Work in Progress #5
Updated: May 11
I missed posting an update in April because I was in the zone. I've was jumping from one part of the story to another based on what I felt like writing. And damn, did I feel like writing this month.
Part of it was because more ideas have been popping up in my head. During work, while I'm sleeping, when I'm in the gym. At random parts of the day another idea pops up and I have to jot it down.
Part of it was hours spent on research, looking up every thing that was hot post Y2K. Half of it I still remember from memory. The other half, I had to dig up online. Things like when magazines started hyping up PlayStation 2 and what cereals came out in 2000.
Part of it was me staying inside trying to save up money for my birthday in June. I don't want to go off about the economy but y'all know how hard it is out here.
I've been putting together a playlist for the book. Mostly songs you'd hear on the radio between Winter of 1999 and Spring of 2000. Part of my writing process has always included visualizing the books as a movie or TV show. What songs would play in the background? And more importantly, what songs would Will jam out to on his mix CDs.
That isn't to say all I've been doing was writing. I always make time to slack off. And this month my lazy time was dedicated to Vampire Crawlers, Lunar: Silver Star Story Remastered and the original version of Chrono Cross on the PlayStation 1.
Anyway, to make up for missing April, I've got three excerpts for you instead of one.
Morning meeting
Will crossed over the cul-de-sac to the Neville’s house. He stepped on the doormat and took off his sneakers. Before he could press the doorbell, the door opened and Vincent was on the other side. Vincent rubbed his eyes and greeted, “William.” His normally sullen tone was even more grim from him still trying to wake up.
Will entered the house and followed Vincent into the living room where Jessica and Nathan were sitting on the green sectional couch in the living room. Jessica had her feet planted on the square-shaped ottoman next to the couch. They were watching music videos on MTV. They both greeted Will with their mouths stuffed with cereal and milk dripping from their lips.
Instead of eating one cereal, they were sampling several boxes of brand new cereals. Some of the cereals hadn’t been released to market yet. Nathan savored the taste of the Cinna Cluster Raisin Bran. Jessica was disgusted by the taste of Koala Crisp. Vincent sat at the opposite end of the couch and taste-tested the Mystery Volcano Crunch cereal. After some awkward bites and weird expressions, his only review of the cereal was him shrugging his shoulders and saying, “Eh.” None of the others knew what to take from that.
Jessica handed Will a box and requested, “Will, try out this Pokémon cereal. It’s not supposed to hit the shelves until May.”
Will turned Jessica down, saying, “If I wanted a science experiment for breakfast, I would’ve eaten my mom’s cooking. I’m getting Frosted Flakes.” He went into the pantry for his favorite cereal.
Will came back with a bowl of cereal and sat on the end of the couch closest to the kitchen. Midway through Jay-Z’s newest video, Jessica sat up straight, muted the TV and said, “Let’s get this band meeting started.” Will wasn’t officially a member of the band but he and Vincent gave Jessica their full attention. Nathan divided his attention between Jessica and the women in the video.
“Battle of the Bands is in 4 months. That’s 4 months to get a new guitarist, 4 months to come up with a kick ass new song, and 4 months to rehearse it. Speaking of new song…”
Jessica turned to Vincent, who shrugged his shoulders and said, “Nothing.”
Jessica rolled her eyes and continued her meeting. “Well while you work on turning that nothing into something, we’re gonna be hosting auditions after school today. You gonna be there, Stone?”
Nathan didn’t answer, he was too occupied ogling over the sexy ladies in the music video. Jessica shouted, “Hey, dumbass!” before hurling the remote at him to get his attention. His signature knit beanie absorbed most of the blow, but he still felt a small impact from it.
“Dude what the hell!” Nathan shouted before throwing the remote back at Jessica. He rubbed the back of his head where the remote hit and answered Jessica’s question. “Can’t be there for the auditions. Will and me got a double date after school.”
