+Bad Catholics+ Frank Iero

+1+

    I tried to ignore the clock ticking on the wall in the back of the classroom. Most might say that it was moving at a snail's pace, but to me it was moving all too quickly at the thought of having to go home another day. Normally my focus was crystal clear, but it was just one of those days that my mind couldn't find a stable leg to stand on.

     The commotion in the room didn't quite help, either. Class had yet to start, and the school was always buzzing at the end of the day on Thursdays in the anticipation for Friday- which of course meant the weekend was near. For me, that just meant two days of discomfort were getting closer. Truthfully, I hated it.

    My books were open in front of me as balled up pieces of paper flew overhead, the buzzing of individual conversations meshing together creating one consistent murmur. I sighed and kept my head down, knowing I had a big calculus test on Monday that I wanted a head start on studying for.

    I didn't particularly have friends in school, though I blame no one but myself. The idea of connecting with another person never seemed realistic to me, even when I was younger. Being quiet always left room for being observant- and all I could see throughout school were friends that didn't even really like each other. One moment two girls would be tying on each others' friendship bracelets, and the next they would be talking about one another behind their backs. Bright-eyed girls would look at their boyfriends like the world turned for them, only to be caught making out with the new kid under the bleachers moments later. Trust was merely a concept.

    How could you ever have a friend in a world like that?

    My feet tapped in anticipation for the bell to ring so class could begin, desperate for quiet- or at least something that closely resembled that. My hand began to turn the next page as something swiftly tapped the side of my head, startling me out of my thoughts. Looking down, there was a crumpled piece of notebook paper on the ground. I felt my cheeks heat up quickly as I followed its trail across the room, the snickering culprits sitting on desks with their mouths covered as they realized their mistake.

    I sighed as my eyes landed on the star troublemakers of not only the entire high school, but likely my academic career. Neither ever followed the strict dress code, were always disrupting class, and never seemed to run out of ways to be insubordinate. I could never understand how they hadn't been expelled by now- my only guess was that the Sisters were so fed up with them that they simply gave up.

    Gerard was often the lesser of two evils, though that never made it much better. He was older than the rest of us, but was held back a handful of times in elementary and middle school for abandoning his classwork to draw. Our only interaction in all our years of attending school together was putting a bug on me during recess in 4th grade, which I wasn't even sure I still forgave him for. It was a big bug.

    Then there was Frank. Messy jet black hair, and piercings he constantly got yelled at for but refused to take out. He hardly ever bothered to keep his tie tied properly, nor could he manage to keep his sleeves down for more than five minutes. All the girls loved him, and I could never understand why. It wasn't like he ever cared about that though- he was too busy walking into class smelling like weed or careening paper footballs at people to give a second thought to their swooning.

    In a way his recklessness reminded me of my dad.

    I never paid much attention to him, but he still managed to find ways to try and make me. If I had a dollar for every time I caught him trying to cheat off of my tests, I wouldn't have had to even bother applying for scholarships.

    I shook my head and began turning it back to my book, the bell beginning to ring causing the class to scramble to their assigned seats before Sister Catherine had the chance to catch them all. Frank tumbled into the seat next to mine, my eyes not tearing away from my book.

    "Psssst..."

    Sister Catherine walked in shutting the door behind her, scolding those who have yet to quiet down before beginning to write the lesson plan on the chalkboard. I silently closed my book and pulled out a notebook in preparation for note-taking, sitting up straight in my desk.

    "Pssst... hey,"

    I side eyed Frank and looked back at the board, ignoring his whispering. A uniform "Romeo and Juliet" was written in white chalk, and I silently thanked myself for reading the entire English syllabus before the school year began.

    "Psst... Mae.. over here."

    I suppressed a groan and pursed my lips, keeping my eyes on the board as Sister Catherine began to speak.

    "What do you want, Frank?" I kept my whisper as low as possible.

    "Give me your homework," He whispered back, his body leaning toward me in my peripheral vision.

    "Do your own homework."

    "Come on Mae, just this once."

    I ignored Frank's pleas and attempted to focus on the lecture, anxiously tugging at my tartan skirt. Seconds passed by and I had thought he had given up, but to no avail. It was nearly impossible to decipher his words from Sister Catherine's, and irritation began building in my chest.

    "Mae... Can you heeearr meee..."

    "Frank i'm trying to listen, stop," I whispered back.

    "Come on, she's going to kill me if I miss another assignment, just let me copy. Just this one time."

    "Frank you copy my homework literally all of the time, it's never just one time."

    "I'm not going to stop until you let me," He murmured, leaning closer to my desk.

    I still refused to take my eyes off of the chalkboard, hoping his whispers would drown out with the passing of time. Sister Catherine's words of Shakespeare's history became more clear, giving me the chance to jot a few notes down before Frank's pestering began bleeding into her voice again.

    "Mae... Maaaaeee... Mae,"

    "You're going to get us in trouble," I whispered back, my pen still moving mid note.

    "Not if you give me your homework."

    I continued ignoring once again, furiously jotting down notes. Suddenly the ink began to slide across the page without my doing, and I finally looked over to see Frank tugging my folder from underneath the rest of my books. Frustrated, the control in the volume of my voice escaped me.

    "Frank!"

    "Miss Harper, Mister Iero, I've had enough!" Sister Catherine boomed from the front of the class, and my blood ran cold.

    I immediately perked up, worry spread across my face.

    "Detention after school, both of you," she said.

    My jaw dropped, never having been issued anything of the sort.

    "Sister Catherine, please," I stood, gripping the folder Frank attempted to take. "I've never been in trouble before, I-"

    "Which is why I'm disappointed," she cut me off. "No more talking, take your seat."

    Feeling defeated, I sat back down, still unable to close my mouth in shock. I looked over at Frank who was silently snickering, hand covering his mouth. I furrowed my brows at him and turned my head back down to my notebook, silently resuming my note taking.

    The thought of going this long without a single reprimand on my record being thwarted was nearly painful- though not as painful as the thought of spending an extra hour with someone like Frank at the end of the day.