Alfred laid sprawled out in the grass. Green blades poked out next to his cheeks and it tangled in his fingers. He was giggling quietly, and I watched him closely, sitting in the grass a few feet away. I rubbed the golden necklace in my fingers.
"Let'er go!" Alfred shouted, his voice rasping at 'go'. He laughed again, his face was red. "Do it Arthur!"
"You sure?" I asked, cocking my head, the necklace being pulled out of my hand by the force of my own neck. "What if she steps on you?" Alfred shook his head.
"She won't!" Alfred raised his hands to the sky, his fingers wriggle in the air. "Do it!" Alfred's arms fell to his sides as if limp.
You see, I was confronted with the problem of coming over. It wasn't bad, actually, we listened to some of Alfred's music in the kitchen for a while until we went outside. Now Alfred was chanting for me to let his dog out of the house so she could step all over him or something. I cannot see the fun in this. I sighed and pushed myself up off the ground. I padded barefooted through the dry grass, my feet crunching in the grass that clearly hadn't been watered in ages. I looked at the back door, through the screen to see Alfred's German Shepherd waiting patiently for me. She looked at me, her ears pointing up and her tongue hung out, panting. She almost looked like she was smiling.
I sighed, "Hey girl," I whispered quietly, "Can you murder Alfred for me, please? Or maybe you can talk to him about how this game is no fun." The dog whimpered and cocked her head, her bottom teeth over-lapping her top lip for a split second. "Thought so," I sighed with a small smile.
"Bella! Bella!" Alfred beamed in the background. I turned to see him lifting up his arms again, and he let out a giggle. "Bellaaa!" That was his dog's name, I beileve. My eyelids drooped as I bit down on my lower jaw. Bella had hoped up and was now wagging her tail excitedly.
"Alright, go get him," I said airily, opening the screen door. The dog rocketed out, almost knocking me over. I turned to witness the dog jump on top of Alfred, and almost immediately I wondered if he was alright, but the sound of his laughter was a message he was.
I jogged over to the boy and his dog. Bella had Alfred pinned down with her paws at his shoulders, licking his face like crazy. She then took a pause to bark and continued to lick. Alfred's face had turned bright red with laughter, and he pushed on the dog's belly. I cocked my head.
"Enjoying yourself?" I asked.
"Y-yeah!" Alfred said, his voice raspy. "Bella!" I sat down as I watched him giggle, the dog barking and letting her large tongue glide across his face.
He's really happy. How does something like that make him so happy? His face is shiny in dog spit, that cannot be happiness to anyone. I frowned and sighed, my head turning in the other direction. This was awful boring. For some reason, sitting here made me sad. Just a little sad, like, I was imaging Kiku and I playing some game together right now instead. I could be at my actual home, not the building meant for three.
"Bella, Go," Alfred said, his voice still all giggly, "Go say hi to Arthur."
The dog barked and got off of Alfred, trotting over to me and sitting down a few inches away. Her ears flopped and she panted. Wow, this dog's smart. I reached out and scratched the dogs ear, the animal immediately leaning towards me. Alfred sat up and wiped his face.
"What was that?" I asked. Alfred wiped his eyes and looked up at me.
"What?"
"What you just did."
"Oh," Alfred paused, his smile still across his face, "I dunno." The younger boy shrugged, "It was fun though." Alfred wiped his dog-spit drenched hair to the side of his face.
"Do you do that a lot?" I asked. My fingers curled in a blade of grass, tearing it from the dirt.
"Thats how she wakes me up in the morning," Alfred said matter-of-factly. I squinted. His dog's smart and weird.
"Really?" I asked. Alfred nodded proudly.
"My dog's real cool, cuz she's my dog," Alfred stuck out his chest to seem bigger and manleir i'm guessing. I nodded, my head falling to the side slightly. "She's big and strong, and could probably tear your face off!" I looked at the dog. She was still rather puppy-ish, her legs were skinny and her chest was small. She wasn't capable of making anyone bleed too bad from the looks of it.
"Yeah, she's real scary," I said, petting just behind the dogs tail. Her foot started to kick swiftly before it was just a large blur. I giggled.
"Okay, okay, fine, she's not very big." Alfred said, crossing his arms. "Well okay, what do you want to do now?" I could see the stinkiness from Alfred's face.