Will asked, “Who am I going on a date with?”
Jessica tilted her head toward Will and sarcastically answered, “I wonder who?” She tapped her index finger against her bottom lip to suggest that she was thinking about the question.
Nathan bluntly answered, “Ashley.”
Visibly annoyed, Will said, “Look out man, I’ve been telling y’all all Christmas break, me and Ashley are just friends.”
Nathan, Jessica, and Vincent looked at each other with disbelief. They weren’t convinced of what Will said the first time he said it, and they weren’t convinced the seventeenth. Nathan said, “Well me, Natsuki, and the ‘just friends’ have a meeting after school at the Taco King. We’re putting together a plan to get Ashley out of that private school her parents want to send her to.”
Jessica replied, “Cool we’ll need her.”
Will asked, “What for?”
Vincent answered, “ID.”
Jessica clarified, “Battle of the Bands is only for Random University students. We’ll need your ‘just friend’ to whip us up some student IDs. Otherwise we’re not getting on stage.”
Will’s facial expression grew more aggravated each time the others said, “just friends.” After finishing his cereal, he stood up and walked over to Jessica. He slipped her a few bucks. In exchange, she pulled out a jewel case from her jacket’s pocket and handed it to Will. Inside the case was a burned CD named Songs A Dork Like Will Would Like. He told Nathan, “C’mon, we gotta get going.”
Nathan didn’t acknowledge Will. He was busy staring at Mandy Moore on the TV. Jessica gave Will the remote; he chucked it at the same spot on Nathan’s head that Jessica hit earlier.
“Okay jeez, dude I’m getting up,” Nathan moaned as he massaged the sore spot on the back of his head. He stood up and asked Jessica, “wanna give us a ride to the gas station?”
Jessica looked away from Nathan, crossed her arms, and rudely answered, “Hell no. Too close to Washington. I’m not getting contaminated with that school’s suckiness.”
Curious for the first time, Will asked, “What is up with you and Washington? I mean I’m not defending the place but…”
Jessica looked away from Will, almost as if she were ashamed, and bitterly replied, “I don’t go digging into your past, Will. Don’t go digging into mine.”
Hearing that would’ve normally triggered some memory about Will’s life from Salem. Some bad moment when he was at some part of the city and decided to never go back. But there was nothing. Will stood motionless with a blank stare for three seconds before he snapped out of it. He responded, “Fair enough.”
Will grabbed his backpack and headed to the front door. Without looking back, he threw up the peace sign and said, “See y’all later.” Nathan hopped up from the couch and followed behind Will.
a slight detour
Natsuki sat at her desk and stared at the clock above the whiteboard. Dr. Levy’s Physics lecture sounded like static to her and the equations and diagrams on the whiteboard looked like squiggly lines. While her classmates took copious amounts of notes, her concentration was squarely on the clock, waiting for it to strike 3.
When it did, and a chime rang, she grabbed her messenger bag and dashed out of the classroom. Dr. Levy said to his students, “Remember, your first exam covering units 1 and 2 is Friday. I expect all of you to be prepared.” Natsuki heard none of that. She ran down the hall of the sciences building and westward across the Perryton Prep campus to Chatswell Hall. She would’ve made it there a minute sooner if her loafers didn’t slow her down.
Natsuki didn’t stop running when she was inside Chatswell Hall. She didn’t wait for the elevator to get to the third floor. She ran up the stairwell, and then down the hall to her room. Halfway, she bumped into a girl who was kissing a boy who wasn’t allowed in the building. She turned around and shouted, “Sorry!” while running backwards.
