Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"It's not so bad," Mayer tried to reason with his children, "I was born and raised in New York. You'll love it, kids." David grumbled and sunk into his car seat, the leather feeling cold against his skin. Les bounced excitedly in his seat, happy to be moving. Sarah's expression was harder to read. She pensively stared out the windshield. David assumed she was as upset as him judging by how tightly she clutched the bottom of her white dress.

The car rolled in front of their new house slowly, giving the kids a chance to take it all in.

It was much smaller than their old house. It was painted white, but some bits were chipped off to show a layer of red underneath. The front yard was surrounded by wooden fence posts that were breaking. There was a tall tree in the front to the right of the sidewalk leading up to the door. On the left side, there was a bunch of grass. The porch looked empty. The door was painted a bright red that hurt to look at.

Esther parked the car on the opposite side of the street to give the kids a chance to get out. There was no driveway in front of the house like their was at their old one. The garage was apparently on the other side of the house, so the kids had to get out and cross the unoccupied street.

Mayer gave Sarah the key to the house. Their parents had made sure to get all of the furniture into the house before showing the kids. It was meant to be a surprise. From the looks of the house, it seemed it would be much to small for the family of five. There was only one window showing from the first floor, and it made David scared that there were only two bedrooms.

Sarah hesitantly opened the front door. There was a mudroom before you could enter the main house. It had a table in the far corner, and it seemed Esther and Mayer had started working on a puzzle. David couldn't make out what the puzzle was, so he ignored it and took his shoes off.

When the two entered the living room, (Les had wanted to wait in the car) they were shocked at how bare it looked. There was much less furniture than what they were expecting. There wasn't even a fireplace. In the middle of the room was a large brick rectangle that could've been a chimney, but David couldn't tell. He just found it annoying because it wasn't long enough to be a wall, and they weren't allowed to removed it.

There were two chairs on one side of the large rug, and a couch on the other. On one side of the couch, there was a window looking out at the street. On the other side was a bookshelf with almost no books. There was a small television on the wall and a table in the middle of the rug.

On the other side of the brick rectangle, (until he figured out the actual name, David decided that's what he would call it) there was a dresser type thing. On top of the dresser was a display of wine bottles. On the inside, there was even more wine. David found this confusing considering his parents rarely ever drank wine. 

On the left side of the dresser was a narrow staircase going up. On the right side was a doorway without a door to the kitchen. Sarah and David decided to check out the kitchen first.

There was a door leading to the basement before you entered the kitchen, but neither of the Jacobs siblings wanted to explore that quite yet. They entered the small kitchen. It looked like a regular kitchen. It was nothing too different from their old one except there was a bathroom with a glass door and a door to the backyard.

They turned back around and went up the staircase that they could barely fit in. The landing was small, with a door to the main bedroom on the left and three doors on the right. They were unable to go to the other end of the landing because the roof was at an incline that made one side smaller.

Sarah went to go see the bedroom on the left, but David went directly right. He figured the door in the middle was a bathroom and that the other two were bedrooms. That meant there were three bedrooms. One for his parents, one for Les, and one for him and Sarah. It made more sense for David and Les to share a room, but David had always preferred one with Sarah. She was much more clean and minded her own buisness while Les tended to annoy everyone constantly and his things were everywhere.

He decided to look at the room with the window facing the street. Once he was inside, he figured it was his and Sarah's. There were two beds facing each other. The foot of each bed touched because the room was too small. There was a closet on one side of the door. Next to the closet was a desk with a lamp on it. There were things in tubs that hadn't yet been unpacked because the children had only just arrived.

David met Sarah back at the landing and they decided to walk back down to the living room to wait for their parents and Les. Sarah took a seat on the couch, and David took a seat on one of the chairs.

"What do you think about it?" David asked finally, feeling uncomfortable in the silence. Sarah shifted in her seat a little bit. She looked David in the eye when she answered.

"I hate it. It's much to small for us," she answered, the slightest bit of anger creeping in her voice. David nodded. "What'd you think?"

"I think I prefer our old house." He let his hands rest in his lap. "I don't understand what made Ma and Pa decide moving to a city midway through the year was a good idea." Sarah nodded along. "I mean, it's your last year of high school - what's the point of moving?"

"Exactly. They could've at least waited another year. Then, I'd be off at college and you and Les would have this place to yourselves." 

"I'm just afraid that school will be worse." Unfortunately, school would be worse. Much, much, worse.

Chapter Text

The very next day Davey, Sarah, and Les were sent off to school. 

