Chapter 7

                To say science went off with a bang would be a misconception. It would be more accurate to say that science went off with an explosion. Literally.
                "Come on guys! Get in the hallway!" The blonde teacher yelled over the sound of the mob of teenagers. It was fact to say that Mr. David Ichabod's science class was known to have something  explode or at least catch fire everyday. Not that he cared much, being the fun guy he was, but most of the kids lined up against the wall in the hallway looked just as bored as ever. Except Kris, who was kind of shaking.
                "Dude, you ok?" Danny asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Kris jumped slightly.
                "Yeah, I'm fine. I just watched a test tube explode and release a giant green blob monster into the classroom from 5 feet away. That's all. I'm perfectly fine!" He was on the edge of hysterics now.
                "You'll get used to it. Things like that happen all the time in Mr. Ichabod's class," Dani told him.
                "Yes. All the time..." Kris turned to see a very serious man, with dirty blonde hair, standing next to him. The look in his green eyes told Kris he'd done this many times before, and he knew this wasn't his last. Kris calmed down a little bit. "You must be new here,"
                "Yes. I just moved here-,"
                "From California!" Danny jumped in, popping up on one side of Kris.
                "His name is Kris!" Said Dani, popping up on the other side. The man nodded.
                "Nick Melaine. I'm probably your math teacher," Nick stuck his hand out, in which Kris shook, making a few of his bracelets rattle. Mr. Melaine looked around. "Where is Mr. Ichabod anyway?" All the kids pointed towards the door of the classroom that was leaking a purple smoke now. Nick sighed and walked into it.
                "Hey, Kris. Wanna play cards with us?" Gwen asked from her spot on the floor next to Dani and Danny. Kris looked down at them, then everyone else. The whole class was already sitting on the floor chatting with their little groups, so Kris nodded and joined their game of War. "Don't worry, this happens so much that they reinforced the walls and floors of the classroom so it won't collapse or anything," Gwen informed Kris as she passed out the cards. Kris nodded, feeling relieved at that fact. He did not want to go home one day with a piece of the wall stabbed through him. Cigarette burns were  bad enough. Kris rubbed his arm where his jacket sleeve was covering the cast of gauze he had wrapped around the burns. They didn't hurt anymore, he just didn't want anyone seeing.
                "Just as long as what ever is made in there, stays in there," The group laughed. As they played, they chatted, Gwen mostly. Soon Kris, as he talked and laughed, felt that he had made three more friends. Way more then he's ever had at his old schools. A few minutes later, Nick and David emerged from the classroom covered in purple smoke and some kind of green slime.
                "David, I..." Nick started to scold, but then stopped to think. "Never mind. It'll just happen again anyway. Now, I have to get back to my class. Can you try to teach yours out here with out blowing up a textbook?"
                "I'll try," David said, beaming. "Bye, Nick!" He hugged the math teacher, successful in covering him with even more slime, before turning to the class on the floor. "Alright guys, I had a worksheet for you, but they...I need to get more printed. So, I just want you to read pages four to ten in your book and we'll talk about it, ok?" Everyone sorta mumbled an ok and reached for their books. Kris looked at his new book. It wasn't exactly the lightest book in the world, and he knew it was going to be a pain to get up and down the stairs with it.
                "Your turn, Kris!" Danny said, pointing to Kris's cards. Kris set down his book and picked his cards up again. The entire 90 minutes passed with out anyone ever opening their books.
                "Alright, you guys can go! Have a nice day, see you in two," Mr. Ichabod waved to the students before peering into his classroom. "Xzaviar, is it clean yet?" He whined. The janitor shook his head and continued scraping at the walls, continually reminding himself how much he loved his job.
~
                "Hey, guys, " Kris felt so stupid having to ask this because he knew that Trevor and Mike were somewhat right. "I can get to the gym this way right?" Dani, Danny, and Gwen all nodded at him and wished him good luck. He waved to them before making his way down the rest of the stairs and merging with the pack of students all filing down the hallways. He sighed. Today was starting out to be very stressful for him. Waking up late, terrified on the bus and in science, and now gym. It wasn't exactly the funnest of all classes, and Kris wondered if he needed it to pass or if he could switch out of it. Though, he was happy that he was making friends and so far today he hadn't gotten any weird looks or been called names. No wait, that guy just sneered at him, but Kris let it slide. He was really starting to like this school.
