Just a Crush: Dear Diary (Oli Sykes)

Chapter Seven: James from America

'Mum and dad just had a long chat with me about what secondary school boys want from girls. It was incredibly awkward. I never want the word sex to come out of my parents' mouths again.'

Our third year was off to an interesting start. We had a new classmate. His family'd just moved to London. He was originally from New Orleans, Louisiana. Aye, from America. He instantly became an attraction in our class. The rest of us have known each other since at least primary school. So, James was obviously more interesting than the rest of us combined because he was still mysterious. I think all the girls kind of fancied him. Even I thought he was a bit handsome, and I loved his accent. It was so exotic, y'know. I think Gemma liked him, too, but she was always annoyed by the attention he received. It was fair because we'd just released our first original song, and we proper expected this year to be different for us, but all anyone ever chatted about was James from America. I had caught her staring at him a few times, though. It took the girls until the end of September to realise that James wasn't interested in any of us or in making friends, really. He was a silent, introverted sort of lad. Which, ironically, did make him even more interesting and mysterious.

It was the beginning of October, and the weather was horrid. Gemma and I were hiding behind the gymnasium and smoking, freezing our bloody balls off when we heard footsteps. We quickly threw our cigarettes away and turned around. I reckon we were both gobsmacked when we saw James from America standing there and smiling at us. "Oi, you scared us, you wanker," I said. "Remind me again what wanker means, will you?" He scratched the back of his head and took a couple of steps closer. "It's an insult, you muppet," Gemma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I know that, but I was wondering what it meant," James shrugged and pulled out a box of cigarettes. "It means you're a dick," I said. "Oh yeah, that's right. I have it written down somewhere. Y'all have such colourful language here. I love it," he chuckled. Gemma and I looked at each other in confusion. What was he on about? It was just the way we spoke, really. Gem crossed her arms over her chest and gave James a stern look, "What are you chatting with us for anyway? Are you bored of your fan club already?" I snickered at her cheekiness. "I don't have a fan club. And I'm just trying to make conversation, Gemma, was it?" He raised his hands defensively. "How d'you know her?" I asked because she seemed quite at a loss. "I have been going to school with you for a month, you know. Or have you not noticed that, Leonora?" He asked with a cheeky smile. "Course we have," Gemma scoffed, finally having found her voice. "I have a feeling you don't like me very much," James noted. "What? Because we aren't falling over ourselves to get your attention? You ought to get over yourself. You aren't even that handsome," Gemma said. "I think I'm doing alright in the looks department," he shrugged. "Right, shall we go, Gem? We mustn't be late for English again," I grabbed her arm and pulled her away. "See you in class," James called after us.

"That was so weird," I said when we were alone. "I'm proper cheesed off right now, mate," Gemma huffed. "Why d'you hate him so much?" I asked. "He's just so full of himself, isn't he?" She said. "I dunno. Maybe we were a bit rude," I muttered. "D'you fancy him, Thomas?" She asked. "I don't fancy him, Gemma. But he is a bit cute," I blushed. "Well yeah, but don't tell him that," she rolled her eyes with a giggle. We sat at our designated desk in the classroom. While Gemma busied herself with going over her notes from last time, I let my gaze wander toward the door. I quickly looked away when James entered, and our eyes met. I tried not to look at him as he walked toward our desk. I thought he might chat with us again, but he continued walking past our desk. He stopped at the one behind us and sat down.

The class was boring as always, but I wasn't paying attention anyway because halfway through, a piece of paper landed in my hair. I reached up to grab it, and I turned around to see who had thrown it at me. I blushed when my eyes met James's. I turned back to face the front of the classroom and unfolded the paper. 'Can I have your phone number?' The note read. My eyebrows scrunched up in utter confusion as I scribbled down my own note, 'What d'you need my number for?' I turned around and quickly left my note on his desk. Gemma gave me a questioning look, and I just shrugged. I was as confused as she was, wasn't I? It wasn't even a moment later when the piece of paper landed on me again. This time, I didn't bother turning, I just unfolded the note. 'For calling and texting. Obviously.' I scowled at his words and shook my head. If he wants my number, he can ask for it after class. I'm not daft, you know. What if someone finds the note and I start receiving random prank calls? A few minutes passed before I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I ignored it and pretended to take notes. After another couple of minutes, he tapped my shoulder again. It was starting to annoy me, but I kept ignoring him. Only when he pulled on my hair did I turn around again and asked, "What?!" a bit loudly.