Any Other Guy

It was funny, the way it happened.

Picture this: small, nerdy girl with and X-Men shirt on with glasses, walks into a comic book store only to find tall, nerdy boy with big, thick-rimmed glasses and Star Wars shirt.

I know what you're thinking, true love at first sight, right?

Well, I was thinking about how stupid Star Wars was, and how turned off by the fact that this boy wore anything that had something to do with the series. I mean, why not stamp a big sticker on his forehead that said with big, capital letters, “I’M A LOSER AND A VIRGIN”? Because, come on, that's to be expected, right?

But while I was thinking this, he smiled an awkward smile and asked if I needed assistance, which I kindly declined, and tried to get the hell away from him as fast as I could. His eyes held a crestfallen kind of sadness, his mouth was set in a straight line, and he looked at me with pleading eyes. His big, brown, puppy dog eyes would've been the breaking point for me, that is, of course, if it were any other guy. But on him, it just made me feel uncomfortable.

I could've fallen for him, then and there. There was something about him, an aura of innocence about his smile that would've worked magic in my heart, but just not for him. Maybe if it were any other guy. And I know that I've said that before, and before my story is over I will say it many more times, because that's exactly what I thought, after the first time I saw him and forward. Then again, if he were any other guy, this would be a completely different story

But I digress.

Well, I was in the store, and Stars Wars Boy was looking at me with googly eyes, but I tried my best to ignore him. And trust me; it is so hard to browse when someone is staring at you that hard. It was annoying, and creepy. I wished he would stop. I would've felt much more comfortable if his big brown eyes weren't always down my back, and maybe when I caught him he didn't have to turn away and look so guilty about it. It was painfully obvious that he had no experience with the opposite sex whatsoever, which might've made me feel a bit sorry for him, or I could've thought that it was cute, but I didn't.

Which is why I decided to get nothing and instead come back some other day when he wasn’t working, because creepy boys who liked Star Wars staring at you really got you out of the buying mood.

So I left, but before I get out of the door he says a nice, "Have a good day!" and then I'm gone. I don't even look back to acknowledge him. I'm heartless, I'm insensitive, uncaring, unfeeling, uncompassionate, and other synonyms for heartless with the prefix in- or un-, I know. But in the end it was for the better, I keep telling myself that.

I remember thinking, “That boy is crazy if he thinks he even has a chance with me. Really, it sucks for him. It's not his fault that he didn't know that I thought Star Wars was stupid. But I guess that's just the way life rolls, huh? It was simply not meant to be. And I hope he finds that out on his own, because I'd rather not spell it out for him. Honestly. What was he thinking?”

Because, honestly, what was he thinking?

-

I think somebody's out to get me. I'll bet you it’s Darth Vader, or someone else from Star Wars, trying to punish me for not having bad taste and liking the series. Well, whoever it is, they must love to see me in pain, because the next few weeks, I forget all about Star Wars Boy, I go to the comic store a few days later and get as much as I can afford without some creepy boy staring at me. I don't hear of him any more, so I forget about him and move on with my life.

Then, school starts, senior year, to be exact. I can't wait to leave and go to some fancy art school and possibly start my career in the comic book industry, but I know that I'm going to have to just grin and bear it for the rest of the school year and then I'll graduate and get one with my life. But my so called “foolproof” plan goes up in smoke, just because of one person, Star Wars Boy. There he was, every day, every class. I had to put up with him every day, and I wonder what I ever did to deserve this punishment. Every day he was there, and in every class he stared at me.

It's not like it wasn't flattering and all, but it was more creepy than anything. I mean, don't get me wrong, it wasn't like he was ugly or retarded or smelly, he was a nice guy, I guess. He just...well, I guess it would be a lie if I said he wasn't my type, because I don't really have a specific "type." It's really hard to explain.

Have you ever had a friend? One who liked you more than a friend, and you'd say that, yeah, they were pretty good looking, and you got along good enough, but you just didn't feel the same way for some odd reason. It just didn't click? It could be something like that.

It may have been the guy, because I remember thinking when I saw him, "If it were any other guy..." but I'm not sure.

Who knows? It may have the timing. When I met him, I was on the rag, and I was irritable. I was angry at my friend, Jenny, for dragging me to Warped Tour and getting my arm signed by some ass in a shitty Pop-Punk, emo band, and that Star Wars shirt, ugh. Talk about a breaking new grounds in bad taste. Honestly, I was in no mood for any romantic relations with anyone, even, say, Gambit, with all his Cajun goodness, or even Hugh Jackman as Wolverine. It was just the wrong time for me.

I probably seem like a bitch, huh? I guess it was only a matter of time. I can be a bitch sometimes, which was the main reason I kept my distance from Star Wars Boy. I knew I didn't like him, I knew he was crazy about me, and I knew if I ever talked to him, it would most likely end up with me socking him in the face. So the reason I was being so distant to him was because of his own safety, and not my comfort.

It may have been a little for my own comfort, but the other reason makes me seem so much nicer, which always helps.

Then, of course, it had to go all downhill.