Alex
"HOLY SHIT! YOU'RE MAGIC!" I said with a shocked look
"Yep, the one and only, and watch your mouth young man" he says with a smile.
"I'm sorry Magic... I mean Mike ...I mean Mr. Shore... I mean sir." I was looking at my feet again.
"It's ok Alex," he says with a smile.
I look up at him. "Why didn't you tell me who you where at the beginning of the school year" I asked.
"I tried to, but you looked like you were going through some problems and you weren't paying any attention to me." He said.
"When you came into class everyday it was just get to class, do your work, and leave."
"Then you started cutting class. At first it was a little, then a lot. When I saw you less and less, I just figured I'd let you find out for yourself. Then you got suspended for the third time. You were going to miss all of those classes. Your teachers weren't going to allow any more time for you to make up for your missed school work from your first suspension, and were only going to give you a week to complete the work from your classes. Somebody had to step in. Who do you think pushed all of your teachers for internal suspension?" he asked.
"You... You... did that? I asked.
"Yes, I did" he says.
THANKS! ...GREAT. THANKS A LOT!" I say as I start to gather my books then stop to mumble something when I started to get mad.
"Your welcome, I think." he says.
"Alex what did I do?" he asks.
"Nothing!" I say not really pissed off.
That's BS, Alex, I save you from getting kicked out of school." He answers back agitated.
That is when I lost it " WHY DID YOU GO AND DO SOME STPUID SHIT LIKE THAT? " I yelled.
"ALEX, WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM, KID?"
"FUCK YOU, I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF," I screamed.
As I gathered my books " DID YOU EVER THINK THAT I DID THAT BECAUSE I WANTED TO GET KICKED OUT OF SCHOOL, ASSHOLE?" I shouted as I walked out to my next class.
"ALEX!"
"ALEX!"
I just kept on walking. How could he? He was like the big brother I never had. I looked up to him. Who the fuck was he to do that? I didn't want to be in this hell hole anyways. I hit JC just to get out of school. Who the hell was he, how could Mike do that? He couldn't know the type of shit I had to go through each and every day here, trying to fit in. How could he know?
Justin
Three class periods had passed, and I was still numb after what Alex said to me. I can't believe Alex said that. I couldn't believe he used that word, that disgusting word, I thought to myself as I walked into the lunch room and found a table. I sat down away from my normal spot. Suddenly there were a pair of hands covering my eyes.
"Guess who?" the voice asked.
"Katie," I said as I pulled her hands from my face.
"What's up Stud?" she asked as she kissed my cheek.
"What would Tony say?" I asked.
"There is no more Tony," she said with a smile.
I was shocked. "Kate, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything this morning."
"What are you talking about, Just? I broke up with Tony last night," she said with a puzzled look on her face, "What did you do, or should I ask what did you say?" she then asked with a smile.
" Now is not a good time. I have some things, some real heavy things on my mind " I said. "Maybe later, Okay?"
"What's wrong?" she asked as she brushed the hair out of my eyes.
"Katie, don't, " I said, not wanting her to make a big deal. " It's nothing."
"Bullshit," she said. "Justin, just because we broke up doesn't mean I still don't or can't care about you, or still be friends."
"I know, " I said, knowing I hurt her real bad.
"OK, if not now, then how about Friday night after the game at my place? Please?" she asked.
"I don't know, Katie, I, I don't want to hurt you anymore and if I...." I didn't get a chance to finish.
"Justin Charles, it will just be as friends. I know that we have broken up, I just want to talk to you about something and cook you dinner," She said as she started to get pissed.
"The rents will be out for the weekend and you can go home after .......its just to talk," she said.
"Only to talk?" I asked.
"Yes, so you'll come over?"
"Yes, right after the game."
"You promise?"
"Cross my heart and hope to die," I said with a smile, but before I could finished she stopped me.
" Don't you ever say that again, Justin!"
"What?" I asked. "What did I say?"
"That you would die," she said.
"It is just a stupid rhyme, Katie," I said as I got up to walk away from the table. "God, sometimes you weird me out"
Alisa
I have to find him. Looking around the lunchroom I wondered who he sat with. I realize that I don't ever remember Brad being in the lunchroom at the same time as me. And then it hit me. I didn't even know what he had been up to for the past three years. Suddenly I asked myself how all of this happened. One moment you're with your best friends, then suddenly you have new friends who are nothing like the friends you used to have. Their goals are different from your goals, or the goals you used to have.
Thinking back, it started with Meagan. She went to a different middle school from ours, so I had never met her until our freshman year. She happened to have the same schedule as me, so by the end of the ninth grade she and I were good friends. We were always going over to each other's houses and going shopping and stuff. I remember the first time she saw my house. She almost passed out. She never wanted to hang with the guys. and was always asking me why I always wanted to hang out with Alex, Justin, and Brad. I told her that I had know them all of my life and they where my closest friends. She gasped and said a woman of my stature should never hang out with boys like that.
"My stature?" I asked her.
Yes. Yyou need to hang with people of your our kind, if you catch my drift. It is important who you know and are seen with if you want to survive and make it in high school. I'll introduce you to all my friends from my school. I can't understand why your parents never sent you to my middle school. You would understand how thing work by now. Don't worry. I'm here now, and I'll help you and introduce you to people you need to know.
The following week she introduced me to Marissa. After that it was no more hanging out with the boys. One day I was starting to miss the guys and asked if I could invite them to go with us to this party we were going to. Both Meagan and Marissa looked at me in astonishment that I would ask, and said no.
"But, Meagan. Why? they're my friends, too."
"But nothing. Justin is just some dumb JV jock. Now, if he could get on the varsity team next year", she added before Marissa interrupted her.
"And I'm sorry, but Alex is Black. The crowd he hangs with will only get you arrested. And he doesn't even play football he plays, ahh, soccer.
"Yeah, what's that all about?" asked Marissa.
"Shouldn't he be playing football or basketball or running track or something?" Meagan asked.
"And well your friend Brad ... well, he's just odd. He doesn't play sports or join any clubs or any activities. He's just weird. Alisa this is the biggest end of the year party. You can't just invite anyone Marissa said."
We ended up going to the party just the three of us. I never saw so many people at one house. I think everyone who was someone was there . I mean, seniors and juniors. Marissa, Meagan, and myself where but a handful of underclassmen that attended the party. The next day in school it seemed like everyone in the school wanted to hang with me. I was told I had made a great impression at the party. That's all it took. I was in. And so, by the beginning of the next year Brad and Alex were but a memory. Justin. however became a small blip on everyone's radar screen, only because he made the varsity football team as a 10th grader. That made him ok to associate with, but not as popular. As my new friends viewed it, he was between a # 9 and #10 on the dating list. A #10 meant only if he was the last man on the planet and we had to repopulate the earth. and a #9 because he played Football.
As I again started to look around for Brad with no luck, I suddenly saw the next best thing. And from the looks of things, I better get to him before he leaves the lunchroom. I get up and quickly race over to him. When I reached him I covered his eyes with my hands.
He sighs and says, "God, yes I am still coming over, just because I'm mad at you..." He grabs my hands he continues talking, " Doesn't mean I'm going to hate you."
And then started to turn around. "You know you're a real pain in my ass, Ka....Alisa?" he says looking like he's seen a ghost.
"Hey, Just, long... time... no see," I said with a smile.
"I wanted to say ...hi... and ah ..mmm..if maybe you've seen ..ahmmm.. Brad?"