Mean Boys, Chapter 2
Title: Mean Boys [A MeanGirls!BTR AU]
Author: Ellie (lyricsandhearts)
Disclaimer: I don't own Big Time Rush or Mean Girls. Or Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Sadly.
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: A mention of James/Carlos, some MostlyOne-SidedForNow!Kendall/Logan
Warnings: Some language
Summary: Logan Mitchell, homeschooled in Africa until the age of sixteen, is suddenly thrust into the jungle that is public high school. And when he tries to find his place, he realizes that fitting in is a little harder than he thought. Okay, fine, a lot harder.
Chapter: Two
Tomorrow is better.
Well, sort of.
Mostly it's just complicated.
When Logan enters 2J, he takes a deep breath and walks quickly over to his desk with his eyes trained on the floor. If he doesn't make eye contact, he figures, no one will hate him inexplicably. Or explicably. Is explicably even a word? Well, he doesn't want anybody to have a reason to--
"Hey," the blond guy from yesterday stage whispers at him, interrupting his inner monologue. Logan doesn't look up. "Is that shirt from American Eagle?"
Logan glances up awkwardly and gives the guy what he dearly hopes is a charming smile before nodding, saying, "Uh, yeah," and looking right back down at his binder.
"Oh my God. Well, you have amazing fashion sense, just so you know. That blue looks wonderful on you."
"Wow, Logan," Goth Girl says sarcastically, "the Stetson Seal of Fashion Approval! It's all you'll ever need in life."
He looks up, swallowing, and sees her smirking at him.
"That's Jett Stetson," she says, pointing at the guy. He waves, grinning.
"Guilty as charged!"
"He's almost too gay to function," she sighs, and they both laugh. Logan doesn't understand what's so funny, and feels slightly left out.
"Nice to meet you," he says politely.
The girl is in the middle of saying something else when a hulking guy in a jersey walks by and yells, "Hey Jo, nice wig! What's it made of?"
"Your mom's chest hair!" she screams back over her shoulder, and then turns back to Logan. "I'm Jo," she says, quiet and friendly, which is so much of a mood flip that Logan's surprised he hasn't got whiplash. "Jo Taylor."
"Hi. I'm. Um. Logan," he replies, not daring to look either of them in the eyes. "But you already knew that, I guess. Uh, do either of you know where Room 11F is?"
Jett rips Logan's schedule from his hands and examines it.
"Health, Tuesday, Thursday, Room 11F," he says. Jo looks at him meaningfully.
"You know, I think that's in the back building."
Jett stares at her for a second, confused, but suddenly seems to understand.
"Oh! Uh, yeah, it's in the back building."
"We'll take you there," Jo says, smiling broadly.
Logan is about to decline (he has a bad feeling about this, they're acting like it's a giant conspiracy or something), but he stops. These people are actually being nice to him. He has a chance at friendship, and he doesn't want to screw that up.
"Thanks!" he says genuinely, and only half of him regrets it immediately.
*
"Health, Spanish... Wait, you're taking twelfth grade Calculus?"
Jett gawks at Logan, who shrugs.
"I dunno, I like math."
"Why?" Jett asks, disgusted. "That's so weird."
"Oh, please, and you're allowed to talk?" retorts Jo.
Logan laughs and says, "I guess just because it's the same in ever country."
Jett looks up at him, startled.
"That's so deep. Jo, write that down! This guy's my new favorite!"
He winks, which makes Logan a bit uncomfortable.
"Uh, where are we?" he says, looking around. "I thought you said we were going to the back building."
Jo laughs, flopping down on the ground.
"Oh, we're there," she shrugs, crossing her legs. Jett sits down next to her, rather daintily. Logan suppresses his laughter. "The back building burned down in '87."
Logan's eyes widen.
"But-- but won't we get in trouble?" he stammers, taking a few steps back towards the school. Jo yanks his pants leg and brings him crashing to the ground.
"Come on," she says sweetly, looking him right in the eyes. "Why would we get you in trouble? We're your friends."
