SMS \\Newtmas AU

0.68

⚠️Warning⚠️
This chapter includes mention of homophobia. If this is a sensitive topic for you, read at your own risk.
This author does not allow homophobic or any other discriminating views pursued in the comments and readers who disregard this warning will be deleted and reported.

As the week progressed, Newt and Thomas simply became too busy to keep up their hide-and-seek act. Finals were looking them in the face and their teachers absolutely refused to be lenient with their other assignments.

These finals were everything to Newt. If he did well he could perhaps at least spend the first few years of university in the states instead of sitting another exam for his Brit school preferences. Whether he left or not was completely dependent on these exams. Was he still considering staying? He dismissed the thought at once.

He hadn't just fallen in love with Tommy. He'd fallen for America too. With its diverse culture and majorly friendly population. And if he were arguing with his father, America provided more independent opportunities than England ever could, he could make his own name here. Still, he would always love England and London and all the familiar homeliness about it. But even if he stayed, England would still be there for Christmas and summer visits. The more Newt thought about it, the more head hurt. He'd put the whole matter off, just working as hard as he could.

He sat by himself in one corner of the cafeteria, head buried in his AP History textbook, mindlessly ignoring his lunch.

To fully comprehend the Russian revolution, its causes, factors and  effects, one must first delve into the meaning of revolution itself. From the earliest revolutions to the most recent, the trait that binds them together under the name 'revolution' is change. A revolution brings about change. Revolutions are further divided based on the type of change they essentially produce. The Russian revolution itself was a-

Newt felt someone sit across from him. Thomas, he figured. Or Minho. He kept his head down, hoping whoever it was, they'd eventually go away.

A loud, drawling voice cut into his personal space and he barely managed to suppress a groan.

"Hey faggot, whattcha readin'?"

Newt rolled his eyes but kept them studiously trained on his page. Honestly, these two would never decide to mind their own business and leave him alone. Sure, they'd kept away when Minho had befriended him, essentially taking him under his wing and protection. But now that Newt was avoiding both his friends- and quite depressingly his only ones, Benedict High's resident partisan homophobes had returned to torture him.

"Where's your friends?"

Newt didn't know what irritated him more, the condescending tone Zart thought would scare him into submission or his bad grammar.

"Maybe he fell in love with one of them and they decided to drop him, you know, them being straight and all." Clint slid Newt's untouched tray away from them and drew nearer to the annoyed boy.

Newt recoiled from his presence instinctively, repulsed. He bit back a sharp retort at his words- which had hit close enough to home for two such bumbling idiots.

"Aw, poor lizard. Say, tell me, fag, which one of them was it that broke your little gay heart?"

Screw this.

Newt pushed himself away from the table, yanked his schoolbag onto his shoulder and left the cafeteria, angry thoughts clouding his mind.

"I think you hurt his feelings, Zart."

"Yeah, go cry to mommy, you freak!"

Newt didn't stop or even flinch when Zart's last comment reverberated around the cafeteria, halting most conversation and turning heads nor did he spare a glance over to where achingly familiar chocolate eyes followed his livid form, worriedly.

Zart and Clint remained at Newt's recently abandoned table, laughing between them. Zart had his back turned when Thomas approached, but Clint had the time to up and scuttle off.

Thomas held Zart's shirt collar in his fist, scrunching his nose disgustedly as the boy whimpered. That was all bullies were: coward hiding behind the insecurities of others. The insecurities they preyed upon in order to break people.

Thomas didn't quite like bullies. Homophobic bullies were even worse

And the only thing worse than homophobic bullies were homophobic bullies who targeted his Newt.

"What the hell did you slintheads say to him?"

Zart visibly gulped. Yet he had the audacity to look Thomas in the eye and insult Newt all over again. "Nothing he didn't already know. He's a fag and a freak."

Thomas tightened his hold on Zart's shirt. He squirmed, futilely trying to escape.

It was Minho who came to his rescue. "Thomas, come on. Not now."

That was when he realised that a majority of the cafeteria had been watching them. Eyes were trained upon Thomas' grip on Zart as the world held its breath, waiting for him to make the next move.

Thomas' eyes narrowed back onto Zart's. "Talk about him like that again and I'll break you." He reluctantly let go. Zart stumbled backwards into the lunch table, his eyes widening in realisation. Muttering broke out all around them.

Zart looked as if he were going to say something else but his mouth faltered and shut when he met Minho's expression over Thomas' shoulder. He ran off, perhaps looking for Clint to tell him how he'd single- handedly gotten Thomas o admit he was gay in front of the entire school.

Minho scoffed in disgust as he went then turned to his friend with a broad smile. "You shucking idiot."

Thomas smiled weakly. "Oops?"

So I need to apologise to all my loyal readers. Yes, I haven't updated in weeks. And I could perhaps owe all that up to the fact that my Wi-Fi was out of commission.

Thank you all for your amazing comments and please don't withhold them in this chapter, I really hope you enjoyed it. I can't wait to read you guys' reaction to 0.69 (no that was not meant to be an innuendo). The next update won't take as long (no promises) but I WILL FINISH THIS BOOK.

Pinky promise.