A/N: HEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
THANK YOU MUCH FOR OVER 100 READS! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!
DAN'S POV
I blinked groggily, squinting into the morning light. Was it always this bright in the morning? I sat up, looking around my room. No, it definitely shouldn't be this bright. My head whipped around, my gaze landing on my alarm clock.
9:43
"Fuck!" I rolled out of bed, kicking off my duvet. How the hell did I sleep so late? I was supposed to be at school an hour and a half ago. And where was my mom, shouldn't she have woken me up?
Grumbling to myself, I grabbed a dirty pair of jeans off the floor, not bothering to change out of the Pink Floyd shirt I had slept in. I hobbled into the bathroom, struggling to pull my pants up. I caught a glimpse of myself as I grabbed my toothbrush and swore loudly. My hair was still curly from yesterday; there was no way I'd have time to straighten it.
Settling for second best, I grabbed an old grey beanie from the bottom of my closet.
I nearly fell down the stairs as I hurried into the kitchen, grabbing a granola bar out of the pantry. Scooping up my bag, I was about to leave when a white piece of paper on the table caught my attention. I shoved the granola in my back pocket and grabbed the note.
"Dan,
emergency at work, had to go in early. Have a good day at school,
-Mom xoxo"
I groaned, crumpling up the note and throwing it on the ground. I had obviously missed my bus, and I didn't have a car, so it looked like the only option I had left was to sprint the mile to school and hope to make it there as quickly as possible. This would be difficult as I have the stamina (or should I say damina) of a roly-poly; but nonetheless, I found myself jogging uncomfortably down the pavement towards school.
…
Roughly half an hour later, I found myself at the entrance of Mr. Allen's classroom (of course I made it just in time for maths, my least favorite subject).
I hesitated; being late would mean everyone would turn to look at me until I sat down. No one here had seen me with curly hair before, and I was certain someone would say something, I just hoped it wouldn't be in front of the whole class.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed my worries aside and stepped into class. Pretending I wasn't bothered by the twenty-something pairs of eyes on me, I shuffled toward my desk, dropping my bag on the ground and taking a seat. I could feel Phil's gaze on me, but I resisted the urge to look.
"Daniel, you're late." Mr. Allen pointed out, his usual deadpan expression flattening his mouth into a thin line.
"Brilliant observation, sir," I retorted. Anthony and a few other kids snickered.
Mr. Allen pursed his lips. "Watch your tone," He replied sternly, turning on his heel to walk back to his desk. I gave a dramatic eye roll to his comment, causing another round of laughter to break out in the class.
The smile fell from my lips as I glanced over at Phil. He had a large stain on his shirt, some sort of fruit preservative, I guessed, much like the ones the school served at breakfast. I glanced at Anthony, who just smirked, then stared back down at my paper.
There would come a time when I would have to choose between keeping my current life or standing up to Anthony. I wanted things to stay the way they were, but the safe space I had made for myself was beginning to crumble, and Phil wasn't helping. How was I supposed to leave things as they were when he kept making me feel like everything my friends did was my responsibility? It's not my fault they're assholes.
I cast another glance at Phil, watching as he looked down with annoyance and peeled the sticky material of his shirt away from his stomach.
PHIL'S POV
I cast a glance at Dan, quickly looking away. Who the hell does he think he is? Swaggering into class twenty-minutes late, acting like he owns the place. His hair is tucked into a beanie, but I can see a few curly strands falling out. The look frames his face well, it makes him look softer, almost. I shake the thought from my head, flicking a piece of mango off my pants.
I had made a mistake in getting to school earlier today. I was in front of Anthony in the breakfast line this morning. After a couple of days of them not bothering me, I thought that maybe they had gotten bored or just didn't think it was worth it. Clearly, this wasn't the case. He and his friends pestered me the entire time I was in line. It was a bunch of the usual insults, and I did my best to ignore them, but I finally snapped when one of them made a comment about how I "wanted to suck their dick." I quickly replied, "if I wanted a tic-tac, I would just get them from the store." As much as I hated being covered in fruit juice, it was worth it to see the look on their faces.
When the bell finally rang, I grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder, frantic to leave without having to talk to Dan. I had noticed him trying to catch my gaze on several occasions, but I chose to ignore it.
I was still so uncertain about him. I didn't want to make him believe I liked him when, really, I just tolerated him more than everyone else I had met, but I also didn't want to completely shut him out. I just felt like he might be a better guy than he was letting on.
As I hurried down the hall, I could hear my name being called in a whisper-yell.
"Phil! Oh for fuck's sake—Phil!" I felt a hand on my arm and was spun around, my gaze locking with a pair of brown eyes. "Follow me." Without waiting for a response, Dan dragged me into the nearest bathroom, pulling me out of the crowd.
After checking all the stalls and glancing out the door, he turned around. "What happened?" He motioned to my shirt.
I laughed dryly. "What do you think happened?"
Dan averted his gaze, looking uncomfortable. "Anthony?"
I sighed and reached down, trying to pick up my bag, but was stopped when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"Phil, I'm sorry that they're bothering you, but it's not my fault."
I gave him a questioning glance. "What?"
"Any time something happens with them, I feel like you get mad at me specifically. But I'm nicer to you than they are, so I don't know why." Dan looked troubled.
I stared at him for a second, then shook my head. "It doesn't matter that you're less of a dick than they are, Dan." I slung my bag over my shoulder, making my way to the bathroom door. "The problem is that you're doing nothing to stop them."
DAN'S POV (again…)
I sulked into my English class, Phil's words still ringing in my head. He had a point, it just wasn't a point I wanted to hear.
I threw my bags down and slid into my usual seat next to Anthony.
"Sleep in late this morning?" he snickered, flicking an empty gum wrapper at me. Under the usual circumstances, I would have cracked a witty joke, but I was in no mood today.
"Yeah," I muttered flatly, not looking up.
"Not very talkative today, eh Howell?" It was obvious he knew I was in a bad mood already.
"Nope."
He snickered, reaching out and flicking one of my curls. "What's up with your hair?"
"Some people have naturally curly hair, Anthony."
"I don't know what's gayer: that your hair looks like this," he yanked my beanie off my head, "all the time, or that you have to straighten it every day."
"Shut up!" I grumbled, snatching my hat back. "Straightening your hair doesn't make you gay, neither does having curly hair."
Anthony just laughed. "Speaking of being gay, it's too bad you were late today, we had some fun messing with Lester." He smirked, lazily twirling his pencil between his fingers.
I clenched my fist under my desk. Was he always this big of a dick? "Yeah, too bad." I gave him a quick, plastic smile, looking back at my assignment.
"Don't worry though, there's more to come," Anthony grinned smugly, oblivious to my annoyance.
I closed my eyes and let out a shaky breath, still staring down at my paper. It looked like I'd be choosing sides a lot sooner than I thought.
A/N: OK! So I hoped you liked it, (even though it kinda sucked :/ ) once again I'm so, so sorry it was late! 3
Comment what you think will happen next and please vote and tell me of any spelling/grammar
mistakes!