Waiting for Natsuki was her dormmate, Rachel Locke, a fellow 1st year student with frizzy orange hair, oval-shaped glasses, freckles, and a retainer. The floor of Rachel’s side of the room was cluttered with stacks of manga that buried her actual textbooks. Her favorite genres were fantasy, yaoi, and the occasional combination of both. There were also fantasy novels including the first three Harry Potter books, and the first two books in the Song of Ice and Fire series. Every inch of the walls on her side were covered in posters from various anime series including Sailor Moon, Ranma 1/2, InuYasha, and Neon Genesis Evangelion. There were also a few posters of handsome men from more obscure anime series embracing each other romantically. On her desk was a small TV with a built in VCR. Next to it were a stack of anime movies on VHS including Perfect Blue and Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz. Her side of the room was a disorderly shrine dedicated to the things she was a fan of.
In contrast, Natsuki’s side was clean and organized. There was an exercise mat placed next to Natsuki’s bed. Her stuffed turtle was placed on the pillow of her perfectly made bed. Her textbooks were placed in a neat stack next to her desk in order from thickest to thinnest. The only thing on her desk was a photo frame. Inside was a photo from 1989 where a four-year-old Natsuki stood next to her mother Mitsuyo and her late father Takeru. Mitsuyo and Takeru were wearing gis and Takeru was holding a large trophy.
Rachel was sitting cross-legged on her unmade bed and reading from a notebook labeled Fanfiction. “Harry and Draco gazed deeply into each other’s eyes and…”
She was interrupted when Natsuki came bursting through the door and asked, “How much time do I have?”
Rachel looked away from her notebook and at her green Powerpuff Girls watch. She answered, “19 minutes!”
Natsuki dashed over to her closet and changed into her tracksuit. With each piece of the tracksuit she changed into, she threw a piece of her uniform to a random place behind her. Her stockings landed on Rachel’s head. When she was fully dressed, she went into the bathroom and quickly freshened herself up. Before zipping up her jacket, she took a quick whiff of her armpits and decided a fresh coat of deodorant wouldn’t hurt. She tightened up her ponytail and rushed back to the door.
Before Natsuki left, Rachel said, “I want all the deets when you get back.” Natsuki nodded and closed the door behind her.
With 14 minutes left, Natsuki ran to the other side of campus toward the TRAIL station. She was much faster in her tennis shoes. At her current pace, she would’ve made it to the station with minutes to spare. That was until she came across something that made her come to a sudden stop.
A group of 2nd and 3rd years surrounded a 1st year girl sitting on a bench and harassed her. They started by knocking the library book out of her hands. Then, they pulled her hair and poked at her stomach while calling her Pilsbury Dough Girl. Afterward, they took turns mocking her looks. It was their laughing that stung the worst.
The group’s uniforms were similar to the other students in color and design with only one minor difference. There was a gold star buttoned on their lapel. That indicated their status as elite students, which allowed them to bully the girl without fear of repercussion. Or so they thought at the time.
Natsuki recognized the girl as Nina Rossbury. Nina’s looks, body shape, and non-elite status made her a constant target of bullying. Seeing Nina crying as others teased her reminded Natsuki of the times when Leslie was the one bullying her. Natsuki resented not stepping in and stopping Leslie. She was determined not to make the same mistake twice. She took a quick assessment of the bullies from their body frames to the way they stood. She came to the conclusion that despite them all being older than her, she could take them all if it came down to it. With that settled, she clinched her fists and walked over to them.
the guidance counselor
Guidance Counselor Ron Moore’s office was across the hall from the principal’s. It was a typical counselor’s office with books all over the place. The counselor, a black man in his early-thirties with a short edge-up, sat in a leather office chair behind a wooden L-shaped desk. There were two uncomfortable yellow chairs in front of the desk for students to sit in. A cork board was mounted on the wall with important flyers and brochures pinned on it. Next to the board were two plaques; one held his master’s degree from Northern Michigan University, and the other held his PhD from Grand Canyon University.
A boy sat in one of the seats looking down and twiddling his fingers. He aired out his grievances to Counselor Moore. The counselor was only paying half attention to him.
The boy complained, “I just feel like I’m invincible at school.”