It was weird, sleeping in a new house. It seemed Les was the least bothered. Sarah looked incredibly tired, but David knew she had gotten around four hours of sleep. David, however, had stayed up all night. His bed was uncomfortable, and his anxiety was skyrocketing. He had no clue how this school would be. He'd never lived in a city before.

It was much worse when their parents dropped them off. Les's school started about half an hour later than Sarah and David's, so he wasn't awake when they were dropped off.

The school was crowded; David could barely navigate his way to his locker. He had visited the school twice before, so he had a good idea of what his schedule looked liked. His locker was already full of books and other essentials for class. All he needed to do was survive the school day without being noticed. Unfortunately, there was a wrench thrown into his plans.

"Hi! I'm the person who uses the locker above yours." She smiled sweetly at him. "I don't recognize you, what's your name?" She tucked a strand of her brunette hair behind her ear. David's hands started shaking. He was never good at talking with people, which is why he didn't have many friends back at his old school. He hadn't anticipated interaction with anyone, so he had no clue what to say.

"I, uh, I'm, erm, my name is," Davey paused and took a deep breath. The girl's smile didn't falter, and David was surprised she hadn't given up on the conversation. People usually did. "My name's David. I'm new here, we uh, my family and I, we just moved here from, eh, Broken Arrow. The one in Oklahoma."

"Ah, so you're from the country?" She asked. David nodded hesitantly. The girl nonchalantly leaned against the locker next to hers. "Cool, cool. What's it like out there?"

"It's fine, I guess," he mumbled. He thought about how much he missed the cool air at night. He missed how open everything was; how far the sky stretched. He smiled, thinking about how clear the stars were. "There was, uh, much less air pollution." The girl almost laughed at that. "What's your name?" He asked quietly.

"Oh! I'm JoJo!" She smiled again, showing her teeth. David noted the one of them was chipped. "So, you like it here?" David wasn't a social person, and apparently JoJo either realized that and chose to ignore it, or she didn't realize it and decided to keep talking.

"No, not particularly. There's, uh, there's just a lot of people." Davey found himself rubbing his arm. JoJo nodded thoughtfully, somehow managing to keep a wide smile on her face.

"I get that; it can seem really overwhelming at times. All you really need is a friend to guide you through it." David nodded. He didn't understand how JoJo could make him feel comfortable in an uncomfortable situation. "Hey, what's your first class?" She asked suddenly. 

"I think it's, uh," David thought for a moment, ignoring how many times he had said 'uh', 'eh', and 'erm', "physical education, I think." JoJo smiled again.

"My boyfriend's got gym first period as well. You take APC or regular?" 

"Regular."

"Sweet!" She grinned and slung an arm around David's shoudler. David, suprised by the sudden sensation of warmth, recoiled from her touch at first. He wasn't much of a physical person, either. It seemed JoJo didn't notice and began walking him quickly down the hallway.

David assumed JoJo was walking towards the boy with people surrounding him. Great, David thought, I got stuck with the girlfriend of a jock.

"Buttons! Get over here!" JoJo called. The boy in the middle, Buttons, turned to face JoJo. His face lit up immediately. He said a chorus of 'pardon me's before arriving at JoJo's side. He grinned, and she kissed him on the cheek. He turned to David, still smiling brightly.

"Hi, I'm Benjamin, but you can call me Buttons if you'd like!" David was surprised with two things about the boy. One; his voice was much higher than he expected. Sure, it wasn't that high-pitched, but it wasn't as low as what he anticipated. Two; he was incredibly polite. He assumed someone as popular as him would be much more rude.

"I'm, uh, David. I'm new here and, uh, I heard that we have the same gym class?" David looked at JoJo for help, but she only stared lovingly at Buttons.

"Cool! Maybe we can pair up for a few things!" Buttons beamed. David nodded hesitanly. 

"Ben, get over 'ere!" A kid called from behind him. David pocketed his hands in his jeans.

"Just a minute, Hen!" Buttons called before turning back to David and JoJo. "You two are welcome to join us." 

"I'll come! David, you in?" JoJo asked. David shook his head.

"No, I don't really, eh, like being around people," he mumbled. JoJo nodded and finally let go of him. She grabbed Buttons's hand and smiled up at him. "See you later." He smiled softly before disappearing back into the crowd of students.

He didn't stand out much compared to anyone else. He was average height for a guy his age, and he didn't dress in anything too out of the ordinary. His personality was bland, and he had trouble talking to people.

He looked down at the floor when he walked, which was a bad idea. He ended up ramming straight into another student, causing the other kid to fall backwards.

"Oh my - I'm so sorry!" David apologized. The other boy looked down at him with a goofy grin. What was it with those kids and smiling? 