"Shouldn't we wash your face off or something?" I said with a small chuckle.
Alfred seemed to consider those words for a few moments, biting his lip, his eyes trailing to the side. "Yeah, sure. Good plan." Alfred got up and offered me his hand, which I took, accepting Alfred's kindness and enjoying that his hand wasn't covered in his own spit.
/**/
For what I know, Alfred's spoiled rotten by his mother, mostly. I feel as if his mother is his step-mother, his mother looks nothing like him. She's small with those rosy red cheeks, she almost looks like one of those plump little grandmothers who feeds you a non stop supply of cookies. She usually wears sweaters, which shocked me, because the heat right now was intense. They were usually a snug fit on her, and made her look more like a grandmother. She had brown hair, and the same color eyes with tints of orange. She also wore these red glasses that had that string around them. I don't really get the point of those. Now, Alfred's mom gave him treats consisting of candies, cookies, and icecream. She gave things to him for doing the smallest things, which irritated me beyond belief. All I got back home is those hard, little sugar cookies. Unless I did something really great like win a big competition or if Kiku came over and we bought ourselves ice cream.
Alfred's dad was the stricter parent. He was tall, very tall, and looked like he came straight out of a professional American football league. He had tattoos of eagles and lions covering his strong arms, and his blonde hair was shaved so close to his head he almost looked bald. He had the same striking blue eyes that Alfred had, but they looked so weird in that large of a man. He did not spoil Alfred, nor was he mean to him, basically he was my mom in the parenting position. He yelled at Alfred sometimes, I mean, I would too, if my boy was running around with a sheet over his head and had just knocked over a lamp, yeah i'd be upset. Unlike me with getting grounded, Alfred has to run laps around the block. Yeah, exercise punishment. I'd like that much more than being thing was Alfred would keep running laps until he would pass out, which was about an hour or two of sprinting and jogging. We'd all gather to watch him and laugh when he finally gave out. But, one thing I knew was if Alfred's dad keeps up this kind of punishment, Alfred's going to turn into a human weapon. Alfred's extremely stubborn, which keeps him going.
Alfred's house wasn't half as impressive as mine. There was a ton of American decor everywhere (Jeez, these guys are real patriots.), bookshelves and dog accessories. Even though his house was as big as mine it still wasn't much. Alfred's room was a decent size and was actually clean. We hung out on his bed for most of the day.
By the time we had gone upstairs, despite Alfred washing off his face, he was still digging his fingernails into his cheeks. I told him to stop itching and that he's going to bleed to death if he keeps doing it.
"Really?" Alfred had responded with, his eyes widening.
"Totally," I nodded, looking at him. "It's common too."
I smirked and Alfred's hands shot straight down to his sides.
"Your mom feeds you a lot of candy," I murmured quietly as I turned on his bed to look at the ceiling. Alfred had hung posters in his room of multiple superheroes, his favorite one being Captain America (which he previously told me).
"Yeah," Alfred nodded, "I like it." He smiled. "If cookies were taken from my diet i'd die."
"Well your teeth are either going to rot out or you'll die from quitting." Alfred snickered at that.
"What do you eat, scones and tea?"
"Are you making fun of my heritage?" I hissed. Alfred stuck his tongue out.
"Maybe, I mean, America is the savour of the world. Britain really can't compete."
"Excuse me?" I hissed, but almost playfully. I can tell he's trying to get under my skin. I jumped on top of him and we rolled off his bed, laughing. Once I hit the floor with Alfred on top of me though, I could feel some air escape my lungs in a small gasp.
Alfred started to laugh before giving me a tight hug, "You're so cool, bushy-brows."
"Hey, don't call me that." I was happy he said that, twice in one week I had been called cool, but bushy-brows? I hate my eyebrows and Alfred's just taking it as a thing to make a joke out of.
"What? Cool or bushy-brows?" Alfred gave me a toothy grin before rolling off of me. I rolled my eyes. "You hungry? I'm hungry."
"Yeah," I nodded, "Cookies for dinner?" I looked at Alfred who shot me back with the most 'i'm so done' expression ever.
I walked myself home after dinner that night. It was only seven o'clock, and wasn't too dark, and plus I live right next door. I looked up at the setting sun before slipping inside the house. Upon opening the door, I saw my dad sitting on the couch, watching TV.
