Date: Sun, 3 Jul 2011 00:47:23 -0700 (PDT)
From: Nick R. <flipped100@yahoo.com>
Subject: I Think I've Flipped Chapter 7

Disclaimer: First of all, I was above the age of 18 when I wrote this story and I
own all rights to this. Any resemblance to actual living persons and places within
this story is purely coincidental. If you are underage or it is illegal to view this
story in your area, please hit the back button now. This story includes scenes of
male teenagers engaged in male/male sex when permitted in the narrative. If you
are uncomfortable with this, kindly exit now as well. Anyway, here goes:


Author's note: There's a certain song here titled 'I Feel Wrong' by Glasvegas that
plays an important part in creating a certain mood within the narrative. So at this
moment, I'd like you to hit up your browsers, head on to Youtube and search for
it and load it. When the song gets mentioned in the story, play it immediately and
continue reading. You won't regret it!

---

I Think I've Flipped. Chapter 7.


(Will's POV)

It's Tuesday morning and once again, I am stuck in History class. I haven't heard
a word my teacher, Mr. Jones is talking about. Good Lord, I think I am going to
fail this class. History has never been one of my best subjects and I don't think
this will ever change.  However, I did promise myself that I would do better. It
seems harder for me to concentrate with so much on my mind.

 "Will!" a voice sounded breaking me from my private thoughts as Rocky was
giving me the eye. I asked him to keep an eye out for me and not let me doze off.
UGH! I'm kind of regretting ever asking him now.

I sat up straight in my chair upon the sudden mention of Tyler's name. I looked
over in front of me. Two girls who seemed to be friends were whispering to each
other.

"No! No one has seen him. I heard he even skipped football practice yesterday,"
the girl on her right whispered.

I swear if only looks could kill, they'd be dead already as my eyes looked right
through them.

"Wow, then it must be really serious. You don't think he did anything drastic, do
you?" the girl on the left side of me asked.

"I don't know.... I heard he was doing drugs at home.... and that he was kicked
out by his parents," the girl on the right side of me answered.

I was tapping my pencil furiously on my desk, as I was getting angrier and angrier
by the second. Honestly, these girls make me so sick. They were spreading gossip
around the school like wildfire. Tyler shouldn't be subjugated to this type of
cruelty. I can tell you all about it since I've been there myself.

I'm so worried about Tyler. I know it's only the second day of the week, but I'm
concerned about how he's doing. The news of Dana leaving Ridgemont spread
faster than a match thrown into gasoline. Everyone knew what had happened
before school started this week. I couldn't believe how they were still talking
about it.

I expected Tyler to skip school yesterday; however, I didn't think he'd drag it out
this long. I'd picture him strolling around school today acting like nothing even
happened. I guess I was mistaken. It's just that I'm worried, because I know how
much it hurts when people talk about you behind your back in the cruelest of
way. Since yesterday, I heard enough of them. I guess people love it when the
mighty fall.

"Will, I know what you're thinking... Let it go," Rocky muttered at my right as he
followed my gaze to the two bitches in front of me.

I glared towards Rocky telling him to back off. He must have read my mind
because he stared down at his notebook in response.

At last, the bell rang. I grabbed my books to go outside. In all this haste, I
scratched my knee on the side of my desk. Shit! That really stings as I looked
down at my knee and saw a bloody scrape forming.  This is what I get for dressing
too casually in a grey t-shirt and some khaki shorts.

When I saw Rocky grab his books, I scampered towards the door. He gave me a
weird look. I hated treating him like this, but I need to talk to someone first.
I made my way through the hallways and found Jason Harrington, the person I
was looking for. The only problem is that he's not alone. Two other football
players who were bigger than him surrounded him. The two football players were
talking to him, or rather trying to talk to him. He wasn't really paying them any
attention as he barely saying anything at all. I couldn't hear anything of what they
were talking about, but from what's going on around school, it's obviously about
Tyler.

A few seconds later, the two football players said goodbye and left for the
cafeteria. I guess they must have realized they weren't going anywhere.

I walked up to him when the two jocks disappeared around the corner. I wasn't
really sure what I wanted to say to him, so I just tapped him on the shoulder. I
know this seems lousy and a wimpy.

"How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not talking about Tyler?!"  Jason
said when he felt the tap on his shoulder!" Then he turned around to face me with
an annoyed expression on his face.

"Er... Hello," I said, making a small awkward wave.

"Oh Will! I didn't know it was you," said Jason with a surprised look.

"I imagine a lot of people have been bothering you, huh?" I asked.

"You have no idea. So many people have pestered me since Tyler's absence
yesterday. And on top of that, there's been chaos within the football team too,"
Jason said with a sigh.

"How is he by the way? I know you're getting tired of being asked by the same
questions over and over again. It's just I haven't seen him leave his house since
Saturday evening," I replied as I began to worry once again.

"It's okay. It's you after all. I don't know man. All I know is that he's in a deep
hole that I can't pull him out of. I've tried, but nothing's working. He's so
depressed right now. He barely said a word to me when I visited him. On top of
that, coach has given the team some shit lecture about Tyler's absence in practice
yesterday. After all, there's no team without the quarterback," Jason said as he
rubbed his eyes in weary frustration.

I stayed silent, digesting this new bit of information.

"Say, why don't you try and visit him?" Jason asked with a hint of hope in his
eyes.

"Me?.... What can I do?... I barely know Tyler as it is," I explained to him.

"I don't know. It's just I couldn't get through to him. Maybe you can. Who
knows?" Jason said.

"I don't know Jason. I might make things worse," I replied with apprehension.
Okay, maybe I'm totally frightened. When I was depressed, I really just wanted to
be left alone. Whenever someone bothered my moments of solitude, well let's
just say I can be a real bitch. I know that someone needs to help Tyler snap out of
this funk because this behavior isn't good in the long run. I'm not convinced the
right person is me.

"Oh well.... it was worth a try," Jason shrugged as he walked to the cafeteria
leaving me alone in the hall.

I sighed. Why do I always find myself in the thick of things? I followed Jason to
the lunchroom shortly thereafter.

When I got to our table, Rocky didn't waste any time and suddenly asked, "Why'd
you leave so suddenly during history?"

"Gee whiz guys... I haven't even sat down, and here I am getting interrogated
already," I said as I laid my lunch tray on the table. I could feel all of my friend's
eyes staring at me. I certainly got enough stares last week and I don't need them
now.

"Did you go anywhere Will?" Claire asked as she took a bite from her pasta.

"I went to talk to someone," I nonchalantly answered as I took a bite out of my
pasta as well. Hmm....  I think I better keep my answers as vague as possible...
Yuck! Was this supposed to be pasta? It tasted like crap. I swear the lunch menu
is getting worse and worse every day.

"Oh really?" Rocky asked, as he crossed his arms on his chest. He had an annoyed
look on his face. I don't like where this is going.

"Yes, really," I said coolly at him as I opened punched my straw into my juice
carton.

"So who'd you go see?" Claire asked once again. Taylor and Sterling were pretty
silent the entire time. Oh I know where this is going. Claire's questions may seem
innocent enough, but sooner or later, if you continue this charade you're bound
to slip and she'll eventually figure it out. I don't want that to happen.

"If you all must know, I went to the nurse. I went to have her look at this scar on
checked out," I announced as I showed them my knee, "I got this when I stood up
at the end of history class. I had the nurse make sure it wasn't infected or
something." I did my very best to control myself from snorting. Claire says it's a
habit of mine whenever I lie.

"Oh..... That's a pretty nasty looking scar," Taylor interjected as she leaned
forward to take a better look at it.

"How'd you get that?" Claire asked. Good she bought it. I need to be aware of this
snorting habit of mine.

"I must have scraped it on my chair when I was about to leave," I answered, this
time again controlling myself to be silent and not make any unnecessary noises.

"Sorry Will," Rocky said as he clasped my shoulder. Ha.  I Fooled him too.

"It's nothing," I said with a fake chuckle. Hey, I'm getting good at this! I should be
in the drama club now. Okay, maybe that's exaggerating too much.

We continued eating peacefully afterwards, making small talk here and there.
That is until we saw a small commotion over at one of the tables. We saw Scott
and his posse as well as a few cheerleaders tormenting a small looking male
student.

"That's so sickening.... Just because Dana and Tyler aren't here, they find it
perfectly okay to bully people," Taylor said as saw them finally dump the
student's bag in the trash and left the lunchroom.

"Speaking of Tyler and Dana, have you heard anything about Tyler yet?" Rocky
asked, looking back at me. That caught me by surprise. Rocky would have been
the last person I would be expecting to ask about Tyler's condition.

"No. I haven't seen him," I said.

"Huh," Rocky just said as he finished the rest of his food.

"I still can't believe it. Dana is actually gone? I mean Will and I went out with her
last Saturday and everything seemed fine," Claire said as she glanced at me and
asked, "right?"

"Maybe that was her way of coping? You know, act all sunny and cheery?" Taylor
asked.

"Who knows? All I know is that Tyler never saw it coming," I said as I played
around with my pasta. Sterling just watched me from his corner of the table.

"No shit! You think he'll come back to school at all this week?" Rocky asked.

"I hope so because the team needs him. He can't miss too much practices or
coach might bench him." Claire answered.

A few minutes later, we left all together towards our afternoon classes. Claire,
Rocky, and Taylor walked to the far of the building. They had science together.
On the other hand, Sterling and I had Calculus so we hurried to class.

"Hey....are you okay? You were pretty quiet back there in the cafeteria."  I asked
Sterling.

"Why did you lie?" He muttered. He didn't even look at me.

I stopped walking and stood still looking at him. How the hell did he know? I
knew for a fact I didn't snort during that conversation in the cafeteria. He
stopped a few steps ahead of me and turned around.

"You didn't go to the clinic because I saw you talking to Jason Harrington over at
his locker," he told me. "Why'd did you do it Will? I am having a hard time
understanding why you would lie especially to your friends!"

I just looked down at the floor with shame. I was cold busted. I did not count on
the fact that someone could see me talking with Jason.

"Bloody hell Will, what's so important with Jason that you had to lie to us?"
Sterling asked again as he made his way towards me.

I looked up at him and found him pissed. I could see a little anger in his eyes.
Honestly, I couldn't find the words. I was taken aback with his accusation and I
couldn't speak. The only words that I could mutter were, "I... I-"

"Figures," Sterling muttered as he rolled his eyes and stormed off.

"Sterling wait," I cried out to him as he ignored me and kept walking.

This is just great....Sigh.... For some unknown reason, the universe refuses to give
me a break.

I followed Sterling to class. When I arrived in the classroom, I found Sterling
sitting in our usual seats. I sat down beside him and looked at him.

"Sterling..." I called out to him, but he just kept looking forward or towards the
other direction. Okay great, the silent treatment I guess I deserved it.

Sterling ignored me for the rest of the class. No matter how much I stared at him
or called out to him, he never once looked back in my direction. He's mad that
much I know. This is the last thing I needed. On top of that creepy message last
week, the last thing I need is more enemies.

