How to Date a Nerd

Chapter 29 - How to Know When to Quit

“Oh, come on! My luck couldn’t be that bad!” I hissed to myself as I hurried back to where Chuck sat laughing.

I pulled off my stained shirt and threw it to him angrily. The back of my ears grew hot. Getting pooped on by a bird wasn’t exactly on my to-do list.

He didn’t even look grossed out when he caught the shirt and waved it in the air. “Yeah! You totally showed me.” Then he laughed his throat out, doubling over.

Discreetly, I looked left and right for signs that anyone else had seen what happened. Looked like everyone was so busy trying to look fab in their bathing suits or hitting on each other to notice.

Just as I thought I was safe, I saw Becky pressing a hand over her mouth. And she was laughing. Ugh, Crud. Could this day get any worse?

I stormed my way to the truck to get a change of clothes. While I was rummaging in the CarryBoy, I toppled down the drum set, messily shoved inside the trunk of the car. The percussions clanked while I tried to pull out my backpack.

Whatever was Nate planning to do with those? Our band was over. My life was over.

The sides of my eyes burned and I had this sudden urge to throw up. All I could do was kick the tire closest to me.

Not the best idea, actually. I thought I broke a toe.

The rest of the day went on slowly. And I spent the whole time sulking on my recliner. Pretending to sleep. Sneaking a look at Sarah every now and then through my lashes.

I heard people wondering what I was doing sleeping in such a fine day and in the beach too. But I didn’t try to explain or care.

I was in no mood to act normal. Not while Sarah was always with Matt. Not while they were always sitting beside each other under the umbrella as Sarah flipped through her paperback of Countess Downstairs. Not while I could see them smile at each other every minute possible. Sarah’s smiles were supposed to be mine.

It was so excruciating I thought the ground would crack and swallow me whole. Maybe that’d be better than this.

Way later than that, Nate jerked my chair and threw me a jacket. I lifted my head to glower at him. He had that animated look on his face again. The same look he makes when he’s having a good time playing Grand Theft Auto on PS. And believe me, you don’t like it when he has that look.

It was already dark and the beach was slowly becoming empty. The guys were making a small bonfire in the middle of three tents they’d set up earlier in a secluded corner of the beach. I’d no idea if night camping was allowed in Gloucester. I couldn’t bring myself to care either. The beach might as well have been overrun by man-eating monsters and I won’t have noticed.

“Whaddaya want?!” I growled, half-dazed.

His fist collided with the side of my head. It wasn’t that hard of a hit but enough to bring me back to my senses.

“I’m still older. Don’t you forget that,” he replied in a laid-back tone.

Normally, I won’t have let him get away with it. But today, I’d no energy to hit back.

“I… can’t do it anymore. I figured maybe she’s miserable without me…” I muttered mostly to myself, still staring blankly at the moving silhouettes of my ‘friends’ against the flickering firelight. “But she isn’t. I know I’m supposed to be glad she’s doing okay but I’m not.”

He chuckled a bit and crossed his skinny arms in front of him.

“You’re a horrible, horrible person and you hate yourself. Is that it? How pathetic.” He stared down on me, looking a bit amused at my silence. “If you’ve still learned nothing, brother, let me tell you. You want something, grab it or others will. That is just how things are. Now get your lazy bum off that chair and do what you came here for.”