Secret > Secret

The New Kid

Monday Morning

School

"Holden!"

Brian Holden cowered away, holding his head. "Please speak more quietly."

"Holden!" Walker hissed. "Did you sleep with my girlfriend?"

Brian straightened up, staggered to the other side of the hallway, and threw up into a trash can. Joe turned away, making a face.

"Dude. No. Way. I'd never sleep with Lauren, she's like my sister."

Joe sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'll send someone nice to keep you company for the rest of the day. Actually, Holden, you may want to clean up. Here's your Mere-Bear. You can go try figure out your disgustingly cute 'just friends' shit for the rest of the day."

Brian attempted to hit Joe without looking, but hit some freshman or sophomore instead.

"Ow! Watch it!" The kid was clearly a freshman, although he should already know the rules. Second week of school.

"What's your name, kid?" Walker asked threateningly, but he seemed unperturbed.

"Nick Gage."

Holden stood up beside him, but before either could do anything, Meredith was there.

"Hey, you're that guy from the beach!"

"Meredith?"

Holden now looked pissed and confused.

"Bri, this is that guy from the beach I was telling you about! When I was babysitting?"

"Right. How stupid of me to forget."

"Yeah, I'm new around here. I saw Meredith at the beach just before school started and she said she went here, so I figured this would be a good school. I just started here today, I'm a senior. Meredith, I'm sorry but I think your boyfriend hit me on accident."

"By accident," Meredith corrected, "and Brian and I aren't-"

Walker and Holden interrupted at the same time.

"Of course you'd assume that he thought you and Brian are dating." And then Joe laughed.

"Mere, can I talk to you?"

Meredith smiled happily and Brian grabbed her hand and pulled her away. The bell rang and people began to disperse, but Joe stayed where he was.

"Listen, Nick Gage, there's a pecking order in this school. A hierarchy, as it were. Some people are at the top. I am one. Brian is one. Meredith is one. Meredith is one of the sweetest people I know, and she's like my sister. I will not have you muscling in and trying to change things. And by the way," Joe pushed off the wall and began to walk to class, accumulating a small group around him, "you haven't got a chance with her."

Tuesday (Lunchtime)

School

Rachael walked over and flung herself onto Jeff and Arielle's laps.

"Where've you been?" Lauren asked.

"That new kid Nick is in my class."

"The only good thing that's happened since he got to this school was that Brian finally asked Meredith - oh, fuck."

Everyone turned to Denise slowly.

"Did he actually?"

"Oh my God!"

"They're the cutest!"

"Finally!"

The guys exchanged eye rolls.

Jen Lang jogged across the concrete toward them and everyone immediately snapped out of it and gave her a slightly bitchy look.

"Nick, your sister's here." Lauren's voice was pretty cold, but everyone knew that she actually really liked Jen and her girlfriend Teia. Nick got up and met Jen halfway across the concrete, talking in a low tone until his eyes widened and he ran back over to the group.

"Guys! Meredith... new kid... Brian... come on!" He began to run back toward the main school building. Jaime stood up immediately and Lauren said, "Jaime, sit down. Walker, Darren, Richter and - fine, Jaime - come with me. Let's go see what the fuck Nick is on about."

Lauren started walking toward the building, until Joe sighed and picked her up and ran with everyone else. She slapped his chest lightly but didn't protest otherwise.

When they got there, Brian was on top of this new guy Nick Gage, and Meredith looked horrified (honestly, that girl was too sweet), but wasn't trying to stop them.

Suddenly the power changed. The guy somehow managed to flip them over and punched Brian hard in the face. Meredith called, "Brian!" and started toward them, but Lauren moved first. "Darren, Meredith. You two-" she pointed at Brian and they understood instantly.

Meredith was caught from behind by Darren, but she elbowed him and he knew she was sobbing. "Meredith, calm down," he got out, but she kept kicking at him. Just in time, Joe and Joey moved past him, followed by Lauren, who moved in front of Meredith. Meredith got Darren off her and unintentionally knocked Lauren down in the process. Joe and Joey grabbed the guy and slammed him into the wall and Meredith flew into Brian's arms, who grimaced over her head but patted her back, repeating "I'm fine," over and over.

Lauren walked up to the guy, her face disgusted and extremely pissed off and - Darren tilted his head. Was that a little bit of fear? What had just happened that could make her scared.

She looked like she was going to slap him, but was actively restraining herself from doing so.

There was total silence, other than Meredith's sobs and heavy breathing.

"Stay the fuck away from us."

Lauren's voice was very obviously trying not to rise to a shout.

She turned and began to walk away, then turned and slapped him really hard across the face. The red handprint was imprinted on his face. She walked very quickly down the hall, and into the girls bathroom. Jaime followed her, but came back out almost immediately, her face screwed up. She mimed vomiting, and Joe walked into the bathroom.

"That's the girls' bathroom!" The inevitable cry from the kid who didn't know when to quit.

Joey shoved him into the wall again. "A, we do whatever the fuck we want. B, around 80% of the girls of this school would be happy if Joe Walker walkered on in there, which is exactly what he did."

Ugh I kinda hate this chapter but there are parts I like I guess

Also BIG shout out to Writer-NovelistGirl for giving the nicest feedback