Chapter Three- Connections
A/N: Hopefully this might clear some things up. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: I don't own The Outsiders.
Seth was shivering when he reached his bus stop. It was near the end of February but the winter weather showed no signs of ending. Seth checked his watch: 7:03.
That damn bus is late again, he thought while his teeth chattered uncontrollably. Even with his thick winter coat he was still shaking.
Finally the bus showed up at his corner and Seth moved his frozen body into the vehicle.
"Had trouble starting up this morning," the driver explained. It was the same excuse she used every winter morning.
Seth didn't care. He walked up the aisle and sat in the first empty seat he could find. The window was icy cold against his scalp as he leaned against the glass. Vibrations from the bus ride pulsed through his body.
As they rolled in on the lasts top, Seth wondered if she would be on the bus this time. He hadn't seen her in weeks, but he knew the reason. By now, everyone knew why Kendi Curtis hadn't been in school for so long. He couldn't blame her if she had transferred to another school. Some even said that she started attending the private school where her dad taught. Still, Seth held a tiny bit of hope that one day she'd board the bus again.
Seth closed his eyes. He was always tired.
"Hey," a familiar voice said.
Seth opened his eyes to see Kendi standing by his seat.
"Mind if I sit here?" she asked.
"Go ahead."
There was silence for a few moments before either of them could find something to say. When they did, both of them spoke at the same time.
"You first," Kendi offered.
Seth bit his lip before he could figure out what he wanted to say.
"How are you?" he said. Simple. Easy. Safe. It didn't hold any threat for him. Or for her at that matter.
"Been okay. You?"
"Same."
It went silent again but this time it was because they were both eyeing each other's arms. Seth knew Kendi's sleeves were for more than just warmth. His were the same way.
"So… were the able to 'cure' you?" Seth said trying not to sound mean.
Kendi hesitated for a moment. She knew the idea of professional help didn't appeal to Seth.
"No, not exactly. They didn't try to force me to stop. They just… I don't know. But it's not as bad as you would think."
"Oh," Seth said. "So you've stopped?"
Kendi fiddled with the hem of her sleeves. The scars were still there and would probably never fade.
"Not exactly," she said again. The conversation was getting too heavy. Neither of them felt comfortable talking about the one thing they shared so Kendi tried o change the subject. "Are you still going to that arts school?" she asked.
Seth went to the Avery Arts School for half his school day. He was a writer there.
"Yeah," he said, aware of her attempt at moving on. He glided his index finger across the back of the seat in front of him making up imaginary lines on the upholstery. "Why did you do it, Kendi?" he asked suddenly. He couldn't hold the words back any longer.
Kendi looked at Seth's finger one the seat. It was the only thing she could do to not look him in the eye.
"Do what?" Kendi said. She looked to her feet as if they had become the most interesting things in the world.
"You know what I'm talking about," Seth said, aggravated. "Why did you try to kill yourself?" You were the only one who understood, and you tried to leave.
Kendi bit at the calluses on her fingertips. The only time she ever saw Seth during the year was in the ten-minute morning bus ride from her stop to the school. It was strange that their friendship lasted since they barely got a chance to talk. Still, they managed to get to know each other and share their personal secrets. Yet, there were still some things Kendi couldn't bring herself to disclose to Seth no matter how many times he had trusted her.
"I'm sorry I asked," Seth said as the bus pulled into the entrance of the school. I was scared when I found out. Did you know that?, he thought to himself.
"It's not your fault," Kendi said. She tried to find something else to talk about again. "Do your parents know yet?" she asked hoping he'd know what she meant.
"No" he said as they got off the bus. "And hopefully, they never will."
In class, Seth couldn't keep his eyes open. He was always tired.
But he could never find time to rest.
----
They hadn't seen each other in months but the random encounter wasn't exactly welcomed. A year earlier, they were the best of friends. Now, Kira and Cam barely spoke.
The library was closed that day so Kira was forced to go to her regular study hall. Her friend, Seth, had to go make up a test he missed a few days ago so she knew he wouldn't be there with her. What she didn't expect was to find Cam in her study hall as well. And that the only available seat was the one right next to him.
I've been away from study hall longer than I thought, Kira thought to herself.
They exchanged glances.
"Mind if I sit here?" Kira said fully aware of how awkward she sounded. It wasn't like Cam could do anything about it.
"No, go ahead," he said not looking up from his work. His geometry book was open and Cam was trying to work out the proofs in his notebook.
