Murphy groans as he reaches over with his hand to switch the alarm clock off. He might like going to school but hates waking up so early for that. It is really necessary though. There is simply no other choice for him. The school is a bit far from his house and he has to leave early if he wants to get there in time. He quickly gets into the shower stall and showers as quickly as he could. Then Murphy brushes his teeth. The boy also looks for something to wear to school while he does so. Despite being able to afford it, he isn't picky about what he wears.
Once done, he quickly puts his clothes on. Then he checks to see if he's packed everything properly. Satisfied that he has, he goes into the living room where his parents are waiting for him. His dad is sitting at the table while his mom is in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. Like usual, Murphy's father is reading the morning newspaper. Murphy believes he's got his nerdy side from his dad but the truth is he would have ended up as a dork on his own anyway. His dad also being one is merely a coincidence and not a cause or anything like that.
"Hey, honey," his mom says to him as she places a plate of waffles down at the table. "How's school lately? Did you make any new friends?" He sighs to himself. Not this conversation again! "I know that transferring schools in your senior year can be very rough but you can still try to find someone to hang out with. No need to be alone all the time, you know? Just think about it." It is one of the very rare occasions when Murphy thinks that his mom is boring. Extremely rare. Most of the time she is charismatic and interesting to talk to, especially when she is bragging about how she bagged his dad.
"Mom, thank you for worrying about me, but I'm fine. You have nothing to worry about," Murphy tells her. "I can be on my own. I don't need friends or anything like that." He then starts to eat the waffles, not wanting to talk to her about his high school life anymore. He loves her but can't stand it when she tells him he needs to get out there and meet some new people and make some friends, when he would rather be reading something at home, in his warm little bedroom. That's just who he is.
His father then says "I think your mom is right on this though," making his eyes go wide in surprise. Murphy can't believe his dad would say that he needs to get out more. The middle aged man is as much of an introvert as he is and he too didn't have any friends back in high school. "I missed a lot of chances to make friends when I was your age. Don't make the same mistakes as I did. It would be good for you to have some friends you can still hang out with after it is all over."
Murphy sighs. "Thanks, but it won't be good for me, because I like it better when I'm alone," he tells both of them. "I don't need other people in my life. I just want to read and do my homework and watch TV. That's all. Having some friends is only going to be a waste of my time. A girlfriend is a completely different subject though. That I won't mind having one, but it would be a long time before I can get any." And then he is back to eating the waffles again. He is eating quickly now, wanting to get to school ahead of time.
"Every introvert says then before they meet someone," his mother says. "Take your dad, for example. He was a total geek just like you. I mean, he still is a geek, but you get my point." His father flushes slightly and Murphy snickers. "I dropped several hints but he didn't think that a cheerleader like me could want him and failed to pick them up. That's why I ended up slipping a drug into his orange juice and taking him to the closet where I deflowered him. It was the perfect first date," she says to her son with a smile, recalling that wonderful, distant memory.
Sometimes Murphy would let himself wonder if his mom is a little insane or something to brag about raping his dad but he never asked her that. "That does sound very romantic," the sardonic boy says with a roll of his eyes. "But I'm not going to drug anyone like you drugged dad though. The idea of it just doesn't appeal to me." He then quickly eats the rest of his waffles and waits for his mom and dad to do the same, so that he could wash the dishes before his mom drives him to school. She always takes him there on her way to work.
"Just remember what I said. Try not to be alone all of the time," she says to him as he leaves the car and walks up to the school building. Murphy has told her countless times that he would try his best, and always did. It just never worked. A few girls thought he is cute but don't want to have any meaningful, long term relationship with him. He is just a loser they want to fuck once and then throw away, like a used Kleenex. That's what they said to him. Murphy wants to save himself for someone who sees him as more than that.
He gets to the library and sits down by himself. There, he pulls an old novel out from his backpack and then starts to read. It is a very interesting one, one that he's reread several times already. Murphy just can't stop coming back to it. He peruses through the pages and hums to himself, feeling content with the peace and quiet of the library. He's only been here a week but it is already his favorite place in the school and the second place doesn't even come close in his mind. Not by a long shot. There is nowhere else he would rather spend time before classes start.
Suddenly, someone else sits down on the chair opposite him. "Hey, cutie," the person says, making him look up in surprise. No girl has ever called him a cutie before. Even the very few ones who wanted to just hook up made it clear that he is below them. He is even more surprised to see how beautiful the girl who just called him cute is. She is a very pretty black haired girl named Rachel. Rachel is on the track and field team, and the school's second fastest female sprinter, with a personal record of 13.94 seconds for the 100m sprint.
"H H Hi!" he stammers out, still feeling shaken by the beautiful girl who is now coyly batting her eyelashes at him. He couldn't believe this. Murphy has been objectified before a few times but this is the first time someone has ever looked at him this way. "Your name is Rachel, right?" She nods. "I'm Murphy. I just transferred here last week, so I haven't gotten to talk with a lot of people yet. Would you mind showing me around?" Murphy curses his trembling voice for making him sound like an idiot in front of the raven haired beauty.