Occasion- Early school year of 1991
Context- Alex had been an unconfirmed gay for a while now and a group of homophobic older boys had picked up on it. One day at lunch when he is being bullied, a boy he'd never met had enough and stood up for him, sparking a friendship that eventually changed his life.
Idea Credit- Julie and the Phantomsone shots by sav_and_the_phantoms
Ships Set Sail- Minor Lalex
Warning- Possibly triggering or offensive language and physicality.
Alex's POV
"Alex time to get up honey!" His mom yelled through his door as he laid awake in bed. He groaned, throwing an arm over his face. The day was not about to be fun.
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"Is everything alright Alex? You seem off." Mrs. Mercer asked.
How was he supposed to tell his mother that seventh grade wasn't all sunshine and rainbows? That he was getting bullied every day and occasionally beat up just because of his sexuality and the fact that the bullies were close minded and homophobic. That he didn't want to tell anyone because he'd have to come out to them too.
"Yeah, just...worried about a math quiz."
"Oh honey I'm sure you'll do fine." She rubbed his arm and he gave her a tight lipped smile. They said their goodbyes and he shut the car door, watching her drive away.
Alex turned to face the cold metal doors of his middle school.
The week's almost over, he told himself, sighing before heading to his homeroom.
Everything will be fine.
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"Hey Mercer!"
Alex tensed and squeezed his eyes shut at the sound of Eric's voice, praying that another kid with his last name had suddenly transferred to his school. Hands slammed down on the table beside him, making Alex jump as his eyes flew open.
"I said hey, Mercer. Does being a fag make you deaf too?" Eric Sullivan leaned over Alex, his friends Steve and Chris taking seats next to and across from him.
Alex stared a hole through the table, previously having learned that it was better not to engage. Eric, however, was apparently in a mood that day, knocking Alex's food tray to the floor. He watched in dismay as the mashed potatoes and beans splattered everywhere, his apple rolling across the tile.
"Oops. I guess you'll have to get on your knees and clean that up now. But it shouldn't be a problem right? Since you like doing that so much."
Steve and Chris snickered as Eric hauled Alex out of his seat and forced him to the floor. The bullies surrounded him while people slowly turned to watch. He was frozen in place, embarrassment burning his skin.
"Go on you faggot, clean it up!" Eric put a boot against Alex's rib cage, nearly kicking him into the potatoes, "Don't make me-"
"Cut it out Eric!" A boy with bright eyes and a voice bigger than himself shouted, putting himself between Alex and the others.
Eric stumbled back, quickly regaining himself. "Aw, Patterson's standing up for his boyfriend." He laughed with his friends.
"He didn't even do anything!" The boy, something Patterson, stepped closer to Eric as Alex scrambled away. "You can't bully someone just because you're insecure about yourself!"
"Yeah? What are you gonna do about it midget?" Eric patted him on the head. The kid smacked his hand away, standing on his toes to get in Eric's face.
"More than you can."
Alex doubted that.
Eric sneered and shoved Patterson so hard that he slid past Alex on the floor. The kids around them began to laugh with the bullies but he watched as the boy shot to his feet and raised his arm, a bruised apple in his hand. As if in slow motion Patterson launched the fruit at Eric, nailing him right in the face.
He screamed louder than Mrs. Mercer had the time she'd found a mouse in the kitchen, clutching at his nose. Everyone was suddenly quiet and Alex gawked at his defender in all his determined stance glory.
"You are SO dead Patterson!" Eric lunged at him.
The kid's eyes widened and he scrabbled to get away from the older boy. Chris and Steve moved to follow and someone's leg shot out, tripping Steve into a painful looking face plant. Alex rushed to get away from Chris but he was too slow. The bully latched onto his arm, punching him in the stomach before pinning him easily to an empty table with his far superior weight.
Alex braced himself for a blow that never came, Chris's weight suddenly being lifted off of him. He was flung into a stool so hard that he moved the whole table.
Alex whirled around to face a scrawny boy with dark spiky hair and freckles.
"Hey man!" Spiky-hair grinned at him before taking off in retreat of an angry Christopher.
He turned to stare at the scene around him in astonishment. Kids were whooping and hollering, up on tables, egging on the fights. Closest to him was another dark haired boy with olive skin, dodging blows from Steve (whose nose was definitely broken), and Alex vaguely recognized the kid as the one that tripped him. The spiky-haired boy was sprinting around the edge of the lunch room, weaving in and out of tables far ahead of his pursuer.
Alex almost laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation before he saw Patterson, pinned to the ground by Eric. The bully was pummeling him with no hesitation, and the boy's attempts to resist were getting weaker.
Watching the closest thing he had to a friend being hurt set something off in Alex. A mix of fear and anger, even rage, coursed through him, fueling his limbs to carry him across the room and slam into Eric so hard it sent them rolling.
Alex was on top of him before Eric could react, hitting him hard in the face. He hit him again, and again, and again, until the pain in his knuckles had become a dull throb compared to the pain of the awful memories flashing through his mind. Eric mocking him in class. Eric pouring milk on him every morning. Eric forcing his head into a dirty toilet. Eric beating him so badly behind the school that he couldn't get dressed the next day. The months of torture that he'd gone through all because the sick, cruel eyed boy underneath him found out that Alex was gay.