After a few moments of not talking, Kira decided to break the ice.
"Side, angle, side," she said.
"What?" Cam replied confused.
"You're supposed to prove that the two triangles are congruent by side angle side. Then you can say that triangle ABD is isosceles," Kira explained.
"Oh," Cam said as he wrote down the solution to the problem. "Are you a math whiz now?"
"No, I'm just good at proving the point."
"Then become a lawyer."
"Maybe, I will," Kira smirked.
Cam gave a half-smile back. Kira wondered if it would be a good time to try and bring back their old friendship.
"So, how's Dan?" she asked.
Cam just stared at her for a second.
"That was fast," he said. "Thought you'd wait a few problems before trying to catch up."
"Maybe I just like cutting to the chase," Kira replied.
"He's fine. So is Rodney. Do you know how to do number ten?"
Kira took a look at the problem.
"You have to draw line XZ and use the reflexive property."
Cam wrote down what Kira said and finished the rest of the problem. "Thanks," he said afterwards.
No problem." Kira crossed her legs and looked Cam in the eye. "I heard about your dad, Cameron." She only called him "Cameron" when the issue was really serious.
"You and the rest of the freshman class," Cam retorted. He broke the pencil he was writing with.
"You lied to me."
"I lied to everyone."
"Did you lie to Rawley?"
Cam hesitated. "No… but that's different."
"How?"
"It just is, all right?"
"You still lied." Kira looked down to the floor. "And you weren't very good at it either."
Cam walked to the pencil sharpener on the other side of the room. When he came back, he worked on another problem.
"Point B is a median making segments AB and BC congruent," Kira explained.
"Thanks," Cam grumbled more out of obligation that appreciation.
"We heard you guys fighting. God, Cam, did you think it was that much of a secret? One night, I thought he was going to kill you!" Kira felt a lump in her throat but did her best to swallow it. "My mom might've done something but every time she went to speak to your dad, he was always sober."
"He thinks no one will know if he covers it up," Cam said.
"Like father, like son," Kira conceded.
"I'm not like my father," Cam shot back.
"Maybe," Kira said.
"I'm done with this," Cam said putting back his geometry book and notebook in his backpack.
This isn't done yet, Kira thought. She was never one to give up
Flashback
A young girl nearing her eleventh birthday stood next to the how with the moving van at the front. She tilted her baseball cap down so as not to be noticed.
"Kira, help me take some of these boxes inside!" a woman called from inside the van.
Kira groaned as she trudged herself to help her mother. It was the beginning of October and middle school had already changed things.
After settling in, Kira's older sister, Mia, called to her.
"There's a couple of boys outside playing. They look like they're your age. Why don't you go meet them?" Mia suggested.
"Eww… boys. No way," Kira replied.
Mia rolled her eyes.
"Just go out there and at least find out who they are," Mia insisted.
"Fine," Kira groaned. She tilted her cap even further down in front of her eyes.
There were two boys on the driveway next door. One had dark skin and black hair while the other was blond and pale.
Dark boy and light midget, Kira thought noting the blond boy's miniscule size.
They were playing with a basketball and a hoop that looked like it would fall over any second. Neither of them seemed to notice. They were too busy trying to steal the ball from each other. The dark-haired boy had an advantage because of his height but the smaller was one was quicker.
Kira watched the game from underneath her hat. She didn't want to join them. She hated basketball.
Suddenly, the blond boy stopped and looked at Kira's direction. He tried to say something but the rustling of autumn leaves in the breeze overpowered his small voice.
"What?" Kira said wondering if the boy was even talking to her.
The boy picked up the basketball and walked up to Kira. For the first time, Kira lifted her cap up out of curiosity.
The boy held the ball towards her.
"Do you want to play?" he said.
Kira stared at the ball for a moment. The boy looked at her with the clearest gray eyes she'd ever seen. The other boy was still at the driveway waiting for his friend to come back and play. Kira thought about how this boy didn't even know her, yet he was holding a basketball towards her like he was her friend.
"Okay," she said. And she took the ball from the boy's hands and attempted to dribble on the grass. The three kids played until Mia called Kira home for dinner.
"So you still think boys are gross?" Mia asked teasingly.
Kira looked up at her sister's mocking expression.
"They're not bad… for boys, anyways."
A/N: It's not funny, I know. But come on, I need to give some kind of background before I send them to the trash can! Read and Review! Critique welcomed! Opinions welcomed!