Chapter 10: Middle School

Steve, Bucky, Jim, Timmy, and Gabe entered middle school as a well-established friend group. It was very helpful to have them all there because such a major life transition made Steve nervous. Middle school started nearly an hour earlier, which meant he had to wake up nearly an hour earlier to fit treatment in, so he worried about being too sleep-deprived to properly pay attention in class. For a week before the first day, he practiced waking up at the new time so it wouldn't catch him off guard. He also introduced himself to the school's nurse and other administration and, with the help of his parents, went through the process of explaining all the ways the school year would look different for him. Everyone was kind and accommodating, so it could have been worse, but he wished he didn't have to endure it at all.

A new school came with new schedules; they'd be switching classes for every subject now instead of having one teacher for everything except related arts. The five of them compared their schedules and found they had at least one friend in most of their classes. Lockers, however, were assigned alphabetically, so Steve's stood so far away from most of theirs that he couldn't even see them. He did, however, find himself surrounded. Brock Rumlow fell directly after Steve in their class alphabetically, and Jasper Sitwell wasn't far behind him. To top it all off, Alex Pierce came a few lockers before. Steve was completely boxed in.

None of them said anything to him, but Brock slammed his locker suddenly, making Steve jump. He decided he would spend as little time at his locker as possible. As far as academics went, he wasn't too concerned; he always managed to keep up satisfactory grades despite the occasional weeks-long switch to Gravesen school. The only thing that really frightened him about middle school was gym.

In elementary school, they just had to remember to wear sneakers on the two days a week they had gym, but now they were required to wear uniforms. Which meant they had to change in the locker room before and after class, a notion none-too-enticing for Steve. He'd always been skinny, and still remained stubbornly on the scrawny side of thin despite the bonus calories he received at night. But that wasn't what kept him awake at night for a week before school started. What petrified him was the idea of baring his scarred torso to a locker room full of boys, most of which he didn't know at all. Nobody knew about his g-tube except for his close friends and maybe some kids from kindergarten who glimpsed it when it was still a longer tube and not a button.

Steve had considered voicing his concerns and maybe getting some form of accommodation, but shot that idea down as soon as it came to him. He was in middle school now, he could get over this by himself. A fortunate twist of fate placed Bucky in the same gym class as him. Having Bucky around always eased his nerves. On their way to class, he opened his mouth to confess he was internally freaking out, but Bucky beat him to it and started raving about the real sports they got to play in middle school gym. Steve bit his lip and told himself to man the hell up.

None of the other boys hesitated to change into their uniform shirts. Steve convinced himself they were all too busy socializing to spare him a glance and tried to just get it over with. He almost thought he'd gotten away with it, but as he threaded his right arm through the sleeve he heard it.

"What the heck is that?" the kid at the next locker over asked. Steve froze with his torso only half in the new shirt. He'd mentally prepared for stares, but not up-front rude questions. Pulling the shirt fully on, he found himself facing Brock Rumlow. Of course he'd gotten stuck next to him; these lockers were assigned alphabetically too. Steve stared at him, mortified, while Brock stared back like he'd just discovered Steve had a third eye. A few options presented themselves. Steve could give a sarcastic answer like, "It's where I plug in my charger," or "You're telling me you don't have a belly button?" He could also just walk away without saying a word. Alternatively, he could take advantage of this opportunity and educate this discourteous idiot. Which option would his mother be proud of him for choosing?

"It's just a feeding tube," he said as nonchalantly as he could manage. "Some of us need a little extra help maintaining weight."

"Oh." The syllable left Brock's throat seemingly involuntarily. Steve flashed him a smile and strode out of the locker room, quickly joined by Bucky. Brock emerged a minute or two later, but neither Jasper nor Alex were in this class. They were much less likely to act out when they were alone, so Steve held out hope for this year's gym class.

"Did he give you a hard time?" Bucky asked, glancing between Steve and Brock.

"He tried to," Steve said smugly.

"Oh yeah?"

"Turns out the best way to shut them down is just to tell them the truth."

~0~

Steve's favorite classes hadn't changed since the first grade: history and art. The middle school's art teacher quickly took a liking to him because of his passion and talent for the subject. Bucky preferred science, which worked out perfectly because they could help each other with their respective weaker subjects. Jim excelled in English, so he proofread their essays whenever they asked, and Gabe was their go-to for math help. As for Timmy, he asked for help with homework more often than he was capable of providing it, but he made up for it by being one of the most genuinely kind and encouraging people Steve had ever met.

