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It's been almost three months after he finally got transferred to a new school after all the bullying he received on his previous one, Aesop Carl, a young boy of only fifteen years who was accustomed to being mistreated by his own classmates never got to experience what another kid in school being nice to him was, that's when he became friends with Eli Clark, a kid on his class that was nice to him since the moment he sat besides him.
The kid who seemed attentive and energetic, was actually someone who loved making friends, so of course when he saw Aesop as a new person who could be on his circle he ran towards him in a rush.
The young grey haired was weirded at first, he never thought someone would be willing to be his friend, specially after his two years on his past school that left him very depressed and with lack of self esteem.
He had an older acquittance on the school, a guy he knew since they were little kids, Norton Campbell, whose mom was friends with his father, they were close until Aesop started his old school, that's when they stopped hanging out. Norton actually came to this new school, Oletus high school, but since he was a year older they only briefly saw each other on recess or lunch, and since Norton had his own friend group they couldn't share any moments together.
“Aesop, are you listening?.”.
His friend's voice made him snap into reality.
“S-sorry, I didn't catch that.”. He said looking at his feet, an old habit he had when people spoke to him.
Eli smiled, softly touching his cheek and made him look at his eyes. “I asked If you started studying for next week's exam, you know mister Whistler said it's gonna be harsh.”.
Aesop's heart always raced whenever Eli touched him, he wasn't used to foreign touch on his body from friends.
“I am. I have all the answers here.” He pointed at his head.
“Wow!, As expected from such a smart kid like you, I hope the teacher won't make us seat appart in case I need you!.” Eli joked, but deep inside Aesop knew he was serious.
Eli always needed some answers, and Aesop was happy to help. Because that's what friends do. Right?.
“What are you having for lunch?.”. Eli said closing his bag.
“Oh, I think my father made me some pasta. You're buying from the cafeteria?.”.
“It's pizza day, I can't say no to my weekly pizza.”.
The cafeteria was always full. Aesop hated it, one thing that he misses from his old school is that since nobody wanted to seat with him he could just simply disappear and eat wherever he liked, usually, under the trees of the small garden the school had. No one ever noticed he was gone, one time he even fell asleep and not even the teachers noticed.
But since this was a new school and he had a friend here, he had to follow him everywhere. He had the mentality that, since Eli was nice enough to care for him, he was now a priority on Aesop's life.
“Hello there, if it isn't my favorite pair.” Fiona Gilman, another one of Eli Clark's group friends, was always saving a spot for Eli (and Aesop, since he was there too.) on their table. “You're having pizza, I don't wanna hear you complain about your stomach aching after class.” She joked.
Aesop knew there was something like a hierarchy, being Naib the first on the pyramid, followed by Fiona, Patricia, Demi and then Aesop. He knew he was on the bottom since he was kind of a newcomer.
He didn't mind though. It was only normal for him to be the last on anybody's list.
“Naib is skipping lunch again?.”. Clark asked after not seeing him on the table.
“I think he's just running late, he had detention time for hitting a kid.” Patricia said.
“Typical Naib.”. Eli laughed digging on his food.
Aesop didn't understand why someone who (kind of) moved by the rules like Eli, could be friends with some school delinquent like Naib Subedar. It's not like he disliked the guy, but he didn't gave him a good first impression when Eli introduced Aesop to his friends for the first time. Actually, none of them did.
“Oh, what's that you're having Carl?.”. Gilman asked curious seeing him unpack his lunch.
“Ah... I think it's pesto pasta. I see bits of peanut in it with-.
“Ew, gross, I could never eat something like that. You're so brave tho.” She said, making the whole table laugh at it, including Eli.
Whenever he was surrounded by Eli's friends, he felt like he was back at his old school.
The day was finally over, he got the results back from exams he took last week on his after-lunch classes and he passed all of them. He was happy with the achievement.
“You passed?.”. He asked to Eli.
“Only one of three and barely. See I'm nothing without you!.”. Clark pouted, making Aesop faintly smile, feeling like he was useful for something at least.
The last bell of the day rang, it was time to go home.
“Oh finally, I can't bear to be in this place anymore.” Eli said packing his stuff while Aesop just looked at him, concentrated on the job.
He remembers how Eli told him yesterday he would walk home with him. He enjoyed the younger's company so the solely though of it made him nervous.
He was gathering courage to ask him about the activity, when someone crossed through the door. It was that figure he saw with Eli almost everyday after class, more than he'd like to admit.
“Hey, ready to go home?.” Naib asked looking at Eli and then noticing Aesop, looking at him as if he was about to crush his skull. The older just nodded in his direction as a salute. “That old hag of Antoinette made me clean the mirrors on the bathroom but I made it in time, I hate after class work.”.
