Short Order Cook

[microwavelength]

He hates it.  From the noise to the brightness to the level of prettiness, this school is absolutely the worst he's ever been at.  And he's been at some pretty fucking bad ones.  Mom moves him around a lot.  He gets into trouble and sometimes it's just easier to get a job at another hospital and take her son away before he gets a wrap sheet for the

Comments

[microwavelength]

Dark eyes follows the flamboyant boy out of the room before they turned up towards the school's favorite underdog with the buttery popcorn hair. "Thanks for the pass then, teach," Luke says, grinning a bit crookedly as he follows a stream of kids into the hallway. Let it not be said that Luke Campbell failed every class his junior year of high school, and all because some stupid teacher thinks he can be guilted into doing an assignment with a partner? Nope. Kurt will be left alone to do it all.

Sounds perfect!

So does skipping the rest of the day. Luke climbs the stairs to the library and parks himself in the corner, iPod on loud, dark and terrible songs drowning out the sound of his own breathing. He doodles in a notebook (not half bad) and curls the edges of the books behind him with a knowing smirk because he knows he can.

[microwavelength]

Luke holds Kurt's eyes for a moment before his gaze flickers back to his drawings. He's trying to get Schu's hair just right, but it's a struggle, probably because he's also trying to make it look like his eyes are boiling out of his face too. Luke sighs when he realizes that Kurt hasn't moved at all.

Jesus Christ.

Pulling the bud from one ear, Luke tilts his head back again. "What? I don't have pockets full of glitter so I can't help you with a recharge, champ."

[microwavelength]

Laughing, Luke nods along to the song whose lyrics he can't even make out because of all the screaming. His thumb twitches lightly, tangled in a white cord, and thumps against the edge of his page. "Cowboy. Nice." And he does actually like the nickname. Rebel. Outlaw. Loner. If only. Hell, he'd subscribe to Fringe and Steed Weekly if he had to for the chance at being a cowboy.

Or, really, someone, anyone, other than himself. Unhappiness settles down again and Like's lips curve downward.

"Listen, sweetheart, I don't know how you think this is going to work, but I'm not doing a damn thing." Was he trying to flunk? Yes, yes he was. Mostly to stick it to his mom forthwith new guy she's been seeing.

Whore.

[microwavelength]

Really fucking funny. Luke lightly bit his tongue between his upper and lower teeth and frowned haughtiness at the idiot staring down at him. "Fine. Free slushy, right?"

He didn't back down. Luke was just getting to the stage in his life where he realized how much he hate himself, and therefore, was making a conscientious effort to learn to be someone else. Even if it was just for a very little while. It was sort of like trying hats on. Kind of.

"What's the flavor of the week?"

He even smiled, but it wasn't a very nice look. Gesturing across the table, he kicked out the chair and then plopped the bud back in his ear.

[microwavelength]

"This one?" Luke flips the iPod over to see the display. "Let's see: 'None of Your Fucking Business.'" In other words, Avenged Sevenfold. He seemed pleased with himself to cross his arms over his chest and smirk, gloating and smug, across at Kurt.

He has absolutely no intention of playing nice. If Kurt wanted to be difficult, well Luke really had an obligation to return that favor didn't he? His knee bopped under the desk as he returned to his drawing. He has a good two hours to go before he'd head home. And all because he knows his mom will worry if he stays out so late, expecting the worst.

Good, let her worry. Maybe that jackoff wouldn't be over tonight then.

[microwavelength]

It starts by lunch the next day. The cat calls had been dull at first, mostly whispered and under the breath of the cooler and more observant kids. But when Kurt decides to sit with him -- Mercedes' face is absolutely priceless -- in his corner while he eats ketchup and cheese fries, anything civil seems to go out the window.

"Hey Campbell, like your new girlfriend?"

Luke glances up, first at Kurt and then over his shoulder at one of the football players. He doesn't know his name. "Woah there, big fella. I'm kinda surprised you can string two words together and I'm honestly impressed that you know my name. Goes to show that public school can even help a retarded jerk like you."

He turns back to Kurt, a very odd gleam in his eyes. Oh, he knows what's coming. After a brief moment of confusion, that idiot is going to tug him up from the table.

And right on cue!

[microwavelength]

Ladynails and hair pulling sends Luke right on over the edge and he bursts out laughing, which likely gets misinterpreted. "He'll spray glitter in our eyes!" he says, almost beside himself with mirth just before the cheese fries he had been eating get wiped up with the front of his shirt.

Aww, damn. He'd purposefully worn blue to match the slushy. He should have put on some orange instead!

With his cheek against the table for one blessed moment, Luke glances up at the horrified look on Kurt's face. "I do this, dude."

Yeah, he got it all right. By the time someone manages to break up the fight, Luke's left with a black eye and a split lip. He probably ought to have stopped talking somewhere between 'beware the gay cooties' and 'we should totally catch a movie sometimes!'

[microwavelength]

Luke is half euphoric and still laughing, at least until Kurt mauls his lip. His nose wrinkles at that and he pulls back, hissing softly under his breath. "Jesus, hang on a second." He'll worry that they're in the girl's room and he's stuffed in a stall with a queer kid later. His heart is pounding and for a little while, everything seems perfectly all right. Minus the pain of course.

That is not anything he really relishes. Luke wraps his hand around Kurt's wrist and tugs it back, glancing at the blood on the cloth before he looks up into such very startled blue eyes.

"I'm not fucking dying. And you didn't do anything."