Road to Somewhere
Chapter One
Cameron Frye was a complex individual.
Since his birth in 1967, he had lived in a modernist house that was strangely nestled deep in the woods in the outskirts of Shermer, Illinois. The house, which eventually mirrored the coldness and sterility of his family life, became the bane of his existence. It was much like a museum; very beautiful and cultured, but very cold and you couldn’t touch anything. His parents seemed nearly identical to the house in this way; they were bitter, untouchable and far away.
While Cameron never really wanted for anything, he felt that his life was empty, even at an early age. It was this emptiness in his life that kept him from finding a true friend at any point in his early childhood. It was not until grade school, when he finally met the only person who could get his young self to care about anything.
Ferris Bueller was the exact opposite of Cameron in every way. He was charming, outgoing, witty and social; even as a young child. He would never admit it, but Cameron felt that Ferris was his saving grace, and that without him, living would have ceased to be tolerable. From them on, they were seemingly inseparable. They were the opposite ends of the spectrum, and in that difference, they made life worth living for each other.
However, Cameron still had his problems. Ignored by his parents, he would often feign illness to garner some sort of attention from them. He frequently missed school because of this, and by the time he and Ferris were in Junior High, he was averaging over 15 missed days a year. This, at first, attracted negative attention from his parents, but eventually, they returned to ignoring him and his illness, even when it was legitimate.
Over time, Cameron had become very anxious and aware of his future, and how he lacked any plans for it. As early as his freshman year, he began to over-complicate and over-think what he wanted to do with his life, which lead the subsequent worsening of his hypochondria and anxiety. Ferris tried numerous times to help Cameron unwind and enjoy life.
But Cameron wasn’t going to have any of that. That’s just how Cameron was. He was eventually content to let things pass him by; let himself dissolve into the background and be ignored. He realized that it was in this way that much of his life before high school had occurred, and he did not see any reason to change it now. All of the time spent alone allowed him to somehow internally rationalize and hide all of his fears, something that was slowly turning him into an easily manipulated and bitter person.
It seemed, to him and to the other people that he rarely consorted with, that Ferris was slowly becoming his only tie to the living, and his only outlet for social interaction. It wasn’t until their junior year of high school that anything began to change for him.
“Cameron, babe!” He heard Ferris’ familiar voice call across the student parking lot. Just as he was locking up his car, Cameron saw Ferris’ tiny frame come rocketing towards him from seemingly nowhere.
“Hello, Ferris,” He grumbled.
“Aw, come on now,” Ferris chided. “That’s no way to greet your best friend!”
“Sure it is,” Cameron retorted as they began walking toward the west entrance.
Shermer High School was like any school that catered to upper-middle class communities. It was well-funded, well-staffed, and filled with students that were accustomed to an opulent, North Side lifestyle. Divided into various cliques and tightly-knit groups, people like Cameron found it an extremely alienating place. The only time he managed to have any sort of social interaction within the school’s walls was when Ferris would drag him along.
Like every other morning, Ferris was making his daily rounds on his way to their locker. Stop and say ‘Good Morning’ to the gleeful office staff, shrug off being hounded by the underclassmen, hit on the ‘social club girls’, despite having a wonderful girlfriend; it was an endless bore.
“What’s with you, Cam?” Ferris whined as he opened their shared locker. Cameron ignored him, emptying his book bag, save for his economics book and a notebook. “You’re way too glum today.”
“Hell, you’ve been a total downer since we left the Hawks game last night.” He continued as they walked down the hall toward their first class. “I mean, I know the Wings lost and all, but that’s no reason to pout.”
“Look, Ferris,” Cameron barked, stopping mid-stride. Ferris was taken aback, his jaw slack and his eyes wide. “It’s none of your goddamn business.”
Even Cameron was surprised by his response. There hadn’t even been anything in this life that stoked such passion in him, not even hockey. Any time he had been confronted with any sort of resistance or turmoil, he would simply clam up and deal with it. Thinking on it, Cameron was fairly sure this was the first time he had made an attempt at standing up to Ferris.
“Alright, I get it.” Ferris huffed, trying to shrug it off. “Cool your jets before you blow a blood vessel.
Cameron knew exactly why he was so moody. He would have told Ferris about it, but he knew that it would have garnered nothing more than childish taunts and several weeks of regretting the decision to even go out with Ferris in public. Even the thought of having to bear a single moment of Ferris' brand of ridicule made his chest feel heavy.
