AN: The All Grwon Up gang will appear in the next chapter. And that is when the story will loose it's currently angst nature
The rest of the day had been the hardest TJ had ever gone through. Vince, Gretchen Spinelli and Mikey wouldn't even look at him, though he would admit to being partly relieved at that, and the resulting questions and stares he got as a result only made him feel even more like a freak. Even Miss Finster had noticed the tense atmosphere her classroom had acquired and wanted to know what was wrong. TJ silently thanked anyone listening that his former friends, though those two words only enhanced his pain, had stuck to their promise and just said that they'd had a fight. Though he wasn't sure whether they weren't saying anything because they promised not to or because they were worried how his news getting out would affect their own reputations.
When the school day finally ended, TJ stayed back in the class for a few extra minutes with Gus by his side before heading towards the bike rack, hoping the others would be gone by the time he got there.
"Well at least I won't have to deal with them hating me for a few days." TJ sighed miserably as they exited the front doors. "Thank God for weekends."
"Don't worry Teej." Gus said reassuringly, reaching and unchaining his bike. "I'm sure that they'll eventually come around and if they're really that shallow, then they don't deserve to be your friend anyway."
"Maybe Gus, but that doesn't make it hurt any less." TJ sighed as he grabbed his helmet. "See you later." Gus watched sympathetically as TJ took off for home, pedalling slower than usual so as not to catch up to Spinelli.
There has to be some way that I can help him. Gus thought as he turned for his own home. But what can I do besides be there for him?
Mr and Mrs Detweiler saw something was wrong the minute they got home that evening. The bloodshot eyes alone were more than enough to tell. Add the miserable expression, the lack of Senior Fusion comics and the fact that he was sitting on with his bed with his knees brought to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. They tried repeatedly to get him to talk to them, but all he did was sob as another bought of tears filled his eyes.
It hadn't changed by the time dinner was on the table. His parents and even Becky shot him worried looks as he merely stared at his plate dejectedly, moving the food from one side to the other.
"Honey, you have to eat." Mrs Detweiler said softly and worriedly. She about to call a psychiatrist. She'd never seen a boy so depressed in her life and she didn't have a clue how it could possibly have happened.
"I'm not really hungry." TJ mumbled, dropping his fork and looking at the ground. His parents weren't sure to be more relieved at finally getting a word out of him or worried about what he'd actually said at that.
Mrs Detweiler was about to respond when he was cut off by the doorbell. "Now that's odd. Who would be coming here at dinner time?" She muttered, leaving the kitchen and heading to the front door. When she opened it, she was shocked to find a tall, blond man in a military uniform before her. "Hello. I believe that you are Mr Griswald right?"
"Correct ma'am, it is a pleasure to officially make your acquaintance." Mr Griswald greeted, raising his hand in salute. "I am here to see if my son Gustav would be able to stay here for a little while. He has informed me that a disagreement occurred within our sons' troop at school today and he felt Mr Detweiler could use his company."
"Hi Mrs Detweiler." Gus greeted quietly, stepping out from behind his father.
"Hello Gus." Mrs Detweiler said, smiling down at him before turning back to his father. "I would be happy to have Gus over. I've never seem TJ nearly this upset, a friend who knows the situation is probably exactly what he needs right now. Would it be alright if he slept over?"
"No problem at all ma'am. Gustav thought you might ask. Private, go and fetch your bag." Mr Griswald said, nodding to Mrs Detweiler while Gus did as told.
"Wow. Gus either knows me better than I thought or the problem is really that bad." Mrs Detweiler mumbled, her happiness at Gus's arrival giving way to her worry again.
"Do not worry too much ma'am, I'm sure my boy can fix him up." Mr Griswald replied as reassuringly as his way of talking could. Saying farewell with a salute, he headed back to his car.
"Well, come on in dear. We're having dinner and there's plenty to go around." Mrs Detweiler said, guiding Gus inside and dumping his bag in the living room. "TJ, you have a visitor staying over." She said happily as they entered the kitchen. His body suddenly tensing didn't go unnoticed by everyone in the room before he slowly turned around in his seat. However, al the tension left his body the instant he saw his friend in the doorway and a small smile crossed his face.
"Hey Gus. What are you doing here?"
