Joey jumped a little to get to slap Snake on the top of the head.
«See I'm not that short» he claimed, as if his actions supported his argument.
«Believe in yourself, that's what they say» Snake laughed at him.
Heather, Erica and Lucy passed the hallway in the opposite direction. All of them were pissed. With reasons.
«Wheels, you playboy. She's totally hooked on you, my man» Joey tried to hype him up.
Wheels wasn't a ladies' man. Quite the opposite. And he knew for so long. He tried to convince himself that wasn't the way he was a few times. And this time, Heather Farrel was caught in the stupid crossfire.
Joey congratulated him over and over since they made out. For what? For being a jerk? For trying to trick himself into liking girls? Because that was the problem. They were perfectly fine. Some of them even looked really pretty. But he might as well try romancing walls, the feeling they gave him were the same.
And he couldn't even confide in anyone. Not Joey, and definitely not Snake. First, because the one time something related to homosexuality was mentioned, he did not hesitate to make known how much he didn't like that stuff. And also the absolute anxiety standing near him gave Wheels. His stomach would turn onto itself, like it was trying to digest the rest if the body. It became twelve times more easier to drop things or trip on some words.
«I don't understand why you wouldn't call. She clearly likes you. You're an idiot for not dating her since you can» Snake said all of a sudden. If only he knew.
Part of him thought it would be easier too. That Wheels was an idiot for not taking Heather and pretending forever. Or at least long enough for the world to change its mind. Or maybe just for Snake to.
«Melanie likes you, why aren't you dating her?» Wheels asked, not sure what's the answer he looked for.
The way Snake looked at him, just for a moment, made his stomach turn worse. He seemed to be looking for something inside his soul.
«We tried to»
«Barely»
«More than you and Heather. Or Stephanie. Or LD»
«If it weren't for her mom, me and Steph would have gone all the way.» Wheels had to protect so hard his stupid dumb facade. He had to prove he was more than. More straight, more of a man. So he even added. «Did you and Melanie even kiss?»
«I wanted to» Snake blurted out. Wheels didn't want to read too much in the so weird way he said it, but part of him noticed the crack in his voice, the eagerness to let it known, almost shouted. For a moment if felt like something he would say, hoping to be believed. But this was Archie Simpson he was talking about and Archie Simpson was perfect: good grades, good enough at sport, great guitarist, perfect child, and most importantly straight.
«Guys, did you forget my awesome relationship with Caitlin? I beat you both!» Joey chimed in.
«And where is she now?» snarked Snake.
«Je ne sais quoi» Wheels joked.
«It's "Je ne sais pas" not quoi» Snake corrected him.
«So funny guys,—Joey scrunched his nose mockingly— at least I'm not arguing about getting chicks instead of getting said chicks»
«What do you say then?» Wheels threw out, hoping it'd stay a rhetorical question.
It didn't, because it was Joey he was talking to. «Ask them out? Call them back? Actual normal human behaviour, maybe? You've been acting like aliens lately»
How low did you have to go if Joey Jeremiah is the one telling you to act like a human?
«What would you know about human behaviour? You're more like a dog in heat» Wheels said, annoyed that this stupid discussion had gone on for this long.
«Dogs are nice, and fun!»
«Not when they come back to hump your leg after you've kicked them across the room»
«No one kicked you. If anything, you kicked Heather» Snake remarked.
«Why are you so interested in me and Heather?»
«Because you're a broomhead»
Joey put his hand on Snake's shoulder. «Please ask a girl out before punching each other, all right?»
Snake sighed. He was slowly moving from definitely mad to his usual slightly annoyed by everyone. Everyone being Joey and Wheels. «Tomorrow?»
«Yeah» Wheels said, trying to sound one little bit more enthusiastic than what he actually was.
Joey straightened his back and announced solemnly: «This is a contract. Shake hands»
Snake rolled his eyes and extended his hand. «This is a contract»
Wheels shook it. He really was an idiot for allowing Joey to influence his decisions, but it was too late now.
«Je... Ne parle... pas... français» Wheels tentatively said.
He was exhausted, they had been studying for what, two hours? That was cruelty.
«The grammar's right, but I'm not sure you can say that to our teacher» Snake replied, clearly amused.
He was sitting on Wheel's floor, his back to the edge of the bed.
«What did I say?»
«That you don't speak French»
«Then the meaning's right too»
«Can't you just try?»
«It's French: I'm not going to need it!»
Wheels leaned forward from his place on the bed's pillows.
«In the same way you're not going to need Algebra?» Snake sneered.
Wheels threw him a pen in an attempt to cheer him up. Snake catched it pretty easily. Figures, he was working towards being the best basketball player ever.
«If you don't focus you'll loose the year» and the most boring one too.
«Exams are still far. »
«Yeah, but… —Snake seemed distraught —if you're held back I'll go to Uni while you're still in high school, and we'll lose each other»
In part he was right. It wasn't at all hard to imagine Snake going off, becoming an adult, maybe at Banting or Harvard or La Sorbonne even, leaving Joey and Wheels behind. On the other hand it was ridiculous to think one year would change so much between them.
«A bit extreme? You'll visit your parents and I'll be there»
A thick veil of sadness fell behind Snake's eyes. He took a moment to formulate his words. «I'm not really planning on coming back to Toronto once I leave»
That was the most Snake way to run away, but, still. Why would he even want to? His mom was the nicest person ever. When they got arrested for underage drinking her worst reaction was the silent treatment. According to Snake it lasted a week and only stopped because he broke down crying, but that was basically a year before and hardly something to run away from.
«You can't be serious, why?»
«Forget I even brought it up» Snake almost whispered, clearly trying not to cry.
Well, shit, evidently there was something else. Wheels jumped off the bed and sat next to him.
«Something wrong in your family?» What a stupid question he just asked. Of course something was wrong. He'd never seen him cry before.
Snake sighed, not sure for a moment whether to talk. «Glenn— he stopped for a second, clearly pained to talk about it— he was… kicked out. Last October»
Snake's tears were running down his face. Wheels was almost tempted to tell him that they tasted salty, and a great way to brighten your mood while crying was to try and lick them. But he couldn't dare breaking that moment.
«What happened?»
«Something stupid. Probably. I wasn't there» Snake was measuring his words carefully. There sure was something more behind it, but Wheels didn't want to push it.
«Are you scared they'll kick you out too?»
He couldn't think of Mrs and Mr Simpson as unloving. They brought Snake to see plays almost every month; played Monopoly together every Sunday. That family felt like a constant reminder of how shit Wheels' life was. And yet.
Snake turned to him, with a look he couldn't fully describe behind the tears. «Yes»
For a moment the only thing breaking the silence was Snake trying to breath out of the tears. He was staring far, probably remembering what happened. So much he forgot for a moment how he was framing the whole thing. «It's not like he can help it»
Wheels was right, there was something more. «So you know what happened?»
Snake bit his lip to calm himself, even if just for a moment. «I… I called him once, from the school's payphone»
Wheels didn't know what to say. «Then maybe you can just avoid what he did»
Probably the opposite of what he just said.
Snake looked at Wheels again in that way. It wasn't really eye contact, but he was clearly looking at his face. There was sadness maybe even guilt.
«Too late» Snake whispered and silence fell again.
Wheels couldn't think of one thing he knew about Snake that would get him kicked out. Those things were serious like… a crime, or a drug addiction. Could he really know one of his best friends so little?
«Alors, on va etudier?» Snake said after several minutes, his voice still shaking from the cry.
«Non, I guess?» Wheels joked, trying to lighten the moon.
Snake threw him his pen back.