Author's Note:
Yeeah so I'm still going at this. I don't know why, but it was necessary last night after Day 12 because THAT WAS NOT OKAY and I needed fluff to console myself.
This thing is still pure crack. And if anyone actually speaks Portuguese, I apologize in advance. Sergio's not known to be polite.
thank you for putting up with me, I'm still confused myself
According to his probation officer, Sergio had managed to 'settle in' fairly well in the few weeks he'd been there. Of course, he'd been told that every time he ended up in a new place. If settling in meant he had successfully gone to school the entire time and hadn't given the cops any reason to break down any doors, then apparently yes, he'd settled in. Of course there was still the constant temptation to just ditch the entire program and get out of town. That ran the risk of getting caught, but at some points that seemed like less trouble than handling public high school.
The plus side was, everyone still seemed to be somewhat wary of him and didn't go out of their way to try and make conversation. The downside was, Sarah had been right; he'd become the topic of at least twenty different rumors within days without even speaking to anyone. Apparently he was the first new face in a long time, and the stories had just gotten more extravagant the longer they circulated. There was already something about him biting off a live chicken's head, something involving him being a plant hybrid, and even some vague mention of aliens.
The various people who were kept up-to-date with everything seemed concerned about his lack of friends, but he'd dispelled some of those worries by mentioning Sarah - though, technically, he wasn't sure she fit under the classic definition of 'friend'. She'd shown him around the first day and, for lack of any better plans, he'd ended up sitting by her at lunch the day after. It had turned into a pretty good system, really. She didn't talk much and was constantly buried in some kind of studying, and he didn't feel the need to start up any conversations. Once she'd gone so far as to shove a paper at him and have him check as she shot of vocabulary definitions, and that had been the extent of their interactions. But hell, for him that was exceedingly friendly.
It wasn't that he couldn't be friendly. It just took a little while to decided whether or not it would be worth the trouble. Sergio thought himself extremely good at making friends, no matter what his therapists had said, but he would be the first to admit that it was more along the lines of getting on their good sides than actual friendship. He could make people like him; given enough time he could watch people and figure out how to act in order to gain trust. At this point he just hadn't really bothered starting that process yet. That didn't mean he hadn't been watching the other students, though. It had been a few weeks and he had figured out the people he seemed to run into the most often. Some of them, the boy could already tell, might prove to be tricker than others.
Daniel, for example. Daniel would definitely be didn't see each other often, but it was very obvious very quickly that Sergio had somehow gotten on his bad side. From what little interactions they'd had, it seemed like Daniel was the type of person who was accustomed to knowing everything that went on around him, and something new and unknown being thrown into the mix didn't sit well with him. The guy was apparently the son of Mr. Hatake, the chemistry teacher - adopted son, of course; if it wasn't glaringly obvious at first glance, the fact that Daniel's last name was still Aerov gave it away - and he was generally in the loop about pretty much anything. It wasn't too surprising, then, that he became determined to figure out the new kid.
It shouldn't have been surprising, for that matter, when he was the first one to notice the anklet.
So far Sergio had managed to keep it hidden. It fit under his jeans and the weather had been cold enough recently that they'd been allowed to wear sweats for PE. It wasn't like the anklet itself was some dark secret or something - he just didn't want to have to bother coming up with an excuse for it that would sit well with people.
"What's with the bracelet?" So, of course, it would be Daniel that brought it up. At lunch, of all times, in the middle of the damn cafeteria.
Sergio paused, forcing his hands not to tighten on his tray as he glanced over his shoulder. "The what?"
Daniel was looking at him critically and nodded toward the floor. "Thing on you ankle. Keep seeing it and you seem to be pretty determined to keep it hidden." Hell...
"It's nothing." If he could just sit down it might keep things civil. If he could get over by Sarah it was doubtful the other boy would bother with an interrogation.
"Looks a little like a tracker to me, Serge."
Dammit, why'd his voice have to carry so much? Sergio pulled in a breath and turned. Daniel towered over him, but he still managed a slightly scathing look upwards. "Should I be flattered that you're watching me that closely, Dan?"
"Why the hell would someone need to track you?" People were starting to stare now and Sergio felt his hands clenching. "You a fugitive or something?"
"And who would I be a fugitive from, huh?" he asked, his voice low. "It's none of your damn business."
"I think getting stuck in a school with a kid who has to wear a tracking bracelet is definitely my business," Daniel snapped, and his own words were even louder now. "Seems like something they'd mention when you showed up, doesn't it? I don't think -"
In retrospect, punching him probably wasn't the best idea. Daniel was the school's star hockey player and was built like a brick wall. But hey, it did get him to stop talking, at the very least, and that seemed like a definite plus at the time. It wasn't that Sergio couldn't fight; he'd been on the streets enough to know how to handle himself. He just wasn't known for picking his fightswell.
He was the one who ended up needing a trip to the nurse once someone finally pulled them apart, though he was certain Daniel had at least gotten a split lip and a few pretty colorful bruises. It may not have been the best idea, but it had been satisfying, even if it meant a half dozen lectures to look forward to.
The nurse - Mr. Adrian, his nameplate said - was apparently deeply invested in a movie playing on his laptop screen when Sergio came in. The sound of the door closing had it paused immediately and Adrian did at least look slightly concerned when he looked up.
"Now that's gotta sting," he muttered, turning quickly to a large freezer in one corner. "Don't worry, just keep it cold, it'll help."
Sergio had at least three ice packs shoved into his hands and he blinked down at them before relenting and holding one up to the eye that seemed to have gotten it the worst. It probably looked worse than it felt; his nose was still bleeding a little and the eye had already started to swell, but other than that it seemed to just be bruises.
"Told them, I'm fine," the boy said. "Nothing broken or anything."
