From My Enemy To My Love (boyxboy) ✔

Chapter 8

Vincent Kinsington

3rd Grade

"I'm going to marry Chrissy," Toby said.

I took a bite of sandwich. It was turkey. I sipped at my milk.

"You can't marry Chrissy," Dennis said.

"Not right now, stupid. When we're older," Toby said. "You have to get married when you're old. Like 18."

We sat at a long square table in the school cafeteria. Alex sat to my left and Toby sat to my right. Dennis sat across from Toby and Trevon sat across from me.

"Why Chrissy?" Dennis asked. "Sarah is prettier."

"She is not."

"Is so."

"Then you marry Sarah and I'll marry Chrissy. What's the problem?" Toby asked.

"What about you, Trev? Who are you going to marry?" Dennis asked.

I took a handful of chips and stuffed them all into my mouth at once. Mom wasn't here now to tell me that was undignified. I even wiped my hand on my pants.

Trevon paused with a bite of his sandwich still in his mouth. "Melissa," he finally said. A little bit of bread fell out the side of his mouth.

Who would I say if they asked me? Did I have to choose right now? Was that the rule?

"What about you, Aley?" Dennis asked.

Alex paused with his hand wrapped around his half-eaten red apple. "Hmm," he thought. "Mark."

Dennis and Toby started laughing. Trevon followed their lead, but I didn't understand what was funny. Should I laugh? I didn't understand the joke.

"You can't marry a boy," Dennis said.

"Why not?" Alex asked.

"That's gross," Toby said. "You have to like a girl."

"But I don't like girls," Alex said.

Trevon had stopped laughing and looked slightly uncomfortable as he shifted in his seat, but he didn't say anything.

"Hey, Mark," Toby called out to the boy at a nearby table. "Alex says he is going to marry you."

Mark slammed his apple onto his tray. "That's gross. I'm not going to marry a boy," Mark said - almost shouted as if he wanted everyone in the cafeteria to know he would never marry a boy.

I didn't understand what the problem was though. Boys were cool. Girls were cool too. What was the big deal?

Alex stood up with his back straight and his head held up high. He raised his voice in rare anger when he replied, "Then don't! I'm not going to marry a jerk anyway. When I get married, he's going to be nice and cool."

"He?" some kid said loudly. I wasn't sure who. Then almost the entire cafeteria started laughing. Trevon hesitated, but in the end, he laughed too.

Alex took his tray, dumped his food and headed out to the playground.

I hesitated. I still didn't understand what was funny, but should I go along with everyone else or follow my friend who was alone? It took some time for me to decide - the cafeteria had stopped laughing - but I got up and followed my best friend.

The kids in our class teased him the rest of the day, but most weren't mean about it. Toby, Dennis and Mark stopped talking to him though. Alex acted like he didn't care, but he had to have. Right?