"Seeing you Teej, why else would I be here?" Gus smiled, sitting in the vacant seat next the troubled boy and thankfully taking the plate Mrs Detweiler offered him. His smile turning into a small grin, TJ gave Gus a grateful look and finally brought some food to his mouth.
"I'm scared Gus." TJ muttered, staring at his feet as he dropped his comic onto his bed. After dinner, the boys had gone up to TJ's room and attempted to put a dent in the mountain of comics he had stashed away. However, TJ hadn't made it past the first the first speech bubble. Gus hadn't really been paying much attention to the one in his hands either, just making himself appear busy as he waited for TJ to get everything off of his chest.
"I know Teej. This is something new and completely unexpected. Add that to how the gang responded to it, it's only natural for you to be scared."
"Yeah, I know. My fears are fully founded. That's the problem." TJ said as his eyes filled with liquid again. "If anyone else at school finds out, I'll never be able to show my face there again. Everyone will treat me like dirt. And what if my parents find out? They could disown me, leave me out in a gutter somewhere. If this gets out, I could be looking at a life without anyone."
Unknown to those within, Mrs Detweiler was standing just outside of the door, listening intently to their conversation. As TJ finally started talking, she went from relieved to worried, to horrified. Why would she ever throw out her baby boy? She loved him unconditionally. What could possibly have happened that would make him think that for even a second?
"Honey, what are you doing? That's incredibly rude." Mr Detweiler asked softly as he climbed the stairs, frowning at his wife.
"Come on now dear, TJ hasn't responded to a single thing we've said to him. This is the only way we're going to find out anything at this point." She responded defensively. "Besides, I'm glad I am doing this. I still don't have a clue what the problem is, but it's got TJ in such a bad state that he thinks we may even throw him out because of it."
"What?" Mr Detweiler gasped, his disapproving look disappearing instantly as fear and concern took its place. "Move over, let me hear too."
"Don't be stupid TJ." Gus stated firmly, causing TJ to whip his head to face him, his eyes wide. "Your parents love you too much to do that to you. They might be a little disappointed, but they'll get over it. And I'm sure there are a few more people like me who are perfectly ok with it in over two hundred kids. I'm mean, it's not like the Government allows them to shoot you on sight or anything. And even if they all do turn their backs on you, you still won't be alone Teej. You have me, and under no circumstances is that going to change."
"It means a lot to me that your by my side and hopeful for my happiness Gus, but how could you possibly be sure?" TJ asked uncertainly. "I mean, let's face it, your dad could be transferred at any time and then I'll lose you. And imagine what King Freddie would do if he found out. He'd have me dragged across the blacktop by wild boars until I reach the seventh grade! And how can you be so sure my parents will be accepting? People have been driven to misery and suicide because of their parent's reactions!"
"Wow, the one time you choose to put in an effort in research." Gus commented, rubbing his temples before wrapping an arm around TJ's shoulders and giving him the gentlest and most reassuring look he was capable of. "TJ, that may be true, but those parents weren't your parents. They only want you to be happy and even if that meant marrying someone with extra limbs, they wouldn't complain about you doing it. You don't have to tell them anything until you're ready, but don't think for a minute that you'll end up on the streets. They'll always stand by you. I promise. And hey, if you ever need it, I can guarantee that you'll always be welcome at my house."
"You seem really confident about my parents." TJ commented nervously. "But what about the other kids? What about king F-"
"Don't be silly Teej. Where would Freddie get wild boars from?" Gus interrupted jokingly, before returning to his previous tone of voice. "I know that there will be at least a few other people who'd support you if this got out and others eventually would too as they get older. Heck, a number of them will find themselves in the same position. This isn't as rare as you thing it is Teej, it's just that a lot of people hide for the same reasons you are. I'll admit that if this gets out, your life won't be anywhere near perfect, but it won't be all doom and gloom either."
"Maybe you're right. And it's not like I have to tell anyone, it's none of their business." TJ responded, calming down. Smiling softly, he pulled Gus into a hug, one that was happily returned. "Thanks Gus."
"Any time. I've always got your back, just like you've always had mine."
