Part 2

To avoid eating alone in the cafeteria like a loser, my choices were limited.

My only option was to hide in a bathroom stall and scarf down my lunch sandwich as quickly as I could.

Yes, a bathroom stall.

And though it was clean, yes it was still GROSS but what choice did I have?

Well, eating a sandwich doesn’t take an entire lunch period so my next dilemma was what to do with the rest of my time.

The library was my refuge. Being around books always made me feel better and in this case, it definitely provided a little comfort. I just wished that I could have had my lunch there instead.

For an entire week, I avoided morning recess, ate in the bathroom, went to the library and avoided afternoon recess.

One. Entire. Week.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

But as the week dragged on, my sadness turned into anger and I realized two things – one, I couldn’t possibly keep this up for all of 6th grade and two, who in the hell did Amy and Theresa think they were being so mean when I had done something to them?

Funny how I remember this like it was yesterday.

I knew better than to say anything at home about this school drama so for the whole weekend, I ruminated and ruminated until I realized that little introverted me would have to do things differently if I wanted a different result. And if I could stick it to Amy and Theresa at the same time, it would be icing on the cake.

But how could I get them both back?

And that’s when I knew what to do.

Unlike Amy and Theresa, I had no jealousy towards the “popular ones”. As far as I was concerned, I knew that I could never be popular or even compete in that way so why be upset?

On Monday morning before students filed into the school, nervous and totally out of my comfort zoneorning, I approached Christa, one of the most popular girls, while she stood alongside all the rest of the ones in that popular group.

My question was simple and direct. “Would you mind if I hung out with you guys from now on?”

It’s not like I had anything to lose, right?

Christa looked me over from head to toe before she answered…

To be continued – with a final part 3.