"'ey, it's alright. 'm okay." The boy had dirty blond hair that was only a bit shorter than JoJo's. He had a red bandana tied around his neck, and he wore socks with sandals. His shirt was neon green, and David couldn't make out the words. He wore shorts despite it being mid-fall. "'m Jack, by the way. Jack Kelly." He put on a charming grin, which David wasn't fond of. He decided he didn't like that kid. No, it wasn't because he wore socks with sandals. That was only partially the reason. He didn't like Jack because he seemed all too confident.

"Cool, I gotta get going now." David turned away and started walking before he felt a tug on his wrist. He huffed and turned back.

"Ain't you gonna tell me your name?" Jack asked. He perked and eyebrow, and David scowled. He'd never really been hostile towards people, but he couldn't stand when people touched him. It had been different when JoJo had done it because she seemed nice enough. Jack didn't.

"No." David jerked his hand back before quickly walking away. He heard a sigh and then footsteps coming near him. David frowned and rolled his eyes.

"If you won't tell me, I'll jus' bother you 'til you do." A sly smirk came over Jack's face. David avoided eye contact with Jack. "If you tell me your name, I might jus' leave you alone," he offered.

"Fine. My name's David." David finally turned to Jack, who smiled triumphantly. "Now leave me alone please. I would like to spend the next three minutes doing something I'm comfortable with."

"Nah, I think I'll stick around." Jack slung his arm around David's shoulders. "'sides, you seem like you're new 'ere. 'm not. I can 'elp you make some friends." 

"I am perfectly content with my current situation." That one might have been a lie. He wanted to go back to Oklahoma. He also did want some friends, but he already had Buttons and JoJo. If they considered him a friend.

"Well I think if you'd talk to me, you'd see that 'm cool. An' that you want me as a friend." Jack smiled confidently. David rolled his eyes and scoffed.

"I'd rather be friends with a cat than with you," he spat bitterly. Jack furrowed his eyebrows.

"Cats are cool though."

"I'm allergic to cats." 

"Good thing I like dogs more," Jack responded.

"Great, because you're a real bitch." David was surprised by himself. He rarely ever said a swear word. He had learned to stop when Les was old enough to repeat his language.

Jack looked taken aback, but he had a hint of admiration and curiousity in his eye. 

The bell interrupted their conversation. David let out a sigh of relief. He pushed past Jack to get to the gym, but Jack grabbed his wrist once more.

"'ey, uh, if you wanna eat lunch with my friends an' me, we'd be happy to have you." David was surprised by the offer. Not once did he think that the conversation they had implied that David wanted to be friends with Jack.

"We'll see." And with that, David shook himself out of Jack's grip. He made his was to the gym, smiling for no reason at all.

Chapter Text

"You're jokin', right?" Spot whispered to Jack in the middle of fourth period. Spot was in an advanced reading class, so he shared it with Jack. The two of them were as close as friends could get, so it was nice when they shared a class.

"Unfortunately, 'm not." They sat next to each other courtesy of the teacher, Mrs. Larkin, being Jack's adoptive mother. He had spent time in foster care because his parents had left when he was around four. He met Spot because they had briefly been brothers before Spot was kicked out out the house. Jack had purposefully gotten himself in more trouble than he needed to because he wanted out of the house.

"Jack, don't 'cha think you got too many friends already?" They were supposed to be taking notes on their novel, but neither of them cared enough to do so. Jack leaned back in his chair, offering a sly smile.

"I was hopin' I could make this one more than a friend, y'know?" Jack wiggled his eyebrows. Spot scoffed and shook his head, hiding an amused smile.

"Jack, you jus' met this kid. Jus' 'cause he's attractive doesn't mean he's good for you. He might be bad news," Spot tried to reason. Jack rolled his eyes and put his hands behind his head.

"Well, he's the only person so far to 'ave the guts to call me a bitch. He also ignored me for a lil' bit, an' no one else 'as ever done that. Kid's got moxie." Spot sighed and looked down at his desk.

"You need to stop throwin' yourself headfist into situations without thinkin' 'bout the consequences." Jack perked an eyebrow, and Spot turned back to him. "I mean, what if this David fella' doesn't like guys at all? Like you said, he called you a bitch. You two may not be good for each other. You don't got the best experience with relationships."

"Don't doubt my judgement, Spot," Jack snapped. "You don't got the best track record either." Spot scowled and straightened up in his seat. He stared daggers into Jack.

"Watch your mouth, Kelly. You don't know what you're gettin' yourself into," Spot whispered. Jack rolled his eyes, and the two dropped the conversation.