Reluctantly, Logan says, "Well... okay..." He sets his bag down next to him. It may be wrong to skip class, but his mom sent him to regular school so that he could make friends, and, well, how could she complain?
"So," Jo states, smiling and propping her head up on her fist. "Logan. What brings you to Palm Woods High?"
Logan gulps. Should he tell them about his dad?
In the end he decides to tell the truth.
"Well, my dad was a missionary doctor in Africa..." he begins quietly, "but, um. He died a few months ago."
Jo's expression softens, and Jett reaches out to touch his leg affectionately.
"I'm so sorry," he says genuinely.
Logan pulls his leg back, and Jett casts a knowing look at Jo. He almost looks like he's trying to hold back laughter.
"N-no, it's fine," Logan finally manages to reply. "I mean, he was sick for a couple months, and we were moving back to the US in a few years anyway, so I guess it's all for the better."
He smiles at them unconvincingly, and Jett shrugs before glancing over to his left, where a Phys Ed class is coming out onto the field.
"Ugh," he says, rolling his eyes. "Would you just look at what Carlos Garcia is wearing? It doesn't even go with his helmet."
Jo shakes her head in disgust.
"Of course the Big Time Plastics are all in the same Gym class."
Logan stares at them blankly.
"Big Time Plastics?"
"Oh, they're Palmwoods royalty," Jett replies flippantly. "See, if this school was Persons magazine, they would always be on the cover."
Logan nods, as if he knows what Persons magazine is. Because honestly, he doesn't, but it would just make him sound dumb to ask.
"That little one there?" Jo says, pointing at a short boy wearing a helmet and jumping up and down. "That's Carlos Garcia. He's, uh, not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box. Jett sat next to him last year in History."
"He asked me when the War of 1812 happened," Jett adds, whispering.
"That one is James Diamond," Jo continues, moving on to the guy next to Carlos. His hair is meticulously styled, he's obviously wearing makeup, and he's talking on his cell phone, making ludicrous hand motions. "He's totally rich because his dad invented Cinnamon Toast Crunch."
Logan winces as a soccer ball comes from somewhere to the right and knocks James straight to the ground. He stands up, absolutely indignant, brushing off his clothes, and starts yelling something that Logan can't hear at Carlos. Carlos looks up at him with wide, sad eyes and puts a hand on James's hip lightly. James seems to calm down, placing a hand on Carlos's shoulder and suddenly grinning.
"Wait, are they--" Logan begins, but Jo cuts him off.
"Yeah, totally gay. The gayest. So is Kendall." She takes a deep, angry breath. "And that brings us to Mr. Congeniality himself."
She gestures out towards the field once more, this time to a tall, skinny blond boy who Logan can hardly see for the fact that nearly everyone is swarmed around him. Once the area is sort of cleared, however, it hits Logan like a ton of bricks: this Kendall guy is really, really cute.
"Kendall Knight. Now, he may seem like your average bitchy, smart-ass, backstabbing, elitist snob, but in reality, he's so much more than that."
"He's the Queen Bee," Jett continues, "pardon the joke. James and Carlos are just his little worker bees."
Jo shakes her head dramatically.
"Kendall Knight," she sighs. "How do I even begin to explain Kendall Knight?"
She sees a group of about ten people walk by, and calls, "Hey! You! People! Get over here!"
They all look at each other skeptically before walking over slowly, almost one at a time.
"Describe to me exactly how you feel about Kendall Knight," she commands, pointing at a sophomore and adding, "You first."
The kid looks at her like she just gave him an early birthday present.
"Kendall Knight is flawless," he says, shaking his ridiculously red hair out of his eyes.
"His dad owns a hockey team and he bought Kendall a silver Lexus," a girl his age continues eagerly.
"I hear his voice is insured for ten thousand dollars."
"I hear he does guitar commercials... In Japan."
"His favorite movie is The Last Narwhal."
"One time, he met Dak Zevon on a plane."
"Dak told him he was hot!"
