The Losers Club: Introductory Year

Zack embarks on a new day at Dalton Academy, where he encounters a diverse group of classmates who will play pivotal roles in his journey. The story opens with Zack in the car with his father, Bob Angelo Cooper, on their way to school. As they arrive, Bob says: Bob: "Son, we're here." Zack gazes out the window, lost in thought. Bob: "Hey, son." Bob snaps his fingers, taking Zack's attention back. Zack: "Huh? What?" Bob: "We're here now, and here's your lunch." Zack: "Thanks, Dad." Bob: "Anyway, have a nice day, son." Zack opens the car door and steps out as his dad drives away. Passing through the school gate, Zack observes the students bustling around, being goofy and noisy. Zack: "Here we go again. Another goofy day." Zack lets out a sigh and starts walking through the school grounds. As he walks, the song "Stay Home" by Self begins to play. Amid the chaotic atmosphere, he notices students playfully roughhousing or embracing like animals. In the midst of this, Benjamin Rodriguez, a nerdy teenager, is being bullied by Connor Pretston, who snatches his lunch money. Connor: "Give me your food!" Benjamin fearfully hands over his food, and Connor delivers a threat. Connor: "Remember, every Monday to Friday, you give up your lunch. If you don't, you get this." Connor raises a fist threateningly. Connor: "You're gonna get this, OK?" Connor slaps Benjamin's face twice. Benjamin: "OK... OK." Connor: "Good. Now get out of here." Benjamin flees, and Connor's laughter echoes. As Connor continues walking, he eyes Zack as if sizing him up. While making his way to his classroom, Connor calls out Connor: "Hey!" Zack turns around. Zack: "What?" Connor: "You have a problem with me, man?" Zack: "Yeah, I see a boy who looks like a freak when he doesn't wear his polo shirt." Connor: (laughs) "You want me to punch you?" Zack: "OK, go ahead. Then everyone can see how much you punch anyone, like a pile of punching bag cake. My grandmother is a good cook. Why don't you do something for her, OK?" Laughter ripples through the students. Connor: "Shut up." Zack: "Here's a coupon. If you wanna go there, you wanna go there." The laughter continues as Zack heads to his classroom, finding his seat in a quiet and moody manner. Meanwhile, Emma Moore, a science and language genius student, arrives at the school. While walking, she bumps into her friend, Isabella Ford. Isabella: Hey, Em." Emma: "Oh hey, Isabella. What's up?" Isabella: "Great. I just saw the biggest One Direction concert." As Isabella playfully teases Emma while they walk, they accidentally run into Mrs. Annalise Wonderful, an English teacher and inspirational content creator. Emma: Oh, sorry about that. Mrs. Wonderful: Oh, it's alright. They exchange items they had inadvertently exchanged during the collision. Mrs. Wonderful: Well, thank you, by the way. Emma: Yes, I'm Emma, and this is Isabella. Mrs. Wonderful: I'm Mrs. Annalise Wonderful. They shake hands. Isabella: "Wait a minute, like Mrs. Annalise Wonderful, a member of the YouTube content called the Wonderful Squad?" Mrs. Wonderful chuckles. Isabella: "Oh my God! I've watched all of your videos! And there! There!" Emma: "They're so inspiring, Mrs. Wonderful." Mrs. Wonderful: "Thank you. You know, you should come by my house and make videos with me sometime." Isabella: "Really?" Mrs. Wonderful: "Yeah." Emma: "We would love to." Isabella: "Great, thank you again." Mrs. Wonderful: "No problem. Now, go to your class. You don't want to be late on your first day." Isabella: "OK, great. Thank you very much, Mrs. Wonderful." Mrs. Wonderful: "No problem. Now." Isabella: "Come on, Emma." Isabella and Emma rush into their classroom. And then, Mr. Anderson enters and introduces himself. Mr. Anderson: "Good morning, class. I'm Mr. James Anderson, your adviser and teacher for the 2015-16 school year. Why don't you come up here and introduce yourselves to me?" He points at Ben. Mr. Anderson: "Ben, come over here and introduce yourself." Connor begins to mock him. Connor: "Come on, Benny. Why don't you introduce yourself? (laughs)" Students: (laughs) Zack, Isabella, and Emma watched as Ben decided to step in front of the class and speak. Ben: "OK. Hello, guys. My name is Benjamin Rodriguez, and I'm 12 years old. I live with my single mom, and my father is a police officer." Mr. Anderson: "Wow! So your father is a police officer. That's a challenging job." Ben smiled and replied: Ben:"Thank you, sir." Mr. Anderson: "Alright, you can