Friends with "that Niccals kid" | Gorillaz High school AU

Spanish class

MONDAY

Stuart's POV

Ah yes, monday, everyone's "favourite" day of the week, I wake up and brush my teeth, I "style" my blue hair that makes all the ladies intruiged, throw a band tee and some cargo pants on and go to school. I never ate breakfast simply because I deemed it a waste of time. I get going and arrive to school, stopping a bit to get myself ready for what I'll have to go through.

On the way to the entrance I remember Mrs. Tailor, the secretary, telling me about some american exchange student I'll have to welcome to our "glorious" school, how great, you make friends with the teachers once and you're already the teacher's pet.

Mrs. Tailor said to meet her in the secretary, but on the way to my locker, with the intent of packing my stuff away, I see a classmate of mine, Murdoc. My locker happened to be next to his, when I say I hate it, I mean it.

"Hey Murdoc."

"What's up, kid?" He says to me "I forgot my lunch today, what ya got?"

"I can give you a Malteser if you ask nicely" I say, knowing that won't do shit about his behaviour. I pack my stuff into my locker

Again, as a teacher's pet, I was the one assigned to correct his behaviour, which was difficult, knowing that he always screamed profanities and provocations at the teachers and such, even scraped his name into the hallway wall and carved "BITCH" into the principal's desk with his compass. His conduct is why he was actually two years older than me but still my classmate, 10th grade doesn't seem like his expertise

"Got any Walkers?" He growls, trying to intimidate me.

"Beggars can't be choosers, you'll get what you'll get at lunch"

"Faggot" he insults me

"Aight, love you too, I got shit to do" I say, divaishly walking away, not paying any attention to the series of insults he screams after me

For a bully, he wasn't so horrible, just annoying, really. He'd have his truly horrid moments though, he'd often times even slam me against the wall if he was angry. He'd punch lockers next to me to monger fear and seem more dominant, even though he was a head shorter than me.

I just hope the new kid is a nice one...

I slowly enter the receptionist's office. I see a woman in her mid-forties that is clearly in denial about her midlife crisis and chronic burnout, and a really muscular afro-american bloke who is just a tad bit shorter than me, what can I say, I'm pretty tall. The stranger is bald and has no pupils, his eyes are just... plain white

I swallow nervously as I see how large his physical frame is, and considering many people think I'm anorexic because of my freakishly skinny figure, he could easily break my bones with just a poke. Okay, huge exaggeration, but I was scared shitless.

"Oh hey, Stuart!" Mrs. Tailor said in her cheery tone. "This is Russel, he just transfered here from Brooklyn"

"Budapest, actually." He intersects, he has a very deep voice "I grew up in Brooklyn, but then went to middle school in Hungary, and back to America for high school, but I got, um, kicked out"

"Well I'm sure you'll enjoy it here, Stuart will show you around"

Then she just shoves us out of the room, going to do her thing. I show Russel around

"So, why'd you get kicked out?" I ask. "If you don't mind me asking of course"

"Well, long story" he says, I get to hear his Brooklyn accent that has slight kinks to it, probably from growing up in Hungary for a great chunk of his life "Basically, in 9th grade, when we went back to the US, all my friends were killed in a shooting. I got a bit, er, unhinged, as others will say, because I lost the people next to me, y'know. So I, naturally, started doing unhinged things like graffitiing my name on the walls and running around frantically. Ma was worried and decided to send me here as a fresh start"

"My condolences" I say, I never know how to respond to grief

Everything gets quiet for a bit before we talk about other things, he got into class 10. B, I was in class 10. A, so when the bell rang, we had to part ways

First class was spanish

"Completa la frase: los narcisistas son personas que tienden a..." Ms Rodriguez says "¡Mano arriba!"

(Transl.: "Complete the sentence: Narcissists are people who tend to..." "hand up!")

"NO SE ("I DON'T KNOW")" Murdoc screams from the back of the class

"Murdoc, I'm being patient with you, but this class clown behaviour won't get you anywhere" she threatens "¿Quién sabe la respuesta? ¡Mano arriba!" ("Who knows the answer? Hand up!")

"El narcisismo es una enfermedad mental en la que las personas tienen un sentido de importancia personal irrazonablemente alto." I say ("Narcissism is a mental illness where one has a high sense of self importance")

"¡Inteligente! Punto extra para Stuart" the teacher compliments me ("Clever! Extra point for Stuart")

After class the teacher asked Murdoc to stay behind. I realise I left my pencilcase there and have to go back, but Murdoc is being berated, probably. I wait for him to come out, shamefully overhearing what they're saying