I'm Going Nowhere Fast (Peterick)

1. I Can't Sleep In The Wake Of Saturday

(Patricks P.O.V)

I sat in the corner in the music room with one of the school's guitars in my hands. I kept my eyes on my hands as I placed them on the strings, creating different chords. I was afraid to look up at the bunch of popular kids that sat in the other corner of the room talking about pop singers and rappers. My friends, Andy Hurley and Joe Trohman, sat beside me. Unlike me they stared over at the popular group with true curiosity on their faces. I didn't understand what made them curious but I wasn't one to question them.

I finally relented and glanced up from my fingers to look at the popular group. Instead of glancing at all the pretty girls my eyes landed on the only person that took my interest. Pete Wentz. His black hair was messy and his brown eyes shone as he laughed at something stupid one of his jock friends had said. I watched as they punched each other in the arms which made them laugh harder. I shook my head and looked away from the group of people, returning my focus back to the guitar in my hands. The melody that came from the guitar helped soothe my nerves.

Joe picked one of the guitars up and began to strum it as well but he continued to stare at the popular group. I punched his arm a little harder than necessary so that I could get his attention. Joe's eyes landed on me with a startled look in them.

"What was that for?" Joe demanded.

"Stop staring," I hissed. "I don't want them over here!"

Joe shrugged his shoulders as he glanced down at the guitar and he began to tune it. "They're interesting and you can't deny it! I've seen you stare at Wentz over there. There is something strange about them and I would like to know more about it."

"And too them we are freaks and strange weirdos so maybe you should stop staring," I snapped.

"Nope," Joe said.

I clenched my teeth together in frustration as I strummed the guitar a little too hard, causing a string to break. I sighed as I got to me feet and went over to the teacher where I collected another string. I went back to my spot in the corner and changed the strong expertly, after all it was something I've done a million times.

I was aware of someone staring at me and I looked up to see that someone of the girls were whispering to one another and that Pete was staring at me curiously. I tightened my grip on the neck of the guitar in an attempt to stop myself from flipping them off.

Joe nudged my shoulder and I lifted my gaze to see that he was staring back at the popular group. "Obviously we're interesting to them too."

I looked back to Pete and his group to see that they had returned back to what they were doing . . . nothing.

"Obviously we aren't interesting enough," I muttered, thankful that they had stopped looking at us.

Andy tugged a headphone out of his ear. "What did you say?"

I shook my head. "I didn't say anything."

Andy rolled his eyes at me and shoved the headphone back into place. I turned my attention back to the guitar just as the bell rang. My stomach felt as if it wanted to claw its way out of my throat as I put the guitar back into its spot and as I grabbed my bag. Andy and Joe walked off in the direction of their English class which left me alone to walk through the hallway towards my Maths class. I kept my eyes trained on the ground in an attempt to be unnoticeable, something I could do quite well. People bumped into me as they walked past me. I wasn't sure if it was on purpose or if it was an accident, I could never tell.

I made it to Maths unnoticed and I quickly made my way to the back of the classroom. I kept my gaze locked onto my Maths book as Pete and one of his friends walked into the room. They sat in front of me which caused my heart to beat wildly in my chest.

Avoid eye contact, avoid eye contact, I chanted over and over again in my head.

I remembered the last time I had made eye contact with this group. My hand automatically ran to my left arm where it begun to run up and down absentmindedly. I still remembered the feel of them giving me a dead arm.

The lesson started and I only lifted my eyes when I was copying something from the board. Halfway through the lesson, Pete's 'buddy' was sent to the office halfway through the lesson because he kept throwing paper at the back of the teachers head. The moment Pete's friend left the room he spun around in his seat and slipped a piece of paper on my desk before spinning back around to face the front of the room. I stared at the folded bit of paper in front of me; hesitantly I grabbed it and opened it up.

Meet at the gym tomorrow morning at 9. We need to talk - Pete

I gulped nervously as I scrunched the paper up and slipped it into my bag. What could Pete possibly want to talk about?

The rest of the day passed by quickly and I was thankful when the final bell rang. It was Friday and that meant that the weekend was ahead of me. A weekend away from this torture chamber. I was almost smiling as I walked to Joe's car but the smile faded when I remembered something. Pete wanted to meet with me. My good mood instantly disappeared as I climbed into the backseat of Joe's car.

"What's wrong?" Andy asked as he spun around to face me.

"Nothing," I lied.

Joe spun around so that he was staring at me too. "You seem sad. Usually you're happy on a Friday afternoon."

"I'm just tired." Another lie. Hopefully they would buy this one.

I looked at Joe and Andy in the eye trying to show them that I had nothing to hide. Eventually they turned around and Joe started the car. A sigh escaped my lips. I leaned back against the seat and chose to stare out of the window instead of joining in with the guys' conversation. I really needed to think things through even though I really wanted a distraction.

****

I tossed and turned in my bed all night. I just couldn't sleep. Obviously. My meeting with Pete was playing on my mind and I didn't understand why he would want to talk to me. I wasn't one of cool kids nor was I really sociable when it came to people who treated me like shit. It's not like I need a reminder that I'm an idiot because I sure as hell get the memo every five seconds.

I tried reading my Maths textbook in an attempt to lull myself into sleep but the numbers on the pages reminded me that I had an exam that I needed to study for. I tried to play my guitar but I ended up waking my parents up which caused them to yell at me. I tried everything. I hated laying here knowing that I had to meet someone that had tormented me before. I was afraid that Pete would invite his so-called buddies to the meeting. I was afraid that this would be an excuse to beat the crap out of me without them getting suspended or expelled. I should just stay home but that could result in a beating for me at school if they weren't afraid of the teachers.

It was around 5 AM when I gave up on sleep entirely. I rolled out of bed feeling like a zombie. I took a long shower in an attempt to wake me up but that didn't help. I felt like crap. I spent the morning lying in bed until the clock declared that it was 7:30. I got back up and grabbed a piece of bread as I made my way out of the front door. I could have waited until later to drive to the gym but I decided it would be best for me to go for a walk.

The birds chirped happily in the trees overhead forcing me to glare at them. I was not happy. I shoved my hands into the pocket of my jacket and pulled my iPod. I sighed the moment New Found Glory's Head On Collision began to come through the headphones. It made the walk to the gym somewhat bearable and it put me in a good mood. I made it to the gym fifteen minutes earlier than I was expected to be here but I noticed that Pete was already here because his car was parked nearby.

The sounds of laughter caused me to turn around to see Pete exiting the gym with his friends. My body stiffened as I took a step back. The group stopped and stared at me with grins that suggested that they were about to beat the crap out of me.

"He must be lost," one of the jocks said.

They stepped towards me but Pete raised his arm and stopped them.

"I'll deal with Stump," Pete said.

The group snickered at me as they turned and continued on their ways to their cars. I took another step back and mentally slammed the palm of my hand against forehead. I was stupid. So stupid!

Pete stepped towards me with a small smile. "We need to talk."