“Tom, Are you listening to me?” Ethan says. I shake my head at him and frown. “Why do i need you as my tutor, Ethan?” I say, my head propped on my hand. He shrugs then looks at the textbook again. I sigh then look at my phone. It reads 3:30 pm. It’s been two hours and thirty minutes since school ended. My tutoring lessons end at 4:00. I turn back to Ethan and he smiles at me while brushing his brown hair back in place. Ethan isn’t like super hot but he’s crazy smart for an eighth grader. We go to high school next year and I'm super nervous. I look down at the table then look up as i hear someone call my name. I look over Ethan’s head and see Stacy Brist. She’s super popular and she thinks we’re friends but we’re not. “Hey, Thomas.” she says, sweetly. I roll my eyes then look at Ethan. He shrugs then scoots away. Stacy sits down and smiles at me, flipping her hair off her shoulder. “So, Thomas, What’re you doing?” she asks. I shrug at her then put my stuff away. “Going home.” I say. She laughs then grabs my arm and writes something on it. “There you go, Thomas.” she says. I look at my arm and see a heart with -Stacy Brist- inside. I pull on my jacket and walk away when Ethan grabs me. “Same time next week, Tom?” he asks. I nod and run down the stairs. When i get outside i head across the parking lot to the horrible looking sidewalk. I head to my house on Piston Avenue. When i get there i climb into my room and close the curtains to block out the light a little. I look in my money collection jar and see only $1.89. I sigh then look in the mirror and frown. I don’t like how i look. My computer dings and i go over to it and see a new email. It’s from Stacy. [Hey, i’m having a party. You should come. It’s going to be great.] i send a reply and hop into the shower. When i get out i see a nice shirt and pants tossed on my bed. I throw them on and brush my hair. When i’m done i pull out my phone and look for the picture of me and my mom. When 7:30 rolls around i ask my older brother Wyatt if he can drive me over to Stacy’s house. He agrees but only if he can pick up his girlfriend, Janet. He drops me off at 7:47. I knock on Stacy’s door and she lets me in. i follow her to her room where i see her friends Jamie and Leroy. I also see Ethan. He waves at me and smiles. I go over to the punch table and grab a drink. I walk over to a secluded spot and lean against the wall. People trickle in and the music gets louder by the minute. I go grab another drink, then on my way out i bump into someone, spilling my drink on my white-collared shirt. “Great.” I mumbled, looking at my stained shirt. “Need a towel?” a familiar voice says, from behind me. I turn and see Ethan smiling at me. I don’t realize what i’m doing until I hugged him tightly. Surprisingly, he hugs me back. “Want to get out of here?” he whispers into my ear. I nod and he takes my hand and leads the way out. Stacy sees us and stops us. “Where do you two think you’re going?” she asks. Ethan smiles innocently at her. “I’m just taking Tommy here out to get a bite. You know like real food?” he says. She huffs and storms away toward her cluster of friends. Once we get outside Ethan stops me. I look at him as he holds out his hand. “Can I have your phone, Thomas?” he asks. I nod and hand it to him. He types something then hands it back. I follow him to his blue mustang. He unlocks it and opens the door for me. I smile and climb in, putting my seatbelt on.
Chapter 2: The Restaurant Renovation
“Here we are, Tommy.” Ethan says, gesturing toward the new gigantic building in front of us. I laugh then kick at the ground with my worn-out sneakers. “You really brought me to a renovation building?” I ask him. He nods then holds up a hand. “Don’t. Just hear me out. I brought you here because this is my dad’s new business.” he says. “I didn’t know he was still renovating.” he puts his hands on my shoulders and looks at me. “My dad keeps moving around but I'm hoping we can stay so that then i don’t have to leave all my friends.” he says. I nod then continue looking into his deep blue eyes. “I love you” I whisper. He cocks his head to one side. “What?” he asks. I shrug then pull out my ringing phone. I see Stacy’s number and hit IGNORE. “Who was that?” he asks, running a hand through his brown hair. “Stacy Brist.” I say. Ethan climbs into his car and pulls out a cd. “It’s my recorded songs. They’re originals.” he says, handing it to me. “What’s this for, Ethan?” I ask. He shrugs then stuffs his hands into his jeans pockets. “I’m a songwriter and I make a lot of cd’s. I decided to give you this album.” he says. I look at him more closely and see bruises on his wrists. “Ethan, why do you have bruises on your wrists?” I ask him. He turns around and sighs. He turns back to me. “My dad gets rough sometimes.” he sys. “I think he does it just because i disappoint him.” I shake my head then look at my phone. It reads 9:45 pm. I look at Ethan. “Can you drop me off at my house? Wyatt is waiting for me.” I say, climbing into his car. He gets in and i tell him the directions on how to get to my house. Ethan drops me off at my house at 9:55 pm. I run to the front door and go inside. I hear the t.v. blaring