Chapter 8

Part 2

When we got back inside, we were laughing and talking about our mini adventure. It was quite hilarious.

Only then Caitlyn said, "I'ma fuck up that fichus if it ever messes with me again."

Then I went off. I laugh so hard that I start crying and fall on the floor, rolling around. And it wasn't even that funny. People look at me like I'm crazy, but honestly, I don't care right now.

"Get up, you loon," Caitlyn says, pulling me back to my feet.

I calm down and we keep walking. When we turn the corner, someone opens a door really fast and I smack right into it. I fall over on the ground.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" the person who ran into me apologizes.

I look up and see Tess Tyler herself looking down at me.

"Wait… Nate?" she asks. "What the hell are you doing here?"

I get up. "Running into doors. What else? The real question is what are you doing here?"

Tess huffs. "Visiting my sick grandma. Now, if you excuse me…" She pushed me a bit and then walks down the hall and leaves.

Caitlyn turns to me. "She so wasn't visiting her grandma."

"How do you know?" I ask.

"Because all her grandparents are already dead."

"Oh… Well, I think we need to do a little bit of… Tess-tigation."

Caitlyn raises her eyebrows. "Tess-tigation? Sounds provocative. Let's do it."

We both look at the door Tess came out of. Caitlyn hesitantly opens it and we both cautiously go inside.

"A rehab center?" Caitlyn asks, puzzled. "Why the hell would she be…"

"It's for eating disorders," I say, looking at a sign.

Caitlyn stands there, shocked. "Wow. Who ever thought that Little Miss Perfect could be so fucked up like the rest of us? Ooh, this is rich! Wait until we tell everyone at school!"

"No, we're not going to tell anyone anything! This is her own private business. We need not to stoop down to her level."

"Aw, but come on! We could get back at her for all the shit she's pulled in the past!"

Yes, revenge would be nice, but… "I'd rather not."

"God, sometimes, I really want to kill you," Caitlyn says and we head back into the mail hallway.

"I love you too."

Caitlyn and I walk back into the room and see Jason sitting there with his laptop.

"Hi," I say.

"Hey," Jason says, not tearing his attention away from the computer. "How was your walk?"

"Interesting…" I trail off, not quite sure what to say. A girlfriend and a huge secret all in one outing? Wow.

"So," Jason says. "I'm looking at some colleges in the states. What do you think about the Collin University of North Texas?"

"Don't go to Texas," I say but trail off when I think about the initials of the school.

I burst out laughing.

"I don't get it," Jason says. "What's so funny?"

I can't control myself. It was a pandemonium.

"What?" Jason asks, frustrated.

"Collin… University… North… Texas…" I say in between laughs.

Caitlyn then gets it and she too has a fit on the ground.

"I still don't get it!" Jason groans.

"It spells cunt, you idiot!" I say, continuing to roll on the floor.

"Ugh, Nate. You're so immature. I'm gonna kill you."

But I can't get over how funny it was. You know when you laugh and you just can't stop? Well Caitlyn and I had that.

"Well," Jason says, changing the subject, "Doctor Schneider says that you can go home tomorrow."

But I didn't hear a thing he said. All I heard was the laughter Caitlyn and I were producing.

"Did you hear me Nate? You can go home tomorrow. Isn't that great? You can finally go back to school!" Jason exclaims over my laughter.

I stop.

Yeah… school.

"You just ruined my life," I say.

X X X

The next day, I wake up. And guess what? I'm pouting. Because it's Tuesday. Which means I have to go to school.

"Can I stay here just one more day?" I ask Jason.

He shakes his head. "This isn't a hotel, Nate."

"Yes… but I don't want to go to school."

"Why? Is there someone bullying you?"

"No. Why the hell would someone be bullying me? No, I just hate going to school."

"Consider yourself lucky," Jason says.

"Lucky?"

"Yes. You get to go to school. I don't."

"Yes well you could if you had gotten that hockey scholarship and didn't nearly kill that guy."

"Yes, well he pissed me off."

"Whatever, Mommy."

Jason rolls his eyes and we set off once I put on my Muggs.

Mom had to come down and sign a bunch of stuff.

You know, it was really nice of her to come and visit.

Not.

Jason and I get in his car and we drive away.

Only too bad for me, Jason drives straight into the school parking lot.

"No, no, no," I say, shaking my head. "No school."

"Yes. School," Jason says and shoves my backpack at me.

"I can't." I cough. "Oh, no, I think I'm coming down with something again."

"No, you're not."

"Well I can't go to school… Because I don't have that… thingie."

"I put everything school-related into this backpack."

"No, but you didn't put that one thingie in there."

"What thingie?"

"You know… the thingie. The thingie I need… for… math."

"A calculator?"

"Yes. That's exactly the thing I don't have. Well, no point in going to school if I don't have a calculator."

"I bought you a calculator yesterday."

"Yeah, but it's not in my backpack."

"Yes it is. I put it in there last night."

"I hate you so much…" I sling my backpack over my shoulder and slam the car door without saying 'bye' and I head straight to my first period class.

First period started thirty minutes ago – another good reason not to go to school today.

When I walk into my class, Ms. Tranny stops talking about mitosis (or whatever the hell she was rambling on about) and says, "Where were you? Do you have a pass?"

I shake my head and say, "No. I almost died. I think that's a good enough excuse." She gives me a weird look and I just go sit down.

When I sit down, my lab partner turns to me. "So did you have a nice weekend?"

I shake my head. "No."

"Why?"

"I was sick."

"Dude, my weekend was awesome."

"Mmm hmm…"

"Yeah I went to this party. It was amazing."

"Whose party?"

"Uh… your brother's."

"Oh."

Awkward.

It's awkward because my lab partner's a real creeper/stoner/pervert and he was at my house.

"Yeah. It was so cool. Except for when the coppers showed up."

I huff. "Everyone is talking about this raving party with cops, but I don't remember any of it! And I was there! Hell, I live there!"

"Did you drink the orange juice?"

"Um… yes."

"Mmm hmm, that's why."

"That's why what?"

"That's why you don't remember. Some chick spiked it with X."

"What!?"

"Yeah. I drank it. It was awesome. I was all like… whoa."

"Are you fucking kidding me?!"

"No, dude. Not kidding you. It was radical."

"No, are you kidding me about the X thing? Because I drank it, got accused of being a druggie, and got horribly sick. And I don't remember ever doing drugs. Do you know who put it in there?"

"Yeah."

"Who? Tell me!"

"Mitchie Torres."

"Oh. My. Fucking. God. That little bitch!"

"Dude, don't hate her. She made the party bitchin'."

"She almost killed me!"

"Good lord, you didn't drink enough of it to kill yourself."

"And how do you know?"

"Because I watched you drink it."

"You watched me drink it and didn't even bother to stop me?"

"Well you were being a party pooper. I thought maybe if you drank some you'd be the life of the party."

"But I was sick! Do you know how dangerous that was for me to – oh my god, you know what? I don't want to talk to you any more; you're making me hate life even more than I already do with every word you say." I take all my stuff and move to the seat in the back.

I so should have stayed home.

A\N: Hey, you may be wondering why it's in two parts. Long story. And I kinda don't want to tell you because it involves me living near George Bush and something about my mum saying, "Claire, what if you're in a parking lot and your boyfriend attacks you and rapes you? Then what do you do?" I don't know what that has to do why my chapter 8 is in two parts, but it is very important on the matter. Long story.