Dreaming - Salvis

Rumor.

Sal walked into school the next day sensing more eyes on him than usual. He looked to the people in the crowded halls as he walked past. They were whispering to one another. Hands cupped over their mouths as they looked.

He continued walking.

... Sal thought back to his first day when he walked in the school, people whispered and stared at him. It was obvious to him why they whispered. It was expected.

Sal was shoulder Checked by a boy with dark hair. Coming back to reality as he stumbled to balance. His backpack fell off his shoulder.
'What the hell?' He adjusted his backpack and continued walking the crowded halls.

He finally saw his friend and walked over to Larry who was nose deep in his locker. Sal tapped on his shoulder, he stopped searching for whatever it was and looked up at Sal. It took him a moment to process who it was,

"Oh, hey Sal." He turned back to his locker, fishing out a book.

"Hey—" sal glanced beside him, people across the hall were laughing as they stared. He turned away, extremely confused.

He leaned over to Larry, "Am I crazy or are people staring at me..?"

"Nope— they're staring."

"Do you know why?"

Larry closed his locker and bent down to unzip his backpack. "Because people think we're together." He looked up to Sal then looked back down as he put his book away.

Sal turned over to the people looking at them and looked back at Larry, "Wait what?"

"Yeah, someone started a rumor that me and you were doing..." a look of discomfort washed over his face, "...'stuff'...in the bathroom." Larry zipped up his backpack and got off the floor. Picking his backpack up with him and slinging it onto his shoulder.

"What—You're joking right?"

"I wish I was man." Larry's lips pressed into an awkward thin line.

"Who started it?"

"I don't know, but once I find out I'm beating their ass." He sighed out, "See ya man, I gotta get to class." He patted sals shoulder and walked off.

He didn't know what to say. The people finally looked away from him, hopefully losing interest. Sal turned to his locker, unable to think, he didn't know why it started.

'Why would someone say something like that?' He thought to himself, picking up his folder and notebook he needed from his locker.

The bell rang. He closed his locker and left for first period...

-

Sal went through his other classes as the rumor continued to spread.
The bell rang, it was time for lunch.
Sal stood, picked his backpack off the floor next to his seat, and left class. Not before he heard snickers though.
Sal walked through the halls to his locker. He opened his locker and noticed a note inside.
Curious, he picked it up and opened it.

Inside, it said a derogatory word.

'Oh—how kind.'

He crumpled it up and put it in his pocket to throw away.
Sal put his bag on the ground, got his text books from out of it and placed them inside—as well as his backpack too.
Todd came from down the hall, and to his locker.
Waving to Sal just as he closed his own locker.

Sal walked over to him.

"Hey Todd."
Todd looked at sal, "hey, what's up?"

"Nothing much, just..."

"The rumor?"

"Yeah." Sal sighed. He waited for Todd to finish putting his backpack away.

"Larry told me about it, I'm sorry this is happening to you guys. You both dont deserve it." He gave a sympathetic look, and spoke again,
"Even then, im sure this will all blow over in the next week. It'll be okay."

"Thanks, I just hope we don't get in trouble for it."

"Don't worry man, I'm sure the principal would understand if you said it was a rumor."

"Yeah."

           LUNCH

Everyone got their lunch trays and started eating their food when they sat down, all except Sal.

Ash took a chicken nugget off her tray, before taking a bite she looked at sal. Something felt off.

"Hey, why aren't you eating?"

"Hm?" Sal was too deep in thought to pay attention.
"I said why aren't you eating?" She put her nugget down.
"Oh—I'm just not hungry right now."
Ash took his word for it and picked her food back up, finally taking a bite. Larry and Todd were too busy talking about some video game to notice the interaction.
Sal played with his food for a bit. Still not eating, there was a bit in his stomach he couldn't seem to shake. He looked over at Travis expecting to see him alone.
'Maybe I could invite him to sit with us?'
He peered over to his table, but Travis wasn't alone. There were actually lots of people crowded around his table.

'What the..?'

It bothered ash that Sal seemed off, and that he wouldn't tell her about it either. She came up with her own ideas.
"Is it because of that stupid rumor?"

Sal looked back at Ashley, he didn't know what to say. "Uh, yeah—hey I'm gonna go to the bathroom." He said abruptly.

"Oh—okay." Ashley found it odd but figured to wait till Sal came back to ask more about it.

-

..Yeah and then after i walked-" Travis glanced over and immediately stopped talking. Everyone at the table turned to see what Travis was looking at.

Sal awkwardly walked up to the now quiet table, he felt very unwelcome. "Uh Hey Travis, what's up?" Whispers immersed from the people around him, snickers came from the 'crowd'.

One kid even yelled, "Go sit with your boyfriend!" The boy howled and everyone else started to laugh at sal.

The laughing died down as Travis spoke. "Oh it's nothing, just about what you and Larry were doing in the bathroom yesterday."

Sals blood ran cold. He had thought Travis would've been different. He thought they could be friends. The thought that Travis started the rumor sickened him. "Sorry I was trying to comfort you while you were crying in there." He gave him a disappointed look.
Sal really did want to be friends with Travis.
He turned and walked away.
"what are you talking about?" But it came out too fast to sound natural. The crowd turned back to Travis, ready to point their hysterics at him.
"I wasn't crying, he's so fucking weird-"
...
'Ugh, Asshole' sal stared at the floor as he walked away.
As he walked up to the table Larry looked at him and then quickly looked away back to Todd. They were still talking about that video game. He walked over to his seat.

"Hey! You're back." Ash scooted as Sal sat down.

—
Changed the rumor hopefully yall like it to some extent, I'll try to write a new chapter soon.
1150 words