The Inbetween || Jojian

1 - The Inbetween

27/6/94
The inbetween, that's what i call it, anyway, is why Joji and I stay far away from each other.

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"Get to the back of the line, faggot!" one of joji's friends hollered at me. "I was here first. Why don't you go to the back of the line instead?" I calmly suggested. "I don't think so," he smirked. He shoved me, causing me to stumble back and trip over the side of the road. They laughed before turning their attention away from me and back to whatever conversation they were having. I didn't bother to fight for my place in line, it wasn't worth the loss of IQ points I'd suffer after arguing with a dumbass.

I sighed and looked around, realising my glasses had fallen off when that asshole pushed me. My eyes searched the road and I finally spotted them; I bent down to pick them up and wiped the lenses before putting them back on.

I turned around, wondering if joji and his friends seemed even a little guilty. I rolled my eyes when I saw they were still messing around, nudging each other; probably bragging about the recent girls they'd banged, or something. Then, I saw something strange. Suddenly, I caught joji's eye. He was staring at me. He noticed I saw him and quickly turned around to laugh at some dumb joke one of his friends had just told.

He looked at me with curiosity, as if i was something out of the ordinary, I thought.

I shrugged it off and sunk my hands deep into the pockets of my coat before finding my way to the back of the line.

I was pissed. Everyone had been talking about this movie for months, and I'd gotten first place in line before being sent right to the back by a bunch of jerks. Now, I'd probably get a shitty seat. Great.

I leaned my back against the wall and breathed in the cool evening air. I looked to my watch and it was only 7 and the sun was still up. I've always loved that about the summer, how the days last longer.

The sounds of shoes scraping against the concrete caught my attention, and I noticed all the people excitedly pouring into the now open doors of the cinema. I unenthusiastically followed on through and bought a bucket of buttered popcorn and I could see no one wasted their time buying any food or drinks, probably wanting to get the best seats.

I pulled open the door to the cinema and quietly walked in. I scanned the rows and my eyes instantly lit up when they found a good, and free seat in the center of the room. I frowned when I suddenly noticed one problem; joji and his friends were all seated in the row directly behind it.

I doubt it will matter. They will probably be too distracted by the movie to bother me, anyway. I tossed my worries aside and quickly made my way to the seat before anyone else could get to it. I awkwardly shimmied past the people in the seats next to mine before finally reaching my spot. I took my seat, resting my head against the back of it, and then set my bucket of popcorn on my lap.

My mood lifted as the cinema lights dimmed, and before I knew it, the big, bold letters that were the title of the movie were lighting up the screen.

I gobbled up my popcorn as the movie played before me. I was loving it so far; I hadn't seen any other film quite like this.

Not being able to pull my eyes away from the screen, I didn't stress myself enough to turn around the first time a popcorn kernel was tossed at me; not even the third time, but when that fifth one did, I lost it.

I calmly set my popcorn on the ground before spinning around on my heels to face joji and his friends. For some reason, this was the last straw for me. Out of all the shoves, name calling and bad days they'd inflicted on me, I don't know why this was what made me snap.

'What the fuck is your problem?! Do you get off on being cancer cells?" I spat. I could feel a fire roaring within me, the flames growing wilder by the minute.

joji snickered and soon all of his friends were laughing along with him. I trembled with rage, eyes blazing, as they laughed and laughed, some slapping their hands on their knees, as if it was the funniest thing they'd ever heard in their lives.

joji and his friends were considered the "cool kids" in our school. I only knew one of their names which was joji's, since he's the only one of them that's even in my classes, fortunately. He didn't really bother me all that much. I could bother to learn the names of the others, but why would I do that?

Finally, I'd had enough and did the first thing that came to mind; I turned around and bent down, grabbing my popcorn, and hurled it at the bunch of them and walked out of the cinema. I didn't bother to turn around to see their faces, though. Who cares? But I could still hear the sound of exasperated groans and angry cursing, and I swear I could hear someone laughing among them. I couldn't help grinning.

The sky had lost its evening shades and was now an inky canvas, clumps of sparking stars dotting the cerulean, along with the pale moon. A light, warm breeze blew. It was a beautiful night. I wasn't in a rush, so I took my time walking home.

I live in a town by the beach. There isn't much to it, it's the same as any other small town; dull and annoying-- dull because there's nothing to do around here and everything stays the same, and annoying because everyone knows your business. You can never have too much privacy in such a tiny community.

I liked how the town wasn't modern, and how the houses weren't all identical, though. Most of the houses had originality and style, and even the ones that had no style still had their own quirky characteristics; not at all like the suburbs I grew up in.

My house came into view and I jogged up the steps to my front door and walked in. My mom doesn't bother to lock the door because our town is crime-free. Here, no one is a stranger; everyone is acquainted; I like that about here because you know what to expect from people, but when it comes to strangers, they're unpredictable.

"What are you doing back home so early?" My mother's voice called. I followed her voice to the kitchen to find her cooking supper. "I didn't like the movie very much," I lied. I didn't lie because I was afraid to tell her, or anything like that, I just don't care to tell her about the problems that cross my path every now and then, unless it's really necessary.

"Hmmm...That's a shame, then. Well, dinner will be ready in a few minutes," my mother stirs something in a pot and doesn't bother to look at me when she speaks. "Okay, I'm gonna go up to my room." She nods and I take the stairs, turning down the hall and entering my bedroom.

I make a beeline for for my bedside table and pull open the top drawer before grabbing my journal. I own a journal, yes. People usually view keeping a journal as "girly," but I think that's stupid. I don't, well, not usually, write about how I feel. I write about the current events in my life. Life's a story anyway, so why not write it?

I sit at my desk and open my journal to the blank page after my last entry. I take a pen from my desk and scribble down what happened this evening. Tonight wasn't that significant, but there's something that tells me I should be writing about it. I can't seem to shake the memory of joji staring at me. The way he looked at me was strange, considering we barely know each other.

It's not a big deal, it's whatever, I tell myself. 

I don't want a stranger coming into my mind.