At the back of the mind [unfinished]

Chapter 1

Here I am, walking in the hallways. Someone bumps into me; I disregard it and keep walking. The girl said she'd meet me in the courtyard, and that's the only thing I'm focused on. The past week in school was complete hell, due to the fact that I made no friends and that everyone seemed bent on picking on me due to my small stature and baby-like face. Up until yesterday, I thought that this year was going to be a flop, until a note appeared on my desk written in cursive. It said "Meet me at the main courtyard tomorrow after school". I didn't know what to expect, but I decided to go anyways. I didn't have anywhere else to go until 3, which was when my mom picked me up. I finally reached my destination. My vision suddenly flashed black, and my body went limp for a second. I brought a hand up to my head and crouched down. Agh, what the hell just happened, I thought. I stood up again and looked into the courtyard. There was a girl sitting on one of the benches surrounding a massive tree in the middle of the courtyard. She looked.. pretty, I guess? She had blonde hair which was brown at the roots and reached to her shoulders, and a rather large shirt which didn't cover her shoulders. She also wore some blue jean shorts which reached just above her knees. I gathered up my courage and walked over to her. "Uh, hello," I said, in a rather stern tone. She looked up from her phone and smiled, saying "Hey Sam!" I was a bit surprised, as only my parents and close friends called me by my nickname. "What do you need?" I asked. "Also, what's your name?" She took out a sheet of paper and scribbled on it. I patted my foot, wondering why this girl was bothering wasting any time with me. She finished and handed me the sheet. "My name's Anya," she finally told me, "and I'd like to go on a date with you." Her blue eyes sparkled as she said that last part. I was taken aback. Wh-what? Why does she want to go on a date with me? I've never even met her! I finally cleared my throat and, speaking in a low tone, said, "Um, sure." I took the sheet of paper and looked at it. There was an address written on it. That's the mall close to here. Anya suddenly hugged me and said, "Thanks! I'll be waiting for you." She skipped away into the school. Wow, I was not expecting that. I shrug and put the paper into my pocket, still thinking. I guess I'll be at the mall on Friday. As I walk towards my counselor's office, I think I can hear some faint snickering.

I wore my best clothes. Well, my best casual clothes. I had some rather spiffy formal clothes in my closet. I'm currently in the mall, in front of a movie theater, five minutes early. I walk over to a bench and sit down. I know I'm a bit early, but still, I'd expect her to be here already. I don't even know why I'm on this date. I should be playing on my computer right now, but I suddenly get asked out for the first time in my life. Might as well make the best of it. I suddenly hear someone next to me say, "So, why are you here?" I nearly jump off the bench. I didn't even notice someone there! I relax and reply, "I'm expecting a date. You?" I look over and the person is a girl. She had white hair which flowed to her waist, and a shirt with Nyan Cat on it and baggy jeans. "Same thing. I just met the guy in school, too." I guess she's in the same spot as me. I notice that she's holding a magazine; The Steam logo is on it. "Woah, where'd you get that!?" I exclaim. "It's a unique magazine. You can only get it from visiting Valve's headquarters. My jaw nearly drops to the ground. "What!? You're so lucky!" She chuckles a little and hands me the magazine. I quickly flip through it. "CSGO stuff, secret redeem codes, holy crap!" I say. "Yup, it's pretty good." The girl says. "Oh, looks like my date is here." I look up and see a rather tall, blonde-haired boy with impressive muscles, as they can be seen due to his sleeveless shirt. I hand the girl her magazine and wave goodbye to her. She waves back and walks away with the guy. A few minutes later, Anya comes running. "Sorry! My mom drives slow!" She says through gasps for air. "It's alright. Let's get going." I stand up and offer my hand. She looks at it for a moment, then takes it. We first watch a movie, then go shopping. I wanted to stop at Gamestop, but I guess doesn't play video games. I sigh and continue walking with her. At the end of the day, we stop and buy some churros. While we're eating, the girl from before and her date come and sit in the table next to us. "Oh, hey!" I yell at the girl. She looks up and say, "Hey!" Anya looks at me. "You two know each other?" "Yeah, we talked before you came." I respond. The guy stands up and walks over to Anya. What's he doing? He suddenly bends over and kisses her on the lips. Both me and the other girl stand up, outraged. "What are you doing!?" We scream in unison. Anya and the guy smirk at us, before Anya starts talking. "Oh, I should've told you that I'm already dating him. You really thought I'd date some twat like you?" I recoil from her words like someone poked me in the eyes. I knew it.. The guy pipes up now. "Cherry, did you really think I'd date you?" I look over at the girl. She is sniffing, and I can see tears in her eyes. I can't let her cry. She doesn't deserve this. "You're both disgusting, inconsiderate pieces of shit. No wonder you two are together, no one else would date either of you." The words spill out of my mouth. The smirks on Anya and her boyfriend's faces disappear, and the boyfriend steps towards me. "You wanna keep talking? Because no one would date you two either, you're both the runts of society. The outcasts, the losers." My blood is curdling at this point, but I don't want to fight. I see Cherry look over at me from the corner of my eye. I speak up again. "I'd rather be an outcast than a complete asshole." The boyfriend walks up to me until his chest is almost at my face. I look up at him. I'm not afraid of this douche. I suddenly feel a sharp pain in my stomach as he knees me there. I stagger backward and crash into a table. That's fucking it, I've had it. I push myself off the table and uppercut him in the chin. He falls backward and whacks the back of his head on a chair. I don't stop there. I launch myself on top of him and begin punching him furiously. With each fist that meets his face, I feel him struggling less and less. After about 15 punches, I feel arms drag me off of him. I look up and it's Anya, tears streaming down her face. I see a man in a uniform, maybe the security, come and grab me by my shoulders. I don't resist, my job is done after all. I get dragged outside and left there, lying on the concrete. I lay there for a while, then sit up. Well, I won't be going back here for a while. I stand up and walk back home, rubbing my bruised knuckles.

