Chapter Text
Nothing is worse than switching schools in the middle of the academic year, especially when you’re a freshman in high school. Link stood at the bus stop, trying to avoid the questioning stares of the other kids standing with him. With his mom’s new job, the two of them had been forced to move on short notice, uprooting Link from the school district he had been in since kindergarten and transplanting him into Harnett Central High School. He hadn’t exactly been the most popular kid at his old school, but he’d had a small group of confidantes and had mostly flown under the radar. Being the new kid would put him at major risk for social isolation, especially at this point in the school year.
A brisk February wind blew through, causing him to stuff his hands deeper into his hoodie pockets. Luckily his mom had already gone to work by the time he left the house; she never would have let him leave without a proper jacket, but he wanted to minimize any possible targets for ridicule.
Just then the bus rounded the corner, and Link breathed a deep sigh. He had spent the past few months sulking about this move, and now it was all coming to a head. He couldn’t avoid it any longer. The other kids climbed onto the bus and Link followed behind them, trying not to draw any attention to himself. He desperately started scanning the seats, looking for an empty one. Panic began rising in his chest when he got about two-thirds of the way down the aisle and realized that every seat was taken by at least one person. The bus lurched forward with Link still standing, his hands shooting out to stop from falling. People were starting to stare at the new kid stalling in the middle of the bus, and the heat was quickly rising up his neck. He needed to make a decision, now.
The first person who entered his line of sight was a tall boy with short blond hair. His head was down and he had earbuds in, but it was either him or any number of kids reaching across the seats to slap one another, so Link figured he was his best bet. He stepped up and stood right next to the seat until the kid looked up at him.
“Can I sit here?” Link pointed at the open spot. The boy looked at him for a moment, processing his words through the music still blasting in his earbuds before sliding his backpack off the seat.
“Sure,” he mumbled, bringing his eyes right back down to look at the large iPod in his hands.
Link sat with his backpack in his lap and his legs pressed together, careful to give the boy next to him plenty of space. His eyes roamed around the bus for a few moments before inevitably landing on his seat partner. From the corner of his eye he took him in — his dark, strong brow furrowed in concentration as he scrolled through his iPod. Even slouched down in the seat, one knee propped up on the back of the seat in front of him, he was still incredibly lanky. Link wondered how tall he was. Definitely over 6 feet, but past that it was hard to tell. He must’ve been staring more intensely than he had intended, because soon the boy next to him turned his head to look over. Link couldn’t avert his eyes quick enough and just ended up meeting his seatmate’s gaze with shame.
“What’s your name?” the taller boy asked while pulling out one of his earbuds. Link could faintly hear music still coming from the one now dangling near his chest.
“Link.”
“I’m Rhett.”
“Cool,” Link nodded, playing with the zipper on his backpack.
“So, are you new or somethin’?”
Link’s cheeks started to burn, all of his insecurities about today bubbling up. “Yeah, my mom and I just moved here. I used to live near Charlotte.” Rhett gave no response, just nodded in acknowledgement. Not wanting to fall into an awkward silence, Link tried to continue their conversation. “Whatcha listenin’ to?”
Rhett shrugged his shoulder and picked up the earbud that was hanging down, rolling it around in his fingers. “Just my music. On shuffle.”
“Well, what are you listenin’ to right now?”
“Nirvana.”
Link shook his head. “Never heard of ‘em.”
Rhett turned towards him incredulously. “You’ve never heard of Nirvana?”
Link raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “Nope.”
“Smells Like Teen Spirit? Lithium?” Rhett really wasn’t giving up, even as Link was still shaking his head. “Come on, you’ve gotta know this song.” He scrolled through his iPod, eventually landing on a track and handing Link one of the earbuds. Link took it and looked up at Rhett, waiting for him to hand over the other one. Instead, Rhett just nodded at him. “Listen.”
Link moved just a little closer to Rhett on the seat — just close enough so they could both comfortably listen with the same pair of white wired earbuds. He held it gently just inside his ear, not wanting to contaminate the other boy’s belongings. A heavy guitar and bass riff started flowing through the piece and Link started nodding along. He glanced over to see Rhett looking at him expectantly.
“You know it, right?”
Link smiled sheepishly and lifted his shoulders. “I dunno, man. Don’t think so. I don’t really know much music, though.”