"Hey Art," He said, his brown eyes giving me a flash, "How was Alfred's house?"
"It was okay," I said with a shrug.
He gave me a look, his eyebrows lifting, "Just okay? Alfred and his friends seem crazy. I thought you would have had fun."
"I did, sorta," I sighed, sitting down and taking off my shoes. "I watched his dog lick his face for a straight twenty minutes. He seemed to be having fun." My dad chuckled.
"Sounds like a great time," My dad laughed. I hummed and ran upstairs to take a bath.
I don't know how I felt about that whole situation, truthfully. Alfred was nice, but he couldn't have my kind of fun. Maybe I can hang out with Courtney over the weekend or something. I'm not very sure how I like Alfred, I feel almost as if he doesn't care very much about me. And even if he did, he wouldn't show it. He'd just be rude and tease me about it.
/**/
"Well, who's this?" My mom stared at Courtney with wide eyes. She was interested, not shocked that I had a friend over.
"Is this your mother?" Courtney asked, looking at me while cocking her head. I nodded. "Hi, Ms. Kirkland!" Courtney chirped, her hands going to her hips. I smiled.
"This is Courtney," I said, matter-of-factly. I was proud to show my mom that I had an actual friend, that wasn't someone who annoyed me. "She's my friend."
"Oh," My mom said, her hands clapping together. "Arthur's friend, hm?" Courtney nodded. "Well, how about you both go get some ice cream, I can give you money."
My jaw dropped, mom hadn't given me her own money to buy ice cream since... A forever ago! Courtney smiled. "Awesome!"
Now I was going to tell Courtney that my mom doesn't normally give me money, but mom might yell if I tell her that. My mom dug into her pocket and took out ten dollars, wearing a fake smile. I swallowed nervously, she looked like she was forcing herself to smile. I decided not to question it.
And we left. I wore my British-flag t-shirt and Courtney wore some white tee with a green stick figure on it. Courtney loved to express herself. Her shoes were pink and blue striped with purple laces, her pants normally some neon color that pants usually aren't, and her hair always down at her shoulders or in a bob. Sometimes she wore necklaces with cats on them.
See; I was, almost, normal. I wasn't the other kid's version of normal. I was quiet and left others alone, and didn't dress like a psychopath. And I was smart. I could finish worksheets faster than anyone in the sixth grade.
We walked to the ice cream place near the school. We just padded our way along happily, talking about Courtney's cat. She also told me that's she's been trying to draw with guidelines, like I taught here.
Then I realised why mom was acting so weird. Just like Alfred had done, mom thought Courtney was my girlfriend, didn't she? Or at least she wanted me to have Courtney be my girlfriend, she wouldn't have given me money if that was Alfred with me. I grew angry, but that can't be helped. Once Courtney leaves i'll set things straight with mom.
Because Courtney is not my girlfriend. She's my friend. Girl's are icky. Right now, at least.
/**/
Alfred sat with me during lunch. It was Alfred, Courtney, Josh, Zach and I. I sat in the middle of Courtney and Alfred, Alfred spending most of his time shooting jokes at me or talking to Josh. Courtney and I just talked about stupid stuff for most of lunch. I always found the school lunch weird, wherever I went, and always brought my own biscuits and a sandwich from home. Alfred and Courtney didn't eat the school lunch either, but usually Al's lunch consisted of candies and cookies. Courtney and I shared and traded food sometimes too, sometimes she'd have some chocolate chip cookies I wanted and we would trade.
The only problem with lunch was that the seventh graders eat with us.
The seventh graders were scary. They were loud, big, and had body hair. You had to have a certain respect for them if you were in younger grades, or else you're dead. They prowl our halls like a cat sometimes, looking for some kid on the way to the bathroom to snatch up and drag to seventh grade hell. At lunch is the place where I feel most threatened though, teachers don't pay much attention to the lunch goers, and they think that the top-of-the-school-seventh-graders are angels. The seventh graders enjoy creeping around the lunch room, stealing kids lunches or calling them names. Alfred's a pretty big target, with his lunch that usually consisted of hard candies and M&Ms. We have made it so we sit in the middle table, the seventh graders usually pick off the outside. But when one of them are around, I can't help but stare and hope they go away. I can't keep my tears in my eyes for long for bullies.
"They can smell fear," Alfred would normally whisper to me, "Don't stare."
