Brian's pretty sure this day is the longest in the entire history of the universe ( Read more... )

Ever since he came home, Howie's been sitting at the kitchen island, staring into nothing while loosely holding on to a glass of water that he's yet to take a sip of. He hasn't eaten since breakfast, but the thought of food of any kind keeps making his stomach churn, so he idly figures there's no point in trying to get anything down ( Read more... )

JC's always thought of the school timetable as a casual suggestion, rather than any sort of strict guideline. Learning doesn't happen on a clock, after all. But the other teachers are less forgiving about that sort of thing, so he generally tries to end his classes on time. Unless they're scheduled for the end of the day, in which case the students ( Read more... )

Howie is not a patient person by nature, Nick knows this. He's been trying so hard though, for Nick, has held all his questions since Nick met him after practice the night before and said, "Can we not... right now? Please. I'm okay. I just - I can't ( Read more... )

The only thing JC really enjoys about winter is the fact that it gets dark early. Which means, on the days he feels like he might vibrate right out of his skin if he doesn't go out somewhere - to drink, to dance, to fuck, anything - 6pm looks like a reasonable time to go do that, even if it isn't ( Read more... )

The adrenaline fades as soon as AJ walks out of the classroom. He doesn't look to see if Nick follows him out. He doesn't care. He feels like an impostor in his own skin, shaky and uncertain on his feet. The gym is only a couple of steps away, but it feels like an eternity passes before he makes it halfway across the corridor. AJ stops. His head is ( Read more... )

"Hey, sorry," Lance says, trying to juggle two styrofoam cups and prevent his messenger bag from slipping down his shoulder all at once. "I'm looking for Mr. Richardson. Have any of you seen him by any chance ( Read more... )

At the start of the school year, Justin already knew Tuesdays were going to be his favorite days. Coach Sylvester is on a sabbatical this year, which means Coach is their only phys ed teacher, which means that, now that basketball season is in full swing, Justin's Tuesdays have turned into pretty much full days of basketball ( Read more... )

It's a long, fuzzy day. A bit like someone's put mufflers on him without his permission, and all he can do is look around at the people around him and guess at what they're saying. Brian spends most of it staring out of windows in his classrooms and scribbling down the occasional note that he won't be able to understand tomorrow.

Let me take you ( Read more... )

The rest of the school day goes steadily downhill. Lance is distracted, mind drifting every couple of minutes to the boy he left detached and disassociated to a severe degree. At least he didn't leave him there on his own. No, he reminds himself bitterly over and over, he left him with another kid who shouldn't have to deal with something like that ( Read more... )