Mr. Popular and Me

Chapter 2

Evan's POV

I'd never been so eager to get home. I couldn't stop watching the clock for the rest of the day, waiting for school to end. As soon as I got home I threw my bag on the floor beside my bedroom door and flopped down onto my mattress, glad to be back in the comfort of my bed once again. I let out an exasperated sigh. Today had been unbearably annoying.

More than usual that is.

Everywhere I turned, there he was. The lunchroom, most of my classes, the hallway - but I guess he always has been right there. It just feels different now because he actually recognized me. At least, I didn't know if he had recognized me before. I wished it would stay that way. Waeland was already becoming a very big problem. Why wouldn't he just leave me alone? We'd been going to the same school for nearly two years and he had never tried to talk to me, not once. No one had ever tried to talk to me before, actually, so this was new. I didn't like it. Not one bit.

I reluctantly got up from my bed after a good minute and huffed my way down the stairs. Once I got to the bottom, my dad came through the front door.

Well, tried to anyway. He staggered his way into the living room and fell face-first on the couch. My father grumbled under his breath and turned his head toward me, his eyes lighting up immediately when he saw me, as they always did.

"Heeeyy! Kiddo! Have you made dinner yet? I'm starving!" He said as he pushed himself up off the couch, probably trying to hide his intoxication. I rolled my eyes and walked over to him, not understanding why he tried to hide it when it was so obvious.

"No, I haven't yet, but you need to lay down. I can tell you're drunk. Here, let's get you some water," I told him as I wrapped one of his arms over my shoulders and one of mine around his waist for support. I helped my father get to the kitchen and set him down in a chair. Walking to the fridge, I grabbed a bottle of water and handed it to him. He mumbled a "thank you" before he slowly sipped the water. I nodded and returned to the fridge to get stuff out for dinner.

Yes, I can cook. It may be considered to be a "girl thing", but I think it's a good skill for anyone to have. My mom taught me when I was younger. She used to teach me all kinds of things, being the only child and all. That was until she left anyway.

I guess that's why Dad is such a drunken mess all the time. It really hit him hard since he didn't expect it and he had no clue why. I didn't either. At least, not at first. I didn't take it nearly as hard though since I knew it was coming. I could tell because she was acting really strange and dropping hints every now and then.

I shook my head at the thought, deciding to stop thinking about the past and focus on not cutting my finger while peeling potatoes.

After I finished up dinner and gave my dad his plate, I took mine upstairs with me so I could do homework while I stuffed my face. I had a paper due tomorrow, and I was definitely not turning it in late. If I did, my grade would be deducted by ten percent. I may have hated school, but I needed to get good grades.

I had to go to college so I could get a good job and take care of my dad. To do that though, I had to have perfect grades, perfect attendance, and try to have decent behavior so I may get a chance for a scholarship. I sure didn't have enough money for college, so that was my only way to get there and ensure that I had an okay future. I mean, he'd been taking care of me my whole life, so I felt like it was my job to take care of him when he needed me.

I turned on my PC and started working on my essay first to get it out of the way.

Four hours. After four hours of thinking, writing, and solving problems, I finished all of my homework. I glanced at the clock sitting on my nightstand to see that it was already nine-thirty pm. It wasn't too late, but I was tired of dealing with people all day, so I decided to get ready for bed.

I packed away my homework in my backpack before I got up from my desk. I made my way to the bathroom with a change of clothes and glanced at the mirror as I entered, catching my reflection. My usually brown eyes looked a bit darker than normal, black even. Probably from all the draining human interaction today. The dark brown mop on my head was a total mess from running my hand through it in frustration. Overall, I just looked tired.

Sighing, I got ready for bed.

When I was done, I headed back towards my room and decided on the way to check in on my dad.

I knocked lightly on his door but didn't receive an answer, so I peeked inside. I saw him sprawled out on his bed, passed out. I slowly closed his door and went to my room.

Lying on my bed, I looked up at the ceiling and started to think about school. I wondered if Mrs. Willow would still be angry with me in the morning. Not that I really cared, just that it was annoying. I also wondered if Waeland would try talking to me again tomorrow...

Wait. Why was I thinking of him? He was just an annoyance that I wished would go away. I hoped he wouldn't talk to me the next day, or ever again. In fact, if he tried, then I'd probably punch him in his pretty face. Pretty? No, I said that wrong. He wasn't pretty. Just an annoying jerk.

I rolled over on my side and decided to let my exhausted body rest as sleep swept over me.

Beeeep-

Beeeep-

Beeeep-

I woke up to the sound of my alarm's blaring, shrill ringtone. Groaning, I reached over and turned the stupid alarm off. I rolled out of bed, a little too literally, and met the cold, hard, wooden floor beneath me.

"Hello, floor..." I mumbled before I slowly pushed myself up and stood. I trudged my way to the bathroom. I turned on the water and began to undress. I slipped into the shower and let the cold water wake my muscles and mind.

I brushed my teeth and wrapped a towel around my waist before I made my way back to my room. I slipped on a long-sleeved, navy blue shirt, and a pair of my old, faded jeans. On my way out of my room, I grabbed my grey beanie and vans. I didn't bother trying to fix my hair, it's not like I was trying to impress anyone. Especially not anyone in that hell hole of a school.

I grabbed my backpack and looked down the hall to see my dad's door open and, upon further inspection, found that his room was empty. I guessed he already left for work, even though I was sure he had a nasty hangover from drinking so much the day before. I sighed and slowly headed down the stairs and out the front door, locking it behind me.

It was a quick walk to the school - quite, unfortunately, might I add - so I arrived in a matter of minutes. Walking through the front doors, I smelled that awful smell that you know I hate. I grumbled as I made my way to my locker.

"Hey, friend!" I heard a terribly familiar voice that made me cringe with displeasure. Why... I thought he wouldn't bother me today. And why is he calling me his friend? I certainly am not his friend! So I decided to ignore him. I kept walking toward my locker, pretending that I didn't hear the moron.

He then grabbed my shoulder and turned me to face him. "Hey, did you not hear me?" Waeland asked, looking at me with slight disappointment in his bright eyes.

"No, I heard you, but seeing as I am not your friend, I didn't respond." As soon as I finished my statement his bottom lip curled out in a small, cute pout. Which was not an attractive look on him at all.

"But you are my friend. I asked you yesterday and you grunted in response. Which I took as a yes. So we are friends." He concluded, to which I rolled my eyes.

"I probably grunted because I didn't care, or I wasn't paying attention. And I still don't care," I stated, hoping to hurt his feelings and make him go away. But oh no. He just grinned. Which confused me.

"If that meant you don't care, then that means you don't care if we're friends or not. Therefore, we can be friends because you don't care either way." Before I could say another word and argue against him, Waeland patted me on the shoulder. "That's great! I'll see you later, my friend!" And with that, he left, leaving me standing in the middle of the hall.

What the hell is wrong with that guy?! I screamed in my head. I had just told him several times that we weren't friends! So why the hell..?! I groaned aloud and continued to my locker, now in an even worse mood than before.