*Troye's POV*

Shane actually proved to be a pretty decent guy. We talked about a couple movies and he told me about how he wants to be a director when he's older. It was the first real conversation I'd had with someone other than family in forever. We likely would have talked even longer if Mrs. Smith didn't walk up to us and scold us for loitering in the halls after school hours. With that, we both started walking toward the exit beside each other, the conversation still carrying on.

"So, why haven't I seen you around at all before if we've both been here the last three years?"

"I, uh, I'm not exactly the sociable type." I mumbled, instinctively taking a step away from him and clutching my backpack tighter to my chest. My eyes fell to the floor, but a moment later his face appeared in my sights, as he'd annoyingly bent over to make eye contact with me. 

"Really? You could have fooled me!" He laughed, standing back up straight. I gave a weak smile, more to myself than to him. We continued in silence until we came to my car, and I leaned against the door.

"Thanks for trying to stand up for me earlier, by the way." He mumbled, his brash demeanor clouding over as he shyly looked down at the ground. I bit my lip nervously, not liking the feeling of responsibility he'd put on my shoulders here. I didn't even do anything really.

"But I didn't help anything, you still ended up getting beat up." 

"Yeah, but you tried, you didn't just turn the other way and let it happen. That's sort of what most people do, you know."

"Well, I am nothing like most people." 

"I can tell. Anyone else would be looking over their shoulder constantly while talking to me, embarrassed to be seen with the 'gay' boy." He said, quirking his eyebrows at the word 'gay'. I couldn't help but chuckle slightly at his annoyed expression, hoping he didn't take it the wrong way.

"That's because they're vain idiots that care more about their social status than their own emotions." I said matter-of-factly. He seemed intrigued now, staring at me with curious blue eyes, framed by black bruises. It still made me nauseous thinking that Tyler had put them there.

"And you don't?" My eyebrows shot up, realizing I'd stupidly got lost in my head again. I had to wonder if this was the first time Shane had asked me the question, looking at his annoyed hard expression.

"No! No, of course not." I said hurriedly, my eyes flickering to my car longingly. I liked Shane to an extent, but like anyone, I had my limits to how much I wanted to interact with him. There was an uncanny silence then, and I was about to mumble some excuse about having to get home when he started laughing to himself. I looked at him with a confused expression, pouting my lip out as I wondered what was so funny.

"Sorry, it's just really weird to think of you having a crush on Tyler after actually talking to you. You guys would never work out." He giggled, flipping his long hair out of his eyes. I gave an awkward chuckle, forcing my lips to strain into a smile. Why was it so laughable? I mean, I realize it would never in a million years work out and I wouldn't want it to, but why's it so funny to him?

"You guys are complete polar opposites!"

"But don't opposites attract?" I blurted, immediately regretting it when his eyes lit up, the same way any highschooler's did when they heard new gossip. I backed up even further into the car, despite there still be stray water drops on the frame. I couldn't care though, I just wanted to blend in with it and disappear from the awkward situation.

"Oh... I didn't realize. Sorry, Troye... I'm sure there's still a good chance that-"

"No! I didn't mean it like- Ugh, I've got to go, my parents are going to be wondering where I am." I lied, knowing they'd be nothing but happy that I wasn't home on time. They were probably jumping to conclusions already, thinking I was making 'friends'. 

Wait.

I kind of am.

I shivered, shaking that thought out of my mind. Acquaintances maybe, but not friends. Shane nodded eagerly, mumbling quickly some excuse about having to get home as well. And just like that he turned on his heel and hurried off down the street, making it obvious he hated awkward situations just as much as I did. 

Now that I was alone I felt the same anger from earlier welling back up in my chest and I groaned aloud. I wasn't really in the mood to punch anymore inanimate objects, so I decided I would take me stress away the only other way that worked for me; eating. 

Not even ten minutes later I found myself pulling into the familiar empty parking lot. I was glad no one else was shopping, I really wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone right now. I collected my change from the dash absentmindedly, chewing on my lip numbly as I did so. It had been a long time since I'd been in such a bad mood. I mean, I was always kind of a sour person in general, but this was bad. I got out of the car, lumbering toward the doors with a lengthy stride. I wonder if the newbie the store owner mentioned will be working today. 

I didn't take time to look when I walked inside though, making a beeline for the junk food corner. Definitely a corner I'd become acquainted with over the years. I gathered everything I thought I needed, and possibly a bit more. Chips, soda, chocolate, sour candies, just everything one could possibly want to drown their problems away with. I smiled, the first genuine one since seeing Tyler beat Shane up, and started back toward the front of the store. I still didn't look up to see who was working though, keeping my eyes fixed on the contents of my arms. Somehow between here and the car the familiar feeling of anxiety had risen in my chest and I was now more worried than excited to see the new face. What if they were really judgmental? What if every time I came here I'd be stuck reading their rude thoughts? They'd completely ruin my happy place.

That was exactly why I continued to refuse to look up until I seen the edge of the counter come into view. I let out an inaudible sigh, reluctantly tearing my gaze off of the familiar food wrappers. I looked up, my breath catching in my throat when I seen the familiar dimpled face behind the counter. He was biting down on his lip so hard it looked like it was threatening to start bleeding, but it was also obvious he was only doing it to hide a smile. Wow, a smile. I narrowed my eyes into a glare, hoping to wipe that stupid look right off his face. 

