Jay x Daniel - You Came With the Spring

Chapter 2: pencils and bruises (Jay)

Jay didn't particularly love school, and didn't particularly hate it. It just existed in his everyday life.

The teacher drones on and on, not knowing that all the students are either spacing off or admiring Daniel from afar. It's been a week and the storm the new transfer student created still shook the fashion department.

Jay was still shaken too and was one of the many staring at Daniel instead of paying attention to the teacher's lecture. Not like any of the words the old man spoke stuck in his mind anyways. He'd reviewed the material over and over again in his spare time, nothing the old man said could be of any necessary importance.

Daniel leaned on his hand, fingers curling up to his lips and eyes staring out distantly.

Jay pressed the top of his pencil to his mouth and kept his eyes trained on Daniel.

He felt it was wrong, staring at the boy while he was unaware but no matter where Jay looked his eyes always wandered back.

He'd never felt any attraction to beautiful people but there was something about the sadness that trailed wherever he went. There was something about him. . .

Suddenly the lunch bell rang and Jay jolted, the pencil jabbed against his lip stabbing into the side of his mouth. It scraped savagely and he winced. He rubbed at the pain. He knew there would be a bruise.

As if on cue the girls in the classroom sprang to their feet. The classroom became the savanna and Daniel was the poor little lion about to be captured by hunters.

Zoe was immediately at Daniels side as well as a boy named Jiho he'd picked up recently. Daniel brightened up at the company and they left the classroom together, Zoe clinging to his arm.

"Oh Daniel, what do you think about my new lip gloss?" Zoe pursed her lips and pressed her boobs into his arm.

Daniel flushed a dark red and awkwardly tried to pull his arm away. "I- It's nice." He avoided eye contact.

Zoe clutched his arm closer. "Daniel, dear. You always know the perfect thing to say."

Jiho huffed proudly behind them, adjusting his glasses and sticking out his chest.

The rest if the girls backed off at the sight of Zoe and some looked about to spit in anger.

Jay stared at the trio, ridged and unsure.

Daniel said they were friends but Jay hadn't worked up the courage to sit down with them let alone utter a single syllable.

Jay wasn't much of a talker. He prefered silence over useless chatter but he could feel the words, about to burst free in his chest - only to die when they were at the tip of his tongue. Only when it came to Daniel, ironically the one person he'd ever want to talk to.

Jay sat at his desk, pulling out a lunch his cook had prepared this morning. Eventually the rest of the fashion dept students filed out until he was left alone to stare out the window.

This is the way things were - how they will always be, no one will understand. Maybe he'd been delusional when he'd imagined Daniel staring at him on their first meeting. He'd only seen what he'd wanted to see.

Jay took a bite out of the melt and sighed, watching the first of the blooming flowers. Spring really was inching by too slow, it almost seemed like winter's cold chill still mingled with the wind.

There was a quick flurry of steps and when Jay was deciding whether or not to sleep, Daniel burst in. He stumbled through the doorway but stopped his rush when he saw Jay. The brunette turned red at the display of shame and ambled his way across the class, a little less flustered.

The food nearly fell out of Jays mouth.

"Hi, Jay." Daniel picked his way between the desks and stopped at his bag. He leaned down by the ratty old backpack and pulled out a plastic bag.
Jay tried to clear his throat but only pointed at the bag in the boys hands.

Daniel's tensed shoulders relaxed and the muscles in his jaw flared. He laughed nervously. "Yeah that's my lunch. I forgot it here. Oh, what do I have to eat? - just some rice, half burned because my rice cooker's been acting up. Hm? Oh yeah it is a nice day isn't it?"

Daniel smiles softly and started his way toward Jay.

That was when Jay noticed the slight swelling of Daniels cheek.

Jay pointed at it, eye brows crinkled in worry.

Daniel covered his cheek and his smile flickered. "Oh. . .it was nothing, just a little fight that went on in the lunchroom."

That was when Daniel's smile completely fell and his expression went cold. He locked onto Jays mouth and pushed his way close.

The breath caught in Jay's chest, the flutter of a hummingbird drumming in his pulse. Daniel pressed a thumb to the corner of Jay's lips and cupped his fingers under Jay's chin; a sad, angry look crossed over his face.

"What's this?" he whispered, dangerously low. Dark brown eyes trained on Jay.

Jay opened his mouth and Daniel's thumb ran inside it. Jay felt his breath - uneven, pained - and he desperately wanted to run his tongue along Daniel's finger tips.

But he didn't, he wouldn't dare.

Daniel fixed his sharp eyes back on Jay's lips then his expression seemed to clear.

His face turned a soft pink and coughed, pulling away. "No umm. . .the bruise on your mouth. . . Oh. A pencil? Haha. My bad, I just seem to always assume the worst."

Jay could still feel the ghost of Daniel's fingers running across his lips as he pressed them tight against one another and nodded.

The darkness inside of him danced and settled under his skin.

Without thought Jay leaned over and ran his fingertips across the side of Daniel's half-swollen face. His fingers caught on lips as he returned the favor, running them tenderly across the surface.

Jay blinked his eyes and pulled away quickly, motioning toward the door in a flurry of hands and darting eyes.

Daniel showed his teeth in a grin, the moment gone in a flash. "Yeah I have to go. But you should join us sometime, I'm sure we'd be better company than an empty classroom. It'd be great if you were there. Oh and before I leave, about. . ." Daniel suddenly got shy and fumbled for words, "well a- about. Well about what I s- said on the first day about us. . .being fr- friends. . . Ummm what friends don't have each others. . .nu-m-mbers. . . ?"

Daniel bit his lip again and he smiled uneasily.

That was the day Jay discovered a new found appreciation for school.

Author's Note:
I'm thinking about making this a regular story. I'll update every Monday and Friday, maybe only once a week when I'm busy.