Chapter Three:
My classes were boring. My teachers were boring. Everyone here was boring. I was beginning to wonder whether coming to St. Helens was a good idea. The only good thing about this blasted place was that since I had been in an advanced English course back home in London, I was too far past the grade 11 curriculum here and since they didn't allow grade 11 students taking grade 12 courses, my last period class was a spare – which I used to go home early.
My morning was painful. After Science, I was dying of boredom, but added to that was Math, which ultimately made me decide that this was the most boring school ever. However, after that period was lunch. I was quite thankful for that.
"Hey Arthur!" a voice said cheerfully behind me. I turned around to see a tall blonde pixie beaming at me. I recognized her; she had been in my math class. People walked by her, jostling her to the side because they couldn't see her. I didn't want to reply. It was my first day – I didn't want to seem like a lunatic already.
"Err – hello… Michelle?" I muttered, holding my hand to my ear in an attempt to look like I was talking on the phone. "Sorry, I'm not good with names," I added quickly.
Michelle shook her head. "No, you got it right! How do you like your first day of school so far?" she asked, floating so that the ending of her skirt was right in my eye level.
"It's ok I guess," I said, shrugging. Michelle burst out laughing as if I had said the funniest thing ever.
"You're so cute! I'll see you in the cafeteria!" She cooed, zooming off. It was good that I had possibly made a new friend, but Michelle was far too optimistic and bubbly for my likes. Plus, she seemed like she had taken a fancy to me. She was nice and all, but I really didn't like girls in that way [especially when they were pixies]. I just didn't understand them.
I wandered around the hallways, emptying by the moment, attempting to find the cafeteria. I should've just followed Michelle – finding the cafeteria was becoming hopeless. I was ready to just sit down where I was standing and eat my lunch on the floor.
"Hello. Are you lost?" a voice said from behind me. I turned around to see a short boy – or were they a girl? It was hard to tell – their black hair ended just at their earlobes. They had eyes that were hard to read; they were deep and seemed monochromatic.
"Err – yes. I'm new here. My name's Arthur Kirkland," I said, sticking my hand out for a handshake.
The person bowed slightly, nodding. I retracted my hand, not knowing how to react to their response. "I am Kiku Honda. But you may call me Kiku," Kiku replied. Kiku. It wasn't a guy's name – or a girl's name as far as I knew. It would be rude to ask them for their gender, so I just decided to let it be. I could find out later some other way. "Are you looking for the cafeteria?" they asked me.
I nodded. "Well, first, I was planning to go to the washroom, but I can't seem to find that either…" I murmured, looking around. "How does anyone find anything here?" I joked half-heartedly. Kiku shrugged.
"Force of habit," they suggested, already walking in a new direction. Not wanting to get left behind, I followed hastily.
"What grade are you in?" I asked. I hadn't seen Kiku in any of my classes so far.
"Grade 11. And you?" they replied.
"Same here," I replied. There was a silence. It wasn't really an awkward silence, and I was glad of that. I wasn't the type who liked talking and I could tell Kiku wasn't either.
"Here is the washroom," they said, pushing open the door to the boy's washroom and walking in. I guess Kiku's a guy then. I followed him in.
"So is this school always so boring?" I asked him, as I walked into a nearby urinal. Kiku waited by the sinks.
"I suppose so. I don't find it that boring. School is tedious… but it prepares us for our life ahead, so it is necessary," Kiku replied. After flushing, I joined him at the sinks to wash my hands.
"I guess so… but I think I could do without math, don't you think?" I joked. Kiku stared at me incomprehensively. I guess suggesting that math sucks to an Asian wasn't the smartest of my ideas.
After drying my hands, I followed him towards the cafeteria. It was easy having Kiku with me; not only did he help me find my way throughout the school, but he was a friend without having to try. I didn't have to do anything to become friends with him – it just happened.
"This is the cafeteria," Kiku announced only a minute later. It seemed to be close by to where I had been when we first met. Figures that I wouldn't be able to find the cafeteria.
"Thanks, err… could I-" I began.
"ARTHUR! ARTHUR COME SIT HEREEEEE!" a voice called out. Michelle.
"Would you like to join us?" I asked Kiku, not wanting to ditch him like that.
"Us?" he asked curiously.
"Me and Michelle," I replied, pointing. Michelle was sitting beside a boy wearing all blue who I recognized from my science class. He was clearly not a pixie.
"That's Peter – there is no Michelle in our grade," Kiku replied, mystified. I rolled my eyes.
