Chapter 7

Christmas break is over, but is Thomas sure he can still look at Jonathon the same way? And will their relationship even be able to take another step when a new student enters their classroom and immediately takes a liking to Thomas?

 

Chapter 7

 

          School had been back in session for two weeks now. December progressed into January, and students were welcomed back by the coldest days of the new year. Snow plows were put on overtime as streets were cleared for school buses and cars sat sputtering outside, their owners at the kitchen table waiting for the engines to warm up. Frozen snowmen, coaled and clothed, slumped on muddied lawns. Driveways lay bare, several of which were shoveled by our crew for some extra cash. 

          Even after a three week break, things at school were a bit different. For one, courses were harder, the teachers already getting students ready for final exams. Us freshmen, being the highest grade in the junior high academy, were pushed even harder to prepare for the high school. 

          Lots of my classmates had changed, and we even got some more new students. The most noteworthy transfer was Travis Hawkins. The moment he stepped into the school, he was the most popular guy there. Travis was around six foot, with tan skin that emphasized his white teeth. His hair was dark brown that tipped blond, naturally, and set just past the tops of his ears. Not only was he good-looking, he was athletically talented, well-stocked in brains and he knew it. So it was no wonder that he soon started to hang out with Jonathon, Ren and Carson, some of the most well-known freshmen. And it was no wonder that I wasn’t all that popular with most of the other guys who worked to get to know them. 

          This academy, like most schools, has an unspoken caste system. At the very bottom are the druggies. Not the big ones you find in public schools, just good students who dabbed a bit and got hooked. Next are the average Joes, the guys who aren’t in any particular club. The only purpose for guys like them is to serve as stepping stones for better students. I was supposed to be just like them. That is, until Carson and Ren started hanging out with me. Then Jonathon, and now Travis. Yep, I was basically on almost everyone’s hit list. The only thing that really saved my butt was the fact that my friends looked out for me.

          Now, above the club members and jocks are the Elite, as they are known in the academy. It’s not an official club, but that is what most of the students refer to the best freshmen. This group was comprised of guys who were talented, smart and attractive. Ofcourse, there was always exceptions to the second condition. So this is where my friends sit. Carson, captain of the soccer team; Ren, highest ACT and SAT scoring student in the state and Jonathon, president of the student council and second-to-top student in the academy. And if that wasn’t enough to put me on a majority of the school’s hit list, I had Travis, the school’s biggest idol, almost glued to my side. Which would have been tolerable, if he hadn’t been openly bi-sexual.

          It was the third Wednesday since we came back. The bell had just rang, signaling the end of third hour. The familiar sound of scraping chairs and laughter filled the classroom as boys headed for lunch. I stretched my arms over my head, glancing behind me to see Jonathon engaged in a conversation with another freshman. Several others were gathered around them, supporting the other freshman’s concern with vigorous nods as they watched for Jonathon’s reactions. I sighed to myself. Ever since Christmas Eve, I haven’t been able to look at Jonathon the same way. And it didn’t help that I couldn’t stop looking at him. But, so far, neither of us had mentioned what happened that day. Jonathon was the same as ever, while I struggled to keep my cool. I was starting to think that most of the things I was feeling were just from post-traumatic stress and attachment to the person who was there to cheer me up. Not that it was anymore helpful to my situation.

          All the while I was thinking, my eyes were still on Jonathon. He sensed my stare and looked up. We made eye contact and he silently signaled for me to go on without him. Not wanting to seem like I really cared, I merely shrugged and headed for the hall. Before I left, I looked around the classroom for Ren. The day was already half over and I had just realized that he wasn’t here. Guilt fingered at my chest as I walked to the lunch room, teasing at how oblivious I was of everyone except Jonathon. 

          As I trudged down the wide hallway, an arm caught my shoulders and pulled me in. This action had become predictable over the last few days, ever since Travis had started hanging out with me. I looked up to see Travis’s stunning grin.

          “Hey, squirt. Need me to walk you to lunch?”

