Chapter 4: The Idiot Or The Other Idiot?
At lunch, Todd came to meet me in front of my locker. “Is it just me or is Tyler Lavenchy following you?” His words surprised me a bit before I tossed my hair over my shoulder and took a look behind me. Not even 5 metres away, Tyler stood tall, leaning against a row of washed-out grey lockers with a small crowd of football players and groupies surrounding him.
He quickly straightened up when he saw me before shifting his eyes away a little too obviously. “You’re imagining things.” Slipping my last textbook into my locker, I grabbed my lunch before slamming my locker closed. “Why would Tyler Lavenchy follow me? Think before you speak.”
Todd shrugged nonchalantly. “That’s true. It’s just that I’ve been seeing him around since break and he keeps looking over at you like he’s... lonely or something.” Almost. Todd almost let the topic slide before his gaze zoomed in on me like a vulture on its prey. “Wait... How do you know that guy standing over there was Tyler? Do you guys know each other?!”
I bit my lip and started down the hallway. To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure of the answer myself. Did I know Tyler or didn’t I? I guess it would be fairer to say that I once knew a boy named Tyler, but people change, and sometimes in a way that pulls them apart.
The irony of course, was that he wasn’t the one who changed. I was. The rest was one long complicated story that was as much his fault as it was mine.
“We have a couple of classes together, but enough about that, I need to find Marshall. He needs to put my plans into action soon because I’m running behind schedule.”
Todd just stares at me. “Camila... he thinks you’re a stalker.”
I stopped and glared at him, and as much as I wanted to retaliate I couldn’t think of anything logical to say. “Maybe it wasn’t that great of an idea to walk inside the male change room.”
“You think?” He rolled his eyes at me before his faintly freckled lips spread across his face into a drawn-out smile. “Here’s an idea. Instead of Marshall, how about we aim for Tyler instead?”
“No.”
“It’s a great idea! You have no clue where Marshall even is, not mentioning the change room mishap and the fact that he’s a complete idiot. With Tyler, you’re in his class, he most likely has an idea who you are and he’s not a raging buffoon.”
I groaned. “All boys are idiots. It spreads like disease.”
“Hey!! I’m a boy!”
“I know.”
I didn’t even wait for a reaction nor did I really have the time as the door in front of me swung open and out came Marshall like a godsend. His eyes pierced through mine instantly and we held eye contact for only a split second before sending our brainwaves across to each other.
Holy shit, Marshall thought, You’re going to kill me for what I did in the shower room today aren’t you?
You better believe it, I thought back.
I held up 3 fingers in front of his face before offering him an impudent smirk. “Three seconds,” I said. “If you’re going to run, I’ll give you a head start.”
His body remained like a statue even when his friends from behind gave his back a light push. “One,” I said.
He blinked, and then like a deer who suddenly realized he was going to get eaten if he didn’t make a run for it, turned around and ran. “Two.”
I could hear him screaming as he pushed the people in his path aside. “Move it! Get out of my way!”
I laughed out loud before turning to Todd. “Look at him go!”
He only shook his head at me before holding up 3 fingers. “Three,” he grumbled. “You better go or you won’t catch him.”
I shrugged, tossed him my lunch, and bolted down the hallway after Bambi. The students became blurry images as I passed and within seconds, I managed to have Marshall within my full line of vision. He wasn’t an athlete for nothing of course, and I admit I might have underestimated his abilities because I couldn’t get an advantage on him during our little game of tag. Still, the school was only so big, and it wasn’t that long until he ran out of space to run.
Cornered into a dead end at the back of the school which was barricaded by a wired fence, he waved his hands at me to stop. “Time out,” he huffed. “Time out. I don’t want to play this game with you anymore.”
I shrugged. “How about another game then?” I stopped in my place and watched him lean back against the fence to catch his breath. “Did you ever play that game in elementary school Marshall? The one that went, what time is it Mr. Wolf?” I gave him an evil grin and took a few steps forward just to scare him. “Lunch time.”
His eyes edged out of his sockets a little. “Stop it,” he screamed. “What’s wrong with you!?”
I heaved a long sigh of exhaustion. “Calm down,” I muttered. “I was only playing. Don’t shit yourself in front of a lady. It’s disgraceful. Besides, I’m not here looking for revenge so stop looking so pitiful.”
My words seemed to put him at ease and he sighed in relief before standing up straight. “So then, why did you chase me all the way here?”
“My answer. You didn’t give me an answer this morning – whether you’ll help me or not.”
Marshall cocked one eyebrow before giving me a weird expression. “Do you even have to ask? The answer is obviously no.”
I took a deep breath in and then a deep breath out. “Marshall,” I said. “I’m going to give you a second chance.”
His lips broke into a nervous smile. “What? But I just said–”
“No Marshall, just listen to me. I said I’m going to give you another chance.”
