I Want Someone to Love Me for Who I Am

I was nervous the next day. I was worried about whether Cameron would be in school or not. I sat at my desk, staring at the classroom door, waiting to see that head of brown curls. Just as I was about to turn away, giving up, the door opened and Cameron stepped through. I grinned and as he met my eye, he smiled back at me. He made his way across the room and sat next to me. "Hey," I smiled at him.
"Hey," Cameron smiled back.
"I...um, I wasn't sure if you were going to come in..." I admitted to him and he smiled gently.
"I told you I would, didn't I?" he asked and I shrugged slightly.
"Yeah... but..." I trailed off with a shrug and Cameron reached under the desk and squeezed my hand. I turned and smiled at him. I wanted more than anything to lean forward and kiss him, but my brain kicked in before I did anything stupid that would give people any more reason to bully me and Cameron. I think Cameron knew what I had been about to do, because he moved further away from me, removing his hand from mine. "Sorry," I murmured and Cameron turned to me and smiled.
"It's hard for me, too," he whispered and I felt my heart leap in my chest. Cameron then turned his attention to the front of the class and so I did the same, a small smile ghosting over my lips. I was glad that Cameron felt the same as me, it made me feel more comfortable, knowing that he was as inexperienced as I was.

The day passed slowly, as a typical school day does. Cameron got a few taunts from people about why he wasn't in school, but he ignored them. I, personally, wanted to go over to them and punch them in the face – not that I'd ever have the guts to do that – but it's what I felt like doing. I didn't want Cameron to be upset by what people were saying to him. "Come over after school?" I asked Cameron at lunch and he just grinned and nodded. That was all I needed for confirmation. "By the way, where do you live?" I asked him as we were eating and I saw him tense up.
"W-Why?" he asked hesitantly.
"I was just wondering...I mean, you know where I live," I said, shrugging my shoulders.
"Oh, um, I live about a 20 minute walk from your house," he said and that was all he was going to say. I nodded even though he hadn’t really given me an answer. I mean, there were hundreds of houses within a 20 minute walking radius from my house. He didn't even tell me in which direction... I could tell that he didn't want me to know, but that just made me want to find out even more. However, I made myself not ask for further details. I knew that, when he wanted me to know, he would tell me.

After school, Cameron and I went back to my house. Neither of my parents were there, which I was kind of glad about. Cameron was always nervous in front of my parents, always uncomfortable, so with them out of the house, I knew he would be more relaxed. We went up to my room and watched X-Men while eating some popcorn I'd managed to find in the kitchen. Cameron and I sat on the floor, leaning back against my bed, our hands clasped between us. "Do you ever wish you were popular?" he asked suddenly and I turned and looked down at him.
"Um, sometimes," I told him honestly. "I used to more than I do now. I think I just wanted friends...but now I have you." Cameron nodded thoughtfully. I could pretty much hear his mind buzzing with his racing thoughts. "What are you thinking, Cam?" I asked him softly. He turned to me and smiled slightly.
"Nothing, I was just wondering what it would be like to be part of that group..." he said, referring to the group of people who made our lives hell.
"They're not nice people, Cam," I said, wrapped my arms around him securely. "You wouldn’t fit in with them, you're too nice." Cameron smiled weakly and cuddled closer to me.
"If one of us were in that group, we would never have been friends," he whispered as he leant on my chest. I liked to think that if I had been part of that group, I would have noticed Cameron, noticed that he was someone I would have liked to be friend with, recognised that he was special. But I knew he was right, chances were that I wouldn’t have noticed him. And he wouldn’t have noticed me if I just blended into the popular group.
"Then I'm glad we weren't part of it," I told him truthfully. "Because I'm glad I've got you." Cameron smiled and nodded, but otherwise didn't reply.

Only a few minutes after the film finished I heard the front door open and shut and I practically see the change in Cameron. He seemed to shrink, making himself as small as possible. "What's wrong?" I asked him, taking his hand again.
"N-Nothing," he said nervously and I frowned. It was obvious there was something wrong. He hadn’t been nervous only 2 seconds before.
"Do you not like my parents?" I asked worriedly. I wanted my best friend and my parents to get on.
"N-No! I do, I'm just, um..." Cameron stuttered and stammered, so I put him out of his misery and placed a sweet kiss on his lips.
"It's okay," I said. "We can just stay up here, okay?" Cameron smiled and nodded. "I'll just go tell them we're home." I saw nerves enter Cameron's eyes again and I hesitated only a second before leaving him in my room and going downstairs.

I walked into the kitchen and saw my mum making herself a cup of coffee. "Hey, mum," I smiled and kissed her cheek.
"Hey, sweetie," she smiled. "Good day?"
"Alright," I shrugged. "Um, Cameron's over, but I think we're just going to watch films up in my room, okay?"
"That's fine, honey," she smiled. "Would you like anything?"
"No thanks," I smiled, deciding against telling her we'd already eaten popcorn. "Do you think we could eat dinner upstairs later?"
"Um, yeah okay," she smiled. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, everything's fine, why?" I asked her.
"Well, you're hiding in your room for one thing," she said and I nodded.
"Um, some people were picking on Cameron today and he's not really...um, he's just upset," I told her. It was true, people had been picking on him, but nothing out of the ordinary.
"Oh, dear," she said worriedly. "That's fine, honey. I hope he's okay."
"I think he'll be fine," I smiled. "He just needs some time." She nodded and I smiled at her before quickly going back up to my room.

Cameron was sitting exactly where I'd left him. "Okay?" I asked, sitting next to him after closing my door. He nodded as he cuddled into my side, practically sitting on my lap. I held him tightly; realising that he wanted was some comfort. I kissed his forehead occasionally as he stayed hidden in my chest.