The worried and confused looks on Mr and Mrs Detweiler's did not disappear as the boys fell into silence. They couldn't believe that the situation was so bad that TJ of all people would have great fear over the reactions of others, even them. They knew their son, pranks and all, and they knew that there was nothing in the world that he was capable of that would make them stop loving him. This had them stumped.
"What do you think we should do?" Mrs Detweiler asked, fiddling with her fingers as they walked away and into their room. "We know exactly how badly this is worrying TJ now, but we still don't have a clue what the problem is."
"I think we should just make sure he knows that we love him and wait for him to feel comfortable enough to tell us." Mr Detweiler answered, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes. "Gus knows what's going on and seems to be having a decent enough effect of TJ for now and if we try to force this out of him, we may make his issues with our reaction worse. We could ask Gus, but he'll probably refuse to tell us. TJ doesn't want anyone knowing and Gus is a pretty loyal kid."
"Are you sure that's the best thing we can do?"
"Honey, we know our son. Once he goes tight lipped that's it. Let Gus help him through this. He'll tell us if we need to know eventually."
"I guess you're right." Mrs Detweiler sighed in defeat. She hated to admit it, but her husband was right. Even if they went and confronted TJ about it, he'd either clam up like before or spout off a lie so convincing that she'd believe it in an instant. The boy had a silver tongue to go his heart of gold. If she wanted the truth, she'd just have to wait.
The boys spent the rest of the night going back through the comics, playing a couple of board games and racing each other on TJ's Xbox. The previous tension had lightened significantly, and it was sighs of relief that TJ's parents caught the laughter and smiles their son was releasing. A reassuring friend seemed to be all that he needed at the moment and Mrs Detweiler had already called Mrs Griswald to see if Gus could stay until after dinner the next day.
"Boys, it's time for bed." Mrs Detweiler called as TJ cheered, the word winner crossing the TV screen. "Go brush your teeth."
"Ok mom." TJ sighed, turning the game off. He only waited for Gus to grab his toothbrush from his bag before they headed towards the bathroom.
"If those two get any closer, we'll be orchestrating their wedding." Mr Detweiler said jokingly, coming up behind his wife.
"There always was something a little different between their relationship than the others." Mrs Detweiler replied, listening to the chuckles coming down the stairs. "I think it's because Gus is so sensitive and low on confidence. It's TJ's instinct to help and protect him as much as possible."
"And now their roles have reversed." Mr Detweiler commented. "Gus has stepped up. TJ's lucky to have made such a good friend."
"So who would you rather meet, Big Foot or Count Dracula?" TJ asked as they exited his bathroom.
"That's easy, Big Foot. It would be a really cool experience and with his lopsided feet, he'd be easier to run away from." Gus answered, grabbing his Pyjamas and getting changed. TJ was a little surprised that Gus was willing to do such a thing in front of him. Gus was admittedly a little uncomfortable with it, but that was due to him disliking the idea of undressing in front of anyone. However, he decided to do it as another little thing that would help ensure TJ that he didn't mind TJ's discovery at all. TJ seemed to have gotten the message, but being thorough didn't hurt. "Aren't you going to get changed?" He asked as he looked up and saw TJ still staring at him in surprise, grinning as TJ shook his head.
"Oh yeah." He muttered a little embarrassedly, grabbing his own pj's. He was just doing up the last button on his shirt when a knock on the door heralded the entrance of his mother.
"Hey boys, we've run into a bit of a snag. Apparently, the spare mattress was left out when I had your father clean it and the rain and our neighbour's dog got to it. It would have been nice to have known before." She muttered to herself, staring back down the hall. "So I hope you two don't mind sharing TJ's bed?"
"Don't worry mom, I'll just go sleep on the cou-"
"I have no problem with that." Gus interrupted, surprising TJ again and not sure if he was amused or tired of the wide eyed look.
"Great. Goodnight boys." Mrs Detweiler said warmly as she turned and left the room, turning off the light and closing the door behind her.
"You really don't mind sharing a bed with me?" TJ asked softly as Gus gently guided him to it and pulled back the blankets.
"Well, you're not going to kick me in your sleep are you?" Gus asked jokingly, climbing in as TJ hesitantly followed him. "Teej, you're a perfectly decent person. What are you gonna try to do? In fact, other than kiss me, what do you even know how to do?"
