Chapter 1

My fifth period classroom was near the lunch circle which was located at the center of the school campus so I always was one of the first students to arrive. I took a bite of my ham sandwich. We were out of tomatoes at home. I liked having a slice on my sandwich because otherwise it tasted too dry.

I was a 15-year old freshman and the semester started a month ago in mid-August. I sat on one of the outer benches in the lunch area and as typical I sat alone. Sometimes William ate with me but he usually ate with John, Matt, and Brendan and they were nerds. I knew I wasn't "Mr. Popularity", I was a freshman after all, but I also knew I didn't want to be connected with the geeks.

After I quickly downed my sandwich, I pulled out a banana from my brown paper lunch bag. I glanced down the pathway when I heard the clip-clop of heels on the concrete sidewalk. Melissa awkwardly walked toward the lunch area. This was one of the few times I saw Melissa by herself. Every moment of free time at school was spent with her best friends Elizabeth and Tiffany. The three books and the binder in her arms plus the too tall high heel shoes caused her gait to be a very careful walk. She obviously was not used to wearing the shoes. I don't know if I ever saw Melissa in high heels before. I should know because she was the girl I noticed every time I saw her. I'd known 15-year old Melissa since fifth grade elementary school.

Melissa wasn't a knockout but she was a cute girl so guys noticed her. She was blonde and blue-eyed with very small tits for her age but she was toned and athletic. She was pretty yet not too pretty and she had a bubbly outgoing personality that attracted me. I was a quiet guy who kept to myself. A girl who exuded that much energy always was exciting. Maybe there was something in her that I wanted to see in myself.

She passed by. I surreptitiously watched the sway of her hips and the swing of her knee-length light blue skirt. Melissa moved to the right as a couple of girls walked in the other direction.

It was almost like I saw it happen in slow motion. It looked like it took a minute to occur when it was only seconds. Melissa's right heel slipped into the grass right at the edge of the sidewalk. She stumbled, almost caught herself, and then came crashing to the ground. I put my half a banana down on my lunch bag and raced to her. By the time I reached her in a personal best two seconds, she sat up and looked dazed as if she wondered what happened.

"Are you okay?" I asked. I looked in her face while I tried to collect the papers that fell out of her binder.

"Yeah," she said. She watched me shove the papers into her folder and crawl around to stack her books on top of it.

Melissa stood shakily and I held the books up to her.

"Thanks, Jack," she said with a friendly smile as she grabbed them.

"Sure," I smiled back. I felt so nervous around her.

I started to rise but suddenly I rose too fast as a strong hand gripped my shirt collar. Before I knew it my feet were off the ground.

"What are you doing with my girlfriend?" the most menacing face in the world asked me.

Girlfriend? My heart felt anguish even though my body was in immediate peril.

"He was just helping me, Matt," Melissa said. "I fell."

"You leave her alone!" Matt snarled. He was big. He was a senior on the football team.

Matt's large paw pushed me hard on my back and I was thrown in the air. I landed clumsily on my feet and kept moving forward. My lunch was coming up. No, I wasn't about to vomit. I was about to run into the bench where the last of my banana and my school books sat. I envisioned pain in my future. Really bad pain.

I tried to brake but I approached the bench too fast. I aimed my right foot to the right of my lunch to avoid squishing my banana. In the back of my mind I hoped to finish my lunch even though reality was clearly saying something else. I stepped between my books and lunch with my other foot. I hurtled to the top of the bench back just as I gained control of my forward inertia. I teetered and almost fell forward. I found a balancing point on the edge. Without thinking, I pivoted on my left foot so I faced forward. I stepped down to the bench seat without squishing my lunch then dropped to the ground.

Matt talked to Melissa and she didn't look very pleased but nodded agreement to whatever he said.

Matt looked over at me. I calculated whether I could pick up my books and lunch and run or whether I should just run. Matt brought his right fist up and looked ready to charge like an angry bull.

"You and you!" an adult female voice bellowed. She was today's lunch monitor.

It was Miss Carson, a P.E. teacher and the coach of the girls' softball and volleyball teams. I heard some guys say the short blonde was sexy but they were crazy because she was 25. She was old!

Miss Carson pointed a finger at Matt and at me.

"Me?" I mouthed and pointed at myself.

"Yes, you too," she said.

Oh, no! I didn't do anything. I knew I was about to be blamed. They wouldn't punish a football player. They'd punish me.

Miss Carson escorted us to Vice Principal Henderson's office.

"Got a couple of troublemakers, Kim?"

Who was Kim?

"I'll let them explain it," said Miss Carson. "Have a seat boys. Why don't you start?" She pointed at Matt.

It was always strange to hear a teacher's first name. I tended to think they didn't have first names.

"This guy was hassling my girlfriend, Melissa," Matt started. He pointed at me. "He knocked her to the ground and kicked her papers around. Well, I'm a guy..." He looked earnestly into VP Henderson's face. " ... so I can't let my girl get knocked around so I came in and rescued her."

I glared so angrily at Matt that I almost didn't hear Henderson say it was my turn to talk.

"Melissa was walking and she tripped and fell," I said looking at Henderson. "I went to help her. He..." I paused but then decided against looking at Matt, " ... accused me of bothering Melissa and threw me at the bench."

"I was protecting Melissa!" interjected Matt. "I didn't hurt him. There's not a scratch on him."

"Don't interrupt!" warned Henderson. "It's his turn."

"Yes, sir," said Matt contritely. "I know you know about protecting the women in your life."

"Yes, I do," Henderson replied.