"One time, he punched me in the face. It was awesome," finishes Mercedes Griffin, the girl from class yesterday. Logan briefly ponders why there are no female Plastics. Mercedes is certainly pretty and rich enough to be one. Eh, broken gender roles and all that, how progressive for a school like this (but he's not entirely sure that's a good thing right now).
Jo waves them away.
"Thank you for your time," she says in a bored voice. "No, really. I appreciate it."
Logan honestly can't tell if it's sarcasm.
*
"He always looks fierce, he's always put together," Jett scowls on the way to lunch. "He's perfect. No one knows how he does it. He's like-- like a robot or something."
Jo rolls her eyes and gives Logan a Look.
"Plus, he always wins Spring Fling King!"
"There's so much rhyme in that sentence that I can't decide if I want to laugh or vomit."
"What's Spring Fling?" Logan interrupts.
"Oh, it's this dance near the end of the year," Jett says, crossing his arms and turning back to Logan. "The seniors throw it every year for us lowly underclassmen. And whoever gets elected as Spring Fling King and Queen automatically become head of the Student Activities Committee, and, since I am an active member of said committee, I find it wholly unfair that some pretty boy like Kendall Knight should get it every single year. Plus, I'm way better-looking than him."
Jett pouts, and Jo laughs.
"Wow, Jett, you have truly out-gayed yourself this time."
She hands Logan a folded piece of paper that he hadn't been aware she was holding.
"Where did this come from?" he asks skeptically, but she shakes her head.
"Nevermind that, just pay attention to what I'm about to tell you."
Logan nods, dubious, and unfolds the paper. It's a labeled map. Of the cafeteria.
Well, this is going to be interesting.
"Okay," Jo says, "this is going to be your guide to the Palm Woods. Where you sit in at lunch is crucial, because you've got your freshmen, your hockey guys, preps, Drama kids, Future Dropouts of America, corrupt student council, desperate wannabes, girls who eat their feelings, girls who eat nothing, stoners--"
They reach the cafeteria, and Jo takes a moment to point out the group that Logan knows must be the "stoners". They all look completely drugged out, and one guy with John Lennon glasses has his guitar out.
"And then," Jo says, smiling, "you have the greatest people you will ever meet--" she gestures to herself and Jett-- "and the worst." She gestures to Kendall, James, and Carlos, who have a table to themselves right in the middle of the cafeteria. "Beware the Big Time Plastics."
Logan nods, feeling overwhelmed and a little faint.
"Well, I'm gonna go ahead to our table," says Jett brightly, "because I brought my lunch!"
"Me too," Jo says. "We sit over on the left. See you when you get your tray!"
They wave and make their way over to the table, and Logan still has no clue what he's supposed to do. Who knew lunchrooms could be so complicated?
When he's finally made it through the line, he tries to walk over to Jo and Jett's table, but he suddenly feels really, really awkward.
Like everyone is staring at him.
And suddenly, some girl is right in front of him, pretty much in his face, glaring absolute daggers at him.
"You!" she cries, and Logan takes a step back, startled. "How could you take advantage of me like that?" she wails loudly. "How could you? I thought you loved me, but how could you love me when you're really in love with Trish? I mean, really! Trish!"
"Step off, Cami," someone calls, laughing. Logan whips around and sees--
Kendall Knight?
"Poor guy's new here. You're gonna give him a heart attack!"
Camille sighs.
"Oh, whatever," she says, "you know I would never hurt a new kid! Purposefully!"
"You slapped me three times on my first day in fifth grade," Kendall replies.
Logan is pretty sure he's serious.
He takes another step away from Camille.
She and the Plastics laugh.
"Aww, come on," she says, "I won't bite! Unless you want me to." She waggles her eyebrows, and Logan turns a vibrant shade of red.
"Okay, okay," says James, smirking, "I think he's had enough."
She winks at them, waves, and skips away.
"Uh, thanks," mumbles Logan, staring at the ground. He starts to walk away, but Kendall calls after him.
"Wait, sit down!"
Logan glances over at Jo, who is Staring a hole through him.
Get. Over. Here, she mouths.
"Seriously, sit down!"
Logan shrugs at Jo apologetically and sits.