"Good point." TJ snorted, climbing in. "I just wanted to make sure. I mean, if you were gay like me-"
"I'd have the greatest catch in all of Third Street School." Gus smiled, nudging TJ playfully. "Though, it would be weird dating someone who's basically like a big brother to me."
"Thanks Gus." TJ said appreciatively. He never knew he held that kind of position with Gus, but now that he thought about it, he was right. TJ had always protected him when he needed it, helped gently guide him to the right decision when he had a big problem and always did whatever he could to make Gus happy. In turn, Gus had always had TJ's best interest at heart. He had a heart of gold as great as TJ's and had risked himself more than once solely for TJ's benefit. Though about the same age, he was like a little brother to him too, though now, he was starting to step up to equal terms.
As a big yawn interrupted his thoughts, he decided that reflection could wait till later and gave Gus one more soft smile before closing his eyes. "Good night Gus."
"Night Teej." Gus replied softly before placing his glasses on the dresser and following TJ into unconsciousness.
Despite all of his new issues, TJ had the time of his life over the weekend. Ignoring the glares he got as he passed Spinelli's house, he headed to the park with Gus and messed around until they were both on the ground either exhausted or laughing. By that time, he'd have forgotten all of his worries. Gus made sure of that. Any time TJ looked like his worries were catching up to him, Gus quickly diverted his attention elsewhere.
As TJ was dealing with his issues, Gus was changing too. The blond had not only stepped up in confidence and protectiveness, but his athletic capability had quickly grown. One of the ways he helped TJ forget his problems was to get him helping with his kicking. Already fast from running from bullies and the best at catching and dodging, he proved to be an amazing kickball player in only a couple hours of decent practice. He still couldn't kick a ball nearly as well as TJ could, but he was still perfectly decent and three times better than before. Seeing the improvement, TJ soon decided to help him more with soccer too, helping him develop his control of the ball. Gus returned the favour by teaching TJ the basics to playing guitar, a perfect distraction as it was something completely knew to TJ and required a lot of focus, meaning no wandering thoughts. It wasn't until Monday that his fear and sadness returned.
Accepting a ride to school from his dad over riding his bike, he avoided the bike rack where Vince and Gretchen had already arrived and sat beside the cannon, waving to Corn Chip Girl as she went by.
"Hey Teej, sleep well?" Startled, TJ turned around to find Gus leaning on the cannon, smiling happily down at him.
"Oh, hey Gus." TJ sighed, calming himself down. "Not really. I woke up too early and couldn't get the possibilities out of my head."
Gus could only nod sympathetically. TJ had panicked over every worst scenario plenty of times and as TJ had pointed out, there was no way that Gus could ensure him that everything would be ok with the rest of the old group knowing his secret. After all, they had broken promises of secrecy before. The kissing experiment was the perfect example. So Gus did the only thing he ever could in that situation: distract him from it.
"Hey, did you see that old movie on TV last night? It was about a giant dinosaur named Reptar taking on a cyborg snail."
"Yeah, it was pretty cool." TJ nodded, his eyes gaining a spark they only got when he was excited about a monster or superhero. "I really liked the part where Reptar slid on that slim Robosnail spat up and used it to go into a sliding tackle. I've gotta try that. But with water, mucus is bit too gross."
"I'm going to the video store after school. Apparently, there's a lot of movies on Reptar and I wanna see them all. Wanna watch them with me?" Gus asked just as the bell rang.
"Yeah, I'd love to. Now let's get moving. The last thing we need is to be late for class. Miss Finster will kill us."
"What else is new?" Gus retorted with a grin, but followed TJ as he brushed the grass off of his clothes and ran into the building. He slowed down however, and his face turned sad as they reached their classroom. Gus immediately saw why and stiffened angrily. Vince and Spinelli were glaring disgustedly at him while Mikey and Gretch were clearly ignoring his existence.
TJ was ready to cry when he saw them. He'd hoped with a few days at least Mikey would change his mind about him, but it was clear that that was not going to happen. Barely aware that Gus was hovering protectively by his side, TJ walked in and sat at his desk which was unfortunately between Vince's and Spinelli's.
"Alright class, I've got a treat for you today. A pop quiz. HA!" Miss Finster cackled, dropping the usual pile of test papers on her desk. "Today there are fifty questions to answer, all word problems. So let's get to it shall we?"
