• When Revenge Turns to Love: One


    I was humming through the air. I swayed my feet back and fourth under the bench I was sitting on. No one was around. My teacher had to pick up her daughter. My sister is probably with my dad or something. I didn’t really care. My mom was probably stuck in traffic. I stopped humming because I heard something. Or someone. I looked behind me and looked around the play ground. I saw a boy from my class on the swings. I have really good ears so I can hear from a far distance. I got up and my little feet made me walk up to him.
    I noticed who it was. Oliver Peirce. He was the guy that was mean to all the girls. I didn’t know what to do. My dad use to say that boys aren’t suppose to cry. It’s embarrassing to them. When I cry, all I really want is someone to hug me. So I bend over and hugged him around the waist. He turned stiff but didn’t push me away. He let me hold him and after a moment he hugged me back. That day was the day Oliver and me started to be best friends. He would ignore all his friends and come with me and I would do the same. From Pre-K to freshman year, we were the best friends that anyone could imagine.
    We did everything together. He would come over everyday after school. We would always skateboard and play video games together. I was there for him when his mom left him and his dad. He was there for me when my dad died. I would go to his football games and he would come to my soccer games. We went everywhere together. I still have his parents. We were really excited to go to high school.
    On the first day of high school, a girl named Vivian was the reason that Oliver changed. We would walk together to school and one day he never came to pick me up. That day, I walked to school alone. I saw him with a couple of seniors and that Vivian girl. He saw me and I waved. He turned away laughing with the seniors.
    I called him that night. “Hey dude.”I said when he answered.
    “oh… hey. Can I talk to you?” he asked sounding kind of stirred.
    “Yeah sure.”
    “Um, well I don’t want t0 be friends anymore. So bye.”
    Those words slashed through my heart. We never talked again. I still had him in my contacts. I kept every present he gave me. The last present was a small turtle. It was really tiny. It was sitting on a red rock. I turned the rock over and it had my initials carved into it. I cried myself to sleep that day and the other day. He turned to the guy that he said he hated.
    Oliver became the playboy of the school. All the girls fell for him. Every girl probably lost their virginity to him. All the senior girls sat next to him. He grew his hair. He had “sexy” scene hair and snakebites. He wore skinny jeans and worked out to get a six pack. His friends were my friends because the girls didn’t like me. They called me too “boyish”. He would go to every party. He smoked and drank. His grades were low and he labeled everyone. He ran the damn school.
    And now, here we all are. Senior year. My sister Cristal stayed back with her friends. They were all over Oliver too. Cristal lost her virginity to him at a party. She’s in the “popular” group.
    I was walking to school because I like to walk. I usually skateboard but I couldn’t find it this morning. Cristal already left in her car. I have my license. But I chose not to drive. I heard someone’s skateboard riding down the street. I felt two strong arms around my neck.
    “Aye Joey!” He said as he ruffled my hair. He kicked up his skateboard, taking his hands off me and caught the skateboard. He walked beside me.
    “Hey dude.” I said lamely.
    “You coming to Emily’s party tonight?” he asked.
    I snorted. “Um, no. Dude, it’s Monday.”
    He shrugged. “So? Anyways, everyone’s gonna be there. Well not the nerds and s**t but you ain’t no nerd. Yanno?”
    “Yeah… well I don’t wanna come.”
    “It’s senior year baby!” he yelled. “Live a little! It’s time to break through your shell.”
    “Give me one good reason why I should take advice from you Jake?”
    “Cause I’m hot,” he winked. He is hot but I don’t see him in any other way other than a friend.
    “No you’re not.” I stickled out my tounge and he punched me in the arm. We reached the school. Payson High. A big school with all different people. I spotted Oliver getting out his black Volvo and a few girls went up to him. He smirked at them and then walked away. I hate his smirk.
    “Yo Jake!” Oliver called to him. Oliver’s eyes met mine for a second but he was grinning at Jake.
    “See ya Joe.” He nudged me and rode his skateboard to reach Oliver. They did their handshake and Oliver laughed his same old laugh.
    I still remember all the details about him. Even the little ones. God, I miss him.