It Has to be This Way

(Friday Night)

"And you've got my Chemistry done, right?" Chad makes sure.

"Yeah." Carlos hands him the worksheet and notebook, before he watches Chad copy the information from the notebook to the worksheet. "Can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Well," Carlos unsurely starts. "Mal is getting all—" He cuts himself off, and Chad faces him. "Well, she's Mal, and I kind of want to know what's up with you and Ben."

"What about me and Ben?" Chad cautiously questions.

"Well." He hesitates, "You know, just like… Do you like him?"

Chad goes back to copying the information, "It doesn't matter if I like him or not. He has a girlfriend, not to even mention that he's the damn ruler of this country and homosexual behavior is still illegal." He widens his eyes, "Point is, he's just a friend. Mal's got nothing to worry about."

"I'm not sure if that matters," Carlos comments. "She's very…"

"She's a dragon," Chad finishes, "but Ben's a royal. She's just going to have to learn how to share him with the rest of the world." He looks back at him with slight fear, "She doesn't, like, eat people, does she?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Good," he lets out a breath. "Then there's nothing to worry about."

"But she does have magic and hypnotism," Carlos continues. "She could easily make you drop your pants in front of the class or give you acne."

Chad swiftly turns back to him, "You're going to tell her that she has nothing to worry about."

"What?" Carlos disbelieves. "Why me? She's never going to listen to me."

"At least you know her," he points out. "I'm just the jerk used her girlfriend and continuously hangs out with her boyfriend."

"Well, when you put it like that," Carlos gives in.

Chad finishes copying the information, "Great." before he places his worksheet in a blue folder. "Now for math." He looks over the table, "Where's the math?"

"Oh," Carlos frowns. "I guess I forgot it."

"But you did do it?" Chad gives him an intense look.

"Of course I did it," Carlos reassures, before he stands from the round table. "I'll go grab it. Hold on." He exits the room, goes down the hall, and he sighs at the sight of the keep out sign. He stares at it for a moment, before he grabs his key to undo the lock.

When he enters the room Jay shouts, "Carlos? What the hell."

He glimpses the blond on her knees, before he walks toward his bed, "Don't mind me. I just have to get something."

"You didn't even shut the door," Jay shouts.

Carlos looks back at the gaping door, "I guess I didn't." before he finds the math book in his backpack and takes it out.

"Get out of here," he yells.

"Okay. Okay," Carlos walks back towards the door. "I'm out of here."

After he gets back to Chad's room and sits at the table he lets out a long breath. "That it?" Chad questions.

"Yeah." Carlos hands him the notebook, "Have fun."

"I wouldn't call math fun," Chad mumbles as he begins to transfer the answers to his own notebook. "It's my worst subject."

"Which is why you're a year older than me, and you're doing Algebra while I was placed into Trig."

"Shut up."

"Okay," Carlos accepts, but after a minute of watching him write he questions, "So… even if Ben liked you back you wouldn't be with him, just because he's king?"

"First off, he doesn't like me like that, and secondly," he turns towards Carlos, "it's not his fault. In order for the whole sexual misconduct law to be revised the royal council would have to make a majority vote." He looks back at his notebook, "I know one thing for sure. My parents wouldn't vote for it to change."

"Why not?"

"Because it's a sin?" he thinks. "Because it's the same thing as rape?" He shifts his eyes in annoyance, "Hell if I know. All I know is that they wouldn't sign it, even if it's just because it would be a long process that could change the rest of the law." He mumbles as he continues to write, "If making gay relationships entirely legal means that the words could change enough so that things like rape could be legal, then maybe it's better if nothing changes."

"Ben is smart," Carlos comments. "He could do it right."

Chad cracks a smile, "Knowing Ben, he would get all detailed about it… It's better to have a wider interpretation. If we say that rape is illegal, that inappropriateness with children is illegal, and that street prostitution is illegal, then what? What if there's a case where someone was inappropriate with a teenager? Are they considered a child? Would it not count, because it's not full intercourse?" He shakes his head, "It has to be this way."

"Wait." Carlos remembers, "But prostitution is legal. There's legal prostitution now."

"Only because a law was able to be made that didn't contradict the first one," Chad counters. "The first one was just like thou shall not behave in a way which that thee Lord and Jesus Christ has commanded of thee, but the second one was just like in the business of sex work there are these things that make it a business and not prostitution."

"But if the law is that broad," Carlos continues in confusion, "then why can people have sex before marriage? I mean, that's a whole thing, right?"

