Just a Freak

A Stack of Phonebooks

"Faggot."

I pushed past some nerds and spotted Jason, Ethan, and Matt grouped together, laughing at a figure crouched down on the ground, scouping up his books.

Assholes.

Fucking assholes.

"Oh, sorry, Caleb. What a shame."

They dwindled off, doing that thing were they punch each other and grin. Guys do that a lot.

I came over to Caleb and helped him pick up his stuff.

"They're just insecure dickheads who are so lowly that they pick on people greater than them to feel better," I assured Caleb.

He just looked up at me.

The pain and frustration in his eyes made shivers run down my back. I kept getting flashes of his eyes all day.

Caleb's not like me. Not in the way he handles this kind of thing.

I don't know what it is about me, but I can just brush it off. I laugh at them. It's like a game to me. But Caleb sees it differently. He sees it more logically. Instead of seeing it as a game he sees it as his life, which it is.

I don't know who the stronger person it.

Me or Caleb.

It was comforting to see Mr. Geiger in class. I haven't seen him since Thursday, and it's Monday now. That kills.

He waved at me pleasantly.

Hello, Mr Geiger. I adore your sexiness.

"Riley."

Jason. I hate him.

I turned around and looked back at him. He was sitting two seats away in the next row.

"Is Caleb your boyfriend?"

This is Mom all over again.

"Are you my mother?" I asked him.

"What the fuck? No. Is Caleb your boyfriend?"

"No, Mom, he's not."

"So you guys are friends because you're both gay, right?"

"I'm not gay."

"Riley, Jason, are you paying attention?"

Mr. Geiger was at the board, Expo Marker in hand.

"Mr. Geiger, Riley's making fun of me. She won't leave me alone."

"What? I am not--!"

"Riley, I've told you before," Mr Geiger scolded. "Please don't disturb my class."

The class loved that. It burst into laughter.

I glared at them all.

Fuck them.

Mr. Geiger? I'll be having a good chat with him later.

"Jason was picking on me. I wasn't disturbing class. I swear, on a stack of phonebooks."

"Do you want to tell the Vice Principal?"

"Why would I do that?"

"The school has zero tolerance when it comes to bullying, Riley. If he's bothering you, you should tell someone."

"I can handle it myself."

"Apparently not, seeing as it's interfering with your education."

He cares. I love Mr. Geiger.

I was fine. I didn't need to tell anyone about Jason. I'd live.

But I was debating on whether telling Mr. Geiger about how Jason was being an ass toward Caleb. I mean, Caleb's a fragile kid. But I don't know how Caleb would feel about it.

Maybe I should tell Connie.

I went to visit Betty during World Civ.

I forgot my homework, and I really didn't want to deal with Mrs. Green giving me her whole You're in highschool, you're not a child any more, you have to be more responsible schpeal.

Speak of the Caleb.

"Hey, K."

He and I were alone in the cot room.

"Hi, Riley," He mumbled. He had his backpack on his lap.

"What's up with you?"

"My, um, Mom is picking me up early."

"Why?"

He hesitated. "I don't feel good."

"Hey. Uh, I'm sorry about Jason and those guys."

He cringed. He didn't want to talk about it.

He should.

"Do they, uh, do that a lot?"

He shrugged.

"Because I heard from a little Calculus-teaching birdie that the school has zero tolerance for bullying."

"No," He said quickly. "That never helps. If you rat them out, they'll just want to-- to beat you up even more. For getting them in trouble."

Caleb had less faith in the school then I did. That's something.

His mom came a few minutes later.

She has the same honey blonde hair that Caleb has, only longer and styled. Her face was a lot sharper than Caleb's, and her eyes were brown instead of Caleb's green.

She looked like a Soccor Mom.

She annoyed me already.

"Hello, sweetheart," She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, jingling her keys.

"Hi, Mom," he mumbled.

"You must have some bug or something, huh, kiddo? This is the third time this month I've had to pick you up from school."

His cheeks went pink and he stood up, clutching his bag.

"Well, come, kiddo, we've got to hurry up. We need to go pick up Dad's birthday cake before he comes home from work."

Wow. They seemed like a nice family. Like sickeningly nice. I wonder if the fact that Caleb's a mental case makes things awkward. Like, he's their skeleton in the closet.

Do they know he sees Mrs. Fritz every week?

My Mom doesn't.

"'Bye, K," I waved.

Mrs. Amherst spun on her sneakered heel.

"'Bye, Riley," He waved back.

Caleb's Mom gave him this excited Aren't You Lucky You've Got A Little Girlfriend look as they left.

Caleb looked just miserable.

Well, now he knows how I feel with my Mom.
♠ ♠ ♠
Comments!