Somehow, I was able to complete all my homework the previous night, though it involved sacrificing a significant amount of sleep. Still, I didn’t regret my trip to Cap’s house. In spite of all my worries about Cap, simply accepting his desire to be friends had taken a mental load off my back, and waking up was the most painless it had been in years.

Of course, my mother was the first to notice how relaxed I seemed. When I was preparing to leave, she came over to speak with me.

“Retter, have a good day, okay?” she expressed.

“Hm?” I let out, turning to her, “Oh, okay. I’ll try.”

I saw her blink for a moment, then smile.

“You seem to be feeling good today,” she observed, “Did something happen?”

“What do you mean? I don’t think I’m any different than usual.”

“No, no, I think you’re a little more relaxed. Your responses are coming across a little differently than usual.”

I shrugged.

“Guess I slept pretty well last night.”

The smile fell from her face, replacing itself with a suspicious look.

“Are you telling the truth?” she probed, “You were up pretty late. I don’t think you got much sleep.”

“That’s true, but quality and quantity aren’t necessarily correlated, especially where sleep is concerned,” I explained.

While her face still seemed like she knew something wasn’t right, she backed off at that point.

“Well, have a good day!”

“Yeah, yeah, you said that already,” I muttered, before making my way to the bus stop.

To my surprise, though, when I arrived at school, Cap wasn’t there. I had assumed based on what we talked about yesterday that he only needed to testify for one day, but was that really the case?

I noticed that the rumors were still in full force, as well. Oh well, I considered, deciding not to pay attention to them. While I still needed to do something about them, I was in too good a mood to let myself get distracted.

While Cap didn’t show up to first period, Miles was present, and whenever I looked at him, I could see that something wasn’t quite right. I wasn’t sure why, but there was almost a sadness baked into his eyes that I had never seen before in him. He was clearly shaken from our confrontation yesterday, but I had no idea to what extent that was the case. It was possible he was simply putting up a front so Cap would take pity on him, or maybe he really was hurting. Either way, I knew I had to keep my distance if I wanted to keep my face intact.

Thankfully, in spite of my earlier worries, Cap did show up to school that day. He arrived midway through fourth period, which, while unlike him, did signal that he was gone for a different reason than yesterday, or at the very least that his role was done more quickly than before.

In fact, at lunch, he surprised me again.

“Hey, Ret, where are you going?” I heard him call as I left the classroom.

I turned around, seeing him standing near my desk.

“What’s up?” I asked, confused.

This was the first time he had outwardly approached me in the classroom, so I was left somewhat lost for words.

“Let’s walk to lunch together,” he proposed.

I considered turning him down for a moment, but I figured that after what I’d said last night, I owed him that much. I nodded and signaled that I would wait in the hall.

After a moment where I could hear Cap waving off his other friends, he emerged from the classroom.

“Let’s go, Ret,” he beckoned.

As we started walking, I decided to try and start a conversation.

“You know, there’s something strange about walking to lunch with you,” I commented.

“Really?” he deadpanned, “That’s the best you can do? That both came across kinda forced, and hurt a bit.”

“You know what I mean, though, right?” I asked, trying to forget about my clumsy mistake, “We’ve never really done this before.”

“I suppose that’s true,” he said, “But still, phrasing.”

“Sorry, sorry,” I apologized, hanging my head.

We kept walking for a little longer, not talking anymore after my failed attempt at small talk. Once we reached the bench where we normally sat, Iris, who was already there, took immediate notice of what was happening.

“What’s going on?” she asked, appearing unsettled, “Why are you two walking to lunch together?”

“We’re friends now,” Cap proudly declared.

I rolled my eyes at his enthusiasm, but nodded my head.

“He’s right,” I murmured, “We worked out something yesterday.”

A smile crept onto Iris’ face at this.

“I’m glad to hear that,” she said, “At this rate I was wondering if our little group would fall apart.”

“No, that was just me being a dumbass,” I claimed.

“What do you mean?” Cap asked, out of the loop.

“Don’t worry about it,” Iris waved off, “Ret just said something dumb yesterday, that’s all.”

“Oh, now this I have to hear,” Cap requested, smiling.

“No, no, don’t worry about it,” Iris denied, “That’s very clearly in the past, if our prior conversation is anything to go by.”

Cap sat back, unsatisfied.

“As much as I hate to give up on this thread, I’ll do the polite thing and stop pestering Ret on this.”

“Thank you,” I grunted, unimpressed.

“Take it as a sign of my goodwill,” Cap responded, winking.

I shuddered, uncomfortable with Cap’s overfamiliarity, even after deciding to put up with it for the time being. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get used to some of his mannerisms, but I had to put up with them for the time being.

“I’ve been meaning to ask,” I addressed Cap, “Where were you this morning? You showed up to class late.”

“I thought I told you what was going on,” Cap replied, confused.

“Wait, what’s going on?” Iris asked, “I’m out of the loop.”

