New Generation

Sneaking Around

Remember being told high school years were going to be the best years of your life? Whoever told you that is not someone to be trusted.

I woke up to the sound of beeping. No, not an alarm, but dozens of texts being delivered to me. I groaned, peeling myself off of my bed. The sudden cool breeze coming from my window hit my bare chest as my blanket slid down to my waist. I twisted over to my bedside table, picking up my phone and yanking the charger out of it.

The bright light hit my eyes, causing me to hiss and squint at the screen. Every single message was from my friend Alexis. She was gushing over how excited she was to go to school and see her boyfriend Matt again.

He's been gone backpacking around Europe with his family all summer, so all she ever talked about was how much she missed him. I hope that means seeing him will keep her a bit more contained.

It's not that I'm not happy for her, but they've been together for over a year now, you'd think they'd be out of the honeymoon phase by now. Besides, she was my closest friend, and it's hard to relate to people in relationships when you've been single all your life.

Well, I've had a girlfriend before, but that only lasted for a week. I choose not to count that as a relationship.

I sighed, checking the time. I can sleep for another half an hour before having to go to leave for school. That was enough for me, my eyelids were already starting to feel heavy again. I nestled myself back into the cocoon of blankets and fell back asleep without answering Alexis.

Waking up for the second time did not leave me feeling refreshed. In fact, I felt even more lethargic. Nonetheless, I started to get ready for the first day of yet another year of high school.

After deciding on a navy blue button-down shirt with short sleeves and a pair of khakis, I headed downstairs to the kitchen, hoping to greet my mother, but was instead faced with a stranger.

His back was turned to me, his head was leaned in so far inside the fridge, you'd think he would fall inside. He wore a worn-out grey tank top and bright red basketball shorts. I coughed to get his attention.

In his attempt to turn around quickly, he banged his head against the top shelf of the fridge, muttering out a couple curse words. He faced me, rubbing his bruised head. "I'm here with your—" he looked me up and down, "mom, I'm guessing?" He said awkwardly, the statement seeming more like a question.

I made a face of disgust before turning on my heel and walking straight out of the door. My mom had found another dirtbag to sleep with. Fantastic.

My first period class was English, I walked into the room, the first one there besides the teacher and one student she was talking to. I went to sit down at a random desk in the back, not wanting to be acknowledged and not wanting to interrupt. I looked up to see who my teacher was talking to.

I recognized him immediately. Chris Haffson, the only openly gay dude in all of our school. Not to be stereotypical, but you can see the homosexual radiate off of him. From his perfectly styled hair, to the way his hips swing when he walks. I wondered what he was doing in a grade 10 English classroom—he was in his senior year.

More students poured in and he made his way out after saying goodbye to my teacher. He turned around, and strutted out, showing off his ass more than I've seen any girl ever do. I rolled my eyes, but smirked at his confident air. It was almost amusing.

The bell rang soon after, and the teacher began by introducing herself. I learned that her name was Ms. Corral, and she had an extremely peppy tone to her voice. I wasn't sure whether I admired her enthusiasm or was annoyed by her hyperactive self.

About ten minutes into the class—which consisted of the traditional ice breaker where you have to introduce yourself and tell the class an interesting fact about you— a guy with messy hair wearing a baggy grey hoodie and black jeans stormed in. He had a scowl on his face, and didn't say a word as he took the seat beside mine.

"You're lucky it's the first day of classes!" Ms Corral beamed, "I won't mark you late this time."

No reply. "Well..would you like to introduce yourself and tell the class an interesting fact about you?" She said, hoping he'd actually show a sign of understanding and answer her.

He lifted his head up, looking at her, then around at the class. Finally, his cold eyes turned to me. I expected them to pass over, but he stopped and stared directly in my direction. I fidgeted under his gaze, something about him made me feel nervous, and it didn't help that his eyes were so grey they didn't look like they belonged to a human.

He smirked, "Eli. I talk to ghosts."

My eyes widened and I let a "what?" slip out of my mouth, making Eli grin. He shook his head, still grinning widely. "Joking. I work at a daycare, that's about as interesting as it gets."

The class continued, but for some reason, I couldn't get my eyes off that Eli kid. That is, until he checked his phone and shot his hand up in the air, asking to go to the washroom. Something made me suspicious of the way he rushed out, as if he had somewhere important to be.

The bell rang, signalling the end of class. I grabbed my binder and walked out. Before getting to class, I decided to make a stop at the washroom.

I guess I walked in quietly. So quietly, that the two people in the stall didn't even realize I had come. I could just see their feet from underneath, and one of them was on their knees, facing the other. It was pretty obvious as to what they were doing.

I was going to turn around and leave, until the door opened. Out walked Gold-Star gay Chris Haffson, and someone I didn't at all expect. Eli.

His hair was ruffled, his eyes widened in disbelief. It was the first time I'd seen his stone of a face have an expression plastered over it. I wondered for a moment if I had just imagined it.

On the other hand, Chris was as bright and smiley as ever. He took the silence as an invitation to leave, so he did. That is, after making sure he noticeably wiped the corner of his mouth clean of a certain sticky substance I'd grown accustomed to.

Chris' exit seemed to make Eli snap out of his dazed state. His eyes narrowed, his face scowling. He took rushed steps towards me, until we were nose to nose and he had the front of my shirt in his fist, which made me gasp.

He gritted his teeth, and for a moment I appreciated his dominant look, but I shook away the thought as he spoke. "If you tell a soul, I'll skin you alive and wear you as a coat, got it?"

My eyes almost fell out of their sockets. "Y-yeah," I said, my voice cracking. He kept his cold glare glued to my eyes. I gulped, but before I knew it, he was out of the bathroom, and left me in shock.