The Nerd

[Fizzter43]

<<filled by Kathos>>

OOC:

Billy was a shy university student, what would expect, he was in every sense of the word a nerd. While he did enjoy watching sporting events, he was never an athlete, his creative ability at least when it comes to painting and music was so bad it scared bears away. To most people he was a nobody, someone that you talk to only if you need help, and the rest of the time you ignore. He had some friends, mostly just Computer Science Majors like him, but that was it or was it.

Unknown to him, he did have someone that liked him, and wanted to get to know him, but she was as shy as him. She said hi to Billy a few times, but that was just in passing. Would she ever get the courage to talk to him for a period of time, and get to know him, or will Billy see her, and summon up the courage to talk to her, who knows.

Billy
19
170 pounds
6’
Brown Hair
Blue Eyes

 

[Kathos]

Tatum

Tatum had skipped a few grades, had just turned 18 as a sophomore in college. Being younger than most everyone had made her always feel a bit awkward, even though she was always smart enough to handle the school work, her classmates intimidated her. It didn't help that she was soft spoken and petite, a delicately built blond with rich green eyes.

She had never dated much, her parents being gennerally restrictive in addition to her shy nature. But now she had begun to notice someone in her math class, Billy. He was smart, but not arrogant or loud about it. She had been trying to talk to him for weeks, but would get interupted and lose her nerve after not much more than a greeting.

Today, she'd promised herself, today she woul talk to him. As class wasletting out she caught up with him and touched his arm to get his attention. "Hi...Billy, right? I um... I wondered if...you could help me with this homework set? I'm beginning to get a little lost." She was a terrible liar, her face always turned red, but it was better than nothing. She hoped.

 

[Fizzter43]

Billy looked at her and smiled. "Sure Tatum, I can try at least, Dr. Peterson doesn't exactly like giving us the easy assignments." He said looking at her. ""Umm, I have a class now, maybe the library in 2 hours." He said looking at her, noticing her bright red face. "Unless you want to go somewhere else?" He said smiling at her.

 

[Kathos]

Tatum

She took a slow breath, trying to calm down. "The library is okay, this is my last class so i was just going to go home, but I don't live far, I could come back."

Somewhere else? Like... her place? She was so bad at this.

 

[Fizzter43]

Billy nodded, and thought for a second. "Actully my next class, is Sociology, an easy A for me. I could help you now, saves you from having to go all the way home, and come back. We have the library, a different building, or anywhere else you want." He said looking at her, as they walked outside. "The library is abit quite for my tastes, although if you like working there we can."

 

[Kathos]

She smiled. "That's really sweet of you. You find it hard to study when its quiet too? I always have my music, I need it."

She considered their options...she hadn't thought it would get this far, hadn't thought this far ahead. "Um... maybe the little coffee shop on fifth? it has good music and the tables are big enough to work?"

She fell into step next to him, trying to keep up with his longer strides, and feeling embarassed when he slowed so she wouldn't have to rush as much.

 

[Fizzter43]

"Alright Tatum." He said as they walked towards the coffee shop. Billy knew Tatum was an excellent student, top of her class always, and she needed help in Math, something she could do with her eyes closed? Billy knew something wasn't right with this, but he didn't say anything, maybe she really did need help, but it didn't really matter to him, someone wanted to talk to him, and that was good enough for him, since she was one of the few females in Computer Science.

 

[Kathos]

She walked with him through the crowds on the sidewalks until they were a bit off campus and the people thinned out.

"So...what do you do...besides this I mean? I know it doesn't leave a lot of time, but there's enough."

She was so nervous, glancing at him, trying to read his body language.

 

[Fizzter43]

"I don't really do much, play games occansionaly, if I have time on the weekend I watch the sports teams, but most of the time I'm doing work, or reading, I just finished The HitchHikers Guide to the Galaxy, for the 5th time I think." He said looking at her. "What about you"

 

[Kathos]

She smiled softly. "Douglas Adams is a friend of mine, but I usually stick to the classics, Shakespere, Niven, Clark." She bit her lip, slightly embarassed. "And Ido some arts and crafts-y stuff. Nothing big. I never really understood sports...the scoring in football confuses me."

 

[Fizzter43]

He smiled at her. "Ahh, Shakespear, Macbeth and Romeo and Juilet, I enjoyed what I read in High School, never looked at anything else by him though." He said as he opened the door to the coffee shop for her. "What sort of things do you make?"

