Opposing Forces

Chapter 2

By Jeff

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The Opposing Forces Begin

In a blink of an eye, he was over the railing. I raced over towards the bridge, and I can see Tyler's hand grasping onto the railing.

"Dway---" he pleads helplessly. "Help me, my hand is slipping."

I responded by holding his hand tightly. I used all my strength and slowly, I was pulling Tyler towards me. He was able to grab the railing with his other hand, and he hoisted himself over the bridge. He collapses onto the ground, his breath is still heavy.

"Oh my god Dway," he said. "I almost died."

"No shit," I said, somewhat more irritated than I intended. "I mean...are you ok?"

Tyler began to cry, what was I to do? Being the softie that I am, I hugged Tyler closer as he sobbed against my shoulder. We remained in a tight embrace for what seemed like hours but it was realistically fifteen minutes.

"I can't let my parents see me like this," Tyler said.

"You can just come back to my house," I blurted out without thinking.

STUPID, STUPID, STUPID, I yelled at myself in my head.

"Can I?" he asked hopefully.

"Sure, we can stop by your house to tell your parents," I replied.

"Thanks Dwayne."

"No problem Tyler."

We slowly got up and we walked silently towards the Callihan household. I opened the door and Judy emerged from the kitchen; I looked back and Tyler had entered past his mother and me and went straight for his room.

"Judy, we need some materials for our poster that are at my house," I began. "Do you think Tyler can work on it over at my house and spend the night possibly?"

Judy seemed unconvinced, but I gave her this sad, pathetic puppy look (only when I'm desperate), and she gave in.

"Are your parents alright with this?" she asked inquisitively.

"For school?" I asked in a higher pitch. "Of course."

"Alright then."

Tyler ran down the stairs, almost knocking over his poor mother. He mumbled a "thanks mom and goodnight" and he was already heading towards my house.

"Thanks for dinner," I said, hesitantly. I leaned forward and kissed Judy on the cheek, an old term of endearment.

"Anytime sweetie," she said. "Don't be a stranger."

"I won't," I said, practically lying through my teeth.

"Ty, slow down!" I cried, trying to catch my breath.

He looked back, dazed, and stopped for me to catch up.

"Thank you," I said as I stepped up beside him. "I think I'm getting too old for this type of exercise."

"No, not too old, just too lazy," he replied.

He continued walking, we stayed in utter silence.

"You know, I don't hate you," I suddenly blurted out.

Note to self: process words through brain and then flow out of mouth.

My comment seemed to have caught him off guard, he replied, "What?"

"Back there, on the bridge, you said I hated and despised you," I said, recalling his words. "Well, I don't hate you."

"Ok...so you despise me?"

"I don't despise you either..."

"Then what?" Tyler asked.

"I...uh.... um...intensely dislike you," I answered. "That's it, intensely dislike you."

"Just how do you intensely dislike something?" he asked. "Do you focus all of your negative energy into a person, place, or thing? And then, WAM, you're intensely disliking that somebody, somewhere, or something?"

"No...." I began slowly. "It's just that.... on my Richter scale of friends and acquaintances, you're not my most favorite person in the world. However, if a spaceship was to land here and demand for human species, I wouldn't sacrifice you first-hand to the aliens for scientific experiment."

"Am I suppose to be feeling better about myself with the last comment?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hey you asked buddy, I just answered," I replied.

We were a block away from my house, and we returned to our stone silence. Tyler looked to be contemplating deeply in his thoughts and I announced our arrival at my house. Finally, Tyler said, "Hey Dwayne?"

"Yeah Tyler?" I answered.

Tyler seemed to be mentally fumbling for words to say, but instead, he said, "We better get started on our poster."

Even though that was clearly not what Tyler wanted to say, I just merely agreed and we entered my quiet house.

RING! The wrath of my alarm clock. I rolled over and my electronic clock read 7:35. Oh good, it was...SEVEN THIRTY FIVE?!? I sprung out of bed and rushed to the bathroom, only to discover a line of three.

"Fancy seeing you here," Tyler said, sarcastically.

I mumbled back something along the lines of shut up and tried to concentrate on anything but my need to urinate.

"HURRY UP BEN!" Jane screamed, pounding on the door.

The door opened and I swore Jane squeezed through the gap before Ben could have a chance to exit.

"Tyler?" Ben said, in a surprised tone. "Haven't seen you around here for a while."

"I've had things to do," Tyler replied, somewhat hesitantly.

"Like the in-crowd," I muttered.

"What?" he asked, his eyebrows arched in frustration.

