Escaping Cliché (BXB) «COMPLETED»

Chapter 8

           Life has been okay for these past couple of weeks, my hours were spent between school, homework, theatre and Andreas because apparently he became my best-wait. Good friend I mean. I remember the time I brought the issue up.

We were laying on the grass on the soccer field exhausted after hours of him teaching me how to play soccer when I said "Only you would put up with teaching me how to play a sport that involves kicking. Xander tried to teach me one time and we ended up cutting our time close because I kind of. Hahaha. Kicked the ball towards his no no region and we had to ice it. What with me playing baseball and all, I apparently put so much forced when he was just a few feet from me and he ended up having a bruised crotch for a week. It was painful, don't even ask him how because one time someone asked how he peed with it bruising and all he replied with a very scary tone saying 'come here and I'll show you' it was funny the guy was so scared of him that he didn't speak to us for 2 weeks."

He laughed.

"You know you're my best friend, right?" I asked him after he stopped laughing.

He then turned serious and said "Yeah? Why?"

"Well....uh. We. Ah. Well... because we always hang out for one and.... you accept me even when I'm impossible to deal with. You make me happy and when I'm with you I feel safe and enough. Enough in a sense that I can do and tell you things I can't to others because I know you wouldn't judge me. You make me like and accept me even though I can't even tolerate myself at times. You showed me the beauty of being my own self, of being an original and that the difference you have should not define nor confine you, it is just a part of you. You're always there when I need you even when I'm too stubborn to ask for help. You stayed. Because you stayed, really. That's probably the only reason that should count. You stayed when others just walk in and out of my life. You have such a beautiful soul Andreas and you don't even know the half of it. You show up here in Cliché ville basked in cockiness and arrogance that made even the nicest guy on school somehow despise you yet have them all eat out of your palm the next hour. You're incredible and even though you show everyone else's that you don't care. You do. And you show it on the littlest things. You accept everyone and anyone for what and who they are, even when you say really rude and mean things to them, I know there is no bite, you are just teasing them. Your kind and nice and everything you claim you aren't. You're beautiful Andreas and someday you'll make someone very happy just like I am now. Well a lot happier but I don't think happiness that magnitude should be healthy. I'm barely avoiding the point of insanity just because you are here. You're my best friend because you stayed. And I'll gladly return the same sentiments" I told him honestly.

He smiled and "Aw. I didn't know you felt that way babe. You know if I hadn't given upon the whole best friends' concept. You would be mine too"

"Why'd you give up then?" I asked crestfallen.

"Well...I once had a best friend." he said in a slightly sardonic voice while trying to smile. The smile was so weak. It looks like he was fighting every inch of himself to smile so I gave him a soft one sensing a story behind the sentence.

"Yeah? What happened?" I asked laying down on the grass.

"His name was Stan and he well... To make the story short he hurt me not just physically but mentally and emotionally. We knew each other since we were kids and I thought you know... He would stick with me through thick and thin yet when he became one of the popular crowd He... not only tossed me aside. No that would be nice of him, instead he tormented me and bullied me because I was different and because I had a wimpy body in middle school. One of my teachers witnessed one of my beatings. He reported Stan and he was suspended and everyone thought I squealed. I didn't even knew what happened because I got sick that week and by the time I returned to school so was Stan. But he blamed me... Everyone blamed me and thought I was a ...what's their term? Oh yeah. 'Bitch squealer' so they made a game... It was to pretend I didn't exist. It felt like I was invisible and not the good one too. Even when I tried talking to someone they pretend that I'm not there. I don't know who started that game but everyone did it. And Stan would always laugh when he sees me all alone and ignored. I was depressed for a while and had to go to a therapy camp where I met Danny. He was also like me. Well not really he was also bullied but he fought back and I don't mean the violent type. He worked with me through everything he taught me how to stand up for myself and helped me to buff myself up and also taught me soccer which was conveniently Stan's area of expertise. He helped me get even with Stan by helping me be better at everything Stan and I competed with. And when I returned to school after that summer it was like it was a new me, I even went from Andreas to Jacob. One guy even asked if I was new. I guess I did looked different because of the added muscle and of course puberty but anyway I eventually climbed up the social ladder enough to rival with Stan yet I chose a different peer. While he was with the popular crowd with the jocks I was with the popular rebels and even then I was more popular than him. Don't get me wrong we weren't the main popular guy just popular, uh maybe the left hand of the popular guy. But anyway we were mostly competing in soccer. There was this one time when the coach was cutting the team-only the first strings are to be left because of the school cutting the budget and we were barely making the first string and along with the 2nd string and the recently graduated junior league competing with us it was bound to be difficult so the coach was torn between the two of us. I mean we were both good but the newly graduated junior leagues were like the first Strings they went to nationals even we haven't went to the nationals at least Stan and I. Did I mention we were the only grade 8 there most of the players were in the 9th and 10th and the fresh men from the little league were all experienced. So like I said there was one slot left and the coach was picking from the two of us... and you know what he did?" he asked rhetorically.