Status: On Hiatus
Social Suicide
three
“Ms. Cooper,” Principal Smith said. “It’s only the first week and I’m already seeing you in my office?”
I sighed and slouched in my chair. This speech. Again.
He watched me for a minute. “Mr. Hoffman says you haven’t done any of your homework this week. Why is that?”
“I didn’t feel like it.”
He huffed angrily. “Waverly, your lack of discipline these past two years has been shocking…”
“I don’t have a lack of discipline,” I interrupted, not caring if it sounded rude. “What I have is a lack of respect for a faculty that makes assumptions about me.”
“Waverly that’s utterly absurd…”
“Let’s not be naïve here,” I said. “My grades are fine, despite the lack of homework, I’m not a disruption in class, I never skip, I don’t do drugs behind the gym. The only reason I act up is if someone is rude to me, because you better believe I’ll fight back.”
“So you’re saying Mr. Hoffman is disrespectful towards you?”
“I’m saying your staff has a set opinion of me and I seriously doubt turning in homework is going to change that.”
He pursed his lips. “Perhaps if you got more involved in school activities…join the soccer team again.”
“I got kicked off, remember?”
He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I told you if agree to submit to a drug test then we’d let you…”
“Does the rest of the team have to get one yet?”
“Well…no, but…”
“I’m not going to be an exception.”
He shook his head tiredly. “I think we are done here, Ms. Cooper.”
“I guess so,” I agreed, standing up and swinging my bag over my shoulder. I walked to the door and then paused, looking back at him. “I’m not trying to cause problems, Mr. Smith. It’s my senior year, I’m just trying to make it through.”
He didn’t seem to know how to respond, so I slipped out of the room before he made up something insincere and fake to say.
It was Friday, and I was more than grateful. It hadn’t been an easy week to say the least, but it was almost over and then I would have the weekend to recuperate. My last class of the day was computer lab, which was a totally bullshit class that was saved only because Jen had switched into it three days ago.
Jen was still sticking around, which surprised me because she was already making other friends within the Junior class. She had one of those addictive personalities that made you want to be around her, and people definitely noticed her. I also liked her because I found her easy to read. Some people were more difficult than others for me, but with Jen I didn't have to debate the inflection behind her words, her face was as expressive as she was.
“Heard you got sent to the principal’s office,” she said as I slid into my seat next to her.
I smiled slightly. “You need to stop listening to gossip.”
She snorted. “Well, did you?”
“Yeah, not a big deal though. Mr. Smith and I are like this,” I crossed my fingers.
“Won’t your Dad be pissed though?”
“No, he trusts me.” I said, shrugging. “And I delete the messages from Smith’s secretary before he hears them.”
“So you won’t be grounded? We can still hang out this weekend?”
I was actually touched by how concerned she was. I smiled. “Yeah, absolutely.”
“Awesome!” She exclaimed, even clapping her hands together. She turned to her computer and started typing furiously. “What movie should we go…”
“Sup Waverly?”
I turned around. “Barakat, what did I tell you yesterday?”
Of the popular kids, Jack was pretty likable. But trust me, my standards were low. During the whole mess, while Jack never directly said anything to me about Rams and I, he certainly didn’t say anything in my defense. Although, I was pretty sure he was the one who started the rumor that I was knocked up. He was funny like that.
Jack Barakat was Alex Gaskarth’s friend, and apparently band mate.
Earlier in the week, at lunch, he had interrupted Jen and I to come bother me.
“What do you want?” I had said, not bothering to look at him.
“Well hello to you too, Waverly.” He had said, trying to sound suave.
“What do you want, Barakat? If it has to do with what Gaskarth asked me about on Monday, you can ask him what my answer is.”
“Wavy, Wavy, Wavy, can’t I just sit and have a chat-“
“No. That’s not how your brain functions. What do you want?” Jen had snorted with laughter. And I sent her a small smirk.
Jack sighed. “You’re a tough one, Wavy.”
“Barakat…” I said sharply, reaching the end of my rope.
“Fine, yes, it about our band…can’t you just try and get us an audition? Just ask your dad?” He said, even, clutching his hands together so it looked like he was pleading with me.
