Prologue

The last day of eighth grade, as far as I can remember, was somewhat of an up-down day. Sure it was my last day of middle school, I was excited about the summer and moving on to high school, the next step in my life. I was also kind of disappointed because I was leaving the place I came to know for the past three years. Even though I didn't really like middle school, I got used to it. But the reason why I didn't like that day was a reason I will never forget.

There she was, sitting at a table halfway across the cafeteria. She was wearing a black T-shirt with some white logo on it, but I was too far away to tell what it was. Her hair wasn't as long as most girls, but it wasn't short where it made her look like a guy. To some people, this may sound like some depressed girl dressed in black emo, goth like clothing but she was very far from that. For a girl who wears mostly black, sometimes purple, she's usually high spirited and full of energy. That's what I liked about her. She could have been a skater, but I don't really remember all the details. The way she smiled and the way she acted just made me want to skip gaily down the hallways like she did, although I still wouldn't because then I would feel completely retarded. But still, Nina always knew how to brighten up my day.

We had the same music class in seventh grade. It was the last period of the day and I was always looking forward to seeing her. Yes, we were friends at the time but I thought that we could've been more than that. Yeah, that was just my overconfidence speaking.

She knew I liked her. I was way too obvious. Even our large music class of seven knew I liked her, yeah, I exaggerated there. It was over a year since we met and it was now or never. I was finally going to ask her out. I knew that day was my last chance to do it.

I was so anxious I couldn't approach her, especially not in front of her friends. There was no way I could've done that on my own. My friend Andrew had to bring her over to my table so I could ask her.

As she was coming over, my face was as red as a rose and my palms started to sweat. She smiled as she sat down.

"Hi Skyler!" she said.

"Hi, uhh… Nina," I said. "How are you doing?"

"Fine," she said.

"Well, you know it's almost summertime and I was wondering…" I said.

"Wondering what?" she asked.

"If you want to…" I was trembling.

"You want to get together sometime this summer?" I finally asked her.

She was like "Oh, I'm sorry. I can't."

"But why?" I asked.

"Because…" she said, "I have to go to summer school so I can't go out with you. Sorry."

"Really? You have to go to summer school? I thought that you were smarter than that Nina," I said.

"I guess not," She said. "And when I'm not at summer school, I'll be hanging out with my friends."

And that was that. The first time a girl ever rejected me. I couldn't believe it. I felt so confident about it working. It was then, I had nothing to look forward to that summer and I couldn't wait for high school to start. Just like I thought, I did have a lousy summer. I was so bored out of my brains that I thought I was going insane. Face it, the only two reasons I don't like summer vacation are boredom and loneliness, oh and the hot humid weather where the bugs always bite your face and makes you itch a lot. It's so irritating. Besides the nuisances that take place during the summer, I finished going down one long challenging road and I was getting prepared to go down another long one.

I'm sure you read that she called me Skyler. I'm sure thought that reading my name, you thought that I was some obvious lesbian but I'm nowhere close. I'm a guy. Yes, my name is Skyler, Skyler Laska. The last name is Slovak for something but I don't know what the meaning is. Skyler may sound like a girl's name but it can be a guy's name too. They're called unisex names, there are lots of them in the English language. My mom wanted to give me a unique name, for she wanted me to stand out in the world, that's why, although I would've preferred something more common like Paul or Harold, just so I wouldn't be so different.

For some reasons unrelated to that, my parents divorced I think when I was five. I was too young to remember how and why that happened. One time I thought that it was all my fault, but my mom said it wasn't me, it was her. Since then, it was just me and her living in our apartment. It didn't take her long to get over the divorce and went on to live her life as a secretary, acting like she was never married to my dad.

Our apartment was a five room place with a green carpet, a small TV and a couple of couches in our living room. We had two bedrooms, a small damp kitchen and a bathroom where even my mom had trouble moving around in there. We could've had a bigger nicer one but my mom said that this was all we need. Home sweet home.

People say I'm just like my mom, even though I look like my dad. Although I'm much taller than my mom, I have her nice green eyes, and thick straight hair, although my hair is dark brown and her hair is blonde, but that doesn't matter, for someday I might go bald by my mid twenties just like my dad. I also have my mom's somewhat shy personality. I usually don't feel comfortable meeting new people, neither does my mom. When it comes to parties, I can't be there. If it was a hang out with a couple of my friends, I can handle that, but a backyard party with about two dozen of my mom's friends from work who them and their families are nothing but complete strangers to me, that's what irritates me. Oh, that's another thing about summer that irritates me, parties, I'll never understand them.

Don't mind me using the word irritate, or any form of that word. I like that word. I use it all the time to describe me when I'm in a negative mood. When I'm in a situation where I'm not in a good mood, I just say that I'm irritated.

I'm an only child but sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I had a sibling, preferably a sister, about a year or two older than me. I know it's a fantasy to me but I can only wonder what it would be like. Don't ask, I really don't know why I wondered in the first place.