James

• Tim Pearce, Grade 11
• Short Story
• 2008

James was an unusual kid. Every morning he would have breakfast, make his mum coffee, check that the doors were locked, and then...do it all over again.
James did everything, well most things twice. He could not help it; it was so natural for him. If he washed his hands, it had to be twice, tied his shoes up, twice, brushed his teeth, he would untie them and do them again. It was an unusual habit indeed but one he had grown accustom to.
I would see him on the bus to school, staring into the distance. He would come late to class because it took him twice as long to unpack his bag and collect his books. He would sit in the front row and coalesce into his desk. I never talked to him unless it was the passing of words at the lockers. But that all changed when I was paired up with him for a school project. That was when I began to understand him.
I invited him over to my house to get a head start on our project. I could tell he was shy by the way he hunched over to greet me, staring at the ground whispering “Hello.” I went to shake his hand but he ignored the gesture. At first we did not say much but when I started asking him questions, they soon turned into answers and before I knew it, we were talking about, stuff.
I invited him over to help with our project every weekend. We would work on the project, have pizza and watch some movies. After a few weeks we became close friends, I would hang out with him at lunch and invite him over to do activities other than our project. There were moments that he was uncomfortable with. He would be embarrassed washing his hands in front of me twice or making his bed twice. He tried to hide it so I just ignored it. Anyway, it did not affect me, and he was my friend.
We ended up getting the best mark for our project in the class. The teacher made us present it in front of everyone. When we finished everyone clapped and I went to shake James hand, not as a thankyou but as a friend. He gladly accepted, shaking it a second time.
But then...he left.
When people found out about his unusual habit James became the laughing stock of the school. People would call him names, untie his shoes and throw dirt on him. But probably the worst part of it was me. I sat back and did nothing, ignored him like he never existed. I stopped inviting him over, stopped talking to him at lunch; I couldn’t even look him in the eye.
I understand why he left; I would have done the same too in his position. But I will always regret not defending; and how I wish I did.