I shook my head. “Wow, can Gaskarth really not get it through his thick skull that I’m not going to help him? Ever? The answer is, and always will be, no.”
Jack blinked at me and I simply turned back to Jen. “You should definitely switch into computer lab, we just sit around and play solitaire all period …Barakat is there a reason you’re still standing there?”
“You’re just really…” he trailed off.
“What? Bitchy? Difficult? Obnoxious? I’ve really heard it all before so unless you’ve got something original, I’m trying to enjoy my lunch.”
He scoffed and then left.
I figured it was only a matter of time before Alex sent another band mate to come bother me. Probably Rian Dawson.
“Jesus Christ,” Jack said, snapping me back to the present. “I was just saying hi, no need to bite my head off.”
“No,” I shot back. “What you’re doing is trying to be decent so that the next time someone in your band comes to ask me to get you all an audition I’ll agree to it.”
Jack looked at me, bewildered. “Do you honestly think everyone has an ulterior motive?”
“No, I just know you all are too stupid to think I wouldn’t realize your plan.”
“Okay, fine.” He said, and got up to switch his seat.
“Wavy,” Jen hissed, hitting my arm.
“What?”
“He was trying to flirt with you,” Jen said, exasperated.
I laughed. “No, no he wasn’t Jen. That is typical Barakat, he acts all nice, but trust me, he hasn’t talked to me in years and the only reason he’d start now is because he wants something.”
Jen frowned. “He seems nice though.”
“They all do,” I muttered.
I headed out to the student lot, taking off my hoodie as I headed to my car. It was hot out, and the school always overcompensated by blasting the air conditioner. It was quite a temperature shock whenever you left.
As I got to my car, struggling to unlock it with the key, I heard someone yelling my name. I swept some hair from my face and looked up. Alex Gaskarth. Couldn’t he just leave me alone? I groaned in frustration, finally managing to get my car door open, and throwing my bag in the passenger seat. Just as I was about to slip inside, Gaskarth caught up to me. “Cooper, hey,” he panted, out of breath from running across the lot.
“What, Gaskarth?” I snapped.
He took a deep breath. “I just, uh, look, I know you don’t like me, and I understand, okay? I do. I just…I don’t think it’s fair of you to not get us an audition just because of that, so,” He rummaged through his backpack, and pulled out a CD. “This is just a few songs, and it’s not the best quality cause we made it in my garage and…yeah, you don’t care. Just, please listen to it, okay? At least base this decision on our music and not how annoying you think we are.”
I couldn’t help it. I was impressed, and in a way, he was right. I chewed the inside of my cheek for a moment, balancing the pros and cons. “Fine,” I said, finally. I reached out and took it from him. “I’ll listen, but if I say no, that better be the end of it.”
He held up his hands in mock surrender. “Just give it a chance.”
I nodded, putting the CD on top of my bag.
Gaskarth watched me from the sidewalk as I pulled out of my spot and out into the street.
“It’s good,” Jen said, sitting on my bed, her eyes wide. “Like, really good.”
“I know,” I said, turning around in my desk chair and cutting off the music blasting through my speakers.
“So…”
“So, what?”
“Are you going to get them a show?” Jen said.
I hesitated. “I don’t know. I haven’t decided.”
“Why? You told Alex you’d base it on whether or not you liked the music, which you do…”
“It’s not that simple,” I said quickly.
“Why not?” She demanded.
“Because…you don’t know what they…look, Gaskarth called me a whore, and a slut, for a solid year every time he passed me in the hallway, Barakat started a rumor that I was pregnant with the guy I cheated on Rams with, which ended up with me being called to the Guidence office to talk about my future, Dawson, whom I’m pretty sure is their drummer, and some of his friends set behind me in English last year and threw spitballs at me for a whole month, every class. So it’s a little difficult for me to comprehend why I’d do them any favors.”
Jen sat there, her mouth slightly open. “I…I didn’t kno…well, then, fuck them.” She said finally. “You’re right, you don’t owe them anything.”
I smiled at her loyalty. “At the same time,” I sighed. “They are good, and even if I hate them, I do respect good music…”
“You don’t have to decide now, I mean, you have the whole weekend, you have as much time as you want,” Jen said. “Come on, let’s go to the movie, enough about them.”
