MithRoss (High School AU)

Chapter 3

Alright, yes, I'm a dumbass, I forgot to upload again. But NOW I have an alert on my phone to remind me! Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

Ross swallowed nervously as a kid with long, dark brown hair stood up. "Whoa! You're that squirrel kid everyone's talking about!"

When Max glared at the boy, Ross began to play with his tail, a nervous habit. "Adam, everyone, this is Ross, the kid that's probably all over the school by now." The brunette raised a shaky hand in a slight wave hello. He was unbelievably nervous about these kids' reactions.

"Ross." He looked back to Max when the red-head called his name. He began introducing the other kids, gesturing to the first boy to start off with. "That's Adam, the other bisexual in this group." Adam grinned at him, his warm, brown eyes gleaming behind his glasses. He wore a blank black t-shirt and jeans.

Max moved on, next pointing to another red-head sitting next to a brown haired boy. Both were watching Ross. "This is Michael, the other ginger, who we like to call Red, and John, but we like to call him Barney. They're the couple here." The two smiled at Ross, holding hands. Max moved on quickly, now gesturing to an Asian-looking kid with black hair that almost covered his right eye. "That's Jin, he and Adam have known each other for ages, since, like, first grade or something if I remember correctly." Jin waved, giving a nonchalant "Hey" in the process.

"And then there's Tim, Tim Tim, or whatever you want to call him over there." The brunette looked toward the last boy. He also had brown hair that was swept behind one ear and had a forever mischievous look in his brown eyes.

"And then last but certainly least is Jess–" Max pointed to one of the girls who had long black hair and glasses. "–and–"

"Shelby!" Ross ran toward the second girl, giving her a big hug while she looked surprised, but hugged him back.

"Ross?! Is that really you?!" Ross didn't answer, just continued hugging the brown-haired girl. When he finally pulled away, his face flushed bright red when he realized the whole table was staring at him.

"Uh...y-you two know each other?" Max's face was shocked.

"Uh, um, y-yeah..." Ross tried to still his tail, but failed miserably as it twitched, betraying his anxiety. "She, uh, sh-she's m-my cousin. W-we used to Sk-Skype all the time, but..." His voice trailed off. {I don't know if you knew this, but they actually are cousins. Dat why they play together so often}

He turned around to face his beaming cousin again. "I didn't know you went to this school! I would've come here long ago if I knew that!"

"Forget that!" Shelby's voice was suddenly annoyed. "How come you never told me you were part squirrel?"

Ross's eyes widened. Whenever the two had Skyped he'd always worn a hood and kept his tail out of view. "I-I-I di-didn't want t-to lose you be-because y-you th-thought I-I was a-a freak. I'm sorry..."

Shelby's face immediately softened. "It's fine, Ross. Now let's eat lunch before we have to leave!"

Adam punched a fist in the air. "Whoo! Food! But first, I gotta ask something..." He faced Ross. "Can I pet your tail? It looks so fluffy..."

Ross stiffened, but relaxed when Max threw an arm around his shoulders. He normally hated people touching his tail, but he'd survived with Max, right? The red-head's touch had actually calmed him. And Adam seemed harmless... "Sure, I g-guess. Just don't pull it, it's really sensitive. And if the rest of you want to as well, just, please, one at a time. I-I don't like crowds..."

Adam's face immediately lit up like a Christmas tree with joy. "Don't worry! I won't!" He moved slowly to the side of Ross Max wasn't occupying and stared at the mass of light gray fur before reaching out a hand and tentatively smoothing the fur down. Ross immediately forgot about trying to keep his tail still and arched it into the touch, his right ear beginning twitch. It felt really good...

"Whoa...it's so soft! Come here, guys!" Adam stepped away, and, taking turns, everyone except Max got to touch his tail. By the time they were done, Ross was almost purring like a cat. He'd forgot how nice it felt to have his tail touched so gently.

He looked over at Max, who was smirking at him. Ross blushed, and Max chuckled, shoving Adam over so the red-head could sit next to him and patting the space beside him. Ross took the hint and sat down so he was sandwiched between Max and Shelby. His tail curled into its natural position against his back, the tip bending over to form a sort of ball at the end. {Just look up gray squirrel images and you'll see what I'm trying to describe.} He felt safe with these kids, as his tail clearly portrayed. It always displayed his emotions no matter how hard he tried to hide them. He didn't feel threatened, nor scared in anyway. He'd even found the family member he was closest to but never met in person until now.

Maybe this school wasn't so bad at all.