Chapter Text
Adam had never needed an alarm to wake up in the morning.
His wake-up call came in the form of sunlight peeking through the blinds. At roughly six, the light reached a particular angle and brightness strong enough to stir him from his slumber. He blinked the clingy sleep from his eyes and greeted the early morning for the first time since May. The moment Mom turned on the radio at 6:30, Adam was up.
He slipped out of bed and maneuvered past the scattered books and clothing items on the floor--- lingering remnants of the summer '56 now gone. August was upon him now; it was time to return to school. Less time reading fantasy and science fiction magazines, more time studying. Less time playing casual baseball with the neighborhood kids, more time playing serious football with the team.
Well. As serious as playing football with those goons could be. He sighed, already bracing himself for their high-energy, loud-mouthed, trash-talking, back-slapping ways.
After he'd thrown on an undershirt, some khakis, and his nicest dark gray cardigan, Adam spent a good fifteen minutes in the bathroom, fixing his frizzy black bedhead with some grease and a comb. He had to pause about halfway through the process to greet his springy brown-and-white Jack Russell terrier. The dog jumped up once and pattered around Adam's feet. He wagged his little tail and peered up at his owner with happiness in his big brown eyes.
Adam chuckled and kneeled down to pet the dog's head. "Puddles! I'll be down in a few minutes, buddy." He patted the dog's flank and pointed out the door. "Out, boy." Puddles hurried away, collar jingling as he pattered back down the stairs.
Once he'd tossed on his green-and-white letter jacket, Adam hurried downstairs. Mom was in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. She turned and smiled at him cheerily. "Good morning, Adam! Go ahead and sit down; I'll have this ready in about five minutes."
Adam took his usual seat at the table, quickly glancing at the lonesome two slices of toast and glass of orange juice already there. He cast a long look toward the empty seat across from him. He sighed, dejected. "So... I'm gonna guess Dad's already at the school."
"Of course," Mom answered. "He left out at 5:30. He wanted to get there extra early to get everything ready for class--- you know how your father is."
"Yeah... I know." Adam rested his cheek in his palm, stung by a twinge of disappointment. "I was hopin' he'd give me a ride this morning."
"Not unless you got up at four."
Adam shook his head. "That wasn't gonna happen," he said with a bitter chuckle.
Mom sighed sympathetically and left the stove to set a comforting hand on her son's shoulder. "Look on the bright side, Adam. You're in his English class this year! You'll get to see him plenty today." She patted his shoulder and returned to the skillet.
Adam half-smiled, somewhat encouraged. While Dad had been teaching at Harvey High ages before Adam's freshman year, Adam had barely interacted with his father during his attendance there. But Dad taught the 11th Grade English class--- and Adam had just become a junior. While a classroom was not a setting where they could interact as father and son, Adam looked forward to the fifty minutes he'd spend with Dad during the school day.
"Oh, look at the time! It's 7:10 already; you may have to eat fast." Mom turned off the stove and grabbed an empty plate from the cupboard. She quickly scooped up what she'd been frying and tossed it onto the plate, then set the breakfast down in front of Adam--- two eggs sunny-side up and a pile of bacon.
Adam gazed down at the food, eyebrows raised. "This is a lot of food for a school morning," he remarked. He grabbed a piece of toast and layered a few slices of bacon onto it.
"You'll need that protein when it comes time for practice," said Mom. She set a hand on her hip. "And since when do you complain that your breakfast's too big?"
Adam topped his breakfast toast with one of the eggs and picked it up with a shrug. "Who said I was complainin'?" He took a bite.
Adam finished his breakfast at 7:23---right on time. He jogged up to his room, scooped up his backpack, and hurried back downstairs; maybe he'd get out a little earlier today! He'd just rushed past the kitchen when Mom called his name.
"Adam? Get back in here a minute!"
Adam backed up, wondering what she could want.
Mom pointed at the dishes on the table. "I'm not putting them in the sink for you."
Adam chuckled out a sigh and hurried back to the table. "Sorry, Mom." He scooped up the plates and glass, placed them in the sink, then backed out of the kitchen with a lopsided smile on his face. "Slipped my mind."
Mom trailed him. "That's not the only clean-up job that's 'slipped your mind', hijo. I've been telling you to pick up your floor since summer started and you haven't done it yet!"
Adam breathed a chuckle. "I'll get to it, Mom. Don't worry! I've gotta swap it out for my school stuff anyway."
