CHAPTER 19: A NIGHT TO REMEMBER
After Cameron made the suggestion, we went to the Shin Jo restaurant over near the waterfront. Like what she said, it was an all-you-can-eat buffet with lots of Japanese food to choose from. I got myself some sushi, onigri, and Japanese curry while Cameron got herself some tufo skin, jiaozi and mochi. This was my first time having Japanese food, so I was a bit nervous about trying something new. But after I gave each item on my plate a try, I was so surprised that I liked some of this stuff.
While we both sat in our seats eating our food with none other than chopsticks, we both talked and laughed about what was going on in our lives. "So, I found out that Debbie Monroe may be putting the moves on someone from the public school", Cameron tells me. "What? After hooking up with Jake after he dumped you? No way", I said in disbelief. "It's hard to believe, I know", Cameron says, "but I heard her speak about it just the other day in the locker room. I feel sorry…, for the guy who seeing her". "A slutty Preppy? Who would have thought?" I joked while picking up one of my sushi bits and putting it in my mouth. "So, you come here often?" I then asked her.
"I usually come here once a month as well as that Chinese food joint over in New Coventry", she answers. "My family has always taken me to some of the fanciest places all over the eastern seaboard. I'm a rich kid, but I never wanted to join the Preppies. They're too obnoxious, and I'd rather focus on my gymnastics and cheerleading". "You lived here your whole life?" I asked her. "Pretty much", she answers. "I don't plan to live anywhere else. Places like The Carraways and London, England are nice, but I prefer to live here. Away from the crowd streets of the big cities. My whole life is based here in Bullworth". "Never knew a rich girl who didn't like to be with her peers", I said out-loud. "I don't have anything in common with them, and I'd rather not be in the same clique as Debbie", she replies. "Fair enough", I said while taking a sip of my Sprunk soda.
"Tell me about you", Cameron then tells me. "We've been friends for months, and the only thing I know about you is that you were shy on your first day as well as what you did back at your old school. Tell me about your home life. What was your life like back in Liberty City was like before coming here".
Normally, I never did talk about my home life prior to coming here to Bullworth, but since Cameron had my back since my first day, I guess I did owe her that. At this point, our conversation was going to be serious. "I lived with my uncle, aunt, and cousin back in Liberty. I have a dad, but he's usually busy going around the country doing odd jobs just to make sure we have enough money for bills and food. Had a mom, but she died during childbirth while delivering me. I must have somehow messed up her insides while the doctors were delivering me. Not to mention I had some medical conditions in the first few months of my life. All the money that my dad had earned when he was in the criminal underworld, especially after committing one of the biggest bank jobs in history, was spend on me. We're not close. He'd always missed the important parts of my life, so my respect for him isn't high these days".
"Are you at least close with your extended family?" Cameron asks. "I was at some point", I told her. "They lost their respect for me when I started hanging with the wrong crowd. My uncle and aunt couldn't tolerate me, and my cousin – the closest person I had to a sibling – couldn't stand to be in the same room with me. The wrong crowd, the ones I thought were my friends, they abandoned me as soon as I got into trouble for pouring that bucket of pig's blood onto that kid. I don't think I ever had a true friend back in North Algonquin High, because a lot of my old friends from elementary and middle either left or transferred to another school in the state. I've done a lot of stupid stuff, including what I did to that kid. If I could back in time and change everything, I would".
"That's the thing with life, Greg", Cameron begin to say. "There's always something that we wish we could change in our past. We got to learn from our mistakes and move on. What you did was awful, but at least you're sorry for what you've done and learned from your mistake. Not everyone does that. Attending Bullworth Academy, you just got a fresh start. You could have been sent to juvie, but your family and old school sent you here. If I were you, I'd try not to dwell on the past. What's done is done, and I don't see you any different from the day that we first met. You're a good kid, and you're doing good for this school. I wished Jake was a lot more like you back when we were dating, but now…, I just want him to pay for everything he did".