          I carefully shrugged off his arm and readjusted my winter uniform blazer. I could feel the scowls of several guys as they walked past. “No, I’m fine,” I replied, keeping my eyes slightly downcast. There was no need to make people think I was smug. 

          Travis shrugged. “Alright, you’re not in the mood. I get it. But that doesn’t mean you’ll ignore me, does it?” he asked innocently, almost sweetly, causing one boy to do a double-take as he walked by. I tried not to grimace.

          “Er, I didn’t say that.”

          Travis smiled again and patted my back. “No need to force yourself. I just like to hang around you, that’s all. You don’t suck up like most of the guys here.” Then he paused and smirked. “Maybe that’s a bad thing.”

          “What?”

          “Nothing.”

          We arrived at the cafeteria, where we ordered our food and sat down to eat. After a few minutes, we were joined by Carson and Jonathon, who plopped down on either side of me. After a quick greeting, Carson and Travis launched onto the subject of soccer and upcoming tryouts. I smiled and shook my head, amazed at the limited horizons of Carson’s conversational topics. Beside me, Jonathon was intently writing in a spiral notebook as he ate. I wanted to talk to him, but decided against it so as to not break his focus.

          “So, Thomas, what do think?” My attention was snapped back to Travis’s question. 

          “Er, what?”

          “About tryouts,” he repeated. “Would you be interested? Velemont and I could teach you all the basics in no-time. It would be pretty cool if we were all on a team.”

          I fiddled with my fork. “Um, I’m more of a billiards guy, to be honest.”

          Travis’s smile seemed to slip a bit, but he managed to look almost as eager when he asked Jonathon. “So what about you, Cooper? Did you want in?”

          Jonathon looked up from his notes, his onyx hair falling over one of his dark eyes. “No, thanks,” he replied, resuming his writing. “I’m not really interested in competing.” 

          Travis shifted his body away from Carson towards Jonathon, setting his elbows on the table, his eyes suddenly sparking. “Is that right?”

          Jonathon seemed to hear the interest in his voice and looked up again. “Yes. Although, that doesn’t mean that I can’t,” he said stiffly, setting down his pencil.

          “I never said you couldn’t. But, what would you say if we had a little competition?”

          Jonathon raised an eyebrow. “Depends on the game.”

          Travis’s mouth broke into a sly smile. “Baseball, if you get my drift.”

          My mind was bubbling as I watched their exchange, trying to catch any double-meanings. Sadly, since the conversation had switched to something else other than soccer, Carson lost interest and turned to a table behind us to talk about his tryouts. 

 

          When the academy let out, Carson, Jonathon and I met out in front of the gate. The January air nipped at our faces as we trudged down our street, making our own tracks amid the fresh layer of snow.  There was silence as we each saved our breath to keep warm. A quarter of a block away from Carson’s house is where Carson broke it.

          “Hey, has anyone seen Ren today?”

          Sometimes little things like that can lift your self-esteem tremendously.

          Ignoring the huge opening, I answered Carson with as little sarcasm as possible. “No, he didn’t come to school today. Why don’t you call him?”

          Carson scoffed, oblivious to my self-control. “Why should I call that lazy a*s? He misses school just so he doesn’t have to deal with this weather.” He broke away from us, heading toward his house. “See yah later. And don’t bother thinking about trying out for soccer. You both probably suck anyways.”

          Jonathon and I both turned the corner before Carson got to his door. Now that it was only the two of us, I began to feel a little nervous. Despite my constant denial, I wanted a reason to hang out with Jonathon more. I wanted to talk to him like we did before I felt anything awkward for him. But since I knew I would blurt out something stupid, I couldn’t bring myself to be the first one to talk.

          “See you tomorrow.”

          I started, realizing that we had already reached our houses. I turned to see Jonathon heading across the street. Before I could control myself, I blurted.

          “I need help with my biology homework!” 

          Jonathon stopped and looked back at me, surprised. “I thought you were good at biology.”

          Stunned, I could only continue with the lie. “I’m good at geometry and algebra, but this chapter’s kind of hard.” Half-truth, that was good. I stuffed my gloved hands into my coat pockets and buried my nose into my scarf, shifting my eyes to the ground. “C- could you help me?” How pathetic could I get?

