“Questions, comments, concerns, words of wisdom, hateful words?” Mr. Shin said, after reciting the 'Morning Message' from a sheet of printer paper. Apparently, according to Dean (who apparently sat beside him in homeroom), he always said this after the Morning Message.

It just so happened that Eli did have a question. Quite a few hateful words, as well, but he didn't want a detention this soon in the game. He raised his hand, a serious and slightly curious look gracing his features.

“Ah, yes...” Mr. Shin pursed his lips in thought. He sighed. “I'm terrible with names...”

“It's Eli,” he took his hand down, “and yes, I have a question.”

“What's your question, Eli?”

Eli leaned forward in his seat just slightly, very interested in the upcoming answer. “Do students get to go off-campus for the lunch period?” he asked, a slight tilt in his head.

Mr. Shin chuckled softly. “No, only staff.”

Eli buzzed his lips in disappointment, slouching a bit in his seat; which was something his mom would scold him for.

“However, Eli, questions like that are best saved for your peers.” he said, gesturing to the desks around him, full of warm, teenage bodies. “Or taking a look at the school policy you got upon registration. You did get a copy of the school policy, didn't you?”

Eli nodded, and opened his mouth to protest. But Mr. Shin cut him off.

“Then don't waste my time with such obvious questions.”

This guy. It's like he was just asking for a full serving of Eli's sharp, quick-witted tongue. Everything about the bastard just rubbed him the wrong way. The way he talked, the way he walked. The way he stood and the way he looked.

Shin Soohyun was Eli's biggest pet peeve.

“Of course. Sorry, Mr. Shin...” he said through gritted teeth. As soon as he walked back to his desk, Dean turned to him.

“Dude. He totally just ed you out.” he said. “What did you do?”

Eli rolled his eyes slightly, still not too keen on having Dean as a friend. “I didn't do anything. I think we just hate each other, and that's that.”

Dean scoffed. “Well, you better hope you get on his good side, and quick. Parent teacher conferences are in a few weeks.”

Eli sighed dramatically and dropped his head on the desk. “Ow.” he whined, frowning wide and not bothering to lift his head again. There was no way he was going to get Mr. Shin to like him within that time frame. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to try.

“I need to get out of this place.” Eli said into the desk, referring to the school; town; country; hell, even hemisphere. He wanted to be anywhere but near Shin Soohyun.

Just then, the bell rang, signifying the end of homeroom. Dean stood and patted Eli's back, “Gotta wait 'til 3:00 for that.” he said, grabbing his bag and heading for the door. Eli slowly lifted his head, also grabbing his bag from the floor and slinging it over his shoulder.

Noticing he was the last student left in the room, he quickened his pace toward the door. Just as he passed the threshold, he heard Mr. Shin's voice.

“Eli, please. I need a moment with you.”

Eli groaned inwardly and backtracked to Mr. Shin's desk. “Yeah, teach?” he said lazily, leaning over his paperwork with a smug smirk on his lips.

The older male breathed out heavily, growing more annoyed by the teen's presence the longer it stayed. “First of all, call me Mr. Shin. I am your teacher, and I will not tolerate any form of disrespect.”

Students started to trickle in for his next class. Eli stood awkwardly as he was lectured.

“Second, I really suggest you read that school policy. Facial piercings are not allowed at Riverside.” he gestured to Eli's eyebrow, currently studded with a silver ring.

“If I take it out, it will close over. Do you know how long I've had this thing? My friend in Korea did this herself; in my basement. It'll be a huge pain in the to do it again.” Eli replied hotly.

“I don't care. It's against policy. Also, don't swear at me. It's highly disrespectful.”

“I don't care. It's just my vocabulary.” Eli mocked. “And I also don't care if I'm disrespectful to you because you're a ing self-righteous bastard that needs to be shot off his high horse.”

The two stared for a moment, each getting angrier and angrier, until a sweet, bubbly voice came up behind them.

“Eli? What are you still doing here? The bell is about to ring.”

Eli turned to see the confused face of his little sister. She headed to her sit, which was near where Eli was standing, and set her bag down on the floor beside the leg of the desk.

“Your brother was just receiving his very first detention.” Mr. Shin smiled. “My classroom after school.” he said, a serious expression tainting his features.

Eli could only sigh and walk away.

Dean found Eli pretty easily at lunch. He guessed it was kind of hard to miss an Asian with bleached blond hair.

“The lunch here actually isn't so bad.” Dean commented, taking a bite of his cheeseburger. “I honestly think TV shows over-dramatize high school.”

Eli sighed, mainly blocking out Dean's incessant chatter. He accidentally made a friend, and now he doesn't know what to do. It didn't really seem like Dean had many other friends, and Eli kind of felt bad for the guy... You can't just go through high school alone.

“They over-dramatize high school on television to make it actually interesting.” Eli stated dryly. “Let's face it; this whole place is a giant ing joke.” sighing, he stood. “I'm gonna run down to McDonald's. Wanna come?”

Dean looked up at him, puzzled. “Students aren't allowed off-campus.” he said, tilting his head. Hadn't Eli heard a word Mr. Shin said?

“I know.”

With a smug smirk upon his lips, he turned and walked toward the doors. Dean immediately followed, leaving his cafeteria food on the table. They walked out the front doors and across the parking lot.

“Eli! I thought I told you only staff is allowed off-campus.” Mr. Shin's voice sounded in Eli's head. He chose to ignore it.

Dean suddenly hit Eli's arm, gaining his attention. “What?” Eli snapped, raising his voice accidentally. Dean simply nodded his head toward the faculty parking.

Mr. Shin was leaning against his car, an angry yet amused look on his face. Eli sighed, trying not to growl in frustration.

