This is a story attempt to the prompt "everyone tasks risks, tell a time in which you did and what happened". Though this author does not have a disqus account, she would love feedback. Any and all feedback, good or bad will be taken into consideration. Thank you for your time and respect to this author.

Readers!

Be unique, be different, be yourself! Being different isn't always a bad thing. I'd rather be bright and pink then to be gray and dull. Don't walk in the same black and white life as the world does! Walk a new way, a crazy way, a pretty way, YOUR WAY! Your perfect just how God made you,

Love- Daydreamer 

No one likes to be the odd one out. The one who’s always marching the opposite direction, Or wearing white instead of black. It makes a person feel weird, as if there is no place for them to belong. I was that girl, the odd one out. I felt that there was no place for me to belong. I was the smart one that people convinced to let them cheat off of. I was the one who never stood up for myself and got pushed around. By the time I got to ninth grade I got sick of being the ‘nerd’ or as some might call ‘the odd one out’. So I did what kings, queens, and teens have always done; if you can’t beat them, join them.

I took a risk, a big one at that. I was going to throw away my good girl self and fit in. I was going to march and dress as the others did. I was going to fit in. It started first with my clothing. I submitted to the current trends of tank tops and skinny jeans, splashed with designer purses and earrings. I painted my lips with gloss, and my hair with sparkles. I lost forty pounds and was as much of a skeleton as the other girls. After the summer when I entered into ninth, people were shocked the good girl went bad.

I followed like a copycat. I flirted with random boys and pretended to be hard to get. I even entered a four person click. We ensured we wore similar colors and styles. It was great for the first few months. I was actually one of them, the cool kids some might say. No one picked on me, and the ones that did got roasted by my group of friends. I bullied other girls, back talked the teachers, God only knows how much satin got his nasty fingers in me. Then I had to start making real decisions.

Though I had finally became ‘cool’ I still had never gotten a disciplinary slip, skipped class, or gotten any grade lower than a B. Then came the day I had to choose to follow or march my own way. I wanted to stay cool, and be liked by the cool kids; I formed a weakness to peer pressure. I had managed to deny and keep myself from serious decisions like drugs and boys, but when it came to the little things….

“Ohh! She’s scared!” Taunted Lexi, a rather pretty blond with highlights in her hair. “No I’m not; I just have a lot of work to do.” I replied. I was lying of course, I never fell behind. “She’s a wimp, thought you changed. Come on guys.” My crush replied. I felt my heart drop, of all people why did he have to be the one to say that? “No! I have, I’m not a nerd anymore.” He looked at me with a grin and motioned me to follow with his hand, “then prove it cutie.” So I did what I shouldn’t have, I shut my book and packed my bag following the group. It was my first time ditching class. It felt awful.

I followed the group to the basement where there was a rather odd hole in the wall. It led to a cellar room of sorts. We all helped each other in and sat in there. I had done plenty of stupid stuff before, like pouring milk on the misfit kid, or hiding the class nerd’s back pack, even talking back to a teacher making the whole class laugh at him in response. But never had I ditched class, for some odd reason it felt awful. My heart was threatening a panic attack, that’s how bad I felt.

“Guys we should go back.” I said quietly. They all looked at me and laughed. “Once a lame o always a lame o, huh girly?” my crush said. I blushed, I’m sure no one saw it, it was rather dark in there. “No, I just have a bad feeling about this.” He rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone. Then we all heard the basement door open. It squeaked loudly. The red head cursed and ushered us further back into the cellar.

The janitor was about to walk past when Liz (Lexi’s sister) dropped her pen. “Whose there?” he asked, searching his belt for the object that would revile us. No one answered. He crawled in with some effort and shinned his light. We all stood like deer caught in head lights. With authority he forced us out and brought us to the office.

I suppose everyone somehow agreed mentally they would blame it all on me. Lexi started by telling the principal, “She kept trying to get us to come while I suggested we stayed in class.” Her sister butted in “yeah, we all finally agreed because she kept pushing us, calling us names and such. Once I saw everyone else was going, I agreed to.” My crush jumped in, “I tried to convince her to just stay in class, but she kept insisting.” I stared at him in disbelief. The last boy that was with us remained quiet. He was a gothic cool kid I suppose you could say. Always wore dark and never talked, just walked behind the cool kids.

“But it was all of your faults. So you will ALL serve detention, with a level two disciplinary slip. Your detention starts tomorrow, you are dismissed. Except for you!” He nodded towards me. I stayed with my head down. You could hear the group giggle as they left “Anything you want to say?” He asked. I shook my head with a “ no sir”

“Ann, you’re just going to let them push all that on you?” he crossed his fingers and leaned forward as he asked. He knew me well; I had been in the office plenty of times before, but never for negative reasons. Rather it was an award or helping someone out, the whole office knew me. Now they knew the monster I had become, and they all wondered what happened to the shy baggy shirt, lose jean girl.

I remained silent. “Mr. Stein?” A voice called from behind, I turned to see the gothic kid, he continued, “It wasn’t her. We pressured her into it.” With a smile the principle replied, “I know Arik. I assumed as much…..Ann.” I looked at the principle. “Look at where your….”friends” left you. Are they really friend then?” I shook my head, as he leaned forward even more he said quietly, “So why are either of you with them?” I looked at the principal and then Arik. He was referring to both of us. Arik responded, “because it feels good to be liked.” The principal sat back and thought a moment before saying, “by people who truly don’t like or care about you?” He shrugged, I kept my head down.

“Just you two think about that. I won’t give you disciplinary slips, but you will serve detention. Good day.” We both left the office. I was quiet as I walked, but I just had to ask “Why’d you come back?” With a soft smile he replied, “because they pressured me into it to. It wasn’t right for you to get all the blame.” We were about to go up the stairs but he pulled me to the side into a small broom closet. “What are you doing?” I hissed.

“We should make a promise.” He said, I rose an eyebrow in response. “We should promise from here on out to live for ourselves…you know, like not go with the flow of all those others out there.” I hesitated, but as I thought; the realization hit me. I didn’t mean a dam thing to the cool kids, I never would. My true friends had always been the nerds and ‘lame o’s’. Those were the ones that carried, that actually went out of their way for me. If you were faced with two roads, one led to death but was filled with flowers and the other led to life, but was lined with weeds, which would you chose?

I chose life, even though it was lined with weeds. I suddenly wrapped my arms around him, he surprisingly hugged me back. “We’re the odd one’s out! From now on.” I let go as I did I noticed he was smiling, “pinky promise?” he asked, holding out his pinky, I shook it. And that was the day I found that being different was and is a good thing. Sometimes marching to the same drum is what leads you to the pit.