Chapter Text
Josh was okay with being a nobody. He’d probably be alright with talking to the same 5 people for the rest of his life if that was in the cards.
But his parents wouldn’t have that.
His parents always worried about him. They claimed that all of those years alone were going to lead him down the wrong path. That being lonely would lead to some deep psychological issues.
God, dramatic much?
Growing up, Josh was quiet. Kept to himself on the playground. Sat alone when there was free time. It started to concern his teachers, who alerted his parents of his antisocial habits. It only spiraled from there.
When middle school rolled around, Bill and Laura were insistent that it was a mental problem. They took him to specialists, who all said the same thing: “He’s just got a bit of social anxiety. It’s perfectly normal for boys his age. He’ll grow out of it soon.”
Except he didn’t. It seemed the more he aged, the less interest he had in making friends. It didn’t help when his siblings were born, and they were all the polar opposite of Josh. They were always out, always at a sleepover. Always spending 8 hours at a time with their friends. Like normal kids. It only made Laura more worried for her eldest. While his siblings asked to stay after school to hang out with their friends, Josh asked to stay at home, secluded in his room.
High school felt like the final test. One that he didn’t pass, either. He could tell that his mom hoped he would finally break out of his shell. Her hopeful smile every time he came home from school kind of broke his heart. So, Josh made it his goal to make at least one friend in his freshman year. All for his mom’s sake, before her head exploded trying to figure out why Josh didn’t talk to anyone.
Josh wasn’t a recluse. Well, not as much as his parents claimed. He had one best friend. That’s all he needed. It was a miracle how their friendship blossomed, even. His mom acted as if he’d never had a friend in his life. Quality over quantity, he would tell her. She never believed him. Thought it was a cover-up for his self-isolation.
It was whatever. If having one friend meant having his mom getting off his back, he could do that.
In a totally honest answer, he found high school to be the hardest place to make friends. Elementary was easy. You could be anyone’s friend. Middle school was a bit harder, but nothing like the trenches that were high school. Everything felt so cliquey. If you didn’t fit in a box, no one wanted to be your friend. You would be subjected to sitting in the library for life. He would’ve been fine with that fate, in all honesty. But the universe wouldn’t let him live like that.
Josh picked at his plate, moving around his veggies with his fork. Family dinner was always the worst part of the day. His mom would go around the table and ask all of his siblings how their day was at school. And when it got to him, he always shrugged and offered, ‘It was cool.’ Laura Dun was never impressed with that answer. She always made him say one thing about his day. Good or bad, she wanted something. Josh would let her have it, making up a story 90% of the time.
“So,” Laura finally got to Josh, that same patient smile on her face. (Poor thing always expects a different answer for a new day.) “How was your day at school today, honey?” He barely looked up from his plate, already prepared with his script that he prepared every night before dinner.
“It was fine,” He replied, ignoring how his siblings all giggled at him. It wasn’t mean-spirited laughing; it was just what he always said. “Chem’s getting harder. We start a new lab tomorrow, with partners, I think.” His mom perked up. That was new. Josh always ended at the first sentence. But three sentences? It must be her birthday.
“With partners. That’s nice. Is Mark in that class?” He tried not to chuckle at the mention of his only friend’s name.
“Nah. He’s in regular chem. I’m in honors.”
“Geez, no need to brag,” His younger sister sneered. His younger siblings liked to poke at him. He was used to it. Luckily, Laura shushed her, just happy that Josh was talking more than usual.
She had that spark in her eyes that she always had when an 'opportunity’ arose. “That’s great. Maybe you’ll be able to make a new friend.” Josh only nodded, not wanting to push back. He just wanted to survive dinner.
A new friend.. Right. He hasn’t made a new friend in 3, almost 4 years.
Not to dim his mother’s light, but her enthusiasm was questionable.
“I don’t need any new friends. I have Mark. He’s enough.” He’s used the same argument for years. His mom hated when he talked like that. But of course, he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. He wasn’t sure why. All he had to do was nod his head and agree that the opportunity to make a new friend was nice. He just had to ruin it.
“Does Mark have other friends?”