Cap took the next several minutes giving an abridged version of we had talked about the previous night, focusing on the divorce case that had caused him to miss the previous day.

“So that’s why,” Iris murmured following Cap’s explanation.

“Huh?” we simultaneously let out.

“I was wondering why Cap had always been picking a fight with you, at least by your own words,” Iris pondered, “But if it was tied to his childhood abuse, it suddenly makes sense.”

“Seems that way,” I commented, “So, Cap, what was going on this morning? More divorce proceedings?”

He nodded.

“I wasn’t needed for much today, so I didn’t have to miss the entire day. But it still wasn’t fun, and knowing people are spreading rumors about it doesn’t help at all.”

“That’s right,” Iris agreed, “They haven’t let up, even after a day.”

“While they’ll probably die within the next week or so, it could leave permanent stains on our reputations,” I guessed, “Or, at least on yours. Mine’s already in the dumpster.”

“Maybe we should work on fixing that, too,” Cap said.

“It’s not like I care,” I shrugged, “But I imagine you two would have some problems with lies going around.”

“If I wanted to be popular, I wouldn’t have chosen this seat a month ago,” Iris immediately replied, “But it does hurt a bit to listen to them, and I can’t stand malicious lies.”

“I’m not sure anyone likes lies,” Cap added, “But she’s right that this isn’t a pleasant experience, even if we can handle the results. I might lose a couple friends because of this, though, so I’d like to fix it if possible.”

“You’ve already lost one, Cap,” I pointed out, referring to Miles.

“Don’t remind me,” Cap cringed, his face tightening, “It wasn’t easy for me to cut him off, and I’m still wondering if it was the right choice.”

“You’ll probably never know,” I stated, “Life isn’t that cut-and-dry.”

“I don’t think there was a ‘right’ choice in that scenario,” Iris considered, “Just try to be content with the one you made.”

Cap hesitated, before nodding.

“That’s fair, I suppose,” he concluded.

We talked a little longer, but lunch ended soon afterward and not much of substance was exchanged during that time. As we split, I noticed that something was bothering me after that last conversation we’d had, and I needed to talk to somebody about it. I figured the best person for that was my mentor, and I decided I would head to his office after school.

Once classes ended, I made good on my decision. On my way there, however, I saw a child-sized bullet pass my leg. I turned around, only to see Mr. MacArthur in hot pursuit.

“Get back here, you little rascal!” he shouted, though I could see a hint of a smile on his face.

“You sooze, you lose, Daddy!” the child yelled back.

“It’s snooze,” I interrupted, “You gotta learn your n’s, Gibson!”

Not realizing my trap, the kid turned around to look at me, which allowed the now tired teacher to catch up to him and promptly pick him up.

“Gotcha,” he smirked.

“Daddy, you cheated!” Gibson complained, “You’re a cheater!”

“Gibby, there’s a difference between bending the rules, and breaking the rules,” he instructed.

Walking back over to me, I couldn’t help but smile a little at the display.

“Are you sure that’s the kind of thing you should be telling someone his age?” I snarked, “That could easily backfire on you.”

“You’ll understand when you’re a parent, Retter,” he laughed, “Thanks for the help, by the way.”

“Where did he learn a phrase like, ‘you snooze, you lose’ anyway?”

“I may have gotten a little too excited when playing games with him once, and now it’s all he says,” he complained, “You know that’s rude, right, Gibby?”

Gibson shook his head.

“You lost, Daddy.”

“You should know not to reason with kids like him,” I said, “They only understand a few concepts: winning, losing, eating, sleeping, and pooping.”

Mr. MacArthur laughed a bit nervously at my blunt statement.

“So, what brings you here today, Retter?”

“It’s a long story,” I confessed, “But something’s bothering me a bit.”

“Come on inside, then,” Mr. MacArthur beckoned, “But could you do me a favor?”

“Sure thing,” I accepted.

I didn’t realize it, but that ‘favor’ involved letting Gibson sit on my lap for the duration of our talk. I understood that it could be seen as ‘payment’, but it was going to be distracting to have to deal with a hyperactive toddler when trying to discuss matters of the mind.

“So what’s the problem, then?” the teacher started.

“Well, I’ve finally decided to accept Cap as a friend, but something’s been bothering me a bit.”

“I’m glad to hear that you’ve made some progress,” he praised.

I nodded, my chin hitting Gibson’s shoulder in the process.

“I just feel like I haven’t done anything to deserve his friendship. He’s been really nice to me recently, and I owe him after he saved me from a tough situation yesterday, but it feels like this isn’t a two-way friendship.”

He nodded slowly, breaking eye contact as he pondered what I was saying.

“It’s refreshing to hear you talk about friendship like you want to participate in it, for one thing,” he commented, “And I think there’s a simple solution to the problem you’re facing right now.”

“What is that?” I asked, surprised to hear it, “I can’t think of anything.”

“Help him solve a problem.”

“Huh?”

“Do you know if there is anything bothering him right now?” Mr. MacArthur asked, “Because if so, you could