It's almost midnight and my mind won't stop working. What I really want to do is high school stuff but I think middle school moments are pretty good for right now. Anyway, enjoy!
Also, last chapter I said present time as in their first grade year started in 2012.
September—First Day of Junior High
"Hey, Kate!" Javier called out as he made his way towards his friend. It was their first day of junior high and Kate had been on vacation for the last week. She looked tanner than the last time he'd seen her and her hair was a bit shorter, but she still looked like the same old Kate…only, slightly more miserable. Kate was frowning as he made his way towards her, a permanent pout etched on her face and her arms crossed. "What's wrong?" Javi asked as he approached, stopping just a couple feet away. Kate sighed and bared her teeth, showcasing a new set of braces on both rows. Javier's eyes widened in shock. "Your parents actually went through with it?" he gasped. Kate nodded, still frowning.
"Mom said that I'd thank her in the long run, but I doubt it. And on the first day of school, too! What's Josh gonna say?" she practically whined.
"You mean that know-it-all, pretty boy jerk?" Javier grumbled. "Nothing if he wants to keep his own teeth." Kate rolled her eyes. Javier could be so protective sometimes and while she sometimes found it endearing, it could also be kind of annoying.
"He's not a bad guy, Jav," she said. "He just has a bad rep."
"He's a player, Kate," Javier argued, "and the sooner you learn that the sooner you'll learn that you're better off without him. I mean, why can't you like a genuinely good guy; like Castle!"
He nodded towards the ever-nerdy Castle, who's recent growth spurt had made him even more of a klutz and whose crazy alien and Bigfoot theories didn't exactly help with his popularity. He waved as he made his way towards them, bumping into about six different people on the way, apologizing to all of them before finally stopping next to Kate.
"Hey, guys!" he greeted. "How was your summer?"
"Good," Javi replied, "just played some b-ball at the park with a few friends and built up some stamina for the team this year." Castle nodded, impressed.
"That sounds pretty cool," he said, before turning to Kate. "How about you, Kate?" he asked. "How was your summer?"
Kate bared her teeth at him, showing him exactly how her summer had been. Castle's eyes widened momentarily before he gave her a wide smile. "Wow!" he said. "Those look awesome! Do you think you can get alien frequencies on those?" Javi waved his hands and shook his head behind Kate as she glared up at Castle, who immediately got the message. "Uh…I mean…you still look pretty gorgeous," he covered, "and your smile is still as breathtaking as ever."
Kate's glare softened slightly. "You're just being nice," she said, pouting.
Castle shook his head, vehemently. "Nuh-uh," he insisted. "I always think you look gorgeous; no matter what." Kate blushed, ever aware of Castle's crush on her, despite the fact that she didn't feel the same way. Her heart belonged to one Josh Davidson; the hunk of the sixth grade. But she still appreciated the heartfelt compliment from one of her oldest friends.
"Aw," she said, smiling, "thank you, Castle." She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around him and Castle hugged her back a bit awkwardly, considering he was now a foot taller than her. He hoped he'd stop growing soon or else he was going to be towering over everyone. When Kate pulled back she was still grinning. "So," she said, "how was your vacation?"
"I wouldn't exactly call it a vacation," Castle groused. "My mother dragged me all over the country on her stupid Broadway tour. I just barely made it back in time to get all my supplies for school. I wish she would just have let me stay home with Nanny Malorie."
"What happened to Nanny Sofia?" Javi asked.
"That was two nannies ago, Jav," Castle said, rolling his eyes, "keep up!"
"How do you expect me to keep up when you have a new nanny every other day? I haven't even seen you since the Fourth!"
"True," Castle said, shrugging. "I just can't wait until Mother realizes that I'm far too old for nannies and babysitters. I'm practically a full-grown man. I have a beard!"
Kate titled her head, gazing intently at his chin. "Where?" she asked.
Castle's eyes widened and he pointed at his chin. "Right there!" he said, insistently.
Javi and Kate looked closer, both snorting out laughs at the single hair on Castle's chin. Without thinking twice about it, Javier reached out and plucked it from his chin, throwing the tiny hair on the ground and making Castle's eyes water in the process.
"There," he said, "I shaved it for you." Castle rubbed his jaw, frowning at Javi and was just about to retort when he heard a squeal coming from about ten feet away.
"There you are!" Lanie exclaimed as she bounced up to her best friend and threw her arms around her.
Kate laughed, hugging her back and spinning with the shorter girl in her arms. "Lanie!" she exclaimed, squeezing her tightly.
"I feel like I haven't seen you in months!" Lanie exclaimed.
Kate laughed. "Lanie," she said, "it's only been eight days."
"Yeah, well while you've been on the shore with your parents, I've been out in Cleveland with a hundred of my closest relatives, helping my cousins babysit their snot-nosed siblings while our parents went out to dinner and all that so eight days feels like a decade!"
"You could have called, you know," Kate reminded her.
"And interrupted your fun time with my own misery? Not on your life! You deserve a fun time after what they put you through! By the way, how are they fitting?" Kate frowned. Lanie was the only one she'd told about her mother's decision to make her wear braces.
"Like a piece of metal in my mouth that keeps poking me and giving me a horrible lisp," Kate moaned, frowning.
Lanie gave her a sympathetic look. "It won't be so bad, girl," she promised. "They'll be off before you know it. You still look beautiful, anyway."
"That's what I said!" Castle insisted. Lanie smiled at him. She liked Castle, but more as a friend or a brother than anything else. She would have loved to see him and Kate get together, but Kate was still hung up on Josh Jerk-face Davidson. She figured that would pass eventually, though.
"I bet you did," Lanie said, nodding and smiling at him. "And how have you been, Castle? Getting into a lot of mischief this summer?"
"I wish," Castle groused. "Not much mischief you can get into when you're either getting seasick, airsick, or just being shuttled from place to place. Remind me never let my mother drag me to another one of her show tours."
Lanie chuckled. "I'll make note of it. In other news, it looks like you grew."
Castle smiled proudly. "A whole six inches," he said, grinning. "You are now looking at the tallest kid in sixth grade…I hope. Maybe it will stop the bullies."
"Possibly, but I think having Miss Tae Kwon Do here will help, as well. And Mr. Machismo can get some of his jock friends to stand up for you, too." She turned to smile at Javier. "Right, Javi?" she asked. Javi nodded like an obedient puppy.
"Of course, Chica!" he said, grinning down at her, before looking up at Castle.
"Nobody's gonna bother you this year, bro," he promised, before putting out his hand. "Now give me your lunch money!" Lanie rolled her eyes and shoved him, linking arms with Kate as they made their way into school.
Castle just chuckled, shaking his head. "I thought it was funny," he assured Javier. Javier grinned before pulling out his phone and barking out a laugh at the message he'd received. He showed Castle.
Kevin: Save me from the nuns!
Castle laughed and shook his head. "Same text," he said, "every year."
"Tell me about it," Javier said, grinning as he and Castle began sauntering towards the front entrance to school, looking like an odd pair of friends, what with Javi's basketball jersey, mesh shorts, and basketball shoes and Castle's Star Trek shirt, baggy jeans and cheap hi-tops. You would never know that the two were friends unless you really knew them.
That's what Castle loved most about Javi, Kate, and Lanie; they were an unlikely group, but they would do anything for each other. That's what made them worth it.
Pretty sappy there, huh? Whatever! Please please please REVIEW! I would really like to hear your thoughts on this! Please and thank you! Good night!