“Well, yeah–”
“Then I don’t see why you can't have other friends, too.” Josh’s fork picking got more aggressive.
“Because I don’t want, nor need any other ones. Mark does the job fine. We hang out. I get my socialization for the week.”
Laura gave her husband a look, trying to recruit him for help. He looked between the two, trying to find a way to jump in. Josh had a feeling that his dad wasn’t even sure how the conversation started.
“Joshua,” His father spoke, looking up from his plate. “Can you humor your mother for even just a second?” He didn’t seem all that interested in the conversation and resorted to scolding. He was only a backup for when his wife needed him. It irritated him.
He bit the inside of his cheek, tasting something metallic in his mouth. “What? While she drills me on how I spend my free time?” He snapped, dropping his fork. The table went quiet, rightfully so. Even Josh wasn’t expecting to lose his temper. But there was only so much he could take of his mom’s helicopter parenting. “I try to be nice and let mom have more than just an ‘I’m fine.’ But it turns into this. It’s exactly why I don’t talk about how my day went in detail.”
“Joshua.” His tone was sharp, but Josh didn’t back down.
“No, I’m serious! Why can’t you guys just leave me be? Every year, you act like I’m getting shoved in lockers and getting my head shoved in toilets! I just wanna be alone! I like it, that’s all it is! Why’s that such a problem?”
Laura’s head suddenly snapped toward her son, clearly focused on the wrong part of the conversation. “Are you getting bullied?”
Frustrated, Josh rubbed his hands over his face. They were getting so far away from the main point. “Are you serious? That’s what you got from that conversation?” He scoffed. “Why can’t you just accept that this is the life I wanna live?”
“We’re just worried for you, Joshua!” His mom pleaded, trying to de-escalate the situation. His dad ended up going back to eating the food on his plate, which, typical. He never got in the way of his son and his wife’s arguments. He knew better than that. “You don’t think it’s hard seeing my son being a hermit? Wondering if he’s gonna get out like the rest of his siblings?”
“Oh, great, comparing me to your much less disappointing kids. Great.” His siblings all sat awkwardly in their spots, trying to tune out the fight that he was sure they’d had multiple times. They were all on their phones at this point. He couldn’t blame them. Their arguments have never escalated this far.
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
“I can’t have this conversation anymore, my God,” He declared, his chair screeching as he stood up. Without another word, he stormed upstairs, trying to ignore his family's whispers at the table at every step.
“Geez, mom, way to make dinner awkward.”
“Abigail, really? You know I was just trying to help.”
“Mom, you have to leave Josh alone. Seriously, you’re not making his whole antisocial phase any easier with you breathing down his neck–”
Josh shut the door behind him, wincing as it slammed with a loud bang! (He’d deal with the lecture about slamming his door later.)
His parents didn’t understand.
He didn’t want more friends. He liked being by himself.
He didn’t have issues. Having no friends was a choice. He could have, like, a billion friends by now if he wanted.
Being alone was his choice.
…
Was he trying to convince his parents?
Or himself?
— — —
High school hallways were brutal.
It felt like a runway he was forced on every single day, in front of a bunch of angry critics and social influencers he pissed off. He tried to keep to himself to avoid any of the judgement. Kept his head down, didn’t make eye contact. Now that he thought about it, maybe it was more like walking through a lion habitat. (Or which animal was that? A bear?)
The dreaded walk from AP Lang to chemistry was the worst part of his day. They were on opposite sides of the building, and the hallway was always crowded with groups of students acting as a human barrier to get through. Has no one ever heard of a single-file line? It was loud, no matter how much Josh tried to drown out the noise with his earbuds. He always managed to bump into several shoulders, no matter how hard he tried to maneuver through the trenches.
“Damn, you look like shit, Josh.” A voice behind him called, not needing to turn around to see who it was. He only continued walking.
“Good morning to you too, Mark.” He grumbled, not slowing his pace as Mark tried to catch up to him. It was their routine by now. “You haven’t even seen my face.”
