Nelson found himself strolling past the Simpsons house again. Marking the fourth time he had done so tonight. Why he was there was simple. He would throw a rock at her window, and ask her. Just like the guys in all the movies he watched with his mom when she was off work, and wasn't sleeping. He already had the stone. A small smooth one that wouldn't break her window. He found it on his first trip to the simpsons that night. All he had to do was throw it. Lisa would answer, he would ask, and she would. She would….
"Damn it." Nelson curses under his breath as he throws the stone across the street. A trashcan falls causing it to hit the ground far louder than Nelson thought it should have been. Before anyone could leave their homes to check for the noise Nelson was already taking off down the street. Heading right back the way he came. All the way to the start again. He passes professor Frink's lab, the Krusty's, the Kwik e mart, running all the way to Springfield Elementary school.
He didn't have the guts to ask her. It wasn't like Nelson had the right too either. He was just not good enough for her, but neither was Milhouse. That wimp may have gotten muscles recently, but he didn't use them. Never would most likely. Nelson could use his! He kicks a rock at the school as he wonders behind the school. His feet carry him to the the slowly rotting wooden table. It has already been replaced twice now. Nelson was surprised to see that they just hadn't gotten a plastic or metal one instead by now. As long as it is wood he could continue to carve into it. Going back in his memory he realizes he never carved the heart on this table.
Years of making sure it was always there, and he forgot. Neville pulls out his knife and lifts the table up by the corner edge. It readies the knife to make the carving with a s few strokes as possible, but there was already a carving there. With thin lines was a heart with an arrow going through. The initials L and N separated by the arrow. Damn it! Someone took his spot! Who the hell was L and N anyway. That's so vague! Nelson wanted to kick something. There was no point to it now. The carving would be meaningless with the spot already covered.
Nelson drops the table before walking away. He winces as he hears one of the legs on the table snap. Muttering a curse Nelson runs off heading straight for home. There was tomorrow after all. Another day. Another struggle.
When she woke up the morning was the same as every other morning. Lisa was the first one awake. In ten minutes Bart's alarm would be screaming for him to wake up. Which will instead wake Maggie all the way on the other side of the wall instead. The seven year old had exceptional hearing.
Lisa goes through the morning routines with little change. It was almost as if she could time when the first fights of the morning would happen. Perhaps because she actually could predict when her brother's schedule would conflict with their father's. Lisa had gotten so use to the motions that she could shower, get dressed, and pack up all her books for school in less than forty-five minutes. Giving her a two hours lead to walk to the school. Plenty of extra time for her to take a path that was a little off course today.
"I'm off for school!" Lisa announces from the bottom of the stairs. Her mother was tying her bathrobe closed as she hurries out of her room.
"Are you riding with Bart?" As if Lisa would get into a car with Bart behind the wheel unless it was a special event she did not care living for.
"No I'm walking." Lisa calls back up the stairs.
"Alright be safe. Text me when you get there!"
"I will." Lisa promises closing the door behind her. The sun was shining incredibly bright this morning. Hopefully a good sign for today. Or that is what Lisa would take it as if she had not done an entire science project ove the sun's increasing heat and sped up death approaching them all, last year.
Still death was ever growing closer for every person who lives. Lisa saw no reason to fear it, as it was the logical path for all things to take. Unchangeable, so therefore not worthy of her mental poweress. Instead today's objective was a simple one. Not nearly as set in stone or as dark as the previous thought. As Lisa strolls down the street she pulls out her phone and texts Milhouse so he knew she had chosen to walk.
One push of the button and then she was calling Nelson.
"H-hey." Nelson manages with a yawn halfway through.
"Oh good. You're awake. I'm coming by."
"Wait, what? I just woke up Lis." Nelson admits. She could picture him rubbing his face with huge hands as his mind slowly powered up.
"I'm on the way to your house. I had some extra time today. You missed almost the entire week last week." Lisa points out as she takes the path leading towards Nelson's house.
"Yeah, so?" Nelson asks. Lisa hears what sounds like a low whistle on the other side. She could only imagine it was what was left of a broken alarm.
"So you should go to school. Just be dressed when I get there." Lisa orders as she hangs up. It was only a thirty minute detour from her usual path. For most that would seem as a lot of time, but Lisa was use to getting to school extra early. Finding time for what most thought to be a lost cause was simple.
When she arrives at Nelson's house Lisa knocks as was proper. She knew that Nelson's mother did not care if the girl walks straight in or not, but Lisa did not want to abuse such power. Especially since she was not even certain if Nelson was finished getting dressed.
A distant comes in greets Lisa's second time knocking. The highschooler lets herself in. Nelson's mother was asleep on the couch. Cigarette buds still smothering out in the ashtray under her hand. Lisa ignores the sight and turns left to move back farther into the house where she knew Nelson's room was. Nelson opens and closes his door in a rush. His hair was messy, his shirt had a hole in the bottom of it, but his pants were newer, and he decided not to where his blue jean jacket today. Lisa thought he still looks better without it. She learned long ago that she could never change Nelson Muntz. That did not mean she would just let him fail.
"Sorry. If I knew you were coming I would have cleaned a little." Lisa shrugs it off.
