The next day Clay saw Alex at his locker and walked over.

"Hey, Alex."

"Hey, Clay. You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just grounded for the next two weeks."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, I can't use the car for the rest of the month. No surprise there," he shrugged.

"Um… is that all that happened last night?" Clay asked uncertainly.

"Uh, no," the blond boy said quietly. "…As expected, my dad spanked me."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. He didn't beat me or anything."

Suddenly, Justin and Zach appeared behind the boys.

"What the fuck are you two talking about?" Justin demanded.

"Jesus, Foley, take it down a notch," Alex said angrily. "It's too early for you to be such an asshole."

Zach laughed and smacked Justin's arm.

"Geez, sorry, Standall," Justin said defensively. "Okay. I'll start again. Good morning, Alex. Good morning, Clay. What the fuck are you two talking about?"

"Now, see, was that so hard?" Alex replied sarcastically. "Actually, Clay was just checking on me. …We fucking kidnapped him and he came to make sure I'm okay."

"Are you okay?" Zach asked, looking at Alex suspiciously.

"Sure, sure, I'm fine," the blond boy snapped. "I can't drive again until next month. My dad spanked me like I was 5. ...And I might fucking die of embarrassment today, but sure, I'm fine."

"You got spanked?" Justin asked, starting to smile.

"Don't even play, dude," Zach cut him off. "You told me that Meth Seth beat your ass like three different times last night."

"What the fuck, Dempsey! Can you say that a little louder? I think someone in the Teacher's Lounge might not have heard you!"

"Whatever," Zach said, rolling his eyes. He turned to Clay and asked sincerely, "So, Jensen, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just grounded for two weeks. …Look, I'm not trying to be weird or anything. I was just worried about you guys. My parents never really hit me. I just didn't realize that people still got punished that way."

Zach smiled. "The Dempsey family keeps it old school. …But I'm fine today. …Maybe a bit sore. …What about you, Foley?"

Justin glowered at the other boys and then shrugged, relenting. "Fine. I'm okay. First and second periods might be a bit rough with those hard plastic chairs, but I'll survive."

The bell rang.

Zach smiled and said, "See ya around."

After a moment, Justin murmured, "Later" and walked away.

Alex and Clay stood by the lockers for a few minutes, letting the crowd subside.

"I'm not gonna lie," Alex said suddenly. "I'm not the least bit sorry Justin got his ass beat. It might improve his personality if it happened more often. He's such a fucking dick!"

Clay laughed. "I've always thought so."

"Hope you have a good day, Clay. I'll see you around. …Oh, you want to walk home with me today? I can get you your bike."

"You're not riding with Zach or Bryce?"

"No, I need a break from those guys," Alex said flatly.

"Okay, see you out front by the stairs at 3."

"Cool. See you."

If you have suggestions for storylines, let me know. I like this show and these characters.