Moore half-heartedly replied, “Uh-huh. Go on.” He was staring at his monitor, typing and clicking in an attempt to find the boy’s records in the school database.
The boy continued, “I’ve been here since October and still nobody knows my name. My classmates all call me That One Kid. And all my teachers call me Student. Even during roll call, I’m just Student to them.”
Still trying to find the boy’s records with no success, Moore asked, “Have you joined any after school activities? You stand out more in smaller groups than larger ones.”
The boy answered, “I joined the spirit squad last year, but nobody bothered to ask my name. I tried introducing myself to others but…”
While the boy expressed his concerns, Moore scratched his head in confusion. He found the boy’s record, confirmed by his school photo on the screen. But the first name field was empty. In fact, the only data listed about the boy was his last name, Slate. He moved away from the computer and gave the boy his full attention. “Look, I know nobody wants to go through high school feeling like a blank slate.” The pun wasn’t intended. “I recommend you find some like-minded peers, kids who are into…whatever it is you’re in to. Also, you should focus on building up your self-worth and confidence. Try looking into the mirror at home and introducing yourself to yourself. Look directly at yourself and say, ‘My name is…whatever your name is’ again and again.”
The boy looked up, feeling optimistic and eager to try out Counselor Moore’s suggestions. Before he could thank the counselor for the advice, Shawn barged in unannounced and uninvited. Shawn walked up to the boy and commanded, “Get out, That One Kid.”
Following the counselor’s advice, the boy stood up and built up all the confidence he could to tell Shawn, “My name is…”
Shawn interrupted, “I didn’t ask what your name is. Now, get gone before I throw you up out of here.”
Feeling more discouraged than he did when he came in to see the counselor, the boy left the office with his head down. Shawn sat in the chair the boy previously sat in. His arms were folded and his body was stiff in frustration. He had a lot to get off his chest.
Counselor Moore said, “You don’t just barge in here like you run the place, Shawn, and you don’t threaten people like that. I should haul you over to the principal’s office right now.”
Shawn responded, “I know you got money on the game against McKinley High. You need me out on that court.”
Moore conceded. He leaned back in his chair and said, “You don’t have to see me anymore. So what do you want to talk about?”
After taking a deep breath, Shawn poured it all out like he was confessing his sins to the priest. “It’s Will Moon. I can’t get that piece of trash out of my head.”
Counselor Moore requested, “Refresh my memory. Will Moon, he’s the boy that…”
Shawn answered, “Took my girl and knocked out my tooth. Twice.” Saying that triggered Shawn to lick the tooth the dentist put back in.
“We talked about this before, Shawn. Ashley wasn’t your girl.”
Shawn countered, “She was going to be mine until that chump Will got in the way. He didn’t just take her from me. He took all my momentum. I ain’t ever taken a loss in anything. But then this nobody comes in from out of town and throws me way the hell off my game.”
After hearing Shawn’s issues, Counselor Moore put his hands together and pressed them against his face to suggest that he was deep in thought. He gave his analysis of Shawn’s problem. “So what you’re telling me is you believe Will is causing you to lose your focus on the court? And you want me to tell you how you can get him out of your mind?”
Shawn sprung up and vigorously answered, “Hell no!” He tapped his head with his finger and continued, “I want him to stay in my head. I don’t want to stop thinking about Will and how much I hate him until I can rub that state trophy right in his face. I’m going to show him and everybody that I’m the top dog around here! That can’t nobody beat Shawn Franklin at nothing!”
Shawn sat back down and Counselor Moore diagnosed him. “I told you before, Shawn. You’re hyper-competitive, way too obsessed with winning.” He leaned back in his chair again and clasped his hands. Then he said, “Let me ask you something. Is playing basketball all you want to do?”
Shawn proudly answered, “Why wouldn’t it be? I was born to ball. I live to ball. They’re going to bury me with a ball in my hands.”
I will try to have another update by June 12. Do not hold me to that.
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