Blackmail

Chapter 5

My breathing quickens as I look around the room. The others are sitting there peacefully, minding their own business. My eyes sting with tears. I look away quickly as the tears start to roll down my face.
I cover my mouth with my hand and try to quiet the sound of my crying. I sniffle loudly and everyone turns to me.
"Mia?" Julie asks concerned. I don't look her way. They're going to hate me. I stare at the ground as the tears continue to fall.
I hear the scrape of a chair and Cody comes to stand in front of me. He crouches down and lifts my chin.
"Mia, what's wrong?" He asks. My head screams ' THAT'S NOT MY NAME!' but I stay silent. I start shaking violently and Anna puts her hand on my shoulder.
Cody guides me out of the room and into the empty library. The others follow behind us. I try to control my breathing as I sit on the floor. The others look at me expectantly.
"So... I have something I need to tell you guys," I say quietly. Milly cocks her head confused.
"Okay. What's up?" She asks. I take a deep breath in. Here goes nothing.
" I'm transgender, " I state. I look at one of the bookshelves beside me. I feel a hand on my shoulder. I look up surprised.
"We accept you dude," she says. The others nod. I smile sheepishly.
"Sorry it took me so long to tell you," I apologize. Cody laughs and waves me off.
"It's fine..." He trails off.
" Max, " I supply. He nods. Anna and Julie smile.
The bell for class rings and we head to our separate homeroom classes. I grab my stuff from my locker and walk to class.
I walk into the mostly empty classroom and sit near a window. Rain droplets race down it and I watch, silently betting on which droplet is going to win.
Milly comes in and sits beside me. I wave at her and then go back to looking at the window. The teacher must have walked in at some point because when I look up, he is in the middle of a lesson. 
I try to figure out what we are learning but it proves impossible as I hadn't paid attention at the beginning. I sigh and put my head down on my desk. The bell rings suddenly and I grab my backpack and walk out.
Ashley stands in front of my locker waiting for me. As I walk up to her, she smiles devilishly. I stop and stand in front of her.
"What do you want?" I ask sarcastically. She brings her hand up and slaps me. It stings but I make no acknowledgement of it.
"Alex is waiting," she sighs pointing to him. I have to admit, he isn't bad looking. His short black hair is messy and his olive green eyes shine in the florescent lights.
Ashley looks over my outfit and groans. She glares at me while contemplating something.
"Wear something more girly next time. You look like a boy," she says storming off.
I make my way over to Alex. I tap his shoulder and he turns around. He looks at me confused.
"So I'm the person you're supposed to be dating for a couple of weeks," I state blatantly. He looks me over but he doesn't look disgusted, just interested.
"Okay then. What's your name?" He asks. My mind goes into overdrive. Do I tell him my deadname or do I tell him my real name.
" Max, " I tell him. He nods. Well that was an unexpected reaction. I was expecting at least a punch in the face.
"You're transgender aren't you?" He asks already knowing the answer. I nod. He ponders this.
"You know, I still think you're a guy. Those girls are assholes. So unless you want to date, we can just pretend," he suggests.
" Okay. We can be friends still right? " I ask. He nods and smiles at me. The bell rings for the next class.
I wave goodbye and walk to my second period. I sit down in my seat. Anna and Julie sit beside me. I smile at them.
"Wassup Max? " Julie asks.
"Nothing. Oh and by the way, after school can you give me the notes for Calculus? " I ask. She nods.
The teacher walks in and starts teaching about how atoms bond. I already read about this so I zone out for a while.
I get bored after a while so I look over to see what the girls are doing. Julie seems fixed on whatever the teacher is saying.  Anna is doodling in her notebook. I peer over her shoulder and see that she is drawing a picture of a girl. For some reason the girl looks extremely familiar.
She sees me looking and slams her notebook shut, drawing the attention of the teacher.
"Is there a problem ladies?" He asks. I inwardly cringe but shake my head no. He goes back to the lesson and Anna glares at me.
Julie looks between us confused. I wave her off and go back to zoning out. Anna doesn't reopen her notebook for the rest of the lesson. The rest of the classes before lunch go by slowly.
When the lunch bell rings I bolt out of my PE class. I grab my lunch from my locker and go to find Alex. He is standing beside lunchroom doors, surrounded by girls.
I walk up to him and I can see him visibly relax. He walks over to me and grabs my hand. I blush and then look down.
Nope. Not catching feelings. This is for show.
I pull him over to me and my friends' usual lunch table. The others sit down, completely unfazed by the unfamiliar person sitting at our table.
They make small talk with him as he holds my hand under the table. I finish eating and join the conversation.
"Does he know that you're... You know," Cody asks. I nod.
" Nah. I don't care man. He's still an awesome dude, " Alex says. I blush at the compliment.
The bell rings and I walk to my last class of the day, the dreaded English. I walk into class and pay no attention at all to the teacher.
The final bell rings and I walk out of class. I grab my stuff from my locker and grab the Calculus notes from Julie. I start my walk home. It stopped raining at some point but the ground is still wet.
The air smells like wet dirt and grass. I smile as I walk back home. I walk up to my door and hear yelling. The smile quickly fades from my face.