"That's because you can't see them. Oh well; want to join us anyways?" I asked.
"Ok. I usually sit with Peter," Kiku replied. "Thank you for the invitation."
"Err—you're welcome," I replied, walking to the table with Michelle and Peter.
"This is Arthur!" Michelle said enthusiastically to Peter. Peter seemed to be hanging onto every word. Peter was a rather small boy. He seemed to be one of those boys who hadn't been visited by Lady Puberty just yet.
"Hullo," Peter said, smiling at me. The moment Michelle turned her back to talk to someone else, Peter's smile faded.
"Peter, were you talking to the air again?" Kiku asked. "I am very worried for your sanity."
"I was talking to Michelle! She's a pixie!" Peter insisted. "Arthur can see her so that means I'm not crazy, right?" he shot at me. I nodded.
"Only a few people can see pixies – I've given up trying to explain myself. So, sorry if you can't see them, but they're there," I replied.
"Yea and - oh no," Peter said, looking past me in horror. I turned around in confusion. Kiku grabbed my shirt.
"Don't turn around!" he said quietly.
"Why not?" I asked.
"Just don't. Wait," he replied.
"Why can't I turn around?" I asked confused. What could possibly be freaking out Peter and Kiku like that?
"Because you might make eye contact with him," Peter hissed, averting his eyes.
"Him?" I asked, shaking Kiku's grip on me and turning around.
A tall boy with small blonde curls framing his face, the rest of his long golden hair tied in a messy ponytail effortlessly walked into the cafeteria. It was almost as if the room had gotten quieter with his entrance. It was easy to figure out though; he was breathtakingly gorgeous.
His dark blue eyes met with my green eyes and my stomach leaped. His eyes read interest… then confusion… and then anger.
An even taller blonde boy with slicked back hair pushed him forwards, leading him to an empty table. The boy broke his gaze from me and turned away. The second boy glanced at me quickly before joining the other.
A shorter more cheerful boy with light brown hair and an odd curl sticking out from the side of his head joined them, sitting beside the second boy and cheerfully chatting to him. Or rather, chatting at him. The second boy seemed like the type who preferred to listen, than to talk.
A brown haired boy with an odd curl jutting out around his forehead area, not unlike the curl of the boy who had arrived prior to his entrance, stomped through the doors towards their table, wrenching his hand out of another boy's hand, who was taller and had a seemingly perpetual smile on his face. There didn't seem to be any girls at the table, yet it was obvious that the second blonde and the boy with the side curl as well as the last two boys were couples.
"Who are they?" I asked, turning back to my new friends.
"They're the Paye kids. They're kinda… weird… if you get my drift," Peter said, lowering his voice even though there was no reason to; the boys were sitting too far for us to even hear a word of what we were discussing.
"No… I don't get your drift – what the bloody hell are you talking about?" I hissed. Peter blinked at me in shock. I had forgotten the reason why I never had any friends. "Sorry, bad habit," I murmured.
"Ok, so see that tall kinda menacing looking dude and that short one? They're a couple," Peter said, stating what to me seemed like the obvious.
"So?" I asked. I still didn't get what Peter was getting at.
"You aren't explaining it correctly Peter," Kiku said quietly. "Dr. Paye and his wife adopted Francis, Ludwig and Antonio – that's the first two blondes and the last boy – when they were really young. Then when Dr. Paye's sister died, she left Feliciano and Lovino behind – those are the boys with the curls – so he and his wife decided to take them in as foster children," Kiku explained.
"Wait… so they are all technically brothers?" I asked incredulously.
"Yup – not only are they gay but they're like, doing incest!" Peter added.
"What's wrong with gay people?" I asked feeling oddly offended. I myself didn't have anything against gay people.
"Ignore him – he's just mad that Francis never paid much attention to him," Kiku reassured. Peter pouted, looking more and more like a child by the second.
"I sit right in front of him in Spanish class – the least he could do is say hi," he muttered to himself.
"But I still don't get it," I continued, moving on from Peter's failed love life back to the previous topic. "Apart from the incest, why are they weird?"
"They aren't weird," Kiku insisted, "They just prefer to isolate themselves from everyone else."
"You don't find that weird?" Peter asked.
"No… some people prefer to be alone," Kiku replied quietly.
"Which one is the blonde with the ponytail?" I asked Kiku. I wanted to know which one had stared at me, give a name to that odd sensation that had occurred in my stomach as a result.
"That's Francis," Kiku replied. He and Peter exchanged a look. "Why do you ask?"