“I'm not going off-campus, Mr. Shin.” he said, trying to make his voice as sweet sounding as possible. “I'm just moving my car to the other parking lot so my sister can find it after school.” he lied, waving his hand in the general direction of where he parked.

Mr. Shin raised an eyebrow. “And you, Dean?” he asked, offering a much kinder smile to him than he had to Eli.

“I left my textbook for English in his car when he drove me to school this morning.” he thought quickly, nodding as if to convince everyone of his lie.

Trusting Dean's words, Mr. Shin smiled and opened his car door. “Very well, then.” he said, seating down and turning his car on. As he drove away, Dean groaned heavily.

“We're dead.”

“Shut up, no we're not. If he does find out, he'll punish me because I'm on his list for some reason. You're perfectly safe.” Eli said, unlocking his car and throwing his backpack in the backseat. Dean followed suit.

Driving down the road, Eli drummed his thumbs against the steering wheel and swished air around his mouth. He contemplated just going home after lunch, but he knew that wasn't a good idea. His sister knew about his detention, so he couldn't skip it. And if he knew Mr. Shin at all, he knew that an even more severe punishment would result from him skipping.

“I'm actually not hungry. I need gas, though.” Eli sighed, glancing at his fuel meter. “And Red Bull.” he added, as an after thought.

Dean shrugged. “There's a gas station like two blocks away. They have the best taquitos.” he said, smacking his lips and humming happily afterward.

Eli pursed his lips, turning smoothly into the local gas station. “Not a big fan of Mexican food. But you can get one.”

Dean sat quietly in his seat as the gas tank was being filled. He drummed his fingers on his knees, looking around the car. So, Eli was a smoker, he liked the scent of pomegranates, and he kept his car very clean. He had a sneaking suspicion that Eli wasn't the 'couldn't care less' person that he let on to be. No, he had a feeling that he was very kind at heart. Couldn't say why exactly, it was simply a hunch.

Suddenly, Eli knocked on the passenger's side window. Dean hurried and rolled down the window with the crank lever. “Hey, why don't you go inside and pay for my gas. Just grab me a couple Red Bulls, and you can get whatever.”

Dean opened the door and stepped out as Eli handed him sixty dollars. “Put forty on pump three.”

Nodding, the brown-haired boy walked across the small parking lot and into the convenience store. He went around and grabbed three of the energy drink that the pigeon-like male loved so much. Then, he quickly grabbed a few taquitos-- the cheesy jalapeno kind.

“And put forty on pump three, please.” he said pleasantly, setting the items down on the counter. As he stood, waiting for the cashier to tell him his total, he looked around the store, mainly observing things about the woman before him.

Her name was Tiffany, or so her nametag said. Judging by the pink flower that rested against her bun, the pink polish that adorned every one of her fingernails, and the silver bracelet decorated with pink charms; her favorite color was pink. And finally; the gleam in her eye and the smile on her face told Dean she was kind. A lot kinder than her pretty face would have you believe.

“Would you like to buy a balloon for a dollar?” she asked, “All proceeds go to the local children's hospital.” her smile afterward just about melted his heart. He wasn't even thinking about how it wasn't his money to spend-- he just couldn't say no to her.

She smiled even wider. “Alright, your total comes to $51.97. Would you like a bag?”

Dean simply shook his head, unable to find his tongue in the presence of her beauty. He handed her the money and grabbed his items off the counter. As soon as he got the proper amount of change, he turned and headed for the door.

“Thank you!” she shouted after him. “Have a good day!”

He paused in his pursuit of opening the door, to turn his head and smile at her. “You too, Tiffany.” was all his nervous voice could manage.

When he got back to the car, Eli was already in his seat, ready to go. Dean got in quickly and buckled his seat belt before handing the driver his drink. “Want a bite?” he asked, holding out a taquito to him.

Eli took one whiff of it and scrunched his face in disgust. “Is that jalapeno? I can't eat that .” he said, turning on to the road and opening his energy drink.

Dean shrugged. More for me, he thought as he bit a large chunk of it off, chewing it and sighing at the inner peace it brought him. We all have our comfort foods. For some, it's ice cream, and for others, it's fried chicken. For Dean, it just so happened to be cheesy jalapeno taquitos from any local gas station.

As they got out of the car, Dean sipping a Red Bull and crumbling the wrapper to his long-forgotten treat, he turned to Eli. “Thanks, by the way.” he said, a smile playing across his lips. “Right now, you're the best friend I have.” he confessed, looking down almost in shame.

A punch of guilt hit Eli in the stomach suddenly, as he looked at his new friend in surprise. He wasn't about to go all chick-flick, so he retained his normal attitude. “Don't get all gooey on me.” he sighed, rolling his eyes. “Or I'll never take you anywhere again.”

Dean smiled, following Eli closely back into the school building. He was good at reading people. He knew for a fact by studying him just a little that that was how he showed he cared for someone. He brushed off compliments and any kind of affection, no matter how small. He didn't want to seem weak in other's eyes; especially not anyone he actually did like-- and he didn't like many people.

Not many people could understand people like Eli. But Dean could, and he could put up with his attitude.

Eli would never admit it, but he's glad Dean is willing to stick around.   

A/N: HAHA so this one was longer, yeah? I think anyway adfkgjdfjoiejfjdf But, yeah. Wanna know what got me through this?? Half&Half Arizona Tea. The lemonade one oMG IT'S SO AMAZING LIKE LAD;FAGHDJFIJEN MMMMMMMMMMM SO GOOD.

Anyway, HI MIRA!!! I forgot to do that last time.

Kay goodbye cries *hides in a hole*