Chapter Text
It was the first day back at school after Summer break.
Pico had been switching schools ever since he was young. Whether it be being a bad student or simply just because his family was moving, it was something that he eventually had gotten used to.
Walking into his first class for the day, he’d look around the room and at his peers. This school was just as boring as the last, though his classmates were a bit more diverse this time around. He definitely noticed some different people, those who stood out from the crowd, both physically and socially.
He especially noticed it in one boy.
His hair was a bright neon blue hue, and he wore a red cap on top of it. It was.. Definitely easy to see him in a crowd, to say the least. Pico sat down in his chair, looking over at the boy. He seemed to be talking to some girl next to him. Dark skin, curly brown hair, and she was laughing at something he said.
After a few moments of staring, the boy caught his eye, staring for a few moments. Pico just looked away and up at the bell. Today was going to be a long day, he knew it. The teacher would walk in and give their stereotypical welcoming “speech” for the new year, calling on attendance. When she got to Pico, he would barely mumble his name. “Could you speak up?” She asked, leaning over a little by her desk and holding a palm to her ear. She was old, so Pico didn’t really bother to be snappy. “Pico.” He spoke a little louder, to which she gave a nod of approval.
A few snickers were heard behind him for a few moments, but Pico didn’t really pay it any mind; instead, he’d look to his left again. “Benjamin?”
The boy noticeably squinted, then raising his hand a bit and waving. “Here.”
Benjamin. It was a pretty fancy name for such a scrappy boy, but Pico shrugged it off, trying his best to pay attention in class. His father was starting to get on his ass about his grades, so he was trying his best not to flank.
After class, Pico looked around for that same boy, only to see him talking and laughing with the same girl. His heart sank a little bit, feeling a slight intimidation to go talk to the both of them, and instead just heading to his next class.
Later that day, Pico sat outdoors for lunch. Having just finished PE, he was sweating quite a lot. The beaming summer heat wasn’t helping his case, and he started to wish that his signature outfit wasn’t so heavy on him. His eyes wandered for a few moments while he’d pull out some off brand snack. His family wasn’t the richest, and usually on the way to school he’d grab something cheap from the local gas station. His mind was flooded for a few moments as he looked at his classmates.
None of them knew.
There was an incident at his last school. One that landed him in quite a lot of trouble. His father found out what had happened that day, and eventually decided to switch schools so that it would no longer be a problem. One of Pico’s closest friends turned out to be actually much more than that, and of course, high school students don’t exactly have the best tolerance for people who are.. Different.
Pico rubbed his hand through his hair, eating the chips and trying to distract himself from his thoughts. He’d look down at his lap, kicking his feet together to make some sort of rhythm. His father hadn’t only taken away someone he loved, but he had also prevented him from expressing himself for most of his life. What made it worse was that his mother was awfully compliant with his father’s actions- Hell, she wasn’t even his mother. Pico’s father had moved on from woman to woman off and on throughout his childhood, so by now, he was used to it.
“Hey!”
A voice, one familiar and a little higher pitched came from above him. Pico looked up, shielding his eyes from the sun and blinking. “..Uh.. Hey?”
“You’re the new kid, right?” He spoke, Pico couldn’t help but look away while he continued, “Pico, right?”
Pico shrugged a bit, closing his bag and contemplating just walking away, “Why do you care?”
The other boy just smiled a little bit, “I was just wondering if you wanted someone to sit with at lunch?”
He stopped for a few moments, raising his eyebrow while looking up at the other boy. That sun was not getting any less hot, huh. “You’re not just doing this as a prank, are you? Because if you are, I’ll kick your ass so hard th-”
“Hey! No, no! I wouldn’t do that, I promise, dude.” The other boy offered a hand, one that Pico hesitantly took and was lifted up by, “My friend Gracie and I noticed you in class, so we thought we’d invite you over! Our spot is cool as hell, usually during the summer it has enough shade to keep you cool enough to not keel over and die.” He winked after saying that, laughing a bit.
Pico smiled slightly, grabbing his backpack and following behind the other boy,“Ahh, ok.. So you two have been friends for a while I’m guessing?” The other boy nodded, “Yep! Since 6th grade we’ve been kicking it together.. She’s pretty much just the girl version of me.” Pico just nodded along while the other boy spoke, snorting a little bit after what he said, “Right, so.. Your name’s Benjamin, right?”
