Sweat trickled down Jesse’s brow as he reclined on the350Please respect copyright.PENANAPUnm8ij3wi
bleachers behind him. As he watched his classmates make yet another lap around350Please respect copyright.PENANAubbo3cPZg6
the track, his mind was consumed by one thought:
It was fucking hot.
Jesse had been forced to transfer350Please respect copyright.PENANALk2Jcdkejk
schools. It was close to graduation, he hadn’t wanted to leave, but his mom had350Please respect copyright.PENANALnw3SaS65K
insisted. She told him he needed a “fresh start”. That wasn’t what he needed,350Please respect copyright.PENANAZBRWil2yLv
or wanted, but what did she care? Now here he was, sitting behind the350Please respect copyright.PENANAe3vgnAHGos
bleachers, avoiding the P.E. teacher, and this god-awful heat.
He turned to inspect the open field350Please respect copyright.PENANAMlQm5ehyZw
to his left, and instead of green, all he saw was blue. Pale, icy blue. Jesse350Please respect copyright.PENANA4gpGzxvMrE
reeled slightly, taken aback by the sudden intrusion into his personal space.350Please respect copyright.PENANAklm6n4GV2F
He hadn’t even heard the person approach, but here he was, sitting next to him,350Please respect copyright.PENANAMZCfE0Di8R
staring. Jesse takes in the boy. Everything about him seems mundane. His baggy350Please respect copyright.PENANAnZNZocCqGp
clothes, his short cut, blonde hair, even the shape of his face was just…350Please respect copyright.PENANA7RP798fSwk
ordinary. The only striking feature on him were his eyes. Devoid of emotion,350Please respect copyright.PENANA2StDkUxxW0
they made Jesse feel like he was looking into a deep, clear lake. One you would350Please respect copyright.PENANAlCbxqgBkRq
drown in if you weren’t cautious enough.
Throughout Jesse’s pondering, the350Please respect copyright.PENANASnlmoO01ji
boy had remained silent, and it was beginning to make Jesse uncomfortable. How350Please respect copyright.PENANAVOSnsDhSv4
could such an intense, empty gaze like that not? He didn’t want to be350Please respect copyright.PENANAIdJNHk9hYJ
the one to break the silence. What would he even say? He dropped his gaze once350Please respect copyright.PENANANhq9Wuq07b
he realized there was no figuring out who this person was and waited for him to350Please respect copyright.PENANAlRNRf3CQh3
say something. After averting his eyes from the penetrating pools of blue,350Please respect copyright.PENANAPpWP24f1xM
Jesse shifted in his seat, folding into himself slightly, trying to make350Please respect copyright.PENANAcJfLcKBzPp
himself invisible. Why was he just staring? The silence between the two350Please respect copyright.PENANA7ivRufmPLb
lengthened. Jesse shuffled his body slightly and looked at the ground,350Please respect copyright.PENANAl1PsjElixK
uncomfortable with the kid’s overwhelming presence. He could feel his gaze.
Flicking his eyes back towards the350Please respect copyright.PENANA7MgCGQUVXB
boy momentarily, he catches the sight of the boy’s retreating back. His eyes350Please respect copyright.PENANAk4qyqXgYgM
follow him as he gets smaller and smaller, noting that the boy was far taller350Please respect copyright.PENANA7EPwpi3emi
than he had appeared. Far, far taller than Jesse was surely. Before long, the350Please respect copyright.PENANAWJC2SRx8Ff
boy was nothing more than a black speck in the distance, vanishing from sight.
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Jesse let350Please respect copyright.PENANAK7xAEWNMvV
out a breath, on he hadn’t realized he was holding, and tried to not let the350Please respect copyright.PENANA3yNAGnyxJQ
events that had just transpired consume his thoughts.
As the final bell rang, a vast350Please respect copyright.PENANAGE74MxP79t
expanse of teens flooded the hallway. Jesse was jostled slightly as he fought350Please respect copyright.PENANASas6HxVjnR
his way through the sea of bodies. The sooner he emptied his bag into his350Please respect copyright.PENANAHA9ZV707uM
locker, the sooner he’d be back home, in front of his computer. Today had been350Please respect copyright.PENANACZWYvKchAU
yet another dull day; pretending to listen to the teachers drone on and on;350Please respect copyright.PENANAEJegUWpsAd
ignoring the petty cliques that had formed well before he had transferred to350Please respect copyright.PENANAofdQhqWDyD
this lame ass school; barely stomaching shitty cafeteria food. The only350Please respect copyright.PENANAS1GVmY07uz
memorable part of the day had been the mystery boy. Jesse couldn’t get his eyes350Please respect copyright.PENANAev17AGGwWs
out of his head.
