The Wonderful House of Jubie Chew

2 :-: There's no such things as fairies...

Chapter Two              

   The day had not improved for Elex. After first period Devlin and his small group of followers trailed after him down the hall, calling out various insults and chuckling when Elex kept his down and continued walking. At lunch they approached him on the bleachers next to the baseball field, asking if he wanted to join them for a game of catch. He declined politely, shaking his head and returning his attention to his PB and J.

   “Whatever,” Devlin had scoffed, walking away in somewhat of a huff.

   “What’s his problem?” another boy, one Elex hadn’t seen until just then, asked.

   “That’s what we get for trying to be nice,” a third boy interjected, shrugging indifferently.

   A pit had risen in Elex’s stomach and it burned; a hot rock just sitting there, weighing him down. Had they actually just tried to befriend him, and he’d shot them down? It was more likely that it had been a trick – a means of getting Elex to relax so he wouldn’t suspect it when they found a new way to humiliate him. But still, there was a chance he’d just missed out on a golden opportunity and it stung.

   By the end of the day Elex was feeling slightly better; Devlin and his gang had left him alone, and he’d received a heaping amount of homework from his other classes. He was all set to inhabit a good bench and get started, but barely made it off the front stoops of the school before running into trouble.

   “Hey!” Devlin called to him. “Oswald!” For a moment Elex had held hope that Devlin, in fact, wasn’t talking to him, but the use of his last name crushed it. On the other hand, maybe this was his second chance at making a few new friends. Survival and an annoying need for teenage-acceptance warred with each other; acceptance won.

   Elex hiked his bag up higher on his shoulder, cautiously approaching the group. He knew all of the faces; Kyle Shill, who always looked bored and uninterested in anything his friends had to say. Si Ackles, who appeared to be Devlin’s right hand. Jonathan Michel; he was always smiling, and laughed even when something wasn’t meant to be funny. Last but not least was Adam – last name unknown – who had never spoken as far as Elex knew, and looked like your average six foot, Jr. High killing machine.

   As he got closer, though, Elex saw a new face. This boy was clearly older than the rest, likely in high school, and was grinning from ear to ear at Elex. He looked somewhat like Devlin; they shared the same dirty brown hair and bronze skin, but the older boy had grown into his features while Devlin was still scrunched up and a little chubby.

   “Oswald, huh?” the older boy slapped Elex on the back and urged him to stand closer. Reluctantly he complied, trying not to wince at the new sting in his shoulder blade. “Tell me something, Elex; you wouldn’t happen to be related to Kaydence Oswald,” he paused, now grinning slyly, “would you?”

   Elex licked his lips, suddenly unable to hold still. “Yeah,” he answered slowly, “she’s my sister.”

   “Well hot damn!” the older boy slapped him on the back again, and Elex nearly face planted as a direct result. The older boy didn’t seem to notice.

   “This is my brother, Eli.” Devlin was smiling too, but it was different. Almost evil, in a way Elex couldn’t possibly explain.

   Eli waved off his little brother’s comment. “Man,” and now he was suddenly eager, looking at Elex like he was a shiny new toy. “I’ve been trying to hook up with your sister since freshman year!”

   Elex’s stomach hurt, and he had the slight urge to both throw up and scream with rage. What did he care if Eli had been trying to ‘hook up’ with his sister? That was none of Elex’s business. Kaydence would murder him if she ever found out about this. “Uh,” Elex wasn’t sure what to say, which was perfect because Eli went on without needing a response.