The class was even harder than usual with four sets of intense stares directed at him every few minutes. One from Miss Finster, waiting for him to do something she could punish him for, two more from Vince and Spinelli looking at him with scowls and disgust and the fourth one, though it gave him a sense of reassurance as opposed to nervousness or sadness, was Gus's worried and sympathetic glances from behind him. When recess finally arrived, he leapt out of his seat and, completely ignoring Miss Finster's angry voice shouting at him for it, ran as fast as he could to and out the door to the playground. Sighing at the momentary peace, he walked along the building wall and sat down next to the kindergartener's fence. It was mere moments later that the excited kids followed him out and played on the playground, all of them completely happy and carefree.
The moments surrounded by the other kids, any one of them potentially knowing his secret if the others blabbed were almost as tense for TJ as the classroom had been and only let up as Gus exited the building and found him.
"You're not planning to just sit there all recess are you?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Have you got a better idea that keeps me away from the others?" TJ asked smartly, wincing the instant the words came out of his mouth. "Sorry Gus, I didn't mean to sound so mean."
"It's ok, I understand." Gus shrugged it off before grabbing TJ's arm and pulling him to his feet. "How about we grab a ball and go to the dodge ball wall? The others never go there and you could help some more with my kicking."
"Yeah, ok. A better plan than anything I can come up with." TJ nodded and led the way to where Randall was handing out the balls. However, by the time they got there, Vince was the only person still collecting one.
"Oh great, I would have to run into you." Vince scowled as he turned around, his eyeing TJ distastefully. "Don't think for a second that I'm gonna let you play kickball with us." Randall's presence and acquiring a ball was completely forgotten as TJ bit his lip and looked down at the ground, his eyes squeezing shut as he tried desperately not to cry. "Oh look, you're a baby now too. Go spray the waterworks to someone who might actually care."
"Shut up jerk." Vince tensed for a second at the low, shilling voice before turning to glare at Gus. That tone was still so unfamiliar coming from Gus and as memories of the threat that came his way the last and only time he heard it before, it was only because he was in between the only possible weapons and the blond that he didn't run away. "We have no interest at even looking at you, let alone playing with you. You're the one that started this conversation, not us. Now do us a favour and get lost."
"Why would you give up all of your friends and stand up for someone like HIM?" Vince snarled, leaning his face into Gus's personal face. "If I had to guess, I'd say you're a fag too." As soon as the words came out, he knew he'd said the wrong thing. Fire burned in Gus's eyes as he heard a choked sob from TJ and his face went red with rage. Faster than Vince could see, Gus's hands lashed out, grabbed the front of his shirt and forcefully shoved Vince onto his knees, his face not even an inch away from Gus's.
"Never and I mean never call him that again." He hissed venomously, causing Vince to gulp in fear. "I may not be like Teej, but I stood beside him because I'm a good friend and he's always been a good friend to everyone he meets. If you were in his position, he would still be by your side, yet you and your friends treat him like dirt and as far as I'm concerned, people like that aren't worth my time. That's why I'm by his side. Because he is a better person than you could ever hope to be and so am I. Now get OUT OF MY FACE!" With that, he shoved Vince to the ground, snatched a ball from the basket and wrapped an arm around TJ, guiding him gently away as the tears poured down his face again. Shaken and embarrassed that Gus of all people had been able to do that to him, Vince grabbed the ball he dropped and headed towards the kickball field, determined to redeem himself in his mind. None of them took any notice of Randall.
"Moist. This is the biggest scoop in the history of the playground. If I tell Miss Finster, I could have both Vince and Gus in detention for their behaviour, but then she'd tell me not to tell anyone why they'd been fighting. However," He cackled, rubbing his hands together. "If I tell the Ashleys, the entire school will find out in no time. And I can always report to Miss Finster later. Hehehe, TJ, after I'm done, you won't be able to set foot on the playground ever again." Laughing darkly, he grabbed the ball basket and put it away before heading off to the Ashley's clubhouse.
It took all of recess and a lot of kicking a ball while imagining it was Vince's head for TJ to calm down. He was hoping over the weekend that the situation would die down a bit, but Vince had, if anything, gotten even worse. He even managed to make Gus of all people act like Spinelli! Now that was a scary thought.
