Chapter 2 Adam

Chapter 2

A week went by. Sophia buried herself in schoolwork and band practices and prayed that time would pass by quickly. The quicker it did, the quicker her heart would heal.

The third period bell rang, which startled Sophia as she exited the world of Jane Austen. Mrs. Lawrence spoke over the rising classroom noise. “Don’t forget, your final drafts of your essays on a female author are due on Halloween. That makes it easy for you to remember to get your essays turned in on time. Halloween, two weeks from today! Don’t forget or an automatic ten points are docked from the final grade. Have a great weekend!”
Mrs. Lawrence knew just how to spoil a student’s fun. Sophia wondered if Mrs. Lawrence was the kind of teacher who assigned homework over Christmas break also.
She picked up her books and headed to the cafeteria. As she headed down the hallway, she noticed little purple paper bats, and orange angry jackolanterns dangling on thin strings, precariously hung from paper clips poked into the ceiling panels. Indiscernible webs covered dark corners. She wouldn’t be surprised if they were real. Glittery banners stating things like “Happy Halloween” and “Have a Spooktacular Day” draped the walls above the lockers. She smiled despite their cheesy, elementary-school decorations. At least all the orange decorations matched the school colors of orange and white, going perfectly with the hideous orange painted lockers lining the corridors.
After she bought her lunch, she found an empty space at the end of one long table filled with band members. It didn’t matter where you sat with the band kids. They were pretty accepting of people, mostly because a large amount of them got teased for being in band. Oh well, she thought, we’re proud of our musical talent despite the goofy cumber buns and plumes we have to wear during marching season she chuckled to herself.
“Hey Bonnie,” she said noticing her best friend sitting at the booth adjacent to the long table.
“I tried to save you a spot at this table, but Josh and Sean don’t know any decency or how to respect women!” Bonnie explained, scowling at the two smirking boys sitting at her booth.
“C’mon you know you love us,” oozed Josh who had his leg propped up on the bench across from her.
“No she doesn’t, jerk. She’s my girlfriend right, Bonnie? So give up the act,” said Sean cornering Bonnie in the booth and attempting to slyly place his arm around her in a fake yawn.
“I’m regretting the day in seminary when I publicly announced I had sworn off boys. No matter what I do, they don’t seem to take the hint! Bonnie said trying to push Sean away.
Sophia laughed, “yeah that probably wasn’t the best idea.”
“What do you mean? I always thought if a girl says she hates boys, she really means that she loves em. I’m getting the hint just fine,” said Josh raising his eyebrows and smooching the air towards Bonnie.
“You guys give her a break already will you?’
“Not until you announce at the beginning of seminary like Bonnie that you’ve sworn off boys too. We can’t live without making someone’s life miserable!” said Josh.
“I think I’ll pass,” said Sophia sitting down at the long table. She looked up and noticed a complete stranger sitting right across from her.


“Hey,” the stranger said.
“Hey” Sophia looked at him quizzically for a moment. She recognized him but she didn’t know his name. And here he was sitting across from her, like they were old friends.
“I’m Adam Goodwin, but most people call me A.D. D is short for David not deficit.” Sophia laughed as she got the joke. “You like your mashed potatoes?” he asked.
“Not really, they’re not the real kind, Sophia replied jabbing her mound of potatoes with her fork.
“Yeah with the lumpy pieces,” Adam agreed.
“Hmmm?” she mumbled as she took a sip of milk.
“Real mashed potatoes still have lumpiness to them.”
“Oh, yeah, these ones are too smooth, not real, definitely not real.”

They smiled at eachother. She noticed the dimples in his otherwise ordinary face when he smiled. She had a weakness for dimples. Jared had dimples too. She looked down before her sudden interest betrayed her. Or was it his sudden interest which made her a little uncomfortable. He seemed to think Sophia was more interesting than all these other people at the table. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her.
She hadn’t felt that feeling of being special to someone since Jared. She missed that feeling. There was now an empty space in her center, just waiting to be filled. The wound in her soul had not completely closed up. There was no denying to herself that she still loved him. She just mostly had to ignore her feelings. But somehow this stranger was pulling those feelings back up to the surface. Not now, she thought, I’m talking to another boy. What would she say if he asked her what she was thinking right now? She looked up at Adam, relieved to see he was still talking to her.

