Post by RAM on May 15, 2024 2:38:06 GMT
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October 21, 2019 - 12:30 PM
Inside the cafeteria, Watauga High School...
A week has passed since a young R.A. Marshall served an afternoon's worth of detention in the school's computer lab. Now, he finds himself carrying a white tray full of the usual cafeteria fare as he walks around the large lunchroom, brushing past the laughs and shouts coming from other students during the lunch period. He wanted to find a place where he could sit alone and collect his thoughts, where he could think of nothing else except trying to shake free from his abusive uncle's demonic spirit that festered inside his mind.
That was, until he spotted a familiar face sitting at the back table by herself, with nobody else around her.
It was none other than Rydia Palmer, the computer prodigy he had met in detnetion the previous week.
At first, Marshall didn't know what to think. Here he was, staring at a curly-blonde, 14-year-old freshman that once crashed the school district's entire mainframe. Yet behind her love for coding and programming was a very cheerful persona, a person who wasn't afraid to tell it like it is. He slowly walked towards her, trembling from head to toe as he placed his try on the round table and sat across from her.
"Hey..."
Robert cleared his throat.
"Thanks for helpin' me out in the lab durin' detention last week, but..."
He then took a deep breath, perhaps ashamed of the scene he caused in the computer lab.
"You didn't need to see...ya know, what I was dealin' with..."
Rydia, munching from a small bag of Doritos, closed her eyes and reflected upon what she had seen that day -- including Robert's scars.
"It's not your fault. You were abused daily, told that whatever you found solace in wasn't gonna be good enough."
She paused.
"At least...if there's any consolation, you can take pride in the fact that your aunt is proving your bastard of an uncle wrong through her work -- and who knows? She just might pass down her talent to you someday."
The spikey-headed sophomore scoffed at the notion.
"Heh, someday bein' the key word. I'm just..."
Yet he paused, trying to come up with the right words to say.
"...I'm just..."
All he could draw, however, was a complete blank. Rydia smiled warmly before chiming in.
"You're afraid to ask her, right?"
Robert nodded.
"Yeah."
She nodded her head before taking a sip from a bottle of Brisk iced lemon tea.
"As my dad used to say, things take time. Don't rush yourself into doing something you don't want to do."
Rydia cleared her throat and seized the opportunity to officially break the ice.
"I'm Rydia. What's your name...?"
"Robert."
"Robert what?! Robert De Niro?!"
Rydia batted her eyelashes. Robert appeared embarrassed.
"Robert Allen Marshall."
Rydia's smile grew wider by the second, and she developed a distinctive chuckle reminiscent of those with a Brooklyn accent.
"What're you giggin' about now...?!"
"RAM."
Marshall raised his right brow.
"Say what?!"
"Your initials, R.A.M. Random Access Memory. You'll need 32 gigs of it if you want to beefcake your machine and play the best games at the highest specs."
Rydia gave a double thumbs up before collecting her tray.
"HA! That's it! I just found you a new nickname -- RAM!!"
Robert facepalmed at the idea.
"You gotta be shittin' me..."
"That's what I'm gonna call you from this moment onward -- and you're gonna have to learn how to COPE with it!"
Rydia stood up and gently poked Robert in the ribs with her right index finger. Robert sighed as he slumped in his chair and started diving into the mystery meat of the day, pondering what crazy ideas this gal could conjure up.
Yet somehow, he was beginning to like Rydia.
The nickname of RAM would stick with him -- from that day onward.
To be continued...
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October 21, 2019 - 12:30 PM
Inside the cafeteria, Watauga High School...
A week has passed since a young R.A. Marshall served an afternoon's worth of detention in the school's computer lab. Now, he finds himself carrying a white tray full of the usual cafeteria fare as he walks around the large lunchroom, brushing past the laughs and shouts coming from other students during the lunch period. He wanted to find a place where he could sit alone and collect his thoughts, where he could think of nothing else except trying to shake free from his abusive uncle's demonic spirit that festered inside his mind.
That was, until he spotted a familiar face sitting at the back table by herself, with nobody else around her.
It was none other than Rydia Palmer, the computer prodigy he had met in detnetion the previous week.
At first, Marshall didn't know what to think. Here he was, staring at a curly-blonde, 14-year-old freshman that once crashed the school district's entire mainframe. Yet behind her love for coding and programming was a very cheerful persona, a person who wasn't afraid to tell it like it is. He slowly walked towards her, trembling from head to toe as he placed his try on the round table and sat across from her.
"Hey..."
Robert cleared his throat.
"Thanks for helpin' me out in the lab durin' detention last week, but..."
He then took a deep breath, perhaps ashamed of the scene he caused in the computer lab.
"You didn't need to see...ya know, what I was dealin' with..."
Rydia, munching from a small bag of Doritos, closed her eyes and reflected upon what she had seen that day -- including Robert's scars.
"It's not your fault. You were abused daily, told that whatever you found solace in wasn't gonna be good enough."
She paused.
"At least...if there's any consolation, you can take pride in the fact that your aunt is proving your bastard of an uncle wrong through her work -- and who knows? She just might pass down her talent to you someday."
The spikey-headed sophomore scoffed at the notion.
"Heh, someday bein' the key word. I'm just..."
Yet he paused, trying to come up with the right words to say.
"...I'm just..."
All he could draw, however, was a complete blank. Rydia smiled warmly before chiming in.
"You're afraid to ask her, right?"
Robert nodded.
"Yeah."
She nodded her head before taking a sip from a bottle of Brisk iced lemon tea.
"As my dad used to say, things take time. Don't rush yourself into doing something you don't want to do."
Rydia cleared her throat and seized the opportunity to officially break the ice.
"I'm Rydia. What's your name...?"
"Robert."
"Robert what?! Robert De Niro?!"
Rydia batted her eyelashes. Robert appeared embarrassed.
"Robert Allen Marshall."
Rydia's smile grew wider by the second, and she developed a distinctive chuckle reminiscent of those with a Brooklyn accent.
"What're you giggin' about now...?!"
"RAM."
Marshall raised his right brow.
"Say what?!"
"Your initials, R.A.M. Random Access Memory. You'll need 32 gigs of it if you want to beefcake your machine and play the best games at the highest specs."
Rydia gave a double thumbs up before collecting her tray.
"HA! That's it! I just found you a new nickname -- RAM!!"
Robert facepalmed at the idea.
"You gotta be shittin' me..."
"That's what I'm gonna call you from this moment onward -- and you're gonna have to learn how to COPE with it!"
Rydia stood up and gently poked Robert in the ribs with her right index finger. Robert sighed as he slumped in his chair and started diving into the mystery meat of the day, pondering what crazy ideas this gal could conjure up.
Yet somehow, he was beginning to like Rydia.
The nickname of RAM would stick with him -- from that day onward.
To be continued...
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Well howdy there pardner.