c h a p t e r 3

I forgot to set my alarm clock last night.

In consequence, I am late for school.

I'm not angry at myself, nor do I fear getting detention. Especially when Abi Dearest is able to tell me that she feels like herself every time she talks to me, or um, Danny Sanderson that is.

But still, I'm a complete imbecile for trying to end these conversations and nightly talks. And I don't really know why I wanted to treat Abi like crap, but next time I'll be nicer to her.

I get out of bed and quickly throw on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

"Where did my other converse go?" I ask as I'm looking under my bed, and inside the closet for the damn shoe.

I then gather up all my school work and things that were cluttered on my desk and put them in my backpack.

I look at the time on my phone and realize I'd already missed thirty minutes of school. But for some reason, I feel the need to still go to school.

Mom is probably already at work, so, she isn't going to be on my ass, and I really don't have to worry about her right now.

In the kitchen, I grab a bag of potato chips that are in the pantry for breakfast.

But before I can even walk out the door, I notice Mom's cars keys that are on the kitchen table.

Shit.

👓👓👓

"I don't want to get up," Mom whines, "Please leave me be."

I roll my eyes, and nudge Mom more. "Mom, you gotta get up. You're already an hour late for work."

"Then I'll call in sick for work. Leave Collin!"

I don't leave. In response, I pull the comforter off the bed, and throw all the pillows on the floor. Lazily I pick out Mom's clothes for work and throw them at her. "C'mon Mom! You've been doing good for six months! You don't want to lose another job, right?"

She sits up on the bed and gives me a deadly look. "I'm not going to tell you again, leave me the hell alone! Don't you have school?"

I look at Mom and think, Why the hell is my life this way?

Fuck it; I'm missing school.

👓👓👓

Once I change back into my pajamas, and go into the kitchen to make myself a ham sandwich. Mom emerges from her room dressed for work (in the clothes I picked out for her) and in a quick frenzy.

"Collin!" She exclaims. "Where's my car keys?!"

Putting the mayo in the fridge, I point to the counter. "They're right there Mom."

She gives me a look like she's grateful for my existence and grabs the keys from the counter. With a quick adieu, she's out the door, and in the car.

I watch from the front door as she backs out of the driveway, and drives off.

I wonder if she forgot about me. She didn't even try making me go to school.

I sigh, and walk to my room. I turn on the PS3, and put in Yakuza 3.

In a couple hours I'm through all the levels of the game.

Turning off the PS3, I pick up my phone from the nightstand, and touch the Instagram app.

Shamelessly, I go to Abi's profile and look through all her photos. She hadn't posted any new pics since two days ago. But I still look at her other ones. Some of the photos are of her and her friends, hanging out. And some just show her.

You must be wondering how she could possibly allow some lame ass guy such as myself to follow her on Facebook. Well, what I heard before even sending her a request is that she accepted anybody's request on Instagram.

I guess she's that nice of a person.

I go to Danny's profile, and see that he's posted ten new photos of himself. There's even a short vid of him doing the ice bucket challenge last night.

But wasn't the ice bucket challenge like three years ago?

Oh, and I never had to send him a friend request. The thing is, he doesn't set his Instagram as private.

Looking through some of his photos, I realize he's more dedicated to soccer than I initially thought. He's always holding a soccer ball in every photo; he's posing with a soccer ball in every photo; and there are some photos from a couple months ago when he went to soccer camp.

Also, not to mention, his whole family is into soccer.

I look at the Christmas family photo he took with his family last year, and I feel a type of , I don't know, envy maybe. Because I wish that maybe, Mom and I can be that normal.

Could I continue this whole ruse? With enough effort, could I?

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I fell asleep after I turned off the computer.

As I lay sprawled out on the couch, something happens.

A dream occurs.

I'm at school.

"Didn't I miss school?" I whisper to myself. But for some weird-ass reason, I'm still walking inside school; there's no turning back.

My school supplies and other things are in my hand, and I notice the tense atmosphere that hits me when I enter the school.

The bell hasn't rung yet. So everybody is still at their lockers, chatting, and others crowding the hallways.

I go to my locker, and begin to put my things inside.

When I close my locker, something surprising happens. Abi Dearest approaches me. But sad enough, her friends couldn't stay where they are, and follow her.

She doesn't look too happy. Her arms are crossed.

I smile at her, and even give her a small wave. "Hi, Abi," I say, "How's it going?"

She still doesn't smile. She looks me up and down, but her face is still of disdain. "You're an asshole," she tells me straight up. "A no-good asshole. You deceived me."

I laugh nervously, and look around. I now see that everybody in the hallway is looking at Abi and me.

I hear some whispers.

"Um, Abi, I wasn't trying to make you look dumb. It's just that I like—"

She doesn't let me finish.

She puts her hand up in front of my face, and gives me a fake smile. "Save the bullshit Collin. You're just fake as fuck, and you know, I can see why no girls would want to go out with a loser like you." She then turns around, and shouts to everybody in the hallway who's gawking and eavesdropping. "GUESS WHAT EVERYBODY! COLLIN DOE IS A LIAR! HE IS A LOSER! HE SHOULD GO TO HELL!"

One of her followers throw the gum they were chewing in their mouth at me. It lands on my face.

Abi laughs at my face, and gives me the finger.

She walks off with her friends.

Everybody else proceeds to laugh at me, and call me names.

Then unbeknownst to myself, Danny Sanderson approaches me from behind.

As I try to get the piece of gum off my face, he says to me, "Are you the lame fuck who tried posing as me?!" He yells this.

I shamefully nod my head, and I think at this moment, I want to disappear.

He and his friends laugh.

Danny puts up his fist, and it looks like he wants to fight me. "Well, I guess your ass is grass man."

He throws a punch my way, and before I can even react, he's gotten me in the jaw. I hold my jaw briefly and curse.

As lame as I am, I attempt to throw back a punch, or something. But I can't.

It's impossible.

No matter how hard I try, my fist won't go near Danny's face.

He laughs and is about to get another punch in when I hear a beeping sound.

It gets louder, louder, and...

👓👓👓

LOUDER!!!

I open my eyes and sit up on the couch quickly. Sweat drips from my forehead.

The beeping noise I hear is coming from my phone.