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Warning: Contains Boy's Love and vulgar language.

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Chapter 8: Branching Out


Despite the coffee in his hand, Elliot wasn’t feeling any better.

He turned the cup around in his hands and watched the warm and hazy steam spiral upwards. In the back of his mind he registered that the car was moving again, though it didn’t seem to matter. He stared out the window at the blurred landscape of buildings, street lamps, and people. But Elliot didn’t see them. Only lithe dancers that stirred something in him he hadn’t known existed.

“Is it good?”

“Huh?”

“The coffee.” The car turned down a corner and they drove down a road less bumpy and more familiar. The President’s mouth was a thin, taut line and his eyes were focused completely on the road. “Is it good?”

“Oh. Yeah, thanks.” Elliot glanced down at the neglected coffee he had yet to even taste. He lifted the beverage to his lips and took a sip. It was hot and bitter in his mouth and he swallowed with a grimace. They’d forgotten the sugar.

“So…” The President tapped his fingers against the steering wheel, the sentence left to dangle in the tense air. Elliot heaved a sigh. He counted off the seconds in his head until the talk began. “…Did someone have an epiphany today?”

“Can we not do this? Please?” Elliot groaned through pursed lips.

“Wow. You said 'please'.”

“Just stop. I was being serious.” Elliot stared out the car window. He didn’t know why he had let The President drive him home. It’d been a perfectly nice day. He could’ve just walked home, just like he’d walked to school that morning. A walk actually sounded good at the moment. Maybe some exercise would finally get his brain working normally. But The President had practically dragged him off to his car when they’d left the football field. Even Elliot couldn’t say no to the older adolescent when he got that concerned. Elliot only began to regret the decision when the driver felt inclined to play ‘wise older brother’ again.

“I’m serious, too.” The President took a drink of his own coffee while keeping his eyes on the road. “You can’t back out on this now. Something’s bothering you, and I’m not letting you leave this car until you tell me what it is.”

The corner of Elliot’s mouth twitched. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah. Really.” It was a challenge. Elliot’s grip on his coffee cup increased until the cup bent a little in the middle. The palm of his hand felt sweaty and sticky from the hot beverage inside. The car changed direction again onto a street Elliot knew was only a block away from his own. The President finally moved his grim eyes off the road and glanced at him. “Now would be a good time to start. Unless of course you want to sit in your driveway all day?”

Elliot rolled his eyes but could already see that there was no escape from this. The President had woven his sticky web and Elliot was stuck. Like usual. “I just freaked out. No big deal.”

The President arched an eyebrow. “What did you freak out about?”

Elliot’s blood turned to ice. Without thinking he took another drink from his coffee. Anything to stall for time. After he swallowed he forced out, “None of your damn business.”

“Elliot…”

“Look, it’s nothing, okay?” Without meaning to, Elliot downed the rest of his coffee. His throat felt like it was on fire, but it was better than nothing. A burning throat was something to be angry about, something to distract himself. Much better than getting angry with someone who was only trying to help.

“It’s obviously not nothing if it bothers you. C’mon, what’s wrong? I thought you trusted me.”

“I do trust you.”

“Then tell me. I can’t help you if you keep secrets.”

Elliot groaned again through gritted teeth. He pinched the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb and took a deep and steadying breath. Then, with a single burst of confidence, he mumbled something out through a rushed breath that was blurred and incoherent to anyone’s ears but his own.

“I’m sorry but could you speak up please?” The President spoke in a serious tone, but raised a hand to his ear for comedic emphasis.

Elliot lowered his hand and in a bold roar answered, “I said I checked out the freaky kid!”

There was nothing but the sound of the car humming as it slowed to the appropriate speed limit. Elliot fidgeted in his seat, unable to keep still while his own words soaked in. He looked at anything and everything but The President. The seconds seemed to stretch like hours and his words echoed mockingly in his head. Elliot bit his lower lip and frowned. Damn awkward silence.

“…You mean Cameron, right?”

Just the sound of the red-haired boy’s name was enough to make Elliot nearly jump out of his skin. “What other freaky kid is there?”

“No need to get snarky. I was only asking. That is interesting, though. I didn’t know you liked Cameron.”

“I don’t!”

“Then why did you check him out?”

“I—I don’t know.” They turned onto Elliot’s street and his hands shot for the release of his seat belt, readying themselves, just a little too eager to escape. “It doesn’t matter, anyway. It’s not going to happen again. Ever.”

“…Ah…I see.” The President mused. To anyone else it would’ve sounded thoughtful, but to Elliot’s trained ears he could hear the undertone of amusement laced with intrigue. “So you’re in denial now?”

“I’m not in denial.”

“That’s what they all say,” The President chuckled. He pulled the car to a stop in Elliot’s driveway, then turned in his seat and faced the younger boy. “Elliot, it's okay if you were checking out another boy,” Elliot visibly tensed at this but he continued anyway, “Most people check out the same sex, even if they’re heterosexual. It’s perfectly normal.”

“No it’s not. It’s disgusting!” With that finally said, Elliot undid his seat belt and went to open the door. The President reached out and touched his shoulder, only meaning to stop the other, but at his touch Elliot jumped and snapped his eyes on him with an uncharacteristic edginess. “What?”

“Elliot…it’s okay.” The President withdrew his hand, but Elliot remained tense and jittery. The President frowned at this. “Trust me, Elliot. This is nothing to flip out over. Odds are that it meant nothing, and if it does, well, it’s not the end of the world. Remember what I said about being open to change?”

“Easy for you to say. You’re always right about everything. Of course you’d understand all of this completely!” Elliot snapped, his words razor sharp. The President flinched, but he quickly recovered his calm posture. He went to say something else, except Elliot snapped at him again to shut up. He then hastily grabbed his book bag from between his feet and roughly opened the car door, the brisk air hitting him with full-force the moment he stepped outside. He touched the side of the metal car door; ready to slam it shut, but paused. He turned and with his gaze directed at the perfectly green grass of his front lawn, muttered, “what ever it was, it meant nothing. Don’t even worry about it.”