It wasn't that Jack wanted to like David. It was that Jack actually liked him. No one had ever been so rude to the Jack Kelly before, and Jack liked how confident David seemed. He at least wanted to make a lasting impression on the boy, whether it be a good one or a bad one. Only time would tell.

The bell rang for lunch, and Jack gathered his things. He rushed out of the room and flashed Medda a smile. He made his way quickly over to his locker and shoved his books inside. He closed the locker and sighed before making his way to the cafeteria. He saw Spot ahead of him, but he ignored him.

Once in the lunchroom, Jack took a seat around his usually table. His friends had claimed that booth at the beginning of the year, and people knew not to mess with them. That led to them only ever sitting in one spot, not being joined by anyone who wasn't invited.

The second person to join Jack slid into the seat across from him. The booth was big enough to fit four people on each side of the table. There was only one spot left, and it was reserved for David.

"You got your lunch yet?" Elmer asked, seeing Jack staring at his food. Jack shook his head, and Elmer slid his tray of to him. Jack smiled, but pushed it back.

"I ain't got money left in my account, so Racer said he'd get me some food." Jack leaned back against the leather of the booth. Elmer nodded and took a bite out of the school pizza. Spot finally came over with his home brought lunch and slid next to Elmer. He pulled something out of his lunch bag and handed it to Elmer. Jack stifled a laugh when he realized it was Kool-Aid, the only other than milk that Elmer would drink.

"So the craziest thing happened last night," Elmer started. He was usually the one who started conversations; he was the only one with basic social skills. "So my little sister, Eileen, starts screamin' from the kitchen! I went to check it out, an' it turns out Richard set the goddamn thing on fire! I swear, if a four year old could kill, half the population woulda' been killed by him a while ago."

"Bold of you to assume four year old can't kill," Spot said before taking a bite out of his sandwich. "Like, Race acts like a four year old, but he could probably kill someone if he put his mind to it." Speaking of Race...

The blond boy slid next to Jack. He glared at Spot, but said nothing. He passed his tray over to Jack.

"Don't you got another tray for yourself?" Jack asked after taking a bite out of his pizza. Race shook his head and leaned against Jack.

"Nah, 'm not lookin' to get food poisoning. Plus I ain't really hungry." Jack nodded along. "When're you gonna tell Medda you need more lunch money?" Jack shrugged, and Race sighed.

"What'd I miss?" Albert sat down next to Race, his tray making a loud noise when he dropped it on the table. Race let out a sigh of relief and draped himself across Albert's lap, successfully hiding him underneath the table. Albert sighed and frowned, but said nothing.

"Elmer's little brother is a psychotic bitch, and Jack is outta lunch money," Spot explained briefly. Albert nodded. "You idiots wanna come with me to Jacobi's after school? My little sister's got someone comin' over an' I'd like to be outta the house."

"Sounds good to me, you guys in?" Elmer looked around at the rest of the table. Jack and Albert nodded. Race tried to sit up, but ended up banging his head on the underside of the table. He groaned, and Albert laughed.

"I assume that's a yes. By the way, I asked Kate and Crutchie earlier since they aren't gonna be sittin' with us. Kate also mentioned she's bringin' another girl along." Spot took another bite out of his sandwich.

"Why aren't they sittin' with us again?" Albert asked. Jack looked over and saw Albert tangling his fingers in Race's curls. Friends?  Jack thought, Friends my ass.

"Kate's sittin' with a new girl - Sarah, at least I think that's what her name was. Crutchie's sittin' with Henry and his friends today." Jack and the others nodded. "Jack, you think your new friend's gonna join us?" Attention turned towards Jack.

"I doubt it, he didn't seem very intere- heya Davey!" Jack cut himself off when he saw a figure slowly creeping towards the table. David awkwardly waved with his hand that wasn't holding his tray. "Didn't expect you to grace us with your presence on this fine afternoon."

"It's not like I really had a choice. I get, uh, nervous around too many people and, erm, Buttons and JoJo have a lot of friends," David admitted quietly, looking down at the ground. "And my name isn't Davey, it's David."

"Eh, whatever." Jack shrugged. David frowned, but said nothing. Spot patted the seat next to him, and David reluctantly sat down. "So you wanna come hang out with us after school?"

"I mean, sure. It's not like my brother and sister'll care." Davey picked at the pepperoni on his pizza.

"You got siblin's?" Spot asked.

"Yeah, what part of 'It's not like my brother and sister'll care' led you to confusion?" David furrowed his eyebrows.

"Well ain't you a pleasant one. My name's Spot, by the way. That's Elmer, that's Albert, and Race is in Albert's lap because they're very clearly gay for each other."