Having only been in this school for350Please respect copyright.PENANAsiQpViUZLx
a month, Jesse sure as hell didn’t know all the kids that went here, but he350Please respect copyright.PENANAISaTEv42ec
couldn’t help but think that he would remember someone so off putting. He350Please respect copyright.PENANAoEPRwUoV6e
shakes his head of the thought as he reaches his locker. Failing to put in his350Please respect copyright.PENANAe4rfRHpAOD
code correctly the first try, he curses under his breath and spins the dial350Please respect copyright.PENANAyUH34fKBwh
around again. Finally succeeding in opening his locker, he begins stuffing his350Please respect copyright.PENANAgKsQAc5pnI
textbooks onto the top shelf, feeling rather impatient.
Just as he is about to slam the350Please respect copyright.PENANA4MOdsK0LS9
locker door, he overhears a hushed conversation two lockers down from his, and350Please respect copyright.PENANAoan4CrHq6g
slows himself, pretending to search for something.
“…parently he just got back. I350Please respect copyright.PENANAfm4gj37I4p
don’t know what they were thinking letting that psycho back in.”
“Right?! Who knows what he’s350Please respect copyright.PENANAuakIDDkydO
capable of?”
“I thought for sure he’d be350Please respect copyright.PENANAMkU2sIrUmA
expelled this tim…”
The voices faded from ear shot as350Please respect copyright.PENANAaBgWxNwMdx
the owners drifted down the hall towards the exit.
Sighing and slamming his locker350Please respect copyright.PENANAXF6TLyak17
shut, Jesse followed behind at a distance. He had no clue what or who they had350Please respect copyright.PENANAWHHZVOJtdi
been talking about, but his stomach was turning knots.
He made his way out the door and350Please respect copyright.PENANA6AuHVPtZqe
trudged down the road. He walked to and from school every day. It wasn’t really350Please respect copyright.PENANAUIfTaaIE0H
that he had to, his mom would have happily come to pick him up if he had asked,350Please respect copyright.PENANAAhFLa5V6tB
but he liked the solitude and silence of the short walk.
The driveway was empty when Jesse350Please respect copyright.PENANAuckA69G4FB
arrived home, telling him that his mother had not yet returned, not that he350Please respect copyright.PENANAdEMecv84V7
expected her home anyway. She’d been coming home later since they moved.
Sighing, he slid his key into the350Please respect copyright.PENANAolA1ePAOOQ
lock, but before he was able to unlock the door, a bang from his left startled350Please respect copyright.PENANAyjrZ7liudU
him, making him flinch inward, his face scrunching up. Turning to look at where350Please respect copyright.PENANADj9OR3jY6Q
the sound had come from, his eyes grew wide. The tall boy was standing on the350Please respect copyright.PENANAT7W4eDPEov
porch next door, staring at him.
Again, Jesse noted just how cold350Please respect copyright.PENANAOJst9zM3zP
his stare was. Pale blue eyes, void of emotion, bore into his own olive-colored350Please respect copyright.PENANAQrrANo6I8G
ones. Jesse stared back, uncertainty etched across his face.
Jesse cleared his throat,350Please respect copyright.PENANAIkoyKqSNAH
hesitating a moment before speaking.
“Hi, uhmm… I’m Jesse. I moved here350Please respect copyright.PENANAsI4EDG2BoN
last week. I take it you’re our neighbor?”
Jesse’s question lingered in the350Please respect copyright.PENANAIp69o57fCj
air as the boy continued to stare at him. Becoming even more uncomfortable with350Please respect copyright.PENANAcreaZxGJZf
the kid’s intense eyes fixed on him, Jesse moved to unlock the door.
“Adam.”
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Jesse350Please respect copyright.PENANAERm0P76OBf
whipped his head back towards the boy as the screen door of the neighbor’s home350Please respect copyright.PENANAFrywtu8nUE
slammed shut. 350Please respect copyright.PENANAro1KhVXjve
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