Sweat trickled down Jesse’s brow as he reclined on the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡudTXWXg4Pt
bleachers behind him. As he watched his classmates make yet another lap around379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXvcCHbrrh
the track, his mind was consumed by one thought:
It was fucking hot.
Jesse had been forced to transfer379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGecgeHeJ2R
schools. It was close to graduation, he hadn’t wanted to leave, but his mom had379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpj2m1wUjy0
insisted. She told him he needed a “fresh start”. That wasn’t what he needed,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuGjOWElGgE
or wanted, but what did she care? Now here he was, sitting behind the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmdoth3Eq2E
bleachers, avoiding the P.E. teacher, and this god-awful heat.
He turned to inspect the open field379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡugB07YWW88
to his left, and instead of green, all he saw was blue. Pale, icy blue. Jesse379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNHhXLleQ0
reeled slightly, taken aback by the sudden intrusion into his personal space.379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJiZLRrac6C
He hadn’t even heard the person approach, but here he was, sitting next to him,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbbJpii1oF
staring. Jesse takes in the boy. Everything about him seems mundane. His baggy379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1DEF6wXCfS
clothes, his short cut, blonde hair, even the shape of his face was just…379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAvp84pA6At
ordinary. The only striking feature on him were his eyes. Devoid of emotion,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDzqumqbfcG
they made Jesse feel like he was looking into a deep, clear lake. One you would379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLUPrrK5G5R
drown in if you weren’t cautious enough.
Throughout Jesse’s pondering, the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2J3EAoGd9z
boy had remained silent, and it was beginning to make Jesse uncomfortable. How379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlXuOJ0Hxh4
could such an intense, empty gaze like that not? He didn’t want to be379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZDZjCWpMS
the one to break the silence. What would he even say? He dropped his gaze once379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1xT8TN2SBB
he realized there was no figuring out who this person was and waited for him to379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3oNq5dEnwu
say something. After averting his eyes from the penetrating pools of blue,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1nN6bDv3QE
Jesse shifted in his seat, folding into himself slightly, trying to make379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXoEdss1GoP
himself invisible. Why was he just staring? The silence between the two379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGj3YqxXOYA
lengthened. Jesse shuffled his body slightly and looked at the ground,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡccfqLDHkLS
uncomfortable with the kid’s overwhelming presence. He could feel his gaze.
Flicking his eyes back towards the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoAOeGROmuo
boy momentarily, he catches the sight of the boy’s retreating back. His eyes379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5rsDdLdpOE
follow him as he gets smaller and smaller, noting that the boy was far taller379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡol1L35R2qU
than he had appeared. Far, far taller than Jesse was surely. Before long, the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLkrSpT8U7Y
boy was nothing more than a black speck in the distance, vanishing from sight.
379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYzvHCBDgs
Jesse let379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwz3PJ3xkZ1
out a breath, on he hadn’t realized he was holding, and tried to not let the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhuNFiOofYr
events that had just transpired consume his thoughts.
As the final bell rang, a vast379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ZewiU1LCk
expanse of teens flooded the hallway. Jesse was jostled slightly as he fought379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiXVHSjksxO
his way through the sea of bodies. The sooner he emptied his bag into his379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n87Z2VHzP
locker, the sooner he’d be back home, in front of his computer. Today had been379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR7e5ewp5i9
yet another dull day; pretending to listen to the teachers drone on and on;379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLC5cjsXu6
ignoring the petty cliques that had formed well before he had transferred to379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORHnZjyy5l
this lame ass school; barely stomaching shitty cafeteria food. The only379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Mby0ocoWn
memorable part of the day had been the mystery boy. Jesse couldn’t get his eyes379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHFNDi1ItXa
out of his head.
Having only been in this school for379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvNk4bIVIjq
a month, Jesse sure as hell didn’t know all the kids that went here, but he379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEhAEEEvvHq
couldn’t help but think that he would remember someone so off putting. He379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf13YI1tfKE
shakes his head of the thought as he reaches his locker. Failing to put in his379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDO77z1bZ2
code correctly the first try, he curses under his breath and spins the dial379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZPNeICkcl
around again. Finally succeeding in opening his locker, he begins stuffing his379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1jvP2bzq62
textbooks onto the top shelf, feeling rather impatient.
Just as he is about to slam the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNwFuRktcM
locker door, he overhears a hushed conversation two lockers down from his, and379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRq4IK8lkt
slows himself, pretending to search for something.
“…parently he just got back. I379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3R1VVZsQq5
don’t know what they were thinking letting that psycho back in.”
“Right?! Who knows what he’s379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIHWjeynaG
capable of?”
“I thought for sure he’d be379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWVkmitl52P
expelled this tim…”
The voices faded from ear shot as379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcO8yNVteqW
the owners drifted down the hall towards the exit.
Sighing and slamming his locker379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ2aAN2sN5z
shut, Jesse followed behind at a distance. He had no clue what or who they had379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvepsehJHNZ
been talking about, but his stomach was turning knots.
He made his way out the door and379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtN1PVKnSMx
trudged down the road. He walked to and from school every day. It wasn’t really379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJIPTMbGQDK
that he had to, his mom would have happily come to pick him up if he had asked,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDhcLuJ37u
but he liked the solitude and silence of the short walk.
The driveway was empty when Jesse379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDFQ3jvCMXp
arrived home, telling him that his mother had not yet returned, not that he379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzNE12JTX1C
expected her home anyway. She’d been coming home later since they moved.
Sighing, he slid his key into the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDH1HAcT9SM
lock, but before he was able to unlock the door, a bang from his left startled379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC3eVFTKXJX
him, making him flinch inward, his face scrunching up. Turning to look at where379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDgcuEizJsU
the sound had come from, his eyes grew wide. The tall boy was standing on the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNaieoCukd
porch next door, staring at him.
Again, Jesse noted just how cold379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47cy2J892C
his stare was. Pale blue eyes, void of emotion, bore into his own olive-colored379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7R6g5ZlAj0
ones. Jesse stared back, uncertainty etched across his face.
Jesse cleared his throat,379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuOYVEAMk5j
hesitating a moment before speaking.
“Hi, uhmm… I’m Jesse. I moved here379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAKRVQ9xsbn
last week. I take it you’re our neighbor?”
Jesse’s question lingered in the379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0xQbNljoM0
air as the boy continued to stare at him. Becoming even more uncomfortable with379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQTfmcvNAzS
the kid’s intense eyes fixed on him, Jesse moved to unlock the door.
“Adam.”
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Jesse379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97p9GurCwf
whipped his head back towards the boy as the screen door of the neighbor’s home379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpB0u01wttU
slammed shut. 379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRze6xcKg9D
379Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwMD15WaoO8