The President shook his head. “Actions speak louder than words. Don’t just shrug this off as nothing and ignore it.”

“But it is nothing.”

“Says who? Do you really believe that? Or are you only saying that because that’s what you think you’re supposed to say? Frown at me all you want. I say these things because I worry about you.”

“Then stop worrying,” Elliot backed away from the car, shouldering his book bag on. His eyes caught the time from the clock inside the car. “I have to go, but don’t think I was joking—you can stop acting like a worrisome father now.”

The President stared at him long and hard before something that could be considered a small smile tugged at his lips. “I can’t help it. Someone has to play the role of ‘responsible dad’.” Elliot said nothing. He looked away and was about the close the car door when The President quickly added, like a rushed afterthought, “Think about what I’ve said, okay? Maybe I’m wrong and this is nothing after all—but…consider things first, okay?”

Just the thought of ‘considering’ anything was repulsive, but on the other side of the scale, the idea of worrying his friend wasn’t too pleasing either. “…Fine.” He had no real plans to ‘consider’ anything, but if it put his friend’s heart at ease to say he would, then so be it. With that over and done with, he mumbled a good-bye, closed the car door, and left.

When the front door of his house closed behind him, he rested his back up against it and it was as if he could finally properly breathe again. Thankfully, the house was quiet and calm. No one seemed to be home, or at least quarrelling. He waited for the car in his driveway to leave and a minute later it finally did. Elliot heaved a discontent sigh, the tension flooding out from his shoulders, leaving him weary. He closed his eyes.

“Stupid Cameron.”


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The next morning, Elliot woke up a little later than usual. Not late enough for him to panic, but it was certainly late enough to catch his full attention. He went through his usual morning ritual—have a shower, get dressed, feed himself and Muffin, lock up the house—and after deciding that he didn’t have time to stroll to school, grabbed his car keys.

The drive to school didn’t take long. It was about fifteen minutes away by foot. That morning he got there at a record time of eight minutes. First period wouldn’t be starting for at least another nine minutes, plenty of time for him to get to class with a few minutes to spare.

He just hadn’t counted on using those extra minutes the way they would be.

He pulled into the student parking lot, still yawning but more or less wide-awake. The sun was still low in the sky, rising later and later as the weeks went further into autumn. The tops and sides of cars were bathed in a warm orange glow, bright enough that Elliot had to squint against it just to see. At that time in the late morning, the only students out and around the campus now were smokers, out in a huddled group, getting one last cancer stick in before reluctantly trudging to class. He parked just a few feet away and hoped that none of them tried to hassle him for some money, or a smoke. Just as Elliot had turned off the engine and was about to take the keys out of the ignition, out of the corner of his eye he caught a flash of light. Elliot halted in his movements and looked around, searching for what that light had been. And he found it—in the hands of a certain freckled-hired boy, sitting cross-legged on a school bench.

Elliot’s heart did a back flip in his chest. He ducked down low enough so that he could see but not necessarily be seen. He completely forgot about the keys in the ignition—but what did the keys matter when Cameron was sitting only a few feet away? “Shit!” He cursed lowly, biting his thumb. Cameron was sitting near the front entrance, too. There was no way Elliot could sneak by him without being noticed.

What am I thinking? He mentally scolded himself; I’m freaking out over nothing! He’d been persistent all night long in convincing himself that the football tryouts really had been nothing after all. Just a hormonal misunderstanding. But now that it was being put to the test, suddenly a ‘misunderstanding’ didn’t seem like ‘nothing’.

But it had been nothing! He peeked through the window at the freckled boy a few feet away. He seemed preoccupied over the object in his hands, something mechanical and expensive looking. Every time the object was moved even just a little, light would glint off of it and in his direction. That must’ve been what caught his attention. Elliot narrowed his eyes. Stupid contraption. His sharp eyes drifted, studying the male who gazed inquiringly at the object in his hands. Elliot snorted. He had checked out that? There must have been something funny put into his food. What could he have possibly found attractive? Certainly not the rusty orange hair—which was down again—that just touched the base of his neck. It wasn’t the slender fingers that pocked and prodded at the object in his hands, tilting it in weird ways as if looking for something. It couldn’t have been his weird and out of place freckled skin, that was bathed in the warm orange glow from the early sun. Nor was it the gentle curve of his back, the leanness of his crossed legs, or even the dimples in his cheeks when he smiled—

The uncomfortable tightness of his pants was what finally grabbed Elliot’s attention and yanked him back into reality. Swearing, he tore his eyes away from the figure a few feet away. After a moment’s hesitation he looked down and heaved a sigh of relief. He was in the clear. Nevertheless, he began to feel on edge and only more aware of the slightest tightness of his pants between his legs. He bit his lower lip and waited as patiently as he could for his insides to stop bouncing around in a hyperactive fit.

He couldn’t believe it. That such…excitement…could be roused that easily was beyond unnerving. The fact that this was now the second time he’d checked out Cameron only made things worse. He wished there were a way to slap the stupid thoughts and feelings away. This had to be a misunderstanding. A simple and unwanted misunderstanding.

Fine! So Cameron’s attractive. Big whoop. Lots of people are. Doesn’t mean a damn thing, though! His conversation with The President replayed in his head as if on cue. Was it really normal for a guy to check out another guy? No—that wasn’t important. The question he really needed answered was: was it normal for a guy to get a borderline erection after looking at an attractive guy?

Stupid! Of course it’s not normal! For straight guys, anyway…no! I’m straight! I know I am. Elliot roughly grabbed his book bag from the backseat and sat up straight in his seat. He grasped the keys and with a sharp turn, yanked them out of the ignition. I’m heterosexual—and I can prove it.