"Don't worry about it Nelson. I came over almost completely unannounced." She points out so that he would feel a little better. With the look on his face she knew it didn't work. She hold onto her backpack strap trying to think of something else to say.
"Well shall we go?" Lisa asks gesturing with her shoulder, having failed at common conversation.
"Yeah." Nelson moves past her. Lisa notices he didn't have his backpack. She wonders if maybe he left it locked in his locker at school again. She had seen him do that a few times throughout their years of highschool together. Lisa had been in the same year as him and her brother since eighth grade. Giving her plenty of time to weed herself back into her older brother's small group of friends. At first Bart was against his little sister hanging out with him and "the guys", but eventually he saw sense. Sense being that Nelson stood up for her stating that she could sit wherever she damn well pleased. She had always been tagging along with them since elementary school anyways.
"What did I miss?" Nelson asks once they were outside.
"Not much. I grabbed your homework for you. It's waiting inside my locker at school." Lisa explains, quicking catching up to walk beside him.
"You can keep it." Nelson shoves his hands into his pockets. Lisa had already noticed all the dried up oil on them. He had been working instead of studying again.
Looking down sadly at his hidden hands Lisa says, "You know if you miss to many days you won't be able to graduate." Nelson shrugs. "Or go to any of the dances either."
"So?" He glances over at Lisa as if he expected her to have an answer.
Well for this point she did. "So if you can't go to the dances, who else am I supposed to hang out with? When you or my brother undoubtedly spike the punch Milhouse will be incoherent. Bart already has an idea of who he is asking and how. Which means I will be standing against the wall for most of the night. Well, unless Ralph or Martin ask for a dance." Lisa notes the sudden movement as Nelson's jaw clinches. She continue watching for any other changes. "We know Martin would never. He is already planning out the schematics for a robotic date. I'm not even sure if Ralph is going either."
"Poor you." Nelson announces mockingly. "Ya know I am not your wingman, right?" Nelson points out as they pass the Kwik-e mart.
Lisa rolls her eyes. "Oh that's right. You only play that part for my brother." She grabs the former bully's arm and pulls him into the convenience store. Once inside she lets him go and storms off towards the breakfast bars section.
"That's different." Nelson explains looking over his shoulder towards the cash register. Abu watches the two with a smirk on his face. Lisa picks her favorite brand bar and grabs four of them.
"How?" Lisa asks moving over towards the drinks. A tea would be a good way to start the day. She grabs a soda as well.
"Because Milhouse is terrible at it, and he is a dude picking up girls. You're, well, a girl." Nelson points out. Really the dense boy could be so frustrating. Lisa takes a deep breath and moves over to the register.
"At the very least you know that I am a girl." Lisa replies sarcastically.
"Of course I do. Kinda hard to miss." Nelson adds. Lisa would tell him he was digging himself into a deeper hole. Yet she knew he would not understand how or why. Poor boys.
"Thank you Abu." Lisa hands sets down the money as he puts her stuff in a plastic bag.
"Have a good day. Come again." Abu words hit their backs as the teenagers leave.
Once they were outside the store Lisa pulls out two of the bars and the soda. "Here." She hands them to Nelson. The boy hesitates before taking the offering.
"You didn't have to,"
"I know that, but you looked hungry. Besides the food at the school is almost completely inedible so we might as well eat before we are trapped." Lisa interrupts. Unwrapping on of her own bars she takes a small bite.
"Lisa I just don't know how to wingman for a chick. Like how do you even pick up guys?" Nelson asks as they continue their journey.
"Honestly there are a few ways. As far as I know when girls play "wingman" for each other is when one of them points out when a guy is a bad catch. They talk and the girls move on to the next guy. It isn't the same for when you guys work together to get some girls. Girls work together to narrow the pool of guys to choose from. As far as I known." Lisa explains between bites.
"Ah so it's like when a big brother scares away a boyfriend in a hundred different sitcoms?"
"Yes, exactly." Lisa agrees snapping her fingers. That was a simpler way of looking at it.
"Well then. I can do that, but shouldn't it be Bart's job?"
Lisa wonders how they got to this point. Nelson agreen to be her wingman instead of just promising to attend school. Well, if this got him to go she would roll with it. "Meh, Bart doesn't care who I date. Maggie is more invested than the 'Bartster'." Lisa uses the nickname jokingly. It earns her a signature laugh from her companion. A laugh that use to mock her, now one that made her feel a little chipper.
"So are you going to come to school?" Lisa asks as they step in Springfield's high school's field.
"I don't know Lis. I have work, and yeeeeah." No she would not let him use that as an excuse this time.
"Nelson Muntz if you do not start coming to school I swear I will walk to your house every morning and drag you here!" Lisa gives her best stern glare to add emphasis. She was never very good at the stern looks, though. Thanks to the outcome of her genes, or so she blames.
"You promise?" Nelson asks with a smile. Well it was better than just a flat no.
"If it means you come to your classes, yes." Lisa agrees.
"Well, well now. You've got a deal Simpson." Nelson spits into his oil covered hand and hold it out towards the middle simpson child. Without a moment of hesitation she spits on her own hand. With two shakes a deal was struck. Both sides seeing it as a perfect first move for the rest of their plans.