Chapter 2- An Unusual Day in the Life of Sam

Like usual, I woke up at in the morning, went to the bathroom to excrete the metabolic wastes that have formed in my body over the night. Washed my face, brushed my teeth and went to the kitchen to prepare my breakfast. My mother and father were still vast asleep. I took my favorite bowl, and my favorite cereal. Took out the milk carton and prepared a bowl of cereal. My favorite cereal is Cherrios. I find its taste particularly interesting due to its sweetness and lightness.

After finishing my meal, I took the empty bowl to the sink and did all the dishes that have accumulated from the past two days. I couldn’t do the dishes yesterday since I had an exam on the first lesson and was busy revising the material. After I was done with two days’ worth of dirty dishes, it was 6:30am. I went to my room and got out of my pajamas and into a fresh school uniform. I had washed my clothes yesterday in preparation for the second half of the week. We go to school in my city from Sunday to Thursday. Today is Wednesday, I have 3 hours of free time in school today. “Yes!” I whispered as I headed to my room passing by my parents’ room. “I can start and finish my new book in that free time.” I have been itching to read it for a while now. I bought “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka a week ago, but couldn’t start reading it till I finished exams.

Yesterday was my last midterm exam. So I was pretty excited about starting that book. It was on my wish list for a whole year. I discovered Franz Kafka after analyzing the short story, “A Crossbreed” in class. I got interested in Kafka’s style since the tragic, satiric situations that he forces his characters into is crafted in a way that makes these satiric situations all the more unbearable. The creation of a half lamb half kitten in “A Crossbreed” and the detailed description of the bizarre creature was terrifyingly accurate and believable that I instantaneously fell in love with his style. I was sure that the books he authored will be a lot of fun to read.

Finally, the first hour of break time have come, starting at the gong of the bell signaling the start of lunch break. I remained seated and excitedly leaned downwards into my bag and pulled out the book. As I was starting to read, Dave showed up with his gang. They were four male students accompanied by five female students. Including Dave, there was a swarm of ten students surrounding my desk. The one worth giving a name out of the group besides Dave was a girl called Sky. She had charcoal black hair with baby blue eyes. Her eyelashes were long, the curve in each eyelash was delicately and purposefully designed to match her face. Her white skin was glowing like a jewel. Her tainted pink lips were irresistible. Her breasts are not that big, if I had to guess she would be a B in terms of size. From the structure and curvature that I observed through her clothing, I’d guess that her breasted are heart shaped with the nipples pointing to the outside. Her waist was slim and her hips curved, slightly shaping the outside structure of her buttocks. She has a generally petite feminine body structure and I’d guess that she is around 160cm in height. But what really grabbed my attention was none of the physical characteristics that most men would be attracted to, it was the way she looked at me. Her stare was overwhelming, intense, devouring if I’d say so myself. It was as if she saw right through my soul.

When Dave and his group approached me as I was about to start my book, I felt there presence engulfing what little personal space I had. “So… What are you reading there?” asked Dave. “Oh, it nothing, it’s just a book I bought recently, I was about to start reading it. I still haven’t started yet.” I replied anxiously. “Oh is that so? Give the book. I want to know what it’s about.” I sighed, “I’m sorry. I’ll show it to you later, I promise, I just need to finish the book today, since we have three hours of free time today. So once I finish the book I’ll give it to you, I promise.” Dave ignored my request and forcefully pulled the book out of my hand. He read the title, “The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka. Seriously, you’re wasting my time on reading the title of a book written by a nobody. What’s up with that title anyway? What’s this book about? “When Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin””. He looked at me with confused eyes. “What the fuck?! What the hell is this shit? Is that what you’re into you creep?!” I hastily replied, “Ah… no… I just heard that the book is a good read and a must have since its author is one of the be-”

He interrupted me yelling “Shut the hell up! Wasting my time on shit like this! How are you going to pay me back for the time I wasted on this shit?! Well.. when I think about it, I guess that you might be attracted to such a topic since you are seeking people with a similar situation to yours.” I was a bit confused, “Wha-What do you mean?” He was angry, his eyebrows made a fork in his forehead and surprisingly, calmly said “I mean people that turn into bugs, since you were already born an insect, a vermin that eats, shits and sleeps. Isolated from everyone for the insignificance that your presence have.” The group laughed as if this was the funniest joke they ever heard. Wounded, I stared at the ground and softly laughed with them, then said quietly, “Ah that was a good one Dave.” As I lifted my head, I confirmed the feeling I had throughout the whole ordeal. At the back of the group, there stood Sky, staring at me with eyes so cold that I felt chills run down my spine. She was the only one out of the group that wasn’t laughing at Dave’s joke.

I shook my head in an attempt to brush off Sky’s intensity. I looked quickly at Dave and asked him for the book. “Here, you can have your stupid book back.” He threw the book straight at my face, and the book gently fell in my lap. Dave moved at the head of group while his arm was wrapped around Sky from her shoulders. He had his arm sneakily on Sky’s left breast. She appeared unfazed, but in her blue eyes, I saw a quick flicker of discomfort as she turned her face around and headed with Dave and the rest of the group.

Thirty minutes have passed since the beginning of lunch break and I am down to two and a half hours to finish the book. That was still, long enough for me to finish the book and analyze it, so I wasn’t panicking. I started reading and my fingers gripped the book excitedly as I turned the pages one after the other till I finished the book in two hours flat. As I started my third and final hour of free time, I headed to the roof. The roof is my special place. It’s quiet and peaceful. It’s were I analyze and think about the books that leaves me questioning myself and society in general. I climbed the stairs and opened the door and headed out to my special place.