The other boy leaned forward for a glance, sucking in air between his teeth. “Now I have. And my comment still stands correct.” He hummed, Josh letting out a sigh. Normally, he’d be able to stomach Mark’s teasing. But after his outburst at dinner last night, he seriously couldn’t take it this early in the morning. He just wanted a peaceful walk to his class.
Breakfast was an awkward encounter. Everyone chose to pretend Josh’s temper tantrum didn’t happen. He was okay with that. Preferred it, actually. His mom gave him a silent apology, cooking pancakes for breakfast that morning. Josh accepted her apology by finishing every last crumb on his plate. She sent him off with a kiss on the forehead, but there was a certain look in her eyes. Probably still feeling guilty about the night prior.
A few moments of silent walking passed by before Josh finally spoke up. “Can I ask you a question?”
“You just did.”
“Quit it,” Josh warned. “Am I your favorite friend?”
Mark raised a curious eyebrow. “Where is this coming from?”
“Answer my question first.”
His friend let out a laugh. “I’d consider you my best friend, yeah.”
“Cool,” Was all Josh responded with, looking ahead at the endless sea of people. A couple more seconds of silence went by before he continued. “My mom and I had this awkward fight at the dinner table in front of my entire family. That’s why I asked. Wanted to settle something.”
“She on your ass again about having no friends?”
“What’s wrong with all of you?” Josh hissed, his grip on his bag tightening. “Seriously, I don’t need friends. I tried explaining that to her last night. She got all aggro on me, so I left mid-dinner and spent the rest of the night in my room.” Mark snorted, despite Josh not saying anything funny. He made a face that silently asked, ‘What did I say?’
“Do you realize how edge lord you sound, Dun?” Mark pointed out, Josh frowning at his observation. “Seriously, I think she’s just worried for you. You mentioned always being kinda quiet, yeah? I think it’s just a motherly instinct thing.” He bit his lip. He hated how Mark was right. Now he looked like the asshole picking fights with his mother, who was just worried for him. “I don’t mind being your only friend, Josh. But you gotta broaden your horizons, even just a bit more. What’s gonna happen when I’m not in Calc cause I’m sick?” The hypothetical sucked to think about. “Have at least a classroom friend. You don’t gotta hang out with them outside of class or anything. Just someone to talk to before class starts.”
Josh glanced to the side, trying to decide what the best thing to say was here. If he told Mark he was right, he would never hear the end of it.
Finally: “Well, thanks for giving more of a shit than my dad did at dinner.”
“Anytime, son. I will gladly be Mr. Dun if it means I get to be with your mom.” Scrunching his nose in disgust, he shoved Mark by the shoulder. Mark retaliated by shoving back harder. He lost his footing, and was harshly slammed into a poor, unsuspecting soul in the hallway. There was a series of dramatic gasps that followed after. That cannot be good.
Josh slowly turned around, catching a glimpse of a white shirt that was currently not-so-white anymore. A huge brown stain was now placed perfectly in the middle. It smelled like coffee. He winced at the sight.
“Fuck, are you serious?” A very (rightfully so) annoyed voice cut through his embarrassment. Josh hated how he recognized the voice right away. Of course, Mark had to push him into fucking Tyler Joseph.
Tyler Joseph, for lack of better word, was the world’s biggest fucking asshole. Imagine the worst person to walk this earth, then multiply that by 10. No, 100.
Josh remembers Tyler from middle school. He was actually a decent guy back then. Before his massive ego got to his head, Josh would say that Tyler was pretty close to being a friend back then. Which is saying a lot, because again, Josh doesn’t have many of those. He always offered Josh an extra pencil or talked to him in passing when they were headed to the same class. They never hung out outside of school grounds, but Josh can recall running into him once at the park. They talked for 30 minutes before parting ways.
Unfortunately, high school got its grubby hands on the boy. And he transformed 180° real quick. He wasn’t as kind as he remembered. When freshman year rolled around, Josh vividly remembered the sneers that Tyler would give when seeing Josh in the hallways. It confused him because nothing much had changed since 8th and 9th grade.