I am walking to my piano class, feeling eyes stabbing me everywhere. It is by now known throughout the school that I beat the living daylights out of a scummy senior. I'm not proud of it nor disappointed. I did what I needed to. Besides, he attacked me first. Anya is absent and so is her boyfriend. I'm glad. I turn a corner and smack into someone. We both fall on the ground. I look at the person, and it's Cherry. Shit, she's probably afraid of me. "Sorry Cherry." I say. She looks at me with a blank look in her eyes. "Thank you." She finally says. She stands up and hurries off. Thank you? For what? I brush it off and walk away. After school, I walk to my counselor's office. "Hey Angelie." I say as I walk through the door. A small nameplate is in the side of her desk, reading "Ms. Burseke: Personal Issue Counselor". "Hey Sam, today's the 100th day you've ever come to my office!" She pulls out a small pop cap gun and shoots it. "Ow, my ears!" "Sorry!" She puts the gun away. "So, anything you want to tell me today?" I think for a moment. I reckon she already knows the incident with the senior. "Well, I have a question." "Anything for you, ol' Sam." I'm not old. "Do you consider me an outcast?" Ms. Burseke looks at me funny. "What makes you say that?" "The senior I beat up, he called me an outcast." Ms. Burseke stands up and walks to a small list on the wall. A list of names. "Wow, that's the same exact thing another student asked me today." She says. "Cherry Charlotte. Another student who frequents my office. Quite strange to name your daughter after a fruit, don'tcha think?" I sit there, stunned. She also comes to this office? I come out of my thoughts after a snap of fingers. "Don't ignore me! I'm not old enough for that yet." Are you really? "In any case," She continues, "You should speak to this Cherry. She seems a bit like you. Who knows, maybe you're best buds but you don't know it. I sigh and say, "Maybe I will." I glance at my watch. Almost three. I stand up. "I'll see you tomorrow, Miss." "See ya, Sam. And I'll leave you with today's quote: The actions you make define who you are." I think for a moment, then walk out of her office. So am I a good or bad person? I walk to my mom's car.

"Are you serious?" I say, looking at Cherry sitting in my seat. I always meet the counselor in the morning and then in the afternoon. Apparently, Cherry has started doing so as well. "Sorry Sam, but it was her choice." Says Burseke. I groan and sit next to Cherry. "You two seem to be my best visitors, so I brought you together." I look at Cherry. She looks at me for a few seconds, then looks away. I notice that her cheeks are slightly red. Does she want something? "So, what's the point of this?" I say. "Well, you both need some friends. You're amazing individuals, so I can't see why you don't hang out with anyone." Ms. Burseke responds. "I don't have a need to talk to anyone. I'm fine on my own. You already know what happened with that bitch Anya." "Hey, language, language!" "Sorry Miss." The counselor looks over at Cherry. "What about you?" "I don't think I'd be a good friend. People think I'm too weird." Cherry replies. "I don't think you're weird." I say. She looks up at me and smiles. "Thanks." "Hey now that's a start!" The counselor says, beaming. I get the feeling she's gonna get a nosebleed or something. I notice that Cherry is wearing a panda-shaped hoodie today. She looks really cute. I blush and look down. What am I thinking? "Well, I guess this'll do for today's meeting. Talk more outside of here." Ms. Burseke says. "Goodbye." Me and Cherry say. I walk out and glance behind me. Cherry is there, walking behind me. I walk home. I startup my PC and start playing some games. I suddenly receive a notification on Steam. What's this? I click the notification. It's a friend request from a user named Cherrilot. I accept it, and instantly receive a message. "Hi" "Hello." "Do you recognize me?" I think for a moment. They have Cherr in their name.. Cherry? "Are you Cherry?" "Yes! :D" " What's up?" "Not much, I just got done playing Binding of Isaac" I should buy that game.." "You should!" We continue talking for 2 hours about various subjects. I take a look at the time. "I should probably sleep soon, mom might kill me" "Okay, see you tomorrow!" I lean back and close my laptop. Wow, I've never talked to anyone that long. I crawl into bed and pull the blanket up to my chin. I fall asleep. I appear in school, the crowds of people pushing me and nudging as I stand there in the hallway. I walk forward and see Charlotte, beckoning me to go to her. I walk over, and she suddenly stabs me, right through the heart. Wh-wha... I collapse, and the ground breaks. I land on another surface, perhaps another elemental plane. I stand up, clutching the knife in my chest. I stagger forward and see a robed figure standing before me. He extends his hand and opens it. There are three distinct flames: A blue one, a purple one, and a red one. "Friends, family, or love?" A craggy, raspy voice says. "Um, family?" The purple flame goes out, and the figure closes his hand. He then reaches forward and twists the knife. "GAAAAAAAAAHH!!!"

I wake up, screaming and drenched in sweat.

I arrive at school, as weary as ever. That dream.. Cherry is at the front gate. I suddenly hesitate, but I eventually walk to her. "Hey Sam!" She says cheerfully. " Hey." I reply. "Wow, you look like horse meat. What happened to you?" "I had a dream, that's all." "Alright then." We walk to the counselor.