Red Is The Warmest Colour

My class walked out into the courtyard, nervous yet excited to choose their partners.
Benches and tables were everywhere. This is where we'd usually have lunch if it was a nice day.
Seniors were sitting at the tables, waiting for us to approach them. I made it to the front of the crowd, quickly skimming through the older kids. None of them were wearing band shirts, nothing artistic or interesting about any of them. Completely normal. My body flooded with disappointment.

"Hey!"

Someone grabbed my shoulder, and I jumped, startled out of my day dream.
I turned to see red. The red hair.
It was the boy from the gay bar. He went to my school..?

"You go here?" He grinned.

I nodded, astonished.

"Wow... That's.." He slung an arm around my shoulders, walking us off. "First time is luck. Second is coinsidence. But third... That's fate."

I looked at my class mates. They were staring at us, snickering and whispering.
They couldn't know I liked men. I couldn't hang around this boy for much longer.

"Fate?" I asked.

We sat down on a single bench away from the others. It didn't have a table, but it was worth getting away from their judging eyes.

"Yes. Do you believe in fate yourself?"

"Not really. It's a matter of chance you'll ever meet someone you just click with. Well, in my opinion."

He smiled at that.
I brought out my books from my bag, and crossed my legs so I could lean on them.

"So, Frank, what do you know about George Washington?"

"Oh, so, we're actually doing work?" I grinned. "Now, that, is unexpected."

"Why? Did you not want to do any work?"

I laughed. "What do you think?"

He looked at the floor, laughing as well. And when he looked back up, his hazel eyes just shone in the sunlight. It was funny how he could do that. It seemed like it was both intentional and unconscious at the same time.
Strange, yet beautiful. I liked that. I liked that very much.

We started doing work after that. He managed to voice what I needed to know in a fun and interesting way. The type of way that teachers should be teaching.
Maybe that was true. Or maybe it was because I was so enchanted by the way he gestured and his tone of voice and his eyes. And hair.
I'd never seen anyone in the same light.
This was what attraction was supposed to feel like. This was how I was supposed to feel towards Emma. This was how she felt towards me. I am a horrible person.

***

The bell rang, and everyone in the court yards head shot up. Lunch. Oh, fuck.
I couldn't let Emma see me with him. I couldn't. But I couldn't just abandon Gerard. We were... Connecting.
She could be anywhere in school. Fuck.

"Hey," I said, turning to him and closing my book with a snap. "Wanna... Ditch?"

Gerard giggled. "You mean just leave school?"

"Why're you laughing?" I frowned.

He shrugged. "Because you obviously haven't done that before."

"Well, uh.." I mumbled. "Can we?"

The grin didn't drop from his face even as we got up. "Yes. Of course we can."

As we walked out of the school gates, my hands started to shake. I was incredibly anxious about doing this.
I had just met this kid. What if he was tricking me? What if he wasn't all that he seemed? What if Emma could tell I didn't love her, and liked him?
What the fuck would happen if my parents found out?
They were christians, for fucks sake. They never had a lazy day on sunday.
I used to believe in god when I was little. But as I grew older, growing apart from most of my friends and seeing a real dark side to the world, I stopped. Plus, it's much better not believing in god. You can live life to the fullest. No boundaries after I left school.
We walked in silence for a little bit. We agreed to go to the park and just lie down next to the lake. It was very fitting for Gerard. He seemed to like all of this type of stuff.

"A simple conversation under the sun or stars can be the best entertainment," He said as we neared our destination. "It can really make you feel alive."

Notes