Bucky, Timmy, Steve, and Alex were all in the same math class. Getting the grades from their first test of the year was nerve-wracking for everybody. Steve had squeezed in extra practice problems during evening breathing treatments to ensure he was prepared, and scored a ninety percent for his trouble. He glanced at Bucky across the classroom, who gave a thumbs-up to indicate he'd done well. Timmy, on the other hand, looked downright dejected. The bell rang and Steve joined up with Bucky and Timmy on their way out of the classroom. Alex trailed behind them.

"My dad is going to kill me if he sees this test," Timmy bemoaned.

"I'm sure that's not true," Bucky assured.

"You can go over it and figure out what you need to work on," Steve offered.

"Everything," he grumbled.

Steve felt horrible that Timmy hadn't done as well as he'd hoped, but a voice from behind them turned that pity immediately into anger. "Better luck next time, Dum Dum." Alex rarely confronted them without his lackeys by his side, but apparently he couldn't resist tormenting Timmy over this. Steve whirled around with fire in his eyes and squared his shoulders. "Is that your attempt at looking intimidating?" Alex asked with a snort.

"Buzz off, Alex," Steve demanded. Bucky and Timmy stood just behind him, but his world narrowed to just him and this asshole who constantly tried his hardest to make life miserable for Steve and his friends.

"What are you going to do, cough on me?"

"I might," he threatened. The tension between the two of them flared. A tug at his sleeve snapped Steve's attention away from Alex.

"Let's go. He's not worth it."

Steve took a breath and turned away. Bucky was right. He shouldn't waste his time attempting to infuse some goodness into a person so determined to be a miserable bully—and he wouldn't have, if Alex hadn't said to him as he walked away, "I look forward to the next time you disappear for weeks, Wheezy Smurf." That was the last straw. With a roar, Steve charged him. The commotion lasted only a few moments before the teacher in the nearest classroom heard them and broke off the fight with a stern yell. Bucky, who'd been trying to pull Steve away from Alex, stepped back, and the two of them stood there, panting.

"To the office. Now."

Alex, Bucky, and Steve marched morosely to the principal's. They'd been through this before in elementary school, so Steve held out little hope that anything would actually change. Alex's dad was a powerful state politician, so he managed to get his son out of just about any trouble he ever found himself in. Steve and Bucky could insist that Alex tormented them all they wanted, but the boy was careful. He never let adults see him initiate a confrontation, instead egged Steve on until he retaliated and drew attention. By the time any credible witnesses started paying attention, all they saw was a brawl with no indication of how it began.

Steve and Bucky told their side of the story, and Alex systematically denied all of it. It was so frustrating, not being believed when they knew they were telling the truth. Ultimately, since this was the first incident at this school, they got off with a warning and a phone call home. Steve didn't look forward to explaining to his parents what had happened.

~0~

"We got a phone call from the school today," Dad announced at dinner. Steve groaned and braced himself for this conversation. "Want to tell us what happened?"

"Not really."

"Well you don't have a choice."

"Alex was making fun of Timmy for getting a bad grade on his math test and just generally being a dick—"

"Language," his father chastised.

"Where did you even learn to use that word?" Mom asked, sounding scandalized.

"Middle school," he huffed. "Anyway, I couldn't just stand there and let him keep talking like that. I tried to tell him to leave him alone, but he refused and things got physical." Steve refused to mention the mean comments Alex had directed at him specifically. Everything was always about him and his CF and he was sick of it. If he revealed that Alex was targeting him because of his illness, the whole thing would turn into a more massive issue than he wanted it to be. He didn't really care when Alex belittled him; he could let those remarks roll off his back pretty easily, but he could not abide by anyone going after his friends.

"Who threw the first punch?" Dad asked. The teacher hadn't seen the fight begin and the kids involved gave conflicting stories, so the phone call home must not have contained a description of who started it. Steve considered lying, but just couldn't bring himself to do it.

"I did," he mumbled.

"Steven." When Mom used his full name it meant she was disappointed. Steve had expected this, but it still stung to hear that tone in her voice.

