Hide and Seek

The New Boy - 1

Stan

I swung my legs under and back out from beneath the black topped desk I was sitting on. My two closest friends, Blake and Dustin, sat on either side of me. Blake sat to the left of me. His blonde hair stretched down to his hazel eyes in an attempt to cover them and make him seem more mysterious. Dustin sat to the right of me. His dark red hair was recently cut close to his head. His deep blue eyes scanned the room for someone to throw a paper ball at.

We were currently waiting on Karen, the last friend in our group. She had dirty blonde hair cut to her chin, brown eyes, and a round face. She was thin and short, making her seem younger. Her nose was a bit big for her face, and her eyes were a little far apart.

My eyes widened as they landed on a figure following Karen into the classroom. He was tall and bulky, with curly, milk chocolate hair. His jawline was sharp and stood out, while his ears were a little small and were mostly hidden by his hair. He wore black hooded sweatshirt that was most likely a size too big, and dark-wash bootcut jeans. As he and Karen neared I noticed that his face was heavily dusted with freckles and his eyes were an icy shade of blue.

Karen's eyes landed on us and she led the new kid our way. "Hey, guys!" She waved when she saw us looking at her.

"Hey," we said in unison.

Dustin, Blake, and I shared a look before erupting into laughter. "That's like the third time this morning," Blake cackled.

Karen didn't look very amused. Instead, she glared at us and we mostly quieted down. The occasional chuckle was heard from one of us. "Anyway, guys, this is Rebel. Rebel, this is Dustin, Blake, and Stan." She pointed to each of us as she said our name.

"Hello,"  he mumbled rather shyly.

I never would've taken him as the embarrassed type, but here he was being awkward. "Rebel? Is that seriously your name?" Dustin asked.

I elbowed him in the ribs. He flinched away with an "ow." Rebel laughed a little and nodded. "Yeah, it's my real name. I get that question a lot."

"Anyways, as Karen said, I'm Stan." I took the sunglasses that rested on Blake's head off and put them on with a smile. "I'm the coolest one in the group."

Karen giggled and rolled her eyes while Blake and Dustin attempted to look offended. "Then what are we?" Dustin asked.

I shrugged. "Tweedle dee and tweedle dumb."

Rebel laughed and shook his head. "Who does that make us?" Karen then asked, motioning towards herself and Rebel.

"Girl and Rebel."

"Excuse me?" she snapped.

I smiled and nodded, giving no verbal response. I winked at Rebel over the sunglasses before Blake took them and set them back up on top of his head. I scoffed in response. "Rebel, come over here," Ms. Periwinkle, our first block teacher, called.

He sighed and walked once to Ms. Periwinkle's desk. Ms. Periwinkle was shorter than most of us with piercing green eyes and elbow length copper hair that was currently braided to the side. She wore jeans and a scruffy sweater a size too big for her petite body.

We silently watched Rebel talk to Ms. Periwinkle before taking the paper she handed to him. I assumed it was his schedule. They talked for a moment more before he rejoined the group. Karen snatched the paper from his hand. Her eyes ran over the paper and her lips slowly fell into a frown. "You have the exact same schedule as Stan," she announced.

"You know my schedule?" I asked.

She nodded. "By heart."

Blake gave her a strange look. "Do you know mine?"

She shook her head and handed the paper back to Rebel. "Nope. Just Stan's."

"Why?" Dustin mumbled.

"Because Stan is my favorite. Duh," she scoffed.

I smiled in victory, earning a punch in the shoulder from Dustin. Blake did the same before Dustin pinched my cheek like an old woman. "Look at him! How could he possibly be your favorite?" he asked.

I shoved him off the desk in return. He didn't have time to catch himself and hit the ground with a hollow thud. Rebel chuckled and Blake broke out into laughter. Karen had her own laugh and I just blankly stared at Dustin. It always creeped him out when I did so. "Stan! You already pushed me off the desk, is there really a need to stare at me like that?"

"Yes. Yes there is," I stated firmly.

He put his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry."

I laughed and stood up from the desk. "No you're not."

He gave a small nod. I put out my hand and he took it with slight hesitation. I planted my feet so I wouldn't end up on the ground with him and pulled him onto his feet. "You have such a deceiving body," Blake said behind me.

I was caught off guard by the sudden comment. "I- what?"

I turned to face him. He shrugged. "You look like a stick figure, but you just helped Dustin up so easily."

"What, is it not normal for Dustin to easily be helped up?"

"No. He makes you do all the work."

Dusting chuckled. "It's true."

I rolled my eyes and sat on the table once again. Rebel looked me up and down as Dustin stood beside Karen. To my dismay, another person walked over to our group. He had blond hair, brown eyes, and stupid chains hanging from his neck, beltloops, and ears. Brad. "You are quite the stick, Stan. Your figure is a little straight for your girly personality." He laughed at his own joke.

I bristled at the ignorant comment. "What do you want?" I snapped.

He wrapped an arm around Karen's waist with a sick smile. "Just hoping that this little one could introduce me to her new friend."

Karen gagged at the gesture and wrenched herself from his grasp. "Whatever. Brad, this is Rebel. Rebel....Brad."

Brad's eyes wandered up and down Rebel's figure as if he was scanning for advantages and disadvantages that he had. Rebel was a few inches taller than Brad, and was definitely more muscular. Brad was a fat kind of strong. He didn't have much muscle, but what was there had more power than one would think. I would know. Rebel seemed to be doing the same before his eyes wandered over to me. Although his eyes were an intimidating color, and held harsh a glint that never seemed to leave, there was something soft about them. Brad put a hand out and introduced himself. "Brad."

"I got that," Rebel stated rather sarcastically.

I was surprised by his sudden change in tone. He appeared shy when Karen introduced us. I shrugged it off. A sly smile ran across Brad's face as he dropped his hand. "A little snippy are we? Fair enough. Anyways, Rebel, I just wanted to let you know that this isn't really a group you want to hang out with."

"And why is that?" Rebel scoffed.

Brad dropped his arms across Rebel's shoulders and squeezed his arm. The sight of it made me uncomfortable. "Well, they're a little band of outcasts. She's a retired suck up, Peter Pan is a former cool kid, Blake is a complete idiot, and Stanley is a...what do you call them? A fairy," he sneered.

Anger began to bubble and transform into complete rage as he mocked each of us in turn, but I held my tongue. I noticed Blake's eye twitch and Dustin clenched his hands so tight his knuckles turned white. Karen simply glared at him.

Rebel shrugged off Brad's arm. "Then I think I'm where I need to be."

Brad rolled his eyes dramatically. "Whenever you realize that you're too good for them, we'll be happy to take you in."

And with that, he turned on his heel and stomped away. We were all silent for a moment before I broke it. "I suddenly feel the need to say outcasts, assemble."

Everyone looked at me, making me chuckle nervously. I couldn't tell if they thought it was a dumb joke, or if they were processing what I said. Rebel was the first to laugh, and the others followed close behind. I smiled. We're right where we belong.