His eyes widened. “I know! And I just said that my answer is n–”
I clenched my teeth. “Marshall!! I’m generous enough to give you a second chance damn it!”
He didn’t even listen to me. “Screw this!” He screamed and then quickly turned around and started climbing the fence. “You’re ridiculous!”
I didn’t waste a second and quickly closed up the rest of the distance between us. Unfortunately, he had already made his way up the fence and I had one chance to stop him from escaping so I grabbed what I could grab – his jeans – and with all my might, yanked.
The scene was over within a few seconds.
Marshall stood on one side of the fence and I stood on the other... holding up his pair of pants. I waved them in the air. “If you want these, you’re going to have to come back.”
He blinked at me – stared down at his boxers. “Nah. I’m good like this.” Then he turned around and leisurely started walking away assuming I wouldn’t climb up the fence with the type of shoes I was wearing.
He was right.
Which pissed me off.
I was used to dancing for hours on high heels so running wasn’t a problem, but climbing up a fence was a different story and I wasn’t going to risk getting my ankles twisted. “Wait!” I shouted. “You can’t go.” He kept walking. “Wait! Please! I need your help. Marshall, please. I’m... begging you.”
He stopped, and for a moment, the world seemed to have paused for me. Marshall had halted in his tracks, silence had filled the air, and not even the cheerful chirpings of the May birds dared to interrupt me when I spoke.
“Do you know how stars are born?” I asked. “From an explosion. From pain. Nobody ever said that being great was easy and my entire life, people have always tried to pull me down. People are messed up you know – they can never like anyone just the way they are. If you’re too smart, you’re a nerd. If you’re too talented, you’re a show-off. If you’re too pretty, you’re a slut. If you’re too unique, you’re a freak, and even when you’re too normal, there’s something wrong with you. You’re too boring.”
“All my life, I’ve been subjected to that kind of prejudice. I was always the girl that all the teachers praised, all the parents wished their daughter was, all the boys would kiss the ground for, and because of that, the people who I thought were my best friends secretly sabotaged me behind my back." I laughed. "Girls can be so cruel when they want to be.”
“Then there came a time,” I continued, “when it got so bad that the only way I could keep going was by pushing everyone away from me. It wasn’t that much of a lost. All they ever did was hindered or hurt me anyways, but recently, I realized I can’t be like that anymore.” I pushed a lock of black hair behind my ear before raising my eyes. There was no use hiding anything from him.
“In order to accomplish my dream of becoming a Broadway actress, I need to be well rehearsed in every emotion possible, and the one that I’m missing is love. I’ve locked my heart up so long ago that I don’t even remember what it feels like to be really close to someone – to depend on them, to share all of my secrets with. I just... I just want to learn how to open up my heart again. Teach me that and show me what love means.”
Marshall slowly turned around and peered at me. “My answer is still no. I get where you’re coming from, and I understand what you want me to do, but I... I can’t do it.”
“Why?” I shouted.
“It’s just...” He groaned and reached up to ruffle his hair – apparently at a loss for words. “How do I put this? Look, you said you wanted to learn more about love, right? Well here’s a free lesson. This is the first rule to falling in love.” Marshall walked up to me before lowering his face toward mine – so close that my skin could taste his breath – so close that the only thing separating us was the fence. “You don’t get to choose the person you fall in love with.”
It was the first time I realized how beautiful and catastrophic his eyes were – a vivid baby blue that softly melted into a milky green ring that surrounded both his pupils. At that moment, I wasn’t sure what hit me more, his eyes or the truthness inside his words, but I somehow found the courage to raise my chin and glare down at him.
“Well you obviously don’t know me very well,” I said. “I’m Camila Jones. I break all the rules.”
He shook his head before pulling away and turning his back to me once more. “Forget it. It’s impossible to get through to you.”
“Wait!! Please don't leave!”
“You don’t even get the most basic thing,” he shouted. “I’m not the guy you’re supposed to fall in love with! Even if you force it, it won’t happen! It’s just going to end up being a waste of time.”
And even though I knew it wasn’t going to work, I still screamed it. “I’ll pay you,” I yelled. “I’ll even pay you! Then you don’t have to care whether I fall for you in the end or not, and you’ll get something so it won’t be a waste of your time. Just treat it like a part-time tutoring job – the subject: love.”
I was so embarrassed after. What kind of self-righteous person would–
“What... what did you say?” Like a rusted robot head, Marshall’s head slowly turned around. “Did you say money? Like, how much are we talking here?”
I couldn’t believe it. All this chasing around, all this effort, all this time, and all I had to do was wave a couple of paper bills in his face. “You know,” I mumbled slowly, “I don’t mean to be judgemental after that long speech I pulled, but you really are just as big of a whore as they say you are.”