The teacher gave us a dozen of problems to solve. I quickly breezed through
them. Out of all the subjects, math is probably one of my favorites. I know that's
weird, but I find math to be extremely easy. Guess that makes me a nerd, huh?

When class ended, Sterling quickly bolted out of the classroom leaving me
behind. I wonder if he's going to tell Claire and Rocky that I lied to the both of
them. I guess I'll find out soon. I grabbed my books and walked out the room
towards my last class, which is an elective.

During senior year, every student is required to take an elective class. These
classes are specialty classes, which are not offered in the standard curriculum.
The administration says that it's supposed to enrich our academic experience and
we should take it seriously. This is why they allow the students to pick whatever
class they want as an elective.

I picked art studies for myself. It just sounded like an interesting subject to take.
I'm heading towards the classroom now. Today is technically our first day since
we didn't have class last week.

When I arrived in the classroom, I found a few students inside. Most of them
were girls. I didn't know any of them though, but they sure knew me. As soon as I
stepped inside, they stopped talking and kinda stared at me for a couple of
minutes. Guess their fascination with me returning to Ridgemont hasn't
completely died down just yet. As if there's anything interesting about me. I am
sure they would be so disappointed if they knew that I was a normal teenager. I
walked to the back of the class to grab a seat. I did this so it would be harder for
them to stare and gossip. I sat down in an available chair and whipped out a book
to read. While doing so, my eyes glanced up and found the people in the
classroom still looking at me. As soon as my eyes made contact with theirs, they
quickly averted their gaze someplace else.

"Cowards", I replied. No sooner had I said that, the teacher arrived.

"Good afternoon class!" he chirped as he placed his things on top of the desk and
then faced us. When he did, I managed to get a good look at him. Is this guy really
a teacher?! He was good looking for crying out loud! He had a chiseled, square
shaped face and very smooth, chocolately, dark, brown hair neatly combed to one
side. Even though he's wearing a long sleeved dress shirt, I could make out the
muscles in his body. I couldn't help but stare. Holy shit, He's hot as hell.
Apparently, I wasn't the only person who noticed. Almost all the girls in the room
were whispering to one another and giving the teacher their best x-ray vision.

"Okay class, settle down. My name is Vincent Irons and I'm going to be your art
studies teacher this semester," He announced as he sat on the teacher's table.
"As you all may have noticed, I am new to Ridgemont High. I just recently
graduated and now you guys are my very first group of students. Now before I
begin, do any of you have an idea what this course is all about? Anyone?" He
looked around the room and found absolutely no raised hands in the air. I shrunk
down into my seat to prevent him from calling me.

Mr. Irons laughed as he stood up and said, "I had a feeling none of you would.
Now, you would think that we would simply study contemporary and ancient
pieces of art such as paintings, sculptors and the like. But that wouldn't be really
that fun now would it?"

I raised my eyebrows. What was he suggesting?

"For this class, I am going to chuck the boxed view of art out the window and
focus more on what's really important nowadays to you youth," Mr. Irons
beamed, "and I'm talking about music! Movies! TV shows! Videogames! Pop
culture! We're going to apply the theories used to study art into the modern age.
We're going to be comparing what makes a certain thing become art. We're going
to be comparing old art with new ones popping out nowadays. We're going to be
studying popular culture too and what makes things become fads. We're going to
determine who decides what art is and isn't!"

When he finished speaking, he got the class into a buzzing frenzy. People in the
classroom were talking excitedly with one another. Heck, even I was! This was
certainly different from what I initially expected. And I must say, Mr. Irons'
enthusiasm is highly contagious.

"Glad I got you guys talking! Now," Mr. Irons said as he grabbed a piece of paper
from inside his folder, "before we start, I'd like to take attendance." He whipped
out a pen from his pocket and started calling out names. I'm sorry, but I can't
help but stare at his wonderfully, hot creature. Okay wait; did I just call my
teacher wonderfully hot?

"Evelyn Banks?" Mr. Irons called out. A petite girl in the center of the room
raised her hand in response.

"Okay... Tyler Beaumont?"

As soon as Mr. Irons called out Tyler's name, the room got really quiet before
breaking into hushed whispers.

"Mr. Beaumont, are you here?" Mr. Irons called out again, "Hmm... I guess not...
Moving on... Bianca Callister?"

I was surprised to find out that Tyler enrolled in this class. I never thought he had
the slightest inclination towards art. I've always thought of him as a sporty
person. I figured he would have taken economics or something business related
in order to make his father happy and now we're classmates. Who would have
thought?

"Okay, William Lakewood?"

I snapped out of my daze as soon as I heard my name. I awkwardly raised my
right hand in the air. I saw people staring back at me. Will you all please stop?

"Alright. Next... Lisa Marymount?"

Mr. Irons finished the roll call before delving again into the subject. He passed
around our course outlines before giving a short lecture about some of the
theories art historians used to study art and popular culture.

To be honest, I had a hard time understanding it. Mr. Irons bombarded us with
so many names and theories that it kinda made my head spin. He apologized for
this "boring" part of the class. He promised that we would be doing fun things in
the future, but for now, we had to go through these fundamental theories. As
soon as he finished his lecture, I heard the room breathe out a sigh of relief.
Clearly, the excitement and enthusiasm we had a while ago has now disappeared.
Everyone, including myself, was pretty glad the lecture was now over.

"Okay class. With all the theories we learned today, I'm going to give you an
assignment," Mr. Irons stated, which earned him a unanimous groan from the
classroom. He just laughed in response, "Oh I know that feeling pretty well. Don't
worry it's not going to be as boring as it looks. Now, you'll be working in pairs for
this assignment, which is due next week. What I want you to do is to discuss
through Foucault's theories on discipline how a house can somehow influence the
behavior of a person and how it may or may not mold him or her to the person
that they are today. Since you'll be working in pairs, you're just going to have to
pick which house you'd like to discuss. Any questions?"

A small petite girl from the center raised her hand.

"Yes Evelyn?" Mr. Irons asked, flashing a really bright smile. I think every girl in
the room fainted. I wouldn't blame them though, I nearly did as well.

"Do we get to choose our partner?" she asked with a squeak. Oh Lord, she
sounded like a chipmunk.

"Well yes, technically, but we do have to fix up Mr. Beaumont with someone since
he's absent today. Does anyone know where he lives?" Mr. Irons asked. Okay, I
see where this is going and I do not like it one bit.

"Will lives across from his house," Evelyn chirped as she pointed at me.

"Well... why didn't you say so Will? You're going to be Tyler's partner for this
assignment. I'd like you to drop by his house later so both of you could start
working on it as soon as possible. Is that alright with you?" he asked me.

"Sure..." I muttered with a small nod. I glanced back at Evelyn who was busy
staring at Mr. Irons. I am so going to kill her. It's not that I didn't want to be
partners with Tyler, but it's just going to be difficult since I still find him so
attractive. Now that we're on speaking terms, it's going to be hard to not
concentrate on him.  I'm not even sure how Tyler's going to respond to this
predicament considering his situation.

After Mr. Irons paired everyone up, he dismissed class. I stepped out to the
hallway dreading going over to Tyler's.

A menacing laugh distracted me from my thoughts. I looked behind me and
found Scott and his posse knocking a poor student on the floor. His belongings
were scattered everywhere. It was the same boy they tormented at lunch. I
carefully studied him. He was a short boy around 5'5" or so with mousy brown
hair. He had a skinny frame, which made him a perfect target for bullies kind of
like me. He was one the floor, trying to gather all his books and papers. He looked
absolutely miserable.

I felt sorry for him. I knew what being bullied felt like and it was perhaps one of
the most difficult times in my life. I couldn't help but notice how none of the
students passing by would help him pick up his belongings. Instead, they merely
shared a sympathetic look at him like that would really help.

I approached him, crouched down, and began picking up his belongings. When
he turned around, he seemed surprise to see me. He was cradling his books and
papers in his arms. They were not very organized to say the very least. Papers and
exams were sticking out from the sides of his notebooks.

"Here, you dropped these," I said as I handed him the rest of his papers.

"Oh... uhh.. Thank you," he said as he grabbed them from me and hastily stuffed
them into his notebook.

"And here's your... glasses," I said as I crouched down again to pick up his black
framed eyeglasses. It was broken in half and one of the lenses popped out. Scott
must have stomped on them. "Sorry," I apologized as I handed him his broken
glasses.

"Aww Man... and they were brand new too!" he said in frustration as I dropped
the glasses in his outstretched palm. He put them down into the pocket of his
jeans before looking back at me.

"Thanks Will. You didn't have to do that," he said sadly exchanging glances
between the floor and me.

"Of course I needed to. You needed help. It appalls me that no one bothered to
help you," I said as I glared at the people passing by. When they caught my eye,
they hurriedly scampered away.

"If they did, then they'd be the next target," the student answered, "It would
spread over school the next day. Then they would be the ones who would be
tormented and treated as an outcast."

"Well, I'm already an outcast so it doesn't really matter," I replied back with a
smile.

The boy looked at me before breaking into a smile.

"So I guess I'll see you around," I told him.

"Thanks again," he whispered as he opened up his locker. I left him alone so he
could organize his belongings I needed to hurry since I have to visit someone else
today.

-

I pressed the doorbell and patiently waited for someone to answer. I took the
moment to look around the porch. I couldn't help but notice the abundant
number of beautiful flowers on the windowsills. They looked really pretty and
lovely.

I heard the door open behind me and found Mrs. Beaumont looking at me. "Oh
Will, what brings you here?" she asked as she was wiping her hands on her apron.
She must have been cooking.

"Hi.. Mrs. Beaumont. I was wondering if I could talk to Tyler. Apparently, we're
classmates in our elective class and we're sort of stuck as partners for our first
assignment. I was hoping we could start on it as soon as possible since it's due
next week," I said.

"Oh. Sure, come on in," she said as she opened the door and gestured me to come
in.

"Thanks Mrs. Beaumont," I said as I stepped inside and waited for her to close
the door.

"You go on ahead to Tyler's room. It's the one on the far left. Tyler hasn't been
feeling well these couple of days though. He refuses to come out of his room. I'm
really worried. Maybe you could cheer him up or something," Mrs. Beaumont
said as she headed towards the kitchen.

She wants me to try and cheer up Tyler? How the hell was I suppose to do that?
We barely know each other after all. All I know is that he plays football and that
he's really good at Mortal Kombat.

I made my way up the stairs towards Tyler's room. There were a dozen of family
portraits displayed on every available surface in the hallway. I couldn't help but
stop for a moment to take a quick look. I saw baby and toddler photos of Tyler. I
couldn't help but smile. All of them looked incredibly adorable. I noticed how in
every photo, Tyler had this big huge smile on his face. My favorite one was this
small photo of him in a Power Rangers costume while holding a pumpkin basket
full of candy.  It was really cute!

Once I was done, I finally made my way to Tyler's bedroom door and gently
knocked. I waited for an answer. A minute or so passed there was no reply so I
knocked again.

"Leave me alone Jason! I know that's you. I'm not in the mood to talk to you or
anyone else for that matter," I heard Tyler shouting from inside his room.

