When I was in sixth grade, a gaming center opened in the suburbs. Someone had set up twelve computers so people could pay to play games with friends. It was a LAN party setup. A local area network (LAN) connects computers and devices within a limited area, like a building or campus. The devices are connected via a common communication line or a wireless connection to a server. I loved playing Call of Duty 2 multiplayer and especially enjoyed using a sniper rifle to take out my opponents. I was skilled at the game, usually ranking in the top 3 on my team. After our gaming session, we went to hang out by the river.
Lenny took out a pack of cigarettes and lit one. He offered us cigarettes, and we all took one. When I inhaled, I immediately coughed and decided I didn’t want to smoke anymore.
I developed a crush on a girl who was in seventh grade. She had developed early and had a beautiful face. She was popular and usually hung out with athletes her age. Everyone laughed when I told them I had feelings for her because they thought she was out of my league.
One day, our parents invited us to a family gathering at home. It was just my parents, my brother, my sister, and me. Then, our mother told us she was pregnant. We all rushed out of the room right away, thinking they were joking. At least, that was my reason for leaving. After we calmed down and came back, I started wondering why my mom decided to have another baby when there were already three of us.
The next day, I met Lenny and told him about my soon-to-be brother or sister, as well as the fact that we were going to move to Split.
Lenny got the number of the girl I had a crush on and told me to call her and ask her out. I typed the number into my phone, called her, and put it on speaker. When she answered, instead of saying “hello,” I awkwardly said “good day.” It was a strange way to start a conversation, and I ended up not asking her out. But that didn’t stop me from trying again.
The next day, I went to Lenny’s place, and there was a seventh-grader hanging out with Lenny’s older brother. That seventh-grader turned out to be my crush’s boyfriend. When we talked about how I was in love with her, he jokingly said he would “send a guy after me who would take care of me.” I found it funny and laughed, wondering why he couldn’t do it himself.
It was the last day of sixth grade, and after school, I went home to play Call of Duty. I was engrossed in the game, and when I met up with friends later that afternoon, they told me I’d missed something exciting. A bunch of kids from fifth through eighth grade had gone to the river to swim on that warm June day. They said that when my crush got wet, her breasts became visible. I was disappointed to have missed it, but I was also feeling down because I wouldn’t be going to school with them anymore, especially since they were moving on to the last two years of elementary school.
That summer, my family and I moved to Split into a newly built building in one of the city’s older neighborhoods. On the opening day, all the future residents gathered in the square between the buildings. A man and a woman gave speeches, and everyone clapped. We walked to the entrance of the building with large glass doors, windows, and an intercom system. It felt like high-tech luxury for someone from a small suburb like me. Everything was so clean and new. We took the elevator to the fifth floor and entered our apartment. It was empty, but it smelled good. Everything was brand new. We had a large balcony. A new shopping center had also been built nearby. I tried to look through the peephole in the door but accidentally broke the cover. It was advanced technology for someone from a small suburb like me. Over the next few weeks, we began furnishing our apartment. I discovered cable TV, and after everyone else went to bed, I would secretly watch Hustler TV. It showed hardcore pornography, with clear images of penetration. The breasts were also very visible. I lowered my pants, began masturbating, and quickly ejaculated.
I saved up $200 to buy a brand new Sony Ericsson V630.
I couldn’t watch porn videos on it because mobile web browsing wasn’t very advanced back then. I did find some sexually suggestive images, which I used to masturbate.
While my brother and sister made friends easily in our new building in Split, I struggled and became withdrawn and isolated. I missed my friends from the suburbs. We bought a PlayStation 2, and I played GTA Vice City Stories. I became immersed in the game again, though not as much as I had with GTA San Andreas. I discovered YouTube and watched videos of other people playing San Andreas, often with interesting modifications or performing stunts with bicycles and cars.
It was summertime, and I was spending it at home. My father became angry about this and forced me to go to Bačvice beach with my brother and sister. I hated the idea and pretended to leave the apartment, closing the door behind me, but actually staying inside. I hid under the bed while my siblings went out. Eventually, my father found out and got very upset. I became angrier than I had ever been and went to the kitchen. I grabbed a knife and, for a moment, considered using it on him, but I eventually put it down. No one ever saw me holding the knife. Afterward, they told me to go to the beach, so I left the apartment and ran into my siblings outside. I told them they could go without me, went back inside, and stayed home.
One evening, my siblings were playing outside, and my sister came to tell me that a girl my age wanted to meet me. I hesitated at first, but eventually, I went down to meet her. We exchanged a few words, but I felt down and disappointed, so I told her I was going home.
You could see my mom’s pregnant belly, and I was going to have a brother in just a few months, right as school was about to start.
