Paper Planes • s.g + c.b

chapter five

Sam made his way to room two ten in hopes that maybe, just maybe, Colby would miraculously show up to their science room anyway. Sam slid the grey book bag off his shoulder and hauled himself up onto a desk and say there patiently waiting. He and the rest of the tenth graders all had lunch this period so he didn't mind skipping, sure Aaron would probably wonder where he disappeared to but he'd explain later. Meeting Colby was more important to him than food today.

He sat there and checked the time on his phone multiple times before he sighed. "Damn it." He mumbled as he threw his book bag over his shoulder and stuck his phone inside the pocket.

"Sam?" Sam quickly swirled around, disappointment clear on his features when he saw it was just Corey.

"Well don't be happy to see me." Corey jokingly smiled, "What's goin on?"

"Nothing. It's nothin." Sam sighed his hold on his book bag strap tightened.

"That's obviously a lie. Is this about Colby?" Corey obviously knew what was going on so Sam just hauled himself back onto the table and ran a hand through his hair. "It is! Aaron and Elton are in the hallway, we were worried since you didn't show up at lunch." Elton and Aaron suddenly made their entrance and smiled shyly.

"I threw a paper plane to Colby last period and told him to meet me here during lunch. It obviously didn't work. I wanna be this guy's friend but he won't let me in." Sam let out an exasperated sigh and laid on the table.

"How long has this been goin on?" Aaron sat on the table across from Sam's.

"A month or two. He only responded to one note and that was two months ago." Sam sat back up and looked to his group of friends.

"What'd he say?" Elton pulled a chair from the table and sat in it, Corey following suit.

"Something along the lines of 'I don't do friends, I'll sit at my usual spot. Alone.' But of course I'm not gonna leave him alone."

"Sam- maybe you should just leave it." Corey began, "He obviously doesn't want to be friends with you, do you think you could change that?"

"Yeah!" Sam rested his hands on his knees.

"Sam, don't take this the wrong way but, not everyone's going to want to be friends with you. Not everyone's gonna like you." Elton threw his feet up onto the table, tossing Sam his lunchbox, "You left that with me."

"Thanks." Sam opened his lunch box and pulled his Gatorade out, "I realize not everyone is gonna like me, Elton. I don't even know why people like me now! I just- no one wants to be alone."

"Maybe he does." Aaron gestured his arm to nothing in particular as they just sat and ate their lunch in room one ten.

"He stuck up for me in the hallway last week." Sam munched on his uncrustables, "I saw his cheek the other day and it was badly bruised. I wanted to help but every time he locked eyes with me he'd walk in the opposite direction."

"Yeah we heard about that fiasco." Elton took a sip from his coffee because he's basically an uncle and these kids were killing him. "You okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine." They sat in silence for a few minutes before Sam looked to the door and saw Colby walking away from it. "Be right back." He jumped up and booked it to the brunet. "Colby!" He grabbed the boy by the shoulder to stop him.

"Samuel." Colby responded monotoned. Was Colby going to walk into that room? Yes. What stopped him? His anxiety.

"Sam. Why won't you talk to me?" Sam corrected Colby, curious as to why he keeps ignoring him.

"Sam-" Colby groaned, "because I don't want to be friends with you, okay?"

"I don't believe that." Sam crossed his arms expecting the truth.

"Why the hell not?" Colby rolled his eyes and humored the blond.

"Because you stopped me from getting punched last week."

"And?"

"Colby, why do you ignore me." Sam wanted a truthful answer.

Colby sighed while looking around, "If I become your friend something horrible is going to happen to you. Me just talking to you is gonna piss off Brennen."

"What- Why is it going to piss off Brennen?" Sam knew he crossed a line, he wasn't even the brunets friend yet.

"Stay away from me, Golbach. It's for your own good."