"Hi!" He beamed, standing up straight. It was hard to tell when he was wearing sweaters, but now that he wasn't, his muscles were noticeably flexing as he pushed up off the counter. I guess being the football star has it's perks. I didn't respond to him, not trusting myself to keep from saying something stupid. Just because I didn't want to associate with him anymore didn't mean I wanted to be enemies. Okay, I did want to be enemies, but I didn't want him and his goons coming after me in the halls so I was going to suck it up. "Did you find everything you were looking for?"

"Yeah, and some things I wasn't." I blurted, hissing aloud at myself for being so stupid. Had I not just gone over how big his muscles were? Or the bruises on Shane? It would take nothing for him to beat the crap out of me. I had to keep from being the blunt cynical Troye I normally was. 

I flickered my eyes back to him, watching as he rung the items through with immense concentration. His eyebrows were scrunched together, his bottom lip tucked in as his eyes ran over each individual item slowly. You could definitely tell he was a newbie, but not to the point of it being annoying. A smile spread across his features suddenly, completely out of context with the gloomy mood. He held up my favorite chocolate bar, not commenting on how it had appeared multiple times in the pile.

"These are good, huh?" He asked, waving it in the air blatantly. I knew he was trying to find common ground between us, and it was sweet of him, but I didn't want common ground right now. I wanted everything that was different between us to be the things that stood out. I definitely did not need reasons to keep from hating him right now, I had plenty of those as it was.

"Well, obviously I think so if I'm buying one." I said harshly, hoping he'd take the hint and just let me do this. Even if I ignored what a dick he'd been to Shane, it was only a matter of time before he was a dick to me and that'd hurt so much more. It was better this way, the way it always was. If I never gave them the ability to disappoint me, then there was no chance they would. It was a simple complex really, but for once it felt like anything but. 

I bite down on my tongue, forcing myself back to reality. It would only hurt more in the long-run if I didn't do this now. It's for my own good. I reached into my pocket, retrieving a twenty and shoving it at him harshly. I just wanted this confrontation to be over. I wanted to eat my junk food and lay in bed aimlessly for the rest of the night. "This is the part where you take my money."

I held it out to him, nudging it forward occasionally, but he refused to take it. I had to admit I felt a little bit bad when my eyes met his again and found them full of disappointment. I guess we both succeeded in disappointing the other today. His bottom lip was trembling slightly, but I couldn't really tell if it was a sad thing or a mad thing. Two days ago, I would have said mad without hesitation, but upon talking to him, Tyler was different from his reputation in quite a few ways. Sure, he could still be a total ass, but he actually did have a shred of genuine human being to him. 

"Did I do something wrong?" He stuttered out, looking at me with wide confused eyes. I just shook my head slowly though, not in the mood to have a legitimate fight with him. I'd make a snappy comment and leave, no further explanation. He shouldn't need one. He should realize exactly what he did and how wrong it was. Whether he knows I seen it or not it was still a horrible thing to do.

"Wow, it's concerning that you even have to ask that." I dropped the bill on the counter, not even bothering to tell him to keep the change before swiftly heading toward the door. I just wanted out of here. My head was a mixing pot of emotions and I didn't know how much longer I could stand being in public. I just needed a moment to myself. A long moment. 

I slammed my door on the way out for dramatic effect, hoping it'd help to really get my point across to him. I did not want to talk. I did not want to be friends. And I definitely didn't want him to run out after me.

So why was I kind of disappointed when he didn't?

It just made it seem so real, so final. It was the confirmation that he didn't care. Still, why did that surprise me? I couldn't form friendships with the bottom of the food chain, why on Earth would it work out with Tyler Oakley? I was a nobody, and he was a somebody. Simple. 

I got into my car, tossing the bags into the passenger's seat carelessly. I ran my hands over the steering wheel, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to start the car. I sighed, sinking back in my seat and closing my eyes. I was not looking forward to going home. My parents were going to bombard me the second I walked in the door, likely my siblings as well. They'd all ask the usual questions;

"How did your day go?"

"Meet any new friends?"

"How were the classes and teachers?"

The worst part was they were all asked at the same time, from different people. It was a trap, surrounded by family members all talking over each other. But yet, I didn't exactly have anywhere else to go. I guess there was the beach, but everyone would be there enjoying the last shreds of summer. Then there was the park, but now that school had started back up all the younger kids would be there playing. And do I even need a reason why I couldn't go to a friend's house? I think that was implied. So, that left me with very limited options. A single option. 

I started the car, reluctantly pulling off in the direction of my house with a scowl on my face. I still had no idea what I was going to tell them when they asked about my day, but I'd figure that out when it came to it. I'd probably end up telling them the same thing I did every year, that absolutely nothing interesting happened. This would be the first year in a very long time that it was actually a lie. 

A/n: Hello dear friends, nice to see you again. I write all of these author's notes way before I post so this is me from June 14th, ahah, nice to see you good friends! Bet you didn't remember me! (I'm a mess, why do I even let myself speak sometimes) (This is me from June 17th and I am still wondering why I let myself speak) COMMENT AND VOTE <3