                The throng of students started to lessen as they headed off in different directions, and soon  Kris found himself almost alone in the hallway until he reached the gym. He absentmindedly walked in and sat down next to the group of kids on the bleachers, not really looking at them. The gym looked like any other gym at any other school. Giant court to run around in and bleachers against the walls. There was even two basketball hoops at either end of the court. As the rest of the kids filed in, Kris sorta spaced out, his thoughts drifting to Robert again. He didn't even try to stop as he thought about what Robert was doing right now. He wondered, if he asked him his schedule if he'd sound like a stalker.
                "Hey, California!" Kris's head whipped to the side, and his heart skipped a beat. No. Way. "You in this gym class?" Robert asked, jumping down from the bleachers above and landing right by Kris.  He leaned back to put his elbows in the next bleacher up and caused the ever famous shirt ride up move that made Kris stare.
                "Y-yeah! You are too?" He replied, tearing his eyes away from Robert's slightly exposed body, trying to talk at a normal speed, and trying control a blush that was worming it's way onto his face. Staring into Robert's deep, gray eyes wasn't really helping though.
                "Yup. You only need one year to graduate, but I barely showed up last year. Most of these kids are either new or failed it last year," Robert pointed at the rest of the class on the bleachers. "This class is so boring. All you do is run around in circles all day getting dizzy," Kris chuckled. "I swear! I mean that is literally all you do! Just you wait. Here comes the coach now," and in walked the blonde man that Kris had seen on the bus earlier holding onto Ms. Ghost. He was dressed in a white shirt with the school's gray and orange logo of a ferret on it. His sports shorts were also orange with gray stripes. In his hand he held a clipboard and a cardboard box.
                "Hello, class!" He greeted the group cheerily, his speech a little funny due to the lollipop in his mouth. A couple of the kids in the top row of bleachers waved at the teacher, who waved back happily. "I will be your gym teacher, and if you try out for any sports, your coach. You can call me Coach or Coach Dimitri or Mr. Dimitri. I'll respond to any of them,"
                "So he says," Robert leaned over and whispered to Kris, who shivered from the hot breath on his ear. I've got to get a hold of myself! He thought. As Coach Dimitri called attendance, he also handed out gym clothes to everyone, taking them from the box and throwing them up the bleachers. It wasn't the most efficient way, but it seemed to work. Kris noticed they were the same orange and gray clothes that the coach was wearing.
                "All right, everyone got a shirt and shorts? These are what you will change into every day. If you'd like to, you can take them home to wash. Those who know, please show those who don't where the boys locker room is. Get dressed and meet me back here in 10 minutes,"
                "Come on," Robert said, throwing his clothes over his shoulder and pulling Kris up. "If we don't get there first, we'll get a crappy locker," He led him outside of the gym and down a small hallway that turned into steps.
                "We'll?" Kris asked, oblivious to the fact that Robert was still gripping his wrist.
                "There's not that many lockers. You don't mind if we share do you? I don't have a bag or anything to put in it," Robert said, still pulling Kris along. The rest of the class was gaining behind them, and he wanted a good locker damn it!
                "Oh, no, I don't mind at all!" Kris said quickly. He wasn't about to loose a chance to share anything with Robert. Ok, that sounded weird. Kris fought away another blush.
                He shook his head as the finally arrived in the locker room. Robert led to a gray one right by the door and opened it. Kris set his bag and his jacket inside of it and set his gym clothes down on the bench that was resting in front of the lockers. Everyone else rushed past them and suddenly the sound of a lot of lockers opening and people talking filled the small room. Every sound echoed in here.
                As Kris gripped the bottom of his shirt, ready to take it off and switch it, a thought raced through his head. He turned his head slowly, and he caught Robert just as his shirt was coming off his head, his arms raised and whole torso exposed to the world. Kris was sure he going to faint right then and there, or at least have a massive nosebleed.
