Tuesday's gray
Chuckie sighed as he shoved all his books into his locker. He was exhausted. Mondays were always terrible because everyone always seemed relaxed and refreshed after their weekend, but Chuckie's weekends, no matter how much he tried to reschedule otherwise, were always full of work and homework. After working the entire weekend and a Monday shift at the Java Lava he already felt like he needed a Friday. And it was only Tuesday. He gently closed the locker door and was making his way toward the lunchroom when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"For the millionth time McNulty, I've got a boyfriend! Quit asking!" He heard Angelica shriek.
"If you've got a boyfriend then why don't I ever see him?"
"He . . . he's busy." Out of curiosity Chuckie turned around to watch the conversation. He didn't notice that in the lunch rush he was one of only a handful of people left standing in the hallway.
"Yeah, I'm sure he and Santa Claus have a lot of work to do." Chuckie watched her eyes scan the hallway and was suddenly frozen in place when they settled on him. The look she was giving him was one he had seen many times in his life. That look did not bode well for him.
"I told you he's waiting for me so back off." She shoved Timmy McNulty so hard he stumbled and fell to the floor. Angelica took the opportunity to run straight at Chuckie and grab him by the wrist, pulling him with her as she went.
"I assume you know what's going on since you were eavesdropping!" She spat.
"Um . . ." There was no safe answer to that question and he knew it.
"Well, congratulations. You are now my new pretend boyfriend." She glanced nervously behind her. "If you pull this off, I'll give you whatever you want." Angelica stopped, pushed him against the wall, and held his hands in hers.
Holy crap! She's holding my hands! He thought, doing his best to pretend the sudden churning in his stomach was caused by hunger.
"If you don't pull this off," she pulled him closer and whispered in his ear, "I will beat you until you are a bloody puddle on the sidewalk that even your own mother won't recognize."
Before he could decide whether to blush at her breath against his ear, or be terrified by her threat, she stepped back and dropped one of his hands while gently swinging the other. She brought her free hand to her mouth and giggled.
"You're such a tease Chuckie!" She cooed while running her finger down his chest. His entire face lit up as he struggled to remember how to breathe. The fact that his heart was trying to pound out of his chest wasn't helping matters.
Angelica quickly looked over his shoulder then grabbed him by the shirt.
"Kiss me," She whispered through clenched teeth. His brain suddenly turned back on.
"What?" He whispered back.
"Kiss me and act like you're enjoying it!" She pulled the hand she was still holding behind her back and gently rested the other on the back of his neck. His eyes went wide as she leaned forward.
"Maybe this isn't such a—" his statement was cut short by a pair of lips pressing against his. He stood frozen, his brain desperately trying to make sense of what was happening. Angelica firmly placing his hand on her hip brought him back to reality.
She's kissing me. He felt her arm wrap around his back and pull him closer. This is definitely not how I imagined my first kiss.
Angelica stopped kissing him and pressed her forehead against his. "Work with me here Finster!" She whispered while gently moving her hand to his cheek and kissing his bottom lip causing shivers to run up and down his spine.
Kiss her back! Some deranged part of his brain shouted at him. This is probably your first and last chance at a make-out session. Take it! After quickly weighing the pros and cons he decided his brain was right. He carefully wrapped his arms around her, pulled her close, closed his eyes, and let his instincts take over.
"Seriously Angelica this is – oh!" Chuckie found himself incredibly annoyed at Timmy McNulty as Angelica untangled herself from him, though he wasn't quite sure why.
Angelica quickly spun Chuckie around. "McNulty, boyfriend. Boyfriend, McNulty." Chuckie only blinked in response. It was probably a good thing, he had a feeling if he tried to talk he would end up saying something stupid.
"Wow. I guess . . . wait . . . Finster?" Timmy threw his hands up in the air. "Your boyfriend is Chuckie Finster!?"
"Y—yes! You got a problem with that?" She asked stepping out from behind him.
"You would rather date him," he pointed at Chuckie, "than me?"
"You got it."
"Wow . . . I . . . wow." He shook his head and walked off.
Angelica sighed heavily once he was out of sight. Chuckie slowly turned back around.
"Um . . . Angelica—"
"Before you get all worked up over nothing, let me remind you, that whole thing was nothing."
"You kissed me," He told her, feeling slightly hurt for some strange reason.
"Oh, please Finster, it was just a kiss. I kiss boys all the time, and it's not like you've never—" Something about his facial expression must have given him away. "Oh. Um . . . right." She cleared her throat.
"I've gotta go Angelica." He turned back around and began walking toward the lunchroom. Just a kiss. He felt more angry than he had in a long time. Chuckie shook his head. This is Angelica! Angelica Pickles. The girl who has tormented me since . . . forever. He reminded himself. So she found a new way to make me feel like crap. Big deal. It's not like I—
"Oh, no you don't Finster!" She grabbed him by the wrist. "I'm not done with you." His eyes widened, and he blushed wondering what else she was going to do with him. She spun him around and folded her arms across her chest.
