Well, that class was over fast. Too fast.

It's time for English now. It's crazy how one of my favorite classes has turned into one of my worst.

Everyone seems super hype today; I know its cause of the game tonight. This town takes football way too seriously. I love it also, and I would like to go, but I can't.

One, there will be way too many people; knowing me, my anxiety will shoot through the roof.

Two, I just don't want to go.

And three, I have my therapy appointment, then again, that's not really an excuse because I could always go after.

I continue down the hall to my English class; soon as I enter, my eyes land right on Ryder for some reason. He doesn't look at me; Ashely is sitting on his lap; I notice that Mr. Brooks isn't here yet. That explains why she's sitting on his lap.

The room's right side is filled with jocks, cheerleaders, and other people with high social status. The left side has the outcast, the gays, the nerds, a.k.a the smart people, and then it's me, with my very own category.

The invisible.

To some extinct, of course. The fact that people still talk about me and always have my name in their mouth shows that I'm not invisible.

Violet, in her usual seat and James, is sitting in front of my desk. "I thought you were skipping," Violet says when I take a seat.

"No, I should've though. Where is Brooks?" I ask both of them.

James shrugs his shoulders. "He's in some meeting. I saw him with Ms.Moore."

"Oh."

"I'm loving the hair, by the way." He reaches his hands up and touches my long curls."You're lucky cause some of these bitches are bald," he says.

Violet and I laugh at his comment.

"Jayda!" Ashely calls my name. My laughter ceases. I look across the room at her; she is still on Ryder's lap. His head is between her neck, kissing it. She giggles and pushes him off of her. His green eyes are trained on me now. "So, all of us want to know...how was boarding school?" She grins.

I respond with one word. "Good,"

"Good?" she questions. "That's all you're going to say, come on. There has to be more. You were there for six months. Please give us the details. I mean it's boarding school, no parents, just teachers, co-ed living."

The class is quiet. Everyone is staring at me. I'm trying not to look at Ryder, but his eyes are cutting into me. I quickly glance at him. He looks tense. I look away, back to Ashely. "I didn't... I didn't do much. I stayed to myself." My breathing is getting heavy, and I feel lightheaded.

"To yourself, really?" She narrows her eyes at me. "Why do I find that hard to believe? I mean, all of us here know you aren't one to stay to yourself. Hell, you can't even keep your hands to yourself."

"I know that for a fact," Zach says. The whole class burst into laughter. Ryder doesn't laugh, but he has a smirk on his face. Violet and James don't laugh; they both give me that 'feel sorry for her' look. The look that I despise.

The class laughter ceases. "What school did you go to anyway?" Matt asks. My heart feels like it's about to explode. I can't answer that question. I have no idea.

Did my parents give people the school's name?

If they did, they didn't tell me. If I say a different name from the one they told everyone, they'll know I'm lying. The classroom door opens; it's Mr. Brooks. I sigh in relief.

"Sorry, I'm late, class. I had a meeting with Principal Moore." He sits his bag on the desk and then turns back to us. "So change of plans we won't be going over Romeo and Juliet for the semester." The class starts to cheer. I can't say I don't somewhat feel relief. Now I don't have to work with Ryder anymore. We can go back to our separate lives. Mr. Brooks raises his hands, silencing the class. "Instead, it will be your senior projects for the year." He laughs, and the class groans. "That's what I was discussing with Ms. Moore; she approved." he states. "I'll need the five chapters from you and your partners summited on Mondays; this will still go towards your final grade for the year. and this way I can critique you guys, so you get a good score on your project."

Senior project? I have to do my senior project with Ryder. Are you freaking kidding me?

"So instead of R&J, our lesson for this semester is poetry. Each week I will present a topic to you all, we will discuss various poems based on that topic, and Fridays, you all will present to the class and me your own original poems on that topic or and an essay explaining a poem that we went over."

"Poems, are you fucking kidding me! You do see the males in this class." Ryder says.

"Mr. Adams's language!" Brookes corrects him as always. " And yes, I see you all and?"

"I mean, do you see us, males." He waves his hands at all the jocks on his side. "Not those males...if you would even call them that." The jocks laugh; he points to the boys on my side: the scrawny ones, the gay ones. I'm not them, but I know they're offended, I sure am, and he isn't even talking about me.

