The O.G. (Stanley Yelnats Fanfic)

Chapter 3: Death of Me

All the guys after dinner went to the rec room, giving Hector and I the privacy we needed to talk. We opted to stand on the outside of D-tent since it wouldn't look suspicious and we could be certain that one was trying to listen to our conversation. 

"Obviously, I don't need to tell you what has to happen"

 He nodded but I could tell from the look on his face that he had something on his mind.

" What's wrong?"

"Do you feel bad? I mean it's kinda our fault he's here" the curly-haired boy said in a gentle yet serious way.

 I didn't respond for a second, feeling out the situation myself. 

"I do feel guilt but I don't let it weigh on me because how could we have ever known that those shoes would hit him"

 Hector nodded, taking in my response but I could tell that he was still struggling. I wrapped my arm around his shoulder and brought him closer to me.

" Don't beat yourself over things you can't control. Also, next time you decide to speak in front of everyone, have it not be about those stupid shoes"

A small grin grew on his face at my teasing and he replied "I wasn't trying to. I guess I was in shock and my mouth was moving before I could even think about it. Plus the shoes aren't stupid and you know it". 

 As we bickered and joked about the sneakers, I felt the worries of the day wash away.  

The next morning started as most others did; the trumpet speaker wake up, grab a shovel, and stuff my face with honey-glazed tortillas as I walked to where D-tent would be digging.

 When I dug, I would wrap cloth strips from an old undershirt around my hands so there was less friction on my palms.It wasn't a complete fix but, it helped a lot and I was always one of the first few to finish.

 I was drinking water from my jug when I noticed all the guys throwing their excess dirt into Stanley's hole. While I don't think it was intentional, it was still setting him back big time.

" Excuse me, can you throw it into another pile or somethin' because it keeps going in my hole" Stanley asked politely. 

His kindness was met with mocking and sneers from the other guys.

"You guys are such assholes"

The group mostly laughed off my comment, thinking I was messing around.I didn't push on the subject though since I knew the hotter it got out, the more irritable they would be  and I wasn't in the mood to get into a screaming match.

 I looked across from me as I set my jug back and noticed the newbie staring at me. I checked to make sure it was me he was watching, before giving him a confused look and going back to digging. 

I hope to God he isn't a fucking weirdo...I can't deal with another one. 

Hector, of course, finished first and spit in his hole before waiting on me. He didn't wait for me everyday, especially on extremely hot days but I always appreciated when he did. 

Having his eyes on me made me a bit anxious so I shoveled the last few clumps of dirt quicker than I normally would. We clasped hands and the younger Zeroni helped me out of my hole while the others simply watched as we began the trek back to camp.

" Done already?" 

Both of us ignored Stanley's question but I couldn't hold back as the other guys began ripping on Zero.

 I turned around and flipped them off while saying "Y'all just mad, you're going to be here for another hour. Maybe if you weren't fucking around, you'd actually get your shit done".