"Never mind," I said. "I'm taking my parents' bathroom hostage, I'll pee out the Nile River before Jane ever comes out."

"Thanks for sharing," Tyler said, tiredly.

I knocked on my parent's door only to find my mom putting on makeup and dad putting on his tie in front of the mirror.

"Can't talk, must pee," I said hurriedly, brushing past my bewildered parents.

"He's a man of few words in the morning," I hear my mom comment to my dad. "Must've got it from you dear."

After I flushed the toilet, I decided to just wet my hair and brush my teeth (with an extra toothbrush) in the same bathroom (to save time).

"I saw Tyler out there honey," Mom said to me.

"Yeah, we ended up working on the project here cause I had most of the materials, I hope that was alright."

"Yeah, it was fine," Mom, said. "I was just surprised to see him at the coffee table this morning, he had fixed himself a cup and was sitting there all by himself."

"He's just a shit load of surprises," I mumbled again to myself.

"What was that dear?" Mom inquired. (Damn her good hearing)

"Nothing important mom," I said.

I put some toothpaste onto the toothbrush and walk back to my room to change into some clean clothes. The doorbell rung at 7:50, as I was in midst of my teeth cleansing. RYAN! Ryan picks me up for school at 7:50 every morning, what am I suppose to do with Tyler? FUCK, I said in my head.

"Dwayne," Ben called from the downstairs hallway. "It's Ryan."

"Thanks Ben," I replied.

Well, it sounded more like "Arrrahrar Barahra" with the toothbrush in my mouth.

Before I could stop Ryan, he was leaping up my stairs, two steps at a time, and arriving on the upper level. Before I could even speak, Tyler appears out of the bathroom and said, "I had to use your toothbrush, I hope you didn't m---"

Tyler's eyes caught Ryan's and I could sense the awkwardness and intensity of the moment.

"Tyler," Ryan said.

"Ryan."

Tyler walked into my room and closed the door, meanwhile Ryan began to verbally harass me as I spit and rinse my mouth.

"What is he doing HERE?" Ryan hissed.

"Chill out, we were working on the Spanish project and we needed some stuff from here so we just came here and he crashed here for the night, no biggie."

"Well, I suppose you expect me to give HIM a ride in MY car," Ryan said.

"I don't know and I don't care, you can HIT him with the car for all I care," I said, irritatingly. "I need to get my shoes on."

I was putting on my shoes (Ryan on one side of me) when Tyler ran down the stairs.

"Hey, I'm just going to walk to school this morning," Tyler said.

"No need," Ryan said, monotonously. "I can give you a ride, I have a car."

"It's alright," Tyler said. "I don't need your pity or charity."

"Hey, if you insist---" Ryan said before I cut him off.

"Ryan would love to give you a ride Tyler," I said, a fake tone in my voice. "And Ryan, just get in the car and drive."

I'd love to tell you that the car ride to school (although it was a brief five minutes) was entertaining...but, I'd be lying to you and be in complete denial. The ride was horrendous, the silence was so thick...you could cut it with a steak knife. Tyler kept looking out the window, Ryan (thank god) kept his eyes glued to the front and I was looking back and forth from Ryan to Tyler (I was getting a headache by the way).

"See you in Spanish," Tyler said to me, as he exited the car.

"You're welcome," Ryan said sarcastically.

"Oh thanks," Tyler replied, nonchalant.

Tyler walked away into the crowd while I waited for Ryan to gather his belongings from the backseat.

"That guy is impossible!" Ryan said.

"He said two words to you," I said.

"Yeah, literally," he said with a huff. "I'm just glad I'm NOT his partner, no offense Dwayne."

"None taken," I said. I sighed.

The bell rang as I approached my locker; I grabbed some notes out of my locker and proceeded to homeroom. I entered Duvarte's classroom and I saw Tyler sitting in a far corner, his head buried in copying someone's homework. I took a seat by some people I knew from my student government class, and they chit chat about the upcoming winter spirit week.

"Hey," a voice said.

I looked up and there stood Tyler, in this light, he was rather.... attractive.

"May I sit here?" he asked, gesturing the empty chair in front of me.

"I don't own the seat," I said.

He took my sarcastic comment as a cue to sit down. He continued to copy.... our Spanish homework..., which I didn't do.

"Hey, can I copy the worksheets after you?" I asked Tyler.

"Take it," he said. "I'm done."

"Thanks," I said, as he handed me the papers.

"You're welcome," he replied. "Oh, and thank YOU."

"For what?" I asked, incredulously.