return to your seat. Anyone else? How about you? " Mr. Anderson pointed at Zack. Mr. Anderson: "What's your name, kid?" Zack stood up. Zack: "Zack. Zack Angelo Cooper, sir." Mr. Anderson: "Alright, Zack. Nice to meet you. Can you introduce yourself?" Zack: "Sure. My mother is a fashion designer, and my father is a Police Detective." Mr. Anderson: "Wow! So your father is a Police Detective. That's a tough job." Zack: "Yeah." Mr. Anderson: "Very well, take your seat. Anyone else want to introduce themselves?" Isabella raised her hand. Mr. Anderson: "Ah, yes. You." Isabella stood up. Isabella: "So, hi everyone. My name is Princess Isabella Ford, but you can call me Isabella or Princess. I live with my mother and father. My mother is a doctor, just like my Dad. They both own a hospital called RCMC, which stands for Raise Children Medical Center. It's a hospital for children aged 3 to 13. That's all, thank you." Students clapped. Mr. Anderson: "Alright, thank you, Ms. Ford. Who's next? Hmm?" One by one, other students introduced themselves. After the first period ended, the bell rang. Mr. Anderson: "Class, thank you for introducing yourselves. It's finally recess time. You may stand up." Students stood up. Mr. Anderson: "Goodbye." Students: "Goodbye and thank you, Mr. Anderson." Mr. Anderson: "Alright, enjoy your recess." During lunch at the canteen, every student was given a chicken breast, a whole grain roll, and a salad. Isabella and Emma discussed plans about making videos with the Wonderful Family. Isabella: "So when are we going to make a video with The Wonderful Family?" Emma: "I was thinking maybe on Saturday or Friday." Isabella: "Alright. Hey, we should make a video about life." Emma: (laughs) As Zack ate his lunch moodily and alone, Ben approached him. Ben: "May I sit with you?" Zack didn't respond but allowed him to sit. Ben: "OK, thank you. Is your name Zack?" Zack: "Mmm…" Ben: "Alright, my name is Benjamin Rodriguez, but you can call me Ben." Zack remained silent and ignored him. While Zack ate, Ben chatted. Connor and his friends arrived. Ben: "Yeah, I really like the chick—" Connor: "Well, well, well. What do we have here? Ben's got a new friend. (laughs)" Connor's friends laughed. Zack stood up. Zack: "What do you want? Want to be reminded about the punching bag? Fine. Here you g—" Connor: "I don't want your stupid punching bag. Mind your own business." Just as Connor was about to walk past Ben, Zack grabbed his arm.'' Zack: "Hey, I wasn't finished talking to you. I hate it when people walk away from me unfinished." Connor: "Oh, what are you going to do about it?" Zack pulled Connor's polo shirt and threatened him. Zack: "This fist is going to meet your face. Got it?" Zack let go, leaving Connor on the floor, and walked away. As Zack walked away, Ben approached him. Ben: "Wow, bro! That was really brave of you, man. I like your style. You know, we could hang out sometime. What do you say?" Zack: "Yeah, sure. Whatever." Ben: "Uh, hey. Can you please be my friend?" Zack: "Sure." Ben: "Wait, are you sure?" Zack: "Yeah. You might be annoying, but I heard you're getting bullied. Figured you could use some help." Ben: "OK, thanks." Connor stood up, and all the students looked at him. Connor: "What are you looking at, huh?" Angrily, Connor walked away. Emma and Isabella discussed it. Isabella: "Man, that Connor is such a jerk." Emma: "Yeah, he is." The school bell rings, and all the students return to their classrooms. Meanwhile, Emma and Isabella are in conversation while walking. Zack accidentally bumps into Emma, but he ignores her and keeps walking. Emma: "Hey!" Zack turns around. Emma: "Aren't you going to apologize?" Zack ignores her. Emma: "Huh? You're not going to answer my question?" Angrily, Emma steps towards him. Emma: "You know what? Just because you—" (grunts) Zack: "Just because what? That's what I thought. Girls acting like babies." Emma: "How dare you?" Emma is about to slap Zack, but the Principal arrives. Principal: "Is there a problem here?" Emma: "Oh, no, nothing. We were just having a conversation." Principal: "Hmm... well, alright then." The Principal leaves. After Zack walks away, Emma mutters to herself. Emma: "Mean! Rude person." Zack: "Whatever." Zack continues walking away. Emma: "What a mean and rude guy, right?" Isabella: "Yeah, well, don't mind him." Emma: "Yeah, it's not like he's going to be anyone's friend. I mean, just look at him." Isabella: "Mean and rude. But cute, right?" Emma: "Ugh! Whatever. Let's