New Boy (A Javid Story)

Blink

(Thank you all so much for all the cover contest submissions! I loved them all so much, and I'll announce the winner soon!)

(Also, @lazycat0828 I hope this lives up to what you wanted)

Kid Blink was blind in one eye. It was caused by some dumb accident he had been in as a kid. He had always hated it, and he got picked on for it in middle school. His eyesight would always be off, and he would never be as good as the other kids in English because of it. He got hit in the head all the time during gym because he didn't have depth perception. To hide the eye, he wore an eye patch. Still, it made school, and life in general, hell. 

But the worst part was the Delancey's, though. They mocked him relentlessly and took his eye patch on a daily basis. The worst part was Morris in his English class. The taller of the Delancey brothers sat behind Blink and poked him in the back all throughout class. On the Friday after the failed first attempt at a protest, there was a sub in English. Which meant Morris would torture Kid Blink for the whole period. 

Blink tried to get someone to trade seats with him, but nobody would. Begrudgingly, he sat down in front of Morris, keeping his head down. Still, Morris poked him in the back repetitively. Blink tried to ignore him, but Morris snapped the band that held his eye patch in place. 

"What do you want?" Blink snapped, turning to face Morris. 

"What's up Kid Stink?" Morris crossed his arms. 

"So original." Kid Blink mumbled, turning around and putting his head down again. 

"Don't ignore me." Morris growled. Kid Blink rolled his eyes, and continued to ignore him. "Hey! I said not to ignore me." Morris hit Blink on the back of the head, sending Blink's face into his desk.

"Ow!" Kid Blink yelled, coming up from the desk and covering his nose with his hand. When he pulled his hand away, he found blood. "What the-"

"Oh. Sorry." Morris smirked, not sounding sorry at all. Kid Blink calmly got up, and made eye contact with Morris. Then, he punched Morris square in the face. It didn't draw blood, but it made Morris mad. "That's it, you little punk. Meet me outside after school. We're gonna settle this." 

"You're on." Kid Blink cracked his knuckles, and sat back down. He was too stubborn to go to the nurse about his bloody nose. 

Two hours after school ended, Kid Blink was standing outside Jack's door. The boys almost always went to Jack if they were hurt, and this was no exception. Luckily, it was Jack who opened the door, not his brother. Blink didn't want to explain to Crutchie why he was hurt. 

"Blink?" Jack asked, a bit shocked. He was shirtless, despite the fact that it was 4 o'clock, and his arms and torso were covered in paint. 

"Morris Delancey." It was the only explanation Kid Blink had to give before he was ushered inside. Jack looked the boy up and down, checking out the damage. His eye patch was missing and he had a split lip. There were bruises up and down Blink's arms, and a bleeding cut on his face. Blink sat down on the kitchen counter of Medda's apartment, looking down at his feet. 

"He took your patch again?" Jack asked, even though the answer was obvious. 

"He always does." Kid Blink responded, sounding defeated. Jack went into his room and came out a few seconds later, holding another eye patch. 

"Here." He handed it over to Blink, who smiled gratefully. 

"Thank you so much." Kid Blink nodded. 

"Always gotta be prepared, Kid. Always gotta be prepared." Jack advised, wetting a towel at the sink. Growing up, Kid Blink and Jack were best friends. And they were still really close, but they had grown apart over the years. Still, Jack was happy Blink was his friend, even if they weren't as close as they used to be. "What caused it this time?" 

"He was picking on me in class. So I punched him in the face." Kid Blink explained with a small shrug. "What happened to you?" He joked a little, gesturing to the paint covering his body. 

"I was doing a painting and needed to test out a few colors." Jack shrugged. 

"So how come your shirt is off?" Blink questioned further. 

"Ran out of room on my arms." Jack explained as he continued working. "Do you want me to call Mush so he can drive you home? I know you guys are in the same apartment building." 

"Yes please." Kid Blink nodded. When Jack finished cleaning up his friend, he grabbed his phone to call Mush. Blink got off the counter and over to the kitchen. His cut had stop bleeding, as had his lip. Still, he was not looking forward to school on Monday. Not that anybody ever was. 

"Mush'll be here in a bit." Jack said, coming into the bathroom. 

"Thanks." Blink nodded. 

"No problem." Jack nodded. "Hey, listen. I know we aren't what we used to be but-"

"You're my friend, Jack. You're stuck with me." Kid Blink laughed, and so did Jack. They felt some of the tension in the room ease and went into the front to wait for Mush. 

When Mush did show up, Blink climbed into the car, kissing his boyfriend on the cheek. "Hey." He smiled. 

"Hey. What happened?" Mush asked. 

"Morris." Blink shrugged. 

"I can't stand him." Mush growled. Kid Blink covered the other boy's hand with his own. They hadn't told the rest of their friends about their relationship yet. They wanted a little piece before they told anyone. 

"Hey, it'll be alright." Blink promised. 

"I know it will be." Mush nodded. 

Inside his house, Jack was on the phone with Davey. 

"He got Blink real bad, Dave." Jack reported. "I'm sick and tired of those two. First they hurt Elmer, now they hurt Blink."

"They hurt you too." Davey reminded. 

"Irrelevant. This protest has caused way too much trouble." Jack shook his head. 

"The fight wasn't over the protest." Davey pointed out.

"I don't care." Jack continued. "Blink got hurt, Race got detention, and Crutchie got arrested. I say it's time to end this thing. Once and for all."