Hopefully the lunch break will go by easier. He thought sadly as the bell rang and he headed back to class while Gus returned the ball. As he walked through the halls, staring at the ground, he didn't notice fowl looks pointed his way or that the cruel laughter of the Ashleys was directed his way, along with their pointing fingers. That is, until he got to class and found everyone inside staring at him either as if they had something foul underneath their noses or like they could understand or believe something he said or did. It took only a second to figure out why. They...they found out somehow. But how...did Vince get mad and tell them? His face turned pale and he visibly shook as he walked to his desk. His reaction to them seemed to confirm what they'd been told as they all began whispering and none of it sounded good. Some didn't even bother to keep their voices down as TJ past them.
"Look at him. He's pale as a sheet. It has to be true."
"How disgusting."
"I always thought he was a freak, but this is a new low."
"I caught him looking at me the other day. I'm creeping out."
"Oh you poor boy. Don't worry, we'll keep the disgusting boy away from you."
The more he heard, the more he shook and by the time he'd made it to his desk, he almost fell down. His vision turned blurry as his eyes pooled and cried again, dropping his head on his crossed arms. This only caused the class to talk more, adding new insults into their lines. TJ considered running, but it was at that moment that Miss Finster entered the room.
"Alright, all of you QUIET!" She shouted, effectively shutting everyone up as Gus and Spinelli, the last two people to enter the room, headed to their seats, glaring at each other the whole way. TJ had never felt or even known that he could feel this appreciative of Miss Finster as he did at that moment. She had put an instant halt to the personal attack. However the damage had already been done. And as the glares and disgusted looks never left his back, the pain only continued to get worse.
As Miss Finster turned to right on the blackboard, a ball of paper struck TJ in the head, the sudden impact causing his head to whip up as the paper fell on his desk before him. His hands shaking worse than an earthquake, he opened the paper and had to bite his lip so hard that it bled to stop the agonised sob from leaving his throat. On the middle of the sheet was a picture of him, recognisable by the red hat, tied to a burning stake like a witch. Around the picture was every word that could possibly be thrown at him and cause pain. Fag, disgusting, freak, sinner, filth and many more.
He couldn't take it. What was left of his fragile world had been completely shattered and his hopes of anything getting better were snuffed out. Dropping the paper, he jumped out of his seat and shot out the door, completely ignoring Miss Finster's voice barking for him to come back. He could barely see as tears poured like waterfalls down his face, but he never stopped running. Charging the door at the end of the hallway, he burst through it and out onto the playground. Even then, he never slowed down, he just ran towards and through the trees. It wasn't until he reached the old, abandoned playground that he finally stopped, collapsing face first onto the grass. He didn't care that he had a mouthful of dirt. He didn't care that his nose was aching from where it was stuck between the hard ground and the weight of his head. He just laid there and cried for the friends he'd lost and the looks of hatred and disgust he'd gained.
"Detweiler! Where do you think you're going? Come back here." Miss Finster shouted, running to the door. The rest of the class took advantage of her distraction to talk about what just happened.
Nothing that reached Gus's ears was good and once again, he was tempted to do a Spinelli, only this time on everyone in the class, including Spinelli herself. Grinding his teeth, he ignored them as he got to his feet and walked up to TJ's desk to see what had caused such a reaction.
His eyes widened in horror as he looked at the paper. It was no surprise that Teej had run. The most optimistic person in the world would have broken down at the sight of this. His horror turning into a blind rage a moment later and with the last remaining pieces of his rational mind, he focused on one word. Recognising the handwriting, he turned to the culprit: the cackling Ashley B.
"How dare you." He said lowly and venomously, turning to yellow clad girl. Turning to him, she went to respond with pride in herself, but like Vince and the others before her, she found her breath leaving her and she shook in fear at the deadly look crossing the blond boy's face.
"You think you're so special because of who your parents are. You think your good fortune gives you the right to attack others." He continued, his voice becoming louder and more venomous. Every student in the class had turned to him by this point, shocked at who was speaking in such a way and terrified by it at the same time. Even Miss Finster was shocked into silence. "You and your group of twits are possibly the most despicable, pathetic lowlifes I have ever had the misfortune to meet, only comparable to the four pieces of scum I once called friends. I don't care who you think you are cow, if you EVER do something like this to TJ again, or anything for that matter, I WILL KICK YOU PATHETIC ASS ALL THE WAY TO HELL!"