He is so rude; it doesn't make them less of a man just because they aren't built like a superhero and because they have no filter on who they love.

"And what makes you a man?" James says sternly. I swear I can feel the air sucked out of the room. Everyone looks shocked; I am. I wasn't expecting him to say anything.

"What did you just say?" Ryder leans up from his chair, making sure he heard them correctly.

"Woah, Woah, Woah. Gentleman!" Mr. Brooks says, breaking the tension; he's holding both of his arms straight out. "Let's leave the controversy to the books, shall we." Ryder sits back in his chair, and James turns around.

Zach leans and whispers something in Ryder's ear. Ryder turns his head and looks at me, and then laughs silently. He faces back to the board.

For some reason, I have a feeling Ryder won't let this go.

...

It's lunch. James and I stand in line, preparing to grab our food. "God, I'm mad as fuck; I didn't bring my lunch," he says.

"By lunch, you mean, that nasty vegetarian stuff." I don't think I could ever be a vegetarian.

"You mean, vegetables?" she corrects me. "It's food. Look, not all of us can have glowing skin like you. This food here will cause my face to break out like shit." he looks at the dull food bar.

"Okay, but you're still gonna eat it." I laugh the words out.

"I'm hungry. Don't judge me."

I roll my eyes and look around the cafeteria.

"Did you get your chapter done?"

"Yeah, Ryder came over last night. We worked on it a little, and I finished it up this morning. I gave it to Brooks when the class was dismissed. He told me to come back after school."

"Wait, he came to your house?" he says, an intrusive girn. "What did you guys do?" He asks, intrigued.

"Uh, nothing," I shut down whatever thought he had. "We did the work, then he left. He said he was going to a party, the pregame party, but Violet said he never showed."

"He was at home," he says.

"How do you know?"

"I sorta live across the street from him...literally." He looks at me and smiles. My mouth drops open. "I know, I know."

We grab or tray and walk over to our table. We walk past Ryder's table. I'm surprised he didn't say anything.

"What was that you said earlier, Smith?" Ryder asks. I spoke too soon. I turn around, and Ryder is standing up from his table. Along with several other jocks.

"Are you seriously still hung up on that?" James says. I forgot his last name was Smith.

Ryder walks from around the table and towards us. "Yeah, I am. What was it you asked me...Oh yeah, what makes me a man?" He's mad; I can see a vein popping through the side of his neck. Everyone has now formed a circle around us. Ryder wouldn't be dumb enough to start a fight hours before the game. He could get suspended.

"Let's go," I tell James. Trying to defuse the situation.

"I'm guessing by you approaching me, causing a scene, you think this makes you a man." James fires back, challenging him.

"No, when I beat your ass, you'll see who's a man" Ryder fist is bawled together.

"Let's just go," I say again.

James ignores me and steps forward, not backing down. "I'm sorry, but this isn't some type of wolf alpha male dominance thing... who gives a shit if you win a fight, that doesn't make you---" before James can finish his sentence. Ryder throws a punch at him and tackles him to the ground.

They roll on the floor, both getting in punches. James is way smaller than Ryder. They're almost the same height, but Ryder is a little taller and built bigger, but that doesn't matter.

Ryder is on top of him, continuously punching him. No one stops them or breaks it up; they cheer; this right here is the worst of people; it's sickening how people could indulge in violence and be amused at it.

Ryder's so-called friends are just smiling and laughing, exasperating the situation. Why aren't they stopping him? If they were his real friends, they would stop him.

"Stop...Stop!" I find myself yelling. I'm standing right in front of them; there's blood coming from both Ryder and James. "Get off of him," I shout. Two teachers run over and struggle to get Ryder off James. When they finally get Ryder off of James, he looks directly at me. He has a smile on his face. How could he be smiling at a time like this? Is this funny to him? Did he do this because of me?

I lean down and help James up. He wipes the blood from his nose with his hand.

"Are you okay?" I ask.

He looks at me, and he too has a small grin on his face. Why is he smiling? "I'm fine... just another day fighting for my identity."