Back in 5th grade, me and my friends were laughing around; celebrating our success as elementary schoolers. It was the last day of school. As we walked out of the brickwalled building I had known for years, I dashed up to my mom and dad and gave my parents a big hug. I see my friends collect around the school and run up to me. "Aline! Aline! We're finally out of school!" They yell. As they are all laughing, a girl from my class walks up to me. Akako was a very normal, pretty, and smart kid in our grade. I had never really cared for her. I had never even considered liking her. We weren't even friends.
That's why I was shocked when she smiled and said, "Do you like me? Because I think I like you." It was so straightforward and innocent. Like I said, I had never ever liked her. However, I couldn't say no. That would have hurt both of us.
"How did you know?" I said smiling. She stood there, shocked. All my friends and my mom gasped. My dad slammed his head and groaned.
"He really liked her?"
"I thought he liked someone else!"
"Yeah!"
All my friends were going ham over the situation. I remember looking up at my mom and asking her if she could come to the party that we were hosting. I didn't even look at my dad. He never accepted stuff like that in our house.
Now, I just started 9th grade. I started dating her a while after the incident. Maybe in the middle of 6th grade or so. Everyone accepted that I had found true love that day, including me and her.
She's not in any of my classes anymore. Until 9th grade she used to be in at least a few.
I look up at my new classmates. Nobody of interest. I open my computer and put in my earbuds. I put my feet on the edge of the desk and push forward, launching my chair around 40 degrees back. Just an old habit of mine. I've been really interested in "edgy" songs recently. Don't know if you could tell but I was the edgy kid around the time I started dating. I still would say I kind of am, but whatever. Actually, my music tastes change a lot. As I continue to talk to myself, a voice quickly interrupts my thinking session.
"Do you wanna meet up sometime?" I get a small dash of an almost nostalgic feeling from way back when; in 5th grade. I slowly look up and then I freeze. I have a girlfriend. Do I just tell her no and that I'm busy? But then she'll think that I'm single which I'm not.
"Sorry, I don't have a free schedule. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. They're all booked out. Again, sorry." I said sternly.
"Well, what about today; Tuesday?" She asked me.
WHO IS THIS PERSON! I TELL HER OFF SO STERNLY AND SHE STILL IS ASKING?!
Unable to register the situation, I open my mouth and I close it too late.
"Sure." I say.
"Alright! So today; after school?" She asks.
I can't go back now.
I nod my head and shyly smile.
"S-sure! That's fine."
Oh no, Now I have to avoid Akako for the rest of the day, drive this girl far off so we can have a "date spot" where I don't have the chance of having the unlucky coincidence of Akako being there. Then, I have to tell my parents a cover-up story, tell this girl we can't do this anymore because I'm taken and then leave the scene. This is amazing. Great first day of 9th.
"First class, guys!" The teacher yells sternly from the front of the class.
I stand up shakily and I look back at her.
She winks at me.
Oh no. I can't believe it! First- like- seven minutes of school and I already blew it. I already messed up my reputation! I thought I could maybe be a bit too scared for ninth grade, walking in. Now I know how unprepared I am. Really? Just letting this person date me? I don't even know her!
I walk to my first class; Phys. Ed. I usually have at least some of my friends in the class, but I step into the room and don't see any people I even know, forget friends. I wonder what classes they have right now. Probably something fun. I don't really like gym class. It's only fun when there's people you know around so, yeah. It's going to be pretty boring until the second trimester.
"Oi, man! Look back!" I hear an Australian accent voice yell. Man, these people are weird, I think as I look back. To my surprise, it's my friend; Liem. Also, he's jumping right into me.
"Dawg, what?" I ask as I quickly dodge the attack.
"What man?"
"The Aussie accent! Dude, when did you ever have that? Just a few months ago you had a normal American voice!" I yelled at him.
"Man! It's called change." Liem said, picking at his fingernail.
"It's- colled chaenge. Yeah." I mock.
"Dude, be quiet. Anyway, how's your music work going, huh?" He remarks annoyingly.
"My god dude!" I yell.
"Nah, it's a legitimate question of mine. Did you get a singer to ask you to work for them or something?" He said as he started cackling.
"You really don't know how this works. Also, I have a lot more realistic goals than yours."
"Oh come on, man! I don't think getting a few shots of mine on the television is that far-fetched." He said.
"The television?" I asked, jokingly.
"Dude, it is not that big of a deal. People change! Deal with it!" He said.
"Well, it's pretty funny to deal with." I say. He sighs. I haven't really talked to him in a while. We were friends in 5th grade and then we just fell apart for a while. Strange.
