stranger still | 80's au

It was hard to pretend he didn't notice them on his way to school that morning: his friends. Old friends. Ex-friends. They were all standing in the usual spot in the courtyard, under the old oak, somehow making the stuffy school uniforms look attractive. There were the triplets, India and Leo arm-wrestling while Arie judged. Diego laughed and Sorrel smirked and Ridley seemed more interested in her book. It was hard to pretend he didn't see all of that.

It was harder that they weren't pretending not to see him. They just really, truly, didn't think to look for him. Not anymore. As if trying to explain itself, to apologize and make it all better, his left ankle tightened from within its brace as he began to climb the stairs.

"Nice letterman, Perch," said an old team mate, but Fantom knew what he meant was "Nice letterman, Perch, except you can't play anymore, so..." He chose to believe instead that he simply looked good in forest green and burgundy and carried on, making his way to his locker and snagging a biology textbook from within it and then stalking his way to the tenth grade hallway.

Mrs. Crabtree was at least 150, Fantom had decided, and had a tendency of mumbling when trying to explain things, and then a tendency of yelling so angrily when everyone failed the test that the horn-rimmed glasses on her cheeks bounced up and down, and a vein shaped like a light bulb appeared on her weathered forehead. She resented essentially all of her students, but she had a particular hatred of Fantom, who admittedly tried very little in his studies. Not to mention, Mrs. Crabtree had also taught Fantom's father, and when she'd failed him, the Perch family had dedicated a library full of books to the school and, magically, Fantom's father had a passing grade again.

Fantom tried to keep his head down and his gaze averted, so he didn't notice when the office aid walked in and scanned the room, or when she approached Mrs. Crabtree's desk and began whispering quietly enough that the students could not hear. He was completely oblivious, pulling the ear flaps of his beanie down to make sure his headphones were covered, until he glanced up and noticed Mrs. Crabtree looking in his direction. Shit. He clicked pause on the casette player in his pocket, coughing to hide the sound.

"Sorry?"

"Your lab partner. Mr. Winchester. Have you seen him today?" He clicked his tongue for a moment, pondering this, and then, "No."

Come to think of it, he hadn't seen a single one of the misfits today. Maybe they were avoiding him, too, though he supposed that was fair. He'd spent most of last year being one of their tormentors. The fact that they'd ever invited him to start sitting with them at lunch was still a concept too strange for him to understand, but he was grateful, he supposed. Certainly beat eating alone, where he was easy pickings and everyone who walked by could take a look at the infamous Fantom Perch, the youngest starting running back the school's football team had ever seen before a bad hit had rendered the ligaments in his foot so weak that he was no longer deemed fit to be a part of the team.

Mrs. Crabtree had only nodded and then looked to the office aid, who whispered something else only Mrs. Crabtree could hear before leaving in a hurry.

After class, Fantom made his way to the courtyard and, sure enough, found most of the misfits sitting below a statue of the Lochlan Academy's founder. Giselle wasn't there, obviously, since she'd been suspended two days ago. Also missing was Cash. Fantom pressed his lips together as he approached them. Even now, there was always a silence when he approached, like he might, at any moment, turn on them. A split second of do we keep talking or do we run? before they realized he meant them no harm. At least, not anymore.

"Have you heard yet?" this came from Garnet, blonde hair pushed back in a headband, forest green sweater tucked into a black pleated skirt. He raised his eyebrows as a response.

"Cash is missing."

She said it like it was a sure thing. A fact. His name was Cash Winchester, he was Fantom's lab partner in first period biology, he always had a pet lizard in his shirt pocket, and he was missing. At least, according to Garnet, he was.

"Correction: He might be missing."

Merlin, the skinnier of the two boys who'd watched Fantom approach always spoke in a very matter-of-fact way. Garnet may have been wise, but Merlin would win every argument he wished to win, critical to the heart, an analyst.

"However, it's more likely that he ditched to go work on the fort. He kept talking about fixing the leak in the roof before we had to rebuild it yesterday."

Fantom craned his head sideways.

"Yesterday?"

"Oh, yeah. D&D Session."

Garnet's eyes said the apology that Merlin's words didn't contain. He'd had the hardest time accepting Fantom, but then Fantom had probably been hardest on him, so he guessed it was fair.

The other boy, Poet, well... he wasn't ever entirely sure how he felt about him. Not because he was short and unapologetic like Merlin, not because he was ambiguous at all, but because he literally had no way of finding out. Poet hadn't spoken in the entire two years anyone in the school had known him. People had a problem with it at first, even teachers, who would call on him day after day expecting him to answer questions out loud. Fantom had personally watched Poet be sent to the office at least twice during his first week. But now it was just a part of him. Poet didn't speak. He watched, he observed, and he remembered. That's what Cash had told him, anyway.

"Anyway, this is Hawkins, Merlin continued, "Too boring for something that big."

Garnet raised an eyebrow, "That's the kind of thinking that gets people killed, you know."

Garnet thought pretty much anything fun was dangerous, Fantom had realized. Skipping school, alcohol, hairspray, you name it and she probably knew some awful way it could potentially kill a guy. If things were different, and Fantom were still the same person, he would've called her a stiff and chuckled away with his friends like the total asshole he was.

"Are the cops looking for him?"

"Duh," Merlin chimed, again a bit too pointed to be casual.

"Sending out a search party at noon."

Fantom considered this for a moment.

"We should ditch and help them look."

He'd forgotten who he was talking to. Garnet had scoffed almost instantly, Poet looked about as alarmed and amused as a person could look, and Merlin sucked his teeth.

"Okay, fine, then we should look on our own after school. Whatever."

Merlin's lips parted to say something, probably something along the lines of why do you care, jerk? but he didn't say it. Instead, Garnet said, "Sure, but only if everyone else is going. Safety in numbers."

Poet signed something- Fantom was still learning- and Garnet and Merlin both nodded before Merlin turned to Fantom at last.

"Poet says we should bring Giselle."

"Meet here after school and head to her place, then?"

"Sure," Garnet agreed.