Hi! My name's Sanderson Flint, but you can call me Sonny. I'm sixteen years old, and I go to school at Hughbeach High, just outside of L.A. If that's everything I can tell? Meh... Pretty much. It's not that I'm that interesting.
I'm one of the members of what other people call "The Nerd Club". Because, yes, guys, I am a dorky nerd. Probably the biggest one in L.A. If I care being kicked, pushed, scolded, and used to make others' homework?
Well...
It sucks. It'd always be someone different, that's the thing: you never know who's gonna kick your ass when you're just casually walking to your school to take in another crate of wisdom.
But mostly, it would be Taylor Greyhound; the popular guy. I don't know what I did to harm him, though. I don't know what makes him want to snatch another pair of new glasses off of my face, accidentally drop it on the ground, and, oops, stamps his foot on it. Believe me, your eyes would widen too if you'd just be taking your books out of your locker and suddenly you smell that typical "manly" leather-mud sent. It makes the girls faint. I faint too, from the bad smell. (*barf*)
But, well, back to "The Nerd Club". Correction: "The Scientific Maths Club" or "The SMC". I know, it sounds nerdy, but hey: it's only for the smarties. You probably think: "Wow, Sonny, brah, you must have a lot of friends there!" Well... Not exactly, you see. With the bullying and stuff, I'd like to keep myself in the background, behind my books or my laptop.
Translation: distant geek with no friends.
Actually, I have one friend from the club. Well, yeah, I don't know if I can consider him as a friend, but I guess he is since he keeps following me. His name's Lester Bungee, and to my opinion, he is way too hyper. Every time I see him, he's just so cheerful. Too cheerful, if you know what I mean.
Now, the teachers. They're okay. To me, at least. Practically everyone else hates them because of the difficult tests, the overload of homework, and the boring lessons. Can you feel the sarcasm? I don't have a problem with those things, but I keep my mouth shut.
Actually... There's one teacher I'd want to jump in a wormhole into the airless space. Mrs. Gotham. January Gotham. She's one of those teachers, guys. Those. She gives tons of homework, explains nothing, and scolds at us in the most ridiculous class ever: Home Economics. Good thing she can't teach, imagine if she'd give Maths. "Ma'am, why can't you just do that?" "Because I say so, Bruce!" Ugh, terrible woman.
And then, as the final touch, probably the most shitty thing about high school ever invented: love. In high school, it isn't even real love, it's just those soggy, short hookups they call "relationship". Wow, can't tell I've never had a girlfriend, right?
Of course, I had a crush once. In kindergarten. But, Meghan Brantford rejected me. See you later, alligator. And that was the last time I fell in love.
Until she showed up.
Two years ago, in eighth grade, a new girl came to our school. I remember the moment. I was just fiddling in my locker, while Lester leaned against the locker next to me and babbled about some nonsense. He abruptly knocked on my locker door, causing me to lean backward to look past it at him, and pointed at the entrance. A girl with long, black hair as dark as the night and eyes as green as emeralds had walked through the wide doors of our school.
I froze. I was paralyzed. I couldn't move. I felt my eyes widen. Damn, was she gorgeous! I felt my cheeks heat up like a bun in an oven as I gulped when her eyes looked in my own dark ones. She softly smirked and moved on. My heart skipped a few beats. When I took a better look at her, I sighed. Black, ripped jeans... Black sneakers... Green t-shirt... Black, leather jacket... A few piercings...
Shit. A bad girl. It was no secret Taylor would like her. And that means: "Stay away, or I'll crack your bones! One. By. One." And, by the way, bad girls don't fall for nerds. They laugh at them. Certainly me, I mean, come on: glasses, messy dark brown hair, and a Mario mushroom t-shirt, hidden by a blue jacket. Why the hell would she?
There was a big chance she'd be a part of Taylor's gang, though. But, surprisingly, she isn't. Luckily. Now that I think about it: we kinda have a lot in common. We're both very distant, silent, lonely, and stuff like that. Oh, and she's smart, that too. I don't know about her parents, but mine totally don't care about me ("too busy". Tsch, yeah). They told me I was an accident when I was only nine. And I, as an innocent and playful child, thought I was born when two cars collided.
Oh, and by the way, I was right: Taylor thinks she's "hot". Okay, let's face it: every guy (let's not forget the lesbians) thinks that. Except for the gays, of course.
Her name? Abby Dice. Sounds like a sweet violin, doesn't it?
Anyway: this day, in tenth grade, was no different than others. I just entered the building and deeply inhaled. "Sweat and cologne, " I sighed. I looked around to see other people's looks. "Now, who will kick me today?"
I shrugged and walked off to my locker to get my Physics book for the first course of the day. I small sigh escaped my mouth when I spotted a boy with headphones and closed eyes, nodding his head to the beat and (falsely) singing along, leaning against the locker next to mine. And, of course, it was no one else than Lester. "I can't see me lovin' nobody but you, for all my life! When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue, for all my liiiiiiife!" he sang (or, well, he tried).
