Falling for the Golden Boy

Chapter 3

Carson's POV

Thursday came too quickly for his liking and he stood in front of room 246, the little note clutched in his hand. He debated knocking but decided against it and pushed the door open. He froze, wondering whether he should just turn around and leave and face getting expelled- but it was too late. Ben Marshall had already seen him. He quickly found a seat furthest away from everyone else, fingers playing with the buttons on his phone as he scanned the room. The principal was right, it was a small group with three others aside from Ben and himself. The first girl had a deep skin tone with her dark hair pulled back into dozens of little braids with blue and pink streaks through it. She sat next to a girl with blonde hair pulled up into a bun, a large pair of glasses sitting on the bridge of her button nose. The third was a guy with hair pulled into a bun, dark stubble running across his jaw and a guitar strapped to his back. He couldn't help but feel out of place.

"Alright," Ben interrupted his thoughts. "I was thinking for our next project we should do a bake sale."

"Um Ben," the girl with braids said. "Should we introduce ourselves to the newbie."

Carson's cheeks turned red as four pairs of eyes looked his way.

Ben sighed. "Yes, go ahead."

The girl who had spoken up gave him a smile as she made her way over, holding out her hand. He took it hesitantly as the girl gave it a firm shake. "I'm Meena. That," she pointed to the blonde girl. "Is Sky and Emmet." She pointed to the guy with the bun.

"I'm Carson," he said before she could say Ben's name.

"It's great to meet you! We're just getting started on our next project so it should be easy for you to get adjusted."

He nodded wondering if any of them knew he was being forced to attend this group.

"As I was saying," Said Ben as they took their seats once again. "Bake sale for our next project."

"What's the cause?" Asked the blonde one- Sky, as she took out a notepad.

"Well, it's getting close to cancer awareness month so I was thinking we could raise money for that."

Sky nodded as she wrote.

"That's a good idea," Said Meena. "My grandmother loves to bake so she won't have a problem helping with the treats."

"I'll contact some people, see if we can find a good place to do it." Said Emmet.

Ben nodded. "I'll put together signs and flyers once we figure out a time."

Everyone looked at Carson but he didn't know what he could do. Everyone seemed to have everything covered. Sensing his distress, Meena spoke. "Maybe Carson could help you with the flyers. Are you artistic?" She looked to him.

He shrugged. "I'm good with words."

"That's perfect! How long will it take you to secure a spot?" She looked to Emmet.

"I'll find a place before our next meeting."

"Okay, so we all know what we're doing." Meena grinned.

"Yes," Ben replied somewhat sulkily. "That concludes today's meeting. I'll see you all on Tuesday next week."

The group departed but before Carson could leave, Ben's voice stopped him. "Wait."

He turned back around, an eyebrow raised.

"Why didn't you tell the principal that my friends picked a fight with you?"

Carson laughed but it was laced with bitterness. "You think she would have believed me?"

Ben seemed to think about it for a moment, eyeing the tattoo's peeking out from the neckline of his shirt, the smell of smoke on his clothes, before slowly shaking his head. "I guess not."

Carson turned and left before Ben could say anything else.

~

When he got home, his father was already gone. Making his way to the kitchen, he looked around for something to eat but the only thing in the fridge was beer. He sighed, not looking forward to a trip to the grocery store. He looked around the house for spare cash but came up with nothing. He went to his fathers room, the place looking like it hadn't been touched in years. A layer of dust sat on the bed. His father usually came home late in the night, crashing on the couch and then leaving the next morning for work. It was a wonder how the man hadn't been fired yet. Carson worried that the day would come soon and that he would have to get a job. It's not that he didn't want to work but nobody wanted to hire someone that looked like him, not in this small judgemental town.

Finally, he found what he was looking for, stuffing the weed in his pockets before taking off. Hopefully his father wouldn't notice.

He made some calls before waiting in an ally a block away from his building. He shivered at the chilly evening air, the sun hidden behind thick dark clouds telling him a storm was soon to come. He wished they would hurry up. He didn't want to walk back home in the rain.

As if summoned by his thoughts, a figure appeared at the end of the ally. As he got closer, despite the hood covering his face, Carson thought he looked strangely familiar. Then the figure removed his hood and there stood Killian. He groaned inwardly. When Noah told him on the phone that he knew someone interested in buying, he didn't think it would be him. How did Noah even know Killian?

"Oh this is priceless," grinned Killian. "I always knew you were good for nothing but a drug dealer too? I'm sure the principal would love that."

He growled. "Are you buying or not?"

"Why even go to school?" Killian ignored his question. "You obviously don't have a life ahead of you."

He stuffed the weed back in his pockets. "If you're not buying, I'm leaving."

As he turned to go, Killian grabbed his arm, pulling him back and slamming him into the wall of the building. They stood far too close for Carson's liking with Killian's body pressed against his to keep him from moving, and the feeling of his breath on his cheek. They stood like that for a moment, Carson's eyes narrowed in a glare, his arms pinned down at his sides as Killian's formed a cage around him. He could feel Killian shaking, probably from anger. He didn't understand why the other boy seemed to hate him so much- His thoughts were cut off when a pair of lips crashed into his own. He didn't know what to do, how to react. His lips automatically responded and a startled noise escaped Killian. He pulled away, a look of horror on his face. "I don't- I didn't-" Carson watched as he struggled to find words before he turned around and took off down the ally. Carson watched him go, a pocket full of weed but no money for groceries.

~

He got home, stomach rumbling with hunger but that was the least of his worries. He couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. He had so many questions. Carson had kissed plenty of men and women in his time to know he was bi but that wasn't what confused him. What confused him was why had Killian kissed him? The same guy who seemed to hate him more than anyone else? The same guy that made his life as difficult as possible?

He fell asleep with troubled thoughts, dreading what Monday would bring.