Short Story / Sixteen.

The human brain is awesome. Just the other day I was sitting in class, bored, and I suddenly realized I could think. Duh, I mean, I always knew I could think, but it occurred to me that I could imagine I was somewhere else, like an island, in the sun! I sat there and thought and thought, but none of my islands were any fun. Then I tried to imagine I was at Disneyland. I had been there a few times as kid, and I loved it. But when I tried to remember how great it was, I realized that roller coasters like Space Mountain were only fun if you could actually feel the thrill of going up and down, and around really sharp turns. Remember the giant space-cookie!?
        So anyway, when I got home that night I decided I would try to come up with something better to imagine when I was sitting bored in class the next day. I was looking at porn on the Internet when I realized I could just think about porn! Then I remembered that one time in seventh grade, when I got a huge boner in P.E.. I decided I didn’t want to repeat that scenario, so I dropped that idea. I was watching a lesbian video online, but it was so-so. It was just two blondes going at it. I’ve seen better. My parents have a filter on our system that is supposed to stop me from being able to see porn, but I know how to get around it. I don’t think they realize that all teenagers probably make it their mission in life to get around content filters. I know my friends and I have. I ended up fapping to one of the videos I already had hidden on our computer. There’s no possible way my parents would ever know where to find it or how to open it.
        Well, I sort of forgot to figure what I wanted to do to keep myself entertained the next day in class, so when my biology the teacher got around to talking about the different layers of the eyeball I decided I’d rather go sleep in the nurses office. I asked to be excused and went to go lay down and read for an hour. I was halfway through reading the first Lord of the Rings book, which I started reading last year, but it wasn’t nearly as good as the movie. I don’t think I’m going to finish it. Tolkien should have cut out a lot of the slow parts, and focused more on the action.
        I was able to leave the nurses office five minutes before the lunch bell went off. She never cares when you come or go, and I wanted to be the first in line, so that was cool. I had to pass by the teachers parking lot on the way to the lunchroom.  I saw my English teacher standing by her car, and she was smoking! Shit. I know teachers aren’t all innocent, but it’s kinda weird when you see one of them being, like a real person or something. It’s like this one time I was working at Hot Dog on a Stick during Christmas, and one day we all decided to get together to have a Christmas dinner at The Olive Garden. It was kinda weird seeing everyone dressed in their every-day clothes. I was so used to seeing Michelle in yellow and red that seeing her in a nice looking tight purple sweater just kinda threw me off the whole night. The food was good though, I had lasagna.
        Before I got past the gate on the way to the lunchroom my English teacher caught up to me and asked why I wasn’t in class. She was sucking on some kind of mint, but I could still smell the cigarettes. AH! I was finally able pinpoint why she always had that funny thick smell about her. Now that the smell was so fresh and strong it seemed silly I didn’t recognize it before, Menthols. I once had a friend who brought cloves to school and we smoked those, but even they smell a lot better than Menthols. I told her that I was laying down in the nurses office, and that I was going to get lunch. She told me that she just got back from having pizza with her sister at garlic Jim’s. She had some pizza she wasn’t gonna eat and said I could have it if I wanted it. “Yea!” I said, not realizing how loud I was being. She kinda shook her head and told me it was in her car, so we headed out to the faculty parking lot. It was gated, and students weren’t normally allowed to be there. It was a first for me.
        Now, this isn’t one of those stories where the student is seduced by a really hot teacher and they end up having all kinds of sex or anything, but she was really hot, and I wouldn’t have minded having all kinds of sex with her. I haven’t actually had real sex yet, but I’ve seen and felt my share of boobs in my time. I even got a hand-job once from Tina Mastersen, talk about a fitting name. We were drunk at a beach party. I didn’t cum though. It felt great, and she let me feel her butt under her clothes, but we haven’t talked since.
        When we got to her car she popped the hatch on her hatchback and took out a paper sack with greasy spots all over the outside of it. “Here you go” she said when she handed me the bag. I could see piles of written reports and stuff in her back seat. I wondered if any of those were mine. I remember thinking Wow, it’s weird seeing all this school work just tossed in a car. I always imagined it would be kept stowed away in a file cabinet until she took them out to grade them in the teachers lounge or something.  I wonder if she had to grade all this stuff at home? That would suck. “You want to help me carry in some stuff?” she asked.  Well, I couldn’t refuse her now that she gave me pizza, so I agreed.
        I got to carry in a couple sacks of papers. I recognized them as being reports we had written recently. Mine was about The Great Gatsby. I had to copy it from the Internet, because I had no idea what was going on in that book. I had made a few changes to it hoping to make it look like something I could write. I tried to peek inside the bags because I was curious to see any grades or anything interesting, and it hit me; I bet there are answers to tests and stuff in these bags. So close, yet so far.
        When we got to class she opened the door and we went in, I put the bags by her desk like she asked me too. I have her class after lunch anyway, so I went across the room to sit at my desk. She pointed out a chair next to her big desk and told me to sit and eat right there. So I did. She asked me if I minded cold pizza. She said they had a microwave in the teachers lounge if I wanted her to go heat it up for me. I think what felt the strangest was that she was talking to me like I was just a regular every day person, but I like cold pizza, so I said, “No Thanks Ma’am”. She gave me a perplexed look and told me she doesn’t ever want to be called Ma’am again. I couldn’t tell if she was joking or not. I never called her that again though.
        We sat alone in her room while she started sorting paperwork from her bags, and I ate pizza. I didn’t have any napkins, so I just wiped my hands off on my jeans. She started to talk while I was eating quietly. I didn’t really know what to say, and she did most of the talking. I never thought of her as anybodies baby sister, but apparently she was the youngest of four children. Her oldest brother was sick, and that was why she met with her sister for lunch. It was going to cost a lot of money to make him better, and I guess they were trying to figure out the best way to do it. It was kinda sad seeing her talk about it. I’ve always thought of her as kind of a bitch, but now I could see she was probably pretty nice.
        The lunch bell rang really quick, I didn’t realize so much time had passed. She got up and started writing on the chalk board and reminded me to throw the greasy bag in the trash before I took my seat. I guess that was my cue.  When everyone else started coming in I was embarrassed, I thought everyone would know that I hung out with Ms. Lee at lunch, but no one said anything. Although I spent the rest of the period worried they’d see the pizza bag in the trash and smell it on me or something. I don’t know why this bothered me.

