Believing You and Me

He walked into the school with a smirk on his face, sunglasses over his eyes and his cigarettes slightly showing in his shallow skinny jean pocket. His swagger made some girls swoon and some girls scoff, none of these girls matter except for one. Of course he can’t have her and she wouldn’t be so easy to get. He stopped at his locker and watched the very girl he’s pined after for years walk by in her short skirt. He watched her through his sunglasses before grabbing his books. He headed off to class but stuck by the door waiting for his best friend to meet him. Five minutes after the bell, he sat in the classroom and watched his best friend walk in.

Jack Hansen smirked at him before getting noticed by the old and very strict teacher who glared at him. “Jack Hansen, detention,” Jack took the pink slip and sat down next to his best friend.

“Dude I am so hung over.” He smiled knowing very well why his best friend is hung over because the previous night they had drank forties in his basement. “Could you at least tell Acey for me? She gets so pissed when I get in trouble.” He just nodded despite knowing that Acey will chew his head off and he’d say something without thinking and piss her off.

He is John O’Callaghan and normally he’s a bad ass with one soft spot for Acey Walker.

After English, John walked away from Jack who went to meet up with his football buddies and John met up with Jared, Eric and Kennedy. Jared was the first to notice John walking towards them; a smile came to his freckle filled face before waving.

“Hey man,” Jared Monaco has been John’s friend for years now and is a much better friend than Jack Hansen. Jared tells John not to skip class, or even drink so much that a hangover prevents him from going to school. Jared is just that friend who looks out and gets disappointed when his expectations aren’t met. But he would never drop John, not for something stupid.

“Hey, we, uh, should go in,” John smiled to his three friends who all gave a quizzical look before walking into the choir room. The room consisted of John, Jared, Kennedy and Eric along with their supervisor, Mr. Alan Greene. Alan Greene, Mr. G, sat in the corner behind a drum kit trying to figure out the perfect beat to the never ending song in his head. He had started this music related club during study hall to finish this song in his head. He had asked John O’Callaghan to join because he knew of the kid’s potential after hearing him sing in the locker room after football practice.

“Hey guys!” Mr. Greene smiled to the four boys who gave a small nod to him before grabbing the acoustic guitars and sitting in their usual seats. Mr. Greene had given them a little task, like he does every Monday and this week they need to develop a song. This song is just something that seems a bit poppy and is a song to get you to dance. Every week it’s something different, writing a song or sing it or play it, something to get them to think more outside of the box.

John O’Callaghan is one of those bad asses with the soft core, typical mysterious boy who likes to sing acoustic songs to girls. John’s guitar won over many hearts since he was thirteen, a whole three years of getting girls to swoon over him. He doesn’t even have to say he plays guitar at parties anymore, almost all the girls at his school know him. Younger or older, they usually fall all over John’s charm. It’s just how it goes when it comes to John O’Callaghan.

John looks up from playing a melody Jared was teaching him to see Acey walk by with Roxie Anderson, John watched the skirt of her uniform rise a bit with each step and her hair bounced in her ponytail. Jared noticed John staring and nudged him.

“When are you going to steal her from Jock-strap?” John rolled his eyes, laughing as a small blush colored his neck and cheeks. Kennedy and Eric laughed.

“Shut up. Jack’s a good guy. He loves her, I guess,” John tried not to grimace at the words he spoke. He had no idea if Jack loves Acey. Every time the two would hang out they wouldn’t talk about the cheerleader. Most of the time Jack just used John to get fucked up but it didn’t bother him. He liked getting fucked up.

After Music Club, John said goodbye to Jared, Eric and Kennedy and went to his lunch period. This was the only time he was really alone due to most of his friends having lunch later than him. Most days, even today, John steals himself a bottle of Coke from the cooler and walks outside to the court. He goes straight to the nerd table, a crooked smirk spreading across his lips as he sets his Coke down. He could practically smell the fear on his victims before he tells them to stand up. Each day it was a different thing. Dumpster tossing? No, he did that twice last week. Steal their money or lunch? Too predictable. No, John O’Callaghan is going to shove the five boys who cower before him into the Port-a-Potties at the end of the court. There were only two stalls.

“Who wants to go in a dumpster?” John asked and each boy raised a hand, the trash was emptied today so it wouldn’t smell rotten. John picked the smallest boy, Jimmy Goldstein, and threw him in the dumpster. He grabbed the four other boys and shoved them into the two Port-a-Potties equally before shaking each stall. He could hear their screams and groans as the various liquids and solids sloshed onto them. John chuckled to himself, a job well done before walking away. He grabbed his drink from the nerds’ table and took a quick swig. He then walked back into the school and aimlessly around the halls.

After lunch he couldn’t find Acey until right before the last class of the day, he walks up to her locker and slams it. Acey jumps back, startled, but once she looks at him she glares and turns cold. John smirks at her and she begins to sneer. “What do you want, O’Callaghan?” Her voice makes John flinch inside but he keeps his composure.

“Jack wanted me to tell you that he has detention again.” John noticed how much he towers over her, she’s so cute and petite. He wanted to smile but kept his smirking, bad ass composer even when her face dropped. Then she sighed, completely disappointed with her boyfriend. John’s heart pumped faster.

“Ugh, what did you do this time?” John’s jaw dropped a little and honestly, her words bruised his ego a bit. He hates that she hates him. He wishes that he could have her instead of Jack. Ever since her and Jack started dating, she blames John for everything bad Jack does. But John’s opened mouth went unnoticed and his smirk was back on his lips. Acey started to walk away and he quickly moved in front of her. “What John?” He could tell she is bored of him already.

“I didn’t do anything, so you can honestly stop blaming me for everything Jack does wrong,” John dropped his voice to sound serious to her. He wanted to show her that he isn’t Jack’s bad influence. But Acey rolled her eyes, bruising John’s ego once again. “What?” He asked in a short tone, feeling like it was hopeless to even like her.

“You know what John, I don’t believe you. Now please, move, I can’t be late to Biology.” She pushed past him, making him watch her as she walked down the hall. He sighed and closed his eyes wanting to kick something and scream. Instead he just pulled out his phone and texted Kennedy to meet him by the bleachers.

After getting caught by Miss Cavanaugh and not eating the cigarette she caught him with he walked to his car and left school. John doesn’t even care, even if he is just a junior. Inside John’s gut tells him that he’s going to be in a job relating to music. He drove to a gas station where he buys a new pack of cigarettes with his fake ID and smokes in the parking lot until it’s the appropriate time to go home. He walks through the door, his mother greets him from the kitchen and he could smell the brownies baking. He tells his mother to hold on before he runs upstairs, brushes his teeth and sprays some cologne and changes his shirt. He walks back downstairs, kisses his mother’s cheek and grabs a fresh cookie off the cooling rack.

“Don’t eat those! They’re for Ross’ school.” John rolled his eyes and at the cookie anyway, his brother walks in and narrows his eyes at the half eaten cookie in John’s hand.

“Hey! Those are for the teachers and parents!” John rolls his eyes again before smiling and ruffling his brother’s hair.

“I’ll make it up to you bro,” Ross rolls his eyes and John leaves the kitchen to see Shane playing some sort of video game on the floor. John says hello to him before retreating to his room to play with his guitar. It was like any other night in the O’Callaghan house, they would do their own thing until dinner then at dinner they would all be a family. They would talk and smile and joke and laugh. They were close, like a family should be.