“Oh poor baby...” Eli grabbed Naib by his cheeks making him laugh. “I'll see you tomorrow Aesop.” Eli said zipping his bag and walking slowly, waiting for Naib.
“Hey, see ya.” The older offered a fist to Aesop, the younger could see it had blood and scratches in it, but he couldn't do anything but return the salute, shy and scared.
After he was left alone on the classroom, he realized. Eli forgot about his promise again.
His lonely walk home was now interrupted by a break on the park playground that was a couple blocks away his house, he doesn't know how many hours he's been sitting on the swing still, but he could see the sky getting darker and darker by moments.
“Aesop?.” He heard a familiar voice.
He turned to where the voice came from, It was Campbell with a couple of bandages on his cheek.
“Norton...” He said in disbelief.
“What are you doing here?.”
“I could ask the same.”. He said back at looking at the floor, the older was probably just passing by.
“Well, I got into a fight and went to detention, I was walking home and I saw you.” Campbell said, letting out a small chuckle, sitting on the swing next to Aesop. “Now you, what are you doing here?.”.
Silence for a moment then he replied.
“I'm just... thinking.”.
“About?.”.
Carl frowned.
“Friends.”. Campbell gulped. “Do friends make you feel like... you're not special to them?.”.
Norton thought for a moment, then shook in denial.
“Friends aren't supposed to make you feel that way.”.
Silence again.
Norton felt somehow guilty about the topic, he knew Aesop liked when people was direct, so he started his apology.
“Hey. I know we been distant since... your boarding school happened. I thought we could get a chance to spend time together now that we're in the same place but... well, we go to different classes and we both have different schedules.”.
Aesop nodded. He did missed spending time with his friend.
“B-But...!, I will find a way to make it work.”.
Carl, who was looking at the sand of the playground, opened his eyes in surprise.
“I don't want you to be alone and feel like you don't matter. You don't deserve that.”.
Campbell got closer to Aesop from the swing he was sitting on, and for this sudden movement Aesop looked at him, he was now face to face.
“I-I want to b-be your friend again!.”. He shouted, nervous and with a faint blush that, thanks to the lack of light it wasn't seen by Aesop.
Silence, once again. Norton was used to Aesop's silence from when they were little, he knew his friend (if he could call him that) wasn't good with words.
“Hmm... yes.”. Aesop nodded, not looking at Norton but smiling.
The older sighed in relief, feeling the thread that was slowly getting thinner was strong once again.
“I feel happy now, thank you Norton.” Aesop stood from the swing, grabbing his bag and saluted his friend. “I better get home now.”.
“Ah wait, I'll walk you there.”.Campbell said, picking his bag too and joining Aesop, his house was on his same neighborhood that's true, but he was definitely not expecting the company.
It made him smile once again, but this time accompanied by a faint blush of happiness.
Once they made it to Aesop's home, he knocked the door and almost immediately Aesop's tutor answered, opening his eyes and hugging his kid when he realized who it was.
“I was so worried about you!, What were you thinking! Did something happened?!.”.
“Oh don't blame him, it was my fault mister Desaulniers, he was helping me on the nursery.” He saw the old man looked at his face and recognized him.
“Oh, Norton, look at you you're so tall now... did he gave you any trouble?.” He talked about Aesop.
“Oh not at all, he even patched me up.”. Norton lied, seeing how worried the man was.
“I see...” He breathed out. “Alright, tell your mother I say hi, okay?, I'll go and call the police to tell them you're home already.”. Aesop looked at his father go, and then at Norton.
“Why did you do that?.”.
“Hey, friends got each other's backs, just like that time when I broke my mom's favorite dish and you said it was your fault.”.
He remembers that, it happened when they were little.
“I see... Thank you.”.
“No problem, I'll see you tomorrow okay?.”. Norton smiled, that crooked smile he had thanks to the lack of movement from his burnt tissues on his face.
Aesop still found it cute, though.
“So how was the exam?.”
“Very easy, I studied a lot just in case but I ended up using only half of it.”.
“Whistler always gives you a lot to study saying it's gonna be hard and then it's just a two plus two question.”
First recess was barely starting, after his two classes of the morning Norton went for him after his class to take him to a quieter place than the school corridors.
Norton did accomplished his promise of seeing him on school like he said last week at his home, passing for Aesop after the recess bell rang, the only thing Aesop was worried was about Norton's friends.
“Norton, do your friends mind that we hang together?.”.
“My friends?, Oh no, they actually encouraged me to do this.” He smiled embarrassed. “When my mom told me your father signed you for this school I got nervous and eventually told them about you.”.
Aesop looked down.
“Are they... mad at me for taking you away?.”.
