Chapter 1: Chapter 1

I Am a Rock

It was the first day. I tried to make a friend. It's not very easy to make friends when you're as dorky and awkward as I am. So I decided not to go for the alleged easy targets, who were befriending all the kids. You see, I understand that the way popularity works for geeks is inversely proportional to how it works for cool kids. What was my first instinct? To head straight for the one guy who wasn't talking to anyone.

"Hi," I said.

He mumbled in reply.

"Uh…" I said, awkwardly, "I'm Cody."

"Noah…" he responded, and then began to act as though he hadn't seen me.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Cody asked.

"Are you… following me?" he asked. I sheepishly blushed. After all, I had just been following him, but from the way he asked it sounded, it seemed as though he didn't want anything to do with me. I stopped in my tracks.

He sighed emphatically and walked away. Then he perched himself in a different corner.

I looked at his face. He was visibly annoyed. I decided that it would be in my best interest to leave him alone. I decided that I must be an untouchable if even the guy who wasn't talking wouldn't have been helped by my existence. I mean, everyone must want to talk to someone, right? I felt ashamed of myself, until something unpredictable happened.

"Hi!" Owen shouted, "I'm Owen!"

"Hi, Owen, I'm Noah," he responded, and his face looked just as annoyed as it had a second ago. "Now, can you please be quiet? I'm trying to read my book."

Owen shrugged and walked away. Then something clicked in my brain. He wasn't annoyed with me for being me; he was annoyed with me for trying to befriend him at all. He would have felt the same way about anyone.

"Noah," I said, more confident this time, "Why are you afraid of getting close to people?"

He hesitated slightly, "I-I'm not afraid, I'm just pragmatic. I mean, if I get to know people… they turn out to be bigger jerks than I could even imagine, they leave me for other better friends, they hate me for being a jerk…"

"Pragmatism, huh?" I asked, "Do you know why I am constantly on the lookout for friends?"

"Because you're a sad, misguided idealist who still thinks other people are worth the time of day?" he said coldly.

"That… may be true…" I began. I noticed his eyes opening fully for the first time. "But… isn't it possible that… you're the one who's wrong?"

He laughed nervously, and then replied, unconvincingly, "I'm… I'm never wrong." He hurried away. I smiled, because I knew, after seeing his eyes, that I had affected him—in a good way.

I followed after him, and noticed him standing alone, but unlike the last few times, he didn't seem to mind when I started talking to him.

"Hi, Noah," I said. "Listen, I'm sorry that I suggested you might be wrong before. I understand that offended you."

"No, don't worry about it," he responded. "I… well, I mean, not usually, but in at least one case… I was."

My ears perked up to that statement. "Uh… in at least one case?"

"Yes," he responded. He smiled at me. This was the first time I'd seen him really smiling all day. "No points for guessing which one."

"How… how did I manage to befriend you?" I asked incredulously.

"You… let me make fun of you," he responded. "You didn't mind even slightly that I called you a 'sad misguided idealist'."

"Well, I mean, coming from you, that was probably meant as constructive criticism," I answered, and then I started laughing—accidentally.

"Wow, we just met, and you already know me better than ninety percent of the kids at my school," he responded. "Come on, let's do something fun before we have to do any of those atrocious challenges…"

"Alright, so… what do you like doing?" I asked.

"Anything that involves sitting around and brainpower," he responded.

"Really?" I asked, "Me too!"

"You know… I'm glad I decided to give you a chance," he said, still smiling at me.

"I'm glad you did too," I answered.