One day, Courtney was out sick. I went out of my way to call her that morning and continued to school, wishing she was there. But now, i'm almost glad she hadn't come.
The seventh graders had struck. It was the table in front of ours, it seems they're working their way in. We should really move our table, but Alfred insists on not moving, that's how they know. Three boys, the normal three, one blonde, one ginger, and one brunette. Brunette-kid had some fourth graders lunch.
"They're jerks," Alfred said with a frown. But this time, he didn't whisper it, he didn't yell it, but it was loud enough to go to a five-table radius. The seventh graders picked that up, it almost looked like their ears twitched at the sound before dropping the boy they were picking on's lunch. My eyes widened and I swallowed, but Alfred glared at them as they approached. Josh pulled on his sleeve.
"Look what you did!" Josh shot back in a whisper. Zachary whimpered quietly, he was the shyest out of the kids I knew. But the seventh graders were already looking down upon us with smirks.
"Well, well, I haven't seen this group yet," The ginger one said, crossing his arms and tapping his foot.
"You don't recognize me?" Alfred shot back, holding the same expression as the bullies did.
They all laughed, "Well, I know that dork." Alfred's nose scrunched up, "It's Alfred Jones. Ancestor of the great world-war-two pilot." They all chuckled again. Was it really that funny? Their more immature if anything.
Alfred stood up. I pulled him back into his seat. "Don't, they'll beat you to bloody pieces," I hissed in a whisper. They obviously heard me, the average seventh grader can hear five times better then we can.
They erupted in laughter, "Oh! He's British!" They all laughed and I just glared at them, confused. They're idiots. Really, the only thing mocking about them is their size and power. How is mocking someone for their accent really that funny? I moved to America when I was very little, anyways, so it doesn't even matter. "Okay so we have stick-legs, fatty, blue-eyes, and now this British kid." The blonde one laughed.
"How about bushy brows?" The ginger one laughed. I was upsetted by that now.
"Perfect."
"Hey, don't call him that!" Alfred yelled, standing up. This time both Josh and I pulled him down into his seat. I put my hand on Alfred's shoulder. These guys were idiots, yes, but I had feared this day for quite a while and could feel my heart pounding.
"Alfred, it's fine," I said between gritted teeth.
"Yeah, Alfred, better listen to your girlfriend."
That blew Alfred, the anger on his face was easily recognisable. Alfred leapt up, quicker them Josh and I had time to think and grab him. Alfred dove underneath the table, quickly being able to crawl out on the other side. One of the old boys slammed his hand against the table, sprawling out where Alfred was sitting. I jumped, holding back a shriek.
"He pounced! He pounced!" Some squeaky voice called, i'm guessing a first grader. The blonde who was on the table growled and turned, his teeth clenched. The other two boys had rocketed after Alfred, running through the lunch room. I could see his blonde hair shoot through the rows of tables. I couldn't get a good glimpse of Alfred, for he was smaller and a much better runner.
But then the gritted teeth of the blonde one converted into a smile.
He grabbed me by the collar, quickly. I felt myself swallow as I looked at his dark green eyes. He's going to drag me to Seventh grade hell, I know it. I felt the muscles in my face go limp as he spoke, never had I been antagonised this bad.
"Hey, look bushy-brows, i'm going to lock you and your little friends here in the basement while nobody is looking, alright? That's what you get for standing up too u-!"
"Hey!" Josh yelled. Josh had always been the goofy nice one in the neighborhood group, I expected him to be mad at that.
"Sit down, fatty!" The blonde kid's face turned bright red, and Josh shamefully sat back down.
"Don't worry, all there is in the basement is rats." I nodded nervously as the blonde chuckled. But his chuckle changed into a shriek as he let go of my collar, dropping to the ground. I stared dumbfounded as behind him was Alfred, staring at him as if in shocked.
"I kicked him in the balls!" Alfred shouted, raising his arms. He looked awfully proud of himself.
"Jesus," The blonde kid whispered, his hand going down his pants, "You little sh-shit!" I got up from my seat, walked around the table and weakly kicked his side. He didn't move besides for the massaging of his dick. I smiled, actually.
Then the brunette kid came rocketing down the cafeteria like an angry bull. I shrieked quietly and Alfred positioned himself as he was ready to take the charging bull. Josh cheered him on while Zach shyly stared. At this point girls were crying, boys were staring, and a few of the little kids were clapping.