Kendall, James, and Carlos simply stare at him for a few moments before Kendall props his chin up on his hand and says, "So why don't I know you?" He has a weird sort of expression on his face, and he's watching Logan, watching and studying and... Admiring?
"I just moved here from Africa," he says. "I was homeschooled."
Kendall gapes, and James gasps. Carlos just looks around blankly.
"What?"
Do most American teenagers not know what homeschooling is?
"Homeschooled."
"What?"
"My mom, she, um, she taught me at home..."
Kendall shakes his head.
"No, no, I know what homeschooling is, I'm not stupid." He looks at Logan with raised eyebrows. "So you've never been to a real school or anything."
"No?" Logan says.
Kendall grins.
"Shut up," he says, exchanging looks with James and Carlos. "Shut up."
"What did I say?" Logan whispers, mostly to himself, when Kendall turns back to him.
"You know, you're, like, cute," he says suddenly, startling Logan, who can feel his face turning red again. He looks down at his food, which is honestly looking less appetizing by the second.
"Uh, thank you..." he says, almost inaudibly.
"So you agree?"
"Huh?"
"You think you're cute?"
Everything is going much too fast for Logan's taste.
"I-- I don't--"
"So are you interested in Camille?" James interrupts.
"No-- no, really, I'm-- I mean..."
Kendall and James glance at each other and then burst into laughter.
"Oh, honey, we know," snickers James, "I was just messing with you. So what kind of guy do you like?"
No, seriously, Logan's brain cannot handle how fast this is going. It might explode.
"How did you know?" he whimpers, preparing for the worst (the whole school knows everyone hates him after one day his reputation is ruined)--
"It's called gaydar, sweetie. Now spill."
"Oh." Thank God. "Well, I'm really not all that comfortable with, um..."
"Oh, that's totally fine! So." Kendall grabs Logan's wrist, with just enough grip that he can't pull away. This frightens Logan quite a bit. "Where did you get this leather bracelet-y thing?"
"Oh, uh, it was my dad's, it was sort of an ID thing for his hospital for a while..."
Kendall pauses for a brief moment, presmably to let the "was" of that statement sink in.
"Oh," he finally says, "well, I love it. It's really cool-looking."
"Thank you," Logan says, smiling. No matter how much his head hurts, Kendall is actually being really nice to him. It's sort of the best thing ever.
"Yeah, it's totally mangerine."
Kendall blinks.
"What is mangerine?"
"Oh, it's like, slang!" James replies brightly, but, at the incredulous look Kendall is giving him, adds, "From, uh. England."
"So if you're from Africa..." says Carlos, speaking for the first time since Logan sat down, "Why are you white? Or... Are you white?"
James looks scandalized.
"Oh my God, Carlos, you can't just ask people why they're white. You can't just ask people if they're white!"
Kendall leans forward.
"Could you give us just a second?" he asks quietly, winking, and Logan's insides feel rather funny. It's that nondescript throwing up feeling again, he's pretty sure. Unless he actually is sick. Which he could be, because this cafeteria food is really gross.
"Uh, sure."
The Plastics huddle (as much as three people can huddle while sitting in a row) and Logan looks back over to Jo and Jett's table, from where they're staring at him, trying to get his attention by gesturing wildly. Once they see they've succeeded, Jo mouths, What's going on?
Logan shrugs again.
Kendall, James, and Carlos all turn back towards him, staring.
It's really creepy.
"Okay," Kendall begins, "you should just know that we don't do this a lot, so this is like, a really huge deal."
James nods and continues solemnly, "We want to invite you to sit with us. Every day. For the rest of the week."
Carlos smiles up at him hopefully.
"Oh, I-- it's okay, I--"
"Great!" says James. "So we'll see you tomorrow."
It's not a question, and Logan knows he doesn't really have a choice.
"On Wednesdays, we wear purple!" Carlos announces gleefully.
"Uh, okay?" Logan doesn't think he owns anything purple. "I'll just. See you tomorrow then."
Kendall tilts his head and says, "Yeah. See you tomorrow."