He stepped outside of the car and closed the door behind him. With a click of a button, his car was locked. With his head held high—without it being blatantly pretentious—he strode towards the entrance to school.

I can do this. He’s not even looking my way. He inhaled a large amount of air, eager to calm the jittery nerves inside his traitorous body. He glanced every other second at the freckled-boy sitting on the bench. Cameron was still caught up with the item in his hand, and now that Elliot was closer, he realized that it was a video camera. Good. He’s preoccupied. He won’t even notice me. I’m almost home free! Every step became more confident, more self-assured. Yes, he was fine. He was normal. He walked by the freckled-boy, practically invisible. Good. Nothing had changed. He was just fine.

What a relief.

“Hey, Elliot!”

Elliot froze right on the spot, the hand gripping the strap of his book bag squeezing it viciously. So close. He’d been so close. But he could do this. If it was really all a misunderstanding, just one big fabricated lie, then surely he could have small talk with Cameron without freaking out.

With a small, shaky inhale, Elliot turned around with his best poker face and said, “Yes?”

Cameron gave a tiny, almost shy wave. “Good morning.”

Good morning? Was that it? “…Good morning to you, too.” There. That would suffice as small talk. Pleased with himself, Elliot turned and headed for the front doors again. He’d only taken a few steps, though, when to his surprise Cameron dashed after him, hastily throwing the strap of his messenger bag over his shoulder. The palms of Elliot’s hands began to feel warm—too warm—and almost sweaty. Refusing to look at Cameron, Elliot kept on walking. Cameron walked right along side him, staring at him but not saying anything. With the slightest hint of a groan, Elliot forced out, “What do you want?”

Cameron looked away. “Just to talk.”

Elliot arched an eyebrow. Something sounded off. Cameron didn’t sound as jubilant or energetic like before. Instead, he sounded a little more tamed. Even a little thoughtful. Well, what ever it was, it wasn’t his problem. For all he knew the guy was just having an off day. Elliot pushed open the front door and walked in, Cameron following in behind him. “As fascinating as that is, I have to get to class. And so do you.”

“I know.”

“I’m sure you do. Good-bye.”

“No, wait! Just give me a second.”

The corner of Elliot’s mouth tugged down. His stomach did a back flip, and as if to combat the weird feelings, Elliot shoved his sweaty hands into his pockets. Why was Cameron so resolute? As if Elliot wanted to stand there and talk to him. Nothing about this felt comfortable.

“C’mon, just for a second. I need to ask you something.”

Elliot rolled his eyes and stopped dead in his tracks. Turning around, he looked up at Cameron and said in a tense, edgy voice, “Were you waiting there on that bench all morning for me? Just to ask a question?”

Cameron blinked, seemingly taken aback. “How’d you know?”

Elliot’s stomach did another back flip. “…I didn’t.”

“Oh. Well,” Cameron paused and rubbed the back of his neck, eyes shyly diverted towards the floor. Elliot looked away and glanced quickly around the area, relieved to see that there was no one there to witness the awkwardness. He was nervous enough without having any gossiping spectators. “I…I was just wondering if you’d hang out with my friends and I at lunch today?”

Elliot nearly choked. “What?” He stared at him in disbelief and Cameron visibly flinched, still staring at the floor. Had he really asked such a stupid thing? Elliot shook his head, unable to understand the situation or Cameron. “Why in the world would you ask such a thing?”

“Yesterday—”

“What about yesterday?”

Cameron halted, as if tongue-tied. He started to say something but stopped, still at a loss for words. The first warning bell for first period rang in a taunting chime and suddenly there didn’t seem to be enough time for anything.

“Fuck,” Elliot growled, his voice barely audible. He didn’t like to make a habit of being late for class, especially for unsavory reasons. He shook his head and began to walk to his first period. Much to his dislike, Cameron hurried after him.

“You didn’t give me an answer,” he explained in a rushed voice, as if he was going by the same sped-up tempo Elliot was in now that their time was limited.

“Do I honestly need to say an answer aloud?”

Cameron frowned. “Yes.”

“Fine.” He glanced over at the freckled-boy and spat out, “No.”

But Elliot’s answer didn’t satisfy Cameron. He kept on marching by Elliot’s side, matching his long strides with less grace but equal fervor. “Why not?”

“Because.”

“Because why?”

“Because I said so.”

Cameron shook his head; the same frown still etched on his face. “That doesn’t sound like a very good reason.”

Elliot said nothing. Why should he have to give a good reason? Most of them were painfully obvious, and even the subtle ones he planned to keep to himself were painful. Even if they were obvious, though, he didn’t dare say them aloud. They were the sort of things that a person just didn’t talk about, especially when it could call a few things into question. Elliot turned down a hallway, now only a few feet away from his first period classroom. But the freckled-boy at his side refused to give up.

“C’mon, why won’t you hang out with us?”

“Why should I? We’re not even friends.”

Without warning, Cameron sidestepped in front of Elliot, blocking his path. Elliot halted, almost bumping into Cameron. He quickly regained his calm composure, heart still lurching in his chest at the sudden movement. Elliot sneered and went to move past him, but Cameron moved again, blocking Elliot once more. They stared into each other’s eyes, caught in a stalemate where both sides refused to give in.

“C’mon, what’s the real reason?”

“That was the reason,” he snapped, unable to keep the viciousness from his voice. Not with the freckled-boy so close to him. Close enough that he could smell a faint musk that must have been Cameron’s unique scent. Elliot became tense when an anxiety like electricity sparked through his body. He swallowed the lump in his throat and his sweaty hands balled themselves into fists in his pockets. He could feel his inner pillar of strength shake with tiny tremors that grew bigger the longer Cameron stared at him with fierce conviction. And Elliot didn’t like it. Not one bit.

