Blue Heartbreakers - Chapter 2
Blue Heartbreakers - Chapter 2
Alright, second chapter! So far, so good. Now, I think I've enabled even anonymous comments in the journal (for people without lj), but I'm not 100%, so let me know if you have trouble :) As always, comments/constructive criticism are <3
“That son of a bitch!” Seth muttered under his breath. The flow of students was already beginning to dissipate, and Vincent was long gone. Seth grabbed his planner and flipped open his timetable, scanning over the neatly boxed grid. Monday, first class: Literature, N412.
N412? What did that even mean?
Shit! Fuck! That bastard!
Seth flipped to the map he had seen earlier in his planner. The school buildings seemed tiny on it, but there were quite a few. Muttering curses under his breath, Seth traced his finger over the map. The buildings all had strange names: Kynston, Nissot - what did that even mean? Glancing around, Seth realised he was alone.
Everyone had gone to class.
He was going to be late.
Shit!
Seth turned swiftly down the corridor, and went back down to the stairs he had come up only fifteen minutes ago. He followed the path he recalled back to the main reception. The desk was empty, and only one of the receptionists remained, typing something into her computer.
“Excuse me.” Seth said, “Could you help me?”
“What is it?” The lady asked. She wasn’t the one he had spoken to earlier.
“Could you please tell me where the N building is?” Seth asked. “I’m a new student, I’m a bit lost.”
“There’s a map in your planner.” The receptionist said.
“I know, I can’t find it.” Seth said, checking his temper with difficulty.
“Here, give me your map.” She said, standing up and leaning over the ledge. Seth placed his map on the ledge. The receptionist looked at it for a moment, then pointed to a building labelled ‘Nissot. “It’s that one.”
“Yeah?” Seth asked, glancing at the map again. “What’s the fastest way from here?”
“Cut through the courtyard here, and then through Thairs until you reach the end,” She said, tracing her finger along the paper, “There’s a staircase here. It’s on the fourth floor.”
“Thanks so much.” Seth said, and grabbed his planner.
“Good luck.” The receptionist said half-heartedly, already typing again on her keyboard.
Seth’s long strides carried him to the large, widely-paved courtyard quickly, following the path the receptionist had drawn out. It was already getting warmer outside - the forecast had predicted a sunny day. A few wispy white clouds trailed lazily across the blue sky.
Seth crossed passed the fountain; the morning sunlight played prettily off the bubbling waters, but Seth was no mood to notice it. He did not even notice the slight unevenness of the pavements, brought on by time and the weather. As he strode through the courtyard, and into the Thairs building, there was only one thing on his mind.
That bastard! What the hell had Seth ever done to him!? If he hadn’t made a promise with his sister to try not to get into fights this year, Seth would have resolved to punch him the next time he saw his stupid, apathetic face. God! It wasn’t as though he hadn’t heard him, and had just walked off thinking he was following, that bastard had deliberately left him there.
Gritting his teeth, Seth quickened his pace even further. The classroom doors in the corridor were already closed; he could see some teachers already writing on the boards as he passed. Finally out of the Thairs building, he headed straight into the Nissot, slowing on to skirt the strange sculpture just inside the door - who would put a fucking sculpture there anyway!?
Seth took the stairs two at a time, but by the time he reached the fourth floor, he was exhausted. He paused briefly to catch his breath. He didn’t want to burst in out of breath; that would be terrible, embarrassing. He wondered what expression that stupid bastard would make, then his lips tightened in a grimace - probably none, if he had read him right.
When he had caught he breath, he hurried down the corridor, checking the plaques over each door. Finally he came to a room with a plaque reading N412; that was it, he saw, after double-checking his planner.
Taking a deep breath, Seth opened the door.
“… the cannons have their bowels full of wrath,” The teacher glanced up at Seth, and shot him a black glare. He was a tall man, middle aged, with dark hair and a hard face. Without pausing he continued to read, “And ready mounted are they to spit forth their iron indignation 'gainst your walls1. And who are you, and what do you want?”
