Chapter 16

 

        Sean did indeed have the same feelings for Alex as Alex did for him. However, Sean wasn't going to accept it as easily as Alex did. On his walk home, he thought it through. His contemplative gaze was set on the road ahead of him as he took one slow step after the other. A brief shake of his head was then made in an attempt to clear his mind of the thoughts that had clouded it.

        “No, we're just friends, nothing more,” he told himself quietly as he continued to walk.

        Thoughts of Alex continued to pop in his head. No matter how much Sean tried to get rid of them, they always came back. This continued the entire weekend and it annoyed Sean a little. He didn't want to believe something like this. There was no way he could feel attracted towards another guy like that. He was just thinking things. No matter how much Sean told himself that though, it didn't seem to help get rid of the pestering thoughts that disturbed him during every waking hour.

        When Monday came around, Sean went to school. The first few classes went by at a pretty steady pace. He was able to pay attention in his classes a little. Whenever he wasn't paying attention though, he always seemed to be punished by the teacher calling on him to answer a question that he didn't hear.

        After fourth period, Sean headed to lunch and sat down at an empty table. It wasn't long until Alex came over and sat down next to him. Sean's heart rate picked up some as he looked over towards the brown-haired boy, who looked at him and smiled.

        “Hey,” he greeted.

        “H-hey,” Sean said back.

        “How's it going?”

        “Good.”

        “That's good.”

        Sean looked away from the other male. He felt himself getting really nervous as he sat there with Alex next to him. Alex seemed to notice this too.

        “Something wrong?” the Junior boy asked.

        “I-it's nothing,” Sean answered.

        Alex gave a simple nod, still eyeing Sean a little. Sean took a bite out of the sandwich he had with him. The more he sat there, the more nervous he felt and it even started to get harder for him to eat his lunch.

        “Oh!” Sean said as a look of sudden realization came onto his face. “I just remembered that I need to go to the library.”

        “I'll come with--”

        “N-no, that's okay,” Sean interrupted. “I need to work on an English paper and I can't be distracted.”

        “Alright, see ya later then.”

        Sean walked off quickly. He threw his lunch into the trash can on his way out of the cafeteria. After turning the corner, a sigh escaped the boy's mouth as he leaned his back against the wall for a moment before sliding down into a sitting position. His head rested against the wall as his eyes closed shut for a few seconds. He hated this. Now he couldn't even be near Alex without his heart starting to race.

        The dark-haired boy remained outside of the cafeteria until lunch was over. He then went to Algebra II and sat down at his desk. The fact that he had to sit next to Alex during this class didn't occur to him until Alex walked in.

        “Hey, how'd the paper go?” Alex asked as he put his backpack next to his desk and sat down.

        “It went okay,” Sean said.

        Sean's eyes were fixed on the surface of his desk. He wanted to look at Alex, but he refrained from doing so. It would only make him more of a wreck than what he currently already was. His heart rate was beginning to pick up again and the nervousness started to fill his body once more.

        The teacher came in a few seconds later. This was probably one of the few times Sean was happy for class to start. Alex didn't bother speaking to Sean, which helped him calm down a little, but it was still a little uncomfortable for Sean to sit near him.

        When class ended, Sean practically zoomed out of the classroom, not saying a single farewell to the Junior boy. Thoughts of Alex started to fill his head as he made his way to his next class. Sean hated this. It was nearly impossible for him to be around the brown-haired boy now without having a yearn to hold him in his arms.

        This couldn't be allowed to happen though. The thought of Alex feeling the same way for him was very unlikely to the dark-haired boy. He was afraid that if he kept going near Alex like this he might end up doing something the boy would completely hate him for. Sean didn't want that to happen though. He didn't want to see someone that had become his friend to hate him like everyone else.

        Not only that, but there was his family too. What if they were to find out his feelings for Alex? That would practically be like suicide. If they found out, it would only give his father more of a reason to dislike him. His father would probably even blow his brains out if he found out.

        Sean didn't want to have either of these happen. There was one solution that he came to during his sixth period class, and that was to avoid Alex as best as he could. It sounded a little cold, but it was really the only way. This was for his and Alex's own good. It would save both of them the problems that would occur if Sean were to do something to Alex that would cause the brown-haired boy to hate him. Besides, maybe if he did this long enough he would start to only like Alex as a friend again?