"He was staring at me a while back…" I said.
"He stares at everyone like the pervert he is," Peter said but a look from Kiku silenced from saying further.
"I suggest you don't associate with him. Francis is very… flirtatious. It's almost like he has a telepathic sense of who finds him attractive, and then will make advances to them. After successfully capturing his prey and being satisfied, he will move onto his next 'victim'," Kiku advised.
"You make him sound like he's a monster," I noted with surprise. The beautiful boy with entrancing blue eyes did not look like a monster. Something in me wanted me to believe that he therefore wasn't one.
"The way he goes after girls and boys makes one assume he is like one in that sense," Kiku replied.
I turned my head slightly, trying to catch a glimpse of Francis without full out turning around and staring at him.
To my surprise, he was staring back. I felt my cheeks burn and looked away. There was nothing friendly about that look in his eyes.
"Whoa, Arthur – Francis is giving you the look of death right about now," Peter said, stating the obvious.
"What did I do to him?" I asked.
"I don't know. I've never seen Francis look so mad before," Kiku murmured.
Lovely. Just lovely. My first day at school and I've already pissed off one of the school freaks! What next –run over a teacher with my truck?
Ring! The bell sounded, signifying the end of lunch. I blinked and stood up, realizing I hadn't eaten anything yet. I hastily stuffed my sandwich into my mouth and silently followed Kiku and Peter out of the cafeteria.
"How are you able to digest that?" Peter asked in horror. I know my sandwiches don't look very appetizing, but it was no reason for him to imply that my sandwiches were disgusting! They always tasted delicious to me. I pretended not to hear Peter's question.
"What class do you have next?" Kiku asked me. I swallowed quickly, nearly choking.
I frowned. "Err… history I think," I said, not very sure. Kiku nodded.
"As do I. Come, I'll take you there," Kiku said, leading me in the opposite direction than where Peter was going. We bid farewell to the boy and made our way towards the history classroom. I was looking rather forward for history – I always found it interesting and considered myself a bit of a historian. I knew Britain's history inside and out.
"Mr. Provence? We have a new student," Kiku said to the teacher as he entered the room. I wished he hadn't done that; it brought unnecessary attention to me. Kiku, Peter and Michelle oddly hadn't commented on my eyebrows but I knew that the moment it was noticed I'd be made fun of. It wasn't something new for me but… I didn't want to beat up another kid and get into trouble again.
"Do we? Ah yes… Kirkland is it? Yes, I was notified by the office that you would be in my class. Come in and introduce yourself," Mr. Provence said, motioning for me to come in. I did so, glancing into the class as I did. There were your regular teenaged students sitting at the front of the classroom, pixies sitting together in a group at the back, unable to be seen by the rest of the class – presumably the teacher as well.
That's when I saw him. Sitting near the back, his legs propped up on the table, was Francis Paye. He did have a certain flirtatious charm to him; I noted as he winked at random girls in the classroom and beamed at their reactions. He was obviously very popular with the ladies – and the men – because after all, who could resist those entrancing blue eyes, that soft golden hair and the stubble that lined his chin, making him look like he just woke up gorgeous one day?
I froze. Did I just think that about another guy? Another guy, who seemed to have a certain hatred for me? I shook myself mentally and focused my gaze on the wall. Evidently he hadn't noticed me yet.
"Err. Hello. My name is Arthur Kirkland. I just moved here," I said awkwardly, looking around the classroom. No one seemed to be listening, most just staring at me with a vacant look. My eyes fell on Francis again. This time however, he had noticed me.
It was definitely hate in those dark eyes that I saw, shining fiercely at me. But there was something else too. Something like… fear? I smiled to myself. To think that this boy would be scared of me was just as laughable as the thought he'd have a hatred for me.
"Welcome Mr. Kirkland. You may take your seat," Mr. Provence said, sitting down at his desk. I glanced around for Kiku but noticed he already sat down next to another student. There was no empty seat left. Except for one next to Francis, who wasn't paying attention to me anymore. I gulped. Would I really have to sit next to him?
"Mr… Provence? There are no more seats," I pointed out, in an effort to avoid sitting next to Francis. I half-hoped that he'd notice my discomfort and make me pull up another chair beside Kiku but half hoped that I'd be put beside him…
"Yes, there is, there's one right there, beside Mr. Paye," Mr. Provence said, pointing to the seat on the right of Francis. It was a peculiar feeling. My heart sank in disappointment yet my stomach lurched in excitement. A part of me wanted to sit next to him, find out why he hated me so much. The other just wanted to stay clear of him.