"And I'm sure I should see the other guy, right?" Adrian cracked a grin and started circling him, peering at the various injuries. "Just gotta make sure it's nothing serious. Not feeling dizzy?"
"I'm fine."
"Need any more ice?"
"Pretty sure this is enough, thanks."
The man grunted, waving a hand at the ice packs as he turned back to his desk. "Keep it cold. Just need to sign you off, if you're not going to need anything else, and if I can find that form..." He sifted through stacks of paper on his desk and, after a moment, added over his shoulder, "So who'd you manage to piss off?" Sergio blinked at him and after the silence stretched out a little while Adrian glanced up with a grin. "You've gotta go talk to principal Sutton after this; most kids don't mind putting that off a bit."
Well, he had a point there. An official visit with the principal had been avoided thus far; he'd seen her in passing a few times, and those times had been enough to start dreading it a little. Sergio sighed, sinking into the chair on the other side of the desk and adjusting his ice pack a little.
"Daniel."
"Aerov?" Adrian made a fairly sympathetic noise, pulling out a form from the bottom of a pile. "That would explain it. He's not usually one to instigate, though; what'd he do?"
"Getting too damn nosy for his own good," he growled, making a mental note not to glare because it apparently pulled on some cut. The nurse nodded, starting to scrawl something down on the form.
"You'd probably have less problem with that if you actually told people something," he said. "Even if it isn't technically the truth, they'll just get more curious when you don't give them anything."
Sergio grunted and it went quiet again as Adrian wrote. His handwriting looked terrible from what little was visible, but apparently that didn't matter much with doctors of any sort. After a minute or two he finished with a very cramped signature and handed the paper over.
"The receptionist will file this wherever it's supposed to go. Good luck with Sutton."
"Thanks," the boy muttered, pushing himself to his feet again. He had to adjust the ice pack a little and put the other two on the desk. "I'll be good with just the one."
"You sure? Helps to -"
"Keep it cold, yeah. I'm fine." He moved toward the door just as Adrian swung his feet up onto the desk and adjusted the laptop screen a little. "Just out of curiosity - what're you watching?" That got another grin and the sound of rapid gunfire came from the speakers as the video was turned back on.
"28 Weeks Later. First one's better, but the sequel's still got zombies."
Sergio actually found himself grinning a little before going back into the main office and closing the door on some yells of 'code red'. The room was fairly quiet with just the receptionist tapping away at her keyboard and one young kid sitting on the bench against the wall.
He was really young, actually. Dark blond hair, extremely thin and lanky...couldn't be older than thirteen, most likely. The kid had a book propped up on his knee but glanced up when Sergio passed him. Their eyes met for a brief moment and there was something a little disconcerting about the stare; something in his eyes seemed colder than they should. It broke off a second later and Sergio shrugged it off quickly.
He pushed the paper over to the woman behind the desk and she glanced up with a slightly raised eyebrow.
"Supposed to get this in before I talk to Sutton," he told her, and she seemed to take in his various cuts and bruises before shrugging once and pulling up some kind of form on the computer.
"It'll just be a minute. You can have a seat - I'll let her know you're here."
Sergio shot a glance back at the bench, quickly decided he'd rather stand than sit next to the creepy kid, and settled with leaning against the wall, adjusting the grip on his ice pack to try and keep his hand from going numb. Visits to the office were nothing new for him, but the lectures did get tiring after a while. He knew the basic face to put on for principals, though Sutton might be a little trickier. Manageable, though...
His train of thought was cut off when the door to her office opened. The girl that came out first looked about his age, though unfamiliar, which probably meant he hadn't seen her before because he tended to pride himself on remembering faces. She wasn't alone, though, and the one following her...
"Filho da puta," he growled, fists clenching. Daniel looked up with a frown and Sergio was a little surprised to see that he didn't seem any worse for wear - barely a mark on his face, and the one scratch didn't look like it was from their fight - but that only made him angrier. "So what, you get off scot free or something? Just because you're the teacher's kid?"
"Who're you...?"
"No, puta que pariu esta merda!" He was being stared at now, but considering the level of his voice that wasn't surprising. The girl next to Daniel had gone from looking confused to annoyed in a matter of seconds. "I don't care who threw the first punch - you can't just walk out like you didn't do anything, dammit."
"What the hell is your problem?" Sergio's attention jerked over to the girl just as she advanced on him. "We don't even know you."
"Didn't stop him from giving me a black eye, did it, Dan?" he snapped, jabbing a finger at Daniel and glaring at him again. The other boy seemed to have changed clothes, too...this was getting strange. "Why are you sticking up for him?"
"Because he's my brother." She had suddenly gotten in his face, now staring him down stubbornly - impressive, considering she was quite a bit shorter than he was - and Sergio blinked, managing to close his mouth before he started gaping for any length of time. The hell? The girl was glaring at him, dark eyes holding his without wavering. "And last I checked his name was Toluk, not Dan."
The small office fell silent. The kid on the bench had been watching the whole exchange carefully and was now engrossed in his book again. After a few moments during which Sergio tried to figure out just exactly who or what was lying to him right now, Sutton stepped out of her office and the tension shifted suddenly as all three of them turned to look at her.
"I see you've got a knack for making friends, Sergio," she noted, glancing between them quickly. "Anana, Toluk, you're free to go. Bring the schedules back once they're finalized." The other two nodded and the girl - Anana, apparently - shot Sergio one last glare before they left. He sucked in a breath before turning back to Sutton, hoping none of the wariness was showing on his face. "Come on, then - seems we have some things to discuss."
His eye was throbbing a little as he followed the principal into her office, and Sergio resisted the urge to try and catch a glimpse of those two again before the door closed behind him. Apparently people were wrong: this school could get weirder.