Things I don't own:

1.Twilight

2.The Cubicle Next Door

3.A blog

The Locker Next Door: Chapter One

New Neighbor

All small towns are the same.

Everybody knows each other, and they're all completely nosey. There is no such thing as personal space. It's impossible to tell something to a person in confidence because you know they're going to tell the person they're closest to anyway. And you might as well have told the whole world once you do that. Because that person is almost certainly related to half the town population in some way or another.

And when a new student shows up in the middle of the first semester of school, the whole town knows it. Knows their name, why they moved, what their parents do for a living, how many siblings they have, and would they like a welcome basket complete with muffins and assorted fruit. It's a wonder none of them die of suffocation their first week here.

By now you've already guessed it: there's a new kid in town. Let's call him Norman. His locker is on the same wall as mine. In fact, we're only separated by a few of those tiny, inconsequential metal boxes. He's my science partner. And I can't stand him already. Norman is totally arrogant. He's so full of himself. He's a complete jerk. I tried to be nice to him. I tried to like him. I introduced myself, and told him that if he ever needed anything I'd be glad to help. I welcomed him to the community. And he totally blew me off. Refused to shake my hand. Looked at it like it was some kind of freak science experiment gone horribly wrong. Ignored me. I can forgive him that, on his first day. He's adjusting. Okay.

But does that excuse snubbing me every other time I try to talk to him? I don't smell bad. Quite the opposite. I'm not bugging him every second of the day. (His fan club does that. Have I mentioned how good looking he is?) I only see him at lunch and in science class. But he sits with his siblings at lunch. (They are equally good-looking, and that is the extent of my comments on them. We don't have any classes together. For all I know they could be exactly the same. Or completely different.) So I only ever attempt conversation with him in class. He's my science partner—we have to communicate. We have to get along. Only, he doesn't seem to want to do that. Jerk.

I can't even vent about how aggravating he is to my friends because they adore him. His eyes, his hair, his physique. How he's all dark, and mysterious, and brooding. And they want to make him feel welcome. There's no way I can say anything negative…out loud.

I hate small towns.

Posted by iRead-iWrite-iConquer September 23 at 11:48 PM

Comments

Small towns are so boring. I totally agree.

Posted by RedneckPrincess September 24 at 12:52 AM

So you've resorted to venting online? Welcome to the Blogosphere. Enjoy some bacon.

Posted by Kodak September 24 at 5:09 PM

Read and Review, please. Flames are welcome!

So this story was inspired by the book The Cubicle Next Door, by Siri L. Mitchell. It's very entertaining, and a great read. I highly recommend it.

I plan on telling this story entirely through blog posts, reader comments, forums, and instant messages. If reading that sort of stuff bothers you, then you won't like this story. I am also aware that there are several IM fan fictions out there already. I don't know what to tell you (yes, you, the little reviewer who is itching to slam me for using such a clichéd format) except that this one's different. At any rate, I happen to be quite fond of it, and I think I'm going to have a lot of fun writing it.

Which brings me to my last bullet: I also think it would be fun to involve the readers in the evolution of this story. If you have a blog title or a reader comment or a username you'd like to contribute, I'd love to hear it. I'll incorporate my favorites, and give you credit RIGHT HERE in my author's notes. (Maybe not…perhaps UP THERE would be a more suitable location. Hmm…)

Chapter Two coming soon to a story near you!