SMARTS

Chapter Twelve

Avery continues walking outside of the classroom, so I yell again “Avery, wait!” This time she turns around so I walk up to her. Jamie immediately catches on and follows me.

“Hey Avery, I was just wondering... what do you do at recess?” I ask.

She looks at me confused for a few seconds, then responds “I’m usually outside... by myself.”

Jamie looks at her sadly, making her look slightly uncomfortable. I’ve noticed Avery likes her tough image, so I assume she doesn’t appreciate us looking at her as though she’s a hurt puppy.

“Well, would you like to join Sheldon and I for recess?” Jamie asks.

The corners of her mouth turn upward slightly. “Yeah, thanks” she says.

We then all walk together out of the classroom and towards the exit. As we leave the building, I notice Avery smiling. This may not seem like something to make a big deal of, but it was extremely rare to catch Avery smiling – and when you did, often it was when she was up to no good. Right now however, she seemed as though she was genuinely happy.

We walk towards the tree Jamie and I sat under during yesterday’s recess. Once we arrive, we sit beneath in to shade ourselves from the bright sun. The weather today is oddly warm, very unlike normal October weather. I decide that Jamie and I should get to know Avery better.

“So Avery, tell us about yourself” I ask, smiling.

“Well, there’s not much to tell. I like to read and paint, as well as watching movies. I have a pet dog named ‘Scruffy’. I don’t have many friends which makes me sad sometimes, but I manage fine alone.”

I notice how much Jamie and I have in common with Avery, it’s unbelievable. “Well, I love watching movies as well. I have a pet turtle named ‘Bowser’ and I feel the same way about not having many friends. Only recently I met Jamie and now I’m starting to feel more comfortable about it” I reply.

Jamie nods and says “I love to read and paint as well! Right now in art I’m painting a pumpkin for Halloween. I have a pet turtle as well, and I understand how you feel about lack of friends.”

We continue talking and begin to bond over everything we have in common – which turns out to be a lot. She also elaborates more on how she feels isolated at school and her low self esteem (which is the reason for her choice of a darker clothing wardrobe). About three quarters through recess, Logan and Joseph – our fellow outcasts and now drama group members – come over towards us. I introduce them to Avery and vice versa. I personally have never really known much about them. Logan - like Jamie - seems perfectly normal on the outside, but is very shy on the inside. He looks similar to me, having dark hair, dark eyes, and very round glasses (although I am wearing my contacts right now). Joseph however is very bold, yet sometimes, he is percieved as weird by others. He has (dyed) red hair and light eyes; and is generally wearing very daring, bright clothing.

They end up sitting down with us, as they seem to have nowhere else to go. We continue our conversation and fill them in with our inside jokes along the way. So this is what having friends feels like, I (rather pathetically) think. A small part of me hopes we would all become a group of friends who would stick by one another’s sides, the group of outcasts coming together as one.

Once I hear the bell ring, I start getting up to head towards the entrance. However, rather than simply going in with Jamie, I remember that Avery, Logan, and Joseph are all in our class as well, so I wait for everyone to get up. We walk together towards art class as Jamie and Avery talk more about art, while Logan, Joseph, and I discuss the drama presentation further. Although I know how terrible I am at anything art-related, I cannot help feeling excited for class today.