I'm sorry this chapter is kind of short and bad, but I have finals this week so I've been stressing. Anyway, enjoy!
Nat went up to Kevin the next day at school and he plopped down in his seat next to him.
"So I went to talk with Double D last night." Kevin shrugged, a little surprised that he didn't use one of his flirtatious nicknames to describe him.
"Yeah, so?" He asked, not sure why he was being told.
"I asked him a bit about what I saw yesterday morning, and he was pretty quick to talk to me about it. I think he really needs someone to talk to." Kevin shrugged his shoulders.
"Then why don't you go talk to him?" Nat shook his head.
"I don't think the kid likes me too much, I'm a little too much for him, I think. But you on the other hand…"
"Whoa dude, you want me to talk with him?" He sat up, looking at his teal haired friend like he lost his mind.
"Yes. He's gone through a lot with everyone picking on him. Nazz and I are always there for you when you're upset, but he doesn't have anyone. Besides, you knew each other when you were kids, didn't you?"
"Well yeah, but I used to bully him, I doubt I'm the companion he wants."
"Oh, so this is a lack of self-esteem thing." Nat smirked slyly and Kevin groaned.
"I just don't want to do it, dude. He's a nerd and I really don't know a thing about him."
"Well neither do I. And it's not like you have to do a lot of talking, just listen to him. He's got a lot of problems in his mind and he needs to talk about them."
"I'm not his therapist."
"Come on, Kev. I know that it bugs you that he almost did what he did, since whether you like to believe it or not, you were close as kids. So honestly, just eat lunch with him or something. Just sit with him, give him company, someone to talk to if he needs it. How would you feel if everyone in the school hated you? I know, you really have to think hard since everyone in this school is in love with you," He teased. "But just think. How would you feel?" Kevin groaned and leaned back in his chair, not answering his question. Luckily he didn't have to, as the bell rang and the teacher began their lesson. But he knew that Nat wouldn't let it go that easily.
Edd made his way into the bathroom where he always spent his lunch period and he sat underneath the sinks, ready to spend the hour undisturbed. So far, he managed to go through the day without anyone picking on him, luckily. Eddy was absent from school so all the normal bullies seemed nicer, lost without him. He leaned back and closed his eyes. He groaned as the door opened, disturbing his worry free period. But he didn't open his eyes until he felt someone sit down next to him and dig into his backpack. Kevin pulled out a brown paper sack and he pulled out a sandwich before tossing it at the smaller boy.
"Eat, you look hungry." Edd stared at the bagged peanut butter and jelly sandwich for a moment in silence.
"Though I appreciate your offer, Kevin0"
"It's not an offer." Kevin cut him off. "It's a demand. Now eat." Kevin's face held no emotion and honestly, it frightened him a bit, so he did as he was told and unbagged the sandwich before taking a bite. Betraying him, his stomach growled, showing his hunger. Kevin didn't notice-or pretended that he didn't notice- and he proceeded to empty out the rest of the sack's contents and grabbing a bag of chips.
"Eat whatever you want, I'm not really that hungry." Kevin informed as he opened the bag with a loud pop and grabbed a chip. The only noise between them was the crunching of Kevin's chips for a long time before Edd cleared his throat to speak.
"I must ask you, KEvin, why aren't you spending the lunch period with your friends?" Kevin shrugged his shoulders before crumpling up the now empty chip bag.
"You looked lonely in here by yourself, I thought you could use a lunch buddy." Edd rose his eyebrow suspiciously.
"Did Nathan put you up to this?" Kevin simply shook his head.
"No man, why do you ask?"
"Because Nathan visited me last night in my home and demanded I explain what he saw earlier that day. Besides, the Kevin I knew when we were kids would never eat lunch with me because I looked lonely."
"Well I'm not the Kevin I used to be." The two were silent for a long while. Edd stole Kevin's granola bar and he quietly unwrapped it.
"I don't know why you like it in here." Kevin spoke up after a while. "It stinks in here." Edd couldn't help but snort a small half laugh.
"It's quiet and no one disturbs me." He looked at Kevin. "Usually." Kevin chuckled slightly.
"Sorry."
"No bother." Edd leaned back and muched on his granola bar. "So… Is this a one time thing, or…" Kevin shrugged.
"I don't know if I could spend another day eating in a dirty old bathroom." Edd nodded his head quickly.
"No, of course not." How could he be so stupid to think he really wanted to be around him?
"So you should sit at my lunch table." Edd froze momentarily, processing his words.
"You-you want me to sit with you and your friends at lunch?" He nodded his head. "Won't they mind?" He shook his head to the comment.
"Not at all." Kevin answered before standing up and holding out his hand. "Come on, I'll show you." Edd stared at his hand for a moment before he took it and allowed him to help him stand. Kevin started picking up the trash (which Edd was grateful for, since he had a large blush painted across his cheeks). He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down as Kevin led him out of the bathroom and into the lunchroom. There were a million conversations going all at once and it was so loud that you could barely focus on your own thoughts. Kevin led the smaller boy to his lunch table and sat down, letting Edd sit in the spot next to him.
"Hey Double D!" Nazz grinned. Nazz was as bubbly as she always had been, Edd wondered how she always seemed so happy and perky, even on the cloudiest of days. He wondered if she faked it sometimes… After all, you can't be happy all the time, some of her smiles had to be fake, didn't they?
"Greetings Nazz." Edd said quietly, trying to push his thoughts out of his head.
"Hey sweetcheeks." Nat smirked at him and wiggled his eyebrows.
"Greetings Nathan." Edd greeted him quietly as well, not looking up from his lap. That was as much as they really said to him, as they continued with their other conversation, occasionally pulling him into the conversation, but not forcing him to stay in it-which he was grateful for. He mostly just listened to what they had to say and laughed along with them when it seemed appropriate. And for the first time in what seemed like forever, he had no worries. He wasn't hiding, he was just simply enjoying himself. He forgot what it was like, and he liked it. He really wished it would never end…
As lunch ended, Nat pulled Kevin away quickly to talk to him.
"See, I told you the cutie needed this." Kevin rolled his eyes.
"He didn't even talk to me about anything, dude. You said he needed to talk. If he needed to talk so bad, why didn't he?"
"Because he's not truly ready to talk about how he feels. He's broken, Kev, he needs to be fixed first. And in all this time that I've seen the kid, this is the most happy I've ever seen him." Kevin furrowed his eyebrows.
"He didn't look happy. He looked incredibly awkward." Nat wrapped his arm around Kevin's shoulder and continued walking out of the cafeteria and into the hallway.
"That's because you knew him when you were kids, before all of this and everyone turned against him. You saw him when he was really happy. To you, that didn't look happy, but to me, it looked like he was having the time of his life." Kevin rolled his eyes and wormed out of Nat's grasp.
"Whatever you want to think, Nat. Why are you so interested in if he's happy or not anyway dude? You know he will never let you get in his pants, he's not that kind of guy." Nat cleared his throat and punched his shoulder.
"He's been through a lot, and I think it's time that someone was on his side, that's all." Kevin groaned and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Whatever dude. But trust me, he's not going to go anywhere near that table tomorrow." Nat's signature sly smirk played across his lips.
"I bet you twenty bucks he does."