But the room fell silent as the teacher approached, standing in front of Alfred. Alfred's tensed arms dropped to his side, along with his expression. The brunette kid skidded in his tracks, his sneakers screeching.
"What is going on here?" She shouted. I believe she was one of the big-kid's gym teachers. She had very short hair.
"That little shit kicked me!" The blonde one shrieked.
"You threatened to lock us in the basement!" I yelled.
"Yeah and you almost punched me!" Al shouted.
"And he called me fatty!" Josh hissed.
"...And stick legs," Zachary whispered.
"All of you, office, now," The teacher demanded.
"Wait, miss, I totally saved the day!" Alfred yelled in a beg. He put his hands together as if he were pleading guilty.
I could feel tears brimming my eyes now. I don't know why, I was just way sensitive to this stuff. "Not until we interview everybody," The teacher said with a sigh. I felt my lips quiver, and wiped my eyes before following the teacher down the hall. I walked close behind Alfred, possibly to keep my crooked frown hidden from everyone. Zach and Josh followed us. It was silent the whole way.
/**/
Josh and Zachary were picked up, the seventh graders in the principal's office.
Alfred and I were alone in the waiting room, sitting on plush chairs. Alfred stared into space as I fought back tears. That was awful embarrassing, I hate bullies. I wish Kiku were here. I turned my head away from Alfred, resting my chin on my hand, making sure he couldn't see me if tears started coming out of my eyes. I don't know why I was trying not to cry, maybe I was fed up. I was fed up with very little, but fed up. I want to be home, where I felt safe when I was with Kiku. I didn't worry about him because I had his back, and he had mine. No bully at my old school had been so harsh.
"That was cool, hm?" Alfred spoke after a while, making me twitch. His tone was excited. "You should have saw me! They couldn't even keep up! and the way I kicked that guy in the-... Arthur?" I felt my heart sink, he knew I was upset now. He knew I was basically crying. Just with the sound of my name a tear escaped and rolled down my cheek. It crept over my chapped lips and down my chin. It would have fallen into my mouth, but I was biting down hard enough on my lips so no whimpers came out. "Artie? You okay?"
I kept silent. I knew if I started to talk I would sob. My face was burning up.
"Arthuur," Alfred whined, putting a hand on my shoulder, "Turn towards me, dude." I shook my head. "Did I do something? I'm really sorry." I shook my head again, he probably saved me from getting punched or something, i'm very grateful for that. Alfred leaned his head against my shoulder. "Artiiee, Arthuur, talk to mee." he shook my body gently, and I heard him grunt. Now the tears either disappear at my cheekbones or keep going, and I can't stop. With Alfred pressed against me, for some reason, is making me feel extremely bittersweet. Which makes me cry even more. I hope my dad doesn't come soon. I want to stay like this, or I want to stop crying. My eyes sting.
"Please, Arthur? What's wrong?" Alfred said, lifting his head off my shoulder. His voice sounded higher than normal, probably out of sympathy or something.
"Nothing," I croaked out in a slurred voice. Alfred gasped quietly, very quietly, I hardly picked it up and he's right next to me.
"Gosh," Alfred muttered, "I'm really sorry Arthur, I shouldn't have gotten their attention." Alfred's fingers curled around my shoulders, I could feel him staring at me. "Please don't cry." I shook my head again.
"Not, it's not your fault," I said quickly, the roof of my mouth covered in spit.
Then Alfred hugged me. He hugged me for a long time until I decided to hug back. I awkwardly did it too, it was very gradual. Like, maybe he wouldn't notice me if I did it slowly. When someone excited the office, Alfred gently pushed my head into his chest too completely conceal my crying face in his shirt. He held me there, just one hand pressed against my head lightly. I didn't try to pull away, I didn't want to pull away. I had comfort. I wasn't embarrassed any longer too cry in front of Alfred, for he wanted to comfort me. And then came the sobs. They were muffled my Alfred's shirt, and I was probably getting my spit and tears all over him, but Alfred didn't seem to mind. His hand didn't move from my head.
Something changed that day. Something important changed. As if suddenly Alfred wasn't the jerk I knew him as, as if he cared. That I would be fine with him, like I was with Kiku. I mean, Alfred was no Kiku, not by a long shot. But he would watch out for me.