“I spare myself from the cafeteria food altogether.” He said sipping from his can of soda.
“It’s a conspiracy, those cafeteria ladies want us to hate the food. I think they hate their jobs that much. I would too if I had their job, especially if I had to wear one of those dumb hairnets,” he said. She smiled, playing along. She studied him with mock interest. He had a thick shock of wild and wavy black hair.
“First of all I don’t think you could tame your hair enough to get it in a hairnet,” Sophia said.
“Oh thanks,” said Adam.
“And once you did you’d fit right in with the gangster crowd. So cafeteria lady is probably not the vocation for you,” she said smugly.
“Oh thanks again. So you think I’m a bad boy huh?” Adam asked
“No, I didn’t mean that. I meant because you’re wearing black right now, you would blend in well.”
“That’s not the gangsters. That’s the Goths who wear black,” Adam said seriously.
“Well, I meant that . . .”
“Hey, I’m just giving you a hard time.”
“Oh, thanks.”
“No problem. It’s what I do best.”
“So do you consider yourself a Goth?” Sophia asked nonchalantly.
“No not really, I’m more like a floater. I like to try new things. I have friends in all sorts of groups. Like Travis here. He’s my drummer friend. Jake over there is my preppy friend. Chris who’s not in school anymore is my Goth friend, and Bonnie,” pointing to Sophia’s best friend, “is my girlfriend but it’s supposed to be a secret.”
“Yeah whatever!” She looked at Bonnie to see if she heard.
“Hey are you talking about me?” Bonnie glared. “No one talks about me behind my back. So I’ll turn around. Go ahead, what’s your name? Adam, is it?” Bonnie asked.
Sophia laughed and said, “Oh, he was just saying you’re his g. . .” She stopped abruptly, noticing Bonnie’s mood obviously had switched from slightly bothered/amused to ready to blow up at the next thing that blinked the wrong way.
“I meant good acquaintance was all,” Adam said feigning innocence.
“That doesn’t surprise me. Guys never have anything important to say to us girls. It’s all about sports, or how well they play the drums, or when they’re going to get together and play Xbox again or who’s gettin’ the next swirly. Pathetic if you ask me. Pathetic!” Bonnie spat, and bits of food flew out of her mouth onto Josh’s shirt sitting across from her. The two guys at her booth looked at eachother, their smiles wiped straight. She wasn’t playing funny anymore they thought with knowing glances.
Sean mouthed “PMS.”
“What was that Sean?” Bonnie glared.
“Uh. . . nothin’ Well, I gotta go now, Josh said quickly easing out of the booth.
“Yeah, we’ll, um, we’ll see yah, Bonnie,” said Sean and the two of them took off.
Bonnie looked at Sophia, her evil eyes melted away into a careless grin. “Aaaah, finally some peace. Now, what was it I just did to get those buggers to leave?” Sophia relaxed and grinned.
“Um, I think it had something to do with their pride, or complete confusion” Sophia smirked.
“Great, I’ll have to remember that more often!” and Bonnie turned back around to pull out an unfinished essay to work on.
“Wow, she’s a piece of work. Is she your friend?” asked Adam.
“Yeah, actually best friend.”
“So she’s really sworn off guys huh? Is that a requirement to be part of your club?”
“Club? No it’s just Bonnie.”
“So you haven’t sworn off guys, or boyfriends have you?
“No,” Sophia said looking at him quizzically.
“Soooo. . . speaking of girlfriends and boyfriends, do you have one?” Adam asked, looking straight into Sophia’s eyes. That was quite a direct question, Sophia thought, but she thought she’d play along, it was all a game right?
“A girlfriend or a boyfriend? Hmmm well, Bonnie’s my girlfriend, or actually best friend. Boyfriend is an ambiguous word. What do you mean by boyfriend?”
He had a smirk on his face. He leaned forward on his elbows and clasped his palms together. He looked straight into her eyes.
“You know what I mean.” She rolled her eyes and admitted herself.
“Well, actually no, but I’m happily independent,” she replied, realizing that was a half truth. Hadn’t Jared just dumped her in a letter last week? She suddenly felt very self conscious. She was not doing well at playing his game.
Adam sensed she was uncomfortable. “Sorry, I can be blunt sometimes. As I said, giving people a hard time is what I do! Maybe you could teach me the art of good manners.”
“Are you serious? I’ve never met a guy who wanted to learn good manners.”
“You seem to be an expert on behaving well.”
“What do you mean? How do you know?”
“You just seem like a goody goody.”
“You know that has a negative connotation. Nobody wants to be called that.”
“I mean, you just seem like a ‘good girl.’”
“Oh, that’s not much better. You don’t know if I’m just a bad girl underneath.”
“I think that would be hard to believe, you’re always smiling. Nice to everyone, and there’s something about your eyes that’s different.
“Oh, yes, my eyes. Along with being a bad girl underneath my goody outer shell, I also have X-ray vision. Palease.”
“No I’m serious. You have amazing eyes, I can’t get enough of them. That was the first thing I noticed about you.
She looked at him incredulously. She had never heard a boy tell her that, not even her ex boyfriend Jared. He had a straight face this time and he was staring into her eyes, as if trying to uncover the mystery behind them. She felt the heat rising to her cheeks.
“So,” she said, looking away and tapping her fork on the tray, “do you like or hate good girls? Since I am one, I have to know upfront.”
“Oh don’t worry, I like good girls, he said with a smile edging back onto his face.
“Um ok.”
“What?”
“You just don’t seem like the type,” she said observing his black Rage Against the Machine t-shirt, the skull earring in his left ear, and, she would never mention this to him, but there was something different about his eyes too. It was as if she were staring into two pools in the dark, not able to see but a shimmer covering endless deepness.
“What do you mean? You think I’m a bad boy huh?” he asked looking hurt. “So you’re turning the name calling back to me huh?”
“Um no, I’m sorry. You know it’s my pet peeve when people make prejudgments about me but then I turn right around and judge everyone around me. I am a hypocrite, I’m so sorry,” Sophia apologized.
“See, there you go.”
“What?”
“You seem to have an objective view of yourself. Like you are able to take a step away from yourself to see what you are doing right or wrong. Like you’re self conscious of right and wrong. The rest of us are just self-conscious.” He seemed to be somewhat amazed by her at this point.
“Oh. Well, I’m just self conscious too.” And realizing she was saying just how she felt at that moment, made her blush crimson.
The lunch bell rang and Sophia jumped up startled. “Um I’ve gotta get to my Chemistry class, theres’ a pop quiz today.” She grabbed her tray to leave.
I’d still like to learn the art of, what is it called, etiquette. I still want to learn how you do it. How you pull off the goody goody act,” Adam asked.
“You can’t be serious.”
“I can, if I get to see you again.”
She raised an eyebrow. “We’ll see.”
“I’ll be waiting for your answer on Monday,” see you Monday.