Tyler was the perfect textbook definition of a high school jock. Not that he knew much about him anymore, but from public information, he knew that the other boy was annoyingly cliché. He was the basketball team captain and one of the most popular dudes at school. Guys wanted to be him, and girls wanted to be with him. With that being said, being the most popular guy at school came with certain expectations, he supposed. And that meant picking on Josh for being slightly different. It’s been almost 4 years since his drastic change, and things have been the same. Teasing about his looks, comments about how nerdy he was. Josh was convinced that he was the only person that Tyler targeted. He seriously wondered every day what he had done for Tyler to suddenly hate him. He tried to keep to himself. Go through the halls unsuspectingly. But Tyler made it his mission to actively seek out Josh.
Josh didn’t hate Tyler by any means. Did he think he was an arrogant and self-serving asshole? Yes. Did he push back when Tyler pushed? Also yes. It felt a bit cringe at times. Something that came straight out of a coming-of-age movie. But that’s just how high school worked. You gotta bare your fangs before the predators start to think you’re entirely helpless.
His thoughts were cut short by a pointed cough, trying to capture his attention. “Are you even gonna apologize?” Josh blinked a couple of times, trying to come back to reality. Unfortunately, he realized Tyler wasn’t alone. He was surrounded by a bunch of his basketball friends. Even better. Tyler had an audience, which meant his performance skills would only skyrocket.
“Sorry,” He said simply, brain too muddled to say more. He meant to go on with the apology, he swore. He was sorry.
“That’s it? Just ‘sorry?’” Tyler scoffed, throwing his now empty cup in the conveniently placed garbage can beside him. “I barely got a couple of sips in. Is your side fringe too much in your eyes, or do you really have no spatial awareness?”
His cheeks burned at the insult, and he tried to ignore Tyler’s friends' giggles beside him. It was hard when the horde of minions stared at him like it was judgment day.
“I said I was sorry. If you gave me a couple more seconds, I could’ve finished my sentence.” Josh muttered, shrugging his backpack off his shoulder and unzipping it. He rummaged through his bag, suddenly forgetting where everything was. He was certain it was the whispers of Tyler and his friends that were making him nervous. Tyler watched, half unimpressed and half curious about what Josh was doing. Finally, Josh pulled out a stack of neatly folded napkins. He extended his hand, showing the napkins as a peace offering.
Tyler stared at him like he was offended. He took the napkins out of his hands anyway and started to dab at the stain.
“You are embarrassing, Joshua. Seriously, embarrassing.” His tone was one you would use to scold a misbehaving dog. Along with his full name, something only his parents said when he was in trouble, it only made his face warmer with embarrassment. “This was my favorite shirt. Dry cleaning’s not gonna be able to fix this.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. I apologized. I gave you napkins. I’m not quite sure what else you want me to do.”
“Offer to buy me another shirt? Or another drink?” Josh could only scoff, because wow, the audacity.
“I’ll pass. Not interested in going on a date with you, asshole. Doesn’t seem like interesting conversations would happen, knowing your intelligence.” Josh froze, lips pressing together in a tight line, in hopes that his mouth wouldn’t betray him anymore.
Did he seriously just say that?
Tyler seemed to be caught off guard as well, because for once, he was silent. His brows were furrowed so hard that he was sure there would be permanent wrinkles. Despite Tyler’s obvious bitterness, his friends found the joke hilarious. They tapped at his shoulder as they laughed, saying that ‘Josh got you there.’ His face was red, probably from a mix of embarrassment and anger. That must’ve been the only time that Tyler has been challenged like that. It must’ve stung even more that his friends weren’t on his side. Deciding not to embarrass himself or the other boy any further, he hauled his backpack over his shoulder. Without another word, he began his trek back to chemistry again.
“Yo, what the fuck just happened?” Mark called out from behind him, barely being able to contain his laughter. It only made Josh walk faster. “That did not just happen. Please tell me you did not just say that to Tyler.”
“You were there for all of that? The entire time?” Josh huffed.
“How could I look away? That was shit hard to watch.”
Josh rolled his eyes. “Dude, that was your fault! You pushed me into him!”