"Funny story." Chad answers, "Once upon a time there was a preacher who broke the law." before he finishes the math assignment. "Thee end."

"That doesn't answer my question," he irritably responds.

"Look." Chad faces him again, "I'm not an atheist. If you want to talk about how Christians cherry pick passages from the Bible, then talk to Ben. I'm not doing this."

"Okay. I'll back off," Carlos comments, before he looks over the books. "Are we done?"

"Yeah," Chad lets out a breath.

"Okay, then," Carlos says as he picks up his materials. "I'll go."

When he turns around Chad interrupts, "Hold on." and he turns back to him. Chad tries to hand him a twenty, but Carlos merely darts his eyes between it and him.

"Didn't we just kind of fight?" he reminds him. "You really want to do this right now?"

"Why not?" Chad questions. "It's not like my girlfriend is."

Carlos nods, "Okay, then." before he takes the twenty, stuffs it into his pocket, and gets on his knees. "You know, I just thought of something." He looks up at him, "Wouldn't you giving me money for sexual acts be prostitution?"

"Yeah. And?"

"And that's illegal," Carlos answers.

Chad laughs, "So is having sex with a guy. I think we're past that. Don't you?"

"Right." Carlos thinks it over, "I guess we are." before he undoes the button to Chad's pants and unzips them.

When Lonnie enters the kitchen she sees Mal near the stove with her hand on it, and she rushes toward her, "What are you doing?" She takes Mal's hand off of it, but when she turns it over she sees no damage to the skin aside from a warmer color.

Mal takes her hand back, "What does it look like I'm doing?" before she turns to place her arm onto it. "I'm trying to get heat from this stupid burner."

"I'm guessing it's not working very well," she slowly comments.

"Wow. How perceptive of you," Mal sarcastically responds, before she shivers. "God. I haven't felt this cold since I got sick last year."

"What about Evie," Lonnie questions. "Isn't she like your heat source or something?"

"It's kind of hard to give heat when you have none." She gives up on the electric burner, turns it off, and turns to Lonnie. "Really," Mal stresses. "I like Evie. I do, but she's just not hot enough." She turns her vision to inferred for a moment, "Way less than you." before she raises her hand towards Lonnie's face.

When it reaches her cheek she lets out a breath, "You're cold."

"And you're warm," Mal frowns as she brings the hand down to her neck.

Mal begins to lean forward, but Lonnie puts a hand to her shoulder to stop her, "Sorry, but I'm really not like that."

She takes her hand off of her, "Have you even kissed a girl before?"

"No."

"Then how do you know?" Mal counters.

She's quiet for a moment, "Because I don't think of girls like that?"

"But don't you want to at least try it?" Mal attempts to convince her. "Be rebellious or some crap?"

Lonnie observes her, "I know you're cold and that you need someone to give you heat, but I don't need to kiss someone for fun or revenge or whatever and I'm sure I like guys, so…" Mal turns back to the stove and leans on it. "The heat thing. Does it have to be sexual?"

"No. Not if it's like just being in a sleeping bag with someone." Mal thinks, "Jay would do it. I know he would, but people already think that we've done things, which is just weird, and… I don't know. I just also don't want to make Evie feel like, like she can't provide for me."

"'Cause," Lonnie continues on. "I may not like girls like that, but if it doesn't have to be sexual then I might be able to watch a movie or something with you under the covers."

Mal turns back to her, "You would do that?"

"Well, yeah." She smirks, "You know, just to keep the school safe from you."

"And she has humor," Mal smiles back.

"So, a movie then?" Lonnie asks. "I can stay up for a couple more hours."

"Yeah," Mal nods. "That would be really nice."

"I try to be."

Mal laughs, "We'll see about that." before she begins to walk towards the door. "If we can turn Doug to socialism, then I'm sure I can convert you to the dark side of things."

"I think you mean socialness," Lonnie corrects. "Socialism is a form of economy."

"Whatever," Mal bypasses. "Right now, I'm just glad you are a person who has heat and a decent enough personality." She eyes at her pink shirt, "Even if it does look like you got fashion advice from Audrey."

She glances down, "What's wrong with it?"

"Personally?" Mal questions. "I just don't think you're pale enough for it. Hot pink, maybe, but that color just sticks out so bad on you. And not in a good way."

Lonnie sighs, "So, what would your fashion advice be? Black?"

"Well, black looks good on everybody," Mal answers, "but no. Red. I think red would complement you very greatly."