The Weirdos

55

The next morning, he found Freak at breakfast and said,
"Can I shadow you today?"
Freak smiled at Jasper.
"Yes."
Jasper sat next to Freak as he buttered his toast and carefully put an egg on top of it. Before he ate it, though, he folded his arms and bowed his head, whispering a prayer under his breath. Then, he dug in.
"That looks good."
Jasper said to him.
"It is."
Freak said with a mouthful of toast and egg. Jasper smirked and decided to try it. He buttered his toast, put the egg on top, then took a bite.
"Mmm!"
Freak laughed at Jasper.
"This is like the best combination. I've never thought of doing this before."
"My parents had all sorts of breakfast recipes and combinations of food that they made."
Freak said, eyes going a bit dark, but not as bad as Books' had been.
"I miss them... They might've been cruel, but they were still my parents."
Jasper rubbed Freak's back. The boy smiled and looked at him.
"I'm ok. I have a new family who loves me more than they ever could."
Jasper smiled back.
"Yeah. You're a smart kid, Freak."
"I learn from the best."
Freak looked over at Books who was drinking orange juice and reading a thick book about mechanics. Jasper looked at him, then back at Freak.
"He teaches you?"
"Yes. When he isn't busy, we have school. He does so much stuff for all of us. He practically runs the house. Training us when Skins isn't, teaching us our general studies, helping us learn and control our abilities..."
"Wow. I didn't know he did all that."
"He takes days off every now and then to destress. He builds stuff and does whatever else he does... Writing and reading by himself. These days, though, he's more focused on training you. But he still finds time for us, too."
"Ok. But tell me about you. That's what today is about."
Freak nodded.
"Right. Uh... My name is Freak, I'm twelve years old, my favorite color is purple, I like dogs, my skin is naturally blue but I can be normal and blend in when I want to, I'm in seventh grade, I like to read and draw with colored pencils-"
Jasper tried frantically to keep up with all of Freak's words, writing as fast as he could.