I slightly chuckled. Since he didn't see me, I decided to just yank those headphones off of his head. He, as anxious and scared off as he was, quickly looked around to see who it was. I tinily smirked. "You know that others can actually hear you, right?"
Lester chuckled when he saw me. "One word, San: super-sneaky." Since Lester decided he wanted to give me a nickname (he thought "Sonny", which totally isn't a nickname already, was too long) and "Sanderson" is my full name, the nickname appeared to be "San" (it'd be kinda odd if he'd called me "Son").
I handed him his headphones back. When he took them and looked at them, I rolled my eyes at his former choice of words (come on, everyone knows it's "super sneaky", and not a full word). I opened my locker a--
--and was suddenly hit by a boxing-glove-with-coil-spring-thing straight in the face. It made my glasses - which were, luckily, not damaged - glide off my face and drop on the floor. I heard Lester gasp in the background while I was distracted by a vague, yellow object I saw falling off of the glove. Lucky thing Lester knew I saw everything in a blur without my glasses, so he kneeled to pick them and the yellow thing up. Meanwhile, I painfully rubbed my face. He gave me my glasses. I placed them back on my nose, sighed, and blinked in relief when I had my vision back.
Lester looked at the yellow object, which appeared to be a sticky note. He frowned. "Hey, San, you might wanna see this, " he told me as he handed me the note.
I frowned when I read it aloud.
"My dear friend Sonny
I have something sweet for you to do. Since you basically have no life, why don't you knock my Chemistry homework? Thnx. Real appreciation over here. I put a folder in your locker. And one more thing: Stay. Away. From. Abby. Understood, Four-Eyes?
With the mocking greetings from Taylor."
I sighed. Lester crossed in arms in confusion. "So, watcha gon' do?" he asked me.
I faced him with raised eyebrows. "See, Lester, I have four possibilities right now: one; I storm off to Taylor, make him eat the note, and beat his ass, which would cause me into too much trouble. Two; I faithfully do what he says and fight my own principles. Three; I knock on the principal's door, show him the note, and will be killed by Taylor. Or four; I could just do this..." Right then, I placed the note on my palm and slowly crumpled it in my fist, thinking of a certain person.
Lester's eyes widened as I threw it into a nearby trash can. "I gotta say, man: you've got balls."
I shrugged. "In my house, we say "testicles", but I'll take it, " I answered him with a nod.
He snickered at my sarcasm while I turned to my locker to take out my Physics book. I closed it, leaned my back against it, and looked at my watch. "Ten minutes left. Have you got your book?" I asked Lester. He nodded with a happy hum and stuck his thumb over his shoulder to point at his backpack. I nodded.
Lester's sheepish expression suddenly turned into an anxious face. "Say, Sonny, am I silly, or does Taylor have Physics with us?" he quietly asked me. He paled.
I groaned. "Both, " I replied facepalming.
Lester didn't notice that I technically insulted him and sighed. "Ugh, meatballs and potatoes..." he cursed. He looked at his feet.
I put my hands in my pockets and looked back up. It was my time to pale. On the other side of the hallway, I saw Abby and her friend - Chrissie, was it? - laughing with each other. God, her laugh is beautiful. If only I could talk to her. I've never talked to a girl before. Well, except for mom and aunt Felicia. And cousin Steffy. But out of that...
My eyes slightly widened when both girls' gazes landed on me. I started to sweat. Was there an escape route? I didn't wanna embarrass myself in front of Abby! Where was the emergency exit if you needed it?! Shit. Not the plan. Mayday. Help needed. NOW!
I totally panicked when I saw Lester waving at Chrissie, who waved back with a small smile. I facepalmed. "Dude!" I hissed in a whisper. I put his hand down and shook my head when he looked at me. Of course, as my "best friend", he knew about my feelings for Abby. He tried to push me over to her many times, and, oh, believe me, that had led to very humiliating moments.
As I saw Lester shrug, I sighed. I looked over to Abby once to her laughing at us. Great. Although I didn't know for sure if it was meant to be mean. It did come in like that. I walked off. Lester quickly closed my locker before rushing after me.
"What's the matter?" he dared to ask me.
I halted abruptly and turned to him with raised eyebrows. "I'm sorry?! How dare you!" I exclaimed. I was so pissed at him. When his face became pure confusion, I turned furious. "So many times I asked you not to embarrass me in front of her, Lester! So many times!" I blamed.
Lester frowned. "Are you embarrassed for me?" he quietly questioned.
I loudly exhaled. Well... "No, of course not, " I answered him. If I were honest? No. I definitely was ashamed of him. Why? It was Lester, okay? He may've been a happy person, but he was so noisy. And, to be completely sincere: he was simple and kinda dumb, so say goodbye to a normal conversation.
Why I lied? I didn't want any drama. That's it.
Lester nodded at my response. "Okay, then. I'm sorry about what happened."
I nodded calmly. "It's alright, " I silently replied, feeling a slight, unknown bubble in my stomach. I turned back around to go to Physics and Lester followed me.
As always.