Someone seized the back of his shirt and lifted him off the bloody older boy. Alex let the person drag him out of the lunchroom and down to the principal's office, triumph warming his chest.
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Alex was sitting outside the principal's office, holding an ice pack to his split knuckles. Principal Anderson had already consulted with him and the bullies together, taking in both sides of the story and giving Alex two weeks detention for fighting. She was currently dealing Eric and his friends a much harsher punishment.
He looked up to see the Patterson boy and the olive skinned Shaw boy limping out of the nurse's office, sporting bandages and ice packs as well. At the same time the spiky-haired Peters boy rounded the corner, having called his mom on the phone. Now that he'd looked closer Alex remembered seeing them all around at some point, specifically Patterson at the previous year's talent show. The boy could sing.
They all eased into the red plastic chairs across from Alex, and he felt very inclined to say something.
"Hey, um...thank you guys...a lot. I um, really needed...that."
Patterson shrugged, pressing an ice pack to his already bruising cheek, "yeah man, no one deserves to get bullied like that. Especially when they've done absolutely nothing wrong."
He sent him a pointed look as he said the last part, and Alex smiled hesitantly.
"Anyways, I'm Luke, this is Bobby, and...I don't know who he is." Luke gestured to the Peters boy on his left.
"Oh, I'm Reggie. Hey."
"Why'd you join the fight Reggie?" Bobby spoke for the first time in a low voice, leaning forward.
"Well, my parents fight a lot at home and, I feel helpless a lot of the time. So this time when I knew I could do something good I figured why not, yah know?"
They all stared at him for a moment before Luke bumped his fist against Reggie's chest.
"Yeah man. I like that."
"OK. Well, thank you guys again," Alex crossed his arms, "I don't think I could take those guy's BO much longer."
Luke smiled and, oh wow. Alex's heart skipped into overdrive.
"They did smell pretty strong didn't they?" Luke said.
"Dude, not as strong as that receptionist," Reggie fanned his face, "I think her perfume is permanently in my nose."
They all looked at each other before cracking up.
Alex could definitely get used to this.
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After the fight Steve and his friends left Alex alone because of the expulsion threats made by the principal; Luke and Reggie liked to say they were just scared of their mad fighting skills. Alex, Luke, Bobby, and Reggie grew close before their bruises had even faded. Energetic Luke with his big personality and even bigger love for music. Quiet Bobby with his crazy smarts and endless patience. Happy-go-lucky Reggie with his funny jokes and clueless questions. They were his best friends.
Over fall break Reggie went to Vegas to visit his grandma while the other three boys piddled around LA. Alex arrived at Luke's house that Wednesday to hang out with him and Bobby while Mr. and Mrs. Patterson were at work.
Alex barely had time to ring the doorbell before Luke yanked the door open yelling "yes! You're here," and dragging him inside. He took a seat next to Bobby on the couch while Luke bounced over to the center of his living room.
"And why is he freakishly excited?" Alex glanced at Bobby.
"He had a 'revelation'. And three cokes."
"Dang right I did! Bob, drum roll!" Luke bit his lip, a giddy grin crossing his face.
"I'm not doing that."
"Well I don't care because that's Alex's job now anyways." He shot finger guns at Alex.
"Drum rolls?"
"No, you dork, drumming! I'm starting a band and we want you in it!"
Alex was a little stunned. Mostly because he hadn't heard about the band idea until then.
"Luke I told you once that I can kind of drum." Alex said. "I'm not great."
"You'll get better! And we've heard you sing, you've got talent." He lowered his voice. "C'mon man, we need you."
His face warmed a bit from the way Luke was looking at him so he looked at Bobby. The boy gave him a soft, encouraging smile.
"I...okay."
Luke did what Bobby called his happy dance, spinning and pumping his fists in the air. Alex and Bobby laughed.
"Okay," Luke gasped once he calmed down, "let's get to work."
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All the rest of the break the three boys had been working on their music, Luke even starting a song. After school that Monday back they went to the beach with Reggie to sing and play a bit. They were playing a song from some band Bobby liked, Luke strumming on his guitar, when Reggie started singing along.
Luke stopped singing, Alex and Bobby following suit. Alex glanced at him, but instead of something being wrong he was staring at Reggie with wide eyes. Reggie's voice faded as he gave him a confused look.
Luke turned and looked at Alex and Bobby with wide eyes. He jumped off the table and grabbed Reggie by the shoulders.
"By any chance do you play an instrument?"
"Um...I can kinda play bass?"
He gaped at Reggie as if the boy had just cured cancer, "JOIN OUR BAND!"
"Oh," a smile crossed his face, "okay!"
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After that day their little ramshackle, and still nameless, band was complete. Luke drug them down to the beach and the pier almost every day to make and play music. They even made some cash on the occasion.
Months later Alex decided that his crush on Luke (which Luke had eventually found out about and continued to support Alex through) was only admiration. The boy had saved his tail. Of course he was a great guy, but Alex figured out that Luke wasn't his type, and it eventually evolved into nothing but the love of a brother, just like how he felt towards Reggie and Bobby. By the time they were graduating their seventh grade year they had all become a little family.
Four years later the four band mates were tighter than tight, hanging out and rehearsing every day, playing questionable gigs, helping each other through family problems. That is...until the night they were going to play the Orpheum. When nothing, but everything, changed.