A/N: Sorry, peeps. Life has been crazy. This is really short, I know, but I swear, 5000 words in the next chapter.

Alex pulled his binder towards him from where it lay, thrown across his bed. His first day had gone well, at least in his opinion and Alex thought it was going to be a good year. At lunch, Alex had sat with Aaron and a few of his friends until Angelica came over to drag him off to meet Lafayette, a French exchange student and Hercules who were sitting with John from Pre-Calculus. Aaron didn't seem to think too highly of them, but Alex felt like he clicked with them. John played soccer, Alex's favourite sport, for the school while Lafayette and Hercules played football. All except the former seemed to come across as jocks, but Alex could tell that they were really quite smart.

He tugged his math notes from his binder and began rewriting them. Just as he had lifted his pencil, Alex's phone buzzed. He glanced at it. It was John, texting him to check if there was homework for socials. Alex felt a strange, warm feeling in his chest. John could have texted someone he had known since preschool, but he had texted Alex.

—

John knew could have texted someone he had known since preschool. But he had texted Alex. He didn't know why. He knew it wasn't him just trying to make a new kid feel more comfortable, it was something else. Something unfamiliar. He knew it was the same thing that Angelica saw when she looked at Alex. And that was a problem. This whole mess was a problem.

Before Alex, John had never looked at another guy. He thought he was literally as straight as possible. But now he wasn't so sure. So he had texted him. Just to if he would get the same nervous feeling that he had all through class and then later at lunch when Alex sat next to him. Like he was suddenly aware of his body and all its parts, if what he was doing with his hands looked stupid, if what he was saying sounded stupid, if he looked stupid. Even with girls, John had never felt that before.

He checked his phone. No response yet, but glancing at the time, John realized he had sent the text less than a minute ago. Throwing down his phone, he pulled his English assignment closer, examining the listed reading.

—

Angelica was walking down 14th street with her sisters when her phone buzzed. Living so close to the city, she had mastered the art of reading and sending texts while walking and quickly checked her phone.

It was from John. "What do you think of the new kid?" it said.

Angelica knew John wasn't just asking because he felt like it or actually wanted her opinion. It was something else. She had seen the way he looked at Alex when she had introduced him. It wasn't the way he had looked at any of his girlfriends. It was something more real, more vulnerable than she had ever seen cross John's face. He had looked happy and scared and utterly excited all in a single moment before hiding it all behind a nonchalant expression. He thought she had missed it or maybe he saw how she looked at Alex and thought to stay out of whatever she was going to do. If she was going to do anything.

She texted back, "He's nice. Kind of scarily smart."

Hopefully that would make it sound as though she was just normally interested in the new kid, not absolutely breathless from two minutes of conversation with him. Angelica wanted John to be happy. She had known him for so long and he had seemed so much lighter when Alex was talking to him.

John texted back, but before she could read it, Eliza grabbed her phone. "Angelica! You're here! In New York City, the place that you love and want to spend the rest of your life! Peggy is at last not in rehearsals! Put down your phone!" Eliza exclaimed, weaving back to her sister after fighting through a crowd of dazed tourists.

"Sorry. John's just texting," Angelica said apologetically.

"Tell that nerd to stop distracting you! We're very busy right now," Peggy told her, being a good friend of John's despite their age gap and therefore within her rights to call him a nerd both frequently and behind his back.

"Where are we going, again?" Eliza asked.

"Gotham Market. For ice cream," Peggy said.

"Why didn't we subway closer?" Eliza wondered.

"So we can look in windows for like two miles," Angelica told her.

The girls did, in fact, often take advantage of their father's political success as he provided them with rather generous allowances that they used to buy whatever they saw in the windows of New York's streets. Eliza was much more careful with her money, almost all of it saved for buying presents and exchange trips and college, but she still loved to walk around in midtown with her sisters.

As they pushed open the doors of Gotham Market, Angelica caught sight of a familiar face. Aaron Burr and Angelica had never been bosom buddies. She had always disliked his manner of being, the slight tone of superiority he took with everyone, no matter who they were.

"Schuylers!" Burr called. "Come here!"

The sisters traded glances and regretfully crossed the cafeteria to where Aaron was sitting with some of his friends.

"Do you guys want to hang out with us?" Aaron asked smugly.

"Sorry, we're kind of doing a sister thing today," Angelica told him, successfully keeping the chill from both her face and her voice.

"A sister thing?" Aaron said. "Come on, Angelica, you can totally do that later."

"Actually, we've planned this for a while," she lied, before Peggy could leap in with some hotheaded comment.

"What, shopping?" Aaron's friends laughed a little at that and he looked around somewhat proudly.

"Actually, Aaron, I'm not going to blow off something I was looking forward to so I can spend time with someone who, quite frankly, does not strike me as a person I would want to spend time with," Angelica said in a completely even tone before turning on her heel and marching away.

"What she means is: ya basic," Peggy said, before catching up to her sisters.

The girls walked towards the ice cream counter, Angelica furious, Peggy giggling hysterically and Eliza completely torn between which sister she was prouder of at that moment.

"That was, um. Interesting," beamed Eliza.

"Dude, you roasted him!" Peggy laughed.

"What an idiot. I can't believe he said that!" Angelica snapped. "I just feel bad for Alex, he has no idea what he's going to have to deal with."

"Who's Alex?" Eliza asked.

"New kid. Aaron's already trying to turn him into an asshole," Angelica told her.

"Introduce him to John! John will only turn him into a nerd!" Peggy suggested.

"I already did that," Angelica said, beginning to feel anxious again as she thought of the whole John/Alex/her thing that was sure to be a sea of awkwardness.

"Let's get ice cream and then you can rant," Eliza decided