“I’m Seth Hunter, a new student.” Seth said, feeling the decisively uncomfortable nervousness of the morning return to his stomach. All eyes were on him; Seth could feel a strange buzz in the atmosphere - was it glee? The students were watching him carefully, interested and delighted.
“You are wearing the uniform, but I do not see how you can be a student of North Cherose Grammar.” The teacher said. “Our students pride themselves on punctuality - I expect all my students especially to be ready learn the moment the clock hits nine.”
Seth glanced at the clock on the wall; it read ten past nine. “I’m sorry. I got lost.”
“Is that so?” The teacher sneered. “Well, if you were a girl scout, I’d care, but as you are not, I hardly see how that is any reason for your tardiness?”
Seth gritted his teeth. His nervousness had quickly given way to anger. “Of course.”
“What did you say your name was?”
“Seth Hunter.”
“Well, Seth Hunter, tell me,” The teacher said, smiling viciously. “What was I reading from when you walked in late?”
“Shakespeare.” Seth said, a slight smirk on his lips. As if that hadn’t been obvious. “King John, I believe.”
The teacher seemed disappointed. “Very good.” He said. “Now, take a seat.”
Seth scanned the classroom. Sure enough, seated at the back of the class, close the high windows, was Vincent. The raven watched him inexpressively, but, as expected, there was a seat beside him. Seemed like he liked his personal space, Seth thought to himself.
Seth made his way to the back of the classroom, and dropped his books down heavily on the table. They slid, knocking into Vincent’s books, and disturbing the raven’s neat pile. Pulling out the chair beside the bastard that had ditched him in the corridor, Seth sat down nonchalantly. The teacher resumed reading aloud briefly, before choosing a student from the front row to take over.
“What are you doing!?” Vincent hissed, his voice barely audible over the stumbling and laborious student’s Shakespeare.
“Sitting beside my buddy.” Seth replied, and added viciously, “I think we’re gonna get along great by the time this year is out.”
Vincent said nothing, turning his attention back to the student reading aloud, but a slight frown disturbed his otherwise composed features.
***
Seth’s stomach rumbled loudly, the sound thankfully buried in the general hubbub of the students as they made their way to the cafeteria. He glanced around; he hadn’t been to this part of the school before. The third floor of the K building, above the Great Hall, was the cafeteria; in order to sufficiently provide for the student population, it was spread over both the second and third floors.
Seth had crossed through the clear, windowed overpass on the third floor with the flow of students, and found himself in what appeared to be a funky café. The floor was looked like a large chessboard - the black and white squares had been decorated with large painting of chess pieces. Most of the space was taken up by large circular tables, around which green, yellow and purple chairs were gathered. Many students had already found their places at the tables and were sitting down to lunch. The smell of freshly cooked food wafted to Seth’s nose as he passed by the tables on his way to the serving line, and made his stomach grumble loudly again.
He was waiting in line silently, hands in his pockets, until a light hand clapped him on the shoulder.
“Seth!” A familiar voice exclaimed.
He turned, and looked into the face of one of his oldest friends.
“Iseul!” Seth grinned.
The two roughly shook hands. Iseul was grinning too, a dimple in one of his cheeks. The Korean teen was shorter than Seth, but his bubbly personality often gave him an aura much larger than his physical size. He was an attractive young man; he had large, dark eyes and clear skin that had made many an acne-afflicted pubescent boy jealous. His mother had been a pop star, and he had inherited all of her looks - but more importantly to the teen, he had inherited her passion for singing. Iseul was the vocalist of an up-and-coming rock band called Break Blackout, in which Seth was the bassist.
“Ah, I’m so glad to see you!” Iseul said, flicking his light brown hair from eyes with one hand. Seth noticed it was different from the last time they had seen each other, but didn’t say anything. “I was wondering if you’d gotten lost or anything today! I knew you would look good in the uniform! Ah, we have so much to talk about - get your food and we’ll go sit!”