        The following day, Sean put this into action. When it came time for lunch, he went straight for the library instead of the cafeteria. He wasn't able to eat there, which would cause him to starve until he got home, but it was the only place he could really go during lunch period besides the cafeteria. Not only that, but it also gave Sean a little time during school hours to do his homework.

        After lunch, it was time for math. When Sean neared the classroom, he stopped in his tracks. He had forgotten about the fact that he sat next to Alex during this period. After quickly coming up with an idea to get him out of having to sit next to Alex, he entered the classroom. Seeing the teacher at her desk in the back of the room, he walked over to her. She looked up at Sean when he reached her desk.

        “You need something Sean?” she asked.

        “Yeah, I was wondering if I could maybe be moved to the front of the room,” he began. “I've been having trouble seeing the board lately and I don't want to get bad grades because I can't see the notes.”

        “Sure, just move up to the empty desk over there,” the teacher said as she pointed to a desk that hadn't been assigned to a student.

        A nod was given in response before Sean walked over to his new desk. Right after he sat down, Alex came into the room. The brown-haired boy saw Sean sitting in another desk. Before he could go and ask why though, the bell rang. Alex walked over and sat down at his desk.

        When class ended, Sean quickly put his things away. As he rose to his feet and put his backpack on his back, his eyes met with Alex's. The brown-haired boy smiled at him and Sean quickly looked away, his cheeks turning a barely noticeable shade of pink. Seeing Alex coming towards him from the corner of his eye, Sean quickly left the room.

        Sean continued trying to avoid Alex during the entire week. It worked for the most part. There were times when Alex was able to say a word to him. Sean let himself respond to the boy before quickly walking away from them so his heart wouldn't begin pounding. While doing this though, Sean didn't feel his feelings towards Alex lessen any. He still felt attracted towards Alex and it was pretty difficult to get his mind off of the boy. There were even times when Sean faced a lot of depression from suppressing his true feeling for the boy and for trying to avoid him too. Sean wasn't going to stop doing this though. He knew it would work eventually. It just had to.

 

        Alex was becoming more and more aware of the fact that Sean was avoiding him. It upset Alex a little and it even confused him too. The reason behind Sean trying to keep away from him was completely unknown to him. He always tried to catch the boy during math class or in the halls, but he usually failed in doing so. When he did manage to say a word to the younger male, a brief response was given before he took off.

        Friday slowly came around the corner. It was the end of school now and Alex was making his way out of the building like the rest of the students. His eyes wandered around a little and he soon spotted Sean. He picked up his pace and headed towards the boy.

        “Hey,” Alex greeted.

        “Sorry, can't talk,” Sean said brusquely. “I need to hurry to the bus so I can get a good seat.”

        Sean picked up his pace a little and Alex did the same.

        “Is that really true Sean?” Alex asked in a serious tone.

        “Yeah.”

        “Why have you been ditching me this past week?”

        Sean stopped in his tracks after he heard the question. Alex moved to stand in front of him. Sean looked up into those hazel hues of his before quickly looking away, a blush coloring his cheeks a light shade of pink.

        “I haven't been ditching you,” lied Sean. “I've just been real busy, that's all.”

        “Sure you have,” Alex replied sarcastically with a small hint of anger in his voice.

        “It's true.”

        The dark-haired boy tried to get around Alex, but the Junior boy moved to block Sean's path.

        “Why are you doing this?” Alex asked. “I mean, if I've done something wrong, the least you could do is tell me.”

        “I-I already told you, I've just been real busy this week.”

        Sean quickly tried to get around Alex and this time succeeded. He took off in a fast pace towards the doors. Alex just stood there and watched the boy until he disappeared from sight. A heavy sigh escaped the brown-haired boy's mouth before he resumed his walk to his car.

Reviews

[Amy]

Good chapter. Alex seems to be getting a little pissed...I would be too if the person I liked just started randomly ignoring me....

[Amund Schofield]

Oi... Sean is getting a lit bit annoying, but in a good way. I like the struggle for Sean. Not much has come easy to him, and this on top of it all could very well push him over the edge again. I would like to see a bit more of a struggle for Alex as well. In his family he has been raised to be a perfect boy, and raise a healthy straight family. That raising could make Alex struggle a tiny bit with his parents at the least.