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( archie costello x [male] reader )
A/N: is trinity a boarding school?
idk but it is now. you're also super
tall in this, like 6'3. okay that's it—
THE REASON AS to why your father had decided to up and leave the state in the middle of the year left a blank slate in your mind.
well— that was a lie. you had some idea of the reasoning behind the move that seemingly sprung out of nowhere, but not enough information to completely determine why.
your dad explained that he had gotten a new job as a teacher at some fancy, upscale all-boys prep school down somewhere in new england, and that it posed as a better opportunity for making a life.
the whole "making a life" bit didn't really make sense to you, considering that you thought the one you had was decent; your dad got paid an average salary, you attended an average public school, everything was pretty much just average. life wasn't perfect, but who's is?
pestering him about the meaning behind his words was an everyday occurrence, yet every time, he would always shoo you off and tell you to finish packing your bags. so, like the dutiful son you were, you left the subject alone and packed up your entire life into various cardboard boxes and suitcases. just a normal sunday, huh?
now, it was the following friday, and you found yourself uninterestedly staring at the dreary scenery darting by on the drive to new england. it seemed as if you passed by hundreds of academies, pointing to each and every one of them as they passed through your line of vision.
"is it that one?"
"no."
"what about... that one?"
"no, (y/n)."
"oh, that one?"
"no."
"ooh, welton academy; that seem's nice, is it—"
"quiet, (y/n)."
with a bored sigh, you slumped back in your seat, crossing your arms over your chest as you leaned your head against the window, the feeling of your father's lincoln skidding over stray potholes and speed bumps tickling your ears.
finally, after what seemed like days, your father pulled to a stop in front of the most gothic, dark-academia-styled building you had ever set your eyes on. the bricks were stained a dull gray color, the roof some sort of stormy blue that complimented the texture of the walls.
"is this it?" came your incessant sarcasm, a sly grin tugging at the corner of the lips as you tugged on the ends of your hoodie strings. "seems like something straight out of an eerie r-rated movie."
"so it's to your interest, then?" your father retaliated with an eye-roll, slipping out of his vehicle before slamming the door shut.
you scoffed in amusement, shaking your head before pushing the passenger side door open to step out onto the walkway, the concrete damp from a recent scene of rainfall.
the smell of the wet grass and pavement felt calming against your pushed-away jitters, a sense of serenity swirling within your stomach as you assisted your dad in lifting the luggage from his cramped trunk.
"do me a favor," he started, placing down a box before digging into the left pocket of his gray trousers, pulling out a ring of keys, "unlock our room; it's on the second floor, 214."
"'our room?'" you repeated with furrowed eyebrows. "what are you talking about?"
the older man let out a sigh, lightly pinching the bridge of his nose before placing a hand on the trunk of the car.
"you don't mean..." you trailed off. "we're living here? at the school?"
"it's a preparatory school, son," he answered. "the tuition isn't cheap, but since i'll be teaching, they knocked off a couple thousand—"
"i'm going here?" you harshly questioned, your eyes turned downward in a state of bewilderment.
"there's no point in enrolling you in public school when we'll be living here."
"but, sir, we can't afford that—"
"that's not your job!" he exclaimed, slamming a hand down on the lid of the lincoln's trunk, your eyes widening a fraction as you slightly reeled back in shock.
your father paused, running a hand down his face as he let a deep breath out through his nose. "you are the child here, not me. i worry about costs, and expenses, not you! so don't go around telling me what i can and can't afford, your hear me?!"
he finished off the rant with his pointer finger directed at you, your jaw clenched as your eyes darted around the scenery, looking at anything other than your father's face scrunched in a heated agitation.
the man sighed, lifting his hand gripping the keys before holding them out toward you. "now, go on. unlock the room, i'll be right up."
with a nod, you stepped forward and grabbed the keys, tucking them into one of the pockets of your trousers. "yes, sir."
not sparing him a glance, you took off towards the building, chewing on the inside of your cheeks as you tried to brush off the belligerent interaction.
you made it to the doors of the dormitory, gently pushing them open as you stepped inside the very prestige-seeming building.
you didn't take in much if the decore, focused on your task at hand as you passed by a sign, reading dormitories and restrooms, with arrows underneath the words, pointing in their respective directions. looking at the room number printed on the label of the key, you trekked down the hall, slowing down to admire the pristine walls and photographs decorating them.
too distracted by an image of a rather ancient-seeming man hung up near the start of a set of stairs, you failed to notice the moving body of a boy around your age. you smacked right into him, stumbling backwards a bit before catching yourself.
"ow," you muttered, moving a hand up to rub at your chest, where the person you had collided with hit their head.
looking down, you noticed a stunned-seeming brunette knocked onto his behind, text books that were probably being carried by him tossed to the floor besides his sitting body.
"oh, jeez, i'm so sorry," you apologized, quickly dropping to the ground to pick up the teen's items.
"god, watch where you're—"
you looked up at the pause of the boy cutting himself off, noticing that his eyes widened and
fraction when they made contact with your own.
shooting him an apologetic smile, you gathered the brunette's books and held them out towards his frozen figure, letting out an awkward cough when he sat, stunned.
"um, i believe these are yours?" you questioned to catch his attention, seemingly knocking him out of his trance as he took the objects from your arms.
quickly, the boy stood and ran a hand over his hair, smoothing out any ruffles the collision might have caused, and shot you a rather sinister smirk.
"uh, sorry about that," you apologized yet again. "i should've been—"
"you're new here."
the comment caught you off guard as you furrowed your eyebrows, glancing down at your shoes before nodding with an awkward smile. "how'd you know?"
you inwardly cursed yourself at the ask; he's probably been going here for a while, obviously he'd recognize a new kid as fresh meat if he saw one.
"i've never seen you before," he answered with a coy grin, adjusting the books in his hands. "and i know everyone."
great, it's not even your first day here and you've already got into a mess with a popular kid— some luck you have.
you gave a bashful smile and let out a breath of a laugh. "yeah, that was a dumb question."
"i'm archie," the brunette introduced, moving his things to rest in one hand as he held out the other. "i presume you're (y/n) (l/n)?"
"how did you... ?"
"i told you," archie gave a smirk. "i know everyone-that includes newbies."
slowly nodding, you placed your hand in his and shook it.
"well, uh... thanks for the, um, warm welcome." you smiled, gesturing with your chin to the stairway behind the shorter male. "i gotta get to my room."
"of course." archie's rather unsettling smirk returned. "see you around."
"yeah, see you."
with a small wave to the brunette, you shuffled past him and up the two sets of stairs to make it to your floor, a pit of apprehension pooling in your stomach after the exchange.
"he seems nice," you mumbled to yourself, reading the numbers next to the doors of the dorm rooms as you trekked by them. "kind of... off, but cool, i guess."
~