The bell rang to indicate the end of class and I felt both thankful and perplexed at my overall first day of school at Silver Lake High. To my expectation, schools weren't entirely different in America than to Australia, but the smallest aspects of it all made my high school lifestyle differ in unusual ways. For example, the amount of people is utterly overwhelming.
I walked through the hallway that was waved with students pushing past each other whilst bags knocked over books, students were pushed up against each other and teachers held their books in the air to avoid the crowd craze. A hand grasped onto my arm and I flinched, rapidly turning my head towards the action.
It was Eloi. 'Hey there.' he chimed. My chest deflated in relief as he gave me a small smirk. Eloi leaned into my side, 'Our school's a shit show, isn't it?' Eloi sassily remarked.
'It's not too bad…' I replied. Eloi gave me a condescending look and pulled us both aside to where our lockers were. 'Oh- thanks. Almost forgot where my locker was.'
'Just remember,' Eloi gave a loud clap to our neighbouring lockers with his palm, 'your locker is the one right next to mine, sweetie.'
I nodded my head and said a small "thanks" under my breath before opening my locker.
A small feeling of gratefulness swarmed my stomach as I felt thankful for Summer and Eloi. Since I would annually visit my dad and my older brother, Keon (alongside my dad's white-ass wife) here at Staten Island, I would often meet Summer and Eloi too, since they were our neighbours and went to the same school as my brother. I had met them when I was 6 years old, which was the time my mum and dad legally separated.
Though our first encounter with the three of us altogether was relatively and blatantly socially awkward, we started to become close when we hit our double-digit of 10, which is when my mum left (or in other words, supposedly, "died") and when I also began living with my grandparents.
I stacked my books in my locker and slid them into my bag hurriedly, zipping it and slinging it over my back. I closed my locker with a slam, only to reveal a bored Eloi who was leaning his shoulder against the lockers' surface, steadily applying a tinted lip-balm atop his lips. I couldn't help but admire the nice colour contrast the lip-balm had made to his almondy-biscuit skin-tone. 'You ready to go?' he asked, shutting his compact lid and smacking his lips. I nodded, yawning as I straightened my arms to a stretch. 'Alrighty then, let's go find Summer and Nico!'
Summer and Nico met us on the courtyard of the campus, and Eloi bounced up to them with a deviously excited expression. 'So… what did you think of your first day at Silver Lake High?' Summer asked monotonously, nudging my arm.
I shrugged. 'It was ok.' I said, then furrowed my eyebrows, 'You saw me after the lunch break…?'
Summer returned an empty expression. 'Still. Thought I should just ask.'
Eloi's energy seemed to creep it's way back to the conversation as he led the boy beside Summer in front of me. 'V, this is Nico Alexander- the fourth key to our group!' he emphasized, gripping both Nico and I's arms as he brought us closer.
'Hi,' Nico greeted, laughing at the uncomfortable situation we were forced into. Nico was only slightly taller than me (as everyone is), with curly protruding, hazel coloured hair that probably added to his height. His skin was a honey-lemon colour, and his sense of clothing-style was complemented with an "e-boy meets retro" look. I smiled back at him approvingly.
Eloi gestured to me and did the same for Nico, 'Nico, this is Ivy Lee. But we call her V for short.'
I scoffed and thrust out my chin. 'Because it's already ever-so hard to pronounce my three-lettered name.'
'Oh, c' mon- we're all just calling you that for the convenience of it all,' Eloi said, flicking his hand in a fanning motion, only to pause suddenly as a crowd of rowdy guys walked past us. Eloi's eyes followed the group of boys like a string, his lips slightly parted as his arms fell by his side helplessly. His eyes seemed to sparkle, running a scouring hand through his hair whilst biting his lip, as if he had just been hypnotised.
Summer whispered a small 'tch' under her breath and used her hand to twist Eloi's head in the opposite direction. 'Dream on, lover-boy' Summer teased. Eloi snatched Summer's hand away, frowning at her as if he were a child who's just had his toys taken away.
'It's really never going to happen, man.' Nico added, as he pitifully gripped Eloi's shoulder, 'Like, let's be realistic here. He's so much higher on the ladder than you.'
Confused, I nudged Eloi's shoulder. 'What are they talking about?' I asked demandingly.
Eloi stuck a juvenile tongue at Summer and Nico, who were both snickering. 'They're just being stupid--' Summer swiftly cut in front of him before he could complete his sentence.
'This guy here,' Summer slung an arm around an agitated Eloi, 'is experiencing unrequited love.' Eloi groaned and pushed Summer's tall form away, slapping her on the shoulder, although Summer continued to laugh as she felt nothing from Eloi's awfully weak slaps.
Allow me to give an unrequested (but very much invited) story about my friends when they were younger. Eloi and Summer have known each other since they were born, which allowed them to both attend the same elementary school. Whilst they were both having recess together at school, Summer and Eloi phlegmatically dared each other to confess their "crushes" to each other, warning that they would say it at the same time by the count of three. But unexpectedly, they both said the same name, last name included: Sebastian Bell, who was a year older than themselves, the type of kid that was so-called "sporty" and a purely uncorrupt sexist. And with that, that is when Summer realised Eloi was gay.
I looked at Eloi, suddenly energetic, 'You had a crush and didn't even think to tell me…?!' my voice raised a bit, causing heads around the school to turn in our direction. Eloi turned to me with a reddened, bashful expression- something I hadn't seen in a long time. 'Oh wow. You really like this guy.' I blandly stated.
He ran a flustered hand through his perfectly pompadoured hair and scratched his neck a bit. 'Look, it's not like I LOVE him or anything-- it's just a stupid crush…!' he stammered.
I leant in closer to Eloi, turning around to face the clamorous group of boys that stood in the distance. 'Which one is he?' Eloi sighed frustratingly before he gave in to my question.
'You guys are so nosy, you know that?' he heavily breathed, his face hued with pink. 'He's the one with the baby-blue hoodie over there,' he whispered, pointing discretely. My eyes searched the semi-large group of boys for the baby-blue hoodie. After finally catching sight of a blue hoodie, my eyes slowly trailed upwards. The baby-blue hoodie belonged to a boy who looked also Pakistani, much like Eloi. His hair was scissor cut and he wore over-sized gold-rimmed glasses (stylish, much to my surprise), alongside a single black stud in his right ear. As my eyes continued to examine Eloi's far-fetched crush, my view of the baby-blue hoodie wearer was suddenly blocked. Annoyed, my gaze streamed upwards, only to find a familiar face.
It was Dmitri.
With Summer, Nico and Eloi bantering in the background, I persisted to stare at Dmitri, who was fooling around with his friends from a distance. As assumed, he was friends with the baby-blue hoodie, too. His smile was broader and the way he exposed himself to his peers seemed more intense than before and somehow, he seemed completely different from how I'd met him an hour and a half ago. Dmitri was suddenly thrown a football into his face by one of his friends, and he stealthily caught the ball in between his two hands' grasp. Unknowingly, I stared at him curiously (but not creepily).
A hand waved over my vision and I tilted my head up to see that the hand belonged to Summer, who stood freakishly tall with the sun directly shadowed behind her head.
Summer looked at me half-disconcerted, 'Hey, what's goin' on in that head o' yours?' I stared at her before I said anything, and then returned my gaze in Dmitri's direction. Summer's eyes followed mine, trailing off in the distance. 'What are you looking at?'
Dmitri's secret was interesting and overdramatised, let alone a weird one at that.
I shook my head and pressed my lips into a thin line.
'Nothing. I'm… just thinking.'