“Am I right?"
"Huh? Right about what?" I asked stupidly, coming out of my trance and turning to look at Alex.
Alex rolls his eyes, heaving a huge sigh at the same time, and then fixes me with a stare.
"Am I right about this? Is all because of William?"
"William?" I asked confusedly.
And then it hits me that that must be his name. I grin idiotically. I like the way the name tastes in my mouth and feels on my lips. In fact, I love it so much I say it again; I sigh dreamily and go back to looking at the corner William just disappeared around.
"Oh, my sweet Jesus. It really is! Holy shit, Michael! "He said sounding slightly panicked.
I can't really bring myself to care, though. Actually, I can't bring myself to care at all.
William…William, William, William…Will...
And then it hits me. I snap out of it, shaking my head, and turn to look at Alex with such an intense stare that he actually leans away from me. Whatever. I don't care about that either. What I care about is how the hell he knew his name—William's name.
"You know him?! How?! Where!?"
"He's new and he's in my chemistry class, that's all."
Then he gives me a martyred look.
"But, dude…really? Him?"
"Why do you say it like it's a bad thing? And how could you tell?"
Alex cocks a disbelieving eyebrow at me.
"Are you serious right now? How could I tell?"
He rolls his eyes at me.
"Well, for starters, you were staring at him like he was a piece of candy, nearly drooling, when he walked by. Then you kind of freaked out when I said his name. And I say it like a bad thing because it is!"
"Why? What's wrong with him?" I asked slowly trying to stay calm.
"Nothing's 'wrong' with him. He’s just…weird."
Um. Well, duh. I kind of figure that much by his clothes, thanks. And besides, I like weird.
"Is that all?" I asked in a bored tone.
"No! It’s not! What do you even know about this kid?" He exclaimed
"He dresses oddly"
"Which anyone with eyes can see."
"His name's William."
"Which you just learned from me three minutes ago. What else?"
" ..."
"Exactly." He sighed.
Shit. He got me.
I sigh and look over at him.
"Okay. So I don't know a lot about him. But, dude, I don't care. I want to. I want to so fringin' bad! And yeah, he's the reason."
"But why?” He asked earnestly.
"I don't know. I just saw him yesterday and everything just, I don't know, became clearer or whatever."
I turn away from him to stare out the window.
"It was weird. When I looked at him, I just…knew he was amazing and that I had to know him and be with him and..."
"Okay. Enough. I've heard enough. You can stop talking about him now. I get it."
"What's your problem? You asked me and I was telling you." I said looking back over at him.
"Yeah, I know that. But, dude. This is just extremely crazy, you’re acting extremely crazy. The Michael I knew yesterday wouldn't be spouting off sappy shit like that about a guy he didn't even know. Are you even the Michael I thought I knew at all?"
"Yes and no."
"What's that supposed to means?"
"It means that some things you thought you knew about me are true and some things aren't. Like that band everyone's been going insane over lately? Yeah. I don't even remember their name because that's how much I hate them. That pretty much goes for any other band I've said I liked in the past."
"So…You've been lying to everyone. Pretending..." Alex said slowly.
"And you haven't been? How many times have you claimed that you've hated Harry Potter? I know you don't; I found all seven of the books under your bed last summer, and they all looked like they've been read to me. In fact, they look like they've been read several times." I shouted at him, raising my eyebrows.
Alex actually blushes at that and looks away from me. I restrain from shaking my head at him. Really, is it so bad to like a book series? Oh, wait. Yeah, it is. At least in this school. And if you're going to like one, it has to be stupid Twilight and you have to be a girl. Harry Potter is a definite no, and so does a boy like books at all, for some reason. Poor Alex. People would hate him if they found out that he's a closet-bookworm.
God, my school is messed up.
"Okay...I have, too…But you know why I did." Alex mumbled.
"Yeah, I do. And it's a stupid reason. Why should we care about what others think of us? Especially other people we don't even like?"
Alex is quiet for another moment, and I watch him as he stares at the floor with a thoughtful expression. Three minutes pass by before he looks back up at him, nodding.
"Okay…okay. I see where you're coming from now. It makes sense." Alex said slowly.
I grin at him.
"Of course it does!"