And I had too watch out for him. That's the way friendships work.
/**/
For the rest of that week, that month, that year, Alfred and I were close. Very close for that fact, Alfred even taught me how to play baseball. Well, sorta, he just threw the ball at me and I tried to hit it with some stick we found on the ground. Then I taught him about England's history, not that he cared very much. Alfred was then known as the kid who kicked Avery Pegnul (Who we found out was that seventh graders name) in the balls. He was worshipped as a hero, I think he enjoyed it. And for once, I didn't mind. That was no false bravery that he pulled, I know that now. And despite Alfred's new group of friends, Alfred always stuck right by my side. We held hands throughout the halls and always sat and played together at recess. Kiku and I still called each other of course. Kiku emailed me pictures of his new middle school.
Courtney heard about the story as soon as she got into school Alfred told her the whole thing, exaggerating a little, maybe. "Like, I kicked him in the crotch and totally saved Arthur from being dragged into Seventh Grade hell! And then the brown-haired one came running at me and I took him down with my manly heroic powers, and all the girls started cheering me on!" Alfred did a ton of hand motion when he told this story. He reminded me of talking about Odysseus taking down the Cyclopes. Courtney hadn't believed him of course and I told her the true story, besides for my tears and Alfred's comfort.
Thats when I joined the neighborhood kids group. It started to get cold now so we usually played inside, which decreased my chance of getting hurt. I would only go over if we went over Alfred's, Henry's or Zach's house though, they were the only two with decent homes.
I was not fond of Henry. Not one bit. He was a pretty big bully, but he seemed to stop messing with Alfred after that incident, So I have built in protection from Alfred.
It always smells of hot chocolate in Henry's house. I've gotten to know the boys better, even though I stay away from Henry as much as possible. I usually just hide behind Alfred when i'm somewhere other than his house.
Henry's house was small, it was three floors counting the basement. So was mine, but it was just tiny. We played in the basement a lot, which sucked, because it smelt strongly of cigars. The carpet was wiry too and we usually ended up with rugburn in five different places. There was a computer in his basement, which is the main reason why we went down there.
Henry being a year older than I, (and I was a year or at least six months older than all the rest of the boys) we usually listened to him like he was a preacher. Sometimes I could tell truth from reality with him if what he was saying was totally off the wall, but most of the time his words seemed very real. So, this new thing he had introduced to us was hard to swallow.
Alfred and I had been sharing a juice box, we shoved two straws into the juicebox hole and slammed our faces together to drink it. Alfred also has very long eyelashes that usually tickle my cheeks when our faces get too close. That's when Henry pulled up something I had never seen before on the google.
"Behold!" He had yelled, sliding to the side with his computer chair, his arms spreading out. It was a lady, a naked lady. I shot a look at Alfred, then at everybody else, and they were all staring at it.
"Weird, man," Alfred said, shaking his head. That's what a girl looks like, naked? Ew, gross. The lady in the picture was blonde with mega-large breasts, and some blonde hairs covering her crotch area. I mean, I had an idea, but i've never seen a naked lady before in person. I stuck my tongue out.
"Where's her privates?" Zachary asked stupidly, but quietly. I tried not to look at the screen.
"There!" Henry declared, pointing to her crotch once again. I put my head in my hands quickly. "Girl's don't have penises, Zach, they have vaginas." Didn't everybody know this by now? My mom shields me from everything, but at least I know that.
"Oh speaking of naked things," Henry muttered, rubbing his hands together. His light brown curls were highlighted with the glint of the computer screen. "Does anybody know what a poofter is?"
We all shook our heads, mom has used that term before. She never actually told me what it was. I grew curious.
"Nah, what is it?" Josh said cheerfully, his chubby cheeks lifting up in a smile. Henry paused to type something in, and we all watched patiently. He then slid to the side for us to see what he clicked on.
"Dude! Ah, What the hell?" Alfred shrieked, covering his eyes. My eyes stretched twice their size. It was two men, doing, it? Like, sex? I think thats what they're doing. One of their penises was going up the other ones butthole, and the position, woah. All the body-hair too. That's what a poofter is?
I jumped off the couch and stepped closer to the computer screen. "Woah." I muttered, Henry watching me closely.
"I know, right?" Henry laughed. I nodded and crept back to my spot next to Alfred on the couch. He was still covering his eyes.
