Population 801

"Okay Kellin keep the camera on me, got it?" Jesse said at the lunch table. It had been a week since Kellin's encounter with Vic and the tan boy was keeping his distance. Once Kellin got the camera rolling Jesse began his lecture "So mysterious audience for which Kellin is recording our senior year- I have something rather important to tell you..." he trailed on while Kellin scanned the cafeteria. Just behind Jesse he noticed a familiar boy sitting by himself at a lunch table. Kellin couldn't help but zoom the camera in just to the right of Jesse's head to get a better look at the boy. The camera just perfectly caught the sun glistening off his cheekbones and the flutter of his eyelashes. Kellin had become so engrossed in Vic that he had forgotten what he had supposed to have been doing.

"Kellin are you even getting this? This shit is legendary!" Jesse yelled waving his hand up and down in front of the lens. Kellin shut his camera and hastily stood up.

"Yup, Jess. Got every word. Interesting stuff, man. Gotta go." He walked away from his now friends he direction of Vic's table. Kellin had a plan- a stupid, ridiculous, doomed to fail plan- but a plan nonetheless. When he got to Vic's table he sat down across from him, noticing his obvious cringe.
"Hey Vic!" He said calmly, setting his camera on the table.

"Kellin, look, I told you-"

"I know! I know what you said- you're solitary- and I respect that, Man, I do, but hear me out. I am.. recording.. my entire senior year. Everyone's senior year. And so I'm interviewing all the seniors, which means that I need to interview you." Kellin inwardly laughed at how stupid he sounded.

"I don't know Kellin... I haven't seen you interview anyone else." Vic eyed him, skeptically.

"Well your last name is Fuentes, which means your towards the top of the list. We have a senior class of 20 students Vic." Vic still looked torn, even though Kellin thought he did a good job of covering his tracks. "Come on, Vic, I don't bite."

"Fine. A short interview I guess couldn't hurt." Kellin, practically beaming with excitement, picked up his camera and started rolling.

"Alright! So this is Vic Fuentes." Kellin said as Vic waved awkwardly at the lens. "But don't try to talk to him... he's solitary." Kellin whispered his last two words as if they were a big secret. Kellin could see Vic struggle to hide a smile, but one eventually broke. "Woah! Was that a real smile?"

"Shut up, Kellin, you don't even know me." He said, returning to his isolated state.

"Okay then, that's why we have an interview! So on that note, what's your favorite color?" Kellin smirked.

"Really? Alright, I'll play, green." Vic smirked back- not his real smile, but it was something.

"Blue is way better but whatever, um, how old are you?"

"I turned 18 about 3 months ago."

"Oh, cool, I'm 18 next month." Kellin said in return. "What do you like to do in your free time? Like I have photography, you have..."

"Uh, I don't know, guitar? I mean I play guitar and I sing a little." Kellin's stomach did flips at the thought of Vic singing and he felt his cheeks were turning red. What was up with that? He's heard people sing before, he hears Jesse sing practically everyday.

"But how come you zone out during Music then?"

"Because I don't like being told how to do it I just want to do it." He said shrugging. Kellin's eyes widened when he realized that they both had the same idea.

"That's exactly why I hate those classes. Like my photography class- I want to take pictures of what I think deserve to be captured not what they think is easily graded."

"Exactly!" They sat in comfortable silence just looking at each other for a few minutes. Kellin took the time to observe Vic like he would a photograph. His hint of a smile caused his eyes to squint in the slightest bit as he looked back at Kellin. His nose dipped at gradual slope that led right to his beautifully pink lips. Beautiful? Since when did Kellin call boys, let alone anyone, beautiful? He'd never had a crush on anyone because, well, everyone in this town was like family to him. But Vic wasn't. No, Vic was a boy, Kellin wasn't gay, right? He didn't think he was but for some reason he couldn't help but observe the cracks in Vic's lips.

"Oh um, the interview." Kellin said, honestly forgetting he was filming. Vic nodded in agreement. "So why'd you move out to Denning?"

Vic tensed up and began to gather his things. "Um, sorry Kellin, I'm uh, I'm gonna be late." He said standing up.

"What? We have 15 minutes and I'm in your next class! At least let me walk with you! I'm sorry I asked, we can just forget about it." Kellin said, shutting his camera and throwing it in his bag.

"No, Kellin! I don't think you understand I don't want friends! I don't need friends! I need to be alone so could you, could you just leave me alone Kellin?" With that he ran out of the cafeteria, leaving Kellin more confused now than ever.

- - -

"So are you guys like, friends?" Jesse asked later that day at Kellin's house. They were playing video games but Kellin was distracted with thoughts of Vic. He had ignored him in music and avoided him all other times. Kellin just didn't understand why he wouldn't open up. Or rather, what was the reason he moved here and why was he so secretive about it?

"I don't know! I mean I try to get him open up and then he shuts me down."

"Well I don't like him." Jesse said harshly. Kellin looked puzzled at the ginger. "I mean, he shows up out of nowhere, no one knows why he's here or anything about him, and its just.. its different Kellin!"

"What's wrong with different?" Kellin asked, pausing the game and turning to face Jesse.

"In this town? Being different is like the 8th deadly sin." Jesse had a point and Kellin wouldn't argue with him, but they both knew that wasn't normal. Everybody in their town is practically a replica of everyone else. Kellin found it sickening, everyone else found it comforting.

"I don't know man there's just something... intriguing about him." Kellin said.

"Ah, Kellin's got a crush!" Jesse said nudging his friend.

"Shut up Jess, I'm not gay!" Kellin would never admit to Jesse that he had been thinking about the possibility that he might actually be gay.

"Kellin. You're 17. You've never talked to us about having a crush on anyone, never kissed anyone, nothing. The only semi-romantic thing I've seen you do in your whole life is practically rip my steering wheel off so you could walk Vic home. Or maybe when you sat with him at lunch because he had no one else. If you don't have a crush on him then I don't know the meaning of the word."

"That's being friendly, Jess." Kellin defended. He knew Jesse was right, though.

"Look Kellin, you don't have to admit it to me," Jesse stood up to leave, "but you're gonna have to admit it to yourself. And sooner or later, you're gonna have to admit it to Vic."

And just like that Kellin was alone again. He layed down on his bed and groaned in frustration. He's never really thought about being in a relationship, he wouldn't know what to do! He's never had feelings for anyone before, and didn't know if he had them for Vic. There was one way to find out, though.

He pulled out his video camera and started at the beginning, when he first caught Vic on camera. He continued to look through and noticed that whenever he filmed he found himself focusing on Vic- when he taped Gabe on the way to biology he caught Vic at his locker, when he taped Tay after school he caught Vic walking home, when he taped Josh practicing football he caught Vic studying in the bleachers. Then when he got to the interview today and Vic's smile he lost it. His stomach did flips and he found himself rewinding over and over to capture the moment. There was something amazing about that smile and Kellin thought to himself,

'Yeah, I think I like that smile.'