"Hey, Kari! Whatcha up to?" Leon squealed as she ran up beside me on our way to our the last class of the day, Geophysics.
"Just walking to class, just like you are," i laughed. "Alot of...awkward things happened today.""I heard! I mean...i read," she winked and pointed at me.
"You read?"
"Yeah! i feel like such a rebel, i read your blog! I even posted a blog...during school and not during lunch!" She smiled widely. "Bad-assness is filling my veins, Ka-Ka!"
"Please, Leon, Stop calling me that." i sighed with a smile. when she's all giddy like that, you cant help but smile. "I'll have to read this post when we get into class."
"Are we in the computer lab today?"
"Yep, unfortunately...gotta type up those good ol' reports on chemical reactions and shit." i hopped up a little to pop my bag back onto my shoulder. "Good thing i skipped last bell and already typed up mine."
"No fair! My lab partner never does any work." she pouted and blew a strand of hair from her face. "Why didn't you choose me for your lab partner, Kari?"
"I did choose you, but you were blinded by the so-called 'subtle emo hotness' of Jack Randel and chose him."
"i was no— yes i was..." she looked away.
I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. "Yes, yes i know." i shook my head my head as we walked into the room together. as always, there were people making fun of us. most of all, the group at the front that always called us lesbians. as if i could ever date Leon... besides, she's also straight as an arrow.
we waved each other goodbye as we sat next to our partners. Eli and I exchanged smiles as i sat next to him at our table. a couple of minutes later, we walked down to the computer lab. Immediately after i logged in, i printed out my paper and set it on the computer, leaving a mental note to turn it in after class. "You're already finished?" Eli looked at me with his wide, medium blue eyes; one screamed surprise, the other eye sulked in despair.
"i skipped last bell and got it finished." i looked at him in slight confusion, as Eli is usually the one more prepared. "you alright, dude? you usually have your stuff done."
"yeah, i'm good i guess... honestly, i've been procrastinating all over the place this week and i don't even know why. like, i just got struck lazy or something." his voice cracked when he said "lazy" and i had to try my hardest not to grin.
"well maybe it'll get better, it's probably just a phase." i shrugged and logged onto MyXone. I had done a mobile post earlier, but i liked to look at my blog. i always worked hard on my layouts and they looked cool to me. i'm always really proud when i make a new layout and it looks nice. also, the perfectionist in me is always looking for some imperfection to fix. i try to make mine sort of look like a notebook. I love notebook paper and labelmakers, so i used those looks in my layout to make it a little more "me."
"Hey Kari, there's one thing i wanna know about your blog..." Eli peaked over at my screen with his finger tucked under his chin.
"yeah?" i asked as i clicked around on links.
"what exactly is your background? you know, behind the paper part."
"It's an old, rusty, eroded, metal barrel."
"how 'grunge' of you."
"why thank you, Eli!" i exclaimed in my inside voice, as if i had any other voice. i also love grunge more than almost any music style, thrash metal is almost tieing with it, then it would be punk rock, then goth rock, then alt-rock.
"the dead flies are a nice touch..." he gave me a smug, little, awkward grin and went back to my his screen. "i just realized i typed 'Matt' instead of 'Mark' again." he sighed. i clicked on his blog link.
"You sure did." i giggled. "Matt and Mark don't even look alike."
"I know...but the M's and the A's...they just mix me up!" we laughed. "ah, i'm not even going to correct it. i'm gonna wait for Matt to see it and get confused."
"that does sound like it would be interesting," i laughed. "nice layout by the way, it's very 'you.'"
"thank ya. it's my first HTML attempt. it's so simple it's insane. i didn't make any tables or anything...because i don't know how."
"i could teach you how, if you want. but your style works for what you did, i like it alot to be honest."
"Kari!" Leon whisper-yelled, "go look at my blog post i did in school!"
"okay!" i whisper yelled back. "Leon said she's feeling rebellious because she posted in school," i rolled my eyes as i turned to Eli.
"that sounds about right."