“After you pushed me, remember?” Mark reminded. Unfortunately, he was correct. But he couldn’t admit that. “Tyler’s gonna have your head on a stick now. You’re marked for death. You should’ve seen his face.”
“Trust me, I did.” Josh cringed, the memory popping back up in his head. Yep. Still fresh.
“It was nice knowing you, Josh. Tyler’s gonna make sure the rest of your high school career is a living hell.”
“I’ve talked back before. I don’t see how this is any different.”
“That was just evil. Poor dude looked so flustered. You almost had me feeling bad for the guy.”
Josh turned around, his face scrunching in discontent. “I clearly apologized. I even gave him napkins. If he wants to ‘ruin my life’ over a dumb comment, then he seriously has other problems.”
“Yeah, sure, Josh. Whatever calms your nerves.” Mark shook his head, placing a comforting hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’ll catch you tomorrow, if Tyler doesn’t kill you by then.” And just like that, Mark continued walking, leaving Josh alone in front of his classroom.
He looked onward, eyes locking with Tyler, who was still leaning against the lockers. His friends still surrounded him, but he was paying them no attention. It was like Tyler was staring at him the entire time after he left. His face was unreadable. It was something akin to a calculated stare. Like he was plotting the start of his demise. Before he could really grasp the situation, he kicked off the wall and disappeared into the crowd, probably off to his next class. His friends looked confused by the sudden departure.
Josh stood there, dumbfounded.
Tyler’s gonna make sure the rest of your high school career is a living hell.
Yeah, right.
As if he was scared of Tyler Joseph.
— — —
“Josh, how was your day today?” It was like clockwork. After last night’s spat, Josh should’ve rolled his eyes at the question. He just didn’t have enough energy to deal with anything else today.
“Was fine. Chem kinda kicked my butt, but besides that, it was okay. I got paired up with this random guy for the lab work. He was alright. I ended up doing most of the work; he was just really confused. I didn’t mind.” His mom nodded along with his story, always happy when Josh supplied more than a two-word sentence. “It was a boring day.”
Ashley, who was usually uninterested in Josh’s stories about his day, decided to speak up for once. “Are you gonna leave out the part where you pissed off Tyler Joseph and soaked him with coffee?” His head snapped up, glaring at his sister.
“Where did you hear that?” He demanded, but she only smiled cheekily.
“Just the grapevine.”
“Tell me, Ashley, or I swear I’ll shove this fork down your throat.” He pointed his fork in her direction to make a point.
“Joshua, that is no way to speak to your sister.” His father piped up, not looking up from his phone. Josh just kept glaring, not relenting. His sister was a freshman, so how she heard about the Tyler situation was beyond him. Was Tyler already starting his torture by spreading rumors?
“Tyler Joseph? Isn’t that Kelly Joseph’s son?” His mom asked, choosing to ignore the empty threats that came from Josh’s mouth. “He’s a nice boy. Shows up to church sometimes with Kelly. I remember him from middle school. You two were friends.”
“I wouldn’t say friends. Just classmates,” He grimaced, still looking at his sister, who was getting a kick out of Josh’s anger. “Besides, he’s an absolute asshole now.”
“Joshua, the language, please.”
“He is.” Josh defended, as if it made the usage of the word more acceptable at the dinner table. “He acts like I personally slashed his tires. Hates me for no reason other than for existing in his 5-foot radius.”
“Really? That doesn’t sound like him. He’s such a sweet boy, from what Kelly says.”
“Well, of course he’s gonna be an angel in front of his mom. He’s a whole different monster at school.”
Laura raised an eyebrow. “So that elicits you soaking him with coffee?’” She air-quoted.
“Okay, that was out of context,” He huffed, putting his fork down. “It was an accident, I swear. Mark pushed me into him, and I spilled coffee all over his shirt. I apologized and gave him napkins. That’s all that happened.” He insisted.
“That’s not what I heard.” Ashley grinned.
“Okay, then can you stop being cryptid and just tell me what you heard?” Getting enough satisfaction from being a menace, she decided to spill what she knew.
