CHAPTER 1

Following the Ohio Outcasts' riveting performance of Youngstown's "Dance Floor (Don't Worry)", in which all four boys had an equal chance in the spotlight, through the school halls, Artie was attempting to catch up to Gina to try and explain what happened with Becky.

"Gina, come on. Will you please talk to me?"

"What's there to talk about?" asked Gina, who was walking away from him at such a fast pace that he was already getting tired.

"Becky and I weren't in a relationship. We established a rapport, and that's all. We're just friends."

"That's what they all say, Artie. It usually ends up being the other way around."

"I'm not in love with Becky. She's into me. It's kind of one-sided, you know?"

"Well now that you're in the same room together, I'm sure that's likely to change."

"You're getting worked up over nothing, I swear."

"Yeah, well that's what my first, second, and third boyfriend said. I've got to get to class."

With that, Gina took off sprinting, and Artie attempted to catch up to her. Unfortunately, he crashed into Scott on the way.

"Hey, watch where you're going, noodle-legs!"

"You watch where you're going", said Artie as he tried to start after Gina again.

"What did you say to me, four-eyes?" Scott snarled, and he picked up one side of Artie's wheelchair and toppled him over with ease. Artie crashed to the floor and rolled uncontrollably away from the wheelchair, coming to a stop at the lockers. Scott started to leave the area, but Artie began to crawl after him, grunting loudly with each pull.

"I've been called worse things, man, but I'm not going to indulge your pride."

"Yeah, well, keep coming after me, then. Odds are that you won't be able to reach me before I kick you back down to the ground."

"You are not going to get away with abusing someone you think is lower than yourself."

"Oh, what are you going to do, Professor X? You going to zap me with psychic powers that I know you don't have?"

Artie sighed heavily and pushed himself to a crouching position, having stopped just short of Scott's feet.

"Yeah, I didn't think so. You're a dweeb who is never to going to make it in the real world, both because you can't and because you don't deserve to. You're weak, you're pathetic, and you're a waste of space."

Artie inhaled deeply, readying himself for what he had wanted to do for a long time. Without hesitating further, Artie pushed himself clear off the ground using only his arms and one last burst of strength. Scott didn't have time to react as Artie took him down to the ground. With his dead weight pushing Scott down, Artie began punching every inch of him he could reach, blindly hitting every open spot, without stopping to breathe. He could barely hear Scott yelling at him to stop in-between blows, but after several minutes, Artie collapsed back in exhaustion. His whole life began flashing before his eyes, including how many times he had wanted to do what he did to those who had bullied him in the past, and how much more satisfying it would have made his life.

Artie crawled back to his wheelchair amidst the crowd of students, who had been watching the whole thing in amazement. Scott was still on the floor, groaning as he tried to soothe his pain. Artie climbed back into his wheelchair and left the area without looking back, but instead reflecting on how much better he felt now that it was over.

INTERLUDE

While in Government and Economics class, Tina wasn't paying attention to the lesson. Her baby bump was becoming more and more prominent, and people were once again giving her judgmental and cold looks. Tina's parents had even started to ask why she was getting so big, to which she said that she had been eating a lot. Following the embarrassment of hearing that she should join a gym, Tina had begun to wonder if she should tell her parents the truth, and how was the best way to do it.

This much worry mixed with her depression had caused Tina to start several bad habits, including not cleaning her room, midnight snacking, and not sleeping. However, she had also picked up a habit that was dangerous to both her and her baby, a habit that she had not paid much attention to in order to quit it. And it was this habit that forced her to make her next decision.

"Mr. Caplan, can I go to use the bathroom real quick?"

"You may."

As smoothly as she could, Tina slipped out of the room and headed straight for the restroom. After checking to see that she was alone, Tina went into a stall and brought out a small flask from her bag, sat on the toilet, and began drinking. She felt more and more relaxed as the soothing feeling of bitter alcohol crept down her throat, and within seconds, she had drained the flask. She put it away, and then opened another.