100 Good Deeds
Chapter Three - Meeting Ben
The next day, as I walked into class, Mr. Martin pulled me aside.
"Good morning, Blair," he said in a cheery voice.
"Hey," I said, monotone. I had stayed at the mall late last night watching a comedy show on a sixty inch television at the electronic store after Sonya, Terri and James left. I was tired and not in the best of moods that morning.
"Remember on the first day of school I told you that you reminded me of Ben?" he asked.
I searched the minimum space my brain had of that day.
"Well," Mr. Martin said. "I told him about you and he wants to meet you."
"Okay," I said, equally monotone. Who was this mysterious Ben? And why did he want to meet me? How did he even know me?
Mr. Martin dragged me to the door, and gave me a slight push into the hallway. "Ben is in the student council office. He'll be waiting for you there." Mr. Martin waved me off as I started to walk down the hallway. "Don't worry about missing class, just meet him!"
Instead of finding Ben, I walked into the library, and took a little nap on the couch in the reading section.
I slowly opened my eyes when I felt a sharp poke on my left cheek. When I finally opened them I saw a freakishly tall boy standing in front of me. He had bright red hair and freckles all over his face. He grinned, revealing a mischievous smile.
I didn't know who he was, but I liked him already.
"Are you by any chance Blair Tylers?" He asked.
I raised my arms and stretched as I got up from the warm couch. "Yeah," I said. I eyed him suspiciously. "And I'm guessing you're Ben?"
"The one and only," he said.
"So, why did you want to meet me?"
He smiled again pointed to the library entrance. "Follow me."
I sat down on a couch in the student council office and grinned. It was a really nice place. The walls were covered in abstract paintings and the lime green couch was even comfier than the one in the library.
Ben walked over to a translucent desk and opened up a laptop.
"So student council's got power, huh?" I asked.
He sat down in his desk chair and spun it around in circles on it a couple of times. "We don't like to brag."
I ran to another desk chair and did the same. I laughed as he came over and spun me even faster.
"Alright," he said as he stopped the chair and I fell on the floor laughing. "We have business to take care of."
I finally stopped my fit of laughter and sighed happily. "And what may you be talking about?"
He smiled. "I checked your records from elementary school. You're a very creative student."
I shrugged. "I don't like to brag."
"Nice," he said. He rested his elbows on his knees and looked down at me, still sitting on the floor. "I'm the event planner for student council, and I wanted you to be my partner."
After a long questions and answers session over first period, I finally understood the entire story as I walked out of the student council office.
Ben was in grade eleven, and had been on student council since freshman year. Over the summer his partner moved to Alaska, literally, and he needed a new partner. He searched for a partner and couldn't find anyone suitable. Apparently he needed a partner with a creative, but random, mindset. Mr. Martin told Ben about me, and that's when he checked my files and was convinced that I'd be perfect for the job.
The job sounded fun, but also like a lot of extra work.
I found Sonya and Terri at their lockers and ran over to them.
"Where did Mr. Martin send you?" Sonya asked.
"To meet Ben," I said. "But never mind that. Would it be a good deed to join..." I thought back to what Ben had told me, 'Don't tell anyone we want you on student council until they absolutely have to know. There are a lot of preppy freshman kids who want that on their résumés, and they might start a riot if they found out a kid like you got on student council.'
I stuttered, trying to find the right word. "A club?" I said. I didn't want the kids around us hearing I was joining student council. "Yeah, would it be a good deed to join a club if they really needed you?"
Sonya shrugged. "I guess," she said, opening her locker and taking out her grade nine science textbook. "But who would ask you?"
"Ben did."
Sonya and Terri looked at me.
"Ben asked you to join his club?" Terri asked.
"And he really needs you to join?" Sonya asked.
I nodded. Why was it big deal? "Alright so at lunch you two will witness me accepting the invitation to join this club, and I'll have my second good deed complete."
During lunch I brought Sonya and Terri to the student council office. They starred in awe of the awesome office. I was surprised to see many more members of student council hanging around during their lunch break.
We made our way to Ben's desk and he frowned when he saw Sonya and Terri behind me.
"Glad to see you made it, Blair," he said. "But we like to keep the student council room strictly for members."
"Fine," I said. "But they need to witness me becoming a member."
"Why?" He nervously watched the other members give Sonya and Terri odd looks.
"Because I need to do one hundred good deeds by the end of this year, or my manga collection will meet its doom," I said. I pointed at them. "And they need to witness my good deeds."
"So," he said. "Joining the council is a good deed?" He didn't seem angry, just confused.
"Well apparently you need me, and I'm not fond of extra work, so yes," I said. "This is a very good deed." I reached across the desk and grabbed Ben's ruler. I stuck it in his hand and kneeled before him. "Now dub me a member of the council."
He grinned and called the other member to his desk, then gave me a formal dubbing, complete dramatic hand gestures and the other members clapping at the end.
After Sonya and Terri left to eat lunch, Ben introduced me to some of the other members of the student council. Everyone was older than me, but they said another freshman would become a member in a few weeks, after grade nine representative elections.
"So," Ben said. He was sitting on the chair while I sat on his desk. "President says we need to come up with a fun event to get everyone in the school to 'bring down the barriers'."
I frowned.
Ben sighed, "Last year we had a sports day the second week of school."
I nodded. "So the President wants us to create an event that will bring everyone together in the beginning of the year?"
"Yeah," he said. "But they never work. Half the school never takes it seriously."
I closed my eyes. My first task at being part of the student council, I thought. The student council President was counting on me. Well, not like I actually cared, I hadn't even met the person, but I really did want to break down those barriers between the different cliques and grades. Ben and I got along just fine, and Terri was my best friend, so why couldn't the rest of the school do so?
I looked around the office searching for ideas, when a pillow flew across the room. Thomas, grade ten representative, had thrown the pillow at Selena, student council treasurer, and was currently laughing his head off while Selena recovered from shock.
I turned my head and grinned at the depressed Ben. "How about a pillow fight?"
