New Blood

Chapter Five

Cheeks bright red with embarrassment and heart pounding, Terrace struggled out of the orange pickup truck and stepped onto the sidewalk, making sure his cap was on tight. Other kids both behind and in front of the truck were getting out of their cars as well. He didn't turn around, but as Aunt D drove away, he could hear Morgan yell "Goodbye, Terrace! See you later!" This only made him blush more and he quickly limped up the sidewalk and through the large metal gates into the school.

The very first thing Terrace noticed was that everyone on campus was wearing a coat or jacket of some sort. Looking down at his own jeans and white t-shirt, a shiver ran down his spine. He wasn't cold before, but now that he realized it, it was rather chilly. Noting to bring a hoodie tomorrow, he glanced around the rest of the campus. Small groups of students were chatting near the benches or the amphitheater while others were huddled near the buildings. They all seemed cold, but cheerful. Well, some of them, anyway.

Scanning the walls, Terrace spotted a secluded area and headed in that direction. It wasn't completely cut off from the rest of the world, but no one was hanging around that spot. He leaned his back against the wall and closed his eyes. What was happening to him? First his dad leaves, then his mom dies, and now he's stuck with blue hair. He didn't deserve this. He'd been a good kid, a good student, a good son. Why had everything turned against him? Tears threatened to swell in his eyes, but he blinked them away. This was no place to cry, no matter how much he wanted to. "Hey," a voice cut into his thoughts. Looking up, he found it was Jay. Her dirty blonde hair was tied in a neat braid down her right shoulder today, and she was wearing a warm-looking jacket. "You okay?"

Terrace nodded shortly. "Of course, why wouldn't I be?" It came out a little snappy, causing him to feel slightly guilty. Jay didn't know what was going on. Then again, why was she talking to him anyway?

Jay seemed a little hurt, but shrugged it off. Pushing up her glasses, she motioned to the short girl next to her. "This is Amy, by the way." Amy had shoulder-length brown hair and similarly colored eyes. Despite her silence and stuffy coat, her eyes glimmered with what seemed like amusement. Terrace gave her a small nod in greeting and she did the same. Finally, someone who wasn't bursting to talk to him.

As Jay began to ramble on about the school and tell him which buildings were where, someone ran right in front of Terrace, grabbing his hat as they went. Stunned, Terrace's hands immediately went to his head, but it was too late. Jay had stopped abruptly in the middle of describing in great detail the lunch schedule and was now staring at him with a look halfway between awe and wonder. "Did...did you have blue hair yesterday?"

"Yesterday?" It was the kid who'd stolen his hat. "You know this guy, Jay?" Terrace whirled on the boy. It was a thin kid with blonde hair and what seemed like a permanent grin stuck on his face. His chestnut-colored eyes sparkled teasingly. Noticing the look on his face, the kid's smile faded a little. "Hey, just a joke, man."

Terrace held out his hand. "Hand it over." The guy looked like he wanted to continue the "joke", but decidedly tossed Terrace the hat.

"No," he said in response to Jay while putting the black cap back on. "I didn't. It's kind of hard to explain." It wasn't exactly a topic he wanted to discuss, especially since he didn't even know how the whole thing happened.

"Okay..." Jay shrugged and turned to the kid, scowling. "That's Castor, by the way. Sorry about him. He's annoying."

Castor put a hand to his chest dramatically. "I deeply apologize for being such an annoying human being." Halfway through the sentence, he'd dropped the regal expression and broken into a grin again.

Terrace rolled his eyes and happened to glance at Amy. The short, rotund girl was eyeing him curiously and hadn't said a word the entire time. At his gaze, however, she quickly looked away and focused on a very interesting crack on the ground. Silent girl, annoying guy, and clingy smart person. He sighed. Why did he have to get stuck with these people? Or with anyone, for that matter...

A bell sounded and Jay stopped scolding Castor and focused back on Terrace. "What's your first class? Maybe I can show you there."

He tensed at the idea of having someone help him, but didn't really see any other choice. The school was huge, and he couldn't possibly find his way around without a guide. With a reluctant sigh, he pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of his jeans pocket and smoothed it out while leaning on his crutches. As soon as he saw the schedule, he had to stifle a groan. No fun classes at all. "I have history first," he said. Then geometry, then PE, then art. Lame. At his old school he'd had a film class as an elective, and chemistry.

Contrary to his mood, Jay brightened. "Great! I have history first period. Mr. Hares?" He nodded and she smiled. "Awesome! I'll show you there." She started walking then seemed to remember his crutches and she slowed to walk beside him.

Jay led him across campus and into a warm hallway. Too warm. Like really, really warm. He actually started to sweat, which was odd since he was usually sensitive to the cold, not heat. "It's hot in here," he muttered, not really to her in particular, but she heard him anyways.

"You're hot?" She asked, eyebrows raised. "It's freezing in here. Well, not as cold as outside, but they don't even turn up the heat until the end of the month." Looking him up and down, she frowned. "You aren't even wearing a jacket."

He frowned, too. It was a little odd, especially considering it was probably in the forties outside. Still, he was oddly hot and had a strange urge to go stick his head in a bowl of ice-cold water. Not sure what to say, he awkwardly stayed silent and Jay cocked her head. Luckily, she left the conversation at that and continued to walk down the hall.

Just as the heat started to become almost unbearable, Jay stopped in front of a door and opened it, standing aside to let him pass through. "Thanks," he mumbled. As soon as he entered the classroom, a wave of noise crashed over him. Students were chatting like there was no tomorrow while the teacher just sat there at his desk like nothing was happening. A pencil whizzed past the man's nose and buried itself in the drywall beside him, yet he remained completely calm. It took a moment for him to realize Terrace, and when he did, he stood up and walked over to greet him, weaving in and out of a group of students gathered near his desk. "Hello," he said cheerfully. His green eyes and short blonde hair clashed with his red and green Christmas tie.

Vaguely noting that it wasn't anywhere near Christmas whatsoever, Terrace responded to the friendly man. "Hey."

"You must be Terrace, correct? I'm Mr. Hares." He held out a hand and Terrace shook it the best he could without wobbling. To his surprise, as soon as they touched, Mr. Hares drew his hand back immediately. "Oh my gosh! Your hands are freezing." He didn't say it rudely, but only out of getting caught off guard. Nonetheless, he immediately seemed guilty. "Sorry, Terrace. I didn't mean to come off as rude in any way."

"No, it's fine," Terrace replied, still a bit stunned. "Just a bit chilly."

"I bet. For future reference, you may want to bring a coat tomorrow." Terrace nodded and Mr. Hares smiled. "Welcome to the class, anyhow. We'll be starting in a few minutes." He walked back to his desk.

Jay, who had apparently been watching, leaned in and whispered to him, "I thought you said you were hot."

"I am..." He replied, inspecting his hands, which he found to be rather pale. They didn't feel cold. On the contrary, he still felt very warm. Maybe he had some sort of fever.

Curious, Jay suddenly took hold of his hand and her eyes widened. She, too, quickly drew it away. "Oh my gosh, he wasn't kidding. Are you feeling okay?"

He definitely wasn't, but shrugged anyway. "I'm alright." She looked at him doubtfully, then walked over to her seat and motioned for him to follow. While he did, he sank into a state of deep thought. What in the heck was going on? He felt like he was naked in Arizona during the summertime, yet was freezing to the touch. He desperately wished all of this could just stop. It was draining him, and he just wanted things to go back to normal. He wanted to go home.

(Ah, sorry I say this every chapter, but I would love if you could leave a vote! It would really help me out c:)