Sweat trickled down Jesse’s brow as he reclined on the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡExyY3bFjIm
bleachers behind him. As he watched his classmates make yet another lap around304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmavT1vNFkZ
the track, his mind was consumed by one thought:
It was fucking hot.
Jesse had been forced to transfer304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwmxkNsqtK
schools. It was close to graduation, he hadn’t wanted to leave, but his mom had304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSej7HxeILk
insisted. She told him he needed a “fresh start”. That wasn’t what he needed,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnQEv1vC2Eo
or wanted, but what did she care? Now here he was, sitting behind the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5BNbSfFZq
bleachers, avoiding the P.E. teacher, and this god-awful heat.
He turned to inspect the open field304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxuWgB3hw4l
to his left, and instead of green, all he saw was blue. Pale, icy blue. Jesse304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrD0p9PO8u0
reeled slightly, taken aback by the sudden intrusion into his personal space.304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTu13Bsbk14
He hadn’t even heard the person approach, but here he was, sitting next to him,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ42mBjif6o5
staring. Jesse takes in the boy. Everything about him seems mundane. His baggy304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIM4e4och5h
clothes, his short cut, blonde hair, even the shape of his face was just…304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORLuqWGvZt
ordinary. The only striking feature on him were his eyes. Devoid of emotion,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpxK1UPbx8Z
they made Jesse feel like he was looking into a deep, clear lake. One you would304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKjp3YwRbo7
drown in if you weren’t cautious enough.
Throughout Jesse’s pondering, the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnlhtCNrRYo
boy had remained silent, and it was beginning to make Jesse uncomfortable. How304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4uzJmedJF
could such an intense, empty gaze like that not? He didn’t want to be304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrbcQQefd0m
the one to break the silence. What would he even say? He dropped his gaze once304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ23quwHLpU
he realized there was no figuring out who this person was and waited for him to304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq1twCEXBjt
say something. After averting his eyes from the penetrating pools of blue,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxuO8sUFrYL
Jesse shifted in his seat, folding into himself slightly, trying to make304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjp7FF5UIZU
himself invisible. Why was he just staring? The silence between the two304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡceHzLzFxju
lengthened. Jesse shuffled his body slightly and looked at the ground,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkUD2dts9t
uncomfortable with the kid’s overwhelming presence. He could feel his gaze.
Flicking his eyes back towards the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFnbbHblkkB
boy momentarily, he catches the sight of the boy’s retreating back. His eyes304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRXQd0pVrJ8
follow him as he gets smaller and smaller, noting that the boy was far taller304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeIVg7vmXB
than he had appeared. Far, far taller than Jesse was surely. Before long, the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ54MnED4Z6T
boy was nothing more than a black speck in the distance, vanishing from sight.
304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXoVxwj27rD
Jesse let304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIB6kUX8AdA
out a breath, on he hadn’t realized he was holding, and tried to not let the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyl9UfRc7Gq
events that had just transpired consume his thoughts.
As the final bell rang, a vast304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ847Mzhsl4L
expanse of teens flooded the hallway. Jesse was jostled slightly as he fought304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ8aDrZtW7a
his way through the sea of bodies. The sooner he emptied his bag into his304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU50awS7yHx
locker, the sooner he’d be back home, in front of his computer. Today had been304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVSBXAwrX0y
yet another dull day; pretending to listen to the teachers drone on and on;304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtmQBW0VGcR
ignoring the petty cliques that had formed well before he had transferred to304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqueTfAkCq
this lame ass school; barely stomaching shitty cafeteria food. The only304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaw1l5HxDAq
memorable part of the day had been the mystery boy. Jesse couldn’t get his eyes304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76DQojM4QM
out of his head.
Having only been in this school for304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGHxsRKQmH
a month, Jesse sure as hell didn’t know all the kids that went here, but he304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡraaeAwy8Ta
couldn’t help but think that he would remember someone so off putting. He304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡohSJFFgytE
shakes his head of the thought as he reaches his locker. Failing to put in his304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSeykffoqU8
code correctly the first try, he curses under his breath and spins the dial304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkbFfRHQCia
around again. Finally succeeding in opening his locker, he begins stuffing his304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1h9kh62DyA
textbooks onto the top shelf, feeling rather impatient.
Just as he is about to slam the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjQdHKVnKQE
locker door, he overhears a hushed conversation two lockers down from his, and304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm0i7xCuODa
slows himself, pretending to search for something.
“…parently he just got back. I304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLGifhrngC
don’t know what they were thinking letting that psycho back in.”
“Right?! Who knows what he’s304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡacg2rCLs2G
capable of?”
“I thought for sure he’d be304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5qFFw3N6EV
expelled this tim…”
The voices faded from ear shot as304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI9X2Gr0e5k
the owners drifted down the hall towards the exit.
Sighing and slamming his locker304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWG9WXBE7Nw
shut, Jesse followed behind at a distance. He had no clue what or who they had304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuND8nwqgGU
been talking about, but his stomach was turning knots.
He made his way out the door and304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZwH78ce6Zt
trudged down the road. He walked to and from school every day. It wasn’t really304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8o0Zggp1U
that he had to, his mom would have happily come to pick him up if he had asked,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr5yzTW81Zl
but he liked the solitude and silence of the short walk.
The driveway was empty when Jesse304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5to1OC6Tb
arrived home, telling him that his mother had not yet returned, not that he304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8CTuVcqQH
expected her home anyway. She’d been coming home later since they moved.
Sighing, he slid his key into the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJaCxc6IVbT
lock, but before he was able to unlock the door, a bang from his left startled304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM4tDFlQ7Fq
him, making him flinch inward, his face scrunching up. Turning to look at where304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkY5hCOWS2v
the sound had come from, his eyes grew wide. The tall boy was standing on the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ50mrVfhP7o
porch next door, staring at him.
Again, Jesse noted just how cold304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGOx8VmYzv
his stare was. Pale blue eyes, void of emotion, bore into his own olive-colored304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ506Iq2Pych
ones. Jesse stared back, uncertainty etched across his face.
Jesse cleared his throat,304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkBWoFDr89f
hesitating a moment before speaking.
“Hi, uhmm… I’m Jesse. I moved here304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwYQCHNvLBa
last week. I take it you’re our neighbor?”
Jesse’s question lingered in the304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiSeTz9C6Z9
air as the boy continued to stare at him. Becoming even more uncomfortable with304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zVN7NcCq1
the kid’s intense eyes fixed on him, Jesse moved to unlock the door.
“Adam.”
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Jesse304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFomvP5WCuH
whipped his head back towards the boy as the screen door of the neighbor’s home304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRlaJC2c3O
slammed shut. 304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhqMy9VKlV
304Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOlzt4lGO4s
