Jack

• Felicity Cullen, Grade 12
• Short Story
• 2010

Jack hated it when everyone would talk about girls. It was all the time now, it’s like all his mates hit fifteen and didn’t think about anything else. They used to talk about all the new games coming out, and they liked watching the footy. But now it was all girls, Jack didn’t like girls. He just didn’t understand the big deal; he’d always thought they didn’t seem like real people. The way they think and talk, and those high irritating voices. It wasn’t for him. Ralph, Jack and Chris had been best friends since they could remember, but Chris got a girlfriend and Jack doesn’t spend much time with him now. Ralph and Chris lost their virginity this year, and keep telling Jack he’s missing out. All that seems unnatural somehow; even though he knows it’s not. Ralph’s not as pushy about it. Ralphs great, he’s really funny and smart. One night they get some food and Jack thinks about confiding in Ralph about how weird he feels about everything, maybe something’s wrong with him, he’s not growing up; and Ralph can help. ‘I don’t like girls’ he said uncomfortably
‘Yeah me either man, no one really does. They care about the stupidest things, but they can fun. You just need to get in with one of the good looking ones’ He winked.
Ralph always knew how to make Jack more comfortable. So it wasn’t weird not to like them, he felt relieved. But he didn’t really want to get ‘in’ with one either. He decided to leave it. ‘Let’s have some beers’ he said going to the fridge. Ralph agreed, and they begun the first of many that night. Jack doesn’t know why he did it, but it felt really right. He closed his eyes, leaned in and pressed his lips up against Ralphs. He felt flushed for a second, re-opened his eyes to the horrified face of his friend and a moment later to a fast-moving fist.
Jack woke up to a throbbing around his eye, it was a really discoloured purple and it hurt a lot. Humiliation sunk in. School tomorrow. ‘Faggot’ in purple highlighter on his shirt.