scrawny & broken | zalex 13rw

4

Where the hell did I put my bathing suit? I need it for my PT lesson with Zach today and for some reason it's magically disappeared. I groan as I look through my laundry. Maybe my mom knows where it is. I open my door and head downstairs, seeing my mom in the kitchen.

"Hey mom have you seen my bathing suit?" I say as I lean against the wall. "Oh yeah hunny I totally forgot to tell you, I threw that suit away and got you a new one! It's better for your skin I heard." She says as she goes to get it. Shit. She hasn't chosen my clothes for me since I was little. This is gonna be so bad.

And just like I expected, it's like my worst nightmares came to truth as she holds up a neon blue speedo. I open my mouth and don't say anything, shocked.

"The color is supposed to be a good fit for the sun's rays to easily bounce off of so you won't get sunburned so easily! I read it online." She says as she puts the speedo in my hands and heads back into the kitchen. That's it, my mom officially hates me.

I don't even bother to argue with my mom about it, because I already know how it'll end up. With me getting lectured on how I need to be as healthy and safe as possible to "get better." What a joke. I head upstairs to get my bag and stuff the speedo in it. Zach's supposed to pick me up like usual.

I head to the kitchen and eat a bagel my mom made as I scroll on my phone. Apparently, the whole thing with Tyler is blowing up all around the school. The tweets of people explaining how lucky they are to be alive and safe are neverending. I wonder how the school's going to react to this. I mean, they've had a suicide, an attempted suicide, Jeff dying, and Tyler trying to school up the school all in such small time.

I finish up the last of my bagel right on time as Zach texts me that he's outside. I say bye to my mom as I grab my bag and head out the front door. I see Zach already standing outside of the passenger seat waiting to help me inside. What a gentleman am I right.

He helps me onto the seat but this time I accidentally trip and fall back, him quickly catching me though. We lock eyes for a moment but quickly look away as he clears his throat and helps me onto the seat once more, this time with me actually getting onto the seat.

"I'm not ready for school today." I groan as I rub my eyes that show just how tired I am. "Me either. I think I got a total of two hours of sleep last night." Zach says with a small laugh. Without thinking I say, "Why? Spent all night banging that one girl you took to the dance?" I say and laugh. He becomes flustered and his face turns slightly red, which is honestly kinda adorable.

"What? Uh, no, that uh, girl I took was just a friend from my science class. We're just friends." He says and clears his throat. "Wow, and here I thought you were actually talking to a girl for once." I laugh and he rolls his eyes and smiles.

"Girls just aren't my uh, my focus at the moment I guess." He says, glancing at the rearview mirror and switching lanes. "Understandable." I say and then yawn right after. He pulls into the school parking lot. Today's going to be a long, tiring day.

•
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•

Just as I thought, the day went by so painfully slow, and now it's time for my PT lesson with Zach. I walk into the lockerrooms with him and suddenly remember my speedo that my mom got me. Shit.

I head to the shower to block myself with the curtain. I put the speedo on and it is literally one of the most uncomfortable things I've ever worn. It feels so tight, I feel like any movement would make it shred off of me like the Hulk.

"Okay, you have to promise not to make fun of me in about five seconds. My mom got me a new bathing suit so." I say, already knowing that he will anyways. "Alright, I promise." I hear him say from the other side of the curtain. I walk out and he opens his mouth in shock.

And then he starts dying laughing. No like seriously, he looks like he's actually about to die from how out of breath he's gonna be because he's laughing so much. I sit there and try to look annoyed, but his laugh is so contagious, so I start laughing too.

"What the hell was your mom thinking man?" He says through gasps of air. I shrug and laugh. "My mom is crazy dude." I say as we start walking out of the locker rooms and out to the pool.

"I mean, they don't look too bad on you." He says with a smirk as he walks over to the pool and then jumps in. What the hell was that.. oh whatever, he's just joking around. I laugh and then he helps me into the pool, his hands touching my bare skin, sending those shocks up my body again. What the hell is happening to me lately. I shake the thought off.

I start to do my normal exercises like usual. "Alright so for this new method, you're going to  bend your knees for as long as you can. It'll help you regain some of that strength you lost there." He says. It might not sound hard, but it definitely is hard because my knees are a huge weak point. I try as best as I can and end up failing.

"Here, I'll hold you up so you can stay there longer." He says as he comes up behind me and holds my upper body as I bend my knees. There's so much going through my head right now that needs to stop going through my head. And then I feel it. Shit.

He's going to notice it if I get out of the water because he has to help me out. Why does my own body hate me so much. This is the second time this has happened because of Zach. Something is going on with my body and I don't know how to stop it.

After about twenty minutes, he's about to get out and it still hasn't gone away. Somebody please end me. He gets out of the water and then helps me out, I'm hoping he won't notice it.

However, because the universe doesn't give a shit about what I want, I'm pretty sure he notices as he glances down for a moment and his eyes get big and he looks completely startled. He clears his throat though and doesn't say anything, us proceeding to walk to the locker rooms without saying anything.

The first time it had happened it wasn't all that big of a deal, I mean, I found out that it worked afterall. But now what the hell excuse do I have. How do I even explain this to him. How do I even explain it to myself? Note to self, lock my bedroom door at all times so my mom doesn't take my bathing suit and throw it away.

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heres another update for ya hehe. should i make some in zach's pov? hmm. thanks so so much for all the good feedback i've been getting so far!! will be updating more soon :)