There's that funny feeling again.
Author: Ellie (lyricsandhearts)
Disclaimer: I don't own Big Time Rush or Mean Girls. Or Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Sadly.
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: A mention of James/Carlos, some MostlyOne-SidedForNow!Kendall/Logan
Warnings: Some language
Summary: Logan Mitchell, homeschooled in Africa until the age of sixteen, is suddenly thrust into the jungle that is public high school. And when he tries to find his place, he realizes that fitting in is a little harder than he thought. Okay, fine, a lot harder.
Chapter: Two
Tomorrow is better.
Well, sort of.
Mostly it's just complicated.
When Logan enters 2J, he takes a deep breath and walks quickly over to his desk with his eyes trained on the floor. If he doesn't make eye contact, he figures, no one will hate him inexplicably. Or explicably. Is explicably even a word? Well, he doesn't want anybody to have a reason to--
"Hey," the blond guy from yesterday stage whispers at him, interrupting his inner monologue. Logan doesn't look up. "Is that shirt from American Eagle?"
Logan glances up awkwardly and gives the guy what he dearly hopes is a charming smile before nodding, saying, "Uh, yeah," and looking right back down at his binder.
"Oh my God. Well, you have amazing fashion sense, just so you know. That blue looks wonderful on you."
"Wow, Logan," Goth Girl says sarcastically, "the Stetson Seal of Fashion Approval! It's all you'll ever need in life."
He looks up, swallowing, and sees her smirking at him.
"That's Jett Stetson," she says, pointing at the guy. He waves, grinning.
"Guilty as charged!"
"He's almost too gay to function," she sighs, and they both laugh. Logan doesn't understand what's so funny, and feels slightly left out.
"Nice to meet you," he says politely.
The girl is in the middle of saying something else when a hulking guy in a jersey walks by and yells, "Hey Jo, nice wig! What's it made of?"
"Your mom's chest hair!" she screams back over her shoulder, and then turns back to Logan. "I'm Jo," she says, quiet and friendly, which is so much of a mood flip that Logan's surprised he hasn't got whiplash. "Jo Taylor."
"Hi. I'm. Um. Logan," he replies, not daring to look either of them in the eyes. "But you already knew that, I guess. Uh, do either of you know where Room 11F is?"
Jett rips Logan's schedule from his hands and examines it.
"Health, Tuesday, Thursday, Room 11F," he says. Jo looks at him meaningfully.
"You know, I think that's in the back building."
Jett stares at her for a second, confused, but suddenly seems to understand.
"Oh! Uh, yeah, it's in the back building."
"We'll take you there," Jo says, smiling broadly.
Logan is about to decline (he has a bad feeling about this, they're acting like it's a giant conspiracy or something), but he stops. These people are actually being nice to him. He has a chance at friendship, and he doesn't want to screw that up.
"Thanks!" he says genuinely, and only half of him regrets it immediately.
*
"Health, Spanish... Wait, you're taking twelfth grade Calculus?"
Jett gawks at Logan, who shrugs.
"I dunno, I like math."
"Why?" Jett asks, disgusted. "That's so weird."
"Oh, please, and you're allowed to talk?" retorts Jo.
Logan laughs and says, "I guess just because it's the same in ever country."
Jett looks up at him, startled.
"That's so deep. Jo, write that down! This guy's my new favorite!"
He winks, which makes Logan a bit uncomfortable.
"Uh, where are we?" he says, looking around. "I thought you said we were going to the back building."
Jo laughs, flopping down on the ground.
"Oh, we're there," she shrugs, crossing her legs. Jett sits down next to her, rather daintily. Logan suppresses his laughter. "The back building burned down in '87."
Logan's eyes widen.
"But-- but won't we get in trouble?" he stammers, taking a few steps back towards the school. Jo yanks his pants leg and brings him crashing to the ground.
"Come on," she says sweetly, looking him right in the eyes. "Why would we get you in trouble? We're your friends."
