"I mean, he's not even that good, I have no idea why Mr Thompson put him at top of the class," someone grumbles, and the others murmur in agreement. Phil just shrugs, and his gaze drops from the window to his food.
"He's not good at anything, he's an impure. He can't be good at anything," someone else adds, and Phil recognises the voice as that of Jacob. He flinches a little.
"Piece of scum, that's all he is. Don't know what his parents were thinking when they didn't get rid of him soon as they could," the boy next to Phil grumbles, and other people start putting in with sentences of agreement. Phil keeps his mouth shut, his food suddenly becoming much more unappetizing.
It's not the first time his group has spoken about Dan, and he knows it won't be the last. Before he never even really noticed it, he kind of just smiled and went along with what was being said. But now, he can't help but feel more than just a little guilty for not telling them to shut up, for not contradicting what they're saying.
He doesn't understand where all the prejudice comes from, anyway. Surely, out of all of them, Dan is the most genetically pure? He's the most natural human out of them, at least. They've all been engineered, programmed for their parents' preferences, whereas Dan was conceived naturally. Why should that make him any less pure that the rest of them?
Still, Phil knows that if he said anything, he'd end up just as Dan did in that bathroom the other day, or possibly even worse. Impure sympathisers aren't exactly revered, and he's all too aware of the fact that even just by not joining in the conversation and agreeing wholeheartedly, he's treading on thin ice.
"What did you end up doing to him, by the way Phil?" Jacob asks, and Phil looks up quickly, meeting the other's boy's piercing gaze. Words fail him for a moment, and he feels more pressing eyes on him, expecting a detailed account of whatever disgusting thing Phil did to Dan.
Phil shrugs and clears his throat, plastering a smile on his face, "Oh, just the usual. Wasn't really feeling up to doing anything particularly special, you know?"
Jacob grins, and he nudges the boy - Pj, the only one of Phil's friends that he doesn't detest - with a knowing raise of the eyebrows. Phil's stomach turns a little; he knows what's coming next. Before Jacob starts to speak, Pj shoots Phil a look of apology that Phil just nods to.
"Why are you so flustered, Phil? Got a thing for the impure?" Jacob sneers, and everyone else starts sniggering. A blush starts to creep up Phil's face as Jacob continues, "He ain't half bad for an impure, you know. Pretty, in fact. Plus, I bet you'd like having someone that would never say no-"
"I'll be back in a minute," Phil blurts out, pushing himself up out of his chair and almost knocking it over in his hurry to get out.
He feels absolutely sick to his stomach and he thinks about running to the bathroom, but then remembers that would be the most predictable place for him to be if anyone comes looking for him.
Instead, he turns a corner and starts to run towards the practise room. No one will be there, and besides, if he really wants to he can get his anger out with his mediocre playing skills.
Two weeks ago, what his 'friends' are saying probably wouldn't have bothered him all that much. But that was two weeks ago, before he even really noticed Dan's existence except for in the harsh words of the boys he hangs out with. He pushes his fringe back with one hand and takes a deep breath, stopping in the corridor for a moment and closing his eyes.
The acidic burning feeling in the back of his throat is dying down, but his stomach is still churning like no tomorrow. He remembers what they did to Dan, how they laughed. How they filmed it and then showed it to pretty much everyone. There's not a single kid in school not laughing at Dan behind his back, except for Phil. He can't figure out why he's so reluctant to join in now, why this one impure is making his stomach twist into knots. It's stupid, and it's dangerous. He hates it.