I contemplated for a bit if I should knock again or not.  Tyler just said he wasn't
in the mood to talk to anyone, but I was kinda worried about him. This behavior
won't do him any good in the long run. Someone needs to get him out of this
funk. I slowly turned the doorknob, surprised myself that it wasn't lock, and
stepped inside.

I saw Tyler lying down on the bed. He was facing away from the door, but he
clearly heard me come in. "Jason, I told you I'm not in the fucking mood to talk,"
he growled, turning his body around. "Oh...Will.. it's you."

"Hi Tyler," I said as I stared at him. He looked like a hot mess. His blonde hair
was flying in different directions. He was wearing sweatpants and a shirt.  This
seemed to be the typical post-break-up attire for teens. My eyes managed to make
their way towards the mess on the floor. There were papers, pens, and notebooks
everywhere. Did someone fight?!?

"What are you doing here?" he asked grumpily.

"Well.... we're classmates in our art studies class. We have an assignment due
next week and we're kinda partners. I was hoping we could start today," I
answered still standing by his bedroom door.

"Look,  I'm not really in the mood to talk to anyone right now. You should go," he
muttered as he lied back down on his bed, fiddling with his iPod.

"This isn't healthy Tyler," I said to him.

He looked up from his iPod and gave me a really cold stare. "You don't know
what you're talking about Will. Just drop it and go."

"Listen Tyler, I know you're hurting right now and probably you're angry ...But
this isn't healthy. If you stay like this, it's going to consume you. Believe me, I've
been there. You're not going to like the person you're going to become. Jason, the
football team, and certain people at school are worried about you." I announced
with concern.

"I said I didn't want to talk to anyone, okay?!" Tyler shouted as he threw his iPod
across the room. I slightly jumped at his sudden outburst. "Why can't you guys
leave me alone to feel miserable for a few days? Am I not allowed to be sad? Am I
not allowed to be angry? Dana broke up with me, okay? We've been together for 3
fucking years. Can't I be just a tiny bit upset that we're basically over without
people talking shit about me?!"

He stood up and started pacing around in his room. "I don't give a fuck about
anyone else right now! I just want to deal with this shit by myself for a few days.
Is that a fucking crime?" he shouted.

I remained silent. How am I supposed to answer that?

He stopped pacing. "So everyone knows by now huh?" He asked sarcastically as
he stared at me waiting for an answer.

"More or less," I said.

He started pacing again, balling his hands into fists. "Great. Whoop dee fucking
doo! I bet everyone's having a fucking good time talking shit about me."

"Tyler, that's not true," I replied.

He just laughed. "Oh don't fucking lie to me Will. It doesn't take a genius to figure
that out. I'm sure everyone's making crazy shit up about me. I know some of
them already! What's the best story you'd heard so far?" He stopped pacing once
again.

I stared down at the floor. I really didn't want to answer that one.

"Will!" he barked.

I looked up to him. "The worst one was that you're doing drugs. That's why you
haven't been to school."

Tyler looked at me and just laughed. "Great. Fucking great. Who said that? Did
Rocky say that?"

"No," I said as I narrowed my eyes at him. "He'd never do that."

"Oh come on Will. You and I both know he doesn't like me. I wouldn't be
surprised if he did," he said, rolling his eyes.

"That's out of line Tyler," I said, my hands shaking in built up anger.

"Oh lighten up Will. It was only a fucking joke," he said. "That seems to be the
current thing to do nowadays, Make-Tyler-Miserable. Dana sure started off great
with that. She didn't even want to give us a chance. Heck, maybe she's found a
new boyfriend by now. And now that gossip blog now have loads of new material
on me. Look how the mighty have fallen! Stupid fucks! I bet the whole school is
laughing at my pathetic ass. Tyler Beaumont being dumped by a girl? Ha! That's
such a laugh. Tell me Will, did you laugh about me with your friends? Rocky must
have said some really colorful things to you! I bet he-"

"You sound like the old Tyler," I suddenly said, interrupting his train of thought.
No sooner had those words left my mouth, I gasped and immediately regretted
them.

"What did you say?" he asked me slowly. I'm positive he heard me fine. I didn't
know why he was asking again for.

"Tyler, I'm sorry. It slipped. I didn't mean it," I hastily replied, fully regretting
everything. He was angry with the school, not particularly on me, but I had been
the one catching all the heat. I know he didn't mean some of his words, but I
couldn't deny that he hurt me with the venom layered within them. Still, he didn't
deserve what I said to him.

Tyler eye's danced with anger. He approached me, hands trembling in fury. He
towered over me and stared at me with striking, angry, blue eyes. "Fuck. you," he
spat out before he headed into his bathroom. I heard the door slam really hard
and loud. He left me alone in his room.

Great job Will. Why didn't you think before you speak the next time?! Stupid!
Tyler was upset and you just had to rile him up by saying something you didn't
mean.

Knowing that I wasn't going to go anywhere with Tyler today, I decided to leave. I
was about to turn the doorknob when I noticed Tyler's iPod was still on the floor.
I walked towards the foot of his closet, picked it up and laid it on his desk next to
a small notepad. I looked at it, pondering whether or not I should write
something to Tyler. I grabbed a nearby pen and wrote on it. When I made my way
back to the bedroom door, I took one last look at the bathroom door. Tyler was
making no sign or sound.

I let out a sigh as I opened his door and stepped into the hallway. It's time for me
to go home.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to no one in particular as I made my way down the
Beaumont staircase.


***
(Tyler's POV)

What am I doing? I keep asking myself the same question since I woke up today.
Today was Sunday and usually I'm out of the house the entire day. I glanced at
the clock on my bedside table. It said 3:00pm. So I've been lying down on my bed
for more than five hours?  This was just Fuck-ing fantastic.

I've been in this position since I had lunch. I wasn't really in the mood to do
anything, much less talking to someone. My mother noticed my rather quiet
behavior over at lunch and asked me if there was anything wrong. I just avoided
he her questions. There was something wrong. Actually, everything is just plain
wrong. When Dana dropped her bombshell last night, she added salt to the
wound by saying that we needed to break up. She said that a long distance
relationship would be too much of a trouble. She didn't even give us a chance to
work this out. Fuck.

My phone started ringing again. I think I lost count onto how many times it rang
today. This must have been the ninth time today... I think. I could care less
anyways. I'm not really in the mood to talk to anyone. I ignored it completely and
then they went straight to voicemail.

Beep. "Tye, this is Jason. I know what happened. Why aren't you picking up your
phone? I know you're there. Anyway, I'll be in your house in a couple of minutes."
End beep.

I turned to my left side and grabbed my phone. I checked its contents. I've had
around 23 unread messages and 7 missed calls. I didn't bother going through any
of them though. I just nonchalantly dropped it on my bed. I guess half of the
school probably knows what happened already.

I was still on my bed when I heard the doorbell ring. That must be Jason. And
wouldn't you know it, three minutes later he barges in my room.

"Dude, are you okay? You're not answering any of my texts and calls!" he said a
bit exasperated. I think he ran all the way upstairs to my room.

I gave him a dirty look. "You're seriously asking me if I'm okay?" I slowly got up
from the bed. "Of course, I'm not okay! Not only is Dana moving away tonight,
but she fucking broke up with me as well. Do you honestly think I am fucking
okay?" I scowled throwing a nearby football hard towards my closet.

"Dude, tell me what happened," Jason offered as he approached me in attempts
to console me.

"I don't want to talk about it," I said quietly as I turned around and look outside
my window. Across the street, I saw Will and his brothers sprucing up their lawn.
They've begun taking the weeds out and digging up the soil.

"Come on Tye, this is me you're talking to. It'll make you feel better," Jason said
behind me as he placed his hand on my shoulder.

I grabbed his hand, turned around to face him and said, "I said I don't want to
talk about it." Jason's face contorted in pain as it dawned to me that I was
actually twisting his arm. When I let go, he rubbed his arm up and down in an
effort to relieve some of the pain.

"Dude... what the fuck? I'm just trying to be your best friend and figure out what I
can do to help you feel better," he grimaced through the pain.

"You know what would make me feel better? You and everyone else to leave me
the fuck alone!" I shouted at him.

"Tye, you don't have to do this alone you-"

"Harrington... I'm warning you," I interrupted him. Jason immediately shut up
after that. Whenever I use his last name, he knows I am serious and I am not
playing games.
He stared at me for a while longer before heading to the door. "I'll see you
tomorrow okay?" he asked as he looked at me for confirmation.

I just waved him goodbye, not really giving him a direct answer. He sighed and
left the room.

Fuck. I love Jace as a brother, but I just want to be left alone for a while. Is that so
hard to ask? It didn't take long before my cellphone started ringing again.
Annoyed, I climbed onto my bed and hastily turned it off. I just need some time
to think. Actually I need some time to wallow in grief.

-

"Tyler, what are you still doing in bed? You're going to be late for school," I heard
my mother say to me. She was at the foot of my bed wearing her favorite apron,
her hands on her hips.

I gave her a fake pained look. "Mom, I'm not really... feeling very well," I groaned.

"What's wrong? Do you have a fever?" she asked as she placed her hand on my
forehead to check my temperature. "You don't have any fever though."

"My head hurts really bad. I think I have a migraine," I said and scrunched up my
face in pretended pain. "I can barely stand and move, and talk as it is. It's too
painful. I think I'll just rest for today here at home."

"But what about football practice?"

"I'll just tell Jace to talk to coach. I'm sure one football practice won't hurt the
team."

"Well okay then... You just stay in bed while I get you some aspirin downstairs,"
my mother said before leaving my room.

Today was a Monday and that meant school. Yesterday didn't really go so well. I
had a brief encounter with Jace yesterday afternoon, but I basically told him to
fuck off. He left my house that afternoon, a bit dejected. He only called again in
the evening to see how I was doing, but that message went straight to voicemail. I
didn't respond to him and the other phone calls and text messages I received that
day. I think I've gotten over 50 plus texts yesterday and a total of 14 unanswered
phone calls. I guess it's safe to say that everyone in school pretty much knows.

I knew that when I get back to school, the coach will be lecturing me for missing
football practice today. I didn't care at that moment though. I was kinda... afraid
of all the whispers and stares that will happen. I know it's pretty ironic. The big
quarterback afraid of something so superficial! I just don't think I can handle it. I
saw what Will had to go through when he first came back. All the stares and the
constant backstabbing that had happened. Well I really can't deal with any of that
shit. Will handled it pretty well though. He held his head high throughout the
halls. I wished I had his confidence.

I took my phone and texted Jason that I wasn't coming to school today. I also told
him to talk to the coach and tell him that I wouldn't be able to attend football
practice today. Five minutes later, I received a response from Jason.

It said: Okay, hope you're doing well. I wished you'd talk to me though.

Once again, I didn't reply.  I was still not in the mood to have a conversation with
someone about my feelings.

I grabbed my iPod from my bedside table and began listening to some deep
depressing shit. I can't really explain it, but depressing songs make me feel better.
It's weird I know.

I just lied down on my bed once again. Heck, I haven't even bathed since
yesterday morning. I'm still wearing the same clothes: a fitted gray muscle shirt
and some black shorts. I'm not even in the mood to change. I just want to escape
the harsh reality of this world.

