After summer school, I was really looking forward to what my Sophomore year had in store. What new challenges and new experiences were just waiting for me? I could feel it deep within my bones that this was going to be a great school year.
Mornings in my household during school days would usually be wild and chaotic. My Mom would run around yelling and nagging to get us up and get ready. With my little brother 'Mando' having ADHD and me having ADD, you can see why. He would be running around like a headless chicken, while I would become easily distracted and space out. The only one that got ready without Mom repeating herself was Pebbles.
This semester was going to be different. I wanted to make a change, and this affected the way mornings were.
All my life, I never saw myself as attractive. My hair was thick and did whatever it wanted, I was chubby with a hanging belly, and my sense of style was whatever my mom got me. The PE class I had during my freshman year was JROTC. I was hoping a military style course would help me with my self-confidence and get in better shape, but it didn't. This made me decide to join the school swim team as my first-period class.
The only drawback was that I wasn't anticipating that practice would start at 6 am and that I needed to be on the bus by 5:30 am.
Ugh!
That morning, I woke up at 4 am feeling like a zombie. Not even the cold water splashing on my face was effectively waking me up. I got my new JNCOs on, a Darth Maul T-shirt, ate my cereal, grabbed my backpack, and slipped on my Vans sneakers.
Walking out into the early hours before daybreak gave El Paso a very tranquil yet eerie feeling. El Paso is normally a very busy city; seeing it like this was not normal for me. The street lights were still on, all the porch lights in the neighborhood were off, and everything seemed vacant. No traffic or loud noises.
It felt like I was sleepwalking. Everything looked familiar, just dimly lit. Not even enough light to cast a shadow.
Of course, the whole time I was walking, I had my eyes peeled for stray dogs, especially when passing alleys. After being chased a few times, you really pay extra attention. I also couldn't stop yawning.
What the hell did I get myself into?
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Finally making it to the school, the bus was already waiting up front and idling. I stepped inside and joined my new teammates, who were also looking half asleep or fully napping using their backpacks as a pillow.
Coach Rush, who also happened to be my history teacher, stepped inside to do a head count. He was tall and had very broad shoulders, a thick beard, and was already balding. It was very surprising that he was only 22 years old.
He kept looking at his watch and did one last look around for any late-coming students. Once 5:30 rolled around, he signaled the driver, and we were off to practice.
Our school, like many of the public schools around here, didn't have a pool. We used the pool at one of the private academies nearby.
Remembering my freshman year, the upperclassmen would play a prank by convincing the new kids that there was a pool on top of the library. If they ever offer you a ticket to get there, just say no. That was a hard lesson learned.
Entering the Academy was a shock. The difference between the public school and this private academy was like night and day. Everything there looked well-kept. No signs of graffiti or vandalism. Even the smell was pleasant and not musky and old.
Being there also made me realize that I didn't get to see any of my friends from the Island of Misfits before school like I did my freshman year.
*Sigh*
Practice was tough, physically and emotionally. I didn't realize how many issues I had with my body image until we were all out there in our swimsuits doing the morning stretches and warm-ups before jumping into the pool. It didn't help that I was teased growing up for being the fat kid, and now I am standing there showing so much in front of my classmates, and much more once the Speedos come.
I just hope no one was staring at me in disgust.
After the first full practice, I realized I wasn't as good of a swimmer as I thought, and how out of shape I was. This is going to take some getting used to.
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Now that I was finally walking into the campus with a sore body and feeling even more restless, my next class was public speaking. Our public speaking class was held in the theater room upstairs. It was old, outdated, and just depressing. The stage was small, it had 3 rows of old wooden theater seats that were not comfortable if you were a bit chubby, and some of the lights occasionally flickered. So far, I haven't seen any of my misfit friends, but there was a familiar face.
Lilly.
"Aww hell." She rolled her eyes the moment she saw me stroll in.
"Oof. Now this class has gone to shit." I teased back as I joined her.
"Pfft. Whatever." She giggled.
Lilly was a girl I've known since 6th grade who slowly became a friend by our 8th grade year. She had that witty, rebellious attitude with a sweet presence. Her hair is naturally a mousey brown whenever it wasn't dyed. Her eyes were as glimmering as emeralds, which were more noticeable whenever she actually wore her glasses. The best part of all, she was a rocker girl.
Thinking about it now, I must have had a thing for those cool rocker and alternative-type girls.
Lilly didn't know this, but I had a crush on her back then. As usual, expressing anything wasn't my strong suit. Those feelings were kept to myself. I always felt like I wasn't quite her type, anyway. I was just some shy, chubby nerd.
