High School
High School. If I was to explain it, I think it would be best described as a hierarchy of sorts. You see, you have all your typical cliques. Cheerleaders, sporty kids, nerds or as we liked to be called “academics”, the populars (which, technically, usually consists of the first two groups of people) and then, there were the musos, drama group kids, hippie kids and I guess the list could go on forever if it was really necessary, which for some people, such as the populars, it was highly necessary for them to judge people by who they hang around with, or what they love to do. To be honest with you, I don’t understand why people have to be labelled to know where they stand amongst a large group of people, when most of the people actually grew up together.
Luckily for us though, in a few short weeks, we will leave school after finishing our GCSEs. It’s kind of like, after twelve long years, we are finally being released into the wild, like animals in a zoo, and if you saw this place, you’d understand why I am, by no means, being at all sarcastic. I’m being deadly serious.
I am in fifth period on Wednesday morning. It is April, and so, for the most part, it’s mainly sunny. So everyone around here knows that when the sun is here, everyone has happier moods anyway. Most people in English class are actually happy today. Maybe it’s because of the sun has decided to stop hibernating under the clouds for once, or maybe it was because we had Mr. Collins for English on a day like today.
I take my seat in the middle of the classroom. I spot Lucas just to the right of me. He smiles and waves. Then, he mouths “Talk to you later?”
I nod quickly and smile.
He smiles back and Kimberly Whiteman, who everyone knows has a crush on Lucas, plants herself next to him. I swear, I think Lucas is the only one who doesn’t have a clue.
Almost as if right on cue, Mr Collins enters the classroom, everyone turns in their seats to focus at the front.
“Well, good morning everyone!” He grins happily, he slides his suit jacket from his arms and places it on the desk beside him.
The general pleasentaries are given, and the lesson has now started.
“So, cast your minds back to a couple of Wednesdays ago. I asked you guys to prepare a counter argument to the person you were paired with.”
Everyone seems to make a grunt or a sound indicating that they remember it.
“Well, excellent!” He claps his hands together and then grins. “Who would like to go first?”
I begin to slide further and further down my wheelchair and Mr Collins beams at me. “Erin, I see you sinking.”
Oh, crap!
“Why don’t you and Kimberly come up and get it over with?”
I clear the back of my throat, and nervously make my way to the front of the classroom.
Oh, great. I know this feeling all too well - pure embarrassment washing over me like a tide swiftly moving among tbe sand. I look at Lucas, who is sitting there, staring at me. He smiles encouraging, and gives me a nod as if to say “You can do this, I know you can.”
Kimberly struts up to the front of the classroom as if it is her stage. She was everything I would never be, beautiful and condifent.
“I am argung the side for popularity, Mr Collins.”
“Okay, Kimberly.”
Kimberly glances at me as if to say the battle has commenced. Okay, it’s okay Erin, you know how to do this in a boxing ring, but what about outside of the boxing ring? Yep, I’m toast.
“The rules are as follows, one person out of the two opposing sides can intervene at any point, and I will grade you on how well you fought your corner.”
Fight your corner? The more he uses boxing references my stomach begins to settle. But I still feel like I’m being dangled into a toaster at this very minute.
“Kimberly, I see you are eager to get this underway. Let the battle commence!”
FIGHT!
“Well, you see, popularity is the highest level of high school. We are the elites, we have friends, we go to parties, we are all beautiful. And then, you see people like my opponent here. A geek. A nerd. The lowest of the low of all levels.” She pauses for a few minutes and gives me an evil Cruella De Vil smile.
“First of all, I am proud of what I am. What gives you the power to judge people anyway? Yes, I’m fully aware that it is human nature, but because you of all people are stuck in their little “popularity” you don’t dare mix with the rest of the groups in the school, because what? Are we unworthy of you?”
“Quite frankly, yes you are!” Kimberly scowls at me.
“And why is that?”
“Well...” Kimberly stumbles to find an answer.
“Because we aren’t all size zeros who can fit into cheerleading outfits? That we don’t wear Chanel perfume or Marc Jacobs heels?”
“Exactly!”
“What world are you living in, may I ask?”
“Certainly not your world. You study all the time, you are the type that reads Pride and Prejudice for fun and probably goes to dorky sci-fi conventions.”
I actually laugh out loud at this one. “How can you make that assumption when you don’t even mix with the rest of the groups in this school?”
“Well...I...I...”
“You don’t know do you?” I smirk. “That’s my point made. These populars as we call them, or certainly this one, judge us and they don’t even know us. How do you feel about this?”
Kimberly seems to come up with the most hurtful comment. “Look at you. You’re a nerd, you’re a geek.”
“Call me whatever you like, because honestly, I’m much more of a bigger person than you will ever be. So I’ll just feel bad for you, because you will never know how to be nice to someone.” I tear leaks from my eye and Mr Collins sees it, puts a hand on my shoulder and exhales.
“Erin...”
“No, I’m fine honestly. I’ve dealt with bigger obstacles than her in my life.”
“No, Erin. Listen here, I feel bad for you. You can’t even walk, and you have to have people help you all the time.”
I exhale a few times, and turn for the door.
“Erin, wait up!” Lucas calls after me.
I breifly hear him say. “Good one, Kim. Absolutely fabulous.”
Gender:
Points: 1211
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