Thin Bones

64- Thin Bones

**

"It's sad, boring. But if you insist," Gaige licked his lips.

**

"I've been one type of person my entire life. Picture perfect, role model, a-bleep-kissing, future-planned, goody-two-shoes," Gaige's voice filled the black screen. 

Slowly, a tall teen adorned in orange and black football gear floated onto the screen. The boy looked like he was trying to look angry, tough, a helmet under one arm, football under the other. The photo had a preprinted caption on it. 

"All my life I've only ever known what it's like to be applauded. To be valued for my outward appearances. All my life I've only ever known what it's like waste my time to please others knowing it was short term and I'd have to constantly repeat to keep trying to make people happy."

On the top, it read, "Gaige Carson #27". On the bottom, "8th Grade Varsity QB". The eighth-grader looked too old for his age. The photo stayed on the screen for a little longer before fading away.

"All before high school even started. Middle school is where I started to think about a...reivention of myself. Technically speaking it was an idiotic idea, my town only has one middle school, therefore everyone I went to school would be moving to the one high school. Who would I be rebranding myself to?"

A new picture floated up. It was a picture of a blonde, tallboy. This time he was jumping up in the air, the outline of his body a little fuzzy from being caught midmovement. The basketball was already out of his hand and aiming towards the basketball hoop in the driveway.

"But all I wanted to do was try something new. I was so f-bleep-ing tired of being in charge of everyone and their decisions and their emotions and their pride. I was so tried of overworking myself for such underwhelming rewards. For two years, all of the seventh and eighth grade, I fought myself trying to decide what to do. I didn't tell anyone. I'm a pretty good actor. I fought myself as we walked into high school. And I was presented with my final two options."

The blonde boy, what we could only assume was Gaige, looked bright with excitement and his smile. The fact he was off the ground, with the sun behind him, he looked like an angel. 

That too faded away.

**

Gaige had his eyes slanted, his head turned at a light angle, but his eyes turned at the camera.

"Two final options to maintain my popularity -or rather reputation. Because come on, everyone knows it always comes down to reputation. But how I maintain my reputation and my sanity, that's the true test," Gaige waved his black stick in the air as if it were his finger waving as a warning.

"It's a fast train. To choose your side of the track," Gaige shrugged, "I was hesitant, glad I made it in time."

"What are the tracks?" The camera shifted focus a little closer on Gaige, less of his environment and more on him.

Gaige stared just past the camera as he seems to do quite a lot. He silently lifts his stick to his lips, everything waits, so he could pull it back out.

"The first one is the most obvious. What I everyone thinks I should have chosen," The cloud trickles out with his words, "Choose the fake purity. Choose the sports, the big teams, the school support, the endless fans, fake friends. One side of the track is to become an athletic god, to bring home trophies and news stories and more money for the athletics department. That side is the 'right' type of reputation," Gaige grimaced with his air-quotes.