from the living room. I slip quietly downstairs to the basement, which i transformed into my room. Not five minutes later, Wyatt walks into my room and grabs me. “Hey, nerd, how was the party?” he asks, squeezing my shoulders slightly. I push him off and sit on my bed. “Let me guess. Your tutor boyfriend doesn’t like you?” he asks. I shake my head and sigh. “No, Wyatt. I humiliated myself in front of Ethan.” I say. He sits next to me on my bed and looks at me. “I’m sorry little bro.” he says, slapping my head. He jumps up and goes to his room. He walks back in, carrying his big cd player. He puts in the cd Ethan gave me and pushes PLAY. The first song starts and he starts to dance around my room, like an idiot. I laugh at him until he grabs me and tackles me to the ground. We struggle until the song stops and we hear the doorbell ring. Wyatt gets off me and leaves the room. I hear voices drifting up the stairs, one being Wyatt’s, and the other unfamiliar to me. I stop his cd player and sit on my bed again. Wyatt walks in with the unfamiliar person. Wyatt looks at me then looks at the person. “Uh, hi?” I say, holding out my hand. The person shakes my hand and smiles. “My name is Darren Wilmas.” he says. I nod and Wyatt leaves. Darren looks at me and smiles again. “I want you, Thomas.” he says, walking towards me. He pushes me onto the bed and kisses me. Wyatt walks back in and stops short when he sees Darren kissing me. Darren looks at Wyatt and bares his teeth. Wyatt backs out and closes the door. Darren looks at me. He runs his thumb across my cheek to my jawline and tries to bite my lip, making it bleed.
Chapter 3: The Math Test
Wyatt comes back in and yells at Darren . When Darren leaves Wyatt comes back to my room. “Thomas, i’m sorry. I didn’t know he was here to attack you.” he says, rubbing his neck. I nod and look in the full-length mirror I have next to my door. I see the bruises on my neck and gasp. Wyatt hugs me. “I’m so sorry, Thomas. I really feel horrible for not knowing he wanted to attack you.” he whispers. I smile slightly and grab some of my mom’s concealer. I start dabbing a blob on my neck when Wyatt puts a hand on my shoulder. “Here, let me do it.” he says, grabbing the concealer from me. He dabs some on and helps blend it in. He hugs me and leaves my room. I look at myself in the mirror one last time then sit on my bed. I feel something jabbing me so I move my blanket to find a taco. “Ugh, really? Why’d I leave this in here?” I mutter. I toss it toward my trash can and it hits the floor, totally missing the trash can.
“Tom, Are you listening to me?” Ethan says. I shake my head at him and frown.
“Why do i need you as my tutor, Ethan?” I say, my head propped on my hand. He shrugs then looks at the textbook again. I sigh then look at my phone. It reads 3:30 pm. It’s been two hours and thirty minutes since school ended. My tutoring lessons end at 4:00. I turn back to Ethan and he smiles at me while brushing his brown hair back in place. Ethan isn’t like super hot but he’s crazy smart for an eighth grader. We go to high school next year and I'm super nervous. I look down at the table then look up as i hear someone call my name. I look over Ethan’s head and see Stacy Brist. She’s super popular and she thinks we’re friends but we’re not.
“Hey, Thomas.” she says, sweetly. I roll my eyes then look at Ethan. He shrugs then scoots away. Stacy sits down and smiles at me, flipping her hair off her shoulder.
“So, Thomas, What’re you doing?” she asks. I shrug at her then put my stuff away.
“Going home.” I say. She laughs then grabs my arm and writes something on it.
“There you go, Thomas.” she says. I look at my arm and see a heart with -Stacy Brist- inside. I pull on my jacket and walk away when Ethan grabs me.
“Same time next week, Tom?” he asks. I nod and run down the stairs. When i get outside i head across the parking lot to the horrible looking sidewalk. I head to my house on Piston Avenue. When i get there i climb into my room and close the curtains to block out the light a little. I look in my money collection jar and see only $1.89. I sigh then look in the mirror and frown. I don’t like how i look. My computer dings and i go over to it and see a new email. It’s from Stacy. [Hey, i’m having a party. You should come. It’s going to be great.] i send a reply and hop into the shower. When i get out i see a nice shirt and pants tossed on my bed. I throw them on and brush my hair. When i’m done i pull out my phone and look for the picture of me and my mom. When 7:30 rolls around i ask my older brother Wyatt if he can drive me over to Stacy’s house. He agrees but only if he can pick up his girlfriend, Janet. He drops me off at 7:47. I knock on Stacy’s door and she lets me in. i follow her to her room where i see her friends Jamie and Leroy. I also see Ethan. He waves at me and smiles. I go over to the punch table and grab a drink. I walk over to a secluded spot and lean against the wall. People trickle in and the music gets louder by the minute. I go grab another drink, then on my way out i bump into someone, spilling my drink on my white-collared shirt.
“Great.” I mumbled, looking at my stained shirt.