I laughed. “Yeah, okay.”
But I still had a stomach ache because of it.
I sighed and slouched in my chair. This speech. Again.
He watched me for a minute. “Mr. Hoffman says you haven’t done any of your homework this week. Why is that?”
“I didn’t feel like it.”
He huffed angrily. “Waverly, your lack of discipline these past two years has been shocking…”
“I don’t have a lack of discipline,” I interrupted, not caring if it sounded rude. “What I have is a lack of respect for a faculty that makes assumptions about me.”
“Waverly that’s utterly absurd…”
“Let’s not be naïve here,” I said. “My grades are fine, despite the lack of homework, I’m not a disruption in class, I never skip, I don’t do drugs behind the gym. The only reason I act up is if someone is rude to me, because you better believe I’ll fight back.”
“So you’re saying Mr. Hoffman is disrespectful towards you?”
“I’m saying your staff has a set opinion of me and I seriously doubt turning in homework is going to change that.”
He pursed his lips. “Perhaps if you got more involved in school activities…join the soccer team again.”
“I got kicked off, remember?”
He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I told you if agree to submit to a drug test then we’d let you…”
“Does the rest of the team have to get one yet?”
“Well…no, but…”
“I’m not going to be an exception.”
He shook his head tiredly. “I think we are done here, Ms. Cooper.”
“I guess so,” I agreed, standing up and swinging my bag over my shoulder. I walked to the door and then paused, looking back at him. “I’m not trying to cause problems, Mr. Smith. It’s my senior year, I’m just trying to make it through.”
He didn’t seem to know how to respond, so I slipped out of the room before he made up something insincere and fake to say.
It was Friday, and I was more than grateful. It hadn’t been an easy week to say the least, but it was almost over and then I would have the weekend to recuperate. My last class of the day was computer lab, which was a totally bullshit class that was saved only because Jen had switched into it three days ago.
Jen was still sticking around, which surprised me because she was already making other friends within the Junior class. She had one of those addictive personalities that made you want to be around her, and people definitely noticed her. I also liked her because I found her easy to read. Some people were more difficult than others for me, but with Jen I didn't have to debate the inflection behind her words, her face was as expressive as she was.
“Heard you got sent to the principal’s office,” she said as I slid into my seat next to her.
I smiled slightly. “You need to stop listening to gossip.”
She snorted. “Well, did you?”
“Yeah, not a big deal though. Mr. Smith and I are like this,” I crossed my fingers.
“Won’t your Dad be pissed though?”
“No, he trusts me.” I said, shrugging. “And I delete the messages from Smith’s secretary before he hears them.”
“So you won’t be grounded? We can still hang out this weekend?”
I was actually touched by how concerned she was. I smiled. “Yeah, absolutely.”
“Awesome!” She exclaimed, even clapping her hands together. She turned to her computer and started typing furiously. “What movie should we go…”
“Sup Waverly?”
I turned around. “Barakat, what did I tell you yesterday?”
Of the popular kids, Jack was pretty likable. But trust me, my standards were low. During the whole mess, while Jack never directly said anything to me about Rams and I, he certainly didn’t say anything in my defense. Although, I was pretty sure he was the one who started the rumor that I was knocked up. He was funny like that.
Jack Barakat was Alex Gaskarth’s friend, and apparently band mate.
Earlier in the week, at lunch, he had interrupted Jen and I to come bother me.
“What do you want?” I had said, not bothering to look at him.
“Well hello to you too, Waverly.” He had said, trying to sound suave.
“What do you want, Barakat? If it has to do with what Gaskarth asked me about on Monday, you can ask him what my answer is.”
“Wavy, Wavy, Wavy, can’t I just sit and have a chat-“
“No. That’s not how your brain functions. What do you want?” Jen had snorted with laughter. And I sent her a small smirk.
Jack sighed. “You’re a tough one, Wavy.”
“Barakat…” I said sharply, reaching the end of my rope.
“Fine, yes, it about our band…can’t you just try and get us an audition? Just ask your dad?” He said, even, clutching his hands together so it looked like he was pleading with me.
I shook my head. “Wow, can Gaskarth really not get it through his thick skull that I’m not going to help him? Ever? The answer is, and always will be, no.”