My iPod was on shuffle and when Ellie Goulding's 'Your Biggest Mistake' played,
it hit me like a ton of bricks. I didn't realize that I was singing along to the song.
That's a major bull's eye.

You're probably wondering how can one girl affect me so much? Truth was, Dana
changed my life. Before I met her, I was the typical insensitive, playboy, dumb-
ass football player. Would you imagine, I was worse than Scott? Yeah. I used to
torment other people throughout the halls. I used to go out with different girls
every week. Dana changed all of that.

When she moved here a couple of years back, I tried pursuing her. She didn't bite.
I think she saw through my nice guy act because she didn't go out with me until 6
months later. And that first date we had was disastrous. When I tried putting my
charm and moves on her, she immediately bailed and went on a tirade about how
juvenile I was. I was stunned. I never had a girl blatantly reject me before and she
was the first person to ever do that to me. Really! I mean, no one had ever dared
going up against me, and here's a small redhead speaking her mind just how
much of a douche I was before. I think it's because of that incident, I began
thinking of her differently. She wasn't just another girl I could fool around with.
She made me work just so that I could talk to her and well, that's when I truly
started to act more of a gentleman and more thoughtful. It took two months after
that before she agreed to go on a second date. And well, let's just say by that time,
I already knew my lesson.
 she's gone. I'm not really the type of person to wallow in grief and be all overly
sentimental about it. It's just... I'm having a hard time dealing with the fact one of
the people who managed to make a huge difference in my life isn't here anymore.

Three emo songs later, I dozed off. Could you blame me? I didn't really get a
good's nights rest the previous nights.

I woke up sometime after to the sound of a door knock. I didn't realize that I fell
asleep with my iPod still on. I looked at it and saw that it only had 18% of battery
life left. Just how long did I sleep for? What time is it? I glanced at my clock. Oh.
It's two in the afternoon already? Guess I must have been more tired than I
thought.

"Tyler?"

I turned around and saw my mom in my doorway carrying a tray and some food
on it. Okay, I'm having a short guilt trip of having my mom bring me food when
I'm not really sick at all.

"I hope you're hungry. I didn't wake you for lunch because I figured you'd want to
rest. But then I realized, you needed to at least eat something. Here's some hot
chicken noodle soup, some bread, water, and some aspirin. Does your head still
hurt?" she asked me as she laid down the tray on my bed.

"Ugh... Yeah, it still hurts," I said in mock pain. I really should be in the drama
club after this.

"Well just rest for now. I'll come back and pick up the tray later. I still need to do
the laundry for now," my mom said with a smile. She then proceeded out into the
hallway.

"Mom!" I called out.

"Yes honey?" she asked me as she turned around.

"If anyone comes by to see me today, tell them I'm not feeling alright. I don't
want to see any visitors for today," I said as I grabbed a spoonful of chicken
noodle soup.

"Even Jason?" she asked.

"Especially Jason," I replied as I gulped down the noodle soup.

"O... Okay," she said, her brows creasing in confusion before gently closing my
bedroom.

I'm sure Jason's going to get pissed at me for not talking to him. What can I do? I
don't really feel like talking to anyone and Jason's not really the type to just let
things go. He's going to ask me how we broke up, how I'm coping, how I'm
feeling, and what should I be doing to get over it. Jesus. I have a feeling he's going
to set me up with a new girl already. He's that type of friend. I'm glad to have
him, but now isn't really a good time to go all brotherly love on me.

I ate my food in silence. Strangely enough, it was quite relaxing to some extent.
However, after eating the soup, I was still hungry. I usually eat large portions of
food regularly and since I'm not really sick at all, this soup and bread mix didn't
even come close to satisfying my hunger. I didn't want to go downstairs and ask
for more food or else my mother would know something was up.

I stood up from the bed and made my way to my desk. I pulled out a drawer and
grabbed two protein bars, which I store just in case I need some midnight snack
to munch on. Hey, it's better this way so at night, I don't have to go downstairs
and pick something unhealthy to eat from the kitchen.

I wolfed both bars down in a jiffy. I'm not technically full, but I think I can
manage until dinner. I threw the wrappers in my garbage can and looked around
my room.

What am I going to do? I looked around my room for something. I can't really
open my television or my laptop. After all, I have a migraine and technically when
I have a headache, I don't usually use any electronic gadgets other than my iPod
or else the throbbing would only get worse. The same thing for reading. I really
don't do a lot of  lot of that anyway, but you get my point. I need some activity
that doesn't require heavy brain cell activity to accomplish.

I raised my arms in frustration as I ran my right hand through my hair in
frustration. As I did, I managed to get a whiff of my body odor from underneath
my arms. Whew, did I stink! I haven't bathed since yesterday for crying out loud.
That's what I'm going to do. A hot shower might be what the doctor ordered.

I chucked my muscle shirt and my sweatpants into one corner and stepped into
the bathroom in just my boxers. I turned the shower on and waited for it to warm
up enough to step in. While waiting, I looked at my reflection in my mirror.

I looked like shit. Even though I was just in my boxers and I have a good view of
my abs and toned body, my face told a different story. The expression on my face
was one of dejection. My mouth had a prominent frown. My hair was disheveled,
with most of them sticking up and out. But I think it was my eyes that really told
the story. My blue eyes seemed to have lost its sparkle. I could see a sense of loss
within my own reflection. Well, that was partly true. I could also see heavy eye
bags underneath. I guess I need more rest.

When the mirror started to fog up I knew that it was perfectly warm to step into
the shower. I stripped off my boxers, stepped inside the shower, and closed the
curtains. The warm jets of water hitting my body served some sort of therapeutic
relief. I just closed my eyes and let the stream of water fall down on me. I stayed
in that position for good five or ten minutes or so. I didn't shampoo my hair or
soap my body. I just stood there in silence with my eyes closed.

When I opened my eyes, I grabbed the shampoo and began to wash my hair. I
didn't bother turning the shower off as I normally do when shampooing. I just
shampooed my hair underneath the jets of water. I grabbed the soap next and
rubbed it all over my body. I took some time scrubbing myself from the neck
down to my crotch.


I lathered my pubes with soap before making my way downwards towards my
cock. When I reached my dick, I tried jacking off to relieve some stress. I haven't
really busted a nut for quite some time now so I thought it's be a good idea to
have a good orgasm. After a couple of strokes though, I stopped. I couldn't even
get it hard for Christ's sakes. I guess this depression is eating at me more than I
thought it would have. I just couldn't get myself boned up at that moment.

I finished washing myself before turning off the shower and stepping out. I dried
myself using a towel and wrapped it around my waist. I fished out my deodorant
stick and applied it under my arms. I didn't even bother looking at the mirror
anymore. After all, I was just staying home so there was no need for gel and fixing
my hair. I then went inside my room to change.

Not really caring about my appearance, I basically grabbed what was on top of my
drawers in my closet. Those were a gray wifebeater and black shorts. Nothing
really fancy but really comfortable.

I jumped back to my bed as I grabbed my iPod once again. When mom came
inside, I forgot to turn it off. Now it only has 15% battery life remaining. Time to
charge! I made my way to the right side of my bed where I had placed my black
iPod dock charger on. It wasn't really that fancy. It was as big as a Harry Potter
hardbound book, but weigh considerably lighter. You can charge your iPod while
listening to your music at the same time. I don't use it to listen to music anymore.
A year ago, I accidentally spilled water on it and the speakers have been whacked
ever since. Jace tried persuading me to buy a new one, but the new models are
just so damn expensive. I didn't have the money to buy myself a new one.
Besides, I can still use my earphones to listen to music so I really didn't see what
the problem was.

I plugged in my iPod into the dock and waited for the sign that it was charging.
Once the lightning shaped symbol appeared, I laid down back on my bed and
managed to let out a yawn. I think I'm going to take a nap again. For some
reason, I'm still sleepy.

-

"Here's your dinner dear."

"Thanks mom," I said as I grabbed the tray from her and laid it down on my bed.
"This looks good!" I could smell the aroma and boy did it make me fucking
hungry! My mom prepared me soup again, but this time she added some home
baked lasagna and some meatballs on the side. It really looked yummy!

"Just be sure to eat it all okay? I don't want you to become weak when you go
back to school for football training!" she said as she gave me a smile. I watched
her shut the door behind her. When she left, I turned my attention back to the
food at hand. Time to eat! God, I'm starving.

I chowed down the soup in a hurry. I made my way down to the lasagna and
meatballs. I ate them quickly as well. I must be hungrier than I thought. It didn't
even take me five minutes to finish my meal.

After dinner, I checked my phone for new messages and calls. Jason called me
only once today, but left around five messages or so. He and the rest of the team
dropped by this afternoon to come check on me, but since I told mom that I
didn't want visitors they had to leave. I got a really angry text message from him
afterwards. Two minutes later, I received another text message, this time overly
apologizing about his angry text message. Another two minutes goes by and he
sends me a message saying how sad he was that I wasn't talking to him about it. I
didn't want to come across as a douchebag, so I told him that I was sorry.
Afterwards, he tried calling me, but I didn't answer. I couldn't get to the phone. I
was in the bathroom when he called me. When I got back, he sent me another
text. Ugh... It was so stressful figuring out a way to deal with this without hurting
his feelings. I  texted back saying that it everything was fine.

I checked through the rest of my notifications page in my Blackberry. Most of
them were people from the team and the cheerleaders asking me how everything
was going. One particular girl yesterday even asked me if I was ready to date
again. Uhh... no... What a heartless bitch. I am definitely not going out with you!
Basically it was all from the same people who tried contacting me yesterday, but I
almost jumped to my feet when I saw one particular name.

Huh. That's odd... I never thought I'd ever get a message from him... I stared at
the notifications page. Will Lakewood just texted me. Curious and rather
astonished at this, I clicked his name. My phone immediately showed me his
message.

He said: Hang in there :)

I looked up from my phone. Well that was unexpected. I made my way to my
window and peered through the curtains. I looked at Will's window and saw that
it was lit. I glanced back at his message and then up to his window again. I didn't
expect Will to send me a message over this. I never thought he'd be the type to
actually contact me off school premises about these things. It was such a nice
gesture and perhaps in a way, kinda sweet. I stood up in a jolt and found myself
pacing around my room.

Okay... What do I do now? Do I reply back or not? Dealing with my friends in
school was easy. They knew that if I didn't reply to their messages and calls, it
meant that I didn't want to talk about it. They know I still love them all the same.
Will is a bit different though.

Will Lakewood is a rather complex guy. He's perhaps the only person I really
can't gauge or read. I mean I try to be a jokester around him, but the truth is he
kind of scares me a little. It's bizarre but I every time I'm with him, I feel like I'm
walking on eggshells. Maybe it's because I feel guilty over what I did to him four
years ago. He says it's all water under the bridge, but I still can't let it go for some
reason.

I stopped pacing and stared at my phone. I keyed in my response.