The other boy flinched a little bit at that, before hesitantly nodding. “Er.. Y-yep. Or, um..” He coughed into his palm a little, the both of them arriving at the usual spot him and Gracie stayed, Pico assumed. “..I actually prefer being called something else, but it’s kind of weird.. I don’t know, you can just call me Benjamin, it’s fine.” He gave a reassuring smile, one that Pico frowned a bit at.
“Nah, man, it’s cool, I don’t judge. What do you go by?” The both of them sat down underneath a large willow tree, one that Pico smiled up at, feeling the sun between the leaves hit his face. “..Uh..” The other boy started, clearing his throat again, “Boyfriend.” His voice cracked when he spoke, Pico noticed him rubbing his legs together nervously and looking away, almost like he was waiting for someone.
“Boyfriend?”
Boyfriend nodded, “Or BF, for short.” Pico scratched his face a little bit, shrugging. “I’ve heard weirder.” Soon enough, that same girl showed up from earlier. She was wearing a tank top and some jeans, as well as some white platformers. The sunlight beamed on her dark complexion, and her tall height was so noticeable now. She had to be at least 5’10”, and she was slightly more on the chubby side, now that Pico looked at her.“Sup, nerds.”
“Shit, nothing, G?” She shook her head, “Bahh, nope. No pop today, fellas.” Gracie took a seat next to Pico, holding out a hand. “Gracie, but I’m sure this dude already introduced me.” Pico shook her hand, smiling a little bit at her comment, “Pico.”
This was.. Actually pretty nice. Pico didn’t really expect to be picked up like this by the first day, but he definitely wasn’t complaining. He wasn’t the type to trust people too easily, but this felt a lot different than his other interactions at other schools. Besides, he usually knew when someone was talking with him as a joke between their friends.
“Picooo.. Pico de Gallo.. Sorry, man, I was gonna get some pop today but the stupid machine’s broken.” Pico snickered a little bit after she spoke, “You guys are lucky as hell, schools usually never have vending machines.. Uh, at least the ones I’ve been to.” Boyfriend popped open a bag of chips, causing Pico to flinch a little bit. Popping was one of the worst noises to hear, in his opinion.
“So, Pico, what school did you go to before this? What brought you here? Tell us about yourself, don’t be shy!” Gracie smiled a little as she spoke, laying her head on top of Boyfriend’s lap and looking at Pico. “Oh, I went to Bright Future.. Blegh, even saying the name makes me sick.. That place sucked, one of the worst private schools ever..” Pico said, not even bothering to reminisce on what most would consider his first love. He didn’t want to, it hurt too much.
“Oh shit? Dude, my brother literally goes there.. He says it sucks ass, so I’m not too shocked.” Gracie laughed, crossing her legs and playing with a cool little necklace she wore. It looked super stretchy and squishy, maybe something to help with stress?
“Really? Huh.. I’ve probably seen him around, then. I was there for a good two years. My dad transitioned me here after some shit went down at Bright Future, so now I’m here. There’s not too much to know about me, I’m just uh.. Some guy.” Boyfriend didn’t speak all too much while Gracie and Pico conversed, only looking at the two of them and smiling to himself as he ate.
“You’re pretty cool for just some guy though, huh?” Gracie smiled, rubbing her back as she spoke, “Yeahhh.. My parents wanted me to go to Bright Future too, but I physically refused since B here couldn’t go.” She smirked, sitting up and grabbing his cap. Boyfriend gasped, attempting to swipe it back, but Gracie had already whammed it onto her head, sticking her tongue out at him. “Dork.” Boyfriend commented, rolling his eyes and getting a snort out of Gracie.
Pico watched the two of them, feeling that sense of awkwardness he had earlier fade slowly. “You seem pretty cool, Pico. What class do you have next?” Pico raised his brows, taking a second to answer, “Oh, uh.. I have a few electives, but.. I think Math?”
“Do you know which teacher? We have math too, we could take you to the class if we’ve got the same teacher!” Gracie smiled, pulling herself onto her side and eventually flopping down onto her stomach. Pico now only noticed that both Boyfriend and Gracie’s bags were matching, red and blue. It was kind of adorable, but Pico would never say that out loud.
“I think Mrs. Davis?” He said, hearing the bell ring in the distance and a few kids scrambling from their spots in the yard, along with a lot of yelling and talking. “Hell yeah, us too!” Gracie sat up, holding out a hand for Pico, then Boyfriend. After the three of them were lifted up, grabbing all their things and what-not, they’d head to class. All the while, Pico noticed Boyfriend glancing in his direction every now and then.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.