1.
Ever since Mason could remember, he and Liam had been closer than brothers. They'd known each other since the beginning of sixth grade – back when they were short, scrawny little children. Unfortunately, Mason and Liam's first interaction was from an argument over a girl, which landed both of them doing time in detention.
Mason remembered looking around the empty classroom. A young assistant coach sat at a desk in the front tapping away at his smart phone.
"Why are we the only two in detention?" he asked skeptically.
"Because you're the only two stupid enough to get in trouble on the first day of school," the assistant coach said. The man set his smart phone down, leaned forward in his seat, and peered at Mason. "Which leads me to be curious. Bruce Banner over here looks like the kind of kid I'll see in detention a lot." He flicked his head over to Liam but his eyes didn't leave Mason. "On the other hand, I've gotta know – why are you here?" he asked. Mason opened his mouth to speak.
"All I wanted was to sit next to Carly, but he wouldn't move!" Liam shouted, successfully cutting Mason off. Liam's eyebrows were knitted together and his eyes were set ablaze. Weren't blue eyes supposed to be calm and stuff? Mason wondered. Especially that shade of blue… bright, clear, and vibrant. Woah. Mason shook his head to clear his thoughts. He shouldn't be thinking so much about another guy's eyes. He hadn't heard anything Liam had said, but when he came to, Mason realized Liam was glaring right at him.
"Dude, I was there first. Carly asked me to sit next to her," Mason replied with a shrug. He didn't know why Liam was making a big deal of it. "Dude, she's my girlfriend! You can't sit next to her!" Liam yelled. "How was I supposed to know? We've been best friends since fourth grade and as far as I know, I don't need permission to sit next to my best friend!" Mason defended himself.
"What do you mean, how were you supposed to know?"
"What do you mean, what do I mean? Carly doesn't tell me this kind of stuff. I didn't even know she had a boyfriend." A crunching sound caused the boys to look at the assistant coach. He'd opened a bag of chips. "Oh, don't mind me. Talk it out, guys. You're doing great."
Liam turned to Mason, heaving with anger. "Uh… you alright, man?" Mason asked. He looked at the assistant coach for help to no avail. Liam looked like a psycho, and if he swung his fists, Mason wanted to make sure he had backup. "Your name is Mason, right?" Liam asked. Mason nodded slowly. "She talked about you all the time, man. She really didn't say anything about me?" Liam asked. Liam's shoulders deflated at the other boy's silent stare. There was a slight break in Mason's heart when he looked at Liam, because he realized that Liam wasn't angry; he was trying not to cry.
"Hey. It's Liam, right?" Mason asked.
"So?"
"Wanna play Grand Theft Auto after school?" Mason broke into a smile when Liam said, "Alright."
Now they only fought with controllers in their hands.