Chapter 10

"Hey man, what's up?" Bryan closed the door behind him. He whistled. "Never thought you'd be the hero type," he laughed. I wasn't amused.

"I need some advice Bryan."

He cocked his head.

"About a girl right?"

I blanched. He grinned, seeing the look on my face. "Yeap, its about a girl all right." He made himself comfortable on the chair next to my bed. "Lay it on me."

I told Bryan everything. About all the different girls I was involved in these past weeks and more. He listened quietly and occasionally asked for me to clarify different aspects. After I was done with my narrative, he gave me a weird look.

"What?" I asked, slightly backing up as he leaned in towards me. He stared at me in silence which made me even more nervous. Bryan spoke slowly.

"I'm trying to figure out what it is about you that attracts all these girls. Tell me the truth." He leaned in close and whispered in my ear. "Is it hypnosis?!"

He burst out laughing as I shoved him off me. I rolled my eyes. "You jerk."

Laughing, he sat up. "I had to. You're taking all this too seriously bro. You're young. You're a freshman. Things happen, things change. People change. Point is. You don't have to CHOOSE someone right now. Just go with the flow of things."

"But you and Lisa have been dating since you guys were freshman."

"That didn't happen until Spring semester. At least take this Fall to just relax and enjoy yourself without committing to anything. You're so used to being attached to someone that it might be better for you to just loosen up a bit."

"But..." I protested. The whole concept of not being committed to just one person seemed so foreign and unnatural. In movies, there's always a prince and a princess. When I mentioned this to Bryan, he grinned.

"That's true. But what they lack to tell you is that no one ever starts at the princess. You work your way till you find her."

"Well, lucky you then I guess for finding your princess already." At this, Bryan fell silent. I looked at him wide-eyed. "Wait ... You don't think Lisa is your princess?"

He shrugged. "I don't know if she is or not. Right now, we're fine. But in two years? We'll be off to college. We may or may not get into the same schools. Who knows what will happen. Anyways, enough sap talk. Let's go shoot some hoops."

I frowned, not completely satisfied with his avoidance of the question. I felt like I needed another outlook on the situation.

"Actually I'll pass this time. Not feeling too hot."

"Ahh right, hospital." Bryan patted my shoulder. "Well, hope you feel better Jared. And like I said, loosen up. Trust me."

I smiled. "Thanks Bryan." He waved goodbye and left the room. I reached over for my phone and after a moment's hesitation, hit dial.

"And time is UP. Please put your pencils down and pass your tests up to the front."

Sighs were heard throughout the room as the sound of pencils clattered onto the desk. I breathed out, wiping a drop off my forehead. My last final was finished. Finally off to winter vacation.

"Hey Jared!" I looked up.

"Oh hey Mark," I smiled back. "How do you think you did?" Mark gave me a sheepish grin.

"Eh. I don't want to talk about it. Got any big plans for winter break?"

I paused. "Not sure. I think probably some family gathering or whatever. Nothing too fancy. How about you?"

"I think my friends and I are going up north to go skiing. My uncle has a cabin up there."

"Sounds like it'll be a lot of fun. I'm happy for you." I gave him a heartwarming smile.

He paused for a second. Then a smile split his face. "Thanks Jared. It means a lot." He cocked his head. "You know, you've been different lately. In a good way." Before I could respond, the bell rang and he turned to go back to his friends.

Mark was right. Over the events of the past few months, I realized that I needed to come out of my shell. For starters, that meant saying hello or even acknowledging my fellow classmates. I got a few strange looks the first few days when I greeted them but after a while, people starting being friendly back. It felt nice to be accepted and belong somewhere.

"DIE MOTHERFUCKER."

Everyone groaned as Game Over flickered across the screen. Bryan patted my shoulder.

"Nice try Jared, no one ever really beats Joe though." Joe smirked at me. He waved his arms over his head in victory. The controller in his hand looked tiny and comical on his 6'4 frame.

"Ugh, I still can't believe a meathead like you is so good at video games," Lisa said. She shook her head. "You really do break the stereotype of a video game nerd."