                Robert looked at the white gym shirt disdainfully. "I really hate this outfit," He said, turning to Kris, only to see him very rapidly turn his head away and turn very red. Robert grinned and held in a laugh. He slipped the white shirt on, and then watched as Kris quickly changed his. In the moment that Kris's shirt had left his body, Robert saw how very silky he looked. He had only a slight outline of abs, not like Robert himself, and some bony hips, but Robert found it cute. Wait, cute? Robert smacked himself mentally. It was just like yesterday when he was dropping him off...
                "Hey, um, everyone else is starting to leave. You gonna change your shorts?" Kris said, already dressed, and snapping Robert out of his daze. Kris wondered if he did that often as he also did it when he ran his fingers down his arm at his house. Kris suddenly remembered his arm and he looked down at  it, completely missing Robert change from jeans to shorts. Though, if he hadn't, I'm sure we all know he'd be on the floor dieing from such a shock, or blood loss. He tried to decide if he should leave the bandages on or not. He decided to leave them on, not wanting anyone to see the marks that were still very prominent on his skin. He jumped as the locker next to him slammed. Robert looked down at him and motioned towards his arm.
                "Those ok?" He asked, following the crowd that was leaving the room. Kris jumped up and tailed along.
                "Doesn't hurt anymore, if thats what you mean. I just don't want anyone to see. You never know what people might think," Kris rubbed the bandages, looking at his feet, his rainbow converses clashing with his orange and gray outfit.
                "Oh, I know what they think. I just don't care," Robert shrugged. "I just tune them all out,"
                "I wish I could do that," Kris sighed. Robert looked over at him and ruffled his hair.
                "What things could be going around about someone like you?" He asked. Kris scoffed.
                "In case you haven't noticed, I dress head to toe in rainbow items, but it's because I like them that's all. I've been labeled gay, homo, queer, pansy, and all other synonyms at all my other schools, and it's no different here I'm sure," He crossed his arms over his chest.
                "Well, are you gay?" Robert asked, leaning over slightly to Kris's ear. Kris's eyes widened for a second.
                "Well...no!" Maybe...I think.
                "Then just ignore it," Robert said, shrugging again like it was no big deal.
                "But I just can't," Kris threw his hands out in front of him, trying to emphasize his point. "It follows me everywhere! What would you do if you were being called gay?"
                "Live with it. It's not like it's a bad thing anyway," Robert gave Kris a small, maybe knowing, smile as they reentered the gym.
                "All right, everyone here now?" Coach Dimitri asked, looking around at the class of boys and counting. "We're going to start off with running some laps around the gym, then we'll move to something else," Most of the teens groaned, but they started moving their feet around the gym.
                "And now, it begins," Robert said to Kris as he started running. Kris tried to keep his pace, but soon fell back to his own, much slower, one. After Robert lapped him once, he slowed his own pace down so he could stay by Kris and they chatted about random things as they ran. And ran. And ran.
                "Ok guys, sorry we didn't get to do anything else today! I was just so distracted that I lost track of time. You've got about 20 minutes to change and get to your next class. See ya on Thursday!" The teacher smiled and waved to the panting boys as they helped drag each other out of the gym and to the locker rooms.
                "I have never...run so much...in my whole...life!" Kris gasped out between breaths.  Robert chuckled.
                "You get sorta...used to it," He said as they entered the locker room again. Kris quickly grabbed his clothes from the locker and turned slightly away from Robert. He did not want to get caught starring, yet again. That was what, the second time it had happened? He really needed to learn how to be more sneaky.
                "I can see why you skipped it a lot last year," He said, slipping his shirt on and fixing his hair.
                "Yeah," Robert said, pulling on his jeans. "But I think I may come to more of them this year,"
                "Why's that?" Kris asked, swinging his bag over his shoulder and walking out of the locker room with Robert.
                "Because, I've got a friend there now," Robert smiled at Kris, who looked at him with his big blue eyes. Robert couldn't help but think how pretty a blue they were. "Because, you're there."