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“Lewis Hamilton”
He raises his hand and he swears on his life Mr. Button has this smile on his face that Lewis knows means trouble.
And that’s how he ends up being paired with his snotty Blonde classmate, Nico.
Lewis is convinced that all of the teachers have been forcing them together to spite him.
First, it was Mr. Vettel.
The overly cheerful man found out about their complete loathing for each other by accident. They’d been the two best in their class since grade school and upon transferring to High School were hopeful that they would finally be rid of each other.
Unfortunately, Lady Luck continued to frown on Lewis because on the first day of school he spotted a too familiar head of blonde hair.
“What are YOU doing here?” He hissed, glaring at the boy sitting at the middle seat. It was the best seat in class and Nico had hogged it since Grade School no matter how early Lewis got there.
“I’m sitting” Nico grinned in reply, turning to look out the window ignoring the seething Briton.
“I can see that. I can also see that you’re still a chair hog.” Lewis crossed his arms, dropping his bag loudly on the seat in front of Nico.
Too close to the blackboard but at least he could block Nico’s raised hand during discussions.
Nico raised a brow at him and tsked. That’s right, he TSKED. All smug and proud of himself even, little shit.
“It’s good to see you again as well, Lew” he taunted with that godforsaken nickname of his. Lew. No one’s called him that since Pre-school.
Lewis was about to retort with a snappy comeback when the teacher cleared his throat. They both turned around, honor student smiles plastered across their faces.
“Hello, boys. And you are?” Mr. Vettel greeted, looking a bit too young to be a teacher.
“I’m Lewis” he spat out first, smirking when Nico looked at him sharply. “He’s Nico” he added as more of an afterthought, Nico rolled his eyes at his immaturity.
“Thank you, Lew. But I’m capable of introducing myself.” Nico drawled in his German accent and Lewis just knows he’s doing it to throw him off. Nico didn’t have an accent he spoke five languages.
Lewis knows because he’s spent way too many homeroom periods listening all too intently to Nico’s voice muttering multiplication tables.
Damn him, really. Lewis wants to tear off his clothes.
Head. He means tear off Nico’s head, of course.
Lewis rubs at his forehead, exasperated by this churning in his gut that would not go away.
“Ah, well. It’s nice to meet you, Lewis and Nico. It’s good to see you boys making friends with each other.” Nico and Lewis flinched but while Nico kept his cool Lewis instinctively spat out a disgusted “we’re not friends” drawing out a smirk from Mr. Vettel.
“Oh! But I already signed you up as lab partners so you’ll have to start being a little friendlier, yeah?”
In retrospect, Lewis brought this on himself.
Lewis struggled, staring at the worksheet with his hand grasping his pen in a death grip.
“Come on, Lew. Think.” Said his brain, sounding suspiciously like Nico.
Lewis shook his head. Stupid German-Finnish boys with their stupid perfect voices and stupid perfect hai-
“Peleus”
Lewis turned to the blonde, tilting his head quizzically. “What?”
“Peleus was Achilles’ father. And Odysseus’ son was Telemachus.” Nico smiled at him, that same small smile Nico had when he graduated Salutatorian to Lewis’ Valedictorian. It makes him sick to his stomach just looking at it because Nico almost looks earnest.
“Shut up, I can do this myself.” He muttered, writing angrily on his worksheet the names Nico mentioned before squinting at the next question.
Who was the commander and chief of the Greek Army during the Illia-
“Agamemnon”
“For the love of God, would you shut up?” Lewis shouted, flinching once he’s realized what he’s gone and done it for both of them.
Because Mr. Button is giving him that smile again.
“Everyone out, time for Lunch” he announces before the bell has even begun to ring and the class piles out of the classroom, confused.
Mr. Button stands there staring at Nico and Lewis until everyone has left but them.
“No lunch for you two. In fact, you both can spend the rest of the day here alone.” Mr. Button snickers, locking the door behind him as he leaves and Lewis is running towards the door.
Locked.
Well, fuck.
“You can’t do this!” Lewis shouts, pounding on the doorway three more teachers join Mr. Button.
“We actually can” says the grinning Mr. Alonso who teaches their Spanish class.
“It’s time you two wizened up” Mr. Vettel - from Science Class - grinned, with Mr. Raikkonen - their PE teacher - in tow.
“What’s that even supposed to mean??” Lewis whines, not understanding. What the hell is wrong with these people?
“You’ll both have to figure it out” Mr. Button winked.
“Are smart.” Kimi chipped in, a little hesitantly. “You do something”
And just like that. They were gone.
It took a loud crunching noise for Lewis to remember that Nico was there. He spun around only to find Nico eating a cold piece of Watermelon.
“Are you eating?” Lewis asked, shocked that Nico could be so calm.
The moist fruit made his already cherry red lips seem even redder to Lewis and it took all of Lewis willpower to look back up to his eyes.
“The eyes, look at the eyes, Lew.” He thought, cursing at how the nickname crept into his train of thought.
Nico looked at his Tupperware full of fruit, at Lewis, then back at his fruit before lifting it up for the Brit to inspect.
“Have some” he said, looking suspiciously like a child in desperate need of approval.
And desperate was never a word one could describe Nico.
“They’re not poisoned, I promise.” Nico laughed a little. Lifting up a slice of apple and biting a chunk out of it. Lewis blinked at the fruit.
“Is this all you eat for lunch?” He asks, surprised at how quickly Nico tries to hide the flash of pain in his eyes but Lewis saw it.
He’s always seen everything when it comes to Nico. It’s the more intimate part of being rivals.
Lewis knows that the rival part of him should ignore Nico and leave him to eat his stupid fruit but more than the rival part of him Lewis has always respected Nico.
So instead, Lewis reaches into his bag and drops a Tupperware of roast beef in front of Nico. Taking another for himself, he turns his seat so that they were facing one another.
“Need a fork?” Lewis asks, extending his hand to offer up a fork to Nico.
Nico looks at him, blinking.
“What will you use?” He replies, a surprisingly considerate question. Nico is full of surprises today and Lewis can’t say he minds.
“I have a spoon. Just take it, you dork. Before I change my mind.” Lewis shakes his head, sharing a laugh with Nico who ends up taking his fork.
Lewis watches Nico eat, slowly and with his eyes closed. He savors every bite like he is never going to eat like this again and Lewis recalls that Nico is from a high class family of models. Nico is probably expected to be a model as well, hence the dieting.
Lewis has never even seen him interacting with anyone else in their class until now, sitting together in their classroom with Nico holding a fork and Lewis holding a spoon. Nico has never had any friends and he’s only ever spoken to Lewis.
This was probably why their teachers conspired to make them be friends.
He can’t help but feel sad despite himself.
“You look starved, no wonder you look like a walking stick.” Lewis gapes and Nico just looks back at him sheepishly when Lewis collects the Tupperware and his fork.
“I’m sorry” Nico apologizes and Lewis frowns, holding a hand out to stop the German from speaking.
“Don’t. Don’t you dare say that.” He insists, lowering his hand so that Nico can shake it. “From now on, you never have to apologize to me, yeah?” He grins.
And when Nico grins back he feels his heart soar.
“If you insist, Lew” he shrugs, taking Lewis’ hand and shaking it vigorously. They laugh with abandon, Nico clutching his stomach and Lewis with his head hanging back.
When the bell rings and Mr. Button opens the door again he’s pleased to find Lewis and Nico running out together with wide smiles on their faces, Lewis shouting about how Nico HAS TO COME FOR DINNER.
“Oh yeah, it’s definitely canon” Jenson grins, retreating back into the classroom to clean up.