“Need a towel?” a familiar voice says, from behind me. I turn and see Ethan smiling at me. I don’t realize what i’m doing until I hugged him tightly. Surprisingly, he hugs me back.
“Want to get out of here?” he whispers into my ear. I nod and he takes my hand and leads the way out. Stacy sees us and stops us.
“Where do you two think you’re going?” she asks. Ethan smiles innocently at her.
“I’m just taking Tommy here out to get a bite. You know like real food?” he says. She huffs and storms away toward her cluster of friends. Once we get outside Ethan stops me. I look at him as he holds out his hand.
“Can I have your phone, Thomas?” he asks. I nod and hand it to him. He types something then hands it back. I follow him to his blue mustang. He unlocks it and opens the door for me. I smile and climb in, putting my seatbelt on.
Chapter 2: The Restaurant Renovation
“Here we are, Tommy.” Ethan says, gesturing toward the new gigantic building in front of us. I laugh then kick at the ground with my worn-out sneakers.
“You really brought me to a renovation building?” I ask him. He nods then holds up a hand.
“Don’t. Just hear me out. I brought you here because this is my dad’s new business.” he says. “I didn’t know he was still renovating.” he puts his hands on my shoulders and looks at me.
“My dad keeps moving around but I'm hoping we can stay so that then i don’t have to leave all my friends.” he says. I nod then continue looking into his deep blue eyes.
“I love you” I whisper. He cocks his head to one side.
“What?” he asks. I shrug then pull out my ringing phone. I see Stacy’s number and hit IGNORE.
“Who was that?” he asks, running a hand through his brown hair.
“Stacy Brist.” I say. Ethan climbs into his car and pulls out a cd.
“It’s my recorded songs. They’re originals.” he says, handing it to me.
“What’s this for, Ethan?” I ask. He shrugs then stuffs his hands into his jeans pockets.
“I’m a songwriter and I make a lot of cd’s. I decided to give you this album.” he says. I look at him more closely and see bruises on his wrists.
“Ethan, why do you have bruises on your wrists?” I ask him. He turns around and sighs. He turns back to me.
“My dad gets rough sometimes.” he sys. “I think he does it just because i disappoint him.” I shake my head then look at my phone. It reads 9:45 pm. I look at Ethan.
“Can you drop me off at my house? Wyatt is waiting for me.” I say, climbing into his car. He gets in and i tell him the directions on how to get to my house. Ethan drops me off at my house at 9:55 pm. I run to the front door and go inside. I hear the t.v. blaring from the living room. I slip quietly downstairs to the basement, which i transformed into my room. Not five minutes later, Wyatt walks into my room and grabs me.
“Hey, nerd, how was the party?” he asks, squeezing my shoulders slightly. I push him off and sit on my bed.
“Let me guess. Your tutor boyfriend doesn’t like you?” he asks. I shake my head and sigh.
“No, Wyatt. I humiliated myself in front of Ethan.” I say. He sits next to me on my bed and looks at me.
“I’m sorry little bro.” he says, slapping my head. He jumps up and goes to his room. He walks back in, carrying his big cd player. He puts in the cd Ethan gave me and pushes PLAY. The first song starts and he starts to dance around my room, like an idiot. I laugh at him until he grabs me and tackles me to the ground. We struggle until the song stops and we hear the doorbell ring. Wyatt gets off me and leaves the room. I hear voices drifting up the stairs, one being Wyatt’s, and the other unfamiliar to me. I stop his cd player and sit on my bed again. Wyatt walks in with the unfamiliar person. Wyatt looks at me then looks at the person.
“Uh, hi?” I say, holding out my hand. The person shakes my hand and smiles.
“My name is Darren Wilmas.” he says. I nod and Wyatt leaves. Darren looks at me and smiles again.
“I want you, Thomas.” he says, walking towards me. He pushes me onto the bed and kisses me. Wyatt walks back in and stops short when he sees Darren kissing me. Darren looks at Wyatt and bares his teeth. Wyatt backs out and closes the door. Darren looks at me. He runs his thumb across my cheek to my jawline and tries to bite my lip, making it bleed.
Chapter 3: The Math Test
Wyatt comes back in and yells at Darren . When Darren leaves Wyatt comes back to my room.
“Thomas, i’m sorry. I didn’t know he was here to attack you.” he says, rubbing his neck. I nod and look in the full-length mirror I have next to my door. I see the bruises on my neck and gasp. Wyatt hugs me.
“I’m so sorry, Thomas. I really feel horrible for not knowing he wanted to attack you.” he whispers. I smile slightly and grab some of my mom’s concealer. I start dabbing a blob on my neck when Wyatt puts a hand on my shoulder.
“Here, let me do it.” he says, grabbing the concealer from me. He dabs some on and helps blend it in. He hugs me and leaves my room. I look at myself in the mirror one last time then sit on my bed. I feel something jabbing me so I move my blanket to find a taco.
“Ugh, really? Why’d I leave this in here?” I mutter. I toss it toward my trash can and it hits the floor, totally missing the trash can.