“I’m friends with Hazel, Chris’ sister.” He was familiar with the name Chris. It was someone on the basketball team and one of Tyler’s best friends. “She told me that Chris told her that he had to deal with Tyler’s complaining all day. Something about some ‘emo freak’ ruining his favorite shirt and it stained. And he said he was going to make it his life goal to make the rest of your high school career insufferable.”
Well, gee, didn’t that sound familiar?
“He did not say that.” He rolled his eyes, leaning back in his seat.
“Why would I lie to you?”
“Because you hate me and like to see me suffer. Like everyone does, apparently.”
“Whatever, don’t believe me. But I know what Hazel told me. And I only know one emo freak around.”
Josh grabbed a potato off his plate and hurled it at Ashley’s face. She shrieked as the food splat against her cheek.
“Joshua Dun!”
Ashley scowled, grabbing a potato off of her own plate and throwing it back in his general direction.
“Ashley Dun, you too! Stop it, both of you!”
The night ended in his room, earning a deserved grounding. It was worth it, in his opinion. He lay in bed, arms tucked behind his head and legs crossed as he lounged. He stared up at the ceiling, focusing on each glo star on his ceiling.
Tyler Joseph wanted him dead.
When Tyler Joseph had his eye set on something, he got it. It was his. It’s how he ended up as basketball captain. It’s how their team got to regionals. So if he wanted Josh dead, it might as well be a done deal. Sealed in the stars.
He was going to die by Tyler Joseph’s hands.
He just had to pray that Tyler eventually got bored and would forget about him.
Yeah, he’d have to pray pretty fucking hard.
— — —
This might’ve been worse than his actual grounding. Or maybe this was his real punishment.
When he mentioned praying for his safety from the inevitable, it was surprising that God had heard his prayers. Because here he was, sitting in the church pew, waiting for the priest to end the service so they could go home. His leg bounced as he slouched, his mom reminding him multiple times to sit up straight and stop bouncing off the walls.
Josh wasn’t not religious. He respected his mom’s religion and indulged in her practices from time to time. He allowed her Easter and Christmas masses. He wasn’t a monster. He knew his prayers and knew the 10 commandments. But he was a teenager, and church is one of the top 5 most boring places to be if that stuff wasn’t your jam. And obviously, Josh wasn’t a church junkie. His experiences of church were the opposite of what church was supposed to feel like. Being an alternative presenting young man, Josh got a lot of stares at the church. Having holes in your face is apparently just as bad as lying to thy neighbor. Even when he toned it down, taking his piercings out and leaving the eyeliner at home, it was inevitable to get looks from everyone in the building. From people his age, to the old ladies, even the pastors. The church was supposed to be a safe space, his mom claimed, but it felt like genuine hell. He didn’t know what was worse: the school hallways or the church pews.
Finally, the words he’s been waiting for. “Go in peace, and spread the word of God. Amen.” Josh couldn’t even wait for the chorus of ‘Amen’s before standing up. His mom immediately tugged him back down by his wrist.
“Joshua, can you at least wait for the pastor to leave?” His mom sighed, putting her purse on her lap. “Don’t be too eager to get up and leave.”
“I am. I think it’s unfair that Ashley gets to stay home when she’s also grounded.” He whined, sinking down in his chair. She rolled her eyes, looking at her son with a frustrated look.
“Because she gets her own punishment. She can’t hang out with her friends for a week. For obvious reasons, I can’t give you the same punishment.”
“So, you agree? Bringing me here was a punishment?” He got lightly slapped in the back of his head. He let out an ‘ow,’ his mom frowning.
“Don’t be a smartass,” She whispered, making sure God wouldn’t hear her usage of the word ‘ass.’ She was sure that he would forgive her, seeing the circumstances. A few minutes went by before she stood up with her purse in hand. Josh went to follow, but she held a hand up. “Stay here for a couple of minutes. I’m gonna go talk to someone. Can you survive being left alone for 5 minutes?”
No. I cannot.
“Yeah, sure,” He shrugged, shifting in his seat. Satisfied with this answer, she stepped over Josh and walked off. He was a little bit disappointed that they weren’t leaving right away, but he was just glad that the mass was over. He stared aimlessly into the distance, just waiting for his mom to come back so they could bounce.