"Griswald!" Miss Finster cried, caught between shock and outrage at his behaviour as Ashley B shook underneath his hate-filled glare, her dark skin turning whiter than his. "What is the meaning of this? You're looking at detention for two weeks with that horrible speech!" Giving Ashley B one more long, venomous look, Gus stomped up to Miss Finster, grabbed her hand and thrust the paper into it. "As the rest of the school now knows, and when I find out who felt like blabbing I'm going to make sure they wish they were never born, TJ is gay. The entire class is ridiculing him and Ashley B was despicable enough to throw this at him." As Miss Finster looked down and screamed in disgust at what she saw, Gus walked right out of the door and after TJ. He didn't care how much trouble he got into, or hearing Miss Finster screech at Ashley B and the rest of the class for what they'd done. His friend needed him and right now, that was all he cared about.
It took a while for Gus to find TJ. He'd searched the entire school and came up with nothing before the abandoned playground crossed his mind. When it finally did, he mentally kicked himself. It was a place that was constantly deserted and completely out of sight. The perfect place for TJ to hide.
Knocking away branches, he trudged right through the school's most rugged terrain to the open field filled with broken play equipment and almost cried. There laid TJ, still face down on the ground and not moving an inch.
"Teej, TJ, are you ok? Come on, answer me." He cried, running to his friend's side. Gently rolling him onto his back, he sighed in relief as he noticed TJ's breathing pattern an discerned that he'd just cried himself to sleep.
"Oh Teej." Gus sighed sympathetically, wiping away the dirt sticking to his face. Not knowing what he could possibly do to help him now, with everyone knowing his secret and proving his fears to be accurate, he just let him sleep, promising that he'd be there for him when he woke up.
The distant laughter of kids was the first thing to cross TJ's senses as he groaned, slowly opening his dazed eyes. The oblivious moment after waking up felt like bliss to TJ and despite his confusion as to why he was sleeping on the grass, he felt a desperate need to hold on to the half asleep state. However, as usual, it proved to be a futile attempt as the events of the day crashed brutally through his moment of bliss and tears once again threatened to fall down his tearstained face.
"Hey Teej." A soft voice said as a comforting hand landed on his shoulder. Looking up he found himself staring at a sadly grinning Gus and immediately sat up and grabbed him like a lifeline, shaking profusely. "It's ok TJ. I'm here and I'm not alone either." Gus said reassuringly, nodding his head to the side as he returned the hug.
Looking up, TJ's mouth fell open as his eyes found Corn Chip Girl, Hector and Butch sitting nearby, all staring at him with sadness or sympathy.
"What are you guys doing here?" He asked, sniffling.
"It was easy to figure out where'd you go. After all, with all the stories I know about, I can predict just about anyone's reaction to anything." Butch shrugged indifferently, though still not managing to hide his pity for TJ.
"I helped kidnapped you here a couple of times, remember?" Hector said with a grin.
"And I noticed Gus coming here from the window during class." Cornchip Girl finished. "We all wanted to make sure that you were ok."
"And to warn about what's going on." Butch added lowly, for the first time wishing that he didn't have to provide the warning. After all, this was far worse than a paper fortune teller or even kissing.
"W-what do you mean? What's going on?" TJ stuttered, already having an idea.
"TJ, after we got separated on the way back to class, I noticed that everyone I passed was... talking badly about you." Gus said hesitantly, staring at the grass. "They were talking about excluding you from everything along with... other things. Like that note."
"But it gets worse." Butch continued, causing TJ's heart to drop even further. "Some of the kids want to punish you for this and they consider the dodge ball wall to only be a starting point. I've heard the most horrific plans a kid can think of, flushing your head in the girl's bathroom, giving you to the Kindergarteners, even stripping you and hanging you from the flag pole. And to make it worse, King Freddie has agreed to all of it."
