Beauty Meets Nerd (Alt POV, We are all the heroes of our own story)

NOTE: This is a sub-path, I like alternate, divergent POVs sometimes. Some people may hate this for various reasons. I am not sure how much sex will be involved. Also, please note, this was started when main story was at chapter 70.

I walked into the cafeteria hoping to grab our friend table, perhaps run into Isaac and discuss the timing for the Saturday's adventure. This year he had the misfortune of being in an earlier lunch than the us. I fortunately had gym class before lunch and could rush here a bit earlier than the others as our gym teacher let us out early to shower and change. I figured Isaac would be happy to have the company. We all knew what it was like to be an outsider here at school.

Secretly, I also wanted to have the chance to ogle Ms. Wright. She was my ideal girl, most of the guys in the school, or even around town, probably thought the same. I had seen her around the neighborhood for years and had been enthralled by her. I once even followed her to her house in the hopes of talking to her, but saw a mountain of a man welcome her home and chickened out.

I did work up the courage a month ago to ask her if she would like to study together, I mean I was third in our class. I didn’t have any real expectations as I had seen her bounce between dating various jocks and popular kids over the past few years. I knew I did not fit into any category she would consider. Still, it would be nice to get close to the hot chick and work on socializing with the opposite sex. Don’t get me wrong, she is smart and probably didn’t need help. Even with that I felt we should help each other if we could, considering we both grew up in that neighborhood. Well, she technically was two blocks over, and that does make a difference sometimes.

I wasn’t as awkwardly shy around girls as my friends were, at least outwardly. Whereas they all shriveled in upon themselves, I became more boisterous and admittedly a bit rude. I didn’t want to act that way, but crass humor was a staple when my father was alive and it got us all roaring with laughter at his outrageous antics.

That was the before.

Before we lived on the wrong side of the tracks. Before my mother started dating and coming home blackout drunk half the time. Before my older sister began to follow her path.

I vowed never to drink, and I admit my respect for women had plummeted since my father had passed and I had seen the mess my mother and sister had become. I so wanted them to return to the way they were. I still got hints of it here and there, especially on a nice weekday afternoon, before the weekend began, on Thursday. Every Thursday.

It was one of the reasons I enjoyed going to Isaacs for D&D so much. I wouldn’t have to meet my mother, or sister’s date. If I was lucky, I wouldn’t have to hear them stumbling in, if they got home early, or very late. It was nice to get away.

Honestly, I was jealous of all my friends. Especially Isaac, I liked him, he was nice, but I admittedly was jealous of his family life. To be rich and have a nice family. Not to mention it was well known his life was set. He had a track in life. As far as I could tell the only thing holding him back was his lack of confidence. He was a bit average, but not stupid, short, fat, or acne laced, no he never was really like his friends.

As I looked for Isaac, I stopped dead in my tracks as I saw him talking to Emma, Ms. Wright. My crush, everyone's crush. He didn’t even notice as I got closer. She didn’t either. They were so lost in each other. Then I heard them.

“How often do you study after school?”

“Every day.”

A light and cute chuckle as she shook her head. “I should have seen that coming. Okay, so maybe we can meet a few times after school to go over things?”

A pause before Isaac nodded. “If you want.”

“Great!” she said with another big smile, it was brilliant in a way I had never seen from her before. I had looked at her a lot. Not stalkerish, but with reverence.

I wanted to vomit; I could feel the bile coming up through my throat. She had been so pithy when she rejected my invitation not a month ago. I ran to the trash can and hurled. Nobody came over to see if I was OK. As I lifted my head, a few kids began to laugh. I ran from the cafeteria to the nurse’s office; I was going to be useless today.

As I sat in the nurse’s office, I tried to gather myself. I wasn’t going home early. There was nobody home currently, and I wasn’t well enough. Plus, I would probably be better by after school chess club.