Ok, yeah like when was she going to see him again? This school was so big. Probably lunch. Maybe he will forget about their conversation by Monday. She didn’t know if she ever wanted to see him again. Talk about bold. That was always annoying to her. People, especially guys who were too confident in themselves, it was almost like they had some great flaw they had to hide.

She walked quickly away and met up with Bonnie and Tanya who were also heading to Chemistry.
“I saw you talking to Adam. That looked weird. Skater Dude talking to you.”
“I know. It felt weird. Not that I’m self centered or anything, but he seemed to have a strange fascination with me.”
“Yeah that’s for sure!” Bonnie agreed, “you both were so engrossed you didn’t even notice when I tried to tell you that you had some food on your chin.” Sophia grabbed her chin. “Just kidding”
Bonnie sure did have a way with people Sophia thought. She took a deep breath trying to feel composed.
“Anyway, you seem to know Adam. What’s he like?”
“I don’t really know him. I just hear of him.”
“Oh, what do you hear, good stuff or bad stuff, or just ordinary stuff,” she said trying not to sound too interested.
“Oh well, do you remember Chris Crosswood?”
“No, but he did mention his name. He said he dropped out of school or something?”
“Yeah he was known as the biggest druggy in school, that is, until he dropped out last year. He was probably too stoned to ever do any studying, she said tragically.
“Anyway, the two of them, Chris and Adam were always hanging out together, and probably ditching out together.”
Bonnie opened the clanking locker door the two girls shared, and pulled out a binder.
“According to Bonnie’s life instruction book, those guys are losers with a capital L,” said Bonnie holding her thumb and finger up in the shape of an L on her forehead.
He didn’t seem too bad to her, she thought as they headed off to chemistry, except maybe in appearance, but otherwise he seemed pretty average. She did wonder in the back of her mind if Adam was into drugs but she didn’t want to make prejudgments about him. She subconsciously decided to give him more time before she just blew him off.


