How to Date a Nerd

Chapter 11 - We Went Commando on the School Janitor

Chapter 11 - We Went Commando on the School Janitor

Nathan plunked several folders on our usual table at Gil's. The plan was to be executed in two days and we still didn't have a car or a way to break into our old high school.

"Here's a list of what we need and please know your part," he said mostly to Chuck and Reed who took the folders gingerly, throwing me looks that said something between "This isn't fun anymore," and "You're brother's a total nerd."

Like I needed to be reminded of that.

"Guys, we can't screw up on this, alright?" I muttered, hoping they won't back out on me.

They just both nodded with a reluctant "Psshyeah," while thumbing through the pages of whatever it was Nathan came up overnight.

"There's still this problem about getting into the school. Chuck, I may have to involve Becky on this. Is that okay?"

Chuck just nodded blankly, like he didn't really get what I said before sipping from his cup.

"Hot! Hot! HOT!" he yelped, spitting coffee all over his older brother's Bob Marley T-shirt.

They started arguing and nudging each other while Nathan and me groaned and sighed until they got tired of arguing who sucked more at spitting. The argument then veered to whoever ate Chuck's secret stash of chocolate pudding in the fridge. In the end, they threatened each other of broadcasting to the world that they named their blankies Fluffycape and Mr. Huggers.

"Dudes! Focus," I muttered, staring at the ceiling. I could feel a coma coming just listening to these two.

"Okay. Relax," Reed groaned dabbing a napkin over his stained shirt. He fished something out of his pocket and showed it to us. It was a set of three keys. "Yes," he said before we could say anything. "A duplicate of the back entrance and the gym. Stole it from Matt's room last Tuesday. He had them just in case we had to practice football on the weekends. I remembered him telling me that he didn't return it to Lynch yet."

Lynch was the creepy psycho school janitor who constantly shouted and yelled and cursed at students for stepping on his floor. There was this one time when he rigged the water thermostat connected to the Hillers'-Hopkinton High's football team-shower room because the team accidentally "trampled" on the floor he just polished right after practice. Most of the jocks, including Chuck and Reed sustained first degree burns after that.

Chuck's eyes widened, almost spluttering out coffee at us. "Bro! Matt is so going to kill you if he finds out."

"I know right?" Reed sniggered. "It's a payback for stealing your future girlfriend then losing her to a huge dude with teeth like Clorets."

"Bitter much?" Nathan blurted. Got no clue if he even knew the backstory about Becky and Matt, but I was sure they were referring to Drake as the Clorets-teeth guy.

The Ferguson brothers just shrugged and did their super complicated secret handshake, which I'd no intent whatsoever on learning.

"Now that everything's settled, all we need is a car," Nathan rubbed his chin and looked outside through the glass panels of the diner.

At that point, just right after Nathan said the word car, a fatigue nineties' Isuzu pickup truck swerved to the narrow customer's parking lot. We threw each other meaningful looks when we saw who drove the truck. Skinny, pale, brown curly hair, big droopy eyes, a forehead wide enough to land a helicopter on and a pair of rectangular glasses jutting over his nose. Ricky Burns, chess club president, and certified nerd.