"Race and I are jus' friends." Albert frowned, glaring at Spot. "We can be affectionate without dating."

"Oh, so friends sneak into each other's houses and kiss them goodnight?" Jack nudged Albert, remembering when he walked in on the two.

"It's called 'kissin' the homies goodnight'!" Race said defensively. Jack smirked when he saw Race's face turn the faintest shade of pink.

David shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Jack frowned.

"You gotta a problem, Davey?" He asked. The boys all turned to David and stared at him accusingly.

"No, it's just - I mean - I'm not -"

"You gotta problem with gay people?" Spot asked, leaning towards Elmer.

"I, uh -"

"Spit it out already," Jack said. He didn't want David to be homophobic, but it seemed he might be.

"Jack, did you seriously invite a homophobic shit to sit with us?" Albert asked, offended.

"Seriously, it's - it's not like that!" David stammered loudly. "It's just, uh, where I'm from, uh, gay people aren't, y'know, treated...kindly." David looked down.

"So you gotta problem with gay people?" Spot asked finally.

"No, of course not! I love my sister very much an-"

"Your sister's gay?" Albert perked an eyebrow.

"We both are, b-"

"You're gay?" Spot asked, somewhat disbelieving him. David's face paled.

"I didn't mean to say that-"

"It's fine, we accept you." Jack smiled, but David shook his head. "Davey, you don't gotta be upse-"

"Sorry, it's just that I didn't really want the first people I ever come out to other than my mom and sister be a group of strangers," he spat back bitterly. "I better go, sorry for, uh, wasting your time."

David stood up and rushed out of the cafeteria. Jack watched him leave until he heard Spot sigh.

"I told you that kid bad news."

Chapter Text

It would be a lie if David said he was glad to see Jack waiting at his locker. Sure, he had run away during lunch, and maybe Jack was worried. But it wasn't like David wanted to be bothered; he had already dealt with Spot in fifth period and JoJo in seventh. He thought that was enough human interaction.

"Move," David ordered tiredly. Jack sighed, but obliged. David opened up his locker and put his books back. He grabbed his backpack and stood back up. "What do you want?" He asked, frowning. Jack shrugged and held onto the straps of his backpack a bit tighter.

"I was gonna walk you out, assumin' you still wanna come to Jacobi's with us." Jack nonchalantly looked at the hallway. Students were crowding the exits, ready to leave.

"You seriously think your, uh, friends'll still want me there?" David asked. Jack shrugged. David awkwardly looked down at his shoes, not feeling comfortable looking Jack in the eye.

"I mean, they're nice people. Jus' give 'em time, they'll warm up to you." Jack smiled sincerely at David. David was a bit surprised at this, since there was no hint of mischevious intent.

"I think I'll have to pass. My sister's already goin' out with some new friends, and I still, uh, have to help at home." Jack looked down sadly, but nodded. "Maybe next time?"

"Sure. Yeah." No one had ever tried anything like that with Jack before. He had built up a bit of a bad reputation, and most students either avoided him or did whatever he told them to. He wasn't necessarily a delinquent, but he wasn't a teacher's pet either. He was just sort...there.

And then David took off, quickly disappearing in the crowd. Jack sighed wistfully as he watched the boy walk away. He thought about his crush - if you could even call it that - on the younger. Maybe they weren't meant to be together. Maybe Spot was right. But Jack wouldn't tell him that.

After Jack was sure David had left, he left the school as well. He was towering over the other students, so he was able to spot his friends easily. Crutchie (im not calling him 'crutchy' it looks so weird) was about two inches taller than Jack, so they saw each other first. Jack saw Katherine next; she was walking with a girl who was only about an inch shorter than Jack. Albert was easier to find than both of them because his red hair set him apart. He gave up on trying to find Spot, Race, and Elmer. They were either average height or shorter than that, so it was harder to find them.

Once out of the school, Jack moved to the far left of the exit. Crutchie hobbled over to him first, Elmer following quickly afterwards. They said nothing, waiting for the others.

Katherine and her friend were the last to arrive.

"Everyone, this is Sarah. Sarah, these are the dumbasses I told you about earlier," Katherine introduced her with a strained smile. Suddenly, Sarah phone dinged in her pocket. She pulled it out.

"What is it?" Albert asked, being as invasive as ever. 

"Just a text from my family's group chat; my brother wanted to know when I'd be home." She turned her phone off without responding to the text and shoved it in her pocket. "Anyway, I heard about this nice restaurant?"

"Yeah, but I hope you don't mind walking; none of us can drive," Spot deadpanned. Sarah nodded carefully before the group began walking.