I texted him back: Thanks

I waited patiently for his reply. Five minutes went by, still no word from him. I
started pacing again in my room. Shit. Did my answer come across cold? What if
he thinks I'm a snob? Oh man. I should have added a smiley emoticon. I mean, he
did when he texted me. I should have- Oww!! Motherfucker, I just fell on the floor
as I tripped over my football. Dammit. I looked back at my Blackberry. Hell, I
should have included a period at end of my reply at the very least! Now he's going
to think I don't care. Oh man. What if he-

"What are you doing on the floor?"

I looked behind me and found my sister staring at me with a what-the-fuck look
on her face. She was at my doorway and she caught me down on the floor.

"I tripped over my football!" I lied as I kicked the stupid ball away. "Wait... What
are you doing here?" I asked as I slowly stood up.

"Mom sent me to pick up this tray from your room," she said as she picked it up
from my bed. She gave me a really weird look. It was as if she was studying me.
I've been finding her staring at me weirdly lately. Frankly, it's pissing me off.

"What are you staring at?" I asked her as I crossed my arms in annoyance across
my chest... "Shouldn't you be at your dormitory now?" I asked her.

My sister attends an all girls' school at the other end of town. My parents
specifically enrolled her there because according to them, the school had good
academic programs. My parents noted that if I weren't a boy they'd enroll me
there as well. Instead, I was enrolled in Ridgemont High. There was an all boys'
school near my sister's school, but their tuition fee is expensive to what I pay at
Ridgemont. Besides, I wouldn't like it if all I see are guys everyday. That's gotta
be a major sausage fest if there ever was.

Emily eyed me suspiciously before responding, "I forgot something at home, but
mom offered me dinner before I leave... You don't look sick to me." She stared at
me a few seconds longer before heading out my room.

I was about to hurl my phone on my bed in frustration when it suddenly rang. I
opened it and saw that it was from Will. My fingers were trembling. I didn't know
what he was going to say! Is he mad? Is he pissed? So many questions were
running through my mind at that moment!

When I finally looked, all the message said was: Anytime :)

Okay, he gave me a smile so I guess he's not mad... right? I looked up from my
phone, made my way to my window, and peeked through the curtains. Will's
room wasn't lit anymore. Huh... I guess he's sleeping already. It's still pretty early
after all, my clock just hitting 9pm. I can't believe a teenager in this day and age
would be falling asleep this early.

I went back to my bed and began reading through the unread messages I've yet to
receive. I got a certain text from one of my teammates to check the school gossip
blog. Curious, I opened up my laptop and waited for it to load. The school gossip
blog isn't really a blog. As far as I can remember, it is being run by Richard Jones,
some nerd from school, don't ask. Sure, he may have a few 'groundbreaking'
interviews here and there, but all the juicy stuff come from anonymous 'tips' or
'sources' as he called them. It is people writing shit about other people. I've
checked it out a couple of times and I must say it's really a nasty piece of work.

When I opened my browser, I didn't expect to see what was on screen. I expected
the gossip blog to have picked up on my breakup with Dana and all, but I never
expected it to get this vicious and downright evil. Our breakup was the main topic
online, and Richard started asking people what happened. Apparently, there was
some really nasty shit being said about Dana and me... all coming from grey-
faced icons. The more I read, the angrier I became. A lot of people were giving
Dana some shit, commenting how they were glad that bitch, their words not
mine, finally moved away. They also said how that she was such a fake person
and that she had 'problems'. My right hand was balled into a fist and was
trembling with rage. Sure I was mad at Dana, but she didn't deserve any of that! I
know for a fact who she was and none of the things they said about her was true.

Then the comments were directed towards me. If Dana was basically chewed
alive, I was chewed, spat out, trampled on, doused with gasoline, and  lit on fire.
This was pretty much how I felt about the shit they said about me. Many of them
were commenting on how 'refreshing' and 'fulfilling' it was to see the mighty fall...
and let's face it, no one was mightier in school than me. I saw that our breakup
made a lot of people extremely happy which really made my heart sink. A group
of students said that it was divine retribution for all the shit and pranks I used to
pull on them. I thought how they were all cowards for hiding behind anonymity.

Okay, maybe I deserved that one. Before Dana came into my life, I was a real
asshole. That much I knew, but the other stuff about me was really hitting below
the belt.

There was a small discussion about me doing drugs, which is why I didn't go to
school today. Another one hypothesized that I tried to commit suicide. This was a
bit extreme to say the least .The next one said that I was seeing not one, but two
other girls the same time I was dating Dana. Someone mentioned t I had gotten
Dana pregnant and her parents found out and they decided to move. The whole
school has gone fucking crazy.

I closed the laptop. I couldn't take it anymore. I could see both of my hands
trembling. I didn't know if it was from anger or from sadness. I can't believe the
fact that Ridgemont High hates me. Well maybe not the entire school, but rather
a good chunk of it. It is one thing to know that you probably won't please
everybody and that there will be a group of people not liking you back. I mean
everyone isn't going to like you for this or that reason. This is pretty much human
nature. I'm sure everyone has done his or her fair share of backstabbing in his or
her lifetime. However, hearing it or in this case reading what they say about you
behind your back. I can't even begin to describe how the pain feels, and how your
self esteem shifts to a negative percentage.

I just stared at my hands. They were still trembling. Dammit. You need to stop! I
tried shaking the feeling away, but it didn't go away easily. I was still shaking
uncontrollably.

How the hell am I going to school now? I can't face everyone knowing now what
they think of me. How can I brave a smile when I know they just want me to be
miserable and in pain.

Please someone tell me how to deal with this! I need to know.

-

I woke up Tuesday morning with a numbing pain. Not in my body, but rather in
my soul. Stupid as it sounds, it seemed that my entire ego has been destroyed. It
felt like someone shot it with a gun leaving a gaping hole. After all, that's what I
felt last night reading through those comments about me online. It merely took
everyone a minute to shatter my ego.

I sat up from my bed, not bothering to get out from underneath the covers. Do I
go to school or not? That was the question of the day. I was contemplating that
when my dad suddenly entered my room.

"Dad?" I said in surprise.

"Tyler. Why aren't you dressed for school? You're going to be late!" he barked at
me as he crossed his arms over his chest waiting for me to give an explanation.

I gave out a small, fake cough. Okay, I think I just decided then and there whether
or not I was going to school. And you already probably know the answer. "I'm still
not feeling well." After that, I faked a coughing fit. I'm sorry, but I'm still not
ready to go back to school. Especially now that I know how everyone feels about
me!

"Are you coming down with the flu?" he asked me as he approached me. "I hope
not. It's football season. You can't miss a game! The scouts for looking forward to
seeing you play your best." Nice knowing he cared so much about me! He then
placed his palm on my forehead to check for my temperature, but it was normal.

"What's going on here?" my mother asked the both of us as she appeared in my
doorway. "Honey, I asked you to wake Tyler up. What are you doing?"

"Angie, he's not feeling very well," my dad said as he pointed to me. "He has no
fever, but he's giving off some really bad coughs." I coughed up again. I need to
keep this little charade going.

"Coughs? Well that's fine. You can still go to school," my mom said as she looked
at me.  I think I failed.

"Oh no! Tyler will stay at home!" my dad said to my mom.

"Honey, he just has a cough. Going to school won't really make a difference," my
mother pointed out.

"That may be true, but I'm not taking any chances. Football season is coming and
Tyler needs to be in top condition! I'm not waiting for this cough to worsen. He's
staying home," my dad said in his commander voice. In this household, we all
know better than to mess when he's in that state. My mom was overruled.

"Fine... Head downstairs Tyler for breakfast. Just don't get anything cold!" my
mother said as she shooed my out of my bed.

-

After breakfast, around 9am, I took a quick shower. This time I got to finally jerk
off. It was okay nothing great.

I stepped back into the room naked. There really wasn't any immediate danger of
being caught. Dad was at work. Emily left for her school. And mom went to the
farmer's market to buy some fruits and vegetables. I was alone at home and it felt
great!

I walked to my closet and got a shirt and sweatpants. I put them on and went to
my desk to check some mail on my laptop. There wasn't really anything new. Still
the same old messages. Oh wait... I got new spam mail though.

I spent around 30 minutes browsing through the web, looking for new sounds
worthy of downloading. I spotted a really cool looking band called The Sound of
Arrows. Their song 'Nova' was really good... although the video was kinda gay. I
didn't mean it a bad way! It's just... well, the video has these suggestive moments
that there's something going on between the two male singers. The video was all
hipster-ed out though with the clothes and the cosmos shit. So I guess that was
kinda good.

After that, I visited the school gossip blog once again. I didn't know why.
Curiosity got the better of me I suppose. I wanted to know if there was anything
new about me. Wanted to see if people are still commenting negative shit. I
wasn't disappointed.

Today's comments were far harsher and more severe than yesterday's. I couldn't
bring myself to repeat what some of them have to say, but they were really awful.
Instead of feeling sad and pitiful, I was slowly filling up with rage. I think this last
batch of comments really ticked me off. I was getting tired of people talking shit
about me and not have the guts to say it to my face. My hands were again shaking
uncontrollably.

Then I read: Tyler Beaumont is a coward. He skipped school yesterday just so
that he wouldn't face the student body. Our football god is nothing more than a
pansy. I bet he's wallowing in grief right now. Fucking fag.

I think I totally lost it right there. I snarled like an animal as I knocked
everything on  my desk to the floor. My pens, papers, notebooks were all
scattered around my chair. I stood up, kicking most of them again, the heavy ones
flying across the room.. I want to kick whoever said that online. Okay, I'll admit
that I did kinda skip school because I was sort of scared, but to call me a faggot?!
Where the hell did that come from?! That was uncalled for and damn right
insulting! Not only to me but to any other gay person out there as well.
Associating vulnerability with homosexuality? How narrow minded can you
fucking be?

Fuck you! Fuck you whoever you are. Fuck you Ridgemont High! Just you fucking
wait! I'll show all you motherfuckers!

I snarled as I continued kicking stuff around my room. I was fucking pissed! And
I doubt that this would disappear so easily.

-

I slammed my bathroom door behind me. I started pacing around in the confined
small space of my bathroom. A couple of seconds later, I proceeded to the sink
and began to wash my face. Somehow I thought, I could wash my anger away. Oh,
wouldn't that wouldn't be so easy. I looked up at my reflection afterwards.

I was breathing hard probably because of the overwhelming feelings coming over
me. Water droplets were forming at my chin and were falling down into the sink.
My eyes stared at their reflection, a lost and confused soul found within them.

Will came over and let's just say some words were said and I kinda stormed out of
the conversation. Believe me, with all the frustrations I went through throughout
the day, Will was lucky that I didn't punch him... No I mean it!

He had the audacity to say that I reminded him of the old Tyler. You know the
douchebag a couple years back. That was seriously uncalled for. I was angry that
time. Obviously, I didn't mean to say those things about Rocky and some of the
others, but I was angry. Don't you say things you don't mean when you're under
the emotion of rage? I know it's not the most appropriate thing to do when you're
angry, but it comes with the territory... right?

So... I cursed Will out... Was I proud of that? Fuck no. But how else would I
handle what he said?

