Chapter 33

Penguin stared in shock at the door where the teacher had just pushed Killer through. What the hell had just happened?

Penguin had heard the guys behind them talk, of course. They weren't as discreet as they thought. Even though they were talking quietly, they were sitting right behind Penguin and Killer. Of course, Penguin heard them talk about him. Of course, their words stung a little, but it was nothing more than Penguin had expected. There were always people who didn't understand, people who were a little close minded. Penguin had learned to ignore them. Sure, their words hurt, but he was able to shrug them off.

He just hated that Killer had heard them as well.

Penguin was afraid that the more homophobic comments Killer heard, the longer it would take for him to come out of the closet. But that was why Penguin hadn't expected Killer to react the way he had. Sure, he had noticed Killer was getting fed up; the constant clicking of his pen was an obvious sign. Penguin had wanted to reach out, lay his hand on Killer's to calm him, but when the eyes of half of the class, or at least those of Mohji and Cabaji, were still on him, he didn't think Killer would have appreciated that. But the way Killer had snapped when they had attacked Penguin – and his dad – personally, had surprised Penguin.

It had also impressed him, and – dared he say – turned him on a little. Shit, Killer, who was so afraid he would be found out, was ready to defend him anyway. God, the way he had just turned around in one swift movement and almost stabbed Mohji's hand without hesitation… that was kinda hot. Not the stabbing bit, maybe, but the part where he defended him without thinking of the consequences it might have.

Penguin looked at the two guys who had caused all this. Mohji was holding his jaw, and Penguin could swear he saw tears glistering in his eyes. His friend had placed a hand on his shoulder and was talking angrily, but his words didn't come through to Penguin anymore.

Killer had gone too far this time. It was one thing to almost stab Mohji for queerphobic comments, but it was another to punch him right in the face when he had suggested Killer was gay. Penguin hoped Killer would be okay, but he feared he wouldn't get away with just a warning this time. Shit, what if Killer got expelled?

Suddenly, Drake dropped down in the empty chair beside him. He looked calmly and almost friendly at him. "What happened?"

Penguin looked confused at him, before he realized Drake wasn't interested in him, just in what happened to Killer. He sighed. "They were being homophobic, they had it coming."

Drake looked at the two guys behind them, and Cabaji looked back angrily. "Are you serious?!" Cabaji said. "I literally said I didn't have a problem with gay people. Besides, you think that's a good reason to punch someone?"

"Saying you don't have a problem with gay people doesn't give you an out of jail free card if you keep saying nasty stuff about us anyway," Penguin commented. "Besides, 'I don't have a problem with them as long as they don't bother me with it' is classic homophobic talk." He crossed his arms. "And not understanding there's a whole lot more between straight and gay is just dumb."

He saw Drake lift an eyebrow at Penguin's words, but before he could say anything about it, Cabaji had stood up. "Okay, everyone, let's settle this," he called to the class, and even the people who hadn't been watching them yet fell silent to listen to him. "Stand up if you think being pansexual is not a real thing."

Mohji stood up immediately, and a girl in the corner of the room, Flampe, stood up too – but she was known to be a religious fanatic, so that didn't surprise Penguin. Two other girls who had been standing already, quickly sat down. The rest of the class didn't move.

"Like, it isn't a valid sexuality, come on!" Cabaji tried to rile up his classmates. Still, nobody else stood up.

Penguin couldn't help but smile. "Thank you," he said to the awfully quiet class, while looking smugly at Cabaji, who had just made a fool of himself. It was such a relief to Penguin that the vast majority of the class supported him. Even Drake, who had made it clear in the past that he didn't like him, stayed seated.

Cabaji sat down again, followed by the other two. "You're all crazy," he mumbled, while the class started talking among themselves again.

Penguin felt Drake's eyes on him, and turned to face him.

"I'm sorry for outing you, earlier," Drake said to his surprise. "I shouldn't have done that."

Penguin shrugged. "It's okay. I wasn't hiding it."

"How did you know he was gay anyway?" Mohji asked Drake with venom in his voice as if he was accusing him of something.

Penguin clenched his teeth. He knew Mohji was calling him gay on purpose, not wanting to acknowledge his pansexuality. He tried to let it go, but he was getting under his skin.

Drake looked at Mohji, unfazed. "It's a thing every gay person knows. We can see who's not straight."

Mohji stared back at him. "You're really gay then?"

"You're really stupid then?" Drake answered, and Penguin couldn't suppress a snort.

"So," Cabaji started, "since you two are both gay, can you tell us if Killer is gay?"

Penguin wanted to strangle him at the start of that sentence, but stiffened at the end of it. He looked at Drake, and Drake looked back at him. Penguin hated how Drake's face was often so unreadable.

"I don't think so," Penguin said.

At the same time, Drake answered, "It's really none of your business, is it?"

Shit, that was the better answer, wasn't it? The two of them exchanged another look. Then Drake smirked, and added. "I can tell one of you is, though."