"Angelica," He sighed.
"Don't want to hear it. We've got to come up with a good reason why we haven't been seen together yet."
He threw his arms up in frustration. "The same reason nobody ever sees me. I've got a job and twice as much homework as everyone else."
"That's good. That works for me." She grabbed his hand and laced her fingers with his, causing his heart to beat erratically. With a slight tug she started walking toward the cafeteria, and for some reason, that defied all logic, Chuckie followed. "I figure we'll 'go out' for a couple weeks, then have a huge blow out fight and break up. Sound good?"
Chuckie stopped, forcing Angelica to do the same. "Look, I'm sorry about this whole Timmy thing, but I really can't do this."
"Why? You already have a girlfriend?"
"No," He answered quietly while staring at his feet.
"All I'm asking is two weeks of your time Chuckie." He looked up, slightly surprised by her use of his actual name. Her big blue eyes were staring sadly at him, and he suddenly found himself losing his resolve. "Just at school?" She offered while biting her lower lip. "We don't have any classes together, so really, just lunch."
He sighed heavily in defeat. Damn those big blue eyes of hers. "Alright."
"Good," She said in a very businesslike way. "Let's go."
"Ladies," Angelica announced to the girls who were all seated at their usual table, "I have found the solution to my problem." Three pairs of eyes looked skeptically up at her as she plopped Chuckie down into the chair she usually sat in.
"No," Savannah said coldly while Tiffany tossed her long bottle blonde hair behind her ear.
"Too late," Angelica responded flippantly.
"You didn't!" Tiffany shouted in horror.
"I did."
"He's kinda cute." Denise squinted and her dark tight braids fell across her face as she tilted her head to the side.
"Denise," Tiffany shouted, "what are you smoking!?"
Savannah sighed heavily and shook her head. "Does it have a name?" Angelica placed her hands on Chuckie's shoulders.
"Ladies, this is Chuckie Finster, my boyfriend who has been very busy helping run his parents company, and . . . something about having a lot of homework." She waved her hand dismissively.
"I'm doing extra–" Angelica cut Chuckie off by putting her hand on his mouth.
"Don't speak unless spoken to." She removed her hand and sat beside him.
"Do you enjoy making my life Hell?" Savannah asked staring at Chuckie in disgust.
"Oh come on he's not that bad."
"His name," Savannah said.
"His clothes," Denise said through a mouth full of salad.
"His hair." Tiffany cringed.
"The glasses," Denise added.
"The freckles," Savannah sneered.
"The hair!" Tiffany shouted.
Angelica folded her arms across her chest and glared at her friends. "Fine then. Let's start from the top. What's wrong with his hair?"
"It's a mess! His head looks like it's on fire!" Tiffany shrieked.
"It's untidy." Angelica corrected. "Which is very 'in' right now, he's just doing it wrong." Chuckie frowned at her, but she continued. "I can help him do his hair, and just because you don't like redheads doesn't mean I can't go for one."
"It's true," Denise said pointing her fork at Tiffany. "And it wouldn't be the first time she's dated a redhead either." Angelica quickly moved on the next item.
"I can't do anything about the freckles, it's a redhead thing." Savannah shook her head in disapproval. Angelica ran her hand down the side of Chuckie's face. "He's got great skin. Better freckles than acne right?"
The three girls cringed, exchanged glances then slowly nodded.
"Next," She said feeling more victorious by the moment.
"Glasses?" Denise asked.
"He's smart, but if it really bugs you that bad we can get contacts."
"I'm allergic to contacts," Chuckie said quickly. Angelica glared, hoping to remind him of the no talking rule. He quickly pinched his lips together.
"Can he see without them?" Tiffany asked.
"I don't think so." Angelica honestly couldn't remember, "One way to find out." She reached over and pulled Chuckie's glasses off his face. She allowed herself the tiniest smile at the fact without his glasses he was almost cute. She leaned back and tilted her head.
"Oh, that's much better," Savannah said with an approving nod.
"Angelica?" The boy beside her asked uncertainly as he squinted in her direction.
"You want these back?" She asked holding his glasses in her right hand, and dangling them in front of her face. Out of curiosity she put them on.
"Damn!" She shouted while trying to focus. "He is absolutely blind! How allergic?" She quickly pulled them off.
"To contacts?" He asked while swiping blindly at her. "My eyes turn red, and swell shut." All four girls cringed.
"The glasses stay. I'll make it work. Next." She slipped them back on his face and smirked at his slight blush.
"Clothes," Denise sighed.
"They're awful, I know, but nothing a day at the mall can't fix. Next."
"Chuckie?" He looked up at Savannah assuming he was being spoken to. "What the hell kind of name is that?"