"Shit," I muttered to myself as I wiped the water off my face with shirt. I placed
my hands on either side of the sink and leaned forward to my reflection. Is this
really me? I looked back at my reflection. I could see my anger in my face and the
pain in my eyes.

No. That isn't me. I'm not going to allow my anger issues to consume me. If that
happens, I'm going to revert back to my old self. I... I don't want that... I don't
want to be the guy who everyone hates or pities. I tried my very best changing my
ways the couple of years and that's how I want to keep it. Dana would be ashamed
of me right now. I need... No, I want to make her proud of me. I need to prove
them all wrong tomorrow... I'm going to prove Will wrong!

When Will popped back into my mind, I hung my head. Aw shit. I can't believe I
just told him to fuck off. We were slowly making our way back to being friends
and now I screwed it up. Fuck. Can I still fix this?

I looked at the door and contemplated if I this was a really good idea. Sighing, I
made my way to the bathroom door and slowly turned the knob. I peeked inside
my room to find Will was gone.

He must be pissed at me. Dammit! I kicked my bed in frustration. Probably not
the best idea! My foot hurt like hell now. I was jumping around clutching my foot
in agony when I heard a knock on my door.

"Honey, is everything alright here? I saw Will hurry home," my mother asked as
she took a peek from the hallway.

"I'm fine ma," I said as I limped my way towards my bed.

"Are you hurt?" she asked as she stepped inside and approached me.

"I'm fine mom. Really," I said waving at her that the pain was gone.

"Are you sure? Will looked visibly upset when he left," she told me. She stared at
me with her blue eyes, looking back at mine. There was a great deal of love and
concern that I couldn't escape. Besides, I think I really could use some advice
right now about this entire situation.

"Will and I got into a... heated discussion. I kinda blew my lid at him," I told her
as I looked down on the floor in shame. I felt my bed sink. I looked at my left and
found my mom sitting down beside me. A little while later, she was patting my
back.

"Did you guys hit each other?" she asked.

"What?! No!" I said, standing up in shock and disgust. I would never hurt Will
again!

My mom simply looked at me, urging me to continue.

"There wasn't any hitting! I just stormed out of the conversation. When I came
back, he was gone," I said as I sat back beside her down again. "I... I'm such a
huge fuck up!" I told her, not really caring that I cursed in her presence. I was
slightly distraught.

"There, there honey," she said as she began rubbing my back again, "You do know
what you have to do right?"

"Huh?" I blurted out as I looked at her.

"Tyler, you need to apologize to Will. It doesn't matter whose fault it was, you just
got to find a way to make things alright between the two of you again," she said as
she gave me an encouraging smile.

"O... Okay. I'll call him right now," I said as I got my cellphone and started dialing
his number.

"No. No Tyler," my mother said as she shook her head. She grabbed my phone
and placed it on my bedside table. She then grabbed my hands in hers, looked in
my eyes, and said, "You need to apologize to him directly. A text message and
phone call will not do. If you do, it will come across as if you're not genuine about
your apology. You need to make an effort Tyler."

"But what if he doesn't want to listen?" I asked.

"Well, you just need to keep trying until he is ready to. Once he sees how genuine
you are over the entire thing, he'll come around. I know so. Will's a good kid who
has a big heart," she said, still smiling.

"Okay," I said.

"Okay good. Now why don't you get ready for dinner? Your dad said he'll be a
little later than usual, so he told me we should eat without him," my mother said
as she gave me a big hug and proceeded to the hallway.

"... Mom?" I called out to her.

"Yes honey?"

"... Thanks," I said sheepishly. I think I could have blushed a few shades of red
from embarrassment.

She just smiled at me and said, "Anytime dear. Now go wash up! I'll wait
downstairs! We're having roast beef for dinner."

I stood up and went to the bathroom to wash when I saw something on my desk.
It was a piece of paper. That's odd. Where did that come from? I approached my
desk first then picked it up. It was from Will. He outlined the rest of the
assignment for me, basically explaining what we were supposed to do. I
remember him telling me earlier that we were supposed to be working in pairs.
Does this mean he doesn't want to work together? Does he want us to work
separately? This definitely means he's pissed at me... right?

Ugh, Will... why are you so difficult to read?!?

-

Tyler, you need to get a grip. You're the king of this school for crying out loud! I
gripped my steering wheel a bit too tightly as I tried to compose myself before
heading inside Ridgemont High. Today was Wednesday and I finally decided to
go back to school. I didn't want to be a coward anymore. I needed to face my fears
of gossip and get through this. If Will could do it, so could I!

Will... Sigh. I hung my head down, eventually finding myself resting it on top of
my steering wheel. I need to fix this thing with Will and soon.

"Okay Tye, you need to stop moping around and get in there!" I whispered to
myself. I needed a bit of a pep talk, even if it was coming from myself.

I took a deep breath, grabbed my bag and slammed the door to my car. I had a
little walking to do. I parked at the rear of the school, near the football field to be
exact. I wanted to remain as incognito as much as I can before the frenzy begins.

I walked through the sidewalk, not really paying attention to anyone I come
across with. I did manage to catch from the corner of my eye, people whispering
when I passed by. I'm trying my best to not pay them any attention whatsoever.
When I turned around the corner towards the main entrance of the school, the
stares and hushed conversations intensified. Okay, Tyler. Get a grip. I just stared
ahead, again ignoring everything around me. I could have sworn they were still
staring at me as I passed them by. Jesus, is this what Will went through when he
came back?! I now have a lot of respect for him.

As I neared the main doors, I took a moment to stop and look at it. "Here goes
nothing," I said as my hands reached for handle and pulled. I swear to God, once
I stepped inside, everyone in there just dropped everything they were doing and
looked at my direction. All conversations came to a screeching halt when I
entered. I'm not joking. You could hear a pin drop.

"Holy shit." I heard someone say from my left. I looked there and found a male
sophomore, with his mouth agape. When I caught his eyes, he quickly turned
away and fled.

When my gaze went back to the room, everyone went back to what they were
doing. Or more accurately, tried to go back to what they were initially doing.
When I started walking down the hall, I saw students fixing their lockers, girls re-
striking a conversation, nerds fleeing the other direction. But in the corner of my
eyes, I saw each and every one of them glancing at me every now and then. When
I did catch their gaze, they immediately look away. I found that bit a little
entertaining. I had a feeling they caught my smirk.

I made my way through the hallways to find Jason and apologize. I haven't really
spoken to him or any other of my teammates over the last couple of days. I
needed to apologize to every single one of them, but I needed to say sorry to
Jason first. He is my best friend after all... and if he found out that I didn't
apologize to him first before everybody else, he'd throw a massive fit. I know him
too well not to.

When I round through the corner, I saw Jace standing by his locker with one of
the other football players. He was talking to Logan, a lean looking redhead from
the team. I know Logan. He's a pretty chill dude although not really the brightest
bulb out there. I guess that's why he and Jason get along really well. Don't tell
him I said that!

Both Jason and Logan were wearing their varsity jackets over a jean which was
the typical jock attire. Jason had his back facing me, so when I closed in on them
it was Logan who acknowledged me first.

"Holy crap!" Logan said, his wide agape.

"What?.... What? Is there a hot chick?!" Jace said as he turned around with a
laugh. When he saw me standing there, a few feet away from him, he immediately
shut up. "Tye! You're back!"

"Hey," I said as I raised my hand for a little, pathetic little wave.

They both approached me simultaneously. They patted my back, gave me a few
playful punches, and asked a whole lotta questions in ten seconds.

"Wait!" I said a bit too harshly. They both shut up. "Okay, before you guys go any
further, I just want you to know that I'm really sorry ignoring all your text
messages and calls the past couple of days. I was really depressed and I kinda
needed to be alone for quite awhile. Sorry for being an ass!"

"Look Tye, it's all water under the bridge, okay? You were hurt and angry. It's
understandable you want to get away from reality for a couple of days," Logan
said as he patted my back. I just had to give him a smile.

"Yeah, besides... you can repay your guilt by buying me Mortal Kombat!" Jason
chimed in as he gave me a rather painful punch. We all laughed at that moment.
Well, that went well. Now all that's left is the rest of the team, the coach, and...
him.

The devil must have heard me because no sooner had I thought of him; he comes
walking around the hallway. My laughter died down after that. Will Lakewood
was walking down the hall along with that British import, Sterling what's-his-
name! They were having some deep conversation when he looked up and saw me.
I saw his eyes register surprise before turning his gaze away and back to Sterling.
He simply walked past me. He ignored me! I caught Sterling catching glances
back at me with a suspicious look in his eyes before both disappearing around the
corner.

"Problem with the neighbor?"

I turned my attention back at my two teammates who both had inquisitive looks
on their faces. "What?" I asked them.

"Logan and I saw how you and Will were looking at each other. There's
something going between the two of you. Spill It!" Jason answered.

"He didn't... hit on you, did he?" Logan asked in a hushed voice.

"What?! Nooo!!" I said a little too loudly causing some students to gawk at me.

"Uh-huh," Jason said, not convinced with my answer.

"Listen... Tyler... If you don't want to share with us, it's fine," Logan said, raising
his hands up in surrender.

I sighed. "It's nothing like that okay. Will and I kinda had a heated conversation
yesterday and I... uhh... kinda blew my top over it," I explained to them.

"YOU PUNCHED HIM?!?" Jason shouted.

"Will you keep your voice down?!" I hissed, gesturing over the students passing
by. The last thing I need is some student mishearing this conversation and
spreading rumors in school that I beat will up.

"Well did you?" Jason asked once again, this time in a whisper.

I was about to answer this question when Logan interjected, "So he did flirt with
you!" I gave him an exasperated look. "What?" he asked me when he noticed I
was giving him a good stare down. I shook my head. I told you he wasn't the
sharpest tool in the shed.

"Did any of you see a bruise on Will's face? I didn't hit him in any way. I said
something that I really shouldn't have said. We haven't really communicated
after that," I said looking at both of them.

"Dang," Logan muttered. Did I tell you he's not really big on words either?

"Are you going to apologize?" Jason asked.

"Of course! I just need to find the right time and the right moment," I said.

"When will that be?" Logan asked me.

"I don't know... I don't have a fucking clue," I whispered as I looked back towards
the direction Will walked off to.


***
(Will's POV)

"Morning Will! About time you got down!"

"Good morning mom and everyone else," I said as I stepped inside the kitchen. I
was wearing a white band tee along with some black slim jeans as well as some
black Converse. I didn't really feel like dressing up today. I've got other things on
my mind.

"Uh oh," I hear one of my brothers Blake mutter to his twin as I sat down at the
breakfast table.

"What's with the uh oh?" I asked Blake as I gave both of the twins a questioning
look. Both of them were sitting across me at the breakfast table. Mom's busy
cooking breakfast. And dad... well, knowing dad, he's probably busy redecorating
our improved lawn at front. I could hear him hacking away at 6:30 in the
morning. He was my alarm clock for today.

Blake just looked at Marco and whispered something in his ear. I saw Marco look
underneath the table and then back at me.