"But that doesn't mean I'm just going to announce certain things in this school. Sorry, Michael. But I've already screwed my reputation over enough by still hanging out with you, not that I regret it or anything like that, of course! I'm not going to even more by wearing Harry Potter hoodies or shirts or anything like that."
By the look on his face, I can totally tell that he actually has those things, and it makes me smirk at him. Alex blushes again, but glares at me, so I don't say anything about it even though I really, really want to tease him. Maybe later.
"That's fine. Be as fake as you want around other people. But that doesn't mean I'm going to be; not anymore. And do me a favor and promise that when you're just around me, you'll be your Harry Potter loving self?"
"Sure, fine, whatever. Now just shut up!" He said glancing around.
I chuckle.
"Okay, okay. Calm down."
The bell rings then, and Alex and I automatically stand up from our spot on the windowsill. We head towards our next class, which we have together, and we make it down a hallway without talking before Alex clears his throat, glancing over at me. I look over at him, raising my eyebrows.
"What?"
"I'm worried about you. "
I stop in the middle of the hallway for a second to stare at him.
"Um…I'm could say the same thing about you right now, Alex."
He rolls his eyes at me then gives me a look.
"Being myself, remember? And myself is concerned about his best friend right now. Seriously, Michael. Are you sure about this William kid? You're doing a hell of a lot of shit just to what? get this guy's attention?"
"You don't understand. If you felt what I felt when I saw him, you would. And I can't explain it without sounding like a sap, as you've already pointed out. So yeah, I'm sure." I said getting slightly frustrated.
I cock my head to the side, looking at him questioningly.
"Why are you worried anyway?"
"Well, for one, you don't even know him. Two: from what I've seen of him in just the past two days, he's pretty freaking odd. And three: what happens if he's not gay or bi or whatever?"
Well, shit. I haven't even thought about that. And I kind of really don't want to.
"I don't know. But I don't think that's a problem. I'm pretty sure he's gay. Or at least bi." I shrugged.
"Yeah, but you don't know that. And it'll get you down if it turns out he isn't. Remember when I liked the girl next door to me and how down I was when I found out she had a boyfriend? Yeah. Believe me, that sucked. You don't want to go through that."
" But I won't go through that. The situations are completely different."
"But the feeling of disappointment and level of suckishness will be the same. So, just be careful with this kid, okay? Don't get too hung up on him before you even know him. It'll rot your soul."
I really can't help but snort at that.
"Where'd you get that one, Alex?" I asked in a teasing voice.
"My mama." He said seriously.
But then, a second later, he cracks a smile and we both start laughing. It's short-lived, though, and once we stop, Alex gives me another sincerely concerned look.
"Seriously, though. Be careful, okay? Or even better yet, just let it go completely."
"Ha-ha, fat chance. But no worries, man. I'll be careful. I'm not stupid enough to fall in love with someone I don't even know."
"No, of course not. You're just stupid enough to think he's worth screwing yourself over socially for." He grinned.
"Shut up. I told you. If you felt the way I felt, you'd understand why I think it's totally worth it." I said smiling.
"Yeah. I highly doubt that." Alex snorted.
I watch as Alex's collides with a girl walking in the opposite direction, nearly knocking them both off their feet. Then, once they've gotten their balance back, I watch as Alex stares at the girl with this weird look on his face. I blink at him, and then turn to look at the girl myself to see if I can figure out why.
She's Goth, but not the scary type of Goth. In fact, from the way she's grinning at Alex as she apologizes for running into him, I can tell she's the happy kind of Goth, which also tells me that she's new. The Goths we have here aren't usually of the happy variety. And normally, they wear nothing beside black, right down to their undergarments. But this Gothic girl has added purple to the mix: steaks in her long black hair, eye shadow, jewelry, the lace on her blouse, her tights, her nails—even the freaking lollipop she's holding in her hand is purple. She pops it back into her mouth as she starts walking again, still smiling around it at Alex as she passes him. And Alex actually turns his whole body around to watch her go, that weird look still on his face. I wait until Goth Girl's out of hearing range before I ask him about it.
"Um, dude…you're okay?"
"Yeah. Just…I kind of have a craving for a grape lollipop." He said staring at her.
My eyebrows come together in confusion.
" Okay then…"
"And I think I understand what you mean now. She'd definitely worth it…"
What? oh.
I get it.
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