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Jerkwad:I get it. Some of the guys can be that way at my school too. But I have a brain, I promise.
I rolled my eyes.Some of the guys. Like he wasn’t one of them.
He was either lying about himself to look good or completely delusional. I loved how he threw his friends under the bus though.
Me: And I should believe that, why?
Jerkwad:If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people.
I blinked at the text. Once. Twice. Until I was sure I was reading it correctly.
I knew that quote. It was Virginia Woolf and just so happened to be one my father quoted often.
Reluctantly, I typed back and hit send.
Me:Wow. Virginia Woolf. I’m impressed.
Jerkwad:I aim to please.
I snorted. Dork.
Jerkwad:So is it a deal?
I’d rather choke on my own spit than go to a dance with him. And though I had zero intentions of following through on the bet if I lost, I also had nothing to worry about. Because there was no way he’d change my mind.
Me:Fine. Deal.
Jerkwad:Let the games begin. So ask me something, anything.
Me:Okay. You say you’re not like all the other jocks at my school, or your school for that matter. If that’s true, thenwhat’s the most interesting thing about yourself?
Jerkwad:Honestly?
Me:Yes.
I laid there, practically giddy for his response, I was so sure it would be a doozy. Something simple and arrogant. I could see him texting back in reply,Everything,and leaving it at that.
I waited as the little gray dots appeared and disappeared as if he kept typing, then erasing his reply again, until a text finally came through.
Jerkwad:I don’t know, actually.MaybeI’m not so special, just a guy trying to get through high school.
My mouth parted and a wheezy breath escaped.
What? That was . . . not what I expected. He had to be kidding.
Me:Really? You’re just another guy?
Then, trying to goad him into a more expected response, I added,I heard all the girls at your school are practically in love with you.
Jerkwad:All they like is my face and the fact that I’m captain of thewater poloteam. But none of them really know me.
Me:So who really is Topher Elliot, then?
Jerkwad: Do any of us really know who we are at our age? Aren’t we all kind of figuring it out as we go?
I shook my head.
Me:No. I know who I am.
