Now Boarding chapter 11

In which Alec Foster somehow both fits the private school rich kid mold perfectly and shatters it completely.

Alec dodged people in the hallway, eliciting only a few odd looks, all from new students, he was sure. He looked like a fashion model on a business call on his way to the gym, but that was completely normal for him, and everyone else had gotten used to it over the years.

"Yes. No. No. Yes!" His words were strangely cropped and formal as he tried to keep his two bags close to his chest so they wouldn't hit anyone's heads. "Wha- No! Ryan, what are you thinking?" He groaned, ducking around a corner, his eyes on the ceiling out of frustrated habit. "This is why I'm late! I was supposed to be here seven hours ago and now you can't-" He was cut off, causing an annoyed sigh as he finally found his door. "Look, Ry- Ryan. I have to go. I'll call you back, okay?" He scoffed quietly to himself, though it came with a small smile. "Yeah, I know she does. Tell her I love her, too, alright? I'll talk to you later." He'd already taken the key out of the pocket of his button-down and stuck it in the lock, but didn't twist it until the phone was locked and in the pocket of his designer jeans.

He opened it quickly, causing a loud scrape and small crack as the button didn't pull back from the metal piece fast enough. The first thing he heard, though, was a small gasp, but he didn't look over to see the source until the slab of wood slammed itself shut and his bags were thrown onto the second bed.

He turned to see a small boy on the far bed obviously avoiding his gaze. He had shockingly paper white skin, but Alec was sure that the pitch black color of his unbrushed hair caused a good amount of that effect. His knees were pulled up to his chest, dirty, worn out jeans pressed against a plain, dark blue T-shirt, the book between the two articles of clothing taking just enough shape for Alec to not be surprised his thin arms weren't hugging his legs to him.

Alec straightened his shirt out before walking over, tan hands tugging on the hem of the light pink fabric. He sat on the edge of the bed between them, slouching forward a bit in order to have a better line of view. The other boy had moved away slightly, the book pushed off to the side, and was looking up at him with wide, almost fearful eyes, sizing him up like an abused animal trapped inside a cage.

Immediately linking the two situations in his mind, Alec reached his hand out somewhat slowly, but with his palm facing the wall, instead of out. "Looks like we're roommates, huh? I'm Alec." His smile and voice were both uncharacteristically soft. He didn't want to terrify him any more than he obviously was.

Still, the smaller boy stared at the appendage for a long moment before uncurling his own tiny, loose fist and lightly grasping the other boy's much larger hand, his fingers themselves feeling fragile against Alec's skin. "M-Marcus." It was quiet, barely above a whisper, but what surprised Alec was his voice, itself. It was much deeper than he'd expected and, while it wasn't incredibly masculine, there was a certain roughness to it that suddenly made him seem much older than he appeared.

"Nice to meet you, Marcus." Alec smiled warmly, shaking his hand, but sure to keep his grip light. The smaller boy finally looked into his eyes, revealing his own from behind his cracked, tire-rim glasses. They were a foggy dark gray, resembling the sky on a stormy day more than an eye color, and Alec found himself staring into them for at least a few moments longer than he probably should have, not snapping out of it until they were looking down. The second they were, he let go of the boy's hand, his usual bright smile taking over his features, despite the slight confusion he pushed to the back of his mind.

Marcus already had his hand clutched to his chest, and immediately jumped back several inches, his other hand flying out to keep him from falling back, when Alec leapt to his feet, making the taller boy pause.

"You alright?" he asked, his smile fading a bit, concern edging its way into his voice.

"Y-yeah," the smaller boy said quietly, forcing a small, shaky smile. "I'm f-fine."

Alec didn't say anything for a moment, not believing him in the slightest, but shrugged it off and practically ran to his own bed. He plopped down and leaned over one of the bags, rummaging through as he spoke, not caring how much he messed it up. "What are you here for?"

"Y-you mean classes?" Marcus asked, slowly relaxing with the added distance. His arms were coming down to rest at his sides, legs lowering from where they'd pulled up against his chest again.

Alec simply nodded, squinting at a lavender ascot before thoughtlessly forcing it against the side of the bag.

"Singing and a-acting." This was accompanied by a more believable, albeit miniscule, smile. "W-what about you?"

"Really?" Alec asked, tuning to look at him, surprised. He never would have guessed. He'd automatically pegged him for a writer or an artist, not a performer, but he had to be good. After all, he did get in. "Me, too!"

Marcus smiled a bit more, his legs sprawled out in front of him, though his shoulders and back were still painfully straight. "C-cool," he stuttered, praying that he didn't sound ridiculous only taking up a twentieth of his mind, at the most. He wanted to impress the other boy, he wanted him to like him, and yet... He didn't trust him in the slightest. Or was it that he couldn't? Another fifty percent was flickering between how incredible it would be to have a friend – a friend that was his roommate, especially, that he would have to be around every day – and how horrible it would be to be betrayed and manipulated into thinking someone cared about him and... used. Again.

Alec looked over and stared at him for a moment. "Hey, how old are you, anyway?"

Marcus looked away, almost seeming ashamed, or at least a bit embarrassed. "Oh, um, f-fifteen."

"Hey, me, too!" This time it was the words, not the tone or his grin that surprised the smaller boy. The taller looked seventeen, at the very least, but was only as old as he was.

"Looks like we have some things in common, huh?" It took Marcus several seconds before he noticed the slight suggestion in the other boy's voice, more in his eyes and the half-smirk playing on his lips, and another several to realize his own face was flushed bright red, from some combination of coyness, embarrassment, and shock.

This was going to be an interesting year.