Wrong (A Shalnark x Reader)

[Chapter 1-First Day]

I look over at my dad, who was passed out at the kitchen table in our new, nice modern apartment.  

Dad lost his job a while ago, we used to live out in the country.  But he got a new one surprisingly soon, and it just happened to let us move to the heart of Yorknew City.  Over the summer, though, his new job seemed to get pretty rough on him, and he picked up drinking (again).  I woke up most mornings to see him like this, so today should be no different, I suppose.   

Today is the first day of my new school, I'm going into 10th grade.  I'm not excited in the least.  I'm not a people person.  I doubt I'll have a single friend by the end of the year. 

I grab my pre-packed bookbag from a chair, grab a banana, and head off.  Our new apartment is pretty far up, so it takes the elevator a while to get to the bottom floor.  Once I get there, it's pretty much a piece of cake to get to the school (at least, if I have the right address, that is).  

I step outside the apartment building and onto the streets of Yorknew City.  Even though it's early, the sidewalks are filled with people, and the street is filled with cars.  It's super loud, but at the same time, comforting. 

I take my time, walking maybe two blocks, and then turn a corner.  I can spot the school immediately, it looks just like any other old building, but with kids flooding into it, some of them just hanging out around it, talking and laughing, having fun.  I get a sense of dread in me and decide to sit down and wait for it to clear up.  This not my scene. 

~~~

About half an hour passes, and the doorway is finally, for the most part, clear.  A few kids are still around but none of them seem like the type to want to strike up a conversation.  

I make my way over to the door successfully without having to interact with anyone.  I walk through the doorway but, just as I'm about to celebrate my successful trip, someone appears right in front of me.  

I immediately try to look down to try and not make eye contact, but the person's seemingly friendly attitude draws my eyes up.  It's a guy, he's pretty tall.  He has messy blonde hair, and he's wearing a lavender and green hoodie with black jeans.  He's quite cute if I'm being honest, but I have no time for those thoughts. 

After a short period of just...awkwardly staring at each other, he finally speaks up. "Hi!" he says, in a cheery tone.  Great, this is my least favorite kind of person.  "Hi," I say, trying not to sound too rude.  "I'm new!" he says in the same tone. "Do you think it'd be ok if you could show me around?"   

I mentally sigh.  "Sorry, I'm new too,"  I say, trying to step around him, but he takes the same step.  "Well, do you think we could just be friends then?" he says, his smile going a little limp for a second.  "We could try to get through this together!"

This time my sigh is audible.  Of course, this would happen to me on my first day.  Its a curse, being nice.

"Sure, whatever,"  I say.  His smile brightens again, and I start walking.  He follows suit, walking beside me but with a little more...I don't know, excitement?  It's quite annoying.  

I find my locker and, just my luck, his is right across the hall from mine.  As soon as he finishes setting stuff up he comes over and stands behind me to wait.  I almost roll my eyes. 

"So, what's your name? I'm Shalnark!" He sticks a hand out, and I hesitantly shake it. "[Y/N]," I say, blankly.  

Shalnark, I think to myself.  Kind of strange, but I like it.  "That's a nice name!" Shalnark says and smiles at me.  "Thanks," I say. 

After standing there for a while again, I decide to speak up first. "What class do you have first?"  I ask.  He pulls out his schedule from his bookbag and hands it to me.  I compare mine to his.  "Oh, wow, we have a lot of classes together.  The only ones we don't have are art and history." 

"What a coincidence!" Shalnark says as I hand him back his schedule.  The bell rings abruptly, startling me.

"I guess we should get going, then,"  I say.  He nods and starts to walk towards our first class, math.  I follow him, and he may not know it, but for the first time in a while, I genuinely smiled. 

~~~

It's the end of the day, and Shalnark and I are in our last minutes of Financial Literacy.  "And for the final assignment today, I want you to team up with a partner and tell a little bit about yourselves.  It's worth twenty points and is due by the end of the day tomorrow, so I suggest you get working." The bell finally rings, signaling the end of the day.

Shalnark looks over at me and smiles, and I do the same.  Despite only meeting him this morning, I have a great feeling about our friendship.  

After packing up my bag and waiting for most of the kids to leave school, I meet him outside.  "So, do you wanna work at your house?" I ask, not knowing if my dad would be home or not but not wanting to risk it.  Usually, he knows better when I have people over (which isn't a lot) but he can have his moments.  I don't want to scare Shalnark off, I've only just met him.

"Actually," he says scratching the back of his neck nervously. "I was hoping we could maybe do it at your house.  You see-" I cut him off.  He probably has a bad home situation.  "It's alright.  We can go to mine."  

He looked extremely relieved.  "You're a lifesaver," he says.  I start walking towards my house, fidgeting with a zipper on my jacket.  Hopefully, dad isn't too bad.  Or better yet, not there at all.

After the short walk and the trip up the elevator, I finally reach our apartment door.  "This building is where, y'know, the rich people live, isn't it?" Shalnark asks with a funny look on his face. 

I giggle and blush a little.  "Well, yeah, but I wouldn't necessarily call us rich.  My dad just got a new job as a banker over the summer.  The place is big but we don't really have much to do with all of the space." I explain.  "We came from out in the country."  

"Thats kinda cool!" Shalnark says.  "What does your mom do?"  I look down at my feet for a second.  "I don't really know.  She left a few years ago." 

"Oh," Shalnark says, giving me a pitiful look.  "I'm sorry."  

I stay silent for a few seconds and then look up and unlock the door.  The apartment is slightly messy, but very modern and homey.  When you first walk in you're greeted by a living room on your left and a kitchen on you right.  At the back of the left wall there is a hallway, where there are two bedrooms and a bathroom.  There are three doors in the living room area, where there are two more rooms and another bathroom.  It's quite the package, already furnished and everything.  There's even a floor-to-ceiling window, with a bay window built in, looking out over the city.  It's gorgeous.  "Dad?" I call out.  No answer.  "Stay here real quick."  I say to Shalnark.  I ispect the house, and find nobody.  I sigh in relief and go back to Shalnark.  "My dad isn't here, and he usally works midnights, so we can work as long as we need. 

Shalnark smiles and I lead him to the couch.  We spread out our homework on the coffee table and get started.  

Maybe this year won't be so bad after all.