Setting Them Straight [boyxboy]

Chapter Ten: The Special Boy

Chapter Ten (River)

I hadn't seen Dominic all day.

I searched after lunch, but he wasn't there. I went to the Arts and Crafts building, but Yolo was sitting alone at his pottery wheel, humming something as he dug his fingers into the wet clay, molding it into what looked like a slender vase. I approached him, bringing a stool over to sit next to him, making him glance up with a grin.

"Oi, que pasa." He greeted, making me roll my eyes before frowning.

"Have you seen Dominic?" I asked flat out. Yolo blinked, then averted his eyes down to his pottery, his finger pressing down into the center of the vase. The only people present in the room were Yolo, myself, and a couple other guys doing water colors while a counsoler watched from the doorway.

"Not since lunch. Did you check the trails? He usually goes for walks after lunch. Explains why he's so fit." Yolo added with a huff, shrugging his shoulders so his bangles jingled. I frowned, nodding my head slowly.

"He wasn't on the trails. Is he with Ryan?" I asked. Yolo shook his head, dragging a fingernail down the side of the vase to make a curly design.

"Nope. Ryan went to the other side of the camp to get tutoring for math. I swear, he just needs to join Special Ed. He can't do math worth crap." He ranted, carving another swirly design into the vase. He smiled for a moment and I was about to get up when I noticed his smile faded. I sat back down.

"What's wrong?" I asked. Yolo shook his head, his eyes locked on his project, but I could see the gears in his mind working.

"Nothing. Just wishing the end of the year was closer. I wanna go back home to my own bed." He admitted, shrugging against carelessly as if it didn't matter. I studied his face. Yolo was the boisterous one of the group. He was loud, proud, and obnoxious. He was always boosting and trying to encourage everyone to fight the man and be ourselves. Lately, he seemed a little quieter than usual.

"Is it Kyle?" I asked. Yolo blinked, then laughed, but it was half-hearted as he turned the pottery wheel off, gently using a plate to scoop the vase off. I followed him to the oven that he cracked open to peer inside at a couple of bowls before adding his vase.

"Nah. Go on, go find your boy. He seemed pretty sad that you can't get lovey dovey anymore. Give it a last go before you go silent for the rest of the year. Maybe afterwards, you guys can get it on." He added with a wink and dirty smirk. I resisted the urge to smile back and just nodded before departing from the cabin, heading along the paths.

A few guys ran by, laughing or chatting about things from back home, but there was no sign of Dominic. I took a sharp turn to the left and ended up on the little bluff near the lake, but Dominic wasn't there either. I frowned, scanning for him until I heard the dinner bell ring. I sighed. I'd probably see him there.

I turned and headed back down the path, twigs and branches crunching under my sneakers as I made my way to the mess hall. People filed in, yelling at each other and laughing out loud. The chatter became an echo once I entered the mess hall. I got my tray, but hardly paid any attention to the food as I scanned the mess hall for any signs of Dominic, but he was nowhere to be seen. I frowned, then winced as someone bumped into my back. I glanced over my shoulder, my blood turning cold as I watched Xavier push past me, adjusting his shirt as he made his way to where the counsolers stood.

He was silent as ever, but something about him made me suspicious. Xavier was a strange counsoler. He was too quiet and too strict, too cruel.

I averted my eyes as I went through the dinner line, just grabbing a sandwich with soup before making my way to the table. My frown deepened when I noticed that Dominic was sitting at the table. I glanced around toward the entrance, but the last few people were just filing in and none of them were Dominic. I sat down as Yolo, Ryan, Derrek, and Kyle made their way to the table, taking their seats.