Small Cities Feel Smaller

Jack walked Alex to his class slowly, it was times like these he wished he had put down biology instead chemistry. The boys awkwardly stopped outside the door to Alex's classroom and Alex quickly leaned in for a hug.

"Later, man, okay? Find me on Myspace or something, we can talk," Alex grinned, before pushing the door open and making a show of his lack punctuality.

Jack chuckled and made his way to his own class, muttering something about a nose bleed on his way in with out stopping on his way to his seat.

"Dude, you're like a half hour late, where were you? And don't give me that nose bleed bullshit," Jack's best friend, Zack, demanded from the seat next to him.

"Merrick!" their teacher snapped in warning, turning her attention to Jack she stated, "We are working on chapter two. In silence."

Jack and Zack silently goofed their way through class, sighing with relief when the bell finally rang signalling the end of the day. The class stumbled around trying to push past each other to get out the door as quickly as possible. Zack was one of the fastest despite his seat being right in the back row, Jack had no choice but to hurry after every class because of this. Zack was a speed walker.

On the short walk home, the boys decided to skate outside Jack's house. They stopped off at Zack's to grab his board and continued on. As they reached the corner of his street, Jack spotted familiar green-patched hair.

"Alex!" Jack exclaimed.

Alex looked over his shoulder and saw Jack dashing towards him. Alex dropped his cigarette in the gutter and stomped it as he went in to hug Jack's bony body again.

"Hey, man," Alex grinned and giggled.

The giggling confused Jack a little, he didn't know Alex well but he didn't seem like the type to giggle. He wasn't about to question it and offend the poor boy.

"Are you with that family that moved in a few weeks ago?" Jack said looking at the driveway they were standing on, "I didn't know they had a kid."

"Oh, they just pretend not to, Jacky. It's what they do," Alex informed him in a sing-song voice, giggling again, "They had a hard time getting me out of California so they just moved with out me."

Zack sniffed, "are you smoking pot?"
"Shhhh," Alex giggled and pointed at the gutter, "not anymore."
"Cool friend, Jack," Zack said, wrinkling his nose up.
Jack shoved him for being rude, "Zack, this is Alex. I met him while I had a nose bleed."
"Yeah, a nose bleed," Alex scoffed.

At that point Alex grew bored of the conversation, plopping to the ground in the middle of the driveway, dragging Jack down with him, "want another cigarette?" Alex fumbled around to find his pack to pass it.

Jack stuck a cigarette in his mouth and lit up as Zack stared down in shock, "Jack, your mom is going to murder you. Why are you even taking cigarettes from a stoner?"
"I kinda like them," was Jack's reply.

He understood Zack's confusion, he really did, but didn't want to explain himself, not to Zack. Not to anyone. He wanted Alex to think he was cool. Besides there's nothing wrong with stoners and cigarettes right?

"Whatever, my mom wanted me home earlier tonight anyway, later," Zack announced, scratching his neck.

What had gotten into Jack? He left quickly, without waiting for a good bye.

"Your friend is a charmer, Jacky, real polite," Alex laughed.

Jack was glad Alex shrugged it off with such ease. They stayed on the drive way the res of the afternoon. Alex talking a lot and giggling, without mentioning the bathroom incident once. Jack laughed along with him, declining a second cigarette. Jack expected his mom to drive past any minute, but Alex seemed to have no qualms. The opposite to Jack. That draws more laughter.

The afternoon came to an end as Jack's mom actually did arrive home and Jack scrambled to his house, leaving Alex rolling on the ground laughing.