"So you're new 'ere?" Jack asked. Sarah nodded. "Where'd you come from?"

"Oklahoma. No I don't mean the terrible musical Oklahoma!, I mean the state."

"How dare you call Oklahoma! a terrible musical!" Race scoffed, crossing his arms. Sarah shrugged.

"Well I apologize for liking 1776 much more," Sarah retorted.

"Okay, real talk; have you seen Hamilton?" Crutchie asked seriously. Sarah scoffed, offended.

"Of course! Who do you heathens take me for?"

"I dunno, you insulted Oklahoma!" Race looked away from her. "I can't believe you insulted my childhood right there." Albert rolled his eyes and ruffled Race's hair.

"She's right, y'know," he said nonchalantly. Race furrowed his eyebrows and stopped walking he turned around and stared up at Albert threateningly. "Race, I understand you're upset, but you're literally five feet of marshmallow 'm not afraid o' you." Race scoffed again.

"I can't be seen with you anymore!" He said dramatically. He started fake crying before running slowly ahead of the rest of the group. Spot sighed.

"I'll go get 'im." He took off like a bullet, and once Race realized that someone was trailing close behind him, he started sprinting down the sidewalk. Katherine shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Why must they always do this?"

"They're fuckin' idiots, that's why," Jack responded, not understanding that the question was meant to be rhetorical. Katherine sighed and put her hands on her hips. Sarah pursed her lips as she watched the two boys ahead of them run into a restaurant. 

The rest of the group eventually followed them inside. The diner itself was nice; it looked similar to an Olive Garden. Actually, it looked exactly like an Olive Garden.

Sarah turned to Crutchie, hearing him sigh. She looked over to were he was staring.

Spot and Race were whisper-shouting at each other, with Spot pinning Race to the wall playfully. Huh, Sarah though, that's homoerotic. 

"Were you too busy bein' gay or did you save us a seat?" Jack asked. Spot blushed softly and let go of Race, only for Race to tackle him into a booth. Spot groaned and kicked Race in the chest. Race fell backwards onto the floor. Katherine stifled a laugh and looked down. Jack sighed.

"Get your asses up, I'm hungry," Sarah ordered. Race sighed and stood up. Spot sat up in his seat, and Sarah slid in next to him. Oh yeah, this is going to be fun.

Chapter Text

"She hasn't answered me, Ma." David sat cross-legged on the couch in the living room. His mother was in the kitchen, cooking dinner. His father was still at work, and the bus hadn't arrived with Les. An audible sigh was heard from the kitchen.

"Try calling her. I need to know if she'll be home by dinner." Esther hummed to herself. David pursed his lips to prevent a groan from escaping. He'd been in a foul mood ever since he had gotten home, but he was trying his best not to be irritable with his mother.

And so David proceeded to call Sarah.

And Sarah proceeded to ignore him.

David huffed out of annoyance and rolled his eyes. His grip on his phone tightened as he tried to keep himself from throwing it across the room. David had grown used to Sarah ignoring him, but this was different. Sarah was off somewhere with people she didn't bother to tell him the names of. It would be an understatement to say David was nervous, and her constantly ignoring him made it ten times worse.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. He set his phone down next to him and closed his eyes. He didn't know why he was getting so worried. Sarah was almost a legal adult and knew how to take care of herself. She knew several kinds of martial arts, and she also knew basic self-defense. But David couldn't stop himself from imagining unlikely scenerios in his head.

What if Sarah was cornered in an alleyway? Held at gunpoint? What if the person pulled the trigger and Sarah died instantly or if she slowly bled out? Or beat half to death and they couldn't find her because she was hidden so well?

What if she was abducted? What if they tortured her? And if they got tired of her, would they kill her just like that? Or maybe sell her on the blackmarket? Use her to get money from their parents?

David's mind was running a mile a minute. The possiblities were endless, and David didn't know how to properly handle his mind giving him all the bad situations. He told himself that there were still good endings to what might happen. Not everything needed to be bad.

A sudden sensation of pain snapping David back into reality. He looked down at where he had been picking at his skin on his fingers. There wasn't much blood, and it didn't hurt as much as it usually did. David only frowned and sighed, disappointed with himself. He hadn't meant to pick at his skin, he just did it subconsciously.

"David, honey, I need to go to the grocery store quickly. Les should be here in about twenty minutes." Esther walked into the living room. David quickly hid his hands by shoving them in his pockets. "Promise me you won't burn the house down?" She asked, a teasing smile showing she didn't mean it. 

"Yes, Mamma."