School started in September, and I was 13 years old, about to begin seventh grade. On the first day of school, I was outside with my brother and sister. I felt really uncomfortable because I didn’t know anyone. My siblings went to hang out with kids their age, so I did the same. Eventually, I ended up talking to some eighth-grade students. I was nervous about meeting new people, and when I said something awkwardly, one of the kids remarked that I reminded him of another weird kid.
I went inside and met my new teacher, who was much older than my teacher from the suburbs. We walked into the classroom, and she introduced me to the others. Then, it was my turn to introduce myself, so I said I was from the suburbs and shared a bit about myself. I found out that one girl had left their class, and I had a big gap to fill. I was a clumsy kid when I tried to fit in with them. I had some funny songs on my phone, so I decided to send them to a classmate via Bluetooth. I didn’t know any better and was about to start spending time with the “nerds” in class. They weren’t nerds in the traditional sense, just a group of kids who studied hard and had good grades. That’s when I met Danny. Danny was part of a group of smart kids, but he seemed versatile and could fit in with different groups. During the break, a few of us stood in front of the school while the younger kids played, and we talked about my move from the suburbs.
I went home, and my dad suggested I try a new sport—rowing. I had entered puberty a few years ago and was starting to develop an impressive physique.I was 6’2″, with broad shoulders and narrow hips, which gave me a V-shaped appearance in the upper part of my body.I had well-developed leg muscles. My penis was 6.5 inches long with a 5.9 inch circumference. It was a grower, meaning it appeared smaller when flaccid and grew significantly larger when erect. A “shower” penis is larger even when flaccid and primarily just straightens when erect. I’ve always wished I had a shower.
On a sunny afternoon, my father took me to a rowing club in the western part of Split. I distinctly remember Roxy Music’s “Avalon” playing on the car radio. When we arrived, the same song was playing at a nearby bar. I was nervous about my new adventure in rowing. My coach introduced me to the world of the sport. Inside the hangar, there were consoles with rowboats stored upside down. In front of the hangar, a large plateau extended toward the sea, with a concrete pontoon where the boats were placed into the water. They showed me where we kept the paddles and sneakers, as well as the gym and the indoor “paddling simulator”—a setup with two pools divided by a fixed boat with paddles for training. I went to the locker room to get ready for my first session. Instead of rowing on the sea, I had to run and work out in the gym. After training, I went home feeling satisfied.
On September 11, my mom gave birth to my youngest brother, Henry. Now, I had two brothers and a sister. We were all happy to have a baby in the house. At school, I didn’t mention his birth to anyone. My teacher later told me she was surprised I hadn’t shared the news and only found out at the parents’ meeting. She brought it up in class, and while most students just reacted with an indifferent “okay,” only a few congratulated me.
A few days later, we had PE at a small stadium with an athletic track around it, located near my building. The class was for boys only. We practiced long jumps while the teacher evaluated us. I did a few jumps and landed in the sandbox. Some students were assigned to level the sand, but they were disinterested and lazy.
I made another long jump, but when I landed on a hard part of the sand, I heard a crackling sound in my right leg. As I tried to stand up, a sharp pain shot through me—I had broken my leg. Whether it was the frustration of it happening so early in the school year or the sheer pain, I couldn’t hold back my tears. PE came to a halt as everyone gathered around me. Embarrassed and sobbing, I felt all eyes on me.The teacher dismissed the other kids and called my father. When he arrived, he and the teacher helped me off the track, and we drove to the hospital. After a few scans, the doctors confirmed that I had broken a bone near my ankle. The injury required surgery, which made me nervous. They put a plaster cast around my foot and admitted me to the hospital.
My father visited me and brought me a new Adidas tracksuit from the mall near our building. While in the hospital, I met an older guy, and we spent time watching “Pimp My Ride” on MTV. I laughed as Xzibit installed all sorts of cool things on people’s cars, like plasma TVs in the trunk.
The day of the surgery arrived, and a nurse shaved the area around my injured leg. I lay in bed, wearing only a hospital gown, as they wheeled me into the operating room. The doctor administered anesthesia, and I drifted off. When I woke up, I had a metal screw in my ankle. A few days later, I was discharged to recover at home. I mostly stayed on the couch and had to use crutches to move around. My mom wondered why the rowing coach didn’t visit me, but I didn’t hold it against him.
I spent my days at home playing with Henry and on my PlayStation 2. I missed about a month or two of school. Later, I had another surgery to remove the metal screw from my leg, and they gave it to me as a keepsake. Danny visited me several times to explain what they were learning in school so I wouldn’t fall behind. I ended up forgetting about
his help, and he had to remind me to return his notes. I don’t know why I acted that way. To make it up to him, I took him to the local mall for a meal at McDonald’s.
One day, I was finally ready to return to school, though I arrived 15 minutes late. As I entered the classroom on crutches, carrying my bag, my classmates erupted into applause and cheers. It felt amazing.
Over the next few months, my leg fully healed, and I was prepared to take on the rest of 2008.
@Limbo 
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