The Brooder - Andrew Clark

Chapter One

When Kayla entered the library, she kept her head down. She saw that one of the girls she used to call a friend but was now one of her biggest tormentors was sitting at the front table. Of course, the boy she'd been crushing on since Freshman year was sitting right next to her. She knew it was stupid to have a crush on someone like Andrew Clark, but she couldn't help it. On the first day of school, they'd found their class together. Though he smiled at her in the hall, he only did it if he was alone. If he was with his jock friends, he completely ignored her. She was used to being invisible though, she preferred to be. It was better than the alternative when the people who loved to pick on her noticed her. When she passed the table diagonally, she was shocked but relieved to see one of her best friends. She quickly walked over to Brian, not noticing Andrew's eyes following her. She sat down in the seat next to Brian and smiled softly at him. "I hope you don't mind me sitting with you." She said quietly. She glanced over at the table closest to theirs and saw John Bender staring at them curiously. She really hoped she could get through this day without confrontation. Brian chuckled next to her, causing her to lift her eyes to his. "Are you kidding?" he asked. "I am shocked to see you here, but glad too. I'd hate to have to endure through this day by myself." She was about to answer when their mutual friend, Allison scurried past everyone and sat down at the table behind them. Brian and Kayla looked at each other with wide eyes. What was she doing in detention on a Saturday?

Kayla turned around and smiled once again at her shy friend. "Ally cat, what are you doing here?" Allison just smiled at her before putting her head down on the table. She heard snickering coming from the front and turned her head in time to see Andrew and Claire laughing with each other, laughing at Allison. She couldn't help the scowl that formed on her face. How could she have had a crush on someone like him? As if he'd heard her thoughts, he looked back and made eye contact with her. His smile changed into a frown when he saw her angry expression. She quickly looked away from him and turned in her seat to face the front. She was glad she was sitting with her two friends, but worried why they were both there.

She was pondering the situation when the vice principal, Mr. Vernon, walked into the room with papers in his hand. He looked at everyone with a sinister smirk as he made sure to look at everyone. "Well, well, here we are." he said. "I wanna congratulate you for being on time." Kayla kept her eyes on the table until she heard a voice she hated speak up. "Excuse me, sir. I think there's been a mistake." Clair replied snottily. "I know it's detention, but I don't think I belong in here." Mr. Vernon ignored her as he looked at his watch with a smug grin. "It is now 7:06." He said. "You have exactly eight hours and fifty-four minutes to think about why you're here. To ponder the error of your ways." She watched in amusement as Andrew stared over at Claire with a look of disgust at her words. He turned away to face the front, shaking his head as she looked uncomfortable. All of their attention was directed at Bender's table as he leaned his head back, spit into the air, and caught it back in his mouth. Kayla covered her mouth in disgust as she almost gagged at seeing him do that. Mr. Vernon continued as if nothing happened. "You may not talk." He added, pointing at Claire. "You will not move from these seats." He said as Brian shifted to get more comfortable, causing him to freeze. Mr. Vernon walked over to Bender and moved the chair his feet were causally placed in. "And you will not sleep." He glanced around at them all and played with the papers in his hands. "Alright, people we're going to try something a little different today. We are going to write an essay." He said as he placed papers and pencils in front of each of them. "No less than 1,000 words, describing to me who you think you are." Bender interrupted him with a smirk. "Is this a test?" he asked cheekily. Mr. Vernon paused, but then continued as he placed the papers and pencils in front of her and Brian. "When I say essay, I mean essay. I do not mean a single word repeated 1,000 times. Is that clear, Mr. Bender?" John plopped his feet onto the table in front of him and began tapping his fingers onto the back of his chair as he replied, "Crystal."