Seth, accustomed to Iseul’s fast speaking, merely agreed with him, and turned his attention to the large menus up on the display screen behind the counter. There were four possible lunch sets, each with a different main, but each also coming with a salad, fresh juice and bread roll. North Cherose Grammar prided itself on its enforcement of healthy eating - catering was included in the school fees, ensuring that no student could opt-out. That was lucky for Seth; his food was included in his scholarship.
After making his selection - the steak sandwich meal - he followed Iseul out of the line.
“Where do you want to sit?” Seth asked.
“Well, there’s gotta be enough room for everyone.” Iseul said. “So we’ll grab a free table if we can find one.”
Seth scanned the cafeteria. It was pretty full, though many students were still waiting in the line. It seemed as though there were no empty tables, until one caught Seth’s eye. At a table by the large, low windows, a familiar dark head was sitting alone. A somewhat feral grin curved Seth’s lips.
“Found one.” Seth said, and began to weave his way around the tables.
Iseul followed him. “Where?” He asked. “I don’t see it?”
Seth slowed in front of the table, but Vincent did not look up. The raven was holding his book in one hand, reading intently with his food abandoned in front of him.
“Wait, Seth,” Iseul said quietly, his voice urgent. “That’s Vincent Grey-”
“Hey, Bon-bon, how you doing?” Seth said loudly, setting his tray down at one of the empty places.
Vincent looked up sharply. ‘Bon-bon’? Seth wondered. He had no idea where that nickname had come from; it was the first thing that had popped in his head. Oh well, he inwardly shrugged, may as well stick with it.
“What are you doing?” The raven asked, a slight frown creasing his brows.
Seth grinned. “Sitting down.” He said as he did so. His smile did not budge. “So, tell me, how were your classes?”
Vincent shot a look at Iseul, who was also sitting down, and answered in measured tones, “Fine, thank you.” The Korean boy simply smiled at him, and began unpacking his lunch. “What -”
Vincent’s question was cut off by the arrival of Iseul’s friends.
“Hey, guys, what’s up?” Marcus said, sitting down beside the blond. He was a tall guy, but his proportions were such that it was rarely noticeable. His hair was a dirty blond, and slightly curly; it framed his face without getting in his eyes. “Seth, man, haven’t seen you ages. When’s the next rehearsal?”
“Woah, Iseul, nice hair.” Tony said, putting his lunch down on the table. “Did you go to the new place down on Giovanni Street?”
“Yeah,” Iseul said, running a hand through his lightened and freshly cut hair, “They have a new stylist from Paris.”
“I don’t know, haven’t thought about it.” Seth replied. “Maybe on the weekend?”
“The one featured in last month’s Mode, right? My sister was telling me.”
“We could always do an afterschool - since you go here now, we could probably use one of the practice rooms in Thairs.”
“That’s the one.” Iseul said, eyes twinkling. There was little that could make him happier than talking about hair and fashion - much to his father’s constant dismay.
“See? It’s great to finally have you at school, man!” Lachlan said, playfully punching Seth on the shoulder. He pulled out a green chair, and sat down beside Marcus. The Irish boy had only moved over from his homeland to start high school, and his accent was a definitely a point in his favour when it came to the ladies.
“Hey, Sam!” Tony called, waving to another friend of his. “Come and sit over here!”
By this time, Vincent had reverted to ignoring the others that had joined his table. He had returned to his book, but Seth could clearly see that he was not happy about the turn things had taken.
“So, tell us about your day!” Iseul insisted.
“Yeah, we want to hear about how the working class hero has adjusted!” Lachlan grinned.
“Eh, well, it hasn’t been too bad.” Seth replied, grinning. “I was late to my first class since I got lost -”
“Which teacher?” Iseul asked.
“No idea, he didn’t introduce himself.” Seth said. “He’s my Lit teacher.”
“Oh, tall and mean?” Marcus asked.
“Yeah, that’s the one.” Seth said.
“That’s Mr Mattin.” Marcus said, nodding. “I had him for English last year. He’s terrible.”
“Tell me about it.” Seth agreed.
“Did he ask you some impossible question and then give you a detention?” Marcus asked.
“Well, he asked me about what he was reading from when I walked in, but I didn’t get a detention.” Seth said.