Reluctantly, Logan says, "Well... okay..." He sets his bag down next to him. It may be wrong to skip class, but his mom sent him to regular school so that he could make friends, and, well, how could she complain?
"So," Jo states, smiling and propping her head up on her fist. "Logan. What brings you to Palm Woods High?"
Logan gulps. Should he tell them about his dad?
In the end he decides to tell the truth.
"Well, my dad was a missionary doctor in Africa..." he begins quietly, "but, um. He died a few months ago."
Jo's expression softens, and Jett reaches out to touch his leg affectionately.
"I'm so sorry," he says genuinely.
Logan pulls his leg back, and Jett casts a knowing look at Jo. He almost looks like he's trying to hold back laughter.
"N-no, it's fine," Logan finally manages to reply. "I mean, he was sick for a couple months, and we were moving back to the US in a few years anyway, so I guess it's all for the better."
He smiles at them unconvincingly, and Jett shrugs before glancing over to his left, where a Phys Ed class is coming out onto the field.
"Ugh," he says, rolling his eyes. "Would you just look at what Carlos Garcia is wearing? It doesn't even go with his helmet."
Jo shakes her head in disgust.
"Of course the Big Time Plastics are all in the same Gym class."
Logan stares at them blankly.
"Big Time Plastics?"
"Oh, they're Palmwoods royalty," Jett replies flippantly. "See, if this school was Persons magazine, they would always be on the cover."
Logan nods, as if he knows what Persons magazine is. Because honestly, he doesn't, but it would just make him sound dumb to ask.
"That little one there?" Jo says, pointing at a short boy wearing a helmet and jumping up and down. "That's Carlos Garcia. He's, uh, not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box. Jett sat next to him last year in History."
"He asked me when the War of 1812 happened," Jett adds, whispering.
"That one is James Diamond," Jo continues, moving on to the guy next to Carlos. His hair is meticulously styled, he's obviously wearing makeup, and he's talking on his cell phone, making ludicrous hand motions. "He's totally rich because his dad invented Cinnamon Toast Crunch."
Logan winces as a soccer ball comes from somewhere to the right and knocks James straight to the ground. He stands up, absolutely indignant, brushing off his clothes, and starts yelling something that Logan can't hear at Carlos. Carlos looks up at him with wide, sad eyes and puts a hand on James's hip lightly. James seems to calm down, placing a hand on Carlos's shoulder and suddenly grinning.
"Wait, are they--" Logan begins, but Jo cuts him off.
"Yeah, totally gay. The gayest. So is Kendall." She takes a deep, angry breath. "And that brings us to Mr. Congeniality himself."
She gestures out towards the field once more, this time to a tall, skinny blond boy who Logan can hardly see for the fact that nearly everyone is swarmed around him. Once the area is sort of cleared, however, it hits Logan like a ton of bricks: this Kendall guy is really, really cute.
"Kendall Knight. Now, he may seem like your average bitchy, smart-ass, backstabbing, elitist snob, but in reality, he's so much more than that."
"He's the Queen Bee," Jett continues, "pardon the joke. James and Carlos are just his little worker bees."
Jo shakes her head dramatically.
"Kendall Knight," she sighs. "How do I even begin to explain Kendall Knight?"
She sees a group of about ten people walk by, and calls, "Hey! You! People! Get over here!"
They all look at each other skeptically before walking over slowly, almost one at a time.
"Describe to me exactly how you feel about Kendall Knight," she commands, pointing at a sophomore and adding, "You first."
The kid looks at her like she just gave him an early birthday present.
"Kendall Knight is flawless," he says, shaking his ridiculously red hair out of his eyes.
"His dad owns a hockey team and he bought Kendall a silver Lexus," a girl his age continues eagerly.
"I hear his voice is insured for ten thousand dollars."
"I hear he does guitar commercials... In Japan."
"His favorite movie is The Last Narwhal."
"One time, he met Dak Zevon on a plane."
"Dak told him he was hot!"
"One time, he punched me in the face. It was awesome," finishes Mercedes Griffin, the girl from class yesterday. Logan briefly ponders why there are no female Plastics. Mercedes is certainly pretty and rich enough to be one. Eh, broken gender roles and all that, how progressive for a school like this (but he's not entirely sure that's a good thing right now).
