Chapter 60 - Delinquent Diaries (4)

Ahoy Deck Scrubbers!

I heard something really interesting today. There's someone in the classroom who is handy with their hands (no pun intended). I just couldn't wait to interview them so I asked around and found out that Casper had an indirect encounter with them at the start.

For easier identification, let's call him Fast Fingers. He may not be the brightest bulb in this tool shed but he certainly can be the quickest in both wits and action. If someone needs something made or done, Fast Fingers would be the superhero they call. No ripped uniforms, broken tables or faulty lights cannot be fixed. As long as he is given the screwdriver, he'll fix it.

According to Casper, there was a duster incident during the early days. It was only later known that the duster dropper was a clever invention of Mr Fast Fingers. Looks like the delinquent class has their own Mr Fix-It too! In my class, we have the unofficial Thomas Edison whom I've yet to see but I think Mr Fast Fingers won't lose out to him when it comes to designing a good duster dropper.

Long story short, I met Mr Fast Fingers and he isn't anything you'd expect him to look like. Like most of the delinquent class, Mr Fast Fingers has piercings but not on his ears. He has lip and eyebrow piercings and I personally find them to look more manly than multiple ear piercings. Also, that lip piercing might hurt a lot more than the regular ear piercings. After all, biting your lips accidentally and making it bleed can leave nasty ulcers for days and eating is always going to be a challenge after that. I simply can't imagine having lips pierced.

Fast Fingers doesn't wear the school uniform properly either. He often wears a black tee underneath his school shirt and leaves the top unbuttoned so that the shirt acts more like a jacket which I think is cool. He also doesn't wear regular school shoes because according to him, anything could happen anytime so he must be prepared. Safety boots are part of his combat gear and his choice of weapon? A tool belt on his waist with a trusty screwdriver, wrench and what not... He has names for them but I only know the name of his yellow screwdriver - Betty.

Fast Fingers was the kind of person who would go around helping old ladies, petting stray cats, sharing his lunch with pigeons and helping people in general. It is a very stark contrast against his looks. The boy can be severely awkward at times and would refuse people's refusals. I've heard stories from some of the other classmates that Fast Fingers once tried to force his help upon the librarian who had a squeaky book trolley wheel. The poor lady was utterly terrified by the 'stray beast' from what the other boys described Fast Fingers as. He marched right up to her, looked the poor woman in the eye and said: "Leave the trolley behind". The woman was so frightened out of her wits at the growl from a scary looking student that she froze up. Fast Fingers didn't say anything more and whipped out his tools, scaring the daylights out of the poor lady. In the end, all he did was tighten a few screws and spray some lubricating oil before checking the general alignments of the others wheels on that trolley before nodding in satisfaction at his work before leaving.

Fast Fingers helped to put together some of the broken desk and chairs in the classroom. I must say, the modifications he made to my chair makes things a lot easier for me to get around. What modifications? Well, you know that I have a leg in a cast right now so Fast Fingers thought that it would be easier for me to get myself around the classroom if I had a 'wheelchair'. Yes, I now have rollers under my chair to zip around the class as required.

Want to know one more strange thing I picked up about Fast Fingers? He was not very good at receiving thanks or praises from people. The poor sop turned bright red when I complimented him and yelled at me, calling me stupid before running away to the toilet with a very crude announcement that he was going to take a dump.

I guess he puts girls and small animals in the same category because he would secretly admire them from afar. According to Casper, the boy liked stray cats and can often be found after school patting one with an ice loli in his mouth. Sadly, the stray cats don't quite like him much because he pats them excessively, making them mad.

I think this boy is just a great big sap with a very soft heart. He just puts up a tough exterior much like a tortoise to protect itself. If he wasn't so socially awkward, perhaps Fast Fingers would be very popular. He's helpful and kind, I don't think there isn't a girl who wants to be spoiled by him. I just can't imagine the delinquent class without Fast Fingers though... many people rely on him for various things. It doesn't matter if Jasper required the projector to be set up or if Junior wants Fast Fingers to fix the blinds. Fast Finger would always be the first they'd ask. I guess in a way the aspiring mechanic is the class' mother hen?

One lesser-known fact is that Fast Fingers doesn't always fix things right. Try he would. However, some things are trial and errors. Nobody really blames Fast Fingers for getting it wrong either which was what I found strange. I only later found out that Fast Fingers would lose sleep over his failure and try to fix his mistakes and the problem. It could take anything from days to months but eventually, Fast Fingers will find a solution. If he can't, the poor guys would look all over for a suitable replacement as an apology. Fast Fingers didn't know how to sew initially because he had no sewing kit on him and didn't know who to get it from so he fixed a ripped up uniform using the stapler. The boy who got the uniform fixed thanked him and went on with his day but it ate at Fast Finger's conscience so much that he begged that boy to bring the torn uniform back after he bought the sewing kit so he could 'fix it for real'.

I still have much to learn about Fast Fingers but for today I think this is enough. I'll be featuring another delinquent tomorrow so let me know who your favourite delinquent is so far. I might have to start an unofficial poll for delinquent popularity ranking.

What do you guys think?

Fair winds!

Pirate S.