Imperfect

By the time it was first rest period, I was drained, but in a good way, if that’s possible. Aven came over and settled next to me. I kinda wanted to talk, but he was engrossed in a book that had to be three inches thick.
I liked the look on his face when he read, less guarded, his pale hazel eyes half lidded. A few minutes later Crystal, Walt, and Bryan joined us, along with that quiet kid, Jamie. Aven barely looked up from his book.
He just grunted a hello and went back to reading. Walt turned to me with his usual smile. “So, how was your first day?” “Okay, I guess. It’s kinda busy.”
Jamie spoke up for the first time. His voice was timid and sweet. I decided I liked him. “I like the food here.” We all turned to him with puzzled expressions, and he flushed. “They didn’t feed me a lot at home.”

Crystal reached over and patted his back sympathetically. Aven finally closed the book, carefully smoothing a page down before he looked up.
“Welcome back, Aven. What’re you reading?” Walt asked. Aven slipped the book into his lap and mumbled something, like he was shy.
“Dude, speak up.” “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” he snapped, angry for some reason. “Uh, okay. Is that why you’re being pissy?”
Aven clenched his jaw, muttering, “It’s stupid.” We waited. “I don’t like the looks I get when people see what I read. Like I’m a freak for liking books, or they can’t believe someone like me has a brain.”
“Dude, that is stupid.” Bryan said. “Bryan!”Walt scolded, punching his shoulder. “Well, it is.” We all laughed it off, and Aven seemed to relax.