Sanders Sides: Be More Chill

1: More Than Survive

"C-c-c-c'mon, go go, you stupid computer!" Virgil Heere yelled at his laptop in frustration. The website he was trying to reach refused to load, and now he was going to be late for school. He checked the time, and apon seeing that he had none, he angrily closed his computer to get ready for school.

Just perfect, he thought bitterly as he walked past the bathroom. The door was wide open to reveal his dad using the toilet. "Dad!" Virgil groaned, covering his eyes with his hoodie sleeve. "Ever heard of privacy?"

"Eh, we're all men in this house," his father called back carelessly. "Just pretend we're in the army!"

"Just," Virgil sighed, avoiding eye contact. "When I get home, at least be wearing pants, okay?"

"Ten hut!"

Virgil grabbed his patched black backpack off the floor and exited the house. Who needs breakfast, anyway?

As he walked to the front of his yard, he was faced with a decision. Should he take the bus or walk? Being a junior on the bus could instantly make him even weaker than he already was, but if he walked to school he'd get all sweaty--which was not something he needed to deal with during class. He sighed to himself. Why couldn't he, just once, have the ability to be chill?

He decided to walk and avoid the bullies on the bus. It left him more time to himself, which helped his nerves. As he headed to school, he thought about how he'd never be anybody special. He'd always be outshined by someone better than him. But that didn't matter, so long as he could make it through high school without any major humiliations or injuries.

He was at the front doors of the high school before long, the courtyard swarming with busy and tired students. He avoided eye contact with the seniors and finally found his locker. However, standing in front of it were two of the most popular guys in school: Remy Valentine and Emile Picani. Next to them was Thomas Sanders, who was eagerly holding his cell phone and looking up at the two. Virgil awkwardly stood by and waited for them to leave.

"So, Thomas here said that Madeline told Janus. . ." Remy sipped his coffee and put on a high pitched voice. "'I'll only have sex with you if you beat me at pool!' And get this: she lost at pool deliberately." He curled his lip in disgust.

"That is so awesome," Emile marveled at the story. Remy stared at him from over his dark sunglasses.

"Picani!"

"I-I mean slutty," Emile corrected meekly. Thomas tapped Emile's shoulder, eager to get his attention.

"And then, Madeline was all like-"

"I'm telling the story, Thomas!" Remy slammed a fist against the lockers and noticed Virgil staring. "Ugh, he is so getting off on that." Virgil flushed and looked away as the three boys headed off to gossip somewhere else.

Virgil headed forward but bumped into somebody. "Yo, don't touch me, tall-ass!"

He internally groaned as he realized who it was. Remus Goranski. His all-time bully since sophomore year. "I'm just trying to get to my locker," he mumbled. Remus pushed him facefirst against the lockers and wrote something on his backpack.

"Don't move," he snapped. Then when he finished, he shoved Virgil aside and noticed somebody walking towards him. "Janny D! What's the story with Madeline?"

Janus Dillinger tapped his chin mischeviously. "Oh man, I shouldn't say, but. . ." he lowered his voice. "It's a. . .terrible thing that I rock at pool."

Virgil gagged as Remus cheered, shutting his locker and heading away from the dark duo. Why did everything have to lead back to sex with them?

As he headed down the hall, he noticed a poster on the wall. He walked closer to see what it said. It was a sign-up for the after-school play in a few weeks. Virgil rolled his eyes. Just another excuse for everyone to call him gay. Well, it's not like they were wrong, but hearing it used as an insult stung. He turned away and froze in his tracks as someone new came down the hallway.