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squarehopper avatar General Stranger

January 08, 2008

squarehopper Prolific-icon-medium

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squarehopper reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

Is this an attempt to write contemporary literary fiction?

If so, then I recommend you delve more into your character.

If not, then your ending is not really fitting and complete.

There are still errors in this piece, spellings, typos, grammar.

The ending is not compelete because it doesn’t resolve anything brought up earlier in the piece.

THe main character needs a little more developing.  I would like to see more between the “hot” teacher and him.

I understand that your character has ADD or ADHD, but still, they do have the ability to plan and connect their thoughts.  This is still too scattered.

Good luck!

Constance_Keat avatar General Stranger

January 08, 2008

Constance_Keat

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Constance_Keat reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

I liked the whole of the story, but you kinka rambled about stuff like space mountain and the paragraph on test/quiz answers. otherwise i thought your story was brilliant. you hit funny spots like the whole boner deal, and still had some sad stuff too, like the teachers brother. good job.

tstone avatar General Stranger

January 08, 2008

tstone

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tstone reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

“The human brain is awesome.”—great opening line.
“I was looking at porn…”—really like the way you just jumped in here, with no transition.  it supported the “ho-hum” feel that carried throughout the story.  
”...teenagers probably make it their mission in life to get around content filters.”—another gem.
“The food was good though, I had lasagna.”—nice and matter-of-fact.
”...I spent the rest of the period worried they’d see the pizza bag in the trash and smell it on me or something. I don’t know why this bothered me.”—great way to finish.  you could probably get rid of “Although…”  doesn’t really fit.
overall a nice read.  entertaining, with a couple very nice chuckles.  well-written… all over the place (an accurate discription of the ADD mind) but with a reasoning behind the randomness.  one can follow the tangents effortlessly.

avedis avatar General Stranger

January 07, 2008

avedis

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avedis reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

Wow, this is the second well written short story I’ve read in a row, and I have to say virtually the same thing.
Writing a review for quality writing such as this, it’s hard to follow the guidelines, it just has to be commentary.

I fond this is less a short story, more a vignette and would work in a collection of similar stories – I’m not sure it stands alone.

I get the theme, young people for the first time learning that adults, and teachers, are human. That is something worth capturing and expressing and you have done it well.
I have to ask, so what? I don’t mean that unkindly,I mean – how does it alter and enhance this young man’s life. That is what could be the meat of this story.

Having said all that, I like this very much.

Elron avatar General Stranger

January 07, 2008

Elron

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Elron reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

I thought this short story was pretty good. I don’t think having typos in this piece would have been a helpful effect because typos always slow me down when reading. You did a good job with typical teenage kid, though I’m not sure about the A.D.D. Maybe, you’d have him do something extreme or make reference to Ritalin. you This character reminded me in some ways of Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye. Ever read it? J.D. Salinger is one of my favorites. Keep up the good writing.

AstroBoyJ7 avatar General Stranger

January 07, 2008

AstroBoyJ7

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AstroBoyJ7 reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

I like where you are going with this. The stream of conciousness dialogue from the main character was entertaining. (The beach party story reminded me of many a party I attended in college.) The relationship that is starting to grow between the teacher and the main character is interesting so long as it doesn’t degenerate into another student screws the teacher plot. (I think it was mentioned that this isn’t going to happen but I just wanted to say that anyway to jam the thought home.)

All in all I like this story and hope you add more to it as time goes by!

chimchar214 avatar General Stranger

January 07, 2008

chimchar214

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chimchar214 reviewed Version 2 - Read 100% of the Item

As I was reading this piece I encountered some serious problems.

Read this sentence here.

>>>>>>>>>Duh, I mean, I always knew I could think, but it occurred to me that I could imagine I was somewhere else, like an island, in the sun!<<<<<<<

-Get rid of the “Duh”, it hurts the reader’s eyes.

Your second sentence

>>>> sat there and thought and thought, but none of my islands were any fun.<<<<

-Don’t EVER use the repeat the same words like that. That will annoy the reader and make you the writer sound obnoxious.

Second, you write in first person very poorly. Only because there are too many “I”’s in your piece, which annoys the reader. This is very difficult, try to keep your “I”’s to a minimum, if you feel that you can’t do that then I suggest you write in a different POV, First-Person is not easy to pull off. This is just my suggestion, if you don’t want to follow it, you don’t have to.

And do you have A.D.D? Unless you do never write about a character like that, because if you publish something like this, you are asking for a lawsuit.

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JTstories

Age: 34
Loc: Portland, OR
Gen: M
Last Login: November 26
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