Oh Boy! (BL)

17 - Rain and Sunshine (2/3)

"For your own sake, I hope that the backpack is for school and not for moving in here again."

I tried a smile. "Don't worry, I'm on my way to school. I just wanted to say hi to mom."

Lisa sighed in relief. "Then let's go, sweetie."

Ignoring grumpy Gudrun, who was just and about to not let me in before the official visiting hours, Lisa gave me ten minutes with mom until I had to take off again.

The streets and buildings just flashed past my eyes, people became faceless phantoms and the long walk to school became a blurry memory until, suddenly, I reached the large red-brick building. In retrospect, I can only shake my head for my own carelessness. If Drake had come for me on that very day, I don't know what would've happened. But thanks to a miracle I hadn't prayed for, he stayed away from me.

When I entered the school building, I didn't pay attention if the others were snickering or ignored my very existence, and I didn't care. My morning classes passed by in a blink; though, I can't remember a single thing we learned that day. I survived lunch break in which my attempts to find Cooper in his office failed, and nothing in this world could've made me enter the cafeteria. I didn't know what the Thunderbirds who were in my classes were thinking because I ignored each and every one of them and none of them approached me.

Until arts.

Up until this lesson, the day had been rather quiet, and I'd counted the hours until I could see Mom again. It couldn't have gone any better. All teachers were giving me pitiful glances and none of them dared to ask me to participate during the lessons. Even Mr. Devereux was keeping quiet when I entered the art room.

He lifted his eyes from the magazine in his hand, recognized me, and was on the verge of speaking up but when his relaxed gaze met my tired one, he closed his mouth again and gave me a sympathetic look instead.

One after the other, my fellow classmates entered the room, and with the ringing of the bell, Mr. Devereux began the lesson by announcing our next topic. Wow, guess I'd missed the deadline for my previous project.

"The event committee asked me to give all of my students the task to come up with designs for the upcoming Glimmer ball!" While most other students seemed eager to fulfill that task, my hand closed tighter around the pencil in my palm. So much for leaving it all behind. "Decorations, pictures, your creativity has no limits!"

Mr. Devereux returned to his desk with a cheerful "Have fun!" and went back to reading his magazine.

Paralyzed I stared at the blank page in front of me. My creativity was gone the moment he mentioned Glimmer Ball because the only thing I could think of now...was Clay. Gosh, I was so stupid. Instead of taking the money from Holland, I refused it to protect him - afraid that I'd hurt him - when he was only laughing behind my back with his popular friends.

My hand was still frozen when I heard someone whisper to the girl next to me. "Hey, can we switch places?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her shrugging before she moved her belongings one seat to the right. I didn't think much about it until I figured out who slipped into the seat next to me.

"Kenji-boy..."

I ignored Evans's hesitant voice and tried focusing on the empty paper in front of me. Which was hopeless, of course. My head was empty, my hand stiff.

"Come on, Ken...we tried calling you. Cap even ran after you, but you were already gone...and..."

I turned my back on him.

Just imagining that he sees my dick...ew.

He didn't have to talk to me if it made him sick. I knew he wasn't the one who said those words, but I was pretty sure that's what he was thinking, too.

"Please, let me explain..." He put a hand on my shoulder.

I gave him an exhausted look and it was hilarious that he still looked like the cheerful boy I could've sworn was my friend two weeks ago. "Please, take your hand away."

Evans made wide eyes. "Ken, what..."

"Kenji." Mr. Devereux appeared at my left side, holding my unfinished painting in his hand. "I've moved your deadline for the previous task one week up. So, you can finish it today if you want to."

He held out the paper to me.

"Thank you, sir." I took the drawing, even though the Ken, who'd started it, was gone.

Mr. Devereux hesitated momentarily. "If there's anything else I can do..."

"Let me go," I answered instantly.

"Kenji..."

"The only thing you can give me is time with my mom. I promise that I'll finish the task by tomorrow morning."

He hesitated.

"Please," I begged him.

"Fine," he sighed and rubbed his chest with one of his hands as if he were in pain. "I'll expect your assignment tomorrow morning, eight o'clock sharp."

"Thank you, sir!" I packed my things before he finished speaking and hurried for the door. I couldn't wait to get outta here. A short stop at the hospital before heading to work was definitely better than spending three hours with Evans right next to me.

"Mr. Evans that doesn't apply to you!"

Startled, I looked over my shoulder. Evans had jumped up from his chair and looked at me with worriedeyes – yeah, whatever. "But..."

I didn't hear anything else since the door shut close behind me.

Carrying my art folder under my left arm, I walked through the empty hallway, past the lockers and classrooms. For a second, I considered leaving a note in Cooper's locker, but decided not to. I really needed to ask Lisa how to write text messages with that smartphone thing.

My hand was already touching the silver handle of one of the exit's double doors when a door to one of the classrooms adjacent to the hallway was being pushed open. The teacher inside the classroom shouted "Mr. Prescott, where do you think you're going?!" just seconds before Clay slid into the hallway.

We stared at each other for a second. He seemed stressed, while I felt...nothing. Wow, I couldn't even find the strength to hate him anymore.

Shaking my head, I turned away and left the building.

"Ken!"

If I kept on moving, maybe he'd just go away.

I looked up at the dark sky flashing over the crown of the oak tree.

Thunders growled through the air. It was raining.

How very fitting.