Cameron broke the tense silence and said skeptically, “Really?”

“Really,” but Elliot's response had sounded too quick, even to himself.

“Hmm. That’s funny,” Cameron crossed his arms. If only he could sound as strong as he looked right then, for his voice held the tiniest tremors he physically didn’t show. Elliot noticed and picked up on them. Something in his head flicked the light switch on. Cameron was intimidated. This was just an act. Cameron’s next words didn’t sound any stronger, “personally, I think you’re scared.”

Elliot nearly laughed at the irony he was beginning to see. “Scared?”

“Yeah. Why else would you decline?”

“Besides the fact we aren’t friends?”

“Well, yeah.” Cameron didn’t sound so strong now, as if his determination a few moments ago had had a burst of energy that was already running low. It was encouraging to notice those tiny details. Cameron had practically punched a sensitive spot when he’d brought up ‘fear’. To have caught on that Cameron was also scared was…reassuring. In an odd way.

“…Huh. Scared.” Elliot tasted the word carefully and began to gain back some of his natural courage. Playing along to salvage his pride would be much easier now. “Nope. I’m not scared.” And he wouldn’t let himself be scared. Ever.

“No?”

Elliot shook his head, smirking. He was pleased now that he had control over the conversation. This could go any way he wanted it to. “Nope. And to prove it, I will show up at lunch. For a few minutes.”

Elliot might as well have slapped Cameron across the face with the way the freckled-boys eyes widened; his mouth was practically a gaping black hole. And then, with enough relieved joy to make Elliot’s body remember the physical reason why this was a bad idea, Cameron smiled. The smirk on Elliot’s face instantly disappeared. For a brief moment he studied the cheerful smile. Elliot wished he were back in his car, where he could calm down and keep in control and somehow ignore the tightness below…he hadn’t expected such a brutally honest response like that. Fuck. Had he fallen into some sort of trap?

“Awesome!” Cameron replied, though a tad timidly, but nevertheless pleased. He looked like he couldn’t even contain his excitement; a shaken soda can ready to burst. “Do you know where we hang out?”

“No.” Elliot mumbled, flabbergasted.

“It’s out back, on the hill near the woods.”

Elliot blinked. “There?” Managing control over a double-crossing body and an eccentric conversation he wished he weren’t having was beginning to fry his nerves to crisps.

“Yeah,” Cameron rubbed the back of his neck and his eyes drifted elsewhere, “so…you’ll be there, right?”

The second bell rang, signaling for first period to start. Elliot jolted back to life and only nodded to Cameron’s question. Before the situation could get any worse, Elliot brushed roughly past Cameron, his body on fire from where it touched the other boy. Only vaguely did he hear, “see you there!” as he walked into his first period, a few seconds late. But that didn’t matter, those few seconds. Those words still chimed in his ears that were as hot as the shoulder that still felt that rough brush just seconds ago. He collapsed into his seat just as roll call began, unease swimming in his stomach.

Me and my big mouth…


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By the time lunch finally came, Elliot wanted to vomit. During the last period before lunch, his eyes would dart back and forth between the clock hanging on the wall to the teacher at the front of the room. Back and forth, back and forth. Time seemed to slip between his fingers like sand from an hourglass. Before he knew it, the bell for lunch had rung and his stomach had dropped to the very pit of his being. He lingered for as long as he could in the classroom, taking as much time as he could to pack up his things. He was the last to leave, and he still wasn’t feeling any better. He considered the possibility of just not showing up—ditching the idea completely. After all, who would care? Cameron? He felt a guilt churn in his already anxious stomach at the thought of going back on his word. He hated lying. But did he really want to go through with this? Could he?

Fuck him, Elliot thought as he walked down the hallway. He won’t care. He probably asked me on a dare or something. The jackass.

He stopped halfway down the hallway and stared up ahead. The hallway split into two different sections. One led to the downstairs lobby, where he could also go upstairs and to the Student Council room—a familiar, welcoming room. The other hallway led to a different section of the school that also had an exit that led to the outside—wide open space, including the hill where Cameron had invited him to hang out that very lunch hour. Immediately, Elliot began to walk towards the familiar route—but something stopped him. His feet didn’t want to move any longer. He glanced down the other way, and a heavy tidal wave of guilt sloshed around inside. As if his body acted on feeling alone, he turned and took a few tentative steps towards that direction. Then stopped again. Before Elliot knew it, he was stuck between two different pathways, each with its own pros and cons. Stuck.

“Exit’s that way.”

Elliot flinched at the suddenness of Cameron’s presence and shot a frown over his shoulder at the freckled-boy. Cameron was standing in the doorway of a classroom nearby, the monotone voice of a teacher practically floating behind him, insignificant. With a quick wave good-bye to his teacher, Cameron approached Elliot, smiling much like earlier—a giddy, excited smile. “Were you waiting for me?”

Elliot looked away, unable to look Cameron in the eye. “No. I didn’t even know you had a class there.”

“Just today.We needed the computer lab for some work. So! Ready to go?”

Elliot cast a glance down the familiar hallway, still caught on the hook of his moral dilemma. But—he had said he would. And as much as Elliot would’ve loved to deny Cameron his company for lunch, his pride had other plans at hand. He let out a long breath and turned towards the sledomly used alien hallway. “Yeah. I guess.”


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They walked towards the hill in silence. Cameron didn’t push for a conversation. He still seemed somewhat thoughtful, like earlier that morning, and for that alone, Elliot was thankful. He had no idea what he would say to the other boy if he did force small talk. What could he possibly say? “Nice weather we’re having. You’re a terrific dancer. Almost gave me a hard-on, you know.” That would go over real well.