          I felt Jonathon’s hand ruffle my hair. “No need to be embarrassed about asking for help. It happens to everyone. Besides,” he added. “You were acting way too cute for me to say no.” It was a good thing my face was already red from the cold, or I would have flushed beyond control.

          “You say the weirdest things,” I muttered. Jonathon merely chuckled.

          When we walked in, I was surprised my mother was already there. The front door was locked, so she must have come in through the garage. While we hung up our coats, the smell of cookies wafted over us. Chocolate-chip cookies, to be precise. 

          “Mom?” I called. “I’m home!”

          “In here, honey!” she called back from the kitchen. I wandered into the kitchen with Jonathon right behind me. My mother was at the kitchen counter, transferring the cookies from the pan to a plate with a spatula. She turned and touched her cheek in surprise as Jonathon stepped in, smearing flour on her face. “Thomas!” she exclaimed, fumbling with her oven mitts and apron. “You didn’t tell me you were inviting your friend! I look absolutely horrible.” She pushed back some loose hair from her ponytail, still oblivious to the smear of flour on her cheek. Jonathon and I both glanced at each other and had to bite our lips just to keep from laughing.

          Giving up on looking nice for now, she smiled at us. “Help yourselves to some cookies, boys. There’s some milk in the fridge that you can drink. I’ve got to go get ready. One of my friends invited me on an outing.” She came over to me and kissed my forehead. “You can take care of your dinner, can’t you?”

          I frowned. “Ofcourse I can, mom. This isn’t the first time I had to stay home alone.” 

          She laughed. “Yes, Thomas. I’m sorry. Ofcourse you know how to take care of yourself.” She turned to Jonathon. “It’s nice to see you, Jonathon,” she said, sliding her hand across his chest to his shoulder and patting it. Then she left to preen herself upstairs. My attention went straight to the cookies on the counter. I pulled up two bar chairs to the plate and sat down on one.

          “Hey, get ‘em while they’re still warm,” I said through a mouthful of cookie when I noticed he hadn’t moved. Jonathon was staring at the kitchen doorway, where my mom just left, as if scrutinizing a thought. He looked up when he heard my voice and drifted over to sit beside me. “Something wrong?” I asked him, taking a second cookie from the pile.

          Jonathon shook his head. “Not entirely sure. Anyways, why don’t we get your homework out of the way while we eat?” I knew he changed the subject, but I didn’t push him for a straight answer. Instead, I stuffed the cookie in my mouth and ran over to get my book bag. I rummaged through it, only to find something missing. The reason that kept Jonathon here. 

          “Hey, Jonathon,” I said, walking back into the kitchen with my notebook. 

          “Hmm?” He had a cookie between his teeth and was already helping himself to a glass of milk.

          “Er, I forgot my biology book.”

          Jonathon snorted, the cookie muffling his laugh. “Ook im my bag,” he directed, nodding toward his stool. His book bag sat beside it on the linoleum floor. I padded over and opened it, pulling out one of the text books. Yep, Biology I. I set it up on the counter and opened both my spiral and the book. Jonathon plopped down beside me and slid the milk glass between us. “There was only this much left. Share?”

          “Whatever,” I replied, taking the first dip with my fourth cookie. 

          The tutoring began, which consisted mostly of me feigning confusion on things I already knew. Not that Jonathon wasn’t a good tutor. There were some things on genetics and evolution I didn’t understand that he cleared up. Mom came in around four to say good-bye while we finished up. By the time four-thirty rolled in, we decided to call it quits. The cookies were long gone by then.

          As we put up our stuff, Jonathon asked the dreaded question. “Not to be so serious or anything, but how are you doing on that loan?”

          I stiffened, more from reflex than anything else, as I stuffed my papers in my bag. “We’re – I’m a little shy from the one million mark. My mom’s next paycheck is coming in this Friday.” I heard Jonathon’s bag zip behind me.

