, and Annie wondered if this was what it felt like to have a friend.
* * * * * * *
The next day in the cafeteria, Annie looked around for Abed, but she couldn't see him anywhere. Her heart sinking, she walked over to an empty table again, resigning herself to yet another lunchtime spent alone.
She was already halfway through her tuna sandwich when Abed slid into the seat opposite her.
"Hi," he said.
"Hi!" she responded happily, sitting up a little straighter. Her smile faded when she took in the big bruise on his cheek. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Abed merely shrugged and said, "It was Jack. Don't worry about it, I'm fine."
"Okay," Annie replied doubtfully. Abed didn't look upset, and aside from the bruise, he seemed okay. She decided to let it go, and held out the other cut half of her sandwich to him.
He stared at it with his head slightly tilted, and Annie suddenly felt foolish. Maybe she was assuming too much. Maybe he had just come here to tell her that he didn't want to be friends. All the hopes that she had built up from yesterday started to burst like balloons. She tried to swallow past the lump forming in her throat as she lowered the sandwich.
"I saw on a TV show once that when someone does something nice for you, it's a good idea to do something nice for them back," Abed suddenly declared. "You were nice to me yesterday. So I want to give you this."
He pulled a long ribbon out of his jeans pocket and put it on the table in front of her. She reached out tentatively and picked it up, examining it closer. It was yellow, with little white dots all over it.
When she looked up at Abed, he was watching her expectantly.
"I found it in my mom's sewing box, and I thought you might like it because it's the same colour as the sweater you were wearing yesterday," he explained.
Annie beamed at him, touched both by his gift and the fact that he had noticed something about her. She was used to being invisible, forgettable, but Abed had seen her and remembered her.
"I love it," she told him eagerly. "Thank you."
Reaching up, she tied it in a big, bright bow around her ponytail. It probably didn't match her flowery red dress, but she didn't care.
"So, what TV show was it?" she asked him as she offered him the half-sandwich again, which he took without hesitation. His eyes lit up at the mention of television.
This time, they talked as they ate her lunch together, and Annie knew that this was what it felt like to have a friend.
Fin