I have the meanest friend in the whole wide world. He is constantly putting me down.
We’re in the running for valedictorian of our class. I’m number 1 and he’s number 2, yet he tells everyone how he made higher on his ACT (without them asking), and he also tells everyone how he’s only 1/5 of a point behind me in the running.
He’s a jerk. He grabs my report cards right after I get them so he can compare his wonderful grades to mine.
It doesn’t matter that I actually have a LIFE-I’m an officer in the drama club, the band, the newspaper, National Honor Society, Student Council, Scholar’s Bowl, and choir. My poetry has been published. I’ve been the star of the school play. Do I go around telling people that I’m better than the aforementioned friend because of this stuff?
No, because I’m NOT better, I’ve never thought that.
I just wish he’d leave me alone!!!
This is a friend?
I’m sorry you are having such a rough time with your … um … “friend”? Did you say FRIEND? Unless there is a whole lot more to your relationship than you are telling us, it doesn’t sound much like a friendship. What’s the scoop?
BTW, I hope you get to be valedictorian. Good luck.
Mean friend?
More like jealous acquaintance. Don’t worry about him…most people will see through his act and see him for the petty annoyance he is.
Good luck!
One fifth of a point? As in you have a 4.1 and he has a 3.9? Man, that’s a world of difference, no wonder he’s number two. I hope you get it. 
It takes a long time to learn this, but people who are “toxic” to you, ie., they act like your friend but they put you down, make you feel bad about yourself, are openly jealous & competitive, are not worth one more second of your time. I realize high school is a small place and it’s harder to just ditch people than it seems, but it’s the truth. If this person is undermining you, he is NOT YOUR FRIEND. Lose him. Now. Don’t think about him for another second.
[devil’s advocate]
You said something about him bragging about his ACT score being higher than yours. Then you go into this laundry list. You seem to insinuate, IMHO, that you are better than he is by virtue of the fact that you have this supposedly amazing life (which is actually a lot of clubs . . . not a life, trust me:)) and your average is 1/5 of a point higher than his. BTW, is that like a 90 to 89.8 or a 4.1-3.9? Slight difference.
And now back to the OP.
Nocturne, are you sure that he’s a friend? Anyway, who cares? So he’s mean. Big deal. Seems to me like you are doing very well. Continue doing your best and keep that “I don’t think I’m better than anyone” attitude. Just make sure you know that no one’s better than you either.
I think it’s so sad how competitive those who are in the top ten of their class can be.
One-fifth of a point. Should either of you care? Does it make one of your smarter than the other?
Besides, grades and intelligence are not always correlated.
Again, ONE FIFTH of a point. That is the difference between his feeling ill one day and his concentration was a little bit lower than yours on a test or two. That’s about it.
Academically, you are equal, despite what that number says.
And the ACT scores- that test measures how good you are at taking tests, not how intelligent you are.
If you think he’s still worth being friends with, he has to realize this.
I think after you two graduate it should be easier, the competition he perceives will be over.
With a friend like that, you really don’t need any enemies!
I’ll second what Turpentine says, after highschool it won’t matter. Things are alot different out there in the “real” world.
Hang in there kiddo!
We were co-valedictorians of our eighth grade graduating class and both had to give speeches (the class itself was close to 300 students, and their relatives all came to see them graduate).
He gave his speech smoothly and perfectly, and I froze, for about ten seconds, in the middle of mine. Then I shakily went on to the finish.
Later that summer when I encountered him in music camp, I found he was telling everyone that he was valedictorian and I was salutatorian. I never corrected him, because at the time it just wasn’t important enough, and neither was the “friendhip,” which faded away after that. The fact that I remember it 32 years later says that it must have bothered me more than I thought it did.
Nocturne, this gives you a glimpse at a part of his personality that you previously may not have known about. I’m sorry this happened to you; it’s not fun. But after graduating, you may not see much of him (unless you’re going to the same college).
If he has no life and you have many activities you will probably be much more successful at getting into college and getting scholarships for said activities. You will also probably be much better adjusted to dealing with college life because you are used to juggling a lot of different things.
But it’s frustrating being the one who’s almost, but not quite, there. I graduated 11th in my class of 380 and I was bitter because they got special recognition and I didn’t. Actually–I was only bitter because I had physics with the guy who was 8th and he cheated the entire year, the teacher knew and didn’t stop him. If he’d gotten there honestly I probably wouldn’t have cared. But now–8 years later I could care less. I had a ball in college, I have a good job that I love and noone has ever asked me what my SAT scores were or waht my high school GPA was.
Anyway–I’d say you should divest yourself of the friendship as much as possible and get on with your life.