The Halls of Westwood [BxB]

Chapter 4

So without a single word to Jayce, Jullian left the bedroom wearing the simple white shirt, black pants, and blue tie the school provided. They were free to wear what they wanted after school or on weekends, but during class, they were expected to wear a uniform. Jullian didn't mind... He wore one at his old school too.

He headed down into his precalculus class, taking his usual seat in the back. He was always one of the first five people to arrive. Never a minute early, never a minute late, and always perfectly on time. Every day seemed to go by identical to the last with the same people arriving early and the same few showing up late or not at all. But not today... Because today, right on time, the twink Jullian had tried so hard to avoid walked in.

Austin was always late. At least by five minutes and he always showed up with his tie too loose, his shirt too baggy and the bottoms of his pants cuffed due to his height. Jullian rolled his eyes as the analytical boy practically strutted across the room and took the seat beside Jullian even with over half of the desks being empty.

"You're early" Jullian sighed as he finally looked over at the boy. Everything about Austin was pale and light from his hair to his skin to his eyes. His skin reminded Jullian of the porcelain dolls his mother kept and made his icy-blue stare seem brighter than they actually were. His hair was dyed white and his dirty-blonde roots were beginning to peek out from underneath. Austin was pretty, but he looked wrong and out of place in the school uniform. It just wasn't him.

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you" Austin shrugged with the signature clever smirk he always wore. Jullian only rolled his eyes. He didn't want friends and he certainly wasn't going to provide whatever the boy was looking for. "I'm an absolute mess in math and I couldn't help noticing you were top of the class"

"No" Jullian deadpanned. "I'm not tutoring you... Trust me, you don't want that"

"Please" Austin whined. "If I don't pass this next test I'll get booted from my dance team" Jullian let out a long sigh and rubbed circled on his temples in an attempt to relax himself. "Have you ever had something you loved so much you couldn't live without it?"

"No" Jullian replied blankly. He was lying of course. He loved soccer more than life itself. He loved scoring a goal, he loved the cheers from the crowd and the adrenaline in his body as he fought for the ball with another player. But now the thought of the field just made him sick...

"Liar" Austin scoffed. "Everyone does... You just don't want to admit it"

"If you're that clever then a few logarithms shouldn't be too difficult" Jullian rolled his perfectly almond-shaped hazel eyes. On some days his eyes were more brown, other days greener. They always seemed to change with his mood... But lately, they hadn't changed from the plain dark brown.

"You're right, I am clever. But that doesn't mean I'm smart" Austin protested. "Please... Dance is like my entire life"

"Good luck"

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After classes in Aiden and Austin's dorm, the room echoed with laughter. Beau's head rested on Aiden's shoulder as the two boys flipped through a collection of photos Aiden had brought with him. Beau was fascinated with Aiden's life on the reservation.

Aiden was from the Shawnee tribe. He lived on a reservation in Ohio with Sage in a small, poverty-ridden town. Although Aiden didn't talk much about it, he was a lot more in touch with his culture than Beau had expected. There were photos of him at pow wows and of him weaving baskets with a much older woman. And in photos dating almost three years ago, Aiden's hair fell in two long braids.