Jo waves them away.
"Thank you for your time," she says in a bored voice. "No, really. I appreciate it."
Logan honestly can't tell if it's sarcasm.
*
"He always looks fierce, he's always put together," Jett scowls on the way to lunch. "He's perfect. No one knows how he does it. He's like-- like a robot or something."
Jo rolls her eyes and gives Logan a Look.
"Plus, he always wins Spring Fling King!"
"There's so much rhyme in that sentence that I can't decide if I want to laugh or vomit."
"What's Spring Fling?" Logan interrupts.
"Oh, it's this dance near the end of the year," Jett says, crossing his arms and turning back to Logan. "The seniors throw it every year for us lowly underclassmen. And whoever gets elected as Spring Fling King and Queen automatically become head of the Student Activities Committee, and, since I am an active member of said committee, I find it wholly unfair that some pretty boy like Kendall Knight should get it every single year. Plus, I'm way better-looking than him."
Jett pouts, and Jo laughs.
"Wow, Jett, you have truly out-gayed yourself this time."
She hands Logan a folded piece of paper that he hadn't been aware she was holding.
"Where did this come from?" he asks skeptically, but she shakes her head.
"Nevermind that, just pay attention to what I'm about to tell you."
Logan nods, dubious, and unfolds the paper. It's a labeled map. Of the cafeteria.
Well, this is going to be interesting.
"Okay," Jo says, "this is going to be your guide to the Palm Woods. Where you sit in at lunch is crucial, because you've got your freshmen, your hockey guys, preps, Drama kids, Future Dropouts of America, corrupt student council, desperate wannabes, girls who eat their feelings, girls who eat nothing, stoners--"
They reach the cafeteria, and Jo takes a moment to point out the group that Logan knows must be the "stoners". They all look completely drugged out, and one guy with John Lennon glasses has his guitar out.
"And then," Jo says, smiling, "you have the greatest people you will ever meet--" she gestures to herself and Jett-- "and the worst." She gestures to Kendall, James, and Carlos, who have a table to themselves right in the middle of the cafeteria. "Beware the Big Time Plastics."
Logan nods, feeling overwhelmed and a little faint.
"Well, I'm gonna go ahead to our table," says Jett brightly, "because I brought my lunch!"
"Me too," Jo says. "We sit over on the left. See you when you get your tray!"
They wave and make their way over to the table, and Logan still has no clue what he's supposed to do. Who knew lunchrooms could be so complicated?
When he's finally made it through the line, he tries to walk over to Jo and Jett's table, but he suddenly feels really, really awkward.
Like everyone is staring at him.
And suddenly, some girl is right in front of him, pretty much in his face, glaring absolute daggers at him.
"You!" she cries, and Logan takes a step back, startled. "How could you take advantage of me like that?" she wails loudly. "How could you? I thought you loved me, but how could you love me when you're really in love with Trish? I mean, really! Trish!"
"Step off, Cami," someone calls, laughing. Logan whips around and sees--
Kendall Knight?
"Poor guy's new here. You're gonna give him a heart attack!"
Camille sighs.
"Oh, whatever," she says, "you know I would never hurt a new kid! Purposefully!"
"You slapped me three times on my first day in fifth grade," Kendall replies.
Logan is pretty sure he's serious.
He takes another step away from Camille.
She and the Plastics laugh.
"Aww, come on," she says, "I won't bite! Unless you want me to." She waggles her eyebrows, and Logan turns a vibrant shade of red.
"Okay, okay," says James, smirking, "I think he's had enough."
She winks at them, waves, and skips away.
"Uh, thanks," mumbles Logan, staring at the ground. He starts to walk away, but Kendall calls after him.
"Wait, sit down!"
Logan glances over at Jo, who is Staring a hole through him.
Get. Over. Here, she mouths.
"Seriously, sit down!"
Logan shrugs at Jo apologetically and sits.