"So there's going to be a bunch of football gear lying around instead of baseball, schoolbooks instead of pulp magazines..."
Adam grinned teasingly. "You got it!"
Mom nudged Adam forward by the shoulder, walking him in the direction of the front door. "Oh, get to school already," she scolded affectionately.
Adam hurried for the door, his mom still close behind. He raised both hands in surrender, still grinning. "OK! I'm on my way out."
He turned the knob and looked back over his shoulder just in time to see Mom shake her head, smiling. "I can't wait for you to finally meet a girl you like and marry her... but I worry for her," she laughed.
Adam chuckled, despite the uncomfortable prickling on the back of his neck. "Yeah," he halfheartedly agreed, still wearing a lingering, now-tainted smile. "Bye, Mom." He blew her a quick kiss and headed out.
---
A block's ride down the sidewalk on his bike, and there it was--- Harvey Hollow. It was Adam's hometown, so familiar. There was nothing terribly distinct about it; nothing more exciting than high school sports and backyard cookouts ever happened here. Skirted around the town were the houses, some suburban, others uptown. Outside the residential areas, there were shops and other businesses--- many kinds of business, including entertainment venues.
On its own, near the end of the business strip, stood the church house, easily one of the oldest structures in town. Most of the residents from Adam's neighborhoods attended every Sunday, or every other Sunday. Adam's own family attended there, despite the occasional skeptical looks from some of the congregation's oldest, thanks to his mom's ethnicity. But the pastor and the rest of Harvey Hollow's First Baptist accepted his mixed parentage with grace.
Across from the church house was the park, where many a church picnic had been held. Adam had spent much of his time there as a child, running and playing games and sports with the other kids on warm summer weekends, and sledding down the big hill behind the playground over Christmas break.
On the other side of the park, then around half a block from it, stood Harvey High School. Small town that is was, Harvey Hollow's high school had a sizable campus, complete with a cafeteria, library, gymnasium, and a large field which served both the track and football teams. It was a good school with good teachers and a decent sports effort, with an even split between good kids and kids who were just plain horrible.
Adam parked his bike at the rack, pulled his backpack forward by the straps, and trudged onward through the front doors. On his way through the halls, a couple of his teammates greeted him with a high five. Adam smiled and returned the favor, promising to see them at football practice later. Further down the hall, a fellow junior, Leo, greeted Adam with a big smile. His boyish face, youthful enough to make him look like a freshman, meshed awkwardly with his tall, knobbly stature.
"Adam! Great to see you, my friend!" He pushed his glasses up his nose. "Hey, are you planning on joining the Chess Club again this year?"
Adam shook his head. "Nah. I like to try something different every year." That was mostly true. Chess Club had been fun, and Adam's clubmates knew he was a competent and intelligent player, but he'd never fit in there--- not really. And until he found a place where he belonged, he'd keep switching his elective. He continued the journey toward his locker, keeping his classmate in sight.
"Well, we're always open for you to come back," said Leo, following. "You could show some of the new kids how it's done! And if not... what club did you have in mind this year?"
Adam shrugged. "I haven't really thought about it. I'll see what they have available this year. I don't know if anyone's gotten around to starting a science fiction club..."
Leo chuckled. "And to think it took me three weeks to convince you to start reading the magazines. If I wasn't captain of the Chess Club I'd go to a science fiction club myself."
Adam smirked warmly. "Don't you mean king of the Chess Club, Leo?" He thumped his gangly classmate's shoulder.
Leo burst into a laugh. "Ah... classic Adam. I'm gonna miss you crackin' me up." He broke away and headed down the adjacent hall, waving. "See you at the rally!"
Adam gave him a two-fingered salute and continued on his way. The second he arrived at his new assigned locker, he caught two girls looking at him. The younger of the two, he didn't recognize. The girl he did recognize waved. "Hi, Adam! Welcome back!"
Adam politely half-smiled and waved back, then opened up his locker. He crouched down and opened up his backpack to begin unloading his supplies; quickly--- he could organize everything later.
"He seems nice," whispered the younger girl to the older.
"Oh, he is," the older answered. "Adam is like, the school dreamboat. Everyone's had a crush on him, but no-one's been lucky enough to be his girlfriend."
The uncomfortable pricking at the back of his neck returned. Adam rubbed it. Of course... his least favorite part about school--- all the talking the girls did about him. Most guys would have jumped at the chance to be considered the "dreamboat" that all the girls wanted, but Adam was not that sort of person. Truth be told, he was tired of each and every girl in the school staring at him like a choice steak.
