My American Idiot ~ Septiplier

10

***

"Why the fuck should I care if the little shit thinks eating meat is wrong? I don't care! I should be allowed to eat whatever I like. I'm old enough to say that stuff, right?" Mark ranted to Wade in the middle of their English class, his hands gesturing wildly to emphasis his point but his voice lowered so their teacher may not overhear.

His best friend chuckled quietly. "Yeah, sure you are. I still can't imagine you eating granola for your breakfast though, that's just hilarious."

Mark slapped the table lightly with his palm. "My point exactly! I can't live off fucking rabbit food for the rest of my life."

Wade let out a laugh which he quickly muffled with his hand, completely ignoring the essay they were supposed to be working on. "Whatever you say. If it annoys you that much then just buy your own food like an adult."

Mark snorted quietly. "Yeah, like I have any money to spend. If I did I wouldn't be living at home still. God I need a job, man, I'm so broke."

Wade opened his mouth to speak but at that moment the bell rang signifying the end of their first class. They had separate classes next, Mark was stuck in math whereas Wade was heading over to history.

"I'll see you at lunch." The shorter of the two grumbled good naturedly. "And while I'm there I'm gonna eat all the meat the goddamn canteen has to offer."

Wade rolled his eyes at his friend before giving him a wave and walking down the corridor towards his next class yelling jokingly behind him. "Embrace the meaty goodness!"

Mark snorted, before letting out a quiet sigh as he turned in the opposite direction. He fucking hates math.

***

The warm sound of cheerful chatter flowed around the classroom as Mark too his seat near the back of the room. Unpacking his books he let his mind wander over the last two days. Had it been only two days? It felt like so much longer. This week was dragging on far too long.

Then he noticed Sean, ugh...Jack, walk into the room, his sling a little dirtier than yesterday and his face set in a determined expression. Mark felt his eyebrows raise to meet his hairline as the green haired boy sat in the seat next to him without any form of hesitation.

An awkward silence followed that Mark was far too nervous to break. He shifted in his seat, playing with the sleeves of his jacket out of habit. He could feel the other boy's eyes watching him, the piercing blue cutting into him like a knife.

Eventually Jack broke the silence.

"Hey Mark." He said quietly and calmly.

Mark finally looked him in the eyes, surprised at how direct and steady that gaze was. "Hey."

After a few more seconds of prolonged silence during which they both tried to bring up something to talk about, Mark opened his mouth again. "What do you want?" He asked quietly.

The Irishman was quiet for a few seconds more before answering. "I just wanted to say thanks for getting Felix off my back. I swear he was a few steps away from banning me from visiting."

Mark looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Felix? Isn't that the blonde dude who gives your mom her pills or something?"

Jack nodded, eyes fixed on the table in front of him. "Yeah that's him. He's a good guy, done a lot for me recently. But he told me that my ma had a fit while you were in with her yesterday. You ok?"

The dark haired boy couldn't help but be surprised and the concern in the other boy's voice. His mind flashed back to the dream he had last night and he shivered at the memory. The entire situation just seemed so unfair. Maybe Jack deserved to get drunk when he was only 18. Mark honestly couldn't blame him for it.

He looked the Irishman in the eyes, startled at the expression of understanding on his face which only made the American's stomach twist in embarrassment. If he was stuck in Jack's position he probably would've melted into a puddle of mush by now with the emotional strain alone. He couldn't possibly imagine how it felt to have a mother so mentally ill that she could actually think that a complete stranger was her son.

"I'm fine. It was just a bit of a shock to see something like that." Mark replied before quietly adding. "I don't know how you stick it, Jack."

The green haired boy shrugged. "It's just my life. Shit like that scares the crap outta people who aren't used to seeing it. I'm guessing you're one of them, huh?"

Shrugging a little the half-Korean answered in such a low whisper that Jack had to move closer to hear him properly, the words full of something close to shame. "I might be."

Suddenly he heard a small chuckle from the boy beside him. "Be glad of that and pray that it stays that way." Jack said, his Irish accent becoming a little more pronounced when he whispered.

Mark hid is face in his hands as another silence stretched out between them, but this time it wasn't awkward at all, instead it held a mutual understanding, like they were both on the same page. Then Jack spoke again. "Hey Mark, what was the name of that girl you like again?"

Mark warily took his head out of his hands, tenseness bleeding into his body like he was preparing for a fight. "Her name's Ashley. Why?"

Jack let out a quiet laugh before bringing his hand down on Mark's shoulder, making him jump at the touch. "No need to worry, Godzilla. I was just gonna suggest that, seeing as Ashley seems to want to hang around with me, I could put in a good word for you."

Mark's jaw practically hit the floor. "W-what? You'd do that for me?"

The Irishman let a smirk play on his lips. "Of course. But only if I you'll come with me to visit my ma again. According to Felix it would help her more to have a bigger variety of people visiting than just me and him and seeing as you're the only person in this school who knows about her. I'd like to keep it that way. So, do we have a deal?"

Mark bit his lip as he thought through his options.

This was his chance. If Jack gave him a good word to Ashley then he might have a chance to actually talk to her. He could get the girl he had been crushing on for 3 years of his life to talk to him in a way that wasn't just a short exchange of hellos in the corridor.

But on the other hand, he would have to go back there.

Mark felt a shiver shake his body at the thought of going back into that room with that woman. Frankly he was terrified of the same thing happening again, the screaming, the thrashing of limbs and the shouts of doctors before everything became too quiet and silence smothered the room like a blanket. He wasn't sure if he could do it.

Mark could feel Jack's blue eyes piercing into his back, waiting for his answer.

"She's not always like that, you know." Jack said softly. "You just saw her on a bad day. I promise if she's having a bad day when we arrive you don't have to go in. I get it."

Slowly Mark nodded, eyes finally coming up to meet Jack's for reassurance. "Okay. I'll do it."

Jack gave him a small smile before ripping a piece of paper out of a notebook on the desk and writing something on it. "Here, this is my number. I'll call you whenever Felix tells me that ma's having a good day, alright?"

Mark nodded again, wondering what the hell he just got himself into as he quickly slid the note into his pocket. At that moment Mrs Adams hobbled into the classroom and Mark couldn't help but let out a sigh.

"Silence!" She barked, the wrinkles on her forehead doing the Mexican wave as she spoke. "Open your books at page 423."

Ah Mark had almost forgotten that he had math now.

The worst thing ever invented.

Taught by the grumpiest old woman to ever live.

Oh joy.

Heya! Look! I'm not dead! I'm hoping to get another chapter out maybe next week and then hopefully things will get more regular after that :D I'm currently dying of a cold tho so I'm sorry if this sucks but all the same, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Song: Control - Halsey

Until next time......BYEEEEEE!!