Out Of Place

Boy, did I get the third degree on Monday. Kara was the first person I saw when I walked into the school. She grabbed my arm the moment she saw me and pulled me into the girls’ bathrooms.
“So, it’s not true is it?” she asked once she checked we were alone.
“What’s not true?” I was genuinely confused. I hadn’t seen or talked to anyone from school since I left the party Saturday morning.
“The rumours!” she exclaimed.
“Kara, what rumours?!”
“Well, the one that you and Eric Patchworth hooked up on Friday night! And the one where he punched Alex!” she burst. She was talking so fast I could barely understand her.
“Kara, slow down! Hooked up is not how I would put it.” I went on to explain what had actually happened on Friday/Saturday, from when I started dancing with Eric, right down to the kiss on the cheek I’d received before Alex had left. Kara listened intently. When I was done she looked slightly puzzled.
“But I thought you and Alex didn’t like each other?” she asked.
“That’s what I thought too.”
“That was so sweet of Alex though,” Kara cooed.
“Yeah, i guess.”
“No, Megs, it was! Alex would get himself into a fight unless he cared,” she said in a very matter of fact tone. The bell went.
“I’m gonna be late for English,” I mumbled as I left the bathroom.

I found my English classroom, but I was late.
“Thank you for joining us, Ms Attard,” the teacher scolded as I entered the room.
“No worries,” I shot back sarcastically. I scanned the room for Alex. There he was, sitting in the seat I had occupied on Friday, the one next to him vacant. I looked around for another spare desk, but unless I wanted to sit in the front row, it was going to have to be next to Alex. I sighed and slid into the seat. I glanced over at him, but he was facing the front. The bruise on his face was a purple colour, but it had started to fade. Alex didn’t say a word to anyone the entire class. When the bell went, he was the first one out.

Art and Maths dragged by. Kara kept with the 101 questions about Friday night’s party. A bunch of other people listened intently, which was annoying. By lunchtime, the entire school knew that Alex had hit the school’s top line back, breaking his nose, because of me. When I sat down next to Jack at lunch, he exploded.
“I can not believe that prick! Alex probably deserved to get hit, I mean, he’s a douche. But what the hell was he thinking?! Stupid jocks don’t know how to treat girls. Or anyone else, really. They think they can snap their fingers and get what they want…” he trailed off as one of those said jocks approached the table.
“Megan, cut the crap and come and sit with me.” It was Daniel. “Do you honestly want people knowing you associate with Jack-off?”
“What, you think people knowing I associate with you is any better?” I asked in a bitchy tone. “I think I’ll be fine here. Now vanish.” I turned away from Dan and he stormed off. Jack looked amused.
“Is he always like that?” Jack asked.
“Pretty much. He’s almost as controlling as my mother,” I replied. “Why does he not want me sitting with you anyway? He really doesn’t seem to like you.”
Jack thought for a minute. “I ‘stole’ his girlfriend in the 8th grade.” He laughed. “I can’t help it if I'm better looking.”
“Awfully cocky there, aren’t we Jack?”
“Megs, have you met my friends or what?” He smirked. “I'm defiantly not the cockiest one that sits at this table.” I knew he was referring to Alex, who was yet to make an appearance. Alex was one of those people that almost everyone liked, he was, I hate to admit, good looking and he knew it. He got all the right girls and he was a player. I was the new kid and I could already tell.
The rest of the group joined the table and they chatted through lunch. I spaced out, not really listening. The bell brought me back to reality.

Music with Jack and Alex was awkward as hell. The teacher started to explain our first project for the year. We had to work in groups and do a research task on a genre of music we were allocated. As soon as the teacher told us to start, it became apparent I had no one to work with, so I asked if I could do it on my own.
“It’s too much work for just one person,” she said.
“Look, I don’t mind. And I don’t want to impose on any of the groups.”
“Barakat. Gaskarth. Come here,” she called at Jack and Alex. Shit, I thought, I don’t want to work with Alex. “Either of you boys have an objection to this fine young lady working in your group?” They both shook their heads. “Settled then, Ms Attard.” Fuck. I followed them back to where they had set up on the side of the stage.
“Megs, I don’t know why you didn’t just ask to begin with,” Jack said. I glanced over at Alex who looked like he would rather be eating his arm than talking with me.
“I just thought you two wouldn’t want the extra person.”
“You kidding? Means less work for me!” Jack had a childish grin plastered across his face. The teacher came over and pulled a slip of paper out of a bowl with our genre. The slip had Rock scrawled across it. Alex and Jack hi-fived. I have to admit, I was pretty happy with the genre. Rock was my favourite type of music. I asked why they were so excited.
Alex smirked as Jack answered. “One day, Rock music is gonna make us famous.”
His answer confused me, but the teacher had started talking again, so I let it go.

I walked into History late, but thankfully Rian had saved me a seat. I slid into the desk and opened my books and started doodling on one of the pages. It was easy to tune out the teachers monotone. He wrote up some work on the board and instructed us to start. Rian turned to me.
“You hanging with us this weekend?” he asked.
“Dude, it’s Monday,” I replied
“And?” he asked like I was crazy.
“I dunno, depends on who us is and what you’re doing,” I said, laughing a bit.
“Alex, Jack, Zack and me, probably Kara and maybe her friend Abby. We’re gonna hang at Jack’s,” he replied with his ever present grin.
I thought for a minute. I hadn’t really planned on having any friends in Baltimore, but I was glad that I’d been accepted into Rian’s group. Even though they seemed a little crazy, they were all pretty nice, but I didn’t plan on getting attached. Dan and his friends burst out laughing in their corner of the room for some reason, disturbing my thoughts. “Yeah, it sounds like fun,” I answered Rian as Dan walked over to my desk.

“What are you smiling at Dawson?” he shot in Rian’s direction. He then turned to face me. “Megs, are you done proving your point yet? Are you done being a little bitch? Or are you still hanging out with Dawson and his loser friends.” Dan sniggered. I was sick of him. Not that he had done anything majorly wrong, but the way he was talking about me and, well I guess, my friends was pissing me off.
“Dan, fuck off,” I exploded. “There is absolutely no need for you to be such a little control freak. I don’t freaking belong to you! And those freaks you just referred to? Yeah, they’re my friends. People who actually seem give a fuck. Alex Gaskarth, someone who I’ve known for a total of 2 days, punched one of your stupid friends on Friday who didn’t understand the meaning of no. You wouldn’t have done that and you’re family.” The entire class was listening by this point. I didn’t care. “You think that because you’re on the fucking soccer team that everyone should bow before you. Well you know what? I’ve never followed the crowd. So you can kiss my fucking ass Robinson, because I can make my own choices. If you don’t like them, well you can suck it.” I stood up from my seat, grabbed my bag and stormed out of the classroom. Fuck this, I'm going home.