[TAC] THREE'S A CROWD

Chapter 03*

{Jumpol}

"So..." Off starts, uncapping his water bottle. "What are your plans for the weekend?"

New's sitting across from him at one of the round tables in the cafeteria. They're alone, so they have the whole table to themselves, even though the entire cafeteria is packed and almost too loud for Off to be able to hear himself talk.

New's eating a sandwich as he sits across from him, stuffing his face and somehow still succeeding in looking adorable while doing so.

New giggles once he tries to speak and realizes he can't because his mouth is full. Off laughs too, pushing the cap back down on his bottle and opening one of his notebooks.

"Me and Tay are doing something, I think," New replies.

Off nods as he sets his elbow on the table. "Ah."

"What about you?" New asks, wiping his mouth with a napkin. He quite literally has sweater paws from the grey sweatshirt he's wearing, which is causing Off to have trouble concentrating.

Off shrugs as he highlights something in his notes that he remembers his teacher had said was important. "Probably just gonna do schoolwork in the quietness of my room."

New sighs as he rests his head on his fist. "God, I wish I loved homework as much as you. Life would be so much easier."

Off laughs. "I don't know what else to do with so much free time on my hands. It's not like I'm a social butterfly, like you."

New scoffs dramatically. "I am not a social butterfly. The only reason I ever go out and do anything with people is because of Tay. If you heard about me a few years ago you would've thought I didn't even exist. That's how much I stayed away from being in the spotlight."

Off makes a face as though he's not buying it, even though he is. He knows New is a shy guy at heart, which makes the fact that New is so comfortable with him even more heartwarming. He and New are alike in that aspect, and that's probably why they get along so well.

Off knows it's only a matter of time before New gets that certain signal from Tay once the boy finally enters the cafeteria, so he enjoys this time with New as much as he can before it's gone. Tay always comes to lunch fashionably late, as though it's cool or something, and then he calls New over to join him and his loud, obnoxious basketball and cheerleader friends.

That's Tay in Off's eyes, and he doesn't quite see the appeal, but...it's whatever.

New reaches over and grabs Off's notebook from across the table. "What's this?" He gestures at an entire page of writing that has one of his teacher's commentaries scribbled all over it in red ink.

Off shrugs as he grins. "Oh, it's just this writing assignment I got a good grade on."

New reads the page closely. "Off, Ms. Panhan wrote that you're the best writer in our entire grade. Holy shit."

Off just blushes some more, shaking his head to ward off all the flattery.

New tosses the notebook back toward Off. "I'm nearly failing that class."

Off actually gasps, ignoring how much of a geek it makes him seem. Failing is sort of a forbidden word in his vocabulary. He's even more shocked by how indifferent New is.

"New, you can't just fail and not do anything about it," Off says, trying his best to offer a stern look and failing when he starts to giggle.

"I don't want to fail," New replies. "It's just hard."

Off bites his bottom lip in thought as he closes his notebook. "I can help you, if you want."