"The day I first met you and Jake back on my first day, I already knew you were too good for him", I told her. "Thanks, Greg", Cameron says. "That's unfortunately not what everyone thinks though after I broke up with him, or should I say, 'when he broke up with me'?" "The Jocks own Eric and his radio station from what I know", I said. "One of these days, I'm going to have to persuade him into coming on our side. All he's doing is pushing their agenda onto campus. A few good words, and I might get him to help us win the war against the Jocks". "Good luck with that, because I have no idea where Eric runs his radio station", Cameron says.
For the next few minutes, we ate our meal in silence. We didn't know what else to talk about. It was until I finished the last of my curry when Cameron asks me, "How about we go watch a horror movie in the Boys' Dorm?" "What do you suggest?" I asked her. "Well, have you ever watched the movie that the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event was based off?" she then asks. "Alright, let's go watch Blood Night", I said as I took out my wallet and placed a $10 tip on the table for the employee who comes across it.
Before we both exit the building, I took a good look around the restaurant. It was a very nice place, no doubt. The walls were covered in Japanese artwork, but one could tell that it was made up of hardwood, just like the floors. The tables were also made from hardwood, and the seats were made up of black leather. There were several baboon plants placed all over the room, and there was even a water fountain set in the middle of the restaurant. It was a nice restaurant, one that I feel that I will come to when I get the chance.
We exit the building and got into my car. I started up my car and drove up to Main Street, where we came across traffic. We must have spent at least 30 minutes waiting for traffic to get moving. "How long does the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event last?" I asked Cameron. "Up till 11:00 PM", Cameron answers. I looked at the time on my stereo and saw that it was only 9:00 PM. How long did we spend in that restaurant? Or, was a lot of the time wasted when I was waiting for the Jocks to enter the funhouse? "Must be parents taking their kids home after having a good scare", Cameron suggests. "I wouldn't know. I entered the funhouse about an hour before the event started", I told her. "Well, you're about to find out how scary the film is", Cameron says. After a while of waiting in the traffic jam, it finally cleared up enough for me to continue driving to the school.
Once we pulled up into the school's parking lot, we got out and started heading to the Boys' Dorm. We were at the intersection between the two dorms when Cameron says to me, "I'm going to get the movie from one of my friends. I'll be right back". "I'll get the common room ready", I told her as we both parted to get our things.
Once I was in the Boys' Dorm, I looked in the common room to see if anyone was using the TV. Luckily enough, there was no one in the room. I quickly went into my room to fetch a blanket in case we both got cold. Then after that, I bought a few Beam Cola and Sprunk cans in case I got thirsty. I already knew Cameron wasn't going to buy a soda. When we first entered Shin Jo earlier, the first thing she ordered was a glass of water. Knowing that she's a cheerleader and into gymnastics, I'd figured that she's one who really likes to keep her body in good shape as possible.
When I got finished putting things together, Cameron came in the room with a bookbag on her back. She dropped it onto the couch and unloaded it. She pulled out a 7K Ultra HD Disc Player and hooked it up onto the TV. "Damn, 7K", I said out-loud, "and my family are still on 4K". "Using 4K is not too bad. My parents still own VHS cassette tapes and watches them from time to time", Cameron tells me. "Now those are some ancient relics. Your parents must be old", I joked. She gave me a light push right before getting the system started. Once it booted up, she slipped in the film and the main menu pulled up.
Once we sat down on the couch, she pressed play on the controller and film started up. The film started up with the usual opening credits right before showing a female journalist talking about exposing some guy called "Starkweather". Then after some introduction to another character, that was when the film really started getting creepy and spooky. For maybe the next five minutes of watching the main character slaughter gang members in some messed-up ways, I started to look away from the screen.
"Can't take the killings in this film?" Cameron asks me. "I should have known better", I told her. "If I can't take watching Psycho – both the 1960 and 1998 versions – then there was no way I would watch this. And I can't believe that this is based on a true story". "I never knew you were scared to watch Psycho", Cameron says. "When I was a kid, the shower scene scared me to death. I thought that it was actually happened on screen. To this day, I'd rather watch Princess Robot Bubblegum than to even watch a single horror film", I tell her. Suddenly just when Cameron was about to say something, a jump-scare from the movie caught us off-guard and scared us both to death.