I clicked on her blog link, and it was as expected.
oh, Leon... eli and i shook our heads. she had practically written what she told me, but it was humorous. we looked back over at leon (who was obviously monitoring her pageview count) and she was smiling wide with giving us a thumbs-up. that somehow triggered my memory to check Doorstep's blog, since Kene said something about it. i've only read it maybe once, and that was while i was helping him with his layout, which was months ago. i curiously clicked on Kene's first, curious whether or not she posted something about earlier's happenings. and, she did.
I couldn't help but shake my head as i read the short and half-pointless post. Jimmy's always messing with her. He put a child block on her account, so now it censors out certain curse words. It's sort of hilarious going through her blog and seeing all the asterisks.
"who's blog is that?" Eli inquired with a keen look in his eye.
"My friend, Doorstep."
"i hope his mama didn't give him that name," Eli said in his so called 'prissy-ghetto-gay man' voice while shaking his finger. "mm, mm, mm."
"haha, no...actually, i don't know his real name. he doesn't even have it on his profile."
"that's...strange."
"yes...it really is." i never noticed that i didn't know his name, and now i'm wondering how he got it. i mean, no one at all calls him by his real name, not even schoolmates did. does he have a real name? i mean, he has to... he's a person like the rest of us.
i smiled quietly as i scrolled down the page. no one ever really mentions me in thier blogs besides my template credits that i ask for, and Leon, occasionaly Scott, and today Cordelia and Kene (indirectly.) Maybe it's just my lucky day...
i saw from my peripheral vison a very uneasy eli looking in my direction.he gave me a nod and directed my eyes towards the doorway, which Kene was leaning against the wall of and giving me a glare, which was interrupted by an administrator who walked passed her in the hallway in which she followed shortly after. "ugh," i grunted. "what is her deal?"
"I don't know," Eli shrugged. "And i don't wanna." Eli went back to his schoolwork as i continued to casually browse.
~~
The bell rang louder than usual at the end of the day. or at least it seemed that way, possibly because i'd been half asleep all of last bell. i went to my locker as usual, then said my goodbyes to Leon, who was actually ignoring me... i guess there's a first time for everything. Just kidding, she does that all the time. She reached to stop me before i got to the doors. "Hey," she said quietly.
"Guess who's got a date with Jack Randel tonight." Her eyes were glazed over with an unusual shade of blue happiness along with having a huge grin on her face.
I smiled back at her. "Get it, girl." i jokingly punched her on the shoulder as she smiled happily at me, then she turned around and walked as quickly as she could back to his locker. i just continued to walk out the door and proceeded to walk home, waving to the couple of friends i had at school as i left. Now, including Cordi who just waved to me as she rode by in her red Tuscan convertable, which brought a smile to my face. Kene wasn't far behind, practically kicking her bumper off because her piece-of-shit camaro wont start, yet again. i'd feel bad if i smiled, but i did, and now i feel bad.
"hey, Kari," i heard faintly from the direction which seemed to be from my pocket. "hello?" apparently, my hip had answered my cell. My hand zipped to my pocket as fast as it possibly could and after juggling my cell phone for a about ten seconds using one hand, i finally mustered up an (extremely) out of breath greeting.
"h-hello?"
"Hey, its Doorstep."
"Oh! Whaddup D?" i nearly tripped on a tree as i walked.
"Nothin' really, i was just gonna ask if you wanted to meet-up so i could give you your bike back."
"Sure man, wanna meet at the bridge? i think that's about half way between us."
"I would, but i'm actually pretty close to you right now."
"Oh, uh, alright...how close? i'm walking towards my house from Ranceburg Local."
"I know, i just saw you," he laughed. "I'mactually in the library, so i just saw you walk past..."
"--Oh! My bad, man, i'll walk back up there."
"Nah, its cool. just hang at the park for a few, i'm gonna check out these books real quick. i'll see you soon."
"Alrigh, see ya."
"bye," he said right before he clicked off.
I walked maybe three more minutes before i reached the park. there were some kids around, playing frisbee and on the slides, and to my surpsise, the sweings were open for once. so, of course, i got on my favorite one and went to my so-called happy place.