"His real name is Charles." He raised an eyebrow at her as if surprised by the fact that she knew his real name. What's so surprising about that? She wondered as she shrugged back at him. I've known you for thirteen years.
"I'm not sure how, but I think that's worse," Tiffany said dejectedly.
"We could call him Chaz." Angelica supplied as she watched Chuckie cringe from the corner of her eye.
"Ew, no!" Tiffany spat.
"Charlie." Denise said rolling her eyes.
"Chuck is just as bad as Chuckie," Savannah said, the boredom in her voice becoming more evident by the minute.
"Charles isn't so bad. There's a prince Charles." Angelica offered.
"Yeah, and he's probably a nerd too," Denise mumbled while stabbing at her salad. "Really Angelica, what the hell were you thinking!?"
"Chaz . . ." Tiffany said playing with the name. "We can call him Chad."
"Chad." Savannah nodded. "I can live with Chad."
"Chad it is then. Anything else?" Angelica asked. She refused to look at Chuckie who was probably feeling like a steak at the supermarket right now. Necessary precautions Chuckie. I've got an image to uphold. Her three friends glanced at each other then collectively shook their heads.
"Alright then. Things you should know." She glanced over at Chuckie who was staring down at his hands that were clasped together on his lap. "Before you hear it from anyone else, yes we were playing tonsil hokey in the hall."
Her three friends gasped simultaneously.
"Oh, cut me some slack! McNulty was breathing down my neck. I was desperate."
"Obviously," Savannah said eyeing Chuckie in disgust.
"There were, like, five people in the hall, and one of them just happened to be my semi-attractive neighbor that I've known forever. It really was my best option."
The three girls all shook their heads sadly.
"I don't suppose there's something you could do about his outfit NOW," Tiffany said with disdain. "I mean, everyone is gonna know by the time school is out, thanks to McNulty's big mouth. Do you really want people knowing you made-out with that?"
Angelica glanced over at Chuckie's sky blue long sleeved sweater, but quickly noticed the collar sticking out the top. She reached over and pulled up the sweater.
"Angelica!" He cried struggling to pull it back down.
"Take it off." Chuckie shot her a nasty glare, but when she returned the look he swallowed hard and did as she instructed. She nodded at the navy blue button down shirt he was wearing underneath. She snatched the sweater from him and tied it around his neck.
"Too prep school?" She asked.
"Not if we're working the smart guy angle," Denise commented.
"Are we working the smart guy angle?" Savannah asked.
"Can someone be smart and popular?" Tiffany asked. Angelica could practically smell the rubber burning as she watched Tiffany try to figure that out.
"He's already smart." She suddenly remembered the last time she had attempted to help Chuckie be cool. Without warning she yanked the sweater from his shoulders. "I think he'll be fine without it. Now do me a favor and go get us some food."
"Huh?" He asked quickly looking up from his lap.
"It's lunchtime Chad. I'm hungry. Grab me a salad and a water, and get yourself something decent. Not that crap the lunch ladies try to pass off as food." She thought she heard him mutter something about her telling him what to eat under his breath. "What was that?" She asked coldly.
"Nothing! Is there anything else you need Angelica?"
"Just you," She said with a wink as she blew him a kiss. He stood frozen on the spot staring wide eyed at her. Angelica dropped the act. "Seriously. I'm hungry. Go already." He blinked a few times then walked off. She turned back around with a sigh.
"Suddenly McNulty doesn't seem so bad," Savannah mused blandly. "At least he knows how to dress himself."
"At least Chad has something other than getting his hands on my ass occupying his thoughts. He's really not that bad." Her friends looked at her skeptically. "I'll take him shopping today okay?"
"If anyone can pull this off Ang, it's you," Denise said returning her attention to her salad.
At lunch Chuckie had been silent as Angelica's friends pointed out his every flaw. Now, being dragged through the mall, he did not hesitate to voice his concerns.
"I'm not paying forty dollars for a pair of jeans that already have holes in them."
"But that's the style," Angelic whined. He shook his head. "Fine," she set down one of the bags she was carrying and placed a hand on her hip, "I'll buy them. Now go try them on so we can see if they fit."
"I'm sorry, let me rephrase that. I'm not going to wear a pair of pants that already have holes in them." He pointed to a particularly annoying hole just above the back pocket. "Especially when they expose my underwear!"
"That's the style! And it's not like you still wear tightie whities right?" She asked with a giggle. Again something in his facial expression must have given him away because her laughter abruptly stopped. She rolled her eyes and stared up at the ceiling. "You have got to be kidding me! I've got to buy you underwear too? I suddenly have the feeling this is going to be the longest two weeks of my life!"
"Funny, I was getting that same feeling."
"Just go try them on," She said shoving him into the dressing room.