“What, you got it right?” Marcus asked, incredulous. “Man, I spent every day I was late in detention. The questions are so obscure!”
“Maybe Seth is smarter than you?” Tony teased.
“Don’t be stupid, he’s smarter than all of us.” Lachlan asked.
Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the sudden topic of conversation, Seth looked around for a way to change the topic. He noticed Vincent had resumed reading, occasionally drinking from his bottle of juice.
“Oi, Bon-bon, what are you reading?” Seth asked, leaning over the table to take the book from Vincent’s hands. He closed it and glanced at the cover. “Great Expectations2? Haven’t you read this before?”
“I have.” Vincent said. “I’m reading it again. Now, give my book back.”
“Nah, I don’t think so.” Seth said, settling back into his chair and putting the novel on his lap. “We’re all having lunch together, so be more social.”
Vincent eyes narrowed. Seth wondered if the raven-haired bastard would say something, but he merely remained silent, his lips pressed tightly shut.
“It’s Vincent, right?” Lachlan asked quickly. “I think we have Business together.”
“Yes.” Vincent said coolly, turning his even gaze to the red head. “I believe we do.”
Seth couldn’t believe it. How could someone act so condescending to someone of the same class? Rich kids really were something else. Still, it was no problem of his, he decided, getting started on his steak sandwich. He had to admit that the catering at North Cherose was pretty damned good. He was feeling brighter already - he had caught up with his friends, the growling of his stomach was quietening down; all in all, not too bad. He watched Lachlan unsuccessfully try to coax Vincent into conversation with some amusement, feeling very much better.
“Have you looked into that work experience thing yet?” Lachlan asked. “I know he mentioned it in the holiday homework, but I haven’t even started looking. I think we have to do it sometime in our second term break, don’t we?”
“Yes.” Vincent said. “Though we are to submit our applications to the school before mid-second term.”
“Ah, damn.” Lachlan sighed. “I don’t even know where I want to go yet!”
“You’ve got plenty of time.” Tony said. “Think about it later.”
“Yeah, more importantly,” Marcus agreed, “Is our start of year dance. Any ideas when that’s going to be?” He directed this question to Sam.
“Claire went to a meeting last week, but she hasn’t mentioned anything yet.” Sam said, speaking of his twin sister, who was on the student council. “I’ll ask her about it.”
“We should all go in matching suits.” Tony said thoughtfully.
“Are you serious?” Seth asked, incredulous. “It’s the first day and you are already discussing what you want to wear to a dance?”
“This kind of thing is important, Seth.” Iseul said. “We have to give our tailors enough time to make everything.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Seth asked, nonplussed.
“Not at all.” Tony said. “It’s our last year in high school, we’ve got to make the most of it. Don’t you want the ladies to have great pictures to sigh over when they are middle-aged and miserable?”
“You are a kind of an asshole, Tony, you know that?”
The brunet shrugged. “Yeah, but the girls don’t know that.”
“Not to begin with, anyway!” Marcus grinned, causing the entire table - with the exception of Vincent - to break into laughter.
Seth closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat. The 3:43pm train rattled and swayed along the rails. The summer sun streamed through the windows, broken by the trees and buildings, but still a constant source of warmth. The air-conditioning kept the carriage cool enough to be comfortable, and at this time, by this station, the carriage was mostly empty. The blond had his earphones in and his music on; finally he was able to relax a bit. He stretched out his legs.
Well, his first day hadn’t been too bad. He had found his homeroom, made to it all of his classes pretty much on time - aside from that one exception - and had met up with his friends. Of course, there was still the issue of how exactly to get even with Bon-bon (since he just had the feeling that Mr Mattin was going to be horrible all year because of that morning), but Seth was confident that he could handle it. It was a concern for tomorrow, in any case. Today was finally finished. Feeling pretty satisfied with himself, Seth smiled. Today wasn't too bad at all.
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Author’s Notes:
- Shakespeare - King John (2.1.217-9)
- Great Expectations; classic novel by Charles Dickens. (Anyone seen the new BBC production? I’ve heard it’s good!)
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