What To Do
by Jessica Vasquez, 16, USA
"Love is an irresistible desire, to be irresistibly desired."
"Beauty is altogether in the eye of the beholder."
These are the quotes that I think of when I think of Jerrad.
You see Jerrad could be referred to as, well, a nerd. In fact,
at our high school it was just common knowledge that he was one
of the biggest dorks in the junior class. As captain of the cheerleading
team it was almost my duty to make fun of him along with the football
team.
Our high school was like any other. I was dating the captain
of the football team, not to mention that I also dated the captain
of the basketball and baseball teams. You, of course, have jocks,
bullies, snobs, flirts, and nerds. But there was one nerd in particular
that had caught my eye recently. You see, last week Jerrad had
caught me crying after a football game. Then, out of the complete
blue, he picked up one of those weed like flowers gave it to me,
smiled, and then said, "It's hard being something you are
not." Then left.
The next day at school each time I saw him in the halls or in
class I got this really weird feeling inside. I felt like I was
five and scared. I don't know why. It wasn't until sixth period
that I found out. I was sitting next to my boyfriend Nick in chemistry
when the teacher said to get into our lab groups. I thought I
was going to die. Why? Because Jerrad was my assigned lab partner.
He came over and sat where Nick used to be sitting, who, at the
present moment, was sitting next to the most flirtatious girl
in the class. Then Jerrad interrupted me when he said, "So,
why were you crying at the game yesterday?" My first intention
was to make a snappy comeback but then I found myself pouring
my heart out to him. "Well, I caught Nick kissing another
girl. Then when I confronted him about it he just said that it
was no big deal." After that, Jerrad started giving me the
best insights on relationships that I have ever heard in my whole
life. Which was weird since he never went out with anybody. I
noticed while I was talking to Jerrad that I couldn't look him
straight in the eye, couldn't stop smiling, and felt warm and
safe inside. I had never ever felt that before with anyone. Then
the bell rang and we all went to our next classes.
That night at home while I was doing my homework the phone rang.
Low and behold it was Jerrad. He asked me how I was feeling and
then...he asked me out! I was in complete shock. I mean, I am
a very popular person and if I even was caught eating with Jerrad
I would never hear the end of it. Of course, the boyfriend I had
now wasn't really a boyfriend at all. I was confused. Then for
some unknown reason I caught myself saying yes.
The next day at school everyone knew about it. Yet, it didn't
seem to bother me. For some odd reason, I felt proud. Then I remembered
something Jerrad had told me earlier, "It's hard trying to
be something you're not." He's a smart guy, Jerrad. It's
true what they say , "Beauty is altogether in the eye of
the beholder".