Mohji and Cabaji looked horrified at each other, and Penguin and Drake turned their back towards them. Suppressing a chuckle, Penguin held out his fist just below the level of their desks, and Drake gave him a fist bump.

Then he looked curiously at Penguin. "You really don't think Killer is gay?" he asked quietly.

Penguin contemplated if he should confirm that or keep it vague. If he said he thought Killer was straight, would Drake back off? Penguin shrugged and tried to find a way to neither deny nor confirm it. "I told you he wasn't interested in you."

Drake looked unimpressed at him. "If he's straight, he's also not interested in you."

"True," Penguin admitted, and he feigned defeat. "Let's both back off then?"

Drake raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, you do that. I'm not so convinced he's straight." He leaned back. "And let's be honest, between you and me, you have to admit I'm a better catch."

Penguin narrowed his eyes at him. "You're suddenly full of yourself…"

"I mean," Drake continued as if Penguin hadn't spoken. "If you had gotten some of your father's looks, you might have stood a chance, but…"

Penguin flipped him off. "My father isn't interested in you either."

Drake shrugged. "We'll see."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Penguin said a little louder than necessary.

But before Drake could answer, their teacher entered the classroom again. "I'm sorry for the interruption," he said, while walked towards the front of the class. He stopped near Mohji. "Are you okay?" The boy nodded in response. "Please, stay after class, Cabaji too, I want to talk to both of you." The teacher continued his way, but not before casting a look at Killer's desk. "Drake, back to your own desk."

Drake did as he was told, and the teacher looked at the book that lay opened on his desk. "Where were we…" He stared at the pages for a few seconds, then looked at the clock, and sighed. "You know what, we're probably all a little shaken by what just happened. Why don't you use this last half hour to work on your partner project? Class is dismissed."

A murmur went through the class, and everyone started packing their stuff. Penguin did as well, realizing his project partner was in the principal's office right now. He decided to go there too, as soon as possible, so he could check up on Killer the moment he'd leave the office.

While he was making his way to the door, he noticed some classmates look from their phones to him, and giggle. When that happened two times before he was out the door, he grabbed the phone of one of the girls, to see what was so funny. The photo of his father lying half naked on his bed stared back at him. Fucking hell, apparently everyone had that picture now.

He gave the phone back and stormed out of the class. This was all his father's fault. If Law hadn't been on Grindr, Drake wouldn't have found that picture of him, the whole class wouldn't know about it now, and Penguin wouldn't have to admit his sexuality to everyone. That meant those panphobic guys wouldn't have said what they said, Killer wouldn't have attacked them, and he wouldn't have had to go to the principal's office again. So yeah, it was all Law's fault.

Penguin reached the principal's office in no time, knowing his way by heart by now. There was no one in the hallway which led to the office, and Penguin didn't know what to do. Was Killer even still in there? He could hardly walk in. All in all it had not been a whole lot more than fifteen minutes since the incident happened, so Killer was probably still inside, right?

Penguin carefully put his ear against the door, and he heard muffled voices. One was obviously belonging to Principal Shakky, and then Penguin heard Killer's voice, still sounding aggravated. Penguin could just make out what he said.

"I don't get that you can just let people say those things! This is bullying! You can't let that go unpunished!"

Shakky said something back in a much softer tone, making it impossible for Penguin to hear clearly.

Penguin sighed. He hoped Killer wasn't going to make it more difficult for himself.

"What are you doing here? Why aren't you inside?" a gruff voice came from next to him.

Penguin jumped, and quickly pulled his ear away from the door, looking up at the man who had just spoken.

Kid stared at him, and Penguin stared back. Immediately, memories of the day before came flooding back, when he had caught this man at their house. Having sex with his dad. Penguin swallowed. Could he ever look at Kid again and not think of that?

While the seconds passed and it began to look like a staring competition, Penguin suddenly realized Kid had asked him something. "I… It wasn't me he fought with," he answered.

Kid kept staring at him. "Well, that's new. What are you doing here then?"

"I…" Penguin tried to find a logical explanation, but came up dry. He was worried about Killer. He wanted to know if he'd be okay. But he couldn't actually say that to Kid without sounding suspicious. "I was just curious what would happen to him," he finally blurted out. Wow, he sounded like an asshole.

"Hm," Kid said. "Well, too bad it wasn't you he fought with." Kid got a wicked grin on his face. "I was looking forward to seeing your father again."

Penguin stared at him, wide eyed. How the fuck was he supposed to react to that? He felt his face become red, and averted his eyes. Why was he the one getting embarrassed now? Killer's father was the pervert here! "Stay away from my dad," Penguin mumbled, and walked away. God, he had never felt so awkward in the presence of one particular person before. He could hear Kid's laughter behind him, as he sped up to get away as fast as possible.

Only when Penguin had reached his locker, he dared take a break again. Ugh, today had ended so embarrassingly. And now he still didn't know what would happen to Killer. He took out his phone and texted his boyfriend. 'Hope it's not too bad. Call me when you can.'

