Huntington Avenue | ✓ [PV REWRITE]

Part II: Chapter 6

༻✺༺

Chapter 6 | ❝ Can we sit here? ❞

Wednesday, November 14th, 2018 - 9:25 a.m.

DESPITE AUGUST'S RATHER tired and nearly unruly appearance - at least for him - he made it to his second class, AP Calculus, on time with five whole minutes to spare. He tugged the hood of his red sweatshirt over his head so his brown hair poked out a bit, but not overly so. It was clear he did not want his face to be seen.

Unfortunately, Harper, who was directly next to him, was immediately quizzical. "What's up with you?" he asked as soon as August's bum hit the chair behind the desk he was to sit at.

"Nothing is," he responded calmly even though his mind was panicking.

"Come on, August," Harper persisted with concern. "You never wear your hood up or anything and you just seem off."

"It's raining outside."

Harper was not having it. "It's not raining inside, though. Are you hiding something, and if you are, is it something serious?"

"No." August shifted uncomfortably in his seat, unable to make eye contact.

It was like August to be quiet, but it was unlike him to completely try to hide himself from a friend of his. His right leg began to bounce up and down due to his anxiety. Harper noticed his unusual body language and decided to continue to question him.

"Something's wrong. I can tell. You don't have to tell me anything, but I'm just worried about you because you're never like this.

August, acting upon impulse, tugged the hood off of his head and finally gained eye contact with Harper for the first time that morning. "There," he deadpanned with a scowl. "See?"

"God, August—what the hell happened to you-?" Harper questioned the instant he saw his tattered face.

The skin around August's left eye was stained black and purple due to the black eye he was given by Jaylen the previous night. He wore an older pair of glasses with thin black rims and a small, tan bandage above his left eyebrow over what appeared to be a scratch due to the thin, red edges poking out from the bandaid.

August heaved a sigh. "It's a long story."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Harper apologized with genuinity. "If you do ever want to talk about it, Mason and I are here for you."

"Mason's gonna flip when he sees this," he muttered, referring to his black eye.

Harper gave him a playful smirk. "He's your best friend," he reasoned with care. "Of course he'll be worried about you and your safety."

"He acts like an annoying little brother sometimes."

"Isn't that what friends usually do?" Harper asked him metaphorically.