5 days later,
New Rochelle, NY
Liegth University
_______________________
"No, we said tomorrow. Okay, I'll see you Tuesday." Landon huffed as he flipped his phone closed.
Never get a day off, he sighed, fidgeting with the purple choker under his jacket collar, This stupid thing is uncomfy.
"Excuse me," someone tapped Landon's shoulder, "do you know the way to Class 0-2?"
Landon looked over the person who he couldn't tell whether they were feminine or masculine, with dark blonde hair and big brown eyes, wearing the school uniform.
"Oh yeah, it's um, in the Art Building." Landon pointed towards the tall building which had 5 floors before turning back to the person, "Are you new here?" he asked.
The blonde chuckled awkwardly, "Is it that noticeable?"
Landon smiled, "No, it's just that literally no one wears the uniform." he pointed to the grey and blue outfit.
"Oh," they looked down before fidgeting with their backpack strap nervously, "the principal said Mr. Liegth insists on exchange students fitting in by wearing them."
Landon laughed, "My dad says a lot of things, just ignore him." he said, receiving a surprised look from the blonde.
"Your dad is Light Liegth? That's so cool." Landon shrugged before nodding.
"Yeah it's not all its cracked up to be. I'm Landon by the way." he stuck out his hand.
"Tyler Reed, they/them. I like your hair." they gave an awkward smile, shaking Landon's hand.
Landon pushed back his hair, "Oh thanks. So you have 0-2 for first period?" he motioned for the blonde to follow him.
"Yep, I'm majoring in art history." they nodded, following Landon across the lawn towards the Art Building.
"Wow really? I don't actually have a fixed major yet." he laughed, "So you said exchange student, where are you from?"
"The Philippines, I moved here a few days ago." they replied with a nod and a smile, Tyler was never good at making friends so they were glad Landon was speaking to them.
"Oh my gosh, that's so cool." Landon piped up with a smile before sighing, "I was born here in New York, which is no fun at all." he rolled his eyes.
Tyler simply nodded, they wasn't sure how to reply to that and instead waited for the redhead to say something else.
"Anyways, so you're majoring in art history. Do you draw?" the teen asked, moving his choker down slightly on his neck so the thing wasn't pressed against his Adam's apple anymore.
"Yeah, but I mostly paint. Portraits are my area of expertise." Tyler added jazz hands to the last part of their sentence, making Landon laugh.
"Seriously? I wanna be you so bad." Landon groaned dramatically, stopping in his tracks when he noticed Ryojin coming his way.
"Good morning sir." he said almost robotically with his hands behind his back, looking down at the ground.
Ryojin smiled as he looked towards Tyler, placing his hand on Landon's shoulder which let the teen know he could act normally.
"Morning, who's your friend?" Ryojin asked casually, gently and subtly squeezing Landon's shoulder for comfort.
"Oh, uh this is Tyler, they're new. Tyler this is Mr. Kim, he teaches 0-2."
Tyler nodded, "Oh cool, I'm gonna be in your class this semester." they grinned.
Ryojin smiled, giving Landon a glance before holding his hand out for Tyler to shake, "Glad to have you. Well I've got to go get ready. Class starts in 10 minutes, don't be late." he said, turning to walk away.
"Yes sir." Landon replied, waving Ryojin away before turning to Tyler who was giving him a weird look.
"So uh, what are you doing after school?" Landon attempted to break the awkward silence as they continued towards the Art Building.
"Homework, study, and probably paint something, why?" Tyler replied, tucking their long hair behind their ear.
"Me and my friends are gonna play some video games at their house, you should come." he opened the door to the building, waiting for Tyler to go in first.
Art Building
Class 0-2
___________________
"Are you sure?" Tyler frowned, following Landon up the steps and sitting in what used to be Leslie's seat but Landon was happy to let them take it.
"Yeah, here give me your number and we'll meet up after 3rd." he handed Tyler his phone, unlocking it before he did.
Tyler quickly typed in their number and handed Landon his phone back just as the 1st bell rang, signaling class would start in 2 minutes.
Percy came into the room and jogged up the stairs, sitting in his usual seat behind Landon.
"Oh hey Perce, this is Tyler. They're Filipino, isn't that cool?" he introduced the blonde and blue-haired students.
"Yep, totally cool." Percy replied melancholically, nodding as if he was actually paying attention.
Landon rolled his eyes and turned back to Tyler, "Don't mind him, he's pissed 'cause my parents are suing him." he informed the blonde.
"Oh," Tyler's eyes went wider than before, "why?" they asked curiously just as the second bell rang.
"I'll tell you after class." Landon whispered quickly before turning his full attention to Ryojin who started announcing the plans for the class today.
3 hours later,
Mount Vernon, NY
Albrecht Manor
___________________________
"So, Tyler, this is Emma, Kaleb, and Justin. You already met Percy earlier." Landon pointed out each teen and young adult to the blonde 18-year-old.
Tyler waved awkwardly to them as Landon offered for the teen to sit on the couch.
"Everyone this is Tyler Reed. They're non-binary so don't fuck up their pronouns." he looked over to Justin, who glared right back at him.
"Why you lookin' at me, I don't misgender people." the teen flipped off Landon as he handed Percy a controller.
"You're the one who came up with 'Heiress' in 10th grade, asshole." Landon pointed out, sitting down on the couch and snatching the other controller from Justin's hands.
"That's cause you looked like a little bitch, which you are!" Justin reached back and hit Landon's leg, attempting to get the controller back as Percy ignored them and started the match.
"I'll show you who's a little bitch, bitch." Landon dropped the controller onto the couch beside Tyler before tackling Justin onto the ground.
"Don't worry, they're usually like this." Emma remarked to Tyler as she played a game on her phone.
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bc for some reason unbeknownst to me, I keep misgendering myself🙄
like how tf do you do that??😭