          “No, it’s ‘we’,” he assured me. “And what we need is some sort of miracle.”

          I nodded in agreement, my movements now weighed down with despair as I trudged into the kitchen with the plate and cup.

          “Hey, hey, don’t get depressed on me,” Jonathon said, following me to the sink and setting a hand on my shoulder. The action sent a tingle through my nerves. “I was just thinking out loud, that’s all,” he explained. 

          But I wasn’t listening. All my attention was involuntarily focused on the contact between us and the fact that no one was in the house.

          “Yeah,” I replied absent-mindedly. “It’s cool.”

          “Alright then, I’m going home.” I felt his hand slide off me as he headed to the door. I quickly set the dishes in the sink and walked Jonathon out.

 

 

          It was the next day and, as I locked the front door behind me, Jonathon was waiting for me on the sidewalk in front of our porch. I skipped down the steps, already feeling the cold creeping into my coat. Wordlessly, we both started for the academy.

          “Thomas, I have a quick question.”

          I looked up at Jonathon. “Yeah, shoot.”

          “What does your mother do?”

          It took me a few seconds to recall. “Oh, she does office work at a publishing company,” I replied. “Stuff like filing and labeling. Why?”

          Jonathon shrugged. “I’m just curious.”

          When we turned the corner, I was surprised to see Ren waiting for us alongside the fence. Hands in pocket, shoulders hunched and face nuzzled into his scarf, he bounced on the balls of his feet to keep warm.  His glasses slid down his nose with each thump. Hearing our approaching footsteps, Ren looked up and smirked, pushing his glasses back up with his finger.

          “Never trust a smiling cat,” I heard Jonathon mutter as we neared Ren. 

          Silence filled the frosty air as Jonathon and I stopped and waited for Ren to break whatever news he had. Several seconds drifted away while we stared at each other. Jonathon and Ren’s gazes were steady as they waited for the other to break down and either ask or spill. My eyes flickered between the two, wondering how long this unspoken challenge was going to take. Several more seconds ticked by and I finally snapped.

          “So, what’s up?”

          Ren’s attention turned to me. Then he shrugged. “Nothing much. Come on, if Carson’s going to make us wait, he can walk by himself.” With that, Ren proceeded to go on without us. I looked up at Jonathon in bewilderment, receiving only another shrug as an answer. There was no other choice but to follow.

 

 

          Classes had now let out for the day, and Ren was still acting just as weird and secretive as that morning.  Neither of us had pressed Ren for an explanation on his behavior, though we did ignore him for a majority of the day. But his mouth remained sealed as he sat through his classes with a smug look on his face. I debated whether or not a good punch would loosen him up a bit.

          As I crammed my textbooks into my locker, I felt someone approach me in my blindspot. Grimacing, I prepared myself for the worst, which would be Travis. We had only met a few weeks ago, and yet the guy was already making me nervous. I slammed my locker and quickly turned around, plastering my face with the fakest smile ever. Be pleasant, I reminded myself. No need for head-ripping today.

          “Relax, Thomas, it’s me.” I looked up to see Jonathon with a crooked smile of his own. His voice and facial expression were teasing, but it felt strained. Concern wiped away my hasty façade.

          “Yeah, good thing,” I added. “What’s up?”  

          Jonathon glanced up and down the halls before he opened his mouth. Most of the students had already left. 

          “I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”   

          “Sure, anything,” I replied, almost too quickly. Eagerly. I waited as Jonathon tried to find the right words to start. It was the first time I had seen him so uncomfortable and flustered.

          “I- it’s about your mother,” he finally began. “Have you noticed anything abnormal with her schedule?”

          I had no idea where this was going. “Um, she works all the way to the evening.”

          “Okay, that’s a start,” Jonathon said. “Working late.  What else?”

          “I don’t know.”

          “Have you really looked at her when comes home at night?”

          I leaned back against my locker. “Not really. I’m usually asleep when she gets home. And when I do, she heads straight to her room. What are you getting at?” My eyebrow arched to emphasize the question as I crossed my arms. I was in full Suspicion mode.

