The Altruists

Chapter 1

LEON MICHOLLE WALKED into his Astronomy classroom and immediately sat next to his best friend of nine years, Alex Wright. All science rooms were set up with four rows of three tables - two stools each. This room, made to fit twenty-four, housed eighteen with a slightly uneven distribution. Facing the front of the room - where the doors, a digitally interactive board, and the teacher's desk resided - Leon was in the farthest left stool of the front row.

He and Alex talked to each other about their previous classes. Alex told Leon about the guy in his Study Block who poked fun at him for wearing his blue Saiph High School Volleyball jacket nearly everyday. Leon had never truly minded. It was just a piece of Alex's identity.

The late bell rang prompting the two to pull out the previous night's homework, Planetary Fun Facts Webquest. Mrs. Stevens, a woman in her late thirties, walked around the room to collect however many completed worksheets there were before distributing two pages - a half-sized Warm-Up page and directions for a project.

Leon took a quick glance at the project directions before answering the three questions on the half-sheet.

"You never told us about any project," Leon heard Lucas Dukes, Saiph's resident Football, Basketball, and Track star. He couldn't help but roll his eyes at the attitude Lucas had in his voice.

"Well, you're finding out now," Mrs. Stevens stated turning from Lucas and his best friend, Dustin's table in the opposite corner from Leon and Alex. "And if you just finish your warm-up and turn it in I'll explain how simple it is."

Leon turned around at this and watched as Lucas tried to burn a hole through her head when she made her way back to her desk. He and Alex smiled at each other when Mrs. Stevens reached her destination.

⤋

Later, after she collected the sheets, Mrs. Stevens stood in front of the class with the directions she gave the students a few minutes earlier.

"Now," Mrs. Stevens told the class. "This assignment is a group collaboration." Leon could tell by her face that there were a few misplaced Yes's. "I'm glad you're all excited, but change of plans: I've already chosen your groups."

More sound resonated around the room as half the class groaned. They had all been content with their usual pairings, not having to socialize with students they didn't know or didn't like.

A girl on the other end of Leon's row raised her hand prompting a nod from Mrs. Stevens. "Who, exactly, are our partners?" She asked.

"Turn your papers over and find out. There are eight weeks left of school and most of you haven't even looked at the other students in this class."

Everyone followed the instruction and discovered their groups. Leon looked at his own page in bewilderment. Why did she have to pair him with the laziest kid in class and the quietest kid in class? He looked over at Alex's group mates who happened to be Ivy Warren and Dustin Mills, the best friends of Rex Wills (the quiet one) and Lucas Dukes.

Alex shrugged. "They have so much tension," he said referring to the fact that Ivy and Dustin always acted kind of weird around each other.

"Yeah," Leon replied before standing up to walk over to the unmoving Lucas. He sat in front of the jersey-wearing boy and leaned up against the side countertop.

After a few seconds, Rex walked up with a graphic tee reading, Some people are like clouds. When they go away, its a brighter day. Leon smiled while they greeted each other.

"So, what're we gonna do?" Lucas asked primarily focused on the mechanical pencil pinched between his nose and upper lip.

Leon aimed his attention toward Rex. "I guess we should look over the criteria." They did. They read the sheet two or three times. The class was required to create a solar system with, at least, two planets, one with a moon and one with life. Information and imagery were to be put into a presentation with accurate information.

Rex looked up and in near silence said, "Maybe we could make three."

"Like one for each of us?"

"Yeah. Based on our personalities or interests or something. Like I could have an futuristic advanced sciences planet."

"And I could have a super artsy planet. Lucas could have an athletic planet."

"With super hot women," Lucas interjected. The two looked at him and discovered that he had given up on pinching the pencil and proceeded to sketch a crude drawing of a basketball player on the back of his worksheet.

Leon and Rex shared a look and shook their heads as they decided to write down and sketch everything they wanted for their planets for the rest of class.

⤋

"Do you think there could be a time that we could work on this outside of class?" Rex asked as the three packed up at the bell for the class to go to lunch. Mrs. Stevens told the groups that they wouldn't get the next class to work on the assignment that week since they had a test to take. Smart planning, Leon had thought to himself.

"Maybe Friday, Saturday, or Sunday," Leon told him. He had volleyball practice after school that day and the next.

"Not Friday," Lucas stated. "Track practice."

"Cant do Sunday, family stuff." Rex added.

Leon pulled his bag up onto his shoulder. "Well, Saturday it is. We can meet at the Saiph Area Library around noon, maybe?"

"Okay."

Lucas cringed a little. "I'm pretty sure I'm allergic to the lib'ary."

"You'll live," Leon told him before walking across the room to Alex.

"How was it?" His best friend asked as they left the room heading right toward the History and Math offices.

"Pretty chill, I guess."

"I see you made a new friend." Alex nodded toward Rex and Ivy walking toward her locker.

"We both enjoyed to assignment, the same as you and me."

"Good because it's gonna be pretty hard to replace me."

The two made their way down the stairs next to the Science office and school library. They passed a rush of students coming from the cafeteria and waited to enter as the last few left.

"No one's trying to replace you, Alex. Plus, I couldn't, anyway, we're next door neighbors."