"Oh yeah! How's Akako?" He asked. So I guess he didn't forget.
"Fine." I said.
"Are you with her yet?" He asked. This man's pretty naggy.
"Yeah. I've been with her for a while." I said.
"Dude, what? How long is a while?"
"Three years," I say calmly.
"Okayyyyyyy! Love to see it. But, dude."
"What?"
"I can't find nobody. Everyone's either too annoying or outta my league." He said. Honestly, I've always been the only friend who was dating ever since I started dating. I've heard that only 5% of people who are dating in high school alone get married. That's what I've heard, but I'd like to think that this is true love.
"Ehhhhh. Just wait. You'll find someone."
Just wait. You'll find someone.
"Class! I'm Mr. Diego! Today, you guys will be looking at the weights gym!" He yells.
"Already? I thought today was just going to be-like- doing nothing." I whisper to Liem as I stand up and start walking over to the doors.
"I know. Last year, the teachers just shot hoops for the first class. He responds, following me.
"That sounds fun. They just yelled at us about locker combinations for thirty minutes." I said.
The teacher walks us over to the gym from the locker rooms.
"Alright boys! This is the weight gym. There's treadmills, Two, five, and ten pounded weights. Today, I'll let you try out everything. I will be here for guidance as you test these out." Mr. Diego said.
"Ahhhh yeah, dude!" Liem yelled, throwing his hands up into the air.
"Yayyyyy," I said quietly.
"Dude, what do you mean- yayyyyy? This is the best thing ever! The teacher doesn't even look like he's paying attention. We can just work out however we'd like!" He yelled.
"But- okay." I say. Working out was never really my thing. I was always a bit overweight but my mom was fine with it so, I didn't ever diet and I only worked out a few times.
"C'mon! Let's hit the treadmills!" He yells, grabbing my hand and yanking it over.
"Alright. I'll give this a shot." I say, cracking my knuckles.
"Wait, you've never ran before?" He asks.
"No. The farthest I've run is to catch the bus stop." I say, trying to act like I'm joking when I'm really not.
"Hah! Dude, then we should work out together sometime. Get that muscle, dawg!" He says, enthusiastically.
"Sure man. How about tomorrow? I'm good then." I say as he clicks a bunch of buttons. I don't know what they are for.
"Aight! Also, I set this up for you. I'm giving you a light five, okay?" He says. I peer over at his treadmill. He sets it to nine.
"Okay. Here goes nothing!" I say, slamming the start button.
*Vrrmmmmmmmmmm*
I started jogging. It wasn't all that bad. I almost glide through the first minute. As I run, I take a look at him. He's bolting down the treadmill in the nick of time without breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, I had a half-wet shirt after two minutes. That's it. I'll show him that I can do better. I crank the treadmill up to ten and I immediately fall backwards, causing me to land on the side of my head. Liem jumped off his treadmill to help me. I feel my side and check my hand. Blood from the top of my eye to my shoulders.
"Dude! Why'd you crank it up so high?" He asks.
"Oh, I was just trying to take a break." I say, nervously.
"Boys, what is going on here?" Mr. Diego asks us.
"He just slipped from his treadmill!" Liem yells.
"Alright. Is he okay?" Mr. Diego says, leaning down.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I say.
He was an old man; I would assume he was in his mid to late 60s. He was very genuine though. His worry when I was on the ground was real; I could feel it. I smiled.
Man, I haven't done that in a while.
I stood up and brushed myself off. I dusted my side and felt a terrible pain from the tip of my right eyebrow to my shoulder. I looked at my hand and saw a few drops of blood.
"Dude! Oh my god!" Liem yelled. He grabbed my arm with ease and shuffled over to the school nurse.
"Alright. I'll come with you, boys." Mr. Diego said, jogging over to us. As Liem shuffled and hobbled me over to the nurse across a few halls, I felt a wave of guilt on me. Maybe I really should work out. I don't want this happening again.
The next thing I know I'm in the nurse's office. I sit up. My back feels heavy and my body is pulsing uncontrollably. I barely make my head high enough to see the door.
"Did I pass out? Where's Liem?" I asked, groaning through my words.
"Right here, man." He said from the corner of the room, raising his hand up slowly as if to say "hey."
"I'm so sorry, dude! Did you carry me through the halls while I was asleep?" I asked. That would be even worse.
"Yeah," He said, softly.
"So, are we still good for tomorrow?" I ask.