They drew closer to the hill. Elliot could make out three figures already out at the top, sitting near the bit of woods that sat between the school grounds and the residential area as a sort of natural barrier. Much to his dismay, he recognized all three of them. He inwardly groaned. He should have known Cameron hung out with those sort of people…

A male figure waved leisurely from where he lay on the green hill, lying comfortably on his back with his head resting on his book bag. His shaggy brown hair was tousled all over his face, wavy and twisting every which way, like it hadn’t been properly brushed in a week. Even without the sun beating down on them as harshly as it did, he was a pleasant caramel brown. Even his peaceful eyes were caramel coloured. Many silver piercings, everywhere from his eyebrows to his mouth, and even beside his eyes glinted in the sunlight when he moved. “Cam-Cam! ‘Bout time, man. You’re late!”

Cameron laughed and tossed his book bag at the male, who caught it before it completely collided into him. “Sorry Maxi. Had to talk to Ms. Stevens about something.”

The male—Maxi—glanced over Cameron’s shoulder and arched an eyebrow. The two girls behind him eyed Elliot with the same inspecting, bewildered expression. Elliot hardened his gaze and stared back. He couldn’t help but feel on display, subject to silent scrutiny, even to a bunch of people who looked much better to play the part than him.

One of the girls—Alison—scooted closer towards Maxi and asked in a voice laced with suspicion, “What’s he doing here?”

“I invited him,” Cameron answered, untouched by the silent criticism in Alison’s tone. He turned towards Elliot and added in the same light-hearted voice, “Go ahead, sit down. No one’s going to bite.”

“Ha. Speak for yourself.” Maxi grinned at Elliot and flashed his pearly whites for emphasis. “So, how’re you doing?”

Elliot stared at him. He recognized that teasing grin, that playful tone. He remembered it from his days of middle school, back when he had first met Maxi, and he knew from experience that Maxi wasn’t expecting an answer at all. With an air of indignation, Elliot plopped down on the grass in proud silence. Maxi lost his grin but continued to stare at Elliot an unreadable expression. Cameron sat down beside the group (a little too close to him for comfort…) but the other girl, who had so far not said a single word, stayed where she was, at least a foot away from the group with her nose buried in a thick, dog-eared novel.

“C’mon, Elena. Join everyone else.” Cameron called over, but Elena waved a hand in dismissal. Cameron just shrugged with acceptance. Elliot glanced over at the withdrawn girl and, again from experience, he wasn’t shocked that the girl seemed lost in her own world, her long wavy hair falling around her face in boldly coloured dark purple curtains, barely hiding her dull blue eyes. She looked bored, sitting there, but Elliot knew better—it was concentration, not boredom. He inwardly sighed. Maxi and Elena hadn’t changed at all from their earlier days.

“What a lovely surprise, you being here. You look tense, loosen up a bit. You’re already sitting on the dirty ground like the rest of us common-folk. That’s a start. Right, Elly?”

Cameron had been digging through his book bag, but he looked up at the mention of ‘Elly’. His glance darted between Elliot and Maxi and, predictably, he asked, “did you just call him Elly?”

“Mmhmm. Elliot and I go way back. Grade five, right?”

“Grade four.”

“Ah. Right, right.” Maxi grinned, the same grin that used to drive Elliot wild with fury when they were younger. It was already beginning to boil his blood. “My bad?”

“Huh. I didn’t know you knew each other.” Cameron somehow sounded disappointed but interested. Maxi only nodded his head but Elliot refused to say anything on the matter. It’d been years ago. What would be the point in digging up history they’d both willingly buried years ago?

Before an awkward silence could settle, Maxi got up from where he lay and stretched his arms. “Well, it’s been nice lying here, but this hot body of mine is yearning for some movement. I’m going to go climb some trees.”

“Again?” Alison inquired and arched an eyebrow up at Maxi, “You fell down yesterday, remember? You got that huge bruise on your leg.”

Maxi only waved his hand at that, fanning the memory away and out of the record books, then began to head for the tall and sturdy trees. Elliot rolled his eyes. Maxi really hadn’t changed after all this time. Going by that logic alone, it wouldn’t be long before they were both at each other’s throats. If he had known whom Cameron hung out with, he never would’ve let himself agree to this. It was bad enough an idea.

Alison went through her book bag and pulled out a textbook and a binder, already going off into her own world. Elliot shook his head and tried to ignore the sound of tree branches rustling and loud curses just off to the side. He looked up at the bright blue sky. The clouds sure seemed to take their time moving. Boring. A movement off to Elliot’s side caught his eye and he glanced over at Cameron. The freckled-boy had pulled out the same object from earlier that morning, a video camera. He was fiddling around with something. His fingers pressed many different buttons in weird combinations.

“What are you doing?” Elliot finally asked.

Cameron looked up from his video camera, as if he couldn’t believe that Elliot had shown some sort of interest in what he was doing. With a sudden vigor, Cameron’s expression lit up with something Elliot couldn’t interpret, and he abruptly shuffled over (even closer, Elliot noted uncomfortably, close enough that just a few inches more and they would practically touch).

Cameron tilted the camera so that Elliot could see the tiny glass screen. “I’m just watching some videos I took, trying to decide which ones to keep. Only problem is that I can’t make up my mind.”

Elliot swallowed, his hands curled and grasped at the grass. Was Cameron always this much of a personal-space invader, or was this just a special case? He focused his mind back on the conversation—something to distract himself, something to help keep him calm and in control. “You make videos?”

“You have no idea,” Cameron replied with glee. “I love movies.”

“Oh?”

“Mmhmm. It’s the whole reason why I came to this school, for some of the classes they have here.”

“We have movie-making classes?” Elliot had never heard of such a thing. At their high school, anyway.

