Don't Worry, I'll Save You

This Geophysical Science class was not a good start to my first say here. The teacher, Mr. Banser, was so bland and boring, I almost fell asleep. His nasally voice combined with the screech of the chalk on the chalk board was enough to send anyone into an instant bad mood. Even though I less than enjoyed my first period teacher, my classmate, Alex, was pretty cool. I mean, she probably wasn’t cool. She was too shy, and when I first saw her she wasn’t hanging out with anyone. But she was nice, and unlike most people when meeting a new kid, she didn’t treat me like some germ-infested mutant. She showed me to my first class, and tried her best to make small conversation. She did look a bit uncomfortable when I told her why I was here. She didn’t look like she had been to a real party in a while, maybe even at all. She probably hadn’t been to a party since kindergarten, where the whole class gets invited, and your parents stay with you in the house the whole time. Make a wish, little Timmy, and blow out your candles!

Though I did think she was nice, and cool as far as nice girls who follow all the rules and don’t dare stain their favorite dress’ go, I didn’t see our relationship progressing beyond science lab partners, or me asking to borrow her notes. We’re just too different.

“And that’s it for today,” that nasally voice from up front announced. Mr. Banser started to erase everything he wrote from the board and the class started to put away their notes. I, of course didn’t take any notes. I just sat there and doodled. I mean, when am I going to use any of this science in real life, right?

“Nice notes,” Alex laughed as she highlighted the 3 pages of notes she wrote down.

“Yea, note taking is probably my best skill. Whoa, you go all out on your notes, don’t you? Why are you highlighting them. Seems like a waste of time,” I told her as I put away what little school supplies I cared to take out of my bag.

“Well, hey, there is 2 minuets of class left, what else am I going to do? Plus, highlighting them just makes the tests go faster,” She said as she highlighted something else.

“Haha, well, it seems like too much work to me.”

“Well, passing this class isn’t hard if you try. You can borrow my notes if you want,” She held out her finished, perfect, highlighted notes to me. She was the first person, besides my parents of course, who urged me to try. She held out her notes, and I took them. Instead of thinking whatever, waste of time! I thought she’s right. I’m going to copy these notes. Fuck, I might even HIGHLIGHT them. It was a new feeling, the feeling that someone believed in me. She gave me her notes. She didn’t assume I was going to lose them, and she wanted me to pass this class. As cheesy as it sounds, it felt good to have someone believe in me.

As I carefully placed her notes in my bag next to the other million notebooks my aunt bought me, the bell rang.

“Need help to your next class?” Alex offered, waiting to get up until everyone was out of the now almost empty classroom.

“Sure,” I said, before I even though about it. Had I thought about it, I probably would have said no. It’s just that, Alex is the type of person I usually avoid. She’s prim and proper and neat and shy. She probably has straight A’s, judging by her notes. I don’t hang out with that type.

Just then, a picture of my mom crying on the couch, comforted by my dad popped into my head. Maybe Alex is the type of person I shouldn’t be avoiding. Maybe Alex is the type of person I should welcome into my life.

The line it is drawn
The curse it is cast
The slow one now
Will later be fast
As the present now
Will later be past
The order is
Rapidly fadin'
And the first one now
Will later be last
For the times they are a-changin'.