I don't even like you.

Transfer Student

Hey, I'm Jayden. A 17-year-old male from California. I play on the high school volleyball team with a bunch of other guys. I strived to be the best among my team. I didn't want to be known as the guy who sat on the bench during all the plays or never got invited to parties. I had to earn respect among my teammates, which I did. I was complimented every day by my teammates and coach, even girls would look at me in a seductive way. I loved the praise I was getting. That was, until some guy transferred to our school. He joined the volleyball team not long after being here but was put on the opposing team. He looked intimidating. He was tall, muscular, broad shoulders, basically what you'd expect a bodybuilder to look like. I figured he would be ass at this sport, like most of the transfers I met during my time here. But it was different this time.

We had our first practice game together not long after he joined. It was my team; versus the team he was on. I smirked as I watched him fumble to the court. He was shy and appeared too nice to play a sport like this. I grabbed the ball from my teammate so I could show the transferee that we don't play around here. I jump into the air, hitting the ball with full force. It goes plummeting over to his side. I swiftly land back on the court floor, getting ready to watch the ball fall on the floor. But I was astounded when I saw him knock the ball back at me. I quickly got back into position and knocked it back to the other side. This went on for at least 4 minutes of us just going back and forth. Our teammates stood on the side watching us, but after a little longer, he jumps up at least 5 feet above the ground and smashes the ball towards me. It was coming at such a rapid speed; I couldn't even properly deflect it. It hits me directly in the forehead, knocking me to the floor. I could hear gasps all around me as I was lying on the floor. People began rushing over to me to see if I was okay. I pushed them away because I didn't want to show any weakness as the team leader. And once I got my eyes fully open, I saw that transfer student, directly in front of me. He continued to apologize nonstop for hitting me so hard. I was furious. I never got hit like that, and by a newbie? That's even worse. I was humiliated, it made me resent him. I didn't want to seem like a poor sport, so I knew I had to put on a facade to just rush the hell out of there.

"Hey man, I'm alright it's all good." I said as I backed away from him swiftly. "Are you sure?" He questioned. "I can take you to the nurses office if you feel dizzy or anything." My eye twitched. This kid is so goddamn persistent. I reassured him again that I would be fine, and that I just needed time to sit down. He nodded reluctantly before grabbing onto me and bringing me to the bleachers. "Hey, what are you doing?!" I yelled in confusion. He didn't answer. He sat me down on the bleacher and observed my forehead closely. My eyebrows furrowed as I was disgusted and extremely humiliated. I just wanted him gone and out of my sight. He inched away from my face and told me to stay sitting for a while, so I don't get lightheaded. I reluctantly accepted his request and watched him play from the sidelines. As I observed his form, I grew to hate him even more. He had much more upper body strength to punt the ball harder and further. He was at least 4-5 inches taller than me, and I hated feeling short. I needed to feel on top, and he was better physically than me in every way possible. But I knew I couldn't let my jealous tendencies get the better of me. I played it off like nothing happened the next day.

As I walked through the front doors, I expected an array of girls to pile around me and admire me, but no one came up to me. I felt like an outcast. My heart filled with dread as I heard a bunch of female screeches coming from around the corner. I went to see what the commotion was about, but what I saw filled me with a deep frustration. I saw a bunch of girls surrounding the transfer student. My fists clenched together as I grinded my teeth. I tried to ignore him, but he was taking my spot. I didn't want to be the outcast loser; I didn't want to be alone. I turned the other way and headed towards my first class. As I was on my way, millions of thoughts ran through my mind.

"Should I just let things play out?"

"Should I try and get him expelled?"

"Should I fake being friends with him so I can be popular with him too?"

None of these ideas sounded ideal to me, but I knew I had to take action if I wanted to uphold my legacy.

But this was just the start.