Title- The Return of Jess
Chapter Title- I Never Ate Paste
Disclaimer- I do not own The Outsiders
Note- Flashbacks are omnipresent. Jessica was a tortured kid in third grade. Paste eater, wow, that was bad. In the first flashback here, you will find out a little of why she hates something.
Why had Two-Bit been so mean to me? Oh, that's right, he was drunk. I also probably ruined the fun time he was having with Sara. If her mother had found out she was drunk, Sara would've been dead. I turned onto my stomach remembering why I was on the couch in the first place. I had completely humiliated myself. I went into one of my 'spells'. I had embarrassed myself in front of Soda. Hopefully Two-Bit was so drunk that he didn't remember. I felt my scar, the only thing that would ever remind me of when I was nothing.
"How are you feeling?" Soda asked when he walked through the door.
"Go back to work," I told him.
"It's late; I don't have work right now." I looked at the time. It was late.
"I'll go home," I told him and sat up. Oh, my head hurt like I was beaten with a bunch of clubs. I rested my head on the couch.
"I already told Michelle you were sick and you were spending the night here. Darry'll be home soon, Ponyboy should be around. I hope Two-Bit didn't take him anywhere. He's way too drunk. He didn't mean what he said to you this morning. What had happened this morning?"
"Two-Bit was getting me aggravated so I shut my body down. I shut off my emotions and some of my senses. All I could see was black. Last time I did that was third grade," I told him. Unknowingly, I ran a finger over my scar. It wasn't big. It looked like a normal scar that would've been put there by a desk, a nice straight line, mainly from the stitches. I can't believe I brought up third grade. I stopped talking after I realized I did. Third grade was unbelievably bad. It all started the summer before it.
Flashback
"Promise me you'll write?" a girl asked Jessica. Jessica nodded and watched the girl climb into the car. She hurried into the house to begin a letter. Jessica's only friend was leaving her; she'd be an open target.
On the first day of third grade Jessica came in wearing her nicest blouse and skirt. She was poor, but didn't want people to know. People knew anyway.
"Jessi doesn't have Lilly here no more, we can pick on the paste eater again. Jessi is such a baby name," a voice sneered. It belonged to Peter. She wanted to punch Peter but she wouldn't. Peter continued to pick on her and he got his friends involved in it. Peter was popular, so everybody did what he did.
Third grade was the worst. I'd always say I'd have my revenge on that Peter boy, but I could careless now. I had Soda and a great group of friends.
"What happened in third grade?" I shivered at the mention of third grade.
"Remember when Lisa was saying things about me at The Dingo?" He nodded.
"It was worse, nothing can match third grade." It probably was the worst thing. I didn't have any friends to help plan my revenge and the time I had to get stitches, my mom made me look like a coward. I had gotten phone calls from a girl who pretended to be my friend that moved away. Once my mom gave me the phone, it was just a bunch of kids were calling me names. Nobody had believed me; everybody thought their kid was perfect.
"You don't have to talk about it."
"I wasn't going to," I responded. I just realized I missed work today.
"Did somebody tell the manager I was sick?"
"I think the girl that used to have red hair did." I nodded. Anna was going into talk to her "friend", Lisa and to tell Pat I was sick.
"How's Steve?" I was bored, so I figured I'd make conversation.
"He's good; he had fun on his date last night."
"I heard; Michelle had fun too. I like her better than Evie."
"She likes you better than Evie does. After your party when Steve was apologizin' she broke up with him. Then she said some things 'bout you an' 'bout Steve."
"Well, lots of people say things about me." Like Peter calling me paste eater.
"I don't get it! I never ate fuckin' paste!" He gave me a look. I ignored him and I tried to figure out why I was called paste eater. I didn't eat it, ever.
I moved to Pennsylvania when I was going into first grade. I had moved everywhere. I was born where I lived now, not the house, just the town. As soon as I was a month old, my mom moved to Tennessee, I went to kindergarten there, but then we moved to Pennsylvania. After I got my scar, we moved to New York. I spent the best part of my life in New York. Wait; forget that, the best part of my life I spent here.
When I first moved there, I guess I looked awkward. I was pale skinned with dark hair that reached my waist. I was tall and thin. I was really quiet and I stayed to myself a lot.
Flashback
Jessica came into the classroom and sat down at a desk in the front. A blonde haired boy came over to her and put his stuff on the desk.
"Move outta my desk." She shook her head and looked at the ground.
"It's my desk."
"Peter Hopkins, it ain't your desk. If she was here, she can sit here!" A dark haired girl with crystal blue eyes smiled at Jessica.
"Lilly, you can shut your trap! You don't know what my desk is or not!"
"Peter, go eat paste."
"I don't eat paste. Hey, girl, what's your name?"
"Jessica," she mumbled quietly.
"Huh?" he asked her.
"Jessica Tracens," she answered slightly loudly.
"Hey everybody," everybody looked at him, "Jessica Tracens eats paste!" He pointed at Jessica and started laughing.
"Peter Hopkins picks his nose and eats it!" Lilly shouted back. Peter looked at Lilly picked his stuff off of the desk and mumbled something under his breath.
"Don't let Peter get to you, he just ain't smart, and sorta mean."
Lilly had been my only friend and she ended up moving two summers after. That's when Peter started making fun of me a lot. He always had made fun of me, just not a lot because people were sort of afraid of Lilly. She was kind of mean, which might be part of why nobody became my friend. Also, Peter was popular so whatever he said they did. So if he said I was a bed wetter, they would believe him.