“No, but this school has lots of classes that teach stuff I’d need to learn to make good movies. Technology stuff, you know? Then there's Theatre Arts. That's always helpful.” Cameron pressed some more buttons on his video camera, as if searching before he settled on something. “If I want to become a movie director someday, I have to learn lighting, writing, and high-tech stuff.” He leaned in a little closer and Elliot leaned back in response, nerves bristling at the closing space between them. But he had to stay calm. If he ignored the jitteriness, then it didn’t exist.

Cameron pressed one last button on his video camera and held it up so that Elliot could see without the glare of sunlight ruining it. “See? This is the latest video I took. I was working with lighting and angles with this one.”

Elliot remained quiet and watched the leisurely images flash over the screen. It was a fairly simple video. A sunrise—or maybe a sunset?—over a calm, still lake. The screen moved across the horizon, the hills, trees, and few houses that looked over the lake silhouetted in black against the warm orange, purple, and navy blue sky. Just when Elliot figured that that was it, the tiniest bit of movement caught his eye, and the camera zoned in on a lone figure standing by lake, back to the camera while they skipped rocks. It was a simple video—but before Elliot knew it, he could already feel a sense of calm and completion just from watching it.

When it was over, Cameron lowered the video camera. “I got my sister Cheryl to wake up real early last weekend and do that bit. She nearly chewed my ear off for it, but I think it worked out pretty nicely. So, what do you think?”

“It’s…not bad.” Not bad was an understatement, but Cameron seemed pleased with the answer. Elliot was no expert on movie making, but from what he had just seen, he was fairly impressed. He didn’t think someone like Cameron took time out of their day to do things like that. He had always thought that Cameron was the type to waste time and energy on mundane things. He didn’t think that the freckled-boy had the sort of vigor to work hard for something like this. Elliot could almost imagine it perfectly—Cameron sitting by the beach, up at hours unheard of to the adolescent race, patiently waiting for the sun to rise. Determined. Elliot had to admit that he was a little impressed, to say the least.

Cameron pressed a few more buttons on his video camera, looking through it again. Elliot watched him some more, still a little awed. He wondered what other sort of home-movies Cameron had stored in there, what sort of things and experiences he had captured through the lenses. The cracking of a branch broke Elliot’s chain of thought and everyone looked over towards the tree, anticipating the thud that would come afterwards. There was no thud, though, but instead a hasty and violent rustling of leaves and a few snappish curses as the male figure up in the trees regained his grip. Maxi lowered himself down to a lower branch and gestured for all of them to come near.

“Hey guys, you have to come see the view from up here!” Maxi called out. "It’s amazing!"

Alison chuckled, not once looking up from her textbook. “Let me guess—as far as the eye can see?”

“Hmpf. Spoiled-sport.” Maxi frowned but shrugged her off, like he was used to her attitude. “Hey Cameron, you got to come see this. It’s a real nice view. Bring your video camera.”

“Just a second,” Cameron called back and got up from the ground. He looked down at Elliot and asked with what must have been hope, “You coming with?”

“I don’t know.” Elliot never really had been a fan of tree climbing. Sure, he was good enough at it, but he couldn’t get a kick out of it like Maxi—or apparently Cameron—did. Wasn’t tree climbing for middle schooler’s showing off in front of the other kids on the playground? Where was the point?

Cameron waved his hand with dismissal, not one ounce of his hope and determination squashed beneath Elliot’s hesitance. “Aw, c’mon. It’ll be fun. The more the merrier.” Cameron looked thoughtful for a moment, then added, “You can climb, right?”

Elliot snorted. Could he climb? “Of course I can climb. Who do you take me for?” He got up from the grass and wiped away any excess dirt clinging to his pants. “I’m coming.”

Cameron beamed, delight dancing in his eyes. “Great!” And with that, he led the way towards the trees, leaving the preoccupied girls to themselves. Elliot followed him, exiting the grassy slope of the hill into the dense woods of twisting and stretching trees. The floor of the woods was covered with a thin blanket of brown and gold leaves that crunched and crinkled underneath their footsteps. The closer Elliot got the stretching trees, the more he sized them up. They hadn’t looked so big from where they had sat…but he wasn’t going to chicken out now. He was no coward.

By the time they got to the same tree Maxi had climbed up, Cameron’s head was titled back quite a ways. He whistled. “Damn that’s huge.” He looked down at his camera, “I hope I don’t drop this…”

“You’re that clumsy?”

“And how,” Cameron answered with a tiny laugh. “Even with the grip on here, and the strap, I have this nasty tendency of dropping and breaking things sometimes. I’d hate to break this—I have some really good clips on here I haven’t put on my computer yet.”

“Hmm.” Elliot remembered the day, not too long ago, when Cameron had driven him home, and a sense of duty and obligation overtook him. He still owed him for that day. He studied the tree for a moment. It looked fairly simple enough to climb, albeit a little big. He could already see a good path to take on the way up. There were enough nooks and branches for good leverage and grip. He should be able to get up with no trouble at all. With a determined nod, Elliot offered his hand towards Cameron, who eyed him curiously.

“Give me the video camera. I’m not clumsy, so it should be safe with me," Elliot explained. "I’ll hang onto it until you need it, okay?”

Cameron blinked. “Wow. Would you really?”

Elliot shrugged, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed. He wished that he weren’t so affected by the Camerons gleeful response. “Sure, why not?” It wasn’t that big of a deal. It just seemed like it would be a shame if Cameron were to break his video camera when he had worked very hard with it. He looked away when Cameron beamed, possibly brighter than the warm autumn sun that peaked through the tops of the trees. Elliot took a deep breath. This was fine. It was only a smile. What was there to get worked up over?

“Thanks, Elliot.” Cameron handed Elliot the camera. Seeing Cameron looked relieved made Elliot feel proud—good, even—but he shoved the feeling aside and accepted the camera, strapping it around his wrist with ease. “You’re a real life saver.”