Then he went home. However, the whole way back, he was going over and over everything that had happened in the past hour, and he became more and more angry with his father. Why was Law like this? Why did he have to fuck up everything? By the time Penguin had reached his home, he was fuming.

He slammed the door close as hard as possible. "Dad?!" he yelled.

"Living room," he heard Law reply calmly.

Penguin threw his backpack on the ground, scaring Bepo in the process, and stormed towards the living room. "I fucking hate you!" he shouted as soon as he saw his father.

Law looked up from the thick book in his lap, reading glasses resting on his nose, and a surprised look on his face. "What-"

"It's all your fault! Everything went to hell because of you!" Penguin clenched his fists. He felt like smashing something.

Law placed the book on the coffee table, and his glasses on top of it. "What did I do now?"

"Why the fuck are you on Grindr?!" Out of pure frustration, Penguin pulled his cap from his head and threw it at his father.

The headwear was too light to be thrown harshly, and Law caught it with ease. He looked seriously at him. "How do you know I'm on Grindr?"

"Some guy from my class found you there, and now the whole school has your picture!" Penguin was still shouting. "Why the hell would you do that to me?!"

Law bit his lip, seemingly to keep in his laughter.

"It's not funny!" Penguin screeched. "Now, half the school wants to fuck you because of that disgustingly slutty picture!"

Law snorted. "Oh, that's bad," he said amused. "I can assure you teenagers weren't my targeted audience. And isn't that guy from your class a little too young to be on Grindr?"

"That's beside the point, isn't it?" Penguin dug his nails into the couch. "You're a dad! You shouldn't have pictures like that floating around on the internet! Because of that, you're the talk of the school, and because of you, Killer might get expelled!"

Those last words wiped the amused look from Law's face. "I'm sorry, what? What does Killer have to do with it?"

Penguin crossed his arms and sat down on the couch, his fury settling down into anger. "Because of you, people started making fun of me. There were these guys who said stupid, homophobic things, and Killer almost murdered one of them."

Law cocked an eyebrow, and Penguin realized he had used the wrong word. He didn't want to put Killer in a bad light. This wasn't his fault, after all. "Well, not murdered, but he did punch him in the face. But he was defending me, and you, so don't judge him. This is still your fault."

"So, he gets kicked out of school?" Law sounded genuinely worried.

Penguin pursed his lips together. "I don't know yet. But he could be! He was still in the principal's office. His father just arrived when I left." He stared angrily at his dad. "His father is a gross pervert, by the way, you should stop seeing him."

Law raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean, a pervert?"

Penguin shrugged. "He just mentioned you."

"That's it?"

He scowled. "Yeah, well, it's gross."

Law chuckled. "He isn't that bad."

"Yeah, he is. It's weird." Penguin looked annoyed at his father. "And anyway, if you've been seeing him, why are you on Grindr?"

Law snorted. "If it calms you down, I haven't used the app for a few weeks now."

"A few weeks, wow," Penguin said sarcastically. "Why were you on there before that?"

Law sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Penguin… I might be your father, but I've got a life beside you too. Obviously, you are the most important thing to me, but that doesn't take away that I'm a man with needs too." He looked like he immediately regretted those words. "Wait, that didn't come out like I meant to. Point is, I can see people if I want to. There's nothing wrong with being on Grindr. We're supposedly all adults there. Your classmate was wrong in faking he was older to make an account, and he created an unsafe situation for himself like that." Law looked seriously at him. "What's his name? It might be a good idea if I talk to his parents about that."

"Ha! You think I'm sending you to his house?!" Penguin exclaimed. Drake would love that. "That's a terrible idea, no matter how you look at it!"

"You realize a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old on Grindr is a terrible idea too, right?" Law continued seriously. "Even if everyone would notice he's a minor, there's bound to be someone who'll take advantage of the fact that he said he's eighteen."

"So what? It's his own decision!"

"Penguin," Law said sternly. "Listen. It's not. First of all, he's too young to make a well thought through decision like that. Secondly, by agreeing he's at least eighteen, he's deceiving the actual adults on there. It's not always so easy to tell if someone is a minor or not, and by pretending to be an adult, he might be convincing other people to do things that are illegal and immoral. Everything should be based on consent, and pretending to be an adult is undermining that. Consent based on a lie is not consent."

Penguin stared at him. It wasn't often he saw his father this serious about something. And Penguin had to admit he had a point. He hadn't thought of it like that before, and it scared him a bit.

"Penguin, please, at least promise me you will never go on Grindr or Tinder or any other adult community spaces pretending you're eighteen."

Penguin nodded. "Why would I do that?"

"Not even if you and Killer broke up," Law added.

Penguin stared at his lap. "Okay," he agreed, his anger completely faded away. "We're not gonna break up, though."

"Look me in the eyes and promise me."

Penguin looked up and saw his father's eyes looked worriedly at him. He sighed. "I promise."

"Good." Law crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Now tell me the boy's name. He should also know that it's wrong to spread pictures of people without their consent. Besides, I should at least talk to Principal Shakky, before anyone starts accusing me of anything."

TBC~!