Monday, at the end of lunch, Sophia realized that Adam wasn’t around at all. Some people like to just talk, she thought, maybe that’s how Adam was. He talked on Friday like he was so sure he would be talking with her on Monday, Sophia almost expected it. Oh well, now she knew, he wasn’t a man of his word. So she chose to forget about him.
The following Tuesday after English Lit., Sophia, headed to the library to check out a couple books on stem cell research for her debate class, before heading to lunch. Their first real class debate would be coming up on Friday and she wanted to be prepared for the onslaught on the side she would be taking on the issue. So here she was at the dungeon of the school, simultaneously dusting and opening each book she touched in her last minute attempts at attaining the required five library sources.
She sat down cross legged on the repulsive orange industrial carpet that smelled of a thousand years of teenage feet. As she stared at the spines of several dusty books on a shelf, she felt a light tap on her shoulder, so light, she thought she imagined it. She ignored it and began to pull a book down. Another tap. She turned her head and jumped as she noticed a pair of Vans that had magically appeared beside her.
She looked up to see black baggy jeans garnered by a long chain leading to a deep pocket filled by a pale hand, a Black Sabbath t-shirt, a slight smile framed by dimples, deep set eyes, and unruly hair.
“Oh. Hi Adam” she said a little too loudly, as she attempted to stand up, but dropping her notebook. Adam quickly picked up her notebook.
“Sorry I wasn’t at school yesterday. But I’m back today. Now where did we leave off?” he asked.
“Um,” she replied trying to remember. Adam looked down at Sophia’s notebook in his hands.
“Adult Stem cells versus Embryonic Stem Cells, he read, as he flipped through her notebook as if it were his own. Very interesting. A highly controversial issue, so I’ve heard. You like a challenge then don’t you?”
“I don’t know. I thought it might be easier because I know my opinion on the subject, or I thought I did.”
“So what is currently your opinion on stem cells?”
“You really want to know?”
“Yeah, show me how your mind works.”
Sophia blinked at him who took her off guard. She looked down at her notebook in his hands.
“Well. . .” she took a deep breath, “initially I was against the idea of stem cell research because they do more harm than good. The only way I thought you could retrieve stem cells was from an aborted fetus. Which I am against, by the way. . .”
“Against what, abortion or fetuses?”
“Huh? Abortion, of course.”
“I’m just kidding, I know what you mean. Go on,” Adam encouraged amusingly.
“You really want to hear about this, Sophia asked uncertainly.”
“Yes, I do, it’s a habit to joke, even if I’m seriously listening. Seriously, go on.”
“Ok, if you insist.”
“I insist,” he said wiping the smile from his face. Sophia smiled and shook her head. He held his straight face.
“Ok” she said slowly, “anyway, I learned that there are several types of stem cells, and embryonic are the only type that are controversial, mostly because an embryo must be created and then destroyed to harvest the stem cells, wheras, the adult stem cells can be retrieved from the umbilical cord from a live baby after it is born. This causes no pain to either mother or child. So then I was reading about the healing stories as a result of harvesting stem cells and. . .”
Sophia stopped and looked at Adam for a response, worrying that he could care less about this subject.” He nodded his head for her to continue. “So anyway I’m supposed to prepare an argument against stem cell research, but the more I work on this assignment, the more I’m persuaded to support it. So it’s getting harder by the minute, you know what I mean? Oh, nevermind. I can tell this is boring you to death.” She paused and stared at him. He stood just staring at her with a slight smile. Sophia said, “you haven’t said anything for like two minutes.”
“It’s ‘cause I’m speechless. You continue to amaze me, you rock in music, you have amazing eyes, you’re nice, and now smart. What surprise will you come up with next?’ Adam said amazed.
“Oh please,” she said placing a loose strand of brown hair behind her ear. “This is for my debate class. We are having our first real class debate this Friday. I really want to be prepared. I’m not exactly the best arguer. There are some real persuasive kids in my class.”
“So why are you taking debate; I thought it was an elective,” Adam said handing her notebook back. She noticed his hand brushed hers for a split second in the exchange.
“Um, my dad said I should take debate to learn to state my views better and to strengthen my public speaking skills.”
“Wow, your Dad told you to? I don’t know too many Dads like that.”
“Yeah, he cares a lot about my education and grades and stuff.”
“So your dad thinks you need to learn how to state your opinion?”
“I guess I need to practice stating my opinions openly and with sound evidence. I’m not the best at stating my views, especially when there’s a stronger voice in the room. I tend to keep my mouth shut. I guess being verbally persuasive is a better description of what I lack. I guess I have a hard time making decisions too.”
“You seemed to tell me pretty well, just now, what your opinion is.”
“I did?”
“Yah, it’s like you couldn’t seem to stop either.”
“Well, maybe you’re just a good listener. I never do well, when there’s a louder personality in the room.”
“And I’m not loud!?” Adam asked raising his voice and holding out his arms?
“Ssshhhh! We’re in the library!” she said looking around, and noticing almost no one else in the library but the librarian, who eyed them suspiciously from behind her romance novel.
“I’m just kidding, I know what you mean. But I think you’re wrong.”
“What do you mean?
“Well you may not think you say your views very well, but you state them well in other ways, even to the point of persuading.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know, like your actions I guess. You’re somewhat mysterious in that way to me.”
“Who me?”
“Yeah. I’m curious to know what it is that makes you do what you do.”
“Oh.” Adam made her speechless, and the red began to quickly color her cheeks. This conversation was quickly turning serious. Sophia wasn’t sure she wanted to go there. There was a long pause. Sophia began nervously ruffling through her notebook.
Adam punched his palm and swore, piercing the dead air with his words.
“I’m such a freaking loser. I haven’t been here more than ten minutes and already you think I’m a crazed maniac stalker. I should take a hint when I see one. I’ll let you be. See yah ‘round.” Adam turned and quickly dragged his feet away.
“Wait!”, Sophia, who was almost floored by his sudden reaction, scrambled to pick up her books. The librarian slammed down her book, displeased. “Sorry,” Sophia whispered to her and ran to catch up to Adam. He stopped outside the doors and turned around surprised.
“I don’t think you’re a loser.” Sophia said as they walked toward the cafeteria.
“It’s ok, you don’t have to make me feel better. I’m sorry it’s just a bad day,” he said.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“Yeah.” He looked up into her face and his mood slowly lightened again.
She was becoming more curious about Adam by the minute. “So what brought you to the library today?” She hoped he hadn’t just followed her here. That would start to get a little weird.
“My English class was in the library today,” Adam said. Sophia eyed him suspiciously. “No I didn’t follow you in here. Now that would be a real loser. I don’t stoop that low. We were working on research papers. Whoo hoo!”
“Yeah really. It seems all English teachers are thinking alike, they want to assign research papers even before the first semester is over with.”
“Yeah really. But I suck at writing.”
“I don’t think it’s that easy for anyone, even the best writers probably have to spend a lot of time making their work perfect.
“But I really hate writing.”
“I do too. It’s really hard. But I’ve realized it’s way more fun to write about something you think is cool. I don’t know like hobbies or something.”
“Like I have any.”
“Well, you seem to have a certain taste in music.”
What? Compare and contrast alternative band lyrics? I laugh just picturing my teacher fainting from reading all the cuss words in my paper. . . That might be worth it!”