"What?" I asked them in annoyance. Ugh. They're doing their twin
synchronization telepathy thing again. This is way too early for that.

"Will, what's wrong?" Marco asked, leaning forward across the table and placing
his hands in front.

"What are you talking about?" I asked them as I grabbed a bagel from the plate
on the table.

"Will do you want pancakes or just bacon and toast?" I heard my mom shout
from the stove.

"Just bacon and toast mom!" I shouted as I gave her a wave. She smiled and
nodded at me before going back to cooking. I looked back at my brothers and
both of them had the exact same expressions on their faces. "Whaaaat?!!" I asked
them, annoyance clearly present in my voice.

Blake sighed as he leaned forward, looked at me and said, "You're wearing your
black Converse shoes."

I gave him a serious what-the-fuck look. "So?"

"You only wear your black Converse shoes if you're really depressed about
something or when you have a really, really big problem over your head," Blake
continued as he pointed at my shoes.

"What? Where the hell did you get the idea?!" I asked them.

"Well, the last time you wore that is when you broke up with Ethan. Yes, I
perfectly remember that because you wore those shoes for an entire week after
your break-up. Before that, you wore it when your pet bulldog, Chester died. You
wore those shoes for three days... Even in the funeral when you specifically said
to be in formal attire. And then before that-"

"Okay! Okay! I get it!" I interrupted Blake before he got a chance to say any more.
He stopped and gave me a cocky smile. I just scowled at him.

"So, are you going to tell us what's bothering you this time?" Marco asked as he
took a sip of coffee from his cup.

"I uhh... got into a fight with Tyler," I answered. Immediately after I said that,
Marco almost choked on his coffee, causing it to spill a little onto his plate. "Are
you okay?" I asked him as he began coughing a bit. Blake just patted his back.

"Did he hit you?!?!" he asked a bit angrily once he gained his composure. "Did he
lay a finger on you?!" He looked at his twin with fury. "I told you he was a bad
seed!"

"Chill out man," Blake said, annoyed at his twin's reaction.

"He didn't hit me! Tyler would never do that. We just had a heated conversation
and we both said some things that shouldn't have been said," I said as I looked
down and poked my bagel with my finger.

"I told you," I heard Blake say to Marco.

"Oh shut up!" his twin replied.

"What's this about Tyler I hear?" I heard my mom say as she handed me my
breakfast.

"Thanks mom," I said as I grabbed the plate from her. She sat down beside me.

"So... what's this about Tyler?" she said as she looked between me and the twins.

"Will and Tyler had a... disagreement," Blake said to my mom.

"Oh!" she said looking at me. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked as she
placed her elbows onto the table, raised her hands and rested her chin on them.

"Well... His longtime girlfriend dumped Tyler and I've been hearing from one of
his friends that he was into some sort of depression. Well I had to go to his house
for a school project okay? Anyways, I tried telling him that he needs to snap out
of it because prolonged depression isn't very healthy. He kinda blew his lid. Then
some unnecessary things were said from both of our mouths and well... yeah," I
said to all three of them. My mom momentarily looked at the ceiling before
glancing at my brothers and gave them a small nod. They nodded back.

"What?" I asked them. Don't tell me my mom has the twin telepathy power too?

"Will, will, will... remember that depression phase you went through when we left
Ridgemont?" my mom asked.

"Yeah. How can I forget?" I told her.

"And do you remember how you would snap at your brothers every time they try
to help and cheer you up?" she asked.

"Yeah, so? Oh... Oh!" I said, realizing what she was getting to.

"Yes. Even though you were depressed, your brothers tried their very best to help
you out. You snapped at them because you just wanted to be left alone. You even
got mad at some point in time. Tyler must be going through the same thing. He
just needs time to deal with this on his own, much like you four years ago," my
mother said, giving me an encouraging smile. Thinking about it, there was a
sinking feeling in my stomach that she was right. I forced Tyler to snap out of his
depression which probably wasn't the most considerate thing to do.

"So... I should apologize to him... right?" I asked her.

"If you think that's what it takes," my mother said as she patted my hand.

I was about to say some more when we all heard my dad cursing from the front
lawn.

"What on earth is your father up to now?" my mother asked as she stood up to go
to the lawn. Everyone just resumed eating their breakfast.

"It's amazing how much you can hurt someone with good intentions," Blake said
as he sipped on his morning coffee.

I just stared at him. "You've been watching Pretty Little Liars, haven't you?" I
asked him. The twins just laughed at my question.

"Yes," Blake answered, "although it's not the exact quote word by word, the gist is
still the same."

I just rolled my eyes at him as I continued eating my breakfast. "You're such a
dork," I muttered at him.

"Says the one who's wearing black Converse," Marco interjected causing Blake to
laugh. I playfully stuck out my tongue at both of them causing them to laugh.
Older brothers...

-

Okay, I made a mental note to apologize to Tyler today. The only problem is I
don't know if he's going to school or not. If he doesn't go to school, I doubt he'd
let me in his home after our little spat yesterday. Sigh. This is getting quite
bothersome.

I was at my locker thinking about this situation while absentmindedly re-
arranging my things. I tend to be OC when I'm dealing with a problem.

"Locker's a bit messy?"

I snapped out of my daze and looked at my left. I didn't notice Sterling leaning
against the locker beside mine. He was wearing a collared teal shirt, some slacks,
and brown loafers. He had a smile on his face.

"Oh... you're talking to me now?" I asked disdainfully. I'm quite pissed at him.
Yesterday, he was all up my ass over lying to Claire and Rocky during lunchtime
and now he's all friendly! One minute, he treats me like dirt and the next minute
he's all angelic on me. The whole act is getting on my nerves, to be honest.

He looked quite taken aback with my response. He must have thought I would be
begging for his attention after yesterday. Since he didn't say anything, I just
continued talking.

"Yesterday you treated me like shit over lunch and now, it's as if nothing
happened between the two of us. What? You suddenly had a change of heart?" I
scowled at him as I began throwing random shit into my locker.

He looked at me for a long time before he said, "I heard you helped out Mitch
yesterday."

"Who the fuck is Mitch?!" I asked totally clueless.

"The boy Scott and his cronies were tormenting yesterday!" he said with a frown.
Oh... him! I remember him. Kid with mousy brown hair! "That was really nice of
you," he added.

I slammed my locker loudly, causing Sterling to slightly jump. "So is that how it
goes? Your anger at me disappeared because I helped someone out? I'm not sure
I like this arrangement very well," I said as I looked at him with anger.

"That's not what I mean," he said, looking at me nervously.

"Then what does it mean Sterling?" I asked him as I faced him and crossed my
arms against my chest. "Please tell me because I don't have any clue what you're
talking about. I don't have a clue why you're always so overcritical with me. Why,
on some days, you suddenly have this prissy attitude to me and only me! Frankly,
I'm getting really, really tired of the attitude. Do you have PMS or something?"

He looked down at the floor. "It's just... it's because..."

"Spit it out already!" I barked at him. My patience was clearly right over the edge.

"It's because I like you okay!" he said in a hushed whisper. He then looked back at
me to gauge my reaction.

... Okaaayy.. I didn't see that coming!

When he noticed I wasn't responding he continued, "I'm sorry, but I like you. Not
just in a friendly way. I mean... really, really like you. I'm sorry that I may come
across as a douche sometimes. It's just I notice you more than any other person
out there. I pick up on your habits quite easily and I tend to react to them in
different ways."

"So you're gay?" I asked.

"Yes," he said with a smile, "I was hoping if you'd like to go out on a date
sometime. You know, so I can make up for being such a shithead to you from
time to time."

I stared at him, wanting to see if this was some sort of evil trick or practical joke.
But when I looked at his green eyes behind his black glasses, I saw that he was
genuine and sincere about the entire thing.

"Why?" I asked, completely dumbfounded at the certain ways things played out.

"Why what?" he asked me again, confusion etching on his face.

"I mean, why would you want to go out with me? You know my history in this
school," I answered.

"I don't give a damn about that. You're different, and funny, and you're cute as
hell!" he said with a blush.

It took me quite some time to process everything. Sterling was anxiously waiting
for my reply. Now, he's the one making me nervous!

"I... I'm sorry Sterling, but I'm not looking for a boyfriend in my life right now.
I'm sorry," I told him. That was half true. A part of me isn't really looking for a
boy right now. The other part of it was that I didn't want to ruin Sterling's life
because he decided to go out with me... the school's favorite gossip item.

"Oh... I see..." he said, desperately trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.
This isn't turning out so well.
"Maybe in the future?" I asked him, trying to get his hopes up.

He looked back at me. I gave him a warm smile in return. "Sure," he said as he
gave me a smile back. There was an awkward silence between the two of us for a
couple of minutes. Both of us didn't really know what to say exactly. I decided to
break off the ice.

"Now, why don't you help me by holding onto this while I sort some stuff in my
bag?" I asked him as I gave him my books to hold.

He looked at me for a minute before he smiled and grabbed my books from my
hand. "Knowing you, this will probably take you around 15 minutes knowing how
incredibly OC you are," he teased.

I gave him a playful punch. "Oh shut up!" I said as we both laughed. This isn't
going too bad.

-

"I'll see you guys later! I just need to go to the bathroom!" I said.

"Okay, we'll see you!" Claire said as she, Taylor, Rocky, and Sterling waved
goodbye at me.

It was the end of the day and everything went smooth. Well... almost everything.
Sterling promised me he wouldn't tell Claire and Rocky about yesterday. I
promised him that I wouldn't tell the others that he tried asking me out. There
were a couple of times he would awkwardly stare at me throughout the day.
When I caught him, he looked away instantly. I just smiled at him, silently telling
him that I was fine with it. Both of us were good right now... Hopefully it stays
that way.

I still haven't talked to Tyler yet. I saw him at school today. To tell you the truth, I
was quite surprised! We caught each other's eyes this morning, but I kinda froze
under the pressure and didn't approach him. I guess I was bit of a coward since
he had two football players with him at the time. Sigh. He didn't even bother
following me. I guess he's still mad.

As I neared the male bathroom, someone suddenly grabbed my hand and
dragged me into the janitor's closet.

"What the hell?!" I shouted as I crashed into the shelf, causing numerous bottles
of chemicals falling down on me. Thank god, none of them were open! My scalp
would have been burnt by now otherwise.

"Oh shit. I'm sorry," my assailant said as that person dragged me up to my feet.
Okay, even though we were in a dark room where you really couldn't see a single
thing, I still managed to notice that voice.

"Tyler! What the hell are you doing?" I asked, out of breath.

He flipped the switch and I found myself chest to chest with the football player.
He was wearing his varsity jacket over some dark denims. His blonde hair was a
bit shaggy today. I had no idea why he dragged me into a closet. The only time
this happens is when guys want to make out with girls. I highly doubted Tyler
wanted to do the same to me.

"Listen Will, I need to talk to you... alone," he told me as he slightly moved back
from me. Not that it was a lot since the janitor's closet was pretty small.

"And you figured that the janitor's closet was the best place to do that?" I asked
back, slightly annoyed over this situation.