"Thank you sir," I grumbled, walking towards the seat as if it were my impending doom.
Francis did not acknowledge my arrival, nor did he turn his head or bat an eyelash as I sat beside him. I wondered if I had smelt weird. No, that couldn't be right. I had sprayed myself with Axe. And as the commercials say, that always attracted people – not repel them.
Class wore on. It was obvious that it was meant to be a work period. I busied myself by reading a book I had taken with me from home. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. I had read it more than 5 times but it had yet to disappoint me.
But for the first time ever, I was not able to become fully engaged in Pip's adventures. Every so often, from my peripheral vision, I would see Francis glance at me with an odd expression on his face. Hunger? What type of hunger? Perhaps Kiku was right, and Francis somehow found out that I found him attractive. Was I to become his newest victim? But why had he stared at me with hatred when we first saw each other? The tension was beginning to irk me.
"Why are you staring at me?" I hissed at him. Francis's head sharply turned to face me again, looking confused.
"When was I staring at you?" he asked. He had a slight French accent. Oh great, a Frenchie. I disliked French people. Something about them annoyed me.
"Just now. And before. You keep glancing at me and it's pissing me off!" I retorted.
"I think you are confusing yourself. Why would I be staring at you?" Francis replied.
"I don't know; how am I supposed to know why a guy like you would stare at people?" I shot back. Francis blinked, offended.
"Excusez-moi? What is that supposed to mean?" he asked me, defensive.
"I mean that you should stop staring at me and leave me alone!" I exclaimed, the last part coming out a bit loud. The class looked up to stare at me. I could see Kiku staring at me in horror. Francis was glaring at me, the hatred back in his eyes. I glared back at Francis with an equal amount of hatred before turning away and picking up my book. We didn't talk after that; I had fully engrossed myself in Great Expectations and Francis resumed doing whatever the bloody hell he was doing prior to my outburst.
The bell rang not too long later and not surprisingly, Francis was the first one out of the room. Taking my time to put my things away, I walked with Kiku towards the direction of the parking lot.
"Hey Arthur!" a voice called behind us from down the hallway. I turned around. Kiku paused to stare at me in confusion.
"Yes?" I asked as Michelle ran up to me.
"The secretary said to tell you to check into the office to make sure you were alright and stuff on your first day!" Michelle said, "Sorry but I gotta go now – I'll see you in math tomorrow!" she exclaimed over her shoulder as she ran by.
"Goodbye then, I guess," I called out to her. Kiku gave me a concerned look.
"Not you too," Kiku said in horror, "First Peter, and then you… I suggest you go check out your hallucinations before it's too late." I just shook my head. It was best not to reply.
"I have to go to the office – the secretary wants to check up on me," I said, "Care to take me there?"
"How do you know that the secretary asked for you?"
"Michelle told me."
"There is no Michelle…"
"Like I said, she's a pixie and you can't see her. Now are you going to take me to the office or not?" I asked. Kiku nodded and set off, and I obediently followed. It was surprising how although I could be rude to Kiku, he didn't make a rude remark back or stopped talking to me. I liked him for that. He was probably my first real friend.
"I'll wait outside for you," Kiku offered. I nodded my thanks and walked into the office and found the secretary who had requested for me near the back of the office. She asked me if I was ok with everything and I had told her that I was. There was no point mentioning my new animosity towards Francis Paye – it wasn't like she would care anyways.
As I thanked her and turned away, I saw someone heatedly discussing with another secretary about changing their courses.
"I'm afraid we can't change your course to something else – all the classes are full," the secretary said.
"Mon Dieu, I'll take any class that is open – even if it means taking a grade 9 course or whatever! I just don't want to be in that history class!" Francis exclaimed. He looked up in his agitation and saw me. My green eyes locked with his blue. My dislike was reflected in his eyes… but there was something else there. Fear again. Why the bloody hell would he be so scared of me?
I stormed out past Francis without a backwards glance, leaving him to return to debating with the secretary over switching out of history. He really seemed to want to get out of the class.
And I knew that it was because of me.
A/N: Yes, Arthur goes to a school where there are also pixies. Only certain people can see them - most don't. Michelle's an OC I created for this story - she's supposed to represent Mike and Eric. Kiku is Angela - even though in Twilight the girls don't meet until later. Peter is Jessica.
Ah and the Paye boys! Get their last name? It's French - so is Mr. Provence's name.
Review and Francis doesn't get to switch out of the class - meaning he has to stay in Arthur's history class :D