Chapter Two:

And you see the things they never see

All you wanted, I could be

Now you know me, and I'm not afraid

And I wanna tell you who I am

Can you help me be a man?

They can't break me

As long as I know who I am

Percy hurried back to the dorms, ignoring everybody's puzzled glances at his early return. They all knew that Wednesday was a Penny-night. The End. You could set alarm clocks by Percy's schedule. So now everyone was gawking.

To be fair, it also could have been because Percy was blue.

He made it to the stairs without talking to anybody. 

            "Hey, Perce, you're back early."

            Percy looked up. Just his luck. Any normal night and it would be deserted, as his three roommates stayed out as late as they possibly could because they could. "Hey, Oliver." He left it at that.

            "Ah." Oliver nodded.

            "What exactly do you mean by that? I'm just getting an early start on tomorrow." Percy very calmly climbed into his bunk and closed the curtains.

            "Nice try, Perce, but you forgot to put on your pyjamas." Oliver paused. "Washing off that paint would be a plus, too."

            "Fine, then, why don't you tell me what's wrong, since you seem to know everything, Mr. Wood?" Percy said calmly, some of the cold sharp tone muffled by the enormous red velvet curtains.

            "Please don't call me that." Oliver's voice sounded terribly pained. "It's bad enough I have to listen to all the kids giggle whenever my last name's used. Do you have to join in on torture?"

            Percy took a moment to consider. And laughed.

            Oliver stuck his head into the bunk. "The others never believe me when I say that I've made you laugh. They just don't realize how perverted you are."

            Percy couldn't help himself. He bent double, gasping more than laughing.

            Oliver sat down on the bed. "Want to tell me what's really wrong, before I start formulating theorems?"

            "It's theories," Percy corrected automatically, "You formulate theories. And nothing's wrong."

            "Penny dump you, huh?"

            "Yeah." Percy flopped back on his pillow, smearing blue paint.

            "Did you ask her why?"

            "Of course, I'm not an idiot, Oliver. She said I was the perfect boyfriend."

            "That makes sense." Oliver nodded.

            Percy hit him with the pillow.

            "Gee, Mr. Headboy, I thought pillow fights in the dormitories were illegal."

            "And you think you're the one with a horrible name."

            Oliver grabbed a pillow and hit him back. "So she dumped you because you were perfect, she's obviously never had to sleep with you. I'm sorry, Perce, but you snore like a Humdoozle."

            "I do not!"

            "Do too!"

            The pillow flew back and forth between them a couple of times.

            "Do you think I'm messed up, Oliver? I've heard them, Ol, Perfect Percy, no fun, good for nothing but school."

            "They don't know you, Perce, and that's as much your fault as theirs. You are a good guy, Perce, all a person has to do is be completely stubborn and wooden-headed and absolutely refuse to give up, and sit there annoying you until you let that good guy out."

            "Oh."

            "I notice I don't get any more theories about the Abbott Treatise or dissertions on the use of Smuggleswarm."

            "You make dirty jokes at them."

            "So I do, and here I thought I was special."