          Jonathon hesitated for a brief moment. Then he sighed, wording his statement carefully. “Your mother might be, I think, doing more than she lets on.”

          My eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”

          Jonathon held up his hands, palms facing out. “It’s only a thought, okay? But it seems like your mother is hiding something.”

          “Everyone’s entitled to a secret, Jonathon. It’s not that big a deal.” 

          Jonathon nodded understandingly. “I suppose you’re right—no,” he corrected. “You are definitely right. But sometimes there are things that shouldn’t be done in the first place.”

          My hands clenched into fists at my sides. I didn’t like where this was going. “If you want to say something, just say it,” I spat through my teeth. I knew I was getting worked up, but Jonathon was asking for it. This was my mom he was talking about.

          Jonathon’s lips pressed together, but he remained calm. “Alright,” he said. “But before you get angry, atleast listen to where I’m coming from. You said your mother works nearly all day, correct?”

          “I never said that.”

          “But that’s what you meant.”

          I didn’t answer.

          “So, with that in mind,” he continued. “That means she either works double shifts or somewhere else as well. I took the liberty of visiting the publishing company your mother works at. They close at four. All personnel leave at five.”

          My throat went dry. My mother usually comes home around ten. Sometimes later, sometimes earlier, but with no pattern. This was news to me, but surely it didn’t matter. “So she spends some time with herself. Big deal. That’s not considered a crime, is it?”

           Jonathon shook his head. “Thomas, I’m not condemning her or anything like that. I just wanted to point out that her work schedule and her alibi don’t match up.”

          “Oh, now she has an alibi? Way to not make her out to be a criminal.”

          “Okay, you’re just twisting up my words and getting yourself mad now.”

          “Mad?” I exclaimed, throwing my hands up. “I’m not getting myself mad. You’re doing the work for me! You expect me to not get offended while you talk s**t about my mom? So what if she works at another job? I don’t care! All I want is for you to mind your own business.” I took a step closer to Jonathon, making sure to lower my voice before we attracted unwanted attention. “Since you’re the one who wanted to help with the loan, I’ll let you. But that’s as far as your nose is going to go into our personal problems.”

          The hall was silent, aside from the beating of my own heart as I let the words sink in. I was so enraged at the moment, my breathing became deep harsh. My eyes searched Jonathon’s for a sign of any sort. I watched as the pools of onyx turned from confusion to steeled resignation. Before either of us could make the first move, the sound of footsteps broke the silence, followed by a voice.

          “Hey, Thomas, am I interrupting something?”

          I turned to see Travis walking down the hall, his backpack slung over one shoulder. Relief flooded me to see an exit from the awkward moment, making let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. I turned my body to face Travis fully, not wanting to face the figure of stone I had just created.

          “No,” I replied. “Nothing at all.  Was there something you wanted?”

          Travis smiled and stopped a few feet beside me and Jonathon. “I was just wondering if you were interested in me walking you home. I already need to go to the convenient store, so an extra couple of blocks wouldn’t be much. Especially if I can walk with you.” The last part he added with a crooked smile and a tilt of his head, the perfect catch if picking up a girl. I’d have to remember that.

          “Sure,” I said, only vaguely listening to the first part of his response. “I need to go down by the store, too.” Beside me, I could feel Jonathon stiffen.

          Travis’s smile widened. “Great. Should we get going, or is Cooper coming as well?” he asked, only now acknowledging his presence. Already I was feeling guilty. It’s bad enough that Jonathon had to take a bunch of crap from me, but taking more from Travis was a little too much. Not that I really cared.

          “It’s alright,” I heard Jonathon reply. “I don’t really have enough time to be wasting at the moment. You two just enjoy your date.” With that, Jonathon brushed past me and headed out the building without looking back.

         

Author's Note

Relay the grammar and spelling damage without hesitation. You will receive an emo rabbit in return.

Reviews

[Vera Iconica]

It a little to late for me, so I didn't notice any spelling or grammar mistakes, can I still have the emo bunny?
Anyway, loved the chapter, please update again soon!