Rhett continued to stare at him with a half-amazed, half-confused look on his face, but Link just tried to enjoy the music.
I like it, I’m not gonna crack
I miss you, I’m not gonna crack
I love you, I’m not gonna crack
I killed you, I’m not gonna crack
He continued to nod his head along with the beat. “I like this,” he said, hoping he hadn’t fallen too far out of his new friend’s graces for being so musically -ignorant.
“I can show you more stuff if you want?”
“Yeah, show me,” Link smiled.
“I get a lot of my music from my older brother,” Rhett explained as he scrolled through his iPod once more, trying to select the perfect song. “He’s always buying used CDs at the mall and then uploading them onto our computer. It used to bug me, but now I just see it like free music.”
Link let his head rest back on the seat while Rhett showed him a couple more songs. A piano- and drum-backed track played next as the two boys tapped their feet. It had a haunting feel, and although Link liked it, he didn’t want this song to be the last thing he heard before starting his first day of school. Rhett was already scrolling through his library as the song started to fade to noise.
“Oh, this is a good one,” the boy smirked at Link, who felt his heart jump at the look.
Reluctantly crouched at the starting line
Engines pumping and thumping in time
It was as if Rhett had read his mind. The driving rhythm was exactly what Link needed to psych himself up.
“I like this one,” he turned to look at Rhett. “Who is this?”
“CAKE,” he answered.
“That’s a funny name for a band.”
The bus pulled up to the school and Link handed the earbud back to Rhett.
“Thanks for letting me sit with you,” Link said as he stood, waiting for the other kids to start moving out of the aisle.
“No problem, man. You can sit with me any time.”
At that, Link felt a small flame ignite in his chest, which he carried with him for the rest of the day.
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Link’s first few weeks at Harnett Central High School passed without commotion. He didn’t have any classes with Rhett, but the two of them continued to sit together on the bus. Some mornings they sat in silence, still too groggy to be ready for human interaction, and some afternoons they each worked wordlessly on their homework, hoping to finish so as to not have to do it that night at home. Other days, Rhett would be sitting upright in their usual seat, waiting for Link to climb on so he could show him his latest favorite song.
“Hey man, I have something I wanna show you.” Rhett was barely holding back a grin, already holding the earbud out to Link before he even sat down.
“Chill, let me sit down.” Link threw his bag on the floor of the bus and slid in next to Rhett, stopping just as their shoulders brushed. He shoved the speaker into his ear, holding it in for good measure. “Alright, play.”
Rhett watched Link with anticipation as a record scratch started playing, followed by a hip-hop beat. Link looked at Rhett skeptically. All that was happening so far was a few guys talking in what sounded like some sort of courtroom situation.
FUCK THE POLICE, COMIN’ STRAIGHT FROM THE UNDERGROUND
Link’s eyes widened as the group colorfully stated their displeasure with law enforcement. He wasn’t even allowed to watch MTV at home, and he was definitely not allowed to listen to music like this.
“Dude, I knew this would blow your mind,” Rhett laughed. “Welcome to the world of gangster rap.”
Link continued to take in the song, eyes still wide and his mouth open in a half-smile. He bobbed his head along with the beat and watched with fascination as Rhett quietly recited the lyrics under his breath, pausing only for a few choice words.
“Whaddaya think?” Rhett asked when the song ended.
“That was...intense.”
Rhett burst into laughter, doubling over and gripping the seat in front of him. Link started laughing too, a reflex to Rhett’s reaction, unsure of what he had said that was so funny. Rhett continued chuckling to himself as he went on to pick another song in the same genre, this one more subdued with a funky beat. It had a much different energy than the first song, but Link still liked it. He caught on to the tune quickly and hummed along to the chorus, much to the delight of his friend.
“Okay, I had to show you that because Tupac is basically a legend,” Rhett started explaining when the song ended. “Here’s another one you need to know.”
He played another song and the two of them fell into the rhythm, bobbing along to the beat.
Cash Rules Everything Around Me
C.R.E.A.M.
Get the money
Dollar, dollar bill y'all
Rhett made an exaggerated face and pointed at Link while rapping along to the chorus, pulling a giggle out of the younger boy. The two rode the rest of the way to school pretending they were way tougher than they actually were, nodding their heads to the lyrics of the Wu-Tang Clan.