When I was dating somebody in high school I kinda became absorbed into her friendgroup and became “friends” with them. Took me way too long to realize that most of them were major assholes and bullied me and each other.
Looking back I probably should’ve realized that those weren’t the people to be friends with.
Sometimes it’s hard for teenagers to realize that there are people out there beyond your friend group and beyond your school. Branch out, talk to people. The internet makes this easier than ever.
Not everybody has to be friends with people for the sake of it. If it doesn’t reward you emotionally then leave them. If they make a fuss over it and try to ruin your “reputation,” then take a step back and realize that nobody will really care about that kind of thing in a year probably.