The Nerd Has A Boner 2: Summer Deeds

Chapter Two

Disclaimer: This perspective is not to bash anyone but to shed light on strict households. It's something different not many people talk about. I've got nothing against Christianity.

"Lifestyles can be changed. They can stay the same or become suffocating. A vice grip on your opinion of life could crush it to bits."-Anonymous

Betty winkle

I awake to the heat of summer. The blinds shut to prevent any more sun from coming in. My purple walls and white paintings are reflecting the sun. A very loud dog climbed on top of me.

"Hello, Scooby. Today is humid, isn't it?" I ask him. He looks at me before laying down on my lap. His tail wags furiously. I feel like I can already hear the lectures I'll get for college. Pancakes waft my nostrils coming from downstairs.

The piles of my favorite romance books crash once I get up. Scooby leaps back down the bed and out of my bedroom. I tie my hair and take a shower. There's always time to clean my room later. The cold water rejuvenates my perspiring body.

Not too far, you can see the beach from where I live. A wave crashes to the shore and, the smell of sea salt comes through the window in my bathroom. A few seagulls fly overhead.

Everything I do outside my household is what anyone would want. I get perfect grades and tons of recommendations from teachers. By the way, a clean record and a sick moped should equal a great summer. It doesn't.

What is there not to like about my life?

My strict religion is all thanks to my parents. The water cuts off in the shower. I step out in a towel. I need to find something to wear. As I pass my bathroom mirror, I can't help but notice the large cross on the opposite side of the wall. That's nothing compared to the eight other crosses in this house.

We're Christians, "faithful Christians," my father would say. We are supposed to pray when we get up and when we sleep. Never miss a beat in reading the bible. Oh and, don't sin unless you repent. They've drilled a lot of these words in my head by now. I open my wardrobe and, low and behold. There is barely anything that I won't die of heatstroke wearing. My clothes cannot be too short or too revealing.

There feels like no escape from this lifestyle I live. It gets worse each day. Fredrick was the only crack in the rock. Me being the rock. He wasn't fazed by anyone's words. His voice was the smoothest. His hair is blond and shaggy. At least, that's how I still remember him before he disappeared. One day he was here and the next, gone.

Fredrick would give me a pout every time I corrected his work or a smile when he finally understood. I was only his tutor for so long. And in that short time, I grew feelings, deep feelings. The call I got from him wasn't a good one. Fredrick sounded so out of it. I never thought it would be the last time I heard from him. Sarah tried to get me to see beyond him and it worked for a little while.

Now, there are only two friends I have. Sarah and Oliver. The only reason is that my other friends were never approved by my parents. They either looked like the devil or were the devil.

So, I stopped telling them who I hung out with. Don't get me wrong. I do not hate being a Christian. I appreciate the fact that I have something to turn to in my darkest times. My parents don't consider my feelings towards being one. The lifestyle feels like a heavyweight on me. I lean my head toward the doorway of my wardrobe. A knock comes on my door.

"I'm changing!" I yell.

"Breakfast is waiting for you downstairs. Nothing better than the lord's offerings," my father sings to himself. I don't bother saying anything back. His steps grow faint. I hurriedly take out a bag from the back of my closet.