From Nerd to Hottie

From Nerd to Hottie (14)

Sure enough, I got out of the hospital two weeks and three days after I came out of the coma. Things seemed a little strange. People at school were much nicer to me and suddenly everyone knew my name. Boys were hitting on me and girls wanted to be my new best friend. Justin and I stayed close and none of the other guys could break us up. But Stacie was acting the weirdest of all.

One day at lunch, on about my third day back at school, Stacie was completely on edge about just about everything.

"How was your History test, babe?" Nolen asked as he sat next to her at our usual table.

"It was fine." Stacie snapped at him. "Why? Do you think I failed or cheated or something?"

Nolen looked at her confused. "No, I just asked how it was. I know you didn't cheat or fail. Failing is impossible for you and you would never cheat at anything."

I laughed a little to myself. I knew Stacie cheated on Nolen the night of the party. I finally remembered it all. But the reason I didn't tell anyone was because they'd think I was crazy. And I also didn't want to cause any drama. Things seemed good right now. Well, everything beside's Nolen and Stacie's relationship seemed good.

"What do you mean by that?" Stacie barked at him.

"Chill, Stacie." Nolen defended himself. "I'm just saying that I know you weel enough that I know you wouldn't cheat."

Stacie bounced nervously in her seat. She looked around at Nolen, Justin, and I continuously. Boy, she seemed like a wack job.

"So I assume it was good?" Nolen said slowly and calmly.

"Fine!" Stacie exploded. She jumped up from her seat and continued yelling. "I did it! I cheated, Nolen."

Nolen was still confused. "On the test? OK, well, be quiet and maybe you'll get away with it."

Stacie gave him a death glare. "I didn't cheat on the test you moron. I cheated on you."

By now the whole lunch room was silent and staring our way.

Nolen stood up. "What?"

"I cheated on you, Nolen!" She yelled louder. "I cheated on you at the party with Mark Walker! We had sex! He gave me what I wanted. Something you refused to give me."

Now Nolen finally had a clue what was going on. "Stacie..." He muttered. "Why?"

"I liked you a lot, Nolen." She hissed at him. "But I never loved you. You were too perfect."

He had nothing to say.

"Do you want to know the best part?" Stacie started crying. It took her a moment but she finally said it. "I can't 'get away with it' because I'm pregnant."

Nolen's mouth dropped in shock.

Stacie nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I cheated on you. I'm sorry I lied. I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry." She paused. "I hope we can still be friends."

"You know what Stacie?" Nolen shouted at her. He sounded bitter and I knew he was. "I don't care. You mean nothing to me anymore. Your no longer a friend or my girlfriend. I should have known better than I fall for you."

Now Stacie was the shocked one. "W-what?"

"You heard me." He replied and started walking away.

The cafeteria was silent.

Stacie screamed and stomped her feet and did a little mad dance and then finally stormed out of the cafeteria.

I looked at Justin. "Wow."

"That's a lot to take in." Justin replied.

"I know." I muttered.

Justin sighed. "I feel bad for Nolen.

"Same here." I agreed.

"Should I go check on him?" Justin asked. "Or do you want to?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I should go find him. I'll be right back."

I ran out of the cafeteria and searched all over the school for Nolen. He was no where to be found. I went outside and started looking until I finally found him sitting under a huge tree all alone.

I plopped down next to him and wrapped my arms around him in a hug. "I'm sorry." I said. "Stacie-"

"Stop, Paige, please." Nolen interrupted. He sounded like he had been crying. "Stacie was my first girlfriend ever. I had strong feelings for her."

"Are you sure about that?" I asked. "Did you really have that string of feeling for her? If you did then this probably wouldn't have happened."

Nolen sighed dramatically. "I thought I did."

"Well..." I was trying to encourage him to talk.

He sighed again. "I don't know, Paige.At first, I guess I only asked her out to make this other girl jealous but-"

"It worked." I muttered.

"What?" Nolen asked, confused. He sure was easy to confuse.

I shook my head. "Never mind. Continue."

"But I don't think it worked. I thought it would work because it always does in movies. I realized, though, that life isn't anything like a movie." Nolen paused for what seemed like forever. "Anyways, I actually ended up really liking Stacie. She was beautiful, popular, smart, funny, and everything I'm not."

"You are popular though." I said.

Nolen shrugged. "Only because I went from being a nerd to a-"

"Hottie." I interrupted.

"What?" He asked again.

I shook my head and laughed. "Nothing, nothing. Go on."

"I was going to say chick magnet but hottie works too." Nolen laughed with me. "But Stacie had the looks, the great personality, and just everything. People liked her for many reasons. People only like me because I'm good looking."

"At least people like you." I said. "I don't have many friends."

Nolen was a little irritated. "No, Paige. These people are only pretending to be my friends because they think I'm good looking. They don't want to be my real friends. They just do it for looks."

"OK, my bad." I backed off. "But we were talking about Stacie. Keep talking about Stacie and don't get distracted again."

He laughed. "I started actually liking Stacie a few weeks into the whole relationship. I was happy- really happy."

There was a dead silence.

"But then she went and ruined it all by cheating on you." I broke the silence.

Nolen nodded but said nothing.

"I'm sorry." I said. "I really am, Nolen."

The two of us got up from the ground and hugged. It was a tight, friendly hug. I enjoyed it. It just seemed right.

We started walking to class and talking about random things like the weather and our grades.

Before I walked into our class, I quickly asked Nolen the question I had been dying to ask since he brought it up. "Who was the girl you were trying to make jealous?"

Nolen was caught majorly off guard. "Oh, um..."

"Please?" I smiled and begged.

Nolen was blushing by now. "You."

My jaw dropped. I secretly hoped it was me.

"I, um, have to go to, uh, class. Yeah. Bye." Nolen ran off feeling and looking rather embarrassed.

Justin was waiting for me inside the class room. "What was all that about?" He asked as I sat down. "Is Nolen OK?"

"Yeah, yeah." I said. "He's fine. That was nothing."

The rest of the day, I couldn't keep Nolen off my mind.