•͟U͟N͟D͟E͟R͟S͟T͟A͟N͟D͟ ͟c͟a͟r͟t͟i͟u͟z͟i͟•͟

III

He wore a baggy graphic tee, with tight denim jeans, and black Vans high tops. He was definitely a person with a sense of fashion, no doubt about it. In addition to his shorter height, his feet managed to be small too, as to be expected. I actually began to daydream about him, until it was interrupted abruptly.

"You know who's lookin' fine today?" Caleb announced, while tapping my right arm.

I looked at where he was pointing to see a girl with a fuckton of makeup on, sitting down at a lunch table. She had an afro-type hairstyle, with black mascara and lipstick on. She wore a cardigan in August for some reason, and short shorts, that really drew attention to her ass.

"Damnnnnnnn," Caleb exclaimed, jokingly fanning himself with his hand, "that cardigan finna make me act up."

"Calm down, hoe, it doesn't even look that good on her," Travis retorted, "but she always manages to get me hard and shit." I laughed, not really knowing what to say. I won't lie, she definitely wasn't bad looking, and I could see where both Travis and Caleb were coming from when they called her fine. Compared to the kid with the purple dreads though? Nah, I think I liked him a little better.

I watched as Caleb and Travis continued to bicker over which part of this girl looked the best. "What even is her name, y'all?" I asked.

"Her name is Summer Walker, and on god, some day, it'll be Summer Toliver." Caleb informed me.

"Ewwwwww, what the fuck?" Travis remarked, "Yoh thinking' 'bout marriage now? You only sixteen!"

"SAYS THE ONE WHO FUCKED A BAND KID!" Caleb shouted back.

This continued until the bell rang about 5 minutes later, signifying the end of the lunch block, and the return to 3rd period. I watched as the purple haired dude got up, and walked in the opposite direction as I was going, alone. I came to a conclusion within my mind: I had to meet and befriend this kid.

"It's just too good of an opportunity," I thought, "maybe he's gay or something." Caleb walked off, as I entered my Psychology class, not really knowing what was ahead. Nothing was really of note within the class, aside from the fact that the girl that Travis and Caleb were gushing over at lunch, Summer, was in the same class, but she sat on the other side of the room. I stared at the wall for the entirety of class, and somehow, it actually made time go by faster.

I rushed out of the room, for no particular reason, and began to look around the crowded hallway. Just down the hallway, to my left, I noticed him; the boy with the purple hair walking towards me. I tried to sum up the courage to use this as an opportunity to finally speak to him, even though he had AirPods in. I started walking towards him, but just before I opened my mouth to talk, Travis rushed by me, grabbing my neck and almost dragging me with him.

"You know, we actually have next block together?" Travis explained pointing at my schedule, "4th block European History." I shook him off my neck, and looked to see that we actually did share the next class period.

"Hey Travis," I asked him, "can I ask you a question?" Travis shook his head yes.

"Who's that kid with the dreads that look like mine but are purple?" I questioned, "with all the face tats and everything." Travis looked as if he were thinking for a minute, until a look of knowledge blossomed upon his face.

"Ohhhhhh," he exclaimed, "oh yeah, that's Symere. Real cool dude, but definitely on the quieter side, and more of a loner; sort of like Caleb. He's into edgier type shit, like uh, he wears a bunch of Marilyn Manson sweatshirts., but overall, he's pretty cool. Why?" I found consolation in the fact that I knew more about him now.

"His hair just looked cool, and I wanted to know who he was." I responded, trying not to sound nervous. Travis laughed.

"Nah man, most people think that, so you're good." he told me, as we walked into European History.

This class also managed to be boring, with the motives and effects of the Russian Communist Revolution not bringing any sort of interests towards my mind. The long awaited bell ring, and all the students from my class, including Travis, jumped up, eager to go home. Myself? I attempted to navigate through the halls, trying to meet Caleb back at his Cadillac in the junior parking lot.

We had agreed upon our meeting place over text, as we both decided that it would be too difficult for me to discover an entirely different place to meet Caleb. I tried to explore through the crowded halls, attempting to make my way outside, where I at least knew it would be more open.

I heard loud footsteps and screeching coming from down the hall, in addition to shouting and yelling originating from further down the hall. The people running by were shouting a warning to those who were standing by idly; that warning was the phrase "fight" being shouted.

I tried to turn the corner to escape anywhere outside, but was ran into by someone not even five seconds into the escape. I fell to the floor, as did they.