"And that you won't have any boys over?" David internally sighed at that comment. Ever since he had told his mom (he made it clear that he wasn't ready for his father or Les to know, so Sarah and Esther kept his secret. He only told his mom that he was gay after finding about that his mother had a secret girlfriend in high school) about his sexuality, she had been making jokes about it when Mayer and Les weren't around.

"I won't, Mamma."

"Alright." Esther smiled softly. Out of everyone in the family, Esther and David had the closest realtionship (Sarah and Les came in a close second). Esther loved her children very much, but it was clear that she favored David. Sarah and Les didn't mind, though. Les was too young to really understand, and Sarah was almost out of the house. Mayer also favored both Les and Sarah. But don't worry too much, Mayer would never burn half of David's face and Esther would never call Sarah or Les a monster. Yes, I'm going to throw shade at both Ursa and Ozai from A:TLA in the middle of a story.

Esther left the house, leaving David alone. He let out a quiet sigh of relief to have the house for himself for a change. It was easier for him to concentrate when he was alone.

He stood up from the couch and walked upstairs. He almost tripped at least three times because of how small the steps were. He ran his fingers through his hair as he knelt down next to his backpack. He pulled out his textbooks and folders carrying his homework. He pulled out his math, history, and language arts assignments and set them aside to do later.

What he was really looking for, though, was a note JoJo had slipped into his bag.

He pulled it out and unfolded it. It only had one phone number on it, and writing underneath it. The writing read, 'i saw him making heart eyes at you'.

David groaned loudly. Couldn't JoJo have just texted him? Or did she always have to be so extra?

Whatever the answer was, David was still curious as to who the phone number belonged to. So he pulled out his phone and texted the number with a casual, 'Hello, It's David.' and hoped the person wasn't a stranger.

Was David worried? Yes. But as worried as he was about Sarah? Absolutely not. At least if this number turned out to be wrong, David could just block it and never think about it again. Actually, he'd think about it late at night instead of sleeping when his past regrets crawled their way back to the front of his memory.

Now, to say David was expecting answer would be correct. To say David was expecting an answer so quickly, though? That would be considered a lie. 

The text was confusing the first time he read it, but soon David understood. 'so rude of u 2 just sneak into my dms like that, davey ;)'.

So, if this was Jack, did that mean that JoJo had seen Jack making heart eyes at David? Now that, that was too much for David to process. He simply turned off his phone without responding to the text, stood up, and lay face down on his bed before screaming into his comforter.

It was then that David realized that it would be a long week.

Chapter Text

"So, hypothetically speakin', if I were to eat a turtle, w-"

"Why the hell would you want to eat a turtle?" Albert stared at Race, a horrified expression covering his face. Race shrugged and ran his fingers through his hair. 

"I dunno, it's a hypothetical question!" Race exclaimed dramatically, throwing his arms in the air to add emphasis. Sarah rolled her eyes and pushed Race's arms down. He looked at her, mock offended. He put a hand over his chest. "How dare you touch me with those unsanitized hands! I'm gonna get sick now!"

"Shut up, you dolts. I've had enough of your bullshit." Sarah crossed her arms, ignoring her phone in her pocket. It was ringing, and judging by the ringtone, it was David.

"Have I mentioned I like her? 'cause I really like her," Jack said. Katherine rolled her eyes.

"Only, like, five hundred times?" Jack rolled his eyes as well. He put his feet up and the table and leaned back in his seat. Katherine pushed his feet off the table. Jack frowned and glared at her before putting his feet back up. Katherine huffed. Jack stuck his tongue out at her.

Katherine and Jack had an...interesting relationship. They had dated when Jack was a freshman and Katherine was a junior. She was two years older than him, but they tried to make it work. Eventually Katherine broke up with him. Though Jack claims he broke up with her. Even after that they remained friends. Jack wasn't sure what he was going to do the next year when she was in college. Her birthday was on December 2nd, meaning she was only a couple months away to being a legal adult.

He thought maybe Sarah could then be the common sense of the group, but Sarah's eighteenth birthday was October 24th, so she'd be leaving with Katherine. Sarah was also as reckless as the rest of the group. Jack didn't know what he was going to do. He didn't have common sense and none of the other people in the group listened to him. Maybe Davey could take over...

Sarah whacking Jack in the head brought him back to the present. He furrowed his eyebrows and glared at the girl leaning over the table to reach him. He playfully kicked her in the stomach to send her back into her seat. She flinched slightly, and for a minute Jack worried he had kicked her too hard.

"Kick me again, I dare you," she threatened. Jack could tell that she wasn't serious. She smirked slightly, and a smile tugged at the corner of Jack's lips.