"I'm not trying these on Angelica!" He called once she had shut him in. He folded his arms across his chest. He'd stand there all day if he had to. That was one thing his dad told him he'd inherited from his mother. He was damn stubborn when he needed to be. After a few minutes another pair of pants flew over the top of the door and hit him directly in the face.
"There!" Angelica shouted from the other side of the door. "No holes, now hurry up."
With a small smirk he quickly slipped out of his jeans and into the pair she had given him. As he examined himself in the mirror he noticed that his pants were a bit tighter than any he would have bought, but they actually looked pretty good.
As he stepped out of the dressing room Angelica motioned for him to spin around. He rolled his eyes, but did it anyway.
"Not bad Finster." When his back was turned she lifted the bottom of his shirt.
"Angelica!" He shouted while trying to reach behind him and pull it back down. She swatted his hands away.
"Damn boy. For a nerd you have a really nice ass!" Chuckie wasn't sure how to respond to that so he didn't, but he was glad he had his back turned to her and couldn't see his intense blush.
"These look good on you," She said finally releasing his shirt. "I'm gonna grab a few more of these while you get dressed. I'll meet you at the register."
He nodded and returned to the dressing room. As he changed he wondered if the next two weeks were really going to be like this. Nothing but Angelica bossing him around like he was her slave. He frowned. No wonder she can't keep a boyfriend for more than three weeks. He was then curious as to why he knew that about her.
He finished tying his shoe and stepped out of the dressing room. Angelica was standing there with two more bags waiting for him.
"You're slow. Come on." She handed him three of the four bags and walked out of the store. "You've got enough clothes here for two weeks, you are to wear nothing that did not come out of these bags. Do you understand?"
"Yes Angelica."
"Good. You seem to know what colors go together, so I trust you to mix and match. The layered look is really big right now, but never more than two layers. Oh and you should always wear – never mind. I'll just come over to your house before school and pick out your outfits, how about that?"
"Um . . . aren't you worried about what Kimi and my parents will think?"
"Not really. Just tell them that I'm helping you make more informed style decisions."
"Okay . . . I guess."
"I think we're done shopping."
"Thank goodness."
They left the mall and loaded the bags into Angelica's car. He climbed in and fastened his seat belt. She started the car and turned down the radio that had nearly burst his eardrums on the way there. After carefully backing out she glanced at him then returned her attention to the road.
"I meant what I said Finster. Anything you want, name it, it's yours. If you pull this off."
"Anything?"
"Well, anything under a couple thousand or so."
"A COUPLE THOUSAND DOLLARS!?"
"No. A couple thousand jelly beans. Yes, a couple thousand dollars." Chuckie leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes. She's serious! I don't even know what I'd buy with that much money! Chuckie got paid for working at the Java Lava, but it wasn't much, and he was saving up for college. His mom had to actually steal and throw away his old clothes in order to convince him to buy new ones. A laptop would be nice. He thought suddenly. That would definitely help with getting my homework done.
"Home sweet home," Angelica said suddenly, pulling him from his thoughts. She popped the trunk. "The three bags back there are yours." She said as he got out of the car. He grabbed the bags from her trunk, closed it, and began walking inside.
"Hey Finster!" She called, causing him to stop and slowly turn around.
"Yes Angelica?" He asked, worried what her next demand would be.
"I'll be at your house around seven." He nodded and she sped off.
Chuckie stepped inside and sighed. He walked upstairs and dropped the bags by his bed then flopped onto it. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling until a soft knock interrupted his thoughts.
"Who is it?" He called unenthusiastically.
"It's me." His mom said quietly from the other side of the door.
"Come in." She opened the door and poked her head through.
"Dinner's ready." He nodded. "What's wrong Chuckie?"
"Nothing," He lied. She walked over to his bed and sat beside him.
"Girl trouble?" She asked.
"What? No . . . well sort of."
"Mmm," She said as she flicked a strand of hair off of his forehead. "That bad?"
"Yeah. Well, no– I just . . ." he sighed heavily. "Mom," he asked sitting up, "have you ever had someone point out every single thing that's wrong with you? Everything that makes you who you are?"
"Yes, I have," She said taking his hand. "But, you cannot allow someone to change who you are. And you should not change who you are for someone else either. At the end of the day the only person you have to answer to is the person looking back at you in the mirror."
"But what if you don't like that person? What if that person is a complete loser with no life, no friends, and is destined to spend the rest of his days alone and miserable?"
"Chuckie."
"I know. I'm over reacting."
"If you feel like you need to change something about yourself, then you should. Just make sure it's for the right reasons." He nodded.
"Thanks Mom," He said giving her hand a small squeeze.
"Anytime." She stood up and pulled him with her. "Now come on. Your father and Kimi will be wondering what's taking us so long."
"Hey Mom, um . . . this talk–"
"I won't say a word."