But Ferris was right. His mood had drastically changed the previous night.
Since his birth in 1967, he had lived in a modernist house that was strangely nestled deep in the woods in the outskirts of Shermer, Illinois. The house, which eventually mirrored the coldness and sterility of his family life, became the bane of his existence. It was much like a museum; very beautiful and cultured, but very cold and you couldn’t touch anything. His parents seemed nearly identical to the house in this way; they were bitter, untouchable and far away.
While Cameron never really wanted for anything, he felt that his life was empty, even at an early age. It was this emptiness in his life that kept him from finding a true friend at any point in his early childhood. It was not until grade school, when he finally met the only person who could get his young self to care about anything.
Ferris Bueller was the exact opposite of Cameron in every way. He was charming, outgoing, witty and social; even as a young child. He would never admit it, but Cameron felt that Ferris was his saving grace, and that without him, living would have ceased to be tolerable. From them on, they were seemingly inseparable. They were the opposite ends of the spectrum, and in that difference, they made life worth living for each other.
However, Cameron still had his problems. Ignored by his parents, he would often feign illness to garner some sort of attention from them. He frequently missed school because of this, and by the time he and Ferris were in Junior High, he was averaging over 15 missed days a year. This, at first, attracted negative attention from his parents, but eventually, they returned to ignoring him and his illness, even when it was legitimate.
Over time, Cameron had become very anxious and aware of his future, and how he lacked any plans for it. As early as his freshman year, he began to over-complicate and over-think what he wanted to do with his life, which lead the subsequent worsening of his hypochondria and anxiety. Ferris tried numerous times to help Cameron unwind and enjoy life.
But Cameron wasn’t going to have any of that. That’s just how Cameron was. He was eventually content to let things pass him by; let himself dissolve into the background and be ignored. He realized that it was in this way that much of his life before high school had occurred, and he did not see any reason to change it now. All of the time spent alone allowed him to somehow internally rationalize and hide all of his fears, something that was slowly turning him into an easily manipulated and bitter person.
It seemed, to him and to the other people that he rarely consorted with, that Ferris was slowly becoming his only tie to the living, and his only outlet for social interaction. It wasn’t until their junior year of high school that anything began to change for him.
“Cameron, babe!” He heard Ferris’ familiar voice call across the student parking lot. Just as he was locking up his car, Cameron saw Ferris’ tiny frame come rocketing towards him from seemingly nowhere.
“Hello, Ferris,” He grumbled.
“Aw, come on now,” Ferris chided. “That’s no way to greet your best friend!”
“Sure it is,” Cameron retorted as they began walking toward the west entrance.
Shermer High School was like any school that catered to upper-middle class communities. It was well-funded, well-staffed, and filled with students that were accustomed to an opulent, North Side lifestyle. Divided into various cliques and tightly-knit groups, people like Cameron found it an extremely alienating place. The only time he managed to have any sort of social interaction within the school’s walls was when Ferris would drag him along.
Like every other morning, Ferris was making his daily rounds on his way to their locker. Stop and say ‘Good Morning’ to the gleeful office staff, shrug off being hounded by the underclassmen, hit on the ‘social club girls’, despite having a wonderful girlfriend; it was an endless bore.
“What’s with you, Cam?” Ferris whined as he opened their shared locker. Cameron ignored him, emptying his book bag, save for his economics book and a notebook. “You’re way too glum today.”
“Hell, you’ve been a total downer since we left the Hawks game last night.” He continued as they walked down the hall toward their first class. “I mean, I know the Wings lost and all, but that’s no reason to pout.”
“Look, Ferris,” Cameron barked, stopping mid-stride. Ferris was taken aback, his jaw slack and his eyes wide. “It’s none of your goddamn business.”
Even Cameron was surprised by his response. There hadn’t even been anything in this life that stoked such passion in him, not even hockey. Any time he had been confronted with any sort of resistance or turmoil, he would simply clam up and deal with it. Thinking on it, Cameron was fairly sure this was the first time he had made an attempt at standing up to Ferris.
“Alright, I get it.” Ferris huffed, trying to shrug it off. “Cool your jets before you blow a blood vessel.
Cameron knew exactly why he was so moody. He would have told Ferris about it, but he knew that it would have garnered nothing more than childish taunts and several weeks of regretting the decision to even go out with Ferris in public. Even the thought of having to bear a single moment of Ferris' brand of ridicule made his chest feel heavy.
But Ferris was right. His mood had drastically changed the previous night.