go before we get late." Emma and Isabella head to their classroom. Meanwhile, someone knocks on the door of Zack's house. Knocks. Zack's mother, Emily Cooper, answers the door. Emily: "Yes?" Mail carrier: "Package for Zack Angelo Cooper?" Emily: "Oh, well then. What is it?" Mail carrier: "I don't know, some kind of earphones?" Emily: "Oh, ok. Here's the money. I know my son has his own money in his room, but I don't know where he put it." Mail carrier: "Alright then, ma'am. Have a nice day." Emily: "Yeah, you too." Emily closes the door and examines the package. Emily: "Let's see what we've got here." She opens the box and finds a pair of earphones. Emily: "Huh? I wonder why Zack needs these?" With a smirk, Emily decides to try them out. Meanwhile, back in school, the teacher is writing on the board, and Zack is taking notes. Connor whispers to his friend Red. Connor: "Hey, Red, throw this at Ben." Red: "Yeah, let's do it." Connor tosses a spitball at Ben's head, causing him to turn around. Connor and Red continue their mischievous antics. Ben becomes suspicious and turns back to his work. Red launches another spitball at Ben's head. Ben turns around again, catching them laughing and goofing off. The teacher faces the class and scolds: Teacher: "Mr. Pretston, what are you doing? This isn't the time for goofing off. If you want to do that, take it outside." Students: (whispering) "Oooh." Connor: "Alright, whatever. Come on, Red." Connor and Red leave the classroom with sullen expressions. The teacher adds: "If anyone else is goofing off, head outside. Okay?" Students: "Okay, teacher." Teacher: "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Mr. Robert Conovan Ford." Ben: "Wow, a unique last name." Mr. Ford: "And I am your Science Life teacher. What I'm writing on the board is about the life of animals." Students start scribbling in their notebooks. Zack, Ben, Isabella, and Emma exchange glances, observing their peers' reactions. Mr. Ford smirks and chuckles. Ben: "Awkward." Meanwhile, Emily uses Zack's earphones to listen to "Hush" by Pussycat Dolls, dancing along in her room. Emily: "I don't want to! I don't want to! To say a single word! That I don't want to!" She dances freely, and the maids in the room join her, smiling at her infectious energy. Emily: First I was afraid, I was petrified Emily: Kept thinkin' I could never live Emily: Without you by my side Emily: But I spent oh so many nights Emily: Thinkin' how you did me wrong Emily: hat I grew strong Emily: I learnt how to carry on! Emily: Hush Hush, Hush Hush Emily: I've already spoken. Our love is broken Emily: Baby Hush Hush Emily: Oh no not I, I will survive Emily: Oh, as long as I know how to love Emily: I know I'll stay alive Emily: I've got all my life to live Emily: I've got all my love to give Emily: And I will survive! Emily: I will survive, oh! Emily: Hush Hush, Hush Hush Emily: There is no other way Emily: I get the final say Emily: I don't want to Emily: Do this any longer Emily: I don't want you Emily: There's nothing left to say Emily: Hush Hush, Hush Hush! Emily: I've already spoken Emily: Our love is broken Emily: Baby Hush Hush! As the school bell rings, Mr. Ford addresses the class. Mr. Ford: "Alright, class, that's enough for today." Students stopped writing and reacted with surprise. Students: "Hah! Oh my god! That's hot!" Mr. Ford: "Next time, be careful. Writing too much can cause your hands to burn. Alright, see you at the next students' meeting. Class dismissed." Mr. Ford leaves the room, and Zack begins packing his things as Emma contemplates her feelings about him. Emma: "Hmph! I really hate Zack. He's so...so...so—" (grunts) Isabella: "So what? Cute?" Emma: "Whatever. Let's go." Emma and Isabella exit, leaving Zack packing his belongings. Observing his surroundings, Zack notices Caroline sitting in an Indian pose in the classroom. Zack: "Hey there." Girl: "Hey." Zack: (laughs) "Why are you doing an Indian pose here in our classroom?" Girl: "Because it's peaceful out here." Zack: (laughs) "Some things never change." Girl: (laughs) The girl's name is Caroline Monroe, Zack's childhood friend since preschool days. Zack: "Come on. Want to have lunch with me?" Caroline: "Sure." Ben calls out to Zack. Ben: "Wait!" Zack and Caroline turn around. Ben: "Can I come? I don't really go to lunches with other students because I'm too shy." Caroline: "Sure, why not?" Zack: "Yeah." Ben: "Thank you so much." Ben hugs Zack, and Zack and Caroline laugh. Zack: "Alright, come on. Let's go." Zack, Caroline, and Ben head to lunch together. Meanwhile, in the Principal's Office, Principal: "Sit down, Connor." Connor complies. Principal: "I'm not happy, Connor. Ask me why?" Connor: "Oh, I don't know what you're talking about, Mr. Principal. I didn't do anything. I'm innocent." The Principal stands up. Principal: "Hmm, really? You crossed the line. If I catch you disrespecting a teacher again, understand?" Connor: "Yes, sir." Principal: "Good. Now you can have your lunch." Connor stands up, opens and closes the door, and speaks to Red. Red: "How did the talk go?" Connor: "Don't worry about it." Connor and Red walk around the school, their anger palpable.Meanwhile, Zack, Caroline, and Ben enjoy lunch at their favorite restaurant, Coffee Way. Ben: "Wow, that was a good steak." (burps) Zack: "Woah, bro, easy on it." (laughs) Caroline: "Well, it was fun, guys, but I've got to go." Ben: "Go where?" Zack: "She's going to a belly dancing class." Ben: "Ooh, so that's why she was doing the Indian pose. She was warming up for it." Zack: (laughs) Caroline: "Well, it was fun hanging out with you, Zack. You too, Ben. Nice to meet you." Zack: "Alright, bye, Caroline." Coraline waves goodbye to Zack and Ben. As Zack and Ben head back to their classroom, Ben: (burps) Zack: "Wow, you really devoured that." Ben: "Yeah, I really liked that steak." Zack: "Yeah." Ben: "Yeah, thanks for the lunch, man." Zack: "No problem. Come on, let's go to class." Ben: "Right, OK. Come on." The students return to their classroom, and the Principal's announcement rings through the speakers. Principal: "Hello, and good afternoon, class. I hope you had a great first day. I just wanted to make a quick announcement that there will be a teacher's meeting right now. Since you're all in your classrooms, you're free to go home. We've decided to adjust today's schedule. Thank you, and I hope you have a safe trip home." Speaker off. The school bell rings. Zack packs his things, and Ben approaches him. Ben: "Hey, Zack. I was thinking I could introduce you to my other friends." Zack: "Yeah, sure. I thought you didn't have friends." Ben: "Oh, that was my old school. Back at World Academy, we were all intelligent in Science, Computer, and Business." Zack: "Oh, OK. I'm intelligent in politics." Ben: (laughs) "Come on." Ben leads Zack to his friends Meanwhile, Travis converses with Connor and Red in the school hallway. Travis: So, what's bothering you? Connor remains silent, while Red speaks up. Red: Sorry, he's just really angry. (laughs) Red: (nervously laughs) Sorry. Travis: (to Connor) If you need help, just talk to me . As Travis starts to leave, Connor speaks up. Connor: Wait, I'll tell you. Travis: Alright, go ahead. Back with Ben, he introduces Zack to his friends. Ben: Zack, I'd like you to meet some friends. Ben: This is Aiden, the brightest mind among us. Aiden stands up. Aiden: Nice to meet you. Zack: Nice to meet you too. Aiden: And this is Peter, my assistant, who's skilled in robotic animals. Peter stands up. Peter: Pleasure to meet you. Zack: Likewise. Ben: Lastly, I want you to meet the most intelligent businessman I know, Cedrick Jones. Zack: Wait, aren't you the... Cedrick: Owner of Jones Mall? Yes, that's me. Nice to meet you. Zack: Nice to meet you too. Ben: So, want to hang out with us? Zack: Sorry, I have a lot on my plate. Ben: Come on, man. You gotta join us. Ben's friends: Come on, man. Zack: Alright, alright, fine. Ben: Great! Meanwhile, with Connor... Travis: So, your problem is this Zack guy is messing with your life? That's happened to me since fifth grade. There was this guy who completely ruined my life. You know what I did? Connor: What? Travis: I humiliated him by dumping a bucket of dirt and tissue on him. Connor: (smirks) Nice. Travis: Well, good talking with you. I've got something to do. Connor: Okay. Whatever. See you. Travis walks away with his three friends. Emma accidentally bumps into him. Emma: Oh, sorry. I seem to have lost my way. Emma gazes at him, mesmerized. Isabella: Emma, Earth to Emma. Emma: Huh? Travis: (laughs) Sorry about that collision. Travis hands Emma her books and introduces himself. Travis: I'm Travis. Nice to meet you, Emma. Travis walks away with a smile, leaving Emma flustered. Emma: (smiling) (takes a deep breath) (exhales) Isabella: That was really awkward. Emma: Whatever. In the end, Emma's face lit up with a thrilling smile as she laid eyes on a strikingly handsome jock for the first time.