“What?, No!, I was doubtful of presenting them to you because I know you don't like people that much... they actually ask me about you everytime I got back to class...” Norton smiled and scratched his cheek, he was visibly blushing.
Aesop looked down, feeling embarrassed about his question.
“Hey, wanna get lunch together and meet em?.”.
“Eh?.”.
“Yes, I know you hate how noisy the cafeteria is, we all have lunch at the race track field and there's no one but us, what do you say?.”.
First thought that came to the younger's mind was Eli, he always took him to the cafeteria to get lunch together, would he be sad that he would not assist today?.
“I'll ask my fr-” He stopped his words before changing it. “I'll ask my classmate if it's okay. Can you wait for me when the bell rings for lunch?.”.
“Of course.” Campbell tried to suppress his happiness.
The bell rang, indicating it was lunch time.
“Let's go Aesop.”. Eli said, once the gray haired closed his bag.
“Ah Eli, wait.” Clark stopped. “Actually, a friend asked me to get lunch with him today, would that be okay?.”.
At first, the one with glasses was confused, then he smiled. “Why wouldn't it be?, You're free to go anywhere, I was just being nice in case you needed to get lunch with someone.” Eli said, a little upset.
“Oh... Okay, thank you.” Aesop wasn't good with social cues, and so he couldn't read Eli's passive aggressiveness in his phrase.
The gray haired went out the classroom first, Norton was waiting for him outside.
Eli frowned upset when he saw them together.
Lunch was loud as usual, he paid for his food and went to the table where his friends were. Fiona looked at him coming alone.
“Your pet isn't here today.” She said, noticing he was distracted.
“He's having lunch with someone else.” He took a bite of his sandwich.
“Oww boohoo.”
Then, after she said that, Subedar appeared behind Eli and sat and his side.
“Hey 'Li... where's your...?.”.
“He is having lunch with someone else.” He repeated.
“Oh yeah?, Well, good riddance he was so awkward.”.
Clark did minded them being mean to him, but he just kept eating in silence.
“So... how are they?.” Aesop couldn't contain his curiosity about Norton's friends.
“Hmm well, we are just a big group of sport losers if that helps you clear your thoughts.” He laughed.
“Sports?, Are you into sports?.”.
“Oh yeah, I started to play baseball after we... separated ways, I needed to keep my head busy.”.
“I didn't knew that, you must be really good at it.”.
“Not really, right now I'm practicing for pitcher because coach keeps putting me as right fielder.” He said disappointed.
They were arriving the destination, at the distance he could see a group of teens sitting on the grass all together, when they saw Norton and Aesop coming they all waved, making Norton speed his pace, almost running towards them.
“Guys, this is Aesop.” He said proudly. “Aesop, these are Mike, William, Ganji, Tracy, Nathalie and Melly.”.
“Hello...”
Norton sat on the ground and grabbed Aesop's hand to drag him gently, getting him to sit in the circle.
“Aesop we heard so many things about you!.” The blonde girl, Tracy spoke. “Is it true that you followed Norton with a beetle around the house?.”
Aesop blushed, he never thought Norton would tell them moments of their childhood.
“Shh from all the good things I told you about him you picked that one?.”.
“Well, I remember he told us you practice piano since you were seven, I think that's amazing I could never.” William said, as Nathalie and Ganji nodded.
“Do you like insects?, Unlike them I'm not into sports but rather entomology.”.
“Oh. Yes, I find beetles and butterflies delightful for their design and colors.” The younger replied, granting a smile from the entomologist.
“One day I'll lend you my book about beetles, would you like that?.”.
Aesop kept blushing.
Is this what acceptation feels like...?.
A couple words after, they all started to unpack their lunchboxes.
“What did Michi packed for you Norton?.”. The blonde guy, mike said, alarming Aesop, did he allowed his friends to call his mom by a nickname?.
“The old miso soup and some fried pork with rice.” He said happy and looked at Aesop. “What did you got 'Sop?.”.
That old nickname from their childhood...
“Ah... I think it's some... mushroom...” He stopped, remembering how the last time someone asked him that he got laughs.
“Mushroom pasta?! It looks amazing! You're so lucky!.”. Nathalie said looking at his dish.
“Aw man my brother hasn't prepared me mushrooms since I were little!.” Mike said looking at the lunch with sparkling eyes.
He doesn't know what possessed him, but he still said it out loud with some difficulty. “D-do you want s-some?.”
“Eh!, Really?, Would you like fried fish in exchange? Because that's all he packed me.
“Can I give them to you?.” He said to Norton.
The older smiled and nodded.
“I'll give you some of my pork.”.
Aesop nodded.
Even if they were borrowed, the words friend and acceptation had now another meanings.