Kendall, James, and Carlos simply stare at him for a few moments before Kendall props his chin up on his hand and says, "So why don't I know you?" He has a weird sort of expression on his face, and he's watching Logan, watching and studying and... Admiring?
"I just moved here from Africa," he says. "I was homeschooled."
Kendall gapes, and James gasps. Carlos just looks around blankly.
"What?"
Do most American teenagers not know what homeschooling is?
"Homeschooled."
"What?"
"My mom, she, um, she taught me at home..."
Kendall shakes his head.
"No, no, I know what homeschooling is, I'm not stupid." He looks at Logan with raised eyebrows. "So you've never been to a real school or anything."
"No?" Logan says.
Kendall grins.
"Shut up," he says, exchanging looks with James and Carlos. "Shut up."
"What did I say?" Logan whispers, mostly to himself, when Kendall turns back to him.
"You know, you're, like, cute," he says suddenly, startling Logan, who can feel his face turning red again. He looks down at his food, which is honestly looking less appetizing by the second.
"Uh, thank you..." he says, almost inaudibly.
"So you agree?"
"Huh?"
"You think you're cute?"
Everything is going much too fast for Logan's taste.
"I-- I don't--"
"So are you interested in Camille?" James interrupts.
"No-- no, really, I'm-- I mean..."
Kendall and James glance at each other and then burst into laughter.
"Oh, honey, we know," snickers James, "I was just messing with you. So what kind of guy do you like?"
No, seriously, Logan's brain cannot handle how fast this is going. It might explode.
"How did you know?" he whimpers, preparing for the worst (the whole school knows everyone hates him after one day his reputation is ruined)--
"It's called gaydar, sweetie. Now spill."
"Oh." Thank God. "Well, I'm really not all that comfortable with, um..."
"Oh, that's totally fine! So." Kendall grabs Logan's wrist, with just enough grip that he can't pull away. This frightens Logan quite a bit. "Where did you get this leather bracelet-y thing?"
"Oh, uh, it was my dad's, it was sort of an ID thing for his hospital for a while..."
Kendall pauses for a brief moment, presmably to let the "was" of that statement sink in.
"Oh," he finally says, "well, I love it. It's really cool-looking."
"Thank you," Logan says, smiling. No matter how much his head hurts, Kendall is actually being really nice to him. It's sort of the best thing ever.
"Yeah, it's totally mangerine."
Kendall blinks.
"What is mangerine?"
"Oh, it's like, slang!" James replies brightly, but, at the incredulous look Kendall is giving him, adds, "From, uh. England."
"So if you're from Africa..." says Carlos, speaking for the first time since Logan sat down, "Why are you white? Or... Are you white?"
James looks scandalized.
"Oh my God, Carlos, you can't just ask people why they're white. You can't just ask people if they're white!"
Kendall leans forward.
"Could you give us just a second?" he asks quietly, winking, and Logan's insides feel rather funny. It's that nondescript throwing up feeling again, he's pretty sure. Unless he actually is sick. Which he could be, because this cafeteria food is really gross.
"Uh, sure."
The Plastics huddle (as much as three people can huddle while sitting in a row) and Logan looks back over to Jo and Jett's table, from where they're staring at him, trying to get his attention by gesturing wildly. Once they see they've succeeded, Jo mouths, What's going on?
Logan shrugs again.
Kendall, James, and Carlos all turn back towards him, staring.
It's really creepy.
"Okay," Kendall begins, "you should just know that we don't do this a lot, so this is like, a really huge deal."
James nods and continues solemnly, "We want to invite you to sit with us. Every day. For the rest of the week."
Carlos smiles up at him hopefully.
"Oh, I-- it's okay, I--"
"Great!" says James. "So we'll see you tomorrow."
It's not a question, and Logan knows he doesn't really have a choice.
"On Wednesdays, we wear purple!" Carlos announces gleefully.
"Uh, okay?" Logan doesn't think he owns anything purple. "I'll just. See you tomorrow then."
Kendall tilts his head and says, "Yeah. See you tomorrow."
There's that funny feeling again.