“Yeah, I know.” That was nothing new to hear, Elliot was used to praise from people he helped, but hearing those words come from Cameron’s lips was almost humbling. “Shouldn’t you being climbing now?”

“Right,” Cameron agreed, laughing. He turned and grasped at the nearest tree branch, and after a timed pause, lifted himself up. A few shuffles of his feet to the side and then Cameron grabbed at another branch. Elliot watched him from below; amazed that such a clumsy guy was managing to climb the tree without slipping or falling. Or making an idiot of himself. It certainly looked like Cameron knew what he was doing. While Cameron lacked grace, he certainly had skill to make up for it. He knew how to maneuver his body around the tree without losing his grip or his footing. To Elliot’s surprised, Cameron even somehow managed to grab and climb into thick branches that were, at best, odd angles from his current position. Elliot watched with awe, even admiration. The twisting of Cameron’s body was just right. The arch of his lean back when he reached out for another branch was near perfect. There was no doubt that Cameron knew what he was doing. Just like with dancing—

Elliot tore his eyes away. Not this again. He bit his lower lip viciously. Couldn’t he keep his eyes to himself? He’d already noticed that Cameron had a good—fine, great—figure. He got the point. Did his eyes really have to trace the freckled-boys outline the way they did? Did his pulse really need to quicken? His pants tighten?

He was going crazy. He had to be.

Remembering that he also had to climb (how else would Cameron get his video camera in one piece?) Elliot took another shaky inhale and began to climb up the tree. With more grace, but less speed, Elliot soon reached the middle of the tall tree, where Maxi sat on one thick branch and Cameron rested on another. Elliot avoided Cameron’s eyes and held out the video camera.

“Wow, you weren’t kidding,” Cameron said, awed as he gladly retrieved the video camera from Elliot. Cameron’s fingers brushed against Elliot’s skin, and it burned where they had touched, as if Elliot’s skin was hypersensitive to Cameron. The freckled-boy didn’t seem to notice the affect he had, though. “Thanks again.”

“…Think nothing of it.” Elliot responded before falling silent, too conscious of the warm skin that had touched Cameron. He didn’t sit down on a branch like Maxi, but stood near the other two, hugging the rough and dry trunk of the tree. He peeked through the branches, the dark brown arms of the tree not yet bare but already beginning to shed some of its leaves. Through the branches and foliage, he could see the breathtaking scenery Maxi had promised. One of the unique things about their own and about the location of their school was its scenery. The houses of the people living near the school looked neat and well organized into perfect rows. The few trees that weren’t apart of the small woods out behind the school were also changing their colour, from green to gold and light brown. It looked peaceful. It looked like home. Even further ahead, miles away, they could make out some of the more rural part of the small town, where houses became further apart. Though they couldn’t possibly see from their height, Elliot knew that further out there was where the country started, was where Jacqueline and The President lived.

Elliot wondered where Cameron lived.

“Told you it was a nice view,” Maxi gloated. “Cameron, you getting this?”

“Yup,” Cameron murmured. He held his video camera up to eye-level and had one eye closed while he concentrated. He slowly turned the video camera from left to right to catch as much of the view as possible. Without warning, he grinned deviously and aimed it towards Maxi. “Wave, Maxi! You’re on camera!”

“Greetings, viewers!” Maxi waved furiously towards the video camera. Elliot inwardly sighed and rolled his eyes. So much for a nice, peaceful moment. He watched Maxi smile flirtatiously and playfully flex his biceps in the most exaggerated ways possible. “Cameron, make sure to catch my good side.”

Cameron laughed. “Don’t worry, I got it.” Elliot frowned and looked away from the two. He wished that he were back down on the ground, not up there with either of them. There was a sting in his heart—resentment, or was it jealously?—and he wanted the feeling to go away. It was odd that he had been fine just moments ago, but after hearing playful banter between the both of them, that content feeling had fled.

With only a brief moment of warning, Cameron turned the video camera towards Elliot; however he didn’t acknowledge the abrupt spotlight that shone down on him. After a pregnant pause, Cameron finally said, “Say hi, Elliot. Smile and wave to the viewers.”

The sting turned into bitterness; poison in his veins. “…You’re going to delete this, right?” Even his voice sounded bitter.

“Hahaha.” Maxi’s laughter rumbled in the background, low and threatening. “And destroy the evidence that you hung out with us? Never.”

Elliot shot a fiery glare his ex-friend, however the laughter didn’t cease. He glanced over at the camera and, realizing how foolish it was to be so angered over old resentment and misplaced frustration, Elliot shook his head and turned away. The last thing he wanted was for his moment of adolescent weakness to be caught on film. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ready to get down now.”

“Aww, but we just got up here.” Elliot didn’t need to look at Cameron to hear the pout he was wearing.

“Then stay up here.” Elliot looked down and searched for the best way down. He spotted a nearby branch just below the one he stood on. Perfect. He leaned down a little and stepped onto it. He had only made it down onto that branch when he heard leaves rustling from above. He looked up, eyes wide with incredulity. Cameron was trying to get down, too. One hand gripped the branch he sat on; the other was reaching for one below. “…What’re you doing?”

“Coming down.”

“Why?”

“I invited you to hang out with us. It’d be rude if I just ditched you, or let you leave like this,” Cameron explained, but not once did his eyes meet Elliot’s. Cameron glanced at Maxi over his shoulder. “You okay if I split early?”

Maxi waved a hand, as with the flick of a wrist they’d magically disappear. “I’ll be fine. Later, Cam-Cam. Bye, Elly.”

Elliot cringed and bit his tongue before he could force out any childish insults. Cameron smiled and continued on his way down, now only one branch above Elliot, his video camera strapped tightly around his wrist. Elliot watched the video camera swing back and forth to some unknown tempo from all the movement and finally shook his head.

“Want me to carry that down for you again?”

