Discordant Harmonies
They are complete and utter opposites, but somehow they're able to make it work.

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As Sir Isaac Newton has so eloquently put it, opposites attract and likes repel. Simple as that. It can easily be applied to the world of science, especially concerning subatomic particles; a positively-charged atom will be attracted to a negatively-charged atom, and vice-versa. However, when it pertains to a world outside the lines of science and theorems and logic, when it is brought into a world where rationality is subjective and anything can change, does the same law apply? Can opposites truly attract each other aside from the never-ending vector of our scientific minds?

Many stories include the cliché plot of the "opposites attract" phenomenon, where romance happens between the most unreal and contrasting people. You are able to find quirky, bubbly females falling head over heels for dark, brooding men. You are able to find the nerd falling for the jock. You are able to find just about any single mirror image of a pair of people in a story that will inevitably fall in love as the story progresses. The reasoning most people put behind this is because when two people are the complete opposites of each other, they tend to fill the void the other person has and is able to "complement" and "complete" one another in such a way that makes the two get along. However, it may be common in fiction, how does this phenomenon pan out in the "real world"?

Never had I witnessed couples that were opposites before. My mother and father are actually quite similar in every way imaginable, and even though they do disagree with certain controversial topics at times, they are still able to communicate perfectly. Likewise, couples around the school are, as I have observed, the same. They have many common traits shared among each other that, I think, attracts them to each other. I thought the phenomenon was a dud, then and there, until I heard the news a week ago: Jack and Simon are an official coup—

"You bloody wanker!" a flustered voice came from the audience. It was Jack Merridew, red from head to toe, glaring incessantly at the fat boy reading aloud his essay (for show and tell, of course).

The teacher looked at him warningly for his unnecessary outburst. "Please, Jack, I expect more from you."

Sullenly, the redhead slumped into his chair but said no more. The fat boy continued on as if he were uninterrupted.

For those of you who don't know who these fellows are, they are, well, possibly the perfect definition of the opposites attract phenomenon. Jack Merridew is a hotheaded ginger who is the head boy of our choir, gets angered pretty easily, and will fight with you about anything. He's tall, he's scary, and he's a ginger.

(In the audience, Jack opened his mouth to speak, but quickly simmered down when his teacher shot him another disappointed look.)

Ethan Simon Peters, or as we all like to call him, "Simon," is a quiet and mysterious little boy with a big heart and a forbearance that can't be beat. No one ever expected them to ever become an actual couple, but they have. But naturally, the reaction of most of the student body of our school thought they wouldn't last for more than a day. They've lasted seven days thus far, and I believe that they are able to maintain it for a lot longer. They are complete and utter opposites, but somehow they're able to make it work. How is this possible?

"I like Jack because he's a role model to me," Simon, age twelve, said. "I look up to him… well, literally and figuratively, because he's always there and he's always perfect. He's just so strong and courageous, and he always does stuff that I would never even think of doing. He's just so refreshing and so different from me, it makes me realize that everyone really is different and unique in their own quirky way. I guess… we are opposites in our own right, but we're the same, too. We both love to sing. We both love history. We both love to sleep. So, even though we're opposites, we're the same, if that makes sense…"

Jack Merridew, age thirteen, stated, "I've liked Simon ever since I was six. We met at the airport, when his mom accidentally bumped into my mom. They became fast friends when they started talking about crocheting. We became fast friends too, and when we learned we would be living in the same town, we decided to spend all of our time together. Over time, I started to like him even more and more. He's so different from me, with him being a lot smaller and tinier than me. I just feel the need to protect him sometimes. He's cute, especially when he does that little puppy dog face, and sometimes he does that adorable hair flip to keep his bangs away from his eyes. And when we were little, he used to call me "Dew-dew"! At that instant, I knew he was for me. So I told him on Valentine's Day, and after a really long and complicated talk, here we are now. And even though we are opposites, like everyone says, including Ralph (who suspiciously keeps asking me about it) I wouldn't think of anyone else I'd rather be with. JM and ESP forever. Badly drawn smiley-face."

"Oh, oops," Piggy said under his breath, looking at the ugly colon-parenthesis on his paper. The room snickered, and Piggy, not wanting to continue with the rest of the essay, looked at his teacher pleadingly.

"Uhh, thank you for that rather… refreshing essay, Philip. You may take a seat," the teacher said plainly as Philip nodded, trotting back to his desk. Philip Irwin Gerstein, or known as "Piggy" by his peers thanks to his rather convenient initials and his mien, was immediately surrounded by his curious peers, asking him if Simon and Jack truly were a couple as well as asking him about the sweet-smelling cupcakes in his desk. Piggy flushed at the positive attention, never having had any before the incident, but remained silent, watching the reaction of his other peers.

Ralph, who was surpassing a fit of laughter the entire time, was now on the floor, ruddy-faced and guffawing without a care in the world. Samneric were elbowing their redheaded friend in the ribs humoredly, their grins wide with malice. Said redheaded friend had his face planted on his desk, not wanting to hear any more of the scandalous commotion going around him. And Simon, who was blushing madly, looked tentatively at Piggy with big green eyes.

"That was… uhh," Simon said quietly, stuttering at a loss of words. "Well… really good, I suppose."

Piggy raised an eyebrow appreciatively. "Thank you, Simon. Though, honestly, Ralph wrote everything past the first paragraph. On his insistence, of course. Don't tell the teacher though. I promised him I wouldn't." Discreetly, Piggy whispered in the dark-haired boy's ear, "I let him do it for his mother's homemade chocolate ganache cupcakes… with sprinkles. Sprinkles!"

"Oh," Simon said, flushing even brighter. "I kind of figured. I wrote that in my diary, and the only person I can think of who would steal my diary is Ralph, Roger, or Samneric."

"Sometimes, that boy has no sense of morality unless I'm there whacking him in the head. Honestly, I feel like I'm his mother sometimes," Piggy said, shaking his head. "He stole Jack's diary, too. I didn't think he had one."

"Oh, me either." Simon laughed warmheartedly and stared at Jack, who still wouldn't dare lift his head up despite the twins' constant pestering. He then thought back to what Piggy had said in the essay, about Jack thinking he'd "rather not be with anyone else" but him. It was sweet, and it tickled his heart like no tomorrow.

Placidly, he laid his head down on his own desk and thought about the amazing phenomenon of opposites attracting. But then he lost focus and thought to himself out of the blue, "I need to read Jack's diary soon…"

Mhmm, I'm actually not too fond of this one-shot because it didn't turn out the way I wanted to at all, but I did enjoy writing it. Well, mostly the Simon-Piggy conversation, but regardless, it was fun. :D I'll update this whenever I get inspired. Though, I do have several almost-finished drabbles already, so expect quite a few updates this week. Maybe.