"Yeah, man! That's the spirit! I'll see you then. I have to get to my next class." He said. I half expected him to be concerned, but whatever. It's a weird thing I have. Whenever I think something would be crazy cool, like a random fluke, it becomes my expectation. Such as "what if this nurse let me go?" Maybe I'd be lucky and I'd get to go. Then that becomes my expectations. To be fair, my expectations were always high. Since the earliest I could remember, I was always the smart kid. I guess I just felt like I didn't have any limits and that's how I developed that thing. I snap back to reality. I try to get out of the nurse bed I'm in immediately.
"Lay down. You'll be here a while." She said. I slouch down. I check my side again. Less blood this time. I checked the time. Only thirty minutes has passed. So much for the first day of ninth grade. I sit there quietly until the woman stands up from her seat and walks off into another room. God, Liem's gonna think I'm so weak. I try and remember my schedule, winking about what I'm missing.
Frankly, I've never liked history. It was always meh in my view. Learning about the past. Who cares about the past? The future is where to look. The past is to remember. I actually have never found the reason for learning history. My mom said it was so we could, quote, "Learn from our mistakes," but I'm not sure if that's happening much.
I sigh heavily.
"Sit here. Do you want me to call your parents?" She asks politely. No, no, no, no! I can't have my parents hearing this. I'll still get lectured and I'll still miss that date thing! This girl I don't even know is really complicating my schedule!
"No, I'm really just fine," I say, gesturing with my hands no.
"Alright. You go get some rest." She says.
"Thank you," I groaned. I set a timer for two o'clock pm on my watch and slept.
The next thing I knew, I woke up to my alarm.
"Oh! You're awake. You can go to free period. Same place as your homeroom." She said as she smiled.
I smiled back and nodded. I walked out of the room. She seems like she enjoys her job. That's nice for her. I bolt back to my homeroom. Somehow I remember where it is.
As I walk in, the whole class stares. Looks like I still have my scar. I check again as I sit down. There's still quite a bit of blood. How did that nurse let me go?"
"So, are you ready?" A voice says. I shiver. It's her.
"Yeahh! All good! W-we just have 20 minutes more for this period. I'll be at the front of the school, I guess?" I say. I can't believe myself. How could I slip up this easily and accidentally cheat! For someone I don't know the name of!
Then, I realized something. I-I'M CHEATING! ON OKAKO! What happened to me! I can't be cheating on my girl of three years! I used to be a goody-two-shoes! And now I'm cheating! In NINTH GRADE! What happened to me! How did I get flustered so bad that I accidentally cheated! You know what, I have to tell that girl now!
My stomach turns into a ball almost ripping me from the inside out when I walk up to her desk. I hate this feeling. It feels so purple. I don't know why it does. I'm just weird like that.
"Uh, hey. I-uh- think that we- I- I-" I pause and sigh.
"I think that you'll just have to get me from my locker." I say, gulping.
"Oh, no, that's fine. I think that works great!" She smiles again. I hate to say it, I really do, but that smile is comforting. Her voice is too. Maybe I- NO! I DO NOT LIKE HER! She's probably going to be a weird girl when I talk to her.
I can't believe I've been forced to cheat! Under my own will! What is this! I can't even talk right around her. Maybe that's cu-NO! URGHH! I don't like her.
Sometimes I just wanna go home. Like even when I am at home. Like- to a home where I am set free from my untamed mind and can just sit.
*RINGGGGGGGG*
"Alright guys, that's the bell. See ya!" The teacher says.
Already! That's insane! It's literally been like 4 minutes! I guess time flies when-URGHH! Will that EVER get out of my brain! As you can tell, I can barely control my brain. Sometimes it just roams freely. I don't know if anyone else is like that because I've never lived as somebody else. I know that sounds obvious but-
"Okayy! C'mon, Aline!" She says. How in the world does this girl know my name! Is she a stalker?
"Um hey! So, how do you know my name?" I ask, a bit scared.
"Hah! Of course I knew your name!" She laughs. I stare at her, confused.
"Do you even remember me?" She asks. I stare deep into her pearly blue eyes. She seems disappointed at my bad memory.
"Of course I do, Cara!" I say, relieved. I finally remember. I knew her from a long time ago. Maybe sixth grade. I had no idea she was into me this whole time. Maybe it's just a small crush that'll go away.
"Oh, thank god! I thought you forgot." She giggled.
"Speaking of forgot, I think you left your bag in your locker."
"Ahh! I did." I say. We walked to the door of the school by the time she said that. I run back as quickly as I can, snag my bag and bolt back. I see her there, waiting for me.
"C'mon." She said.
"Urk- Come on where?" I ask, gasping for air.
"Haha! You're funny. Just come on, I'll show you." She grabs me by the wrist and pulls me over to a black car in the parking lot.