"You're on, Saz." Sarah was fond of that nickname. The best her family had been able to come up with was 'Sar', and it just sounded weird to her. She hadn't considered the nickname 'Saz' until Jack had called her that.

Katherine sighed and rolled her eyes. "If you're gonna fight, at least do it outside. I don't wanna get kicked out again." Sarah perked her eyebrow at the word 'again'. Racetrack only chuckled shortly.

"Technically, I've been banned. Twice." Spot elbowed Race in the side. Race flinched and reached over to slap Spot on the arm. Spot gaped and lunged at Race. Albert, who had been sitting in between the two, only stared blankly forward at absolutely nothing. His expression made it look like he was keeping all the secrets of the universe.

Katherine slumped down in her seat, defeated. Elmer placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She leaned into his touch and rested her head on his shoulder. Sarah, who had been sitting in between Spot and Albert, had herself draped on top of the table. She glared daggers into Jack.

Crutchie pursed his lips and looked over at Katherine. He was clearly concerned with their situation. She sighed and leaned away from Elmer again. She clapped her hands loudly, gaining attention from their table and a few other people as well. She cleared her throat and scanned the group.

"Spot, let go of Race's collar and sit back down. Race and Crutchie traid seats. Jack, switch with Albert. Sarah, you come take Elmer's place. If anyone starts another fight or argument, I won't hesitate to kick your ass." Jack felt as if that last comment was directed at him.

Spot grumbled and let go of Race to climb into his seat. The rest moved with no complaint. Katherine smiled triumphantly to herself. She was fully aware that she was the only thing stopping the group from killing each other, and she might've been a bit afraid of what could happen once she left.

Once everyone was settled, Sarah's phone dinged. It signaled a text, supposedly from her brother. She sighed and pulled it out. Katherine looked over her shoulder at what Sarah was doing. Normally, Sarah would've swatted Katherine away, but she didn't mind that time.

The text she got read 'Sarah, Mamma wants to know when you'll be home.' and another one sent almost an hour after the other one that said 'I thhnk I'm habinf a panc atac.' 

"Shit," she muttered to herself. She slid out of the booth without a word and walked outside. She dialed David's number and waited for and answer. Thankfully, he answered immediately.

"Sar?"

"Dave, I'm here. Are you alright?" She asked quickly. David had panic attacks every so often, so Sarah had learned how to help with them. Their parents were still confused and Les didn't understand what was happening, so she was usually the one who had to help.

David inhaled shakily from the other line. "I think I'm okay now." Sarah nodded, although he couldn't see her. "Why didn't you pick up the phone? Or answer my text?" He asked. Sarah chewed the bottom of her lip.

"I got distracted. I'm sorry." There was a moment of silence on the other line. David inhaled sharply.

"It's okay. What time do you supposed you'll be home?" He asked. Sarah could just imagine him running his fingers through his hair like he did when he was nervous.

"I'll be home for dinner. I'll try and get there by seven." She paused a moment. "You should take a quick nap, you looked tired this morning."

"I don't need you telling me how to take care of myself," he snapped harshly. It was quickly followed by, "wait - sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I'll go take a nap." Sarah nodded again.

"And David?"

"Hm?"

"I love you." Sarah pratically heard her brother's soft smile.

"Love you too. See you soon. Bye."

"Bye." Sarah hung up and turned off her phone again. When she turned to go back inside, she saw Jack standing by the door. She rolled her eyes and walked over to him. "What do you want?"

"Just worried about you is all. Would you 'ave preferred Kate?" He asked, linking his arm and her's.

"Yeah, actually." She offered a small grin. "You're out of you league, Kelly."

"You're Davey's sister, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Sorry if this is an invasive question but Davey mentioned somethin' 'bout it," he paused looking down for a moment, "are you like, a lesbian?"

Sarah was taken aback by that question. Mostly because she couldn't believe David let it slip that she wasn't straight. She cleared her throat and pursed her lips.

"I'm pansexual, actually." Jack nodded. "Thanks for asking instead of assuming, I guess." Jack scratched the back of his neck nervously while looking down.

"I was wonderin', are you- nevermind." He looked away, and Sarah saw his red cheeks. She placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her.

"I'll be free on Friday, if that's what you're asking." Jack's face lit up. Sarah could feel her cheeks getting hot. She looked away from him. "We could go to a drive-in, those are always fun. Plus I heard there's a great one here. I've got a car."

"Sounds great." He beamed at her. "We should, uh, get back to the group."

"Oh - yeah." She giggled awkwardly and the two went to go sit down. First day at a new school and she already had a date on Friday. Perfect.