Suddenly, he felt a weird presence behind him. Like someone was looming over him.
“You look lost, Dun.” Josh cringed at the voice behind him, eyes shutting to brace himself. The devil himself. He was getting an odd sense of deja vu. He had a feeling that Tyler was going to be at mass. They’ve made awkward eye contact every now and then when Josh did decide to show up. The most he’d do is pinch his brows together before looking away. up. He was just grateful that Tyler was kind enough to keep his distance, and keep the insults for school only.
But this was new territory, and he didn’t like it. Approaching Josh outside of school felt like the start of something dangerously new. “Poor thing. Your mom left you all alone to fend for yourself?”
Josh stood up immediately, not wanting Tyler to have the upper hand in any way, and that meant height. His hands defensively crossed over his chest, immediately frowning. “What is this?” He interrogated.
“What? I’m being a good Christian and greeting my good friend after a good service.” Josh’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. Tyler sized him up, eyes scanning Josh’s outfit. His mom made him dress nicely. It was a hard task, given that all his clothes had holes in the fabric. He opted for a pair of jeans that had the fewest rips. “You cleaned up. That’s nice. I can actually see your eyes.” Subconsciously, he pulled his bangs back down from their nicely combed spot. He decided not to acknowledge Tyler’s last comment.
“We’re not friends.” Josh looked over the other boy’s shoulder, trying to search for his mom. He saw her conversing with some lady he didn’t recognize. It didn’t look like their conversation would be done anytime soon. “Seriously, approaching me at church is fucking weird.”
“Language, Joshua.” Those words reminded him of when his dad scolded him. It left a sour taste in his mouth. “Besides, I think it’s fair considering what you had to say to me at school.”
He’s seriously still on about that? Josh’s jaw clenched. “What do you want, Tyler?”
Tyler’s hands tucked into his pockets, taking a step forward. They had a one-inch difference in height, but it felt like the other boy was towering over him. He tried not to shrink into himself. He said it himself. He had to stand tall and show no fear. “I meant it when I said you were ruined.” His tone was the most serious he’s ever heard a guy. It was almost scary. Almost. “I tried being nice. I really tried. But you just had to open your mouth. I hope you enjoyed the treatment I gave you before, because that’s done.”
“Is that a threat?” He asked incredulously. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. Tyler wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of a true response. He was lucky they were in church; otherwise, this conversation would’ve ended so much more differently. He had to resolve his battles peacefully. Instead: “Careful, Tyler. I don’t think God likes to hear such nasty words in his safe house.”
Tyler didn’t move. Only smiled, which sent chills down his spine. After a long vow of silence, Tyler suddenly surged forward to grab Josh’s hand with what could only be described as a death grip. He squeezed, hard; it almost made Josh wince out in pain. It could’ve been mistaken as a friendly action if it weren’t for that mischievous look on his face.
“You’re right, Joshua. I apologize.” He smirked, shaking their intertwined hands and using his free hand to press an open palm to his own chest. “I wouldn’t threaten you. It was more like… a warning.” His grin only spread. “A 5-second head start before I ruin your life.”
Holy shit, this dude was a sadist! All of this because I made some stupid joke about his intelligence?
Tyler dropped their joined hands, taking a step back. And just like that, all of the heat was gone. Now it just looked like they were exchanging friendly words after a church service. “See you at school, Josh. Peace be with you.” Was all he had left with, turning sharply on his heel and walking down the aisleway of the church.
“No fucking way,” Josh whispered under his breath, arms uncrossing and falling by his side. He felt like pinching himself to make sure whatever just happened was real. He looked around, hoping this was some stupid prank orchestrated by Mark. He was waiting for Mark to jump out and say, “Surprise! You just got pranked!” But nothing came. Just an overwhelming sense of anxiety that he swore he wouldn’t feel.
Even when his mom came to collect him and bring him home. Even when his siblings teased him at the dinner table. Even when he lay in his bed, waiting for sleep to overtake him. There was only one lingering thought on his mind.
Tyler Joseph has declared war on me.