Sticks and Stones:Chapters 4-6

Chapter 4:
(Kevin)



        'You're going to hell.'

        'God hates you.'

        'Queer.'

        are just a few of the things I get told on a normal basis. I also spend my life enduring other terrible comments and words that I won't repeat. I live with these, and I get used to them eventually. But the one comment that stabs like a knife would have to be-

       "That's so gay," remarked Jake Harris to his fellow baseball team mates. They all laughed and continued their conversation while I sat frowning. For some reason, I had expected art class to be some kind of safe heaven. I was wrong.

"That's just gay," I heard from their table again. I was about to sigh when-

"Shut the hell up," interjected the girl sitting beside me. Somehow, I had hardly even noticed she was there. She was extremely quiet, looking through pictures on a camera but now glaring at the guys at the other table.

"OOOOOHH!" Jake's friends all yelled obnoxiously.

"What's your problem?" Jake jeered with a grin.

"That was rude," Camera Girl informed him.

"What was?" He scoffed.

"Using the word 'gay' in that way."

"Why? You a lesbian?"

"Nah. I'm just not a douche bag like you." She smirked, turned back around, and continued scanning through her camera.

I was astounded. She had just done what I'd always wished I had the courage to do. And she was acting like it was no big deal!

"Hey, er, that was really cool of you," I commented shyly. Since last year, talking to people hadn't exactly been my strong point.

"Oh, thanks," she answered and looked up from her camera. "He was in my math class last year," She said this in a way that clearly indicated it wasn't a good thing.

"That couldn't have been fun. But yeah, that was really great," I told her awkwardly.

She shrugged. "It was nothing. I hate it when people use 'gay' as an insult. It doesn't even make sense. It's good to know at least one other person on the planet realizes that."

"Yeah." I nodded nervously. Last night I had spent so much time thinking about one thing and one thing only:

This year, should I try to keep my sexuality a secret?



Chapter 5:
(Veronica)

The kid I was talking to was doing a terrible job keeping his sexuality a secret. This conversation we were having was causing him to take awkward pauses, it showed in his voice, and he was wearing a rainbow wristband. And he was absolutely awesome.

It seemed every guy in town - wait, scratch that - in the world was a mindless ass. But this guy wasn't. I could tell he had a kind heart. And a brain.

"Can I see some of your pictures?" he asked.

"Sure," I turned the camera back on and handed it to him.

"These are really cool," he told me and smiled. "Why'd you take a picture of this?" he pointed to a picture of a crimson leaf.

"Because it's different," I answered simply.

He nodded, but it was obvious that he had no idea what I meant.

"Well, if you look in the background there's a tree." Hopefully now he would get it.

No comprehension.

"The tree in the background is covered in green leaves. That would mean they all still look alike and haven't changed yet. But the red leaf has, and it's the exact opposite color as all the others behind it. It's left them behind and is drifting with the wind, but has no where to go."

"Oh, I see,' he answered in a thoughtful voice. "That's pretty awesome, I couldn't have thought of something like that."

"Thanks. The red leaf was actually from a different tree, though," I admitted.

He shrugged. "Doesn't matter, I don't think. It's still a cool a picture." He continued browse through them, slowly scanning each one for hidden details and meaning, and clearly finding none. "Oh!" He piped up as if he'd forgotten something. "I'm Kevin, by the way."

"Veronica."

"Cool," he answered with a smile.

I smiled too. Maybe, just maybe, for once in my life I would have someone I could actually connect to.






Chapter 6:
(Kevin)


Although it didn't turn out to be a safe heaven as I thought it would, art class did become the highlight of my day. Veronica seemed really nice, and having someone be nice to me was all I wanted. We could find anything to talk about, really. Or we could simply work in silence, and it would still be pleasent.

I considered her my friend, but I feared she didn't consider me her's. What if I was only a guy she sat by in class and nothing more?

This was my problem now: I was the most insecure boy to ever roam the Earth and I had no idea where to sit at lunch. I awkardly circled the cafeteria searching for an empty table, but I was out of luck. Apparently, when one eats with a group of friends, it is of the upmost importance that they sit one chair away from the other groups and take up as much space as possible. Across the room, I spotted Veronica eating with a group of friends. I wanted to talk to her (and to finally sit down somewhere) but I felt like I would be a bother. But somehow, I eventually ended up over there.

"Hey, Kevin," she greeted me brightly.

"Oh, hey," I tried to look as if I were off to go sit with the friends that didn't actually exist when-

"Wanna sit with us?" she asked politely.

"Well, er-" Who was I kidding? Playing cool guy clearly wasn't getting me anywhere. "Sure," I sat down by Veronica, across from her two friends.

She brightly introduced me to her the two girls. I waved awkwardly. Oh, please don't embarrass yourself, I thought.

"I'm Asheley!" the girl directly informed me enthusiastically. She had a heavy southern drawl, dark blonde hair tied back in a pink ribbon. She was slightly chubby but pretty nonetheless and wore a highlighter yellow t-shirt that hurt my eyes a little bit,

"Sarah," chirped the small oriental girl sitting beside Asheley. She wore blue glasses, a blue shirt, a blue sweater, and a blue…everything.

"I'm guessing you like blue," I asked in a friendly tone. I hoped more than anything right now that my nervousness didn't show. At this new school, I wanted to be well liked.
Not popular, but not a social reject like I had been. But how could I possibly do that if I couldn't even hold a conversation without stuttering and worrying?

"Yeah." She continued squeezing her instrument ( Tuba? Trombone? Ukulele? What in the world was that?) into its case.

"Er… whadya got there?"

"My instrument."

"Cool… What kind of instrument is that?"

"My euphonium."

"Oh cool… What's a euphonium?"

"My instrument."

"Oh… Well, okay." I opened my mouth to say something else, but I seemed to be out of conversation starters, enders, and conversation in general. Did she already want me to leave?

As if reading my mind: "She doesn't talk a whole lot," Asheley loudly informed me. "But she's puh-retty cool once you get to know her!" She then proceeded to assault poor Sarah's face with pokes.

"Stop it!" Sarah snapped.

"I'll stop poking when you get your nose out of the book," Asheley teased in a sing-songy voice. Sarah rolled her eyes and took the novel off her lap and into her bag, but the poking carried on.

"You'll get used to this," Veronica laughed.

"That might take some adjusting," I laughed. And it would. And not because Asheley was loud or because Sarah played a bizarre instrument, but because I had someone to sit with. I was no longer at my own table getting food and slurs thrown at me, but rather with a group of friends, or at least people who actually liked me (with the possible exception of Sarah). That would take some getting used to. But I was more than glad to make the change. "Hey, thanks for letting me sit here."

"Oh, no problem. Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, I just… dumb question, I guess."

"Well, you can sit here anytime," she said with a smile. "That is, if you can put up with these two."

"I think I can handle it."

She grinned and took out her camera. And before I could blink- "Say cheese!" the light flashed, the button snapped, and my sudden surprise was now preserved forever in color.

"Hey!"

"Hey," she laughed as if greeting me.

"You could've warned me!" I giggled, mouth still full of revolting school pizza.

"You have to be ready! Hey, World War Three, smile!" Click.

"Veronica! Stop doing that!" Sarah exclaimed and they both pitch a fit.
She pressed a few buttons and presented me with a blurred picture of Asheley trying to poke Sarah who used a book as a shield and had her tongue sticking out.
Veronica and I laughed so hard we cried, and for the first time in years, I felt happy.