"Thats a poofter, some guy who finds another guy attractive or something!" Henry said matter-of-factly, raising his index finger. "Gross, right? Another term for it is faggot."
Zach crossed his arms and mumbled something quietly. He looked angry, Zach's never angry. Zach's the shy tall kind who rescues injured animals from his garden, I swear he's a disney princess sometimes.
"What was that?" I asked kindly, turning towards Zach. I had to rip my eyes away from the screen to not look.
"It's called being gay, Henry," Zach said, but he looked at me. I felt as though Zach trusted me somewhat. "And it's not bad to be gay." Zach blew a strand of wavy, orange hair from his mouth.
"How do you know, asshole?" Henry shouted. Zach shrunk back down to his shy self. Henry uses big kid swears a lot, it makes me feel nervous.
"I uh, my sister's gay. The old one," Zach shuffled around, "Her girlfriend makes good cookies."
"But being gay is for guys!" Henry whined.
"It works for girls too," Zach murmured, turning his head, therefore ending the conversation.
"The girls must be hot," Michael shouted, raising his hands above his head, "Do they make out and have sex a lot?"
Zach shook his head. Zach looked almost like Alfred when you got down to the strong features, blue eyes, blonde hair, were both tall and had smooth faces. But Zach was paler, everything about him was paler. His eyes were a very light, light shade of blue and his hair was orangish. He was also paler than me with small, faint freckles covering his cheeks. Zach wasn't social, but he wasn't mean. Just shy. "Not really," he muttered.
Alfred picked up his head from his hands. "Dude, that's so weird."
"So wait, Zach," I looked at him, and Zach looked at me, "They're in love. not just sex, right?"
"Of course!" Zach said quietly, "They love each other very much. It's like loving a girl, but its just the same gender."
"Gross," Alfred said, squeezing his eyes shut.
I got defensive, "It's not all that gross. It's who they love."
"Still." Alfred crossed his arms and continued to drink the juicebox.
"Wait, like, what do they do?" I asked Henry. Alfred snorted.
"I don't know," Henry said with a shrug, "Touch each others dicks all the time I bet. Gross." I looked at Zach, he seemed offended. I swallowed and positioned myself so I was lying on Alfred's lap.
We heard footsteps down the stairs to the basement, Henry quickly Xing out the page. I saw Henry's dad step down the stairs.
"Hey boys," His dad said. Henry's dad looked like him. A skinny nose with a fat tip, those tight light brown curls, big upper arms.
"Hey dad," Henry responded. I just watched him from my worms-eye-view from Alfred's lap. My fingers curled around his kneecap. Henry's dad was intimidating, just like Henry was. He was very sarcastic, but he seemed pressured, like he could snap like a twig. Which made it worse that when he smiled, his teeth were white and shiny, that made him look crazy.
"Hey mister Arcroff," Michael said, petting his short black hair, Henry's dad waved. "Whats a faggot?"
The world froze in those moments. Henry's dad froze, Henry face palmed, and I just watched them. Alfred stopped sucking the last bits of juice from his juicebox. Henry's dad stared at Michael, who stared back clueless.
We all mentally sighed when Henry's dad smiled. "Well," He said, his voice deep. He looked around the room, "That." He pointed to Alfred and I.
"What?" Alfred shrieked, pushing me off his lap, "Am not!"
"Yeah... no way!" I added in nervously, sitting up. "And even if I was, not with him! Ew!" I crossed my arms and turned away from Alfred. We soon started giggling after. Henry's dad observed our small argument with a smile. A big, creepy smile.
Henry's dad laughed, "Don't ever become a poofter, boys."
We all nodded, but when I looked at Zach, his face was bright red. Once Henry's dad retreated upstairs, I told him that he was just kidding. I felt kinda bad for Zach, he was pushed around a lot.
Henry's lips cracked into a smile after a while. "Alfred and Arthur and faggots together!"
"Am not!" Alfred yelled, his face turning bright red.
"Are too," Henry purred.
"Am not!" Alfred and I both shouted this time.
Let me tell you, that was the start to something... Diffrent.
/****/
Hey-yo new chapter wooh
I'm actually in love with Zach's character way too much. He's probs going to play a more important role later on (*likehelpingArthurwithgayproblems).
I had so much fun writing about the seventh graders holy crap