The Summit

Freedom

Hi! I recently read a story that focused on the wrong things so I decided I needed to write something that focused on the right topics. I hope you enjoy :)

I included a character pre-transition in the flashback and I didn't like using their dead name or former pronouns so I hope it still makes sense that they looked a lot different back then.
___

3 years earlier

"C'mon, why are you being such a bitch?" It was River who had Julian pinned against the lockers. River was the trophy child of the grade for sports and popularity, although he was a complete asshole. His sleek black hair, bright green eyes, and all-around good looks excused his behavior in a lot of situations. Finnley Thatch was his prime target, especially because he got in the way of forcing himself onto Julian, who wasn't even sure if he liked guys. He used to go by a different name then and was pretty enough to garner anyone's attention.

"Leave her alone, dick hole." Finnley aggressively shoved River back, surprised he was able to move him. His grandma's death last year left him restless and he dove into several new hobbies, such as rock climbing. So he was much stronger, but still not strong enough to deal with River if he decided to throw a punch.

"Shut up, f**, stop getting in my way." He growled. Finn stepped in front of Julian, staring River down. This jerk constantly called him names and made fun of everything he did, but he wouldn't let him terrorize one of his only friends. The funny thing is, every single person in the school was perfectly accepting other than River, but he never said anything loud enough to be heard in the bustling hallways. Only loud enough for Finn to hear. His gang of friends would be joining him soon and that was a group Finn could not handle alone.

Speak of the devil.

Four other boys joined, including one boy that never actually did much other than watch. His name was Griffin and he was admired for his athletic ability, good looks, and charming personality. He had dark brown skin, a short afro, and beautiful brown eyes that could melt anyone's heart. Girls fawned over him, but he never dated a single one. Finn was curious but despised him for hanging out with such terrible people. If he was with them, it meant he was just as bad.

"You're a worthless pile of shit, you know that? This isn't over." River snapped, shoving Finn into a locker with a single palm. Thankfully, Julian wasn't behind him anymore, but he was fuming. He grabbed Finn and tugged him to their class while Finnley lost himself in an ocean of thought.

He was right though. It wasn't over.

____
Present

"We did it, we're free!" exclaimed Julian, one of Finnley's closest friends. He was pale, his dirty blond locks peeking out from beneath his cap. It was usually quite wild yet attractive in its own sense. Julian was thin but taller and slightly more muscular than Finnley, which made Finn a bit jealous because he had been working on his figure before Julian even thought of it. They just graduated high school and finally made it outside to escape the crowds. Finn texted his parents to tell them where he'd run off to.

"Ahaha, yeah, boy am I glad that's over. Did you see where Ren went? She said that she would find Moss and I'm worried," he inquired, grasping his graduation gown. He was mostly concerned because Moss didn't do well in crowds. Julian was more worried because Ren was his girlfriend, but that didn't make Moss any less important.

From behind Julian, he saw Ren and Moss stumbling out the doors of the school, along with many family members of the group. Their families were chatting amongst themselves until they saw their child. Moss only had their mom to support them, but Finn's family was basically theirs as well.

"Finn, Moss, I'm so proud of you two!" Finn's mom cooed, pulling them both into a tight hug. She was warm, comforting, and smelled like apple pie. Finn's dad was crying like a big baby, pushing himself into the group hug with the other three. His dad then ruffled both of their heads, messing up their perfectly manicured hair. Finn glanced at the pale person beside him who was fidgeting with their forest green hair, only looking slightly annoyed. Moss found their mom and politely said goodbye before leaving. Ren's mother was cooing in Japanese, kissing the olive-toned girl on her dark head of hair. Julian was grinning ear to ear, watching the sweet moment between the two.

Finn took off his cap, running a hand through his brown curls as he recalled his time in high school. It wasn't pleasant, not until he found people he could trust. During freshman year, his only friend was Julian, who still had long blond hair and had boys all over him. Then, they met Ren sophomore year who immediately fell for Julian, and finally Moss, who got dragged into it by overly extroverted Ren. During all of high school, the notorious River and his little group of friends terrorized them whenever they could. One of them was even a past friend of Julian's but stopped hanging out with him for the popular guys in middle school. Finn hated that. How could a person with any dignity just stand and watch as so-called friends bullied someone he'd known since childhood? Finn didn't understand it and never would. It was all behind them now though. They were all technically adults and moving on to their next chapters.

"Oh, crap! I am so sorry!"

He recognized that voice

Someone had bumped into him rather aggressively and he dropped his cap from the impact, whipping around to glare at the source. Griffin Pearson.

The tall boy was bent over, grabbing Finnley's cap from the ground and holding it out to him. A lopsided, apologetic smile graced his face, but all Finn could muster was a scowl.

"Oh, didn't expect anything polite out of you." Finnley ripped the cap from Griffin's hands, placing it on his head before crossing his arms.

"Look, I really didn't mean to, it was totally my fault. Um...congrats, bye." What was that? Finn was left dumbfounded, puzzled, and irked. Was it some new kind of bullying? Pretending to be nice? Whatever it was, he was so glad that he wouldn't have to deal with it ever again as soon as he left.

-------

That night, he got a text after saying goodbye to everyone and having dinner with his family. It was from the leader of the rock climbing group he was in. Finn's eyebrows scrunched together as he read the words.

Hey, everyone is going to meet at the gym tomorrow to get some good practice in. I know you couldn't make it today because of graduation, don't sweat it. We've got a new member, so be prepared. :)

A new member? This will be great, Finn thought with a groan. He got himself ready for bed and set an alarm, nervous for tomorrow.

-------

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Finnley fumbled for his phone, hearing a thud as he knocked it off of the nightstand.
"Shit..." he grumbled, attempting to reach down to get it. However, this only led to him sliding off of his bed with a thump. "Ow," he grunted, finally reaching his phone and turning off the alarm. He had plenty of time to get ready, but for some reason bolted up and got dressed. He chose grey sweatpants and a black t-shirt with a strange frog on it. Finn then made himself presentable in the mirror before shoving everything he needed in his bag and heading downstairs. His dad was already up making pancakes and singing to eighties music.

"Hi, I gotta go!" he informed his dad, grabbing a pancake and eating it plain as he put his shoes on. It was hot but edible. He grabbed his keys and jogged to his car, backpack clunking against his back.
When he arrived at the gym, he was greeted by the leader of the group, a lovely woman named Sarah.

"Oh, you're early! Congratulations on graduating, little man!" she chimed, ruffling his hair. He was about to protest when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Uh hi...I'm new," the voice stuttered awkwardly. Finn whipped around and nearly dropped from shock. He must be hallucinating.

In front of him was none other than Griffin Pearson.

______________________________

I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! It was a bit rushed, but I was excited to write it. :) thank you for reading!

~Mey