"For being there for me yesterday, even though---" he lowered his voice to a whisper. "---I had a mid-life crisis."

"You're 16, it's hardly mid-life," I replied.

"Fine, mid-adolescent crisis."

"Better," I said, commending on his alternative choice of words.

"I was wondering if...well, we could go catch that new Julia Roberts flick this weekend, I know what a fan of Julia Roberts you are and---" he began.

"Whoa," I said, cutting off Tyler. "US...going to a movie. You're out of your mind."

"Why?" he asked curiously.

"Tyler, just because we're partner on this Spanish project, socially, things haven't changed," I replied. "I mean...I can't just up and start hanging out with you, I mean...what would our friends say?"

"What would Ryan say," he said. "Is that what you mean?"

"Well, sure, I care what Ryan has to say and---"

"Why? He's not your mother."

"No, but he's my best friend." I snapped.

Instant regret.

"Yeah, well, it was worth a try," he said and he turned back around.

Homeroom ended and Spanish was about to start. Ryan hesitantly took a seat next to me because of well...Tyler, in front of me.

"Hey Ty," Sam Richards, a jock, said. "Grab a seat by us over here."

"Sure," Tyler said, looking briefly at me.

Tyler moved across the room to his friends, Ryan quickly took the seat and he leaned towards me and asked, "Did he stare at you, like in that creepy stalker way, during homeroom today?"

"No," I said. "We had a 'nice' little chat."

"Oh," Ryan said, interested. "What about?"

"Just stuff."

"Stuff, what KIND of stuff?" Ryan asked.

"Ryan!" I said, haughtily. "It's none of your business what I was talking to Tyler about."

"Fine," he retorted and he turned back around.

"Oh that's mature," I said. "Giving me the cold shoulder."

"Shut up Dwayne," he said, glaring at me.

I decided to just stop messing with Ryan, because I needed to finish copying the Spanish homework. Ryan ignored me for the remainder of the period and the bell rang and I was walking through the crowd to chemistry. Clarissa found me in the hallway near my chemistry and her physics (she skipped chem.) classroom.

"What's with the sudden interest in rekindling your friendship with Tyler Callihan?" she inquired. "What, is it some asshole outreach program that I am not aware of?"

"He's my Spanish project partner," I said. "For Pete's sake, calm down and don't get your panties in a bunch."

She looked a little peeved at my defense for Tyler, she mumbled a "later" and she was walking into her physics classroom. I was one foot over the doorway when the bell ring...

"Carmichael," my chemistry teacher, Mr.Holland, said. "That's minus one point for tardiness." I sighed with frustration and took my seat.

By Thursday, Jacob was against me also with my 'sudden association' with Tyler.

"You're just going to do the same thing he did to us," he stated.

"Don't be stupid," I replied. "He's just my Spanish partner."

Friday finally arrived and my presentation with Tyler was more impressive than I imagined. I got the grading rubric back in Spanish: A-. Hey, not bad. I looked over at Tyler; he smiled and gave a discreet thumbs up. I took a brief look at Ryan's paper: C+...ok, maybe shy Bernice wasn't such a great partner after all. I beamed, knowing all my hard work had paid off. At lunch, Clarissa proposed the four of us to go to see the new Julia Roberts movie, in honor of my fascination and awe of her. Clarissa was still a bit displeased with our commotion on Tuesday...three days later, I could still sense this resentment...almost as if I had betrayed her, Ryan, and Jacob. I didn't feel like spending my Friday night arguing my side of the story, so I faked a look and said I was feeling like I was going to throw up. They mumbled sincerely that they were sorry and they hope I was feeling better.

It was about six that evening when the doorbell rang, I opened the door and there stood Tyler.

"Tyler--" I said, surprised.

"Before you say anything," he said. "I just happened to be in the neighborhood and I thought we could go grab a bite or something, my treat, in celebration of our Spanish project."

I WAS hungry.

"Alright," I said, giving in. "Come in for a second, I have to my wallet and key and let me tell my mom."

He entered my house, and I closed the door behind him.

I went over to my mom and told her about Tyler's visit and his proposal for dinner, she readily agreed (too eagerly) and I grabbed my wallet.

"Ok, just getting some shoes," I said. "And we're ready to go."

I got my shoes on and I yelled, "Bye Mom!"

I opened the door and almost walked into Clarissa...there she stood with Jacob and Ryan...Get Well Soon balloons and flowers in their arms. They took one look at me and they took a long look at Tyler. Clarissa just glared at me with her icy blue eyes. I didn't have to look into her eyes to sense the deceit and betrayal I had caused.

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