"I'm sorry, but he deserved it."

"Violence solves nothing," Dad said sternly.

"You can't be getting into fights. If someone hit you in the port, they could break it, and that's incredibly dangerous," Mom reminded him.

"I know. I tried to use words, and we were walking away, but then he crossed the line and I turned on him without really thinking about it."

"Think about it harder next time," Mom instructed.

"I will, I will," he promised. "Am I punished?" Never before had they issued him any punishment more severe than time-out when he was little, but he thought something of this caliber certainly warranted one.

Mom and Dad exchanged a conspiratorial glance and appeared to reach an agreement. "No," they told him. "But that doesn't mean you're getting away with it. We expect that you learn from this and act differently in the future."

"Of course. Can I be excused?"

"Yes."

Steve put his plate and silverware in the dishwasher and dashed off to his room. He couldn't believe they let him off that easy. Alex's words haunted him as he attempted to finish up his homework for the day. What are you going to do, cough on me? It wasn't Steve's fault he existed with what was essentially a perpetual pneumonia. Alex had no idea what it was like to live with lungs like Steve's, the constant effort he put in just to be able to breathe every day. If he understood he wouldn't dare make fun of him. I look forward to the next time you disappear for weeks, Wheezy Smurf. Whether Alex said it just to be a jerk or he genuinely meant it, the comment made Steve's blood boil. Was it really possible that he enjoyed the times when Steve missed school to go inpatient? What had he ever done to Alex to make him wish Steve disappeared? He only defended himself and his friends from the onslaught of Alex's jeering. Steve knew he was in the right, and he only hoped that one day he could convince Alex to see things from his perspective.

~0~

"I'm grounded for a week," Bucky informed Steve when he saw him at school the next day.

"That sucks. I'm sorry," Steve replied.

"What did your parents do?"

"They just lectured me."

"They didn't punish you?"

"No. They said they expect me to learn from this without punishment."

"Yeah, that sounds like your parents. I'm jealous. You've never gotten in trouble as long as I've known you."

"I don't know why they're like that. It's not like I've never deserved it. I started it. You were trying to break up the fight; you shouldn't be grounded.

"They didn't really care. Hearing that I'd been involved at all in a fight was enough for them."

"Well, at least they can't ground you from seeing me at school."

Alex and his friends laid low for a few weeks, wary of a repeat incident raising suspicion against them. Steve enjoyed the respite, though he remained on alert in case they tried to target another of his friends. Timmy scored almost ten percent better on their next math test, much to everyone's glee. In January, they got to dissect frogs in science class, and Steve partnered with Bucky. Despite his love of science, Bucky was not keen on handling the insides of the specimen. Steve on the other hand, wasn't fazed by any of it.

"How are you not grossed out by this at all?" Bucky questioned.

"I look at my own stomach juices on a regular basis," Steve stated bluntly. "This is nothing."

"Yuck, don't remind me."

"You've seen me cough up stuff grosser than this, why are you acting so squeamish?"

"I don't know, maybe because it's a dead frog."

"Oh, get a grip. We have to get this done before the end of the class period, and I need your help." Steve passed him the second scalpel and waited. Bucky held his breath, but he managed to get it done. They found an intact beetle in their frog's stomach, much to the delight of their teacher. Steve was having a great year, academic and health-wise, and he never expected that it could get even better.

So I've been thinking about this for a while, and now that we're knee-deep in prequels it seemed the right time to bring it up. Obviously I'm covering a lot of ground, but even more obviously there's a lot more ground that I haven't covered. There are always places to fill in the blank and elaborate more, or to see something through the eyes of another character. I have a few ideas rolling around, but I want to know what you guys want to see. As we progress through this universe, think about one-shots you want to read or other characters you want to learn more about, and I just might write it out. Even after the sequel, I don't want this universe to close. I don't even know what I'll spend my time doing when I finish writing everything I have planned. That's why I'm asking for suggestions. For example, I've already gotten a request for more Gravesen-staff's-eye-view like we got with Happy in Natasha's prequel. And as you know I'm already writing a Sarah Rogers spinoff that may eventually branch out to include multiple characters' mothers. This is an interactive form of creative writing, so please don't be afraid to tell me what you want to see so I can make it happen :)