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After that class, I didn't see any of my friends until lunchtime, when we had a usual spot — The Island. The Island was the last of the concrete picnic tables in the courtyard that sat under a pine tree near the library. It was full of character with lots of graffiti left as memorials from the misfits before us.
The stories this table could tell if it could talk. So many memories.
The rest of the tables around the courtyard didn't feel the same as compared to the Island. They have been replaced by these plastic-coated wire tables.
The moment I spotted Boss waiting in the lunch line, we greeted each other in this ridiculous way we developed during freshman year.
"BOOOOSSSS!" I'd yell in a low growl.
"ALFIEEEEEEE!" He'd respond in a high-pitched voice.
The best I could describe what we did after that is that it looked like a couple of drunk toddlers running toward each other for a flying chest bump.
Boss was someone you definitely couldn't miss. He towered over everyone when it came to height. Only being a sophomore himself, he stood at 6'3 with possibly another growth spurt to go. His hair was in box braids, and his dark chocolate complexion brought out his athletic muscle tone from lifting and playing football.
"Hey! My testicles have returned! The dark one and the thicker one."
Boss and I froze and laughed the moment we recognized that voice. We both turned around to see Victor approaching us in his cool but cocky manner.
Victor was Latino, just like me. The only difference was that he may have been even more light-skinned than I. As for height, which he lacked, he made up for it with personality. He was the shortest guy in the group, standing about 5'6.
Just like Boss, this guy also had an athletic build. That made me the fat one of the group. He wore glasses and liked to keep his long, dark hair tied back to give himself that cool, artistic aesthetic. The guy was wicked with a pencil. (Also a bit of a perv. You've been warned if you ever want to see his drawings.)
"Pinchi wey! (fucking idiot) How the hell have you been?" I greeted Victor. Boss, Victor, and I bumped fists as our usual handshake.
"Sup, pimp daddies," Nate called out as he joined us. Nate was definitely a character. A troublemaker who embraced this gangster persona, heavily influenced by hip hop and Eminem in terms of style. Bleached hair, baggy jeans that sagged to show his boxer shorts, big jewelry, sports caps...but was secretly a huge nerd like the rest of us.
Definitely not 'the real Slim Shady', but was 'Pretty Fly for a white guy.'
CC and Kenny had even joined us, and I got to see firsthand just how blossomed their relationship had become. The way they held hands and embraced each other's presence made me see the passion they had for each other.
We chatted and shared stories about each other. They would tell me about their relationship, Kenny and I would tell CC about our goofy antics in middle school, and CC and I would tell Kenny about our misadventures from summer school.
Truly, I was happy seeing them like that, but I secretly ached too. No matter how hard I tried, there were feelings for CC that I couldn't get rid of. I needed to keep distracted from her.
Maybe one day I will experience that same kind of passion they had.
I couldn't help but take in a deep breath and enjoy this reunion. Some old faces returned, and some have gone in our little community of social outcasts, misfits, punks, goths, nerds, and jocks. The Island of Misfits was a cliqueless clique that would just draw people in.
With it being a new year and since we were in a High school with lots of kids from military families, this always brought in new faces, even if for a limited time. As the song by Nirvana says, "Come as you are."
One of the freshmen who was new to the Island instantly clicked with me. We had similar personalities and even looked similar to the point where we really could pass as brothers. Plus, he was another chubby guy. The only difference was that he was white, had reddish-brown hair, and had large-frame aviator-style glasses. His name was Ron, but we got to know him as "Bear".
A few more girls started hanging around as well, mostly because of Victor and Boss, who were always charismatic. They were Sade, Cherise, and Lexus. All of them were big flirts and attention seekers. I envied that confidence they all had, but at the same time, I didn't.
As I zoned out to some of the dandelions growing nearby, it hit me. We were all just like a bunch of these wildflowers trying to strive and grow in this garden of life, no matter what may come. And just like the wildflowers, we would come and go unexpectedly. These were the moments we need to cherish with our friends, as someday we may never see them again.
"Hey, Alfie! You coming?" Boss called out to me as they started to head toward the library.
I was finally at ease and back in my place. The misfits had returned to the island we called home.
When we were together, we did what we did best— Completely geek out. From playing Magic the Gathering, doing a Dungeons and Dragons campaign in the library, battling and trading Pokemon on Gameboy or trading cards, talking and drawing anything anime (Yes. Even the dirty ones), and we even went all out and did lots of play fighting using all kinds of martial arts moves we've seen in old kung fu movies and video games.
Let the adventures begin!