Felicia and her friends pounced on anyone they perceived as an easy target, and nobody wore a bullseye better than the new girl.

When Kate stepped into Lakeside High School’s cafeteria for the first time, her yellow sundress waved around like the flag of an unsuspecting enemy. The band of female goons sensed she’d be the perfect opportunity to turn up the mean factor.

That day started by pelting her with grapes from across the room. Then, each following day, they’d dare one another to up the ante. By the end of the week, Felicia was challenged to get in Kate’s face after leaving second period and flip her off until she reached third. 

A group of girls, who had endured similar abuse, were impressed with Kate’s composure. 

One asked, “How do you not let them get to you?”

“I just know they’re compensating for something,” was Kate’s calculated response. 

Word Count: 150 

Prompted from MMA Storytime’s Flash Fiction Photo Challenge at: https://mmastorytime.com/2020/05/06/flash-fiction-photo-challenge-5/.

Prompted from the Word of the Day Challenge at: https://wordofthedaychallenge.wordpress.com/2020/05/06/opportunity/.

Prompted from Fandango’s One Word Challenge at: https://fivedotoh.com/2020/05/06/fowc-with-fandango-compensate/.

Prompted from the Ragtag Daily Prompt at: https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2020/05/06/rdp-wednesday-composure/.

Prompted from the Sunday Writing Prompt at: https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2020/05/03/sunday-writing-prompt-dare/.