"hey!" i heard a familiar voice say.
"Oh my God!" i nearly flipped out of the swing. "You scared me, Doorstep.What the eff."
"teehee." he smiled. i just shook my head at him.
"you sir, are a wierd dude."
"Well." He scoffed at me sarcastically before he hopped down from his swing. He turned around from where he was standing and gave me the most awkward smile and i couldn't help but laugh. He lit up a ciggarette and offered me one, but i rejected and took out my own. "Hey, i hope you don't mind, i oiled your chain and stuff," he rolled my bike back from the tree he'd leaned it on and i stopped the swing with my foot. "your brakes were a little messed up too, and one of the pedals was kinda broken..."
"Thanks, dude, you totally didn't have to do that...i didn't even really notice anything but the chain. do you want me to pay you or anything?"
"Nah, no way...i have fun fixing stuff. plus, i just borrowed your bike, just accept as sort of a give-back."
"Well," i said, trying to think of a way to justify it, "it was a little slower getting around." i laughed and rolled my bike towards me. "fine, i'll ignore the guilt."
"You don't have to ignore it, you just gave it to me, haha." we laughed and ran our feet through the gravel for a moment. during that moment, i was trying to figure out how to bring up what happened today.
"Um, so... this is probably going to sound like some stupid he-said-she-said shit, but has anyone told you anything today?"
He shook his head and gave a confused half-grin. "uh, no... should i be worried?...or something?"
"Ahh, possibly." i laughed and clasped my hands together. "So, Kene totally almost kicked my ass today."
"What?! Why? What could she possibly have against you?"
"You mean besides the mandatory things she has against everyone?"
"Well, ha, yeah...pretty much."
"She took me to the girls bathroom, and like, she thinks we're dating, because we went to the buffet together."
"That's like, awkard...we hardly hang out much together, we don't even talk alot! but either way, what's it matter to her?"
"Apparently she likes you. On her blog she said she 'wants to know why i'm trying to take her man' or some shit..."
He sighed and slumped down into a depressing hunch. "ew dude, why...never in my life. and just, i can't even comprehend this. no...no, she does not like me, are you serious? i've never been treated so shitty by another person my whole life?! how is that 'liking somebody.' "
"I don't know, dude. she pushed me, and i punched her, and then she chased me all over school, not even kidding. i hid in some girls locker until the end of the bell. she told me she wanted me to stop talking to you, too." i rolled my eyes, just thinking about it. "it's so stupid, she's not nice to you, or anyone for that matter...i don't even think she counts as a 'friend.'" i shook my head and put out my cigarrette and sat back on the swings.
"don't stop talking to me, fuck Kene." he flicked his cigarrette across the grass. "I hate her, and i think she's a bitch. and i never call anyone that, not even my own dog, who literally is one."
"...Jimmy told me once that your dogs name is Shitterina, is that true?"
"that...that's besides the point. the point is, i hate Kene. and finding out she likes me, is the worst thing that's ever happened to me." he laughed. "i'm babbling, but you get the point."
"haha, i guess. i kinda don't want my ass beat though. any suggestions?"
"no clue. might wanna talk to Jimmy or Scott about that one...but i'll talk to Kene tonight and hopefully that'll help. but hey, it's about to rain so we should both probably scat."
"True shit, i didn't even notice."
"Well i'll see you soon, and i'll IM you or something. i'm trying to plan a thing for Puppy, his birthday is in like half a second."
"Sweetness, i'll help with whatever i can."
"Good deal." He smiled, "Take care, chica." he waved to me as he began to walk away, and i rode off on my bike. its sort of wierd hanging out with him one-on-one, he's like the other guys we're friends with, but at the same time he's not...and i don't know what it is. like, his mantra, or aura or whatever you call it. but, he's cool. in a way, he reminds me...of me!
but what to do about Kene...i hope whatever he talks to about works. if it doesn't, i have a feeling school is about to get so much harder than it already is.
well, all i can do is cross my fingers.
i guess.
you know?
No comments:
Post a Comment