What? What is going on? What is she doing here? In the usual spot that I spend my time analyzing and questioning the messages that I decoded in my books, I found Sky, sitting staring directly at the door, as if anticipating my arrival.

“He-Hello there Sky. I-I didn’t know that anyone would be here. Sorry for interrupting you. I’ll be on my way.” She stood up suddenly, moved a single step to the right and sat back down. With her delicate finger tips, she waved at me to come, and then pointed at the empty space besides her asking me to join her.

“I-If you insist.” I moved my hands to the lower section of my abdomen with my hands crossed and the book still in my grasp. “Did you finish reading the book?” Her angelic gentle voice echoed into my core. This is the first time I have heard a sound this beautiful in my entire life. This was the first time I heard her voice and it disturbingly matched her body. For this body, I can imagine no voice that will be as compatible as hers. I blushed and averted my eyes to the ground. “Ye-Yes. I finished the book. I came here to-“ “She interrupted me and started by “I know, this is the spot that you pick up to think about the messages conveyed in a book you read, and is the spot that you have discussions with yourself when you need to think about a dilemma that you are facing after reading a book.”

What the? Am I being stalked? This is stalking isn’t it? What if she stalks me because she’s interested in me? She must be! Right? Why else would she stalk me around for? I’m sure the reason she knows my secret spot is because she has a thing towards me. “Sam.. I love you..”. Images of Sky lying on my bed, while saying these forbidden words rushed through my mind. What the hell am I thinking?! It’s impossible! Why would someone like Sky be interested in someone like me? I am 180cm tall and have a relatively slim agile body. But I don’t have what girls these days search for. I don’t have the bad boy traits that females search for in today’s society.

“Whatever you’re thinking.. stop it. I can tell its inappropriate” Oh shit! I lowered my head further with the entirety of my face turning as red as the flames that Beelzebub reside in. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-“ She interrupted me saying, “It’s okay. I know that this is your spot because this is my spot as well. I sit over there at that corner.” She pointed at a not easily noticeable corner on the edge of the roof.

“Ohhh.” I shyly lowered my head even further and started apologizing to Sky for my insolence. “There’s no need to apologize. So, did you read the book or not?” I told her that I finished the book and was up here because I wanted to think about the concepts portrayed in Kafka’s work. “I knew you’d come up here the moment I saw the book you’re reading. “The Metamorphosis” is a really good book isn’t it.” I was surprised. After inquiring, it seems that Sky have read this book before. She uses the roof as a spot to think about issues she faced after reading a certain book like I do.

She went on telling me that she had read “The Metamorphosis” and that she wanted to ask me what I thought about it. “I really enjoyed the book! It was great! My fingers wouldn’t stop turning the pages! My mind, although breaking down slowly as I see Gregor abandoned, ignored and killed by his own parents after undergoing the metamorphosis at the beginning of the novel, just kept me wondering about what was going to happen next! But what really bugs me is that the Gregor’s family members were so insensitive towards him, that they actually abandoned and alienated their own flesh and blood after the metamorphosis. And the themes tackled in the novel, ranging from the alienation to disconnect between body and mind makes me wonder about what Kafka was thinking when writing this novel!”

“What’s up with the academic answer? But seriously, these were identical to my thoughts after reading the book, and I consider myself a veteran in terms of analyzing classical literature, you have gained my stamp of approval in this matter.” I blushed. I couldn’t believe what I as hearing. I was being praised. For the first time in my life. I was being praised. And by Sky of all people. I am in heaven.

S, that was the dominant self in Sam at that time smiled the most innocent of smiles after the praise he received from Sky. For the first time in his entire life, he was praised. This however doesn’t mean that he wasn’t praised before, as S clearly remember the sweet loving voice of his mother and father whom used to constantly praise him and did their best raising him to the man he is today. But the praise he sought so desperately was a praise directed from someone other than his parents towards him.

Sky interrupted my daydreaming and asked, “I noticed that you love to read books. What other books have you read that left an impression on you?” Oh yes! She asked about the one thing I’m specialized in. Books are like my second half. I cannot ensure my peace of mind without my books. So she wants to hear about some books that I have read before? Sweet! I’ll give her the name of the books that have truly affected me. Among my huge collection there must be a couple. If I remember correctly, there was a couple of books that have seriously altered the way I see the world. “Okay then. The first book is Charles Baudelaire’s Les Fleurs du mal or the The Flowers of Evil, it’s a collection of poem. Have you ever heard of it?”

“The Flowers of Evil…. This seems interesting. I have heard of the book before, but I’ve been reluctant on buying it since I’m not that into poems. Do you think I’ll enjoy it?” Hell yeah! “Ah, yes, I believe you’ll really enjoy it. The extraction of beauty from the malignant in this collection contrasts the use of nature to display the poet’s emotions and evoke beauty. Baudelaire even believed in this book that beauty can be developed in modern poetry on its own. He even used the concept of sins to create the beauty had wanted to show through his poetry.” From the look in her eyes, she seemed to be interested. “The second book I highly recommend is Hermann Hesse’s Demian. The ways Hesse tackled the theme of good and evil in hopes of driving humans to not rely on what is accepted as good or evil in society, and to adopt a well suited evaluation that is unique to each individual, was really breath taking.” I knew that this one was a guaranteed buy for her. The way her eyes glowed, the way she smiled, the slight lean in my direction showed a peak in curiosity towards this book.

The bell rang abruptly, breaking the tension that had built up in our meeting. Sky got up hastily and headed to the door. She turned around then said, “Meet me here tomorrow during lunch break. I’ll get you a list of books that I think you’ll enjoy. I’ll be sure to get the books you told me about. Don’t forget. Tomorrow.” I stood up hastily with my face bright red. I promised that I’ll be here.