Southern Constellations (Fuenciado)

Chapter Two

"So why'd you move so far away?"

"Huh?" I asked, looking up from the worksheet that the teacher had passed out.

"I mean, San Diego's way out west," Alex said, rocking onto the back two legs of his chair. "Plus, the weather here's way shittier."

I shrugged, trying not to be obvious about how desperately I was scrambling for an answer. I mean, what the hell was I even supposed to say? That my dad...that my dad had tried to...no. Not now. I couldn't think about that now.

"Just needed a change of scenery," I finally said, trying to be nonchalant.

Alex nodded, seeming to think my answer was acceptable.

"Well, you should've picked somewhere better, because it sucks here," he said, rolling his eyes at the teacher at the front of the room.

Great, just great. Of all the places I could've gone to, I had to get stuck here.

"But don't worry, I know a few idiots that don't suck too badly."

Was he...offering to be my friend? I couldn't tell, what with the disinterested expression that still hadn't left his face. Although maybe that was just because he was in this awful class. I was sure that I probably looked the same way, considering that I was sitting in grade-level math, which I'd already completed twice. I guess that was the curse of private schools.

Alex yawned, rubbing his eye with his hand. I saw him sneak a glance at the clock, which was ticking away ever-so-slowly. It reminded me a little of Vic's inability to focus, no matter how much I tried to help him. Ugh, why did I have to keep thinking about him? He wasn't here. He wasn't here, he wasn't here, he wasn't here. But damn, did I wish he was. It wasn't that I didn't like Alex's constant mocking of the teacher under his breath as the poor guy droned on at the front of the room. It was kind of comforting to find someone as annoyed as I was with the whole preppy 'better-than-you' vibe that seemed to be oozing through the walls here. But as I sat there, absentmindedly finishing my worksheet, I knew that I wasn't really myself. It was all just another stupid facade, another face that I had to keep up. What difference did it make that now I was getting driven home in a sports car instead of walking back to an empty house to hide in my room? I didn't belong in either place, not really.

"Thank fuck, class is almost over," Alex sighed next to me, and I gave him a small smile. While I was glad to finally get out of here, chances were that I wouldn't know anyone in my next class. But I guess that was okay. After all, I'd gotten pretty used to being alone. These past few months had been a nice change of scenery, yet I'd been an idiot to think that they'd actually last.

I eyed the clock as the teacher reached the final point of his lecture, thrumming my fingers on the desk as I waited for the bell to ring. It was funny, because usually I was interested in schoolwork, even boring things like math. But now, it had barely been able to hold my attention. Although I was sure that I even cared. Should I?

I slid my schedule out from my bag, trailing my finger down the list of classes until I found my next one.

"Hey, d'you know where this is?" I asked Alex quietly.

He turned my schedule so that he could see it, and then nodded. "Yeah, Zack's in that class. I'll introduce you two."

I had no idea who the hell Zack was, but if he was friends with Alex then he couldn't be half bad. It was better than not knowing anyone.

When the bell finally rang, I shoved my textbook into my bag and slung it over my shoulder, following Alex out into the hallway. There was a crowd of kids, but nothing like at my old school. Everyone looked pretty much the same, a huge mass of perfectly manicured polo-wearing teenagers. Just the sight of if made me slightly nauseous.