"What?" TJ gasped, wide eyed and terrified. He'd never heard of anyone ever been treated so horribly in the history of the school and from the look on his face, neither had Butch. And if the king was in on it too, then the entire school would hunt him relentlessly. It was amazing that no hostiles had looked for him here yet.
"Yep. King Freddie has decreed that you are to be taken to him to start your punishment immediately. And anyone who assists you or refuses to hand you in to him shall share your fate." Butch sighed, taking the tooth pick out of his mouth. TJ's heart rate increased so much at that that he thought it would exploded. This was cruel beyond imagination. And to make it worse, the others could have to go through it too. Staring around the clearing, his eyes met the sad and scared ones of everyone else and felt both gratitude and fear for them. The four of them were still by his side and risking a fate worse than death to a kid for him. They had to be the bravest and most loyal people he'd ever met.
"That's why more people aren't with us." Hector stated sadly. "Sticky, Tubby, Jake and other first graders think that kissing people is gross, but they still like you."
"So do the pale kids. I ran into a couple of them." Cornchip Girl added with a nod. "But they won't come to see you.
"That's because they are too scared to stand up against the rest of the school." Butch sighed. "Those who are willing to get over it don't want to be targeted by the rest of the school, so they are hiding amongst them. They'll probably even help turning you in if they find you with someone else."
"But you guys are here, risking everything for me. Thank you." TJ stated, giving them a small smile, surprising even himself that he could. After all, the situation looked really bleak. Seeing this, the others could only grin back.
"Of course we are. You're a good kid and you've done plenty for ever kid on the playground. Gay or not, you should have someone by your side." Butch replied, fiddling with his toothpick. "But now you need to decide what you're going to do. Unless this situation is resolved, there will be absolutely nothing this small group will be able to do against a whole playground."
"You're right. But what can I do?" TJ asked miserably, tightening his hold on Gus again.
"There is no way you'll change the whole school's mind on this. Staying here is a really bad idea." Gus responded sadly. Taking a deep breath and preparing himself for TJ's response he continued very firmly. "You're going to have to tell your parents and have them deal with the situation."
"WHAT?" TJ screamed, pulling away from Gus and staring at him incredulously. "More people find out about my secret and it ruins everything and your answer t it is to tell even more people? And of all people, my parents? Them taking it badly is the only way that this could get any worse."
"And you telling them what's happened and why is your only chance of this getting better." Gus responded firmly, leaving no room for argument. "With all of the kids finding out, I have no doubt that the adults will too. The teachers are no doubt already aware and one way or another, this is going to reach your parents' ears. It'll be better if it comes from you first and that way something can done to save you from this before the kids can do anything to you. They might be sad at first when you tell them Teej, but they will accept it. I promise. Your parents are too loving not too. Becky too, even if she won't admit it."
"Gus is right TJ. They are the only ones that can help you." Cornchip Girl agreed, Hector and Butch nodding behind her.
Looking from each face, TJ knew that it was the only possible route, even if it was one they knew he didn't want to tread. But alas, he had no choice.
"I guess you're right." He sighed, his eyes watering again as he turned back to Gus. "I'll do it tonight. But I'll need you there Gus. There's no way that I'll get through this on my own."
Gus sighed in relief at that, glad that he didn't have to fight his point across anymore before nodding with a warm smile. "Sure Teej. Not a problem."
The group just sat there for the rest of the break, listening as Butch told them stories from his brother's time at Third Street School. Some made them laugh, others shake in fear, but all of them had his desired affect and made TJ forget his issues, if only for a while. When the bell rang, much too soon for TJ's taste, they waited a few minutes before heading in, to ensure that none saw where they'd been hiding and to limit the verbal assaults on TJ. Saying their goodbyes, they headed towards their classes.
When they entered their room, Miss Finster didn't say a word to them, either about their tardiness or their disappearance, something that shocked both of them considerably. The students continued to send disgusted looks at TJ, but whether from Gus's threat or Miss Finster saying something after he left, all of them kept their mouths shut. As they took their seats, Gus smirked at the empty desk to his left, getting a strong sense of satisfaction at clearly getting Ashley B suspended.
TJ just took his seat and kept his head down. He said nothing as Miss Finster started the lesson and just wrote the words she wanted them to learn spelling in his book, praying that everything would be ok when he told his parents that night. And that they could somehow end his nightmare.