"I forgot how that one scene always gets the best out of me", Cameron says. "Damn, do I hate jump-scares", I said while taking a deep breath and pinching my eyes. Once I calmed down some, I made the mistake of laying my hand down right on top of Cameron's. I pulled it back, but just as I did she grabbed hold of it and wrapped her fingers around mine. I looked straight up at her and saw that she was staring back at me. At that moment, I felt something between us. I couldn't describe what it was, but it felt real good, real positive. I slowly moved my head towards her, going about halfway before she did the same thing and locked our lips together.
We kissed for maybe about 10 seconds before we both pulled back from one another. "Wow", we both said at the same time. Cameron paused the movie and then we continued kissing. "I never had a girlfriend once", I told Cameron. "Come on", she says as she pulls me from the couch and towards my room. "Wait, what about protection?" I asked her. A dumb thing to say out-loud, but I knew that was what was going to happen in there. "I'm on the pill", she tells me. "Good enough", I said. We both walked into my room and quickly turned off the lights. With the lights off, I closed the door behind me and locked it up. This was a night that I was going to remember.
The Next Day; Wednesday; 7:30 AM
I woke up with the sunlight gleaming in my face, letting me know that a new day – and month – has just begun. My night was just wild. I have never once wondered what it was like to have sex, and yet I did it with Cameron.
I turned over to see of Cameron has woke up yet, only to see that she has not yet. "Hey, wake up", I whispered in her ear while shaking her. After a minute, she woke up and smiled the moment she saw me. "That was a crazy night", she says to me. "It sure was", I agreed. "What time is it?" she asks before seeing the time on my alarm clock. "We need to get ready for class", Cameron says. She was about to get up when I told her, "I'll step out the room and give you some privacy". I stepped out of bed and walked out of the room, closing the door behind me while I waited outside.
While I was standing outside my door, I noticed a few students either laughing at me or giving me the stink-eye. At first, I didn't know what their problem was until I looked down. I was only wearing a red pair of boxer shorts, nothing else. Damn, I should have slapped on some pants first.
After a few minutes of waiting, Cameron finally came out of my bedroom wearing the same outfit from last night, her hair in a tangled mess. Just as she stepped out of the room, some Greasers let out a couple two-note whistles. "See you in class?" I asked her. "Yeah", she says as she goes into the common room to get her things. So much for the movie, but I think this is the start of something new, something great, for the both of us.
I went back into my room and grabbed a clean school uniform to wear after my shower. I thought about slapping on the jeans now, but I figured there was no point. Everyone already saw me in my underwear, and the stories were going to spread across campus soon enough.
While digging through my wardrobe, I turned on the radio to see if maybe Eric may say something about the prank last night.
So last night, there was an ambush within the Carnival funhouse right when the Halloween Terror Funhouse Event. A few of our football players sustained minor injuries, but were throwing up half of their stomachs. The Carnival staff cleaned up the mess, but the smell lingered for the duration of the event. I think that maybe Greg Winston had something to do with it since he attacked them on the field Friday night. But who were the others that helped him? We may find out soon enough, I'm sure.
Oh yeah, the news was out. The Jocks that Taylor, his crew, and I ambushed were probably going to be bed ridden for a good while, especially since we bombarded them with maybe over twenty Stink-Bombs. And let's not forget the Itching Powder and the scratches that they have gotten just from scratching themselves. I once got hit by Itching Powder before, and I itched something awful for the next week. Whatever was in that Itching Powder, it was 4 times as worst as anything made 20 years ago.
Now with the prank out of the way, it was time to move on to pressing issues: planning our next move. Between the funhouse prank and hooking up with Cameron, this night – as I said before – is one that I will not forget for a long time.