Vincent walked briskly from the school library. He liked to go to the library as often as possible. It was a good quick spot for a study session between classes or just to decompress.
The autumn air rushed through the quad carrying the fallen leaves with it. Hues of yellow, orange, and red blurred the ground. It made the campus feel homey, and Vincent was grateful for it. Vinny shivered in the air. His thick green sweater would only be a good enough protection from the cold for the next few days; it was just about time to start wearing his coat.
Vincent pulled his planner out of his bag and checked his schedule; English. English was in a building that bordered the quad and not a far walk, besides being one of Vincent's favorite classes.
"Hey man. What have you got next?" Dustin ran up beside Vincent in the courtyard.
"Romantic Lit.. you?"
"Same." The conversation seemed to fizzle there. Dustin and Vincent were certainly not what anyone would describe as close, but they were roommates, and that meant spending a good amount of time together. Dustin was very intelligent and a hard worker too, so Vincent and he got along relatively well, Vinny just wished they had a little more to talk about.
"I didn't realize you were in my section." Vinny mused.
"Oh yeah.. I like to sit in the back. I'm in your bio too. You sit next to that one girl... the one who answers all the questions."
"That's Hailey," Vincent chuckled. "She's like.. my best friend."
"Nice. She seems cool."
"Very cool," Vincent agreed. There was another lull until Vinny thought of a topic that he was sure Dustin would prefer to talk about. "Hey... I think Lucas might have Lit now too."
"Lucas is so cool." Dustin murmured. "I watched the livestream back from the last game. He played so well, it was epic." Dustin rambled on.
Vincent smiled slightly, thinking back to Lucas' game. Vinny didn't know what was good soccer and what was bad soccer, but from the conversation around Lucas over the past few weeks he assumed Lucas must have played very well. The pair walked into the lecture hall going up a few flights not really sure where to sit. From across the room Lucas waved Vincent over then went back to his conversation with Marty.
Vincent frowned. He had no desire to sit near Marty, and thought if he attempted to there would probably be a fight, but Lucas asked him to... and he sorta wanted to. He just wished Marty wasn't there, though he assumed this was probably part of Marty's plot; to just always be there, and keep making Vincent uncomfortable.
Lucas was nodding as the dark haired boy whispered in his ear gesturing with his hands. Lucas looked up with a shiny smile, that Vinny returned, and Marty visibly rolled his eyes.
"Hey Lu what's up?" Vincent asked, as he sat down.
"Nothing. We were just talking about yo..." Lucas began, but was interrupted by a firm slap on the back of the head by Marty. "Ow! What was that for?" He whined.
Vincent rolled his eyes. Typical Marty, taking the most immature way out of every situation.
"Anyway..." Vinny attempted to re-steer the conversation. "Hey, sorry I didn't get to see you after your last game, Hailey and I had to run, cause her parents wanted her to come home... you played great though."
"It's fine! I'm just glad you came at all." Lucas smiled warmly. "Hey.. so I know that the tutoring was sorta a joke, but I could use some help if you're still available."
"Uh... yeah. I think I'm free this Wednesday? We've got a Lit Assessment for Thursday, so if you're free on that day, it'd probably be good to study." Vinny suggested trying to distract Lucas from spending any more time talking with Marty.
"Sounds good. It's a date." Lucas replied before being met with a harsh kick in the side from Marty.
"Sorry. My leg slipped," The black haired boy lied. "Shh the lecture is starting."
"As if you care-" Vinny began, but quieted as the teacher entered the hall. Marty smiled triumphantly at his fortuitous timing.
The professor began the lecture with a deep dive into the incredible world of research term papers. Half way through the class Marty and Lucas began whispering again, much to the chagrin of Vincent.
"Psst." Vinny tapped Lucas' shoulder and he turned away from Marty. "This is really boring."
"Yeah..." Lucas agreed. "You smell good, what is that?"
"Soap," Vinny teased. "You've been spending too much time with Marty, you must have forgotten how it smells." Vinny's joke earned a small chuckle from Lucas, and a glare from Marty.
"Ow!" Lucas shouted, as Marty's foot jammed its way into his leg. "Sorry." Lucas apologized to the professor before leaning back over to listen to Marty.
Vincent couldn't make out much of what they were saying, he did hear, "I don't think he would like that." from Lucas before he was promptly shushed by Marty.
"You look good today." Lucas leaned over and whispered in Vincent's ear. Vinny's face flushed red with nerves, and he felt his forehead heat up with fear.
"Hmm?" Vinny's face turned to confusion and Lucas' eyes went wide with fear and his face turned beet red. Behind Lucas, Vinny saw Marty grinning trying to hold back a laugh, and knew Marty had tricked Lucas into acting in spite of himself.
"I...I...uh....Marty?" Lucas stuttered turning back to look at Marty for help. Vincent took Lucas' hand forcing him to look back.
"Why are you listening to Marty? Lord knows you're his only friend." Vinny teased, earning another glare from Marty. "Thanks.. though." Vincent glared right back at him, but thankfully Lucas didn't notice, smiling in relief before leaning back in his chair.
Vincent walked out of the class with Lucas and Marty trailing slightly behind; Dustin had to go to a different class after. Lucas chatted lightly about his chances of winning the game on Friday, and Vincent allowed for himself to fall behind to meet Marty.
"I know what you're doing, and it's not going to work." Vincent whisper scolded.
"What?" Marty whispered incredulously. "What exactly am I doing."
"You're telling him to say stupid things so I'll get upset with him. Well guess what? It's not going to work.. because I'm on to you."
"I'm just really nervous about this game, and..." Lucas continued.
"Oh yeah! That's my master plan! Tell Lucas to compliment you because I know you're such a freak that you'll get upset with him over it. Great plan Vincent." Marty rolled his eyes. "Wish I'd thought of it."
"Well.. I don't- just leave it. Maybe I don't know what you're doing, but you should stop it." Vincent scolded. "You're just a big manipulator."
"Whatever... hot stuff." Marty gave a peace sign before disappearing down a hallway.
"You can't get in my head!" Vincent called after him.
"What?" Lucas turned to Vincent, having been completely oblivious to the fight happening behind him.
"Oh! I meant you! They can't get in your head."
"It's just a lot of pressure, ya know?" Lucas explained.
"I'm sure it is, but you've got this, and I'll be there to cheer you on." Vinny said with a small smile. Lucas grinned in response.
"Thanks that means a lot." Lucas lazily tossed his arm over Vinny's shoulder, a gesture he had taken to doing quite often. Vinny still shivered slightly every time. "Hey. Where's Marty?" He asked looking from side to side.
"He had a different class." Vinny stated somewhat truthfully. "I'll see you for our session?"
"Wait." Lucas called after Vincent before he could leave. "How're you doing lately?"
"I'm good. I'm really good." Vinny admitted.
"You can't imagine how happy I truly am that we're spending time together again."