The "V" Word
Body Image
"How much were they?" Violet asks looking down at her friend's new shoes.
"Forty-five, not bad huh?"
"Nah . . ." Violet trails off as she spots Gerard walking into a room up ahead, "Lib, go on ahead, I'll meet up with you later."
"Huh?"
"Just remembered I had to talk to a teacher."
"Alright, see ya."
Violet scurries up the hallway and stops when she gets to the school's weight training room.
"Gerard?" she calls. He looks up from in between bench presses and his eyes bulge.
"V-v-violet." he stutters as he puts the bar bell back on its stand then sits up, "What are you doing here?"
"I should be asking you the same thing." she says walking past the usual sweaty guys who spent their lunch hour working out to get to Gerard.
"I uhh." he scratches the back of his neck, "I'm getting fit, I lost a couple pounds so far."
"Uhh congratulations, but what's with the secrecy."
"Sonny and Tom will just make fun of me. So yeah." he says going back to bench press some more.
Violet sits on the bench next to his and watches him.
"You going to keep watching me like that?"
"Are you going to eat?" Violet mumbles, "The caf is serving some really good salads."
"Fuck you." Gerard grunts, "I thought you'd be cool about this."
"I am, but what's it for?"
"I'm sorry but I'm tired of being ugly." he says angrily, "but I guess you wouldn't know what that's like."
"What the hell?!" Violet exclaims.
"Yeah, yeah, high school's really tough for you." Gerard sneers, "With the steady stream of guys checking you out as you walk by."
"What guys?!"
"Maybe if you weren't so naive you'd notice." he cries out, "Hell, just walking into the weight room you turned three heads."
"You know what, talk to me when you stop being such a prick." Violet says storming out of the room.
Violet storms into the nearest washroom and locks herself in the first free stall and breaths deeply, resting her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands.
Gerard bench presses four or five more reps before letting out a loud sigh.
"Fuck." he gets up and heads out of the weight room.
"That chick knocked down all the garbage cans in the washroom." one girl says to her boyfriend as she walks down the hall, "Guess she got dumped or something." she laughs.
"Which girl?" the guy asks more interested in staring down the girl's shirt.
"That chick with the purple hair."
With that Gerard whips around and heads to the girl's washroom. He walks in to find a couple of girls doing their make-up.
"Hey! You can't be in here." one of them says.
"Watch me." he says looking at the shoes under the stalls until he sees Violet's tie dye shoes.
"Vi," he says softly, "I'm sorry. . . please come out, thanks to those girls the principal will be here in a couple of minutes."
"Good. Then you'll leave me alone."
"Violet." he groans, "I'm sorry, I really am."
"Sorry for what exactly?" Silence. "See you don't even know."
"I'm sorry I got pissed off at you for just joking around."
The stall door clicks open.
"Can you skip next class?" she asks looking into his eyes.
"Yeah."
"Okay." she sniffs and leaves the washroom.
Nothing's said between them as the make the eight block walk to her house.
"Anyone home!" she calls as she opens the door. No reply. She sighs, "C'mon."
"What's going on?" he asks kicking off his shoes.
She opens the bottom of the china cabinet and pulls out a photo album.
"I wasn't always hot stuff." she states as she opens the book, "My first year of high school, before I moved here," she stops flipping through the album and passes it to Gerard, "Glasses, boy hair and really bad acne. Not to mention ten pounds chunkier."
"I didn't know." Gerard mumbles, "Sorry."
"Yeah, so if I'm naive because guys are turning heads it because I'm so fucking used to them always looking at the chick next to me, I can't even think about getting my hopes high. I've been hurt one too many times."
Gerard shuts the photo album and looks at Violet.
"You're beautiful, even with the boy hair, the glasses, you're still beautiful."
"Don't say that." she grumbles, snatching the book away, and putting it back in its place.
"No, you're a beautiful person, you have to stop putting yourself down."
"I will if you will."
"Forty-five, not bad huh?"
"Nah . . ." Violet trails off as she spots Gerard walking into a room up ahead, "Lib, go on ahead, I'll meet up with you later."
"Huh?"
"Just remembered I had to talk to a teacher."
"Alright, see ya."
Violet scurries up the hallway and stops when she gets to the school's weight training room.
"Gerard?" she calls. He looks up from in between bench presses and his eyes bulge.
"V-v-violet." he stutters as he puts the bar bell back on its stand then sits up, "What are you doing here?"
"I should be asking you the same thing." she says walking past the usual sweaty guys who spent their lunch hour working out to get to Gerard.
"I uhh." he scratches the back of his neck, "I'm getting fit, I lost a couple pounds so far."
"Uhh congratulations, but what's with the secrecy."
"Sonny and Tom will just make fun of me. So yeah." he says going back to bench press some more.
Violet sits on the bench next to his and watches him.
"You going to keep watching me like that?"
"Are you going to eat?" Violet mumbles, "The caf is serving some really good salads."
"Fuck you." Gerard grunts, "I thought you'd be cool about this."
"I am, but what's it for?"
"I'm sorry but I'm tired of being ugly." he says angrily, "but I guess you wouldn't know what that's like."
"What the hell?!" Violet exclaims.
"Yeah, yeah, high school's really tough for you." Gerard sneers, "With the steady stream of guys checking you out as you walk by."
"What guys?!"
"Maybe if you weren't so naive you'd notice." he cries out, "Hell, just walking into the weight room you turned three heads."
"You know what, talk to me when you stop being such a prick." Violet says storming out of the room.
Violet storms into the nearest washroom and locks herself in the first free stall and breaths deeply, resting her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands.
Gerard bench presses four or five more reps before letting out a loud sigh.
"Fuck." he gets up and heads out of the weight room.
"That chick knocked down all the garbage cans in the washroom." one girl says to her boyfriend as she walks down the hall, "Guess she got dumped or something." she laughs.
"Which girl?" the guy asks more interested in staring down the girl's shirt.
"That chick with the purple hair."
With that Gerard whips around and heads to the girl's washroom. He walks in to find a couple of girls doing their make-up.
"Hey! You can't be in here." one of them says.
"Watch me." he says looking at the shoes under the stalls until he sees Violet's tie dye shoes.
"Vi," he says softly, "I'm sorry. . . please come out, thanks to those girls the principal will be here in a couple of minutes."
"Good. Then you'll leave me alone."
"Violet." he groans, "I'm sorry, I really am."
"Sorry for what exactly?" Silence. "See you don't even know."
"I'm sorry I got pissed off at you for just joking around."
The stall door clicks open.
"Can you skip next class?" she asks looking into his eyes.
"Yeah."
"Okay." she sniffs and leaves the washroom.
Nothing's said between them as the make the eight block walk to her house.
"Anyone home!" she calls as she opens the door. No reply. She sighs, "C'mon."
"What's going on?" he asks kicking off his shoes.
She opens the bottom of the china cabinet and pulls out a photo album.
"I wasn't always hot stuff." she states as she opens the book, "My first year of high school, before I moved here," she stops flipping through the album and passes it to Gerard, "Glasses, boy hair and really bad acne. Not to mention ten pounds chunkier."
"I didn't know." Gerard mumbles, "Sorry."
"Yeah, so if I'm naive because guys are turning heads it because I'm so fucking used to them always looking at the chick next to me, I can't even think about getting my hopes high. I've been hurt one too many times."
Gerard shuts the photo album and looks at Violet.
"You're beautiful, even with the boy hair, the glasses, you're still beautiful."
"Don't say that." she grumbles, snatching the book away, and putting it back in its place.
"No, you're a beautiful person, you have to stop putting yourself down."
"I will if you will."