Jack blinked at me and I simply turned back to Jen. “You should definitely switch into computer lab, we just sit around and play solitaire all period …Barakat is there a reason you’re still standing there?”
“You’re just really…” he trailed off.
“What? Bitchy? Difficult? Obnoxious? I’ve really heard it all before so unless you’ve got something original, I’m trying to enjoy my lunch.”
He scoffed and then left.
I figured it was only a matter of time before Alex sent another band mate to come bother me. Probably Rian Dawson.
“Jesus Christ,” Jack said, snapping me back to the present. “I was just saying hi, no need to bite my head off.”
“No,” I shot back. “What you’re doing is trying to be decent so that the next time someone in your band comes to ask me to get you all an audition I’ll agree to it.”
Jack looked at me, bewildered. “Do you honestly think everyone has an ulterior motive?”
“No, I just know you all are too stupid to think I wouldn’t realize your plan.”
“Okay, fine.” He said, and got up to switch his seat.
“Wavy,” Jen hissed, hitting my arm.
“What?”
“He was trying to flirt with you,” Jen said, exasperated.
I laughed. “No, no he wasn’t Jen. That is typical Barakat, he acts all nice, but trust me, he hasn’t talked to me in years and the only reason he’d start now is because he wants something.”
Jen frowned. “He seems nice though.”
“They all do,” I muttered.
I headed out to the student lot, taking off my hoodie as I headed to my car. It was hot out, and the school always overcompensated by blasting the air conditioner. It was quite a temperature shock whenever you left.
As I got to my car, struggling to unlock it with the key, I heard someone yelling my name. I swept some hair from my face and looked up. Alex Gaskarth. Couldn’t he just leave me alone? I groaned in frustration, finally managing to get my car door open, and throwing my bag in the passenger seat. Just as I was about to slip inside, Gaskarth caught up to me. “Cooper, hey,” he panted, out of breath from running across the lot.
“What, Gaskarth?” I snapped.
He took a deep breath. “I just, uh, look, I know you don’t like me, and I understand, okay? I do. I just…I don’t think it’s fair of you to not get us an audition just because of that, so,” He rummaged through his backpack, and pulled out a CD. “This is just a few songs, and it’s not the best quality cause we made it in my garage and…yeah, you don’t care. Just, please listen to it, okay? At least base this decision on our music and not how annoying you think we are.”
I couldn’t help it. I was impressed, and in a way, he was right. I chewed the inside of my cheek for a moment, balancing the pros and cons. “Fine,” I said, finally. I reached out and took it from him. “I’ll listen, but if I say no, that better be the end of it.”
He held up his hands in mock surrender. “Just give it a chance.”
I nodded, putting the CD on top of my bag.
Gaskarth watched me from the sidewalk as I pulled out of my spot and out into the street.
“It’s good,” Jen said, sitting on my bed, her eyes wide. “Like, really good.”
“I know,” I said, turning around in my desk chair and cutting off the music blasting through my speakers.
“So…”
“So, what?”
“Are you going to get them a show?” Jen said.
I hesitated. “I don’t know. I haven’t decided.”
“Why? You told Alex you’d base it on whether or not you liked the music, which you do…”
“It’s not that simple,” I said quickly.
“Why not?” She demanded.
“Because…you don’t know what they…look, Gaskarth called me a whore, and a slut, for a solid year every time he passed me in the hallway, Barakat started a rumor that I was pregnant with the guy I cheated on Rams with, which ended up with me being called to the Guidence office to talk about my future, Dawson, whom I’m pretty sure is their drummer, and some of his friends set behind me in English last year and threw spitballs at me for a whole month, every class. So it’s a little difficult for me to comprehend why I’d do them any favors.”
Jen sat there, her mouth slightly open. “I…I didn’t kno…well, then, fuck them.” She said finally. “You’re right, you don’t owe them anything.”
I smiled at her loyalty. “At the same time,” I sighed. “They are good, and even if I hate them, I do respect good music…”
“You don’t have to decide now, I mean, you have the whole weekend, you have as much time as you want,” Jen said. “Come on, let’s go to the movie, enough about them.”
I laughed. “Yeah, okay.”
But I still had a stomach ache because of it.