Cameron paused. A brown leaf near him became detached from the tree from all the movement and fluttered downwards, spiraling for the ground. The freckled-boy stared at him for a long moment, as if considering the suggestion. Elliot gazed into shimmering blue-green eyes before he was forced to look away, his pulse racing. For a moment Elliot thought that Cameron had declined the offer and was about to continue climbing down when Cameron offered him his wrist.

“I can’t take it off without risking the chance of falling. Can you get it off by yourself?”

“…Yeah, probably.” Elliot shifted his position a bit so that he was leaning up against the tree, one arm grasping the branch that Cameron knelt on. With his one free hand, he reached out to undue the strap around Cameron’s wrist. His fingers brushed against Cameron’s wrist repeatedly as he yanked and tugged at the fabric, attempting to loosen it enough for it to slip off easily without a risk of it suddenly falling off. Elliot bit the inside of his cheek. Without meaning to, he looked up at Cameron, but to his surprise, Cameron was looking away, his jaw clenched and shoulders tense. After a pause, Elliot shook his head and pulled at the strap one more time until it was loose enough and it slipped over Cameron’s stiff fingers and into Elliot’s grasp.

“Got it.”

“…G—Great.”

Elliot arched an eyebrow, then shook off the weird vibe he was getting. Maybe Cameron was secretly afraid of heights or something? Whatever, it wasn’t his problem. Elliot took the strap around his wrist between his teeth and yanked until it was tight, preventing it from slipping off. Then he looked down and began to climb down the tree again, his mind on Cameron’s sudden weird behavior the whole time.

When he finally reached the last branch that was closest to the bottom, Elliot jumped off and landed gracefully on his feet with a soft thud, the video camera hanging off his wrist in perfect condition. Cameron soon followed, though he stumbled on his feet a bit after dropping down. Elliot loosened the strap and handed the video camera to Cameron without looking at him.

“Thanks again,” Cameron grinned, taking the video camera. He held it protectively in his arms. “I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”

Again with the praising compliments. They were just compliments, nothing more. However, like before, Elliot felt humbled by them. The weird behavior just minutes ago didn’t even matter anymore. “…Think nothing of it.” Before anything more could be said, a faint bell rang in the background, signaling for the end of their lunch hour. Suddenly feeling a little awkward and out of place, Elliot began to make his way back up to the hill to gather his things. Alison and Elena were already gone by then, nothing left on the hill to give away that they were even there in the first place except for two patches of bent grass from where they’d sat. Elliot knelt down to get his book bag.

“You’re free to hang out with us anytime,” said a quiet voice from behind. Elliot glanced over his shoulder at Cameron. The freckled-boy stood behind him, his arms crossed behind his back. He was looking down, one foot digging at the ground, nervously. Like a bashful kid who trips over his own words, Elliot thought. He put on his book bag and stood up properly.

“Why?”

“'Why'?" Cameron repeated and Elliot swore he heard something like hurt in his voice. "Did you hate hanging out with us?”

"No,” Elliot answered, surprising himself. He hadn’t hated it, like he thought he would. It had had it’s annoyances (mainly Maxi), but the annoyances didn’t ruin anything. Not really.

Cameron looked up at this, his eyes wide. “Wow, really?”

“Yeah.”

“Really?”

Elliot groaned. “Yes. What’s so hard to believe about that?”

Cameron shook his head, but he was smiling. A tiny, almost hidden smile, although Elliot had caught sight of it. He cursed his stomach for being so persistent with its back flips and for his throat being so unbearably dry.

Cameron tucked some hair behind his ear, his eyes diverted off to the side somewhere. “Nothing, nothing. I was just wondering.”

“Right,” Elliot huffed. Fair enough. He began to tread across the hill; he didn’t want to be late for class. “Later.”

"Wait!”

Elliot halted and he swallowed. Something about that had sounded almost desperate. He remained silent, waiting for whatever Cameron thought was important enough to say.

“W—Would you hang out with us tomorrow?”

“Can’t. Student Council work to do.”

“…Well, what about the day after tomorrow?”

Elliot turned around and stared at the other boy in disbelief. Why was he so tenacious about this? He had thought that when Cameron had invited him to hang out, it was just for the one time. Why all the invitations? He was about to reject the invitation when Elliot stopped himself. He didn’t have any work the day after tomorrow and he hadn’t hated hanging out with their group. So, why not? Any other day, Elliot would’ve smacked himself for thinking like that. Him hanging out with people like them?

Then it occured to him. Things were changing. Before, he wouldn’t have even considered talking to people like them for anything but professional reasons—but now…now he didn’t see too much of a problem with it. Besides, it wouldn’t be like he would hang with them every day. Just once in a while. Earlier conversations of routine and change entered Elliot’s head. Hanging out with them every now and then could break his routine. It might even help keep his head out of the clouds and boredom off his mind. Even if Cameron was a weird kid who made him feel weird…

“Maybe. I’ll see what I can do.” Elliot couldn’t help but smirk a bit when Cameron seemed to nearly jump out of his skin, as if he hadn’t expected an answer that held a positive possibility. Cameron certainly was amusing, that was for sure. Elliot licked his dry lips and began to walk towards the school. “Later.”

“Uh, yeah. Later!” Cameron called back. Elliot shook his head, astounded at how pleased Cameron had looked, like a kid who just met Santa Claus; like something unthinkable had happened (which, Elliot supposed, just happened). He was a weird kid, but Elliot was beginning to see why people liked him so much. Cameron was awkward sometimes and pretty clumsy, but he had a lightheartedness about him that Elliot wasn’t used to seeing.

To Elliot’s amazement, he felt warmed by the thought that he had made Cameron happy. He felt good—really good—and the feeling continued on throughout the rest of the day as he began to look forward to the rest of the week.


~+~+~+~+~+~+~


To Be Continued