Not to mention turning every new crush confession down became more and more awkward for him each time. It wasn't like he could tell them the reason why he rejected girl after girl. The standard "You're a nice girl, I'm just not interested" had become stale ages ago. He hoped and prayed every day that nobody would grill him on it--- not that he was close enough to anyone here to get grilled.
Casual friends, he had in spades. As for close friends, confidants... he had none.
Adam shut his locker and backed against it with a sigh, folding his arms. Despite his popularity, Adam often felt like the odd one out at school. He knew he was different, and there was no social class he truly matched. Preps treated him like a nerdy prep, and nerds treated him like a preppy nerd. So he liked books and sports. He was friendly and well-liked, but spent his free time alone. He was a class all his own--- and halfway through high school, the loneliness of that situation had already set in.
His parentage set him apart in an entirely different way. Hearing the way some of his meaner classmates talked about Mexicans was... irritating, at best. Insulting at worst. They didn't do it that often, but it was enough to make Adam kind of glad he had a white dad and a generic name. It ensured that he slid under their radar, for the most part.
Not that Adam was afraid of bullies. He was one of the school's top athletes, for Pete's sake. He just hated that they felt the need to point and laugh about people they didn't know. As if everybody with a particular skin tone or set of facial features could all fit in the same box. People were more complicated than that, and if those kids were too stupid to see that, Adam wasn't going to waste his breath correcting them.
This was the same group of clowns he now found hounding a new girl--- his age, Asian, well-composed, with a silky deep blue scarf tied through her long raven-black hair. They started crowding around, attempting to provoke her. One of them kept ducking in front of her, mockingly pushing back the corners of his eyes with his fingers. Adam admired the way she stood her ground and marched right past the fools, sparing them the pleasure of her attention. He smiled. Cool.
The group at last gave up and ran off guffawing. Shaking her head, the girl sighed to herself and opened her locker. Adam strolled up beside her and leaned into the lockers, propped by his elbow. She glanced at him, curious but skeptical, brushing a single loose strand of hair from her face. Adam smiled politely. "Hey. I'm Adam. What's your name?"
Her lip twitched. "It's Mira."
"Mira, huh?" Adam brought on his most friendly, charming smile. "Well, you do look nice today. Great scarf."
"Oh... thanks." She seemed surprised, but not displeased. She raised an eyebrow. "Hold on. Are you... flirting with me?"
Oh... oh yeah that probably did seem like flirting. Woops. Adam jumped back from the locker, hands up. "No... no, I wasn't flirting. It's just... in Spanish, "mira" means "to look", and I was making a play on words. Trust me, I'm not the type to flirt with someone I've just met."
Mira relaxed, her shoulders falling. "Good, cause I'm really not interested in having a boyfriend..." She grabbed her history book and smiled teasingly. "At least, not yet."
Adam chuckled. "Well, I'm not looking for a girlfriend. So... friends?" He held out his hand.
Her smile burst into a grin. "Friends." She shook his hand firmly.
The pair walked together down to the auditorium for the opening rally. Adam slipped his hands down his pockets. "So, Mira. What brings you to Harvey Hollow?"
"My dad brought me here. We left the city, and since he really wanted to live in a small town somewhere, we ended up here."
"Do you like it so far?"
"It's... nice." Mira smiled. "I was nervous at first. Things have been great so far, actually... but after this morning, I'm getting worried again." Her smile fell.
"Don't be." Adam smiled back. "You dealt with those guys really well."
"I'm used to their type," Mira sighed. "My city school was full of them. I just thought maybe things would be better here."
"Hey, I grew up here," said Adam. "Most people here aren't like those jerks."
"Well... that's good to hear." Her smile returned. "What about you, Adam? Tell me about yourself."
"Uh..." Unprepared for the question, Adam ducked his gaze aside. "Well... I play football. I read a lot of books and magazines." He rubbed the back of his neck, looking her in the eye again.
She raised an eyebrow, still beaming. "Neato. I read a lot too. I like to draw. And I listen to a lot of music. In fact, I used to play drums with a band before I moved."
Adam chuckled, admiring this girl more and more the longer they talked. "Wow. Now that is cool."
Mira nudged his shoulder with her fist, eyes sparkling. "Adam, I have a feeling we're gonna be great friends."