MONDAY

Lavi could tell that the day was going to be strange simply by looking out his window. Across the way was another house, and a room whose window faced his own. However, unlike most days, the curtain of the other window was open, and a dark-haired male was sitting on his bed, glaring redhead.

Said redhead blinked, hesitating for a brief moment before waving timidly, causing the other to glare even harder, if possible. He recognized the other boy immediately. He was the 'bad boy' of the school with the perfect girlfriend, captain of the kendo team, and one of the most handsome boys in their grade. However, it was his reputation that caused him to have no friends, with the exception of his angelic girlfriend.

/We all call him Kanda at school, but that's his last name… no one knows his first name… he's definitely the most interesting person at our school./ Lavi thought as he watched the other pick up his backpack and walk away from the window. Examining his watch, he inwardly cursed. /Crud! I'm gonna be late!/ Lavi gathered his scattered binders and books and ran out the door, praying the bus wouldn't leave him again.

* * *

Luckily, the bus was running a few minute behind, so Lavi was able to board right behind Kanda. He scanned the aisles before locating the familiar white head.

"Bean sprout!" he cheered, taking a seat next to his best friend.

"Don't call me that!" the white-haired boy protested. His hair color was due to his oculocutaneous albinism (type two, thus the blue eyes), but it was rarely commented on.

"Sorry, Allen." Lavi chuckled as he wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "Sooooo? How was your summer?"

"It was alright. I worked for most of it… you know how many debts my uncle accumulates." He laughed half-heartedly. "How about you?"

"Same… Gramps made me get a job at his library so I could take over once he croaks. It was torture! He expects me to know everything about every book we have in stock! That's what online library databases are for!" the redhead groaned.

"Do shut up, please." A short girl with spiked black hair rolled her eyes as she took the seat in front of them.

"Shouldn't you be three rows back, Rhode?" Lavi asked.

"Shouldn't you mind your own business?" she retorted. "Last I checked, my group may be outcasts, but we're still higher up on the food chain, nerd."

"Whoa! You just got slammed by a goth. You really are lame." One of the jocks chuckled.

"Yeah, well at least I'm not a Neanderthal."

"Ooo, big words. We're sooo scared!" the jock's cheerleader girlfriend giggled.

"Hey. Piss off, okay?" Rhode glared at the couple. "You're messing up my vibes, and I can't function if I can't hear my muses… and I'd hate to have to go into one of my destructive moods… I nearly blew up the gym last time it happened." An evil glint appeared in her eyes, causing the entire bus to immediately shift their attention elsewhere.

"Rhode… you're scary." Her cousin laughed as he took the seat next to her. "Why are you sitting back here with the nerds?"

"Because Allen's cute." Was her immediate response. "I was thinking we could merge our groups… safety in numbers and all that."

"In other words, you're hoping to recruit them into drama club."

"Pretty much." Rhode smirked, pulling a large lollipop out of her backpack.

The two began bickering, to Lavi and Allen's amusement, causing the other six members of their group to come over and pick sides.

"Oh, goodness. Did you two join the drama club over the summer?" Miranda asked as she and two others boarded the bus.

"Definitely not." Lavi answered. "Psycho runt over here wants us all to, though."

"Well that simply won't work! I'm taking way too many AP classes this year… I don't have time for extracurricular activities!" Johnny protested, adjusting his glasses.

"Grandfather wants me to go straight home after school every day." Krory added. "He really doesn't like the people in this town for some reason. I have no idea why he's stayed here for so many years…"

"Well, we're glad to have you with us, Krorykins!" Lavi cheered, pulling his friend down to sit in the seat next to his own. "So. Who wants to buy me lunch today?"

* * *

The cafeteria was crowded by the time Lavi joined his friends at their table.

"Oi. Drama twerp. What are you doing?" he asked the girl sitting next to Allen.

"Sitting next to my beloved Allen! What's it look like, moron?" Rhode answered with an irritated glare.

"Seriously, this is messing with my head… our groups aren't supposed to sit together."

"It's our senior year. It's time for change." Tyki shrugged.

"Exactly!" Rhode nodded emphatically.

"Uh, Rhode… you're still a sophomore." Allen spoke up. The punk girl merely giggled before pecking him on the cheek.

"Details."

"Hey, where are the other three?" Lavi asked, scanning the cafeteria for their friends. "Don't tell me they got stuck with first lunch…"

"Nah. Debitto just texted and said Professor Lee is holding them after the bell … Apparently one of his experiments went wild… again." Tyki sighed, putting his phone back in his pocket. "You'd think the administration would wise up after four years of this garbage."

"Yeah…" Lavi agreed, trailing off as a second flood of students entered the cafeteria, his grumpy neighbor amongst the crowd.

"There's Krory and Miranda!" Allen waved in an attempt to signal their friends.

"Hey, Lavi. Do you want my chicken nuggets? I'm not terribly hungry." Johnny offered as he took the seat across from the redhead.

"You bet!" he tore his attention away from Kanda in order to shift his attention to his friend. "What took you so long to get here? You have Mr. Reever, right? Doesn't he normally let out early?"

"I-ah-um-stopped by the lab… they just got some new computers and wanted me to help program them…" he stammered, attempting to cover his embarrassment.

"In other words, he wanted to see Lulu." Rhode smirked.

"H-hey! You know how hard it is to talk to her, even if your group is hanging out with ours now…." Johnny protested. "A-and she and I have a lot in common!"

"Yep. Totally has a crush." Allen chuckled along with Rhode's hysterical giggling.

"Like you can talk, boy." Tyki retorted.

"Y-yeah! You like Lenalee and she's a cheerleader!" Johnny added.

"Aww, he does? That makes me sad." Rhode pouted, getting up only to plop herself into Allen's lap. "Well, thanks to Mr. Scary over there, you have no chance with her. Meaning I get you all to myself!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled against him happily.

"Psycho squirt." Lavi muttered, returning his attention to Kanda. The dark-haired male was currently seated at a small table where he was soon joined by Lenalee. The cheerleader immediately situated herself in his lap, ignoring the enraged glare from her boyfriend. After a few seconds of heated words between the two, he stood up, unceremoniously dumping her on the floor in his hasty exit.

"He's such a jerk." Allen muttered angrily to Lavi. "How can he do that to her? I mean, she's Lenalee, for goodness sake! She's an angel…" he trailed off, his eyes getting slightly glassy.

"Yep. Definitely a jerk." Lavi decided with a firm nod.

* * *

That night, Lavi once again found himself being watched by Kanda from across the narrow alley that separated their houses. Angrily, Lavi rummaged around under his bed until he found an old sketchbook from an art class he'd failed his freshman year. He grabbed a marker from his floor and began scribbling away angrily.

YOU'RE A JERK

was roughly slammed against his window, facing the other window. Kanda calmly raised an eyebrow before pulling out a similar sketchpad and writing a reply.

Why?

YOU TREAT EVERYONE LIKE CRAP

Yeah. So?

EVEN LENALEE!

Kanda merely held up his previous reply of 'Yeah. So?' Even more frustrated, Lavi scribbled away until he had a reply.

SHE'S YOUR GIRLFRIEND.

I hate her. She's annoying.

THEN WHY DATE HER?

No choice

WHAT? WHY NOT?

Blackmail.

And before Lavi could ask more, the curtain was closed.

* * *