They arrived at the cafeteria already full of students eating and milling around. It wasn’t a particularly large room, her class of 2008 was only 250 students. So it seemed everyone knew eachother, and gossiped about eachother. She started to move toward the buffet area to move out of the line of eyes of friends at the band table. Second time being seen in public with Adam. They probably looked weird standing next to eachother. Goody-goody girl with goth guy, or whatever he was.
“Well, I’m gonna get some great cafeteria food!” Sophia said sarcastically.
“Yeah ok we’ll see yah,” Adam said. She watched him walk over to the vending machines and buy a pop and chips. I don’t know how anyone can live off of sugar water and grease, she thought, and then observed the cafeteria menu of fruit cocktail and pizza, and decided they were both equal.

Sophia sighed in relief that no one had seen them together as she watched him sit down at a nearly full table. She wasn’t in the mood to answer any taunting questions today about her choice in acquaintences. Though, she didn’t really choose him, he chose her. Anyway, she was also glad that Adam hadn’t pestered her about her so-called goody-goody act. It made her really uncomfortable talking about her religious beliefs with anyone. She knew that’s what he meant. She didn’t know too many people who were so-called goody-goody, who weren’t religious in her school unless they were super smart, and getting over 4.0’s per semester. She knew she wasn’t the latter. That was obvious, she was barely getting by with a C in American History, and the rest were a mixture of A’s and B’s. She didn’t go around flaunting her intelligence either, except for the recent spectacle Adam just coaxed from her about her debate topic. Anyhow she looked at it, he was trying to uncover the goodness she possessed, and if she let him, she would have to open up about her religion. She cringed at the thought. She preferred to show her religious beliefs by her actions than ever tell anyone that she was a Mormon.