"Well, this is the only place where no one can bother us. You always got your
friends with you, especially that Sterling guy!" I noticed he grunted Sterling's
name out And my teammates are always tailing me around," he explained.

"Wait, don't you have football practice right now?" I asked him again.

"Doesn't start for another 20 minutes," he said with a sly smile. Oh god. There he
goes again flashing his wonderful white smile again!

"Look... Will..." he began, suddenly turning very serious again, "I was such a huge
ass to you yesterday! I shouldn't have said the things I said. I said them out of
anger and spite. And I know that's a pretty lame excuse, but I'm telling you the
truth. I was petty, selfish, and arrogant yesterday over everything that happened
and I let it all out on you. I just want you to know that I'm really, really sorry
about that. You don't have to forgive me. I just really wanted to tell you that face
to face."

I stared at him dumbfounded at his apology. So he's not mad at me then? I
thought he'd be furious for sure.

"I forgive you," I said.

"What?" Tyler asked, not because he couldn't hear me, but rather because he
didn't understand.

"You forgive me? Just like that?," he asked still in shock.

"Yes and besides, I owe you one as well," I said to him.

"Owe me an apology?"

"Let me finish?" I asked him, my mouth turning into a slight frown. He zipped his
mouth instantly. "Listen," I said, "It was also wrong of me of trying to force you
out of your depression. It wasn't my place. I knew what those feelings felt like and
it consumed me really bad. I didn't want you to go through the same things  I did,
so I tried talking you out of it. I guess I could have handled it better."

Tyler looked at me for a long time before he stepped closer and enveloped me
into a hug. This was such a huge surprise! I was so shocked that I didn't even
move. I just stood there like a statue as Tyler hugged me. If you were there, you'd
probably see the confusion and utter embarrassment in my face. He let go a
couple of seconds later, a blush creeping onto his cheeks.

"What was that for?" I asked giving him a bewildered look. Did he really just hug
me right now or was that a dream?

"I don't know. I just felt like hugging you for being so nice and caring," he said
blushing some more.

"You sound so gay," I laughed at him. He laughed at my response and gave me a
friendly shove. We laughed for a few minutes, just letting everything out into the
open. It felt really good.

"Will.... about that homework assignment?... Do you want to use your house or
my house as the main subject?" Tyler asked me once the laughter subsided.

I placed my hand under my chin and began to think. Using my house wouldn't
probably the best choice. First of all, we haven't really unpacked everything yet.
There are still some boxes left in the guest bedroom, kitchen, and even the
backyard that we still need to sort out. That would hamper us from truly
exploring the rest of the house. Second of all, my family isn't really your typical
American family. We do a lot of things normal families don't really do. So
explaining how the house influences our daily activities would be really difficult.
The most important thing is that my brothers would be spying on us the entire
time. I don't want that to happen!

"We'll do your house. Is that fine with you?" I asked, finally making up my
decision.

"Okay great! Swing by my house after dinner. We can discuss how we're going to
tackle this homework assignment. Maybe we can actually get half of it done by
tonight!" he said excitedly.

"Sure, why not?" I replied trying to hide my excitement.

"Okay, good. So I'll see you later then?" he asked me. I  nodded in response.
"Awesome," he said as he opened the janitor's closet door and sprinted out into
the hallway. Yep, today everything was going smoothly.


***
(Tyler's POV)

"Okay, so we finished drawing up the master plan. Now what?" I asked Will.

It was around 9pm in evening and we were in my room trying to get started on
this project of ours for Art Studies. My room is technically much smaller than
Will's room so we had to do our work on my bed. I was positioned near the
headboard while Will was on the other end. We had my laptop and a couple of
papers and pencils between us. It was a comfy set-up and I was glad to hear no
complaints from my neighbor.

"I don't know. My brain is pretty much slush right now," he said with a laugh. All
this drawing has gotten me a slight headache.

"Do you want a break?" I asked him in concern.

"I'd like that," he said quietly.

"Will don't be shy if you need something, just say it!" I said to him as I grabbed
the papers and neatly organized them according to floor plans.

"I think I need some aspirin," he said as started massaging his head with his
fingers.

"That bad huh? I'll get some downstairs," I said as I moved my laptop to the side
to give him more space to move around on. I went out into the hallway and down
the stairs to get him some painkillers.

Everything was going really well. Will and I managed to talk it out this afternoon
about our disagreement yesterday. Even though the venue was slightly less than
perfect, it turned out pretty well. Although, I wish I could say the same for
football practice.
The coach pretty much gave me a long, good lecture before making me work out
for missing practice out on the field. He didn't like it that I missed school simply
because I had a headache. Scott and his cronies were pretty much in heaven
watching me suffer.  He is such an asshole. He'll get his just desserts soon. Just
you fucking wait!

I grabbed a glass from one of the cupboards, went to the sink to fill it out with
water. I then grabbed an aspirin in our medicine cabinet and then proceeded
back to my room. I carefully jogged my way up the stairs in just my black tank
and grey sweatpants. When I entered my room, I found Will lying down on my
bed looking at me expectantly. He looked pretty good in his white t-shirt and
shorts. I could see muscle build in his arms and his belly. He's definitely changed
that's for sure!

"Here you go," I said as I handed him both the glass of water and an aspirin.

"Thanks," he said as he took them from me. I watched him gulp it down. He gave
me a smile afterwards.

"So, what do you want to do during this break?" I asked him, "I'm afraid we can't
play any Marvel vs. Capcom or Mortal Kombat!"

He laughed at my response. His laugh got me laughing too. You know those
people who have infectious laughter that when you hear them laugh, you can't
help but join in? Will's very much like that. It's hard to explain through words.
You just need to be there to fully understand what I'm saying.

"Well, let's listen to some of your music!" he said enthusiastically.

"Okay," I said as I went around the bed and sat beside Will. I grabbed my laptop
and opened my iTunes. "Here, Listen to Glasvegas. I found them out a couple of
days ago. I find them extremely awesome, although when I linked it to Jason and
a couple of my teammates this evening, they hated the group." I then pressed
play.

'Whatever Hurts Through The Night' started playing and I watched Will for his
reaction. I knew we had slightly a similar taste in music, but I'm not sure if he'd
agree with me on this one. Will was slightly more into indie rock more than synth
stuff, so I'm not sure how he'll like this.

I saw him bop his head every now and then. Two minutes later, he turned to me
and said, "Tyler. This is great! I'm not kidding. They are a bit different to what I
normally listen to, but their sound is pretty rad! Are you sure you're not a
hipster?"

I chuckled at him, "I'm glad you like them. You're the first person who told me
so."

He then got up and sat in an Indian position and said, "Jason found this bad?
That boy has no taste in music! I swear Tyler, your music library is incredible!
Don't feel down that no one appreciates it. You don't need someone else' s
confirmation to know that this is a great artist."

"Thanks Will," I said, turning away from him because I found my cheeks
blushing. That was nice of him to say. Shit. This kid's got a hold on me.

"Tyler, I mean it. Don't let other people tell you who you should like or what you
should be. Just do what makes you happy," he said as he reached out and patted
my hand.

Glasvegas' 'Dream Dream Dreaming' started playing in the background as I asked
him, "I have a feeling you're not talking about Glasvegas anymore..."

He looked at me for awhile, "I know that you're upset about people making stuff
about you. You need to know that what they say doesn't reflect you or define you
as a person. You alone know who you are and how special your relationship with
Dana was. Don't let other people dictate otherwise. Just treat it like your music. If
they don't like what they hear, then fuck 'em."

I laughed at that last comment causing Will to frown because he was entirely
dead serious. "I'm sorry for laughing," I said as I let my laughter subside, "But
thanks Will. You're a great guy. Whoever gets your heart is a lucky guy."

Now it was Will's turn to blush. "Whatever Tyler!" he said as he smacked my
shoulder.

"I mean it," I said to him in dead seriousness.

"And what makes me all special?" he joked around laughing.

"Well, for one thing, you're not a pushover. It's like what you said; you don't let
other people dictate who you are or what you should do. Take that kid Mitch for
example. I heard through the grapevine that you helped him out when no one else
would. That shows you just how much of a person you really are. You could have
walked away from him, but you helped him out even though he was an outcast.
Normally people would just ignore him because they're afraid of being ostracized
next, but not you.. You didn't let cliques or popularity influence your judgment or
your actions. You also voice your mind without caring what might happen. Do
you know you're the only person who had the balls to tell me to my face that I was
being a jackass when I treated you badly? You're kind, generous, caring, and
funny. Who wouldn't like that?" I said as I faced him.

Will looked at me and his face turned crimson in embarrassment. I guess he
didn't expect me to give such a detailed explanation as to why he was awesome.

"Thanks Tye," he choked out as he tried fighting back tears which threatened to
fall. He looked away trying to hide them but I saw them clear as day. He was
touched.

"Let's get back to the assignment, shall we?" he asked while he was still looking
down. I watched him grab the papers from my bedside table. I stayed silent the
entire time. He still wasn't looking at me.

At this time, the song 'I Feel Wrong (Homosexuality Part 1)' by Glasvegas started
playing in the background.

"So... what should.. We do next?" he asked me as he looked up to me with a smile.

I leaned forward, my hand reaching for the papers containing the floor plans, but
I quickly stopped and looked deep in his hazel eyes. I don't know what came over
me, but I found my hand going up to his face. He just looked at me as a sea of
confusion began to show in his eyes. I touched his cheek pulled him into a kiss.
Will didn't make any sort of movement for a couple of seconds. He must have
been overwhelmed with shock. A few seconds later, he ran his hand through my
hair as he kissed me back. He parted my mouth with his tongue as I leaned
forward inching our bodies closer to each other.

We continued kissing for a couple of minutes, feeling each other up, and running
our hands through each other's hair. There wasn't any sense of lust. However,
there certainly was a passion between the two of us. Will gasped for a breath of
air before placing both of his hands on my cheeks and kissing me again. I
reciprocated back. I bit on his lip which caused him to moan a little.

When I let go, I opened my eyes to find him doing the same. We looked at each
other's eyes searching for some reason why and how this happened. When 'I Feel
Wrong' stopped playing, it felt as if the world stood still as we continued to stare
at each other.



TBC

***

Okay, first of all, I will apologize for the time it took me to post this. I said I would
be posting this by mid-June after my 3 week vacation in Europe, but lookie here,
it's July already. Starting from this moment on, I am not going to tell you when
the next chapter is going to be posted because chances are, I'll be breaking that
promise and disappoint you guys. I made this chapter really long to compensate
for the time it took to post this. Hope you're not disappointed by that at the very
least.

Also, I'm thinking of creating a yahoo group for this story because my contact list
(I accidentally typed in lust for a while there) is getting too large and it's pretty
difficult to add each and every single of your names to the send list. Besides,
some of you guys may actually have stopped reading and may be getting annoyed
at my e-mails about a new chapter upload. Still not sure whether this option is
better and more efficient, what do you guys think?

So, what do you guys think? Hit me up at: flipped100@yahoo.com yes? I'd love to
hear from you. There's also the flipped100.wordpress.com site for earlier
uploads.

Take care and have fun!

Cheers,
Nick