Freak (Troyler AU)

Chapter Seventeen

*Troye's POV*

The drive from my house to the school seemed to pass in seconds I'd drove it so many times. It wasn't until I actually parked the car that I remembered I passed Tyler's house on my way. I didn't even bother to look up. I grabbed my bag out of the passenger's seat and reached for the door, but I couldn't will myself to open it. Today was going to be utterly horrible. I had a hard enough time dealing with their rude thoughts, I'd never in my life had to put up with rude words before this year, and we all seen how well I coped yesterday in the cafeteria. What if there wasn't anyone there to make me feel better today? 

It wasn't until I tasted blood that I realized I'd been chewing on my lip nervously this entire time. I winced in pain, grabbing the door and opening it before I got the chance to chicken out. Besides, the earlier I left the less people would be in the halls. I strolled across the parking lot relatively unscathed, considering no one was out there aside from a single group of younger girls. That wasn't what I was worried about, it was the hallways. I could just picture them flooded with people, cutting me off from going to my next class and surrounding me. The very thought made me queasy as I stepped through the doors.

I scurried to my locker, clumsily grabbing books out of it without even really concentrating on what ones they were. I just wanted to get out of here, into a classroom where the teacher would make students more cautious about what they said. I even had my favorite teacher first class, surely they'd help me out. I started toward the classroom quickly then, before the familiar sound of hundreds of loud voices filled the hallway. And, the buses had gotten here. I started jogging now, despite knowing I wasn't allowed to run in the halls. I just didn't want to run into anyone that remembered yesterday. I could do this, I'd spent my whole life invisible, why was it so damn hard to blend in now? 

"Hey, Troye!" I froze, my eyes going wide as I hugged my books tighter to my chest. This is it, they've caught up to me. I listened to the footsteps approach me from behind, even closing my eyes when they got too close. I didn't want to see who it was. "Troye? Are you okay?" I opened my eyes, surprised to find Shane standing beside me. I felt like hugging him in that moment, though of course I didn't. 

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I was up late last night and I'm a little out of it." I lied through my teeth, knowing he'd believe it. 

"That's fine! What class do you have first? Didn't you mention the other day we had a similar schedule on Wednesdays?" I hurriedly passed him my schedule, hearing voices not far behind us. I started walking, hoping he'd take the hint and walk and talk with me. He did, still looking down at the little piece of paper in his hands.

"Yeah, we have most of our classes together today, except for the one at the very end of the day." 

"That's cool! We should try and sit beside each other." In truth I wasn't actually that into the idea of sitting beside him, but he was definitely better than some stranger. Especially if that stranger remembered the incident from yesterday and never let me live it down. Shane looked totally ecstatic at my suggestion though, beaming a huge smile and nodding.

"That'd be awesome!" He laughed, handing me back the schedule. I got the feeling he wasn't used to having people ask him to sit by them. It actually bugged me a little bit, that people could be so cruel to someone without reason. Was it just because he was fat? He'd been unpopular long before the whole 'coming out' thing and I could hardly think of another reason. He was a nice guy, the nicest one I'd run into in this school. Well, aside from Tyler. Then again, I guess nice wasn't really a necessary component in people in highshool.

The first classes flew by in a whirlwind. Who knew actually having friends made school pass so much quicker. Were Shane and I friends? I suppose he was the closest I'd had to one in a long time. I wasn't going to put a label on it though, that'd only make it hurt more when he inevitably thought something rude about me. I was more than happy to spend time with him until then, especially if it meant not having to face the torment completely alone. The bell had just rung for lunch and we were shuffling out of the classroom, him talking about some movie he'd watched over the weekend as we walked. He was a total movie enthusiast.