 

[Kathos]

"It's dorky. I knit. I used to make quilts at home, but I need to save up to buy my own sewing machine here. But like sweaters and scarves and stuff." She blushed, he couldn't possibly want to know about this. She hid he embarassment behind ordering tea and finding a table, shuffling with her papers and trying to remember what she'd asked him here for.

Oh, yeah, Dr. Peterson's assignment. Right. Focus. And then a passerby bumped her, pressing her very close to him for a moment and her hope for focus left. She backed off whn she could, taking the seat across from him at the table.

"Um...sorry...about that."

 

[Fizzter43]

"It's alright, Tatum, busy coffee shop, it happens." He said smiling, liking the feeling of her body against his, for that brief moment. "So what is your problem with the assignment, some tricky question, or just a problem understanding the concepts we need to know. Although I do have to admit, I'm surprised you are asking me, you're the smartest one in the class, in the whole department as well."

 

[Kathos]

She blushed...caught. But something insider her smiled a bit, he thought she was smart...he noticed her.

"No, not really. There's lots of really smart people. Like you." She tried to deal with the compliment, her voice soft.

She swallowed and played with the homework set. "There's a couple I can't seem to get the trick to, there has to be an easier way, and I'm not seeing it... which means there's some concept I'm missing, I think." She could feel her face heat like it always did when she lied... it was't precisely a lie. This set had some hard ones, but like most everything else, she usually worked things out on her own.

She sighed. "I just...kind of wanted to talk to you. You seem really nice."

And I seem really lame, she added mentally.

 

[Fizzter43]

Billy smiled at her not sure how to respond. "Its nice to hear that, most people don't even take the time to notice me, let alone want to talk to me." He smiled at her, as he looked over the problems she showed him. "Ahh, those problems, they can be simplified real easy by using that concept we were shown on the first day of class, took me awhile to figure that out as well." He smiled at her. "Care for a coffee, since we are here?"

 

[Kathos]

She nodded. "Sure... that would be nice... I drink tea though. coffee always tastes so bitter."

"And just because you're not obnoxious doesn't mean no one notices you." She studied his face carefully, smiling at him.

 

[Fizzter43]

Billy ordered a coffee for him, and tea for Tatum. "I know Tatum, but you know being shy makes it kind of hard to meet people anyway, that whole lack the self-confidence to talk to someone else, especially a member of the opposite sex, because you think it will blow up in your face."

 

[Kathos]

She accepted her cup from him, sipping it carefully.

"Have I blown up yet? Or don't I count?"

 

[Fizzter43]

He laughed. "No, haven't blown up yet, not even close." He said smiling at her. "But you know what I mean don't you, Tatum, it must of been awfully tough for you to start here younger then everyone else, and everybody knows us Computer Science Majors aren't exactly the most outgoing in the first place."

 

[Kathos]

She smiled, ducking her head to sip her tea, almost hiding behind the cup for a moment.

"Yeah, I know. I guess...I don't know...everyone keeps saying college is different than high school, but it hasn't been for me really. Not school wise. Getting away from my parents couldn't come soon enough but..." Her voice trailed off, her eyes not meeting his "I've never been a social butterfuly, being younger and smarter than everyone at my old school... I never got used to having a lot of friends."

Her eyes lifted to meet his, gentle and vulnerable, but a tiny smile brightened her face. "But then, not many of them were really worth being friends with."

 

[Fizzter43]

"I know what you mean Tatum, all those idiots who just don't care, and all those jerks who are mean to you." He looked at her. "Unfourantely that is life, and what we have to deal with, and for us socially challenged, its greater still, because we don't normally stand up for ourselves, or when we want something, we usually refuse to act on our desire." He said taking a sip of his coffee. "I just look at this way though, those idiots and jerks, won't have nearly a fulfilling life as I will have in the end."

 

[Kathos]

"And what do you desire, that you should stand up for?" She asked almost playfully. "What will fulfill your life?"

 

[Fizzter43]

"You know the idiots, always butting in line, or stealing your place, or telling you to back away from something, or someone, because they think they own it." He thought for a moment. "I know sometime in the future, I hopefully wil be married, have kids and a good job, while most of the idiots will be stuck in fast food jobs." He said looking at her. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to rant."

 

[Kathos]

"Its alright." She smiled. "I wanted to know what you thought."
She sipped her tea, watching him.
"I just never knew much about you, other than you were smart, and not a jerk." And cute. Don't forget cute. "Its good to learn that something can get you passionate."

 

[Fizzter43]

He took a drink of his coffee smiling at her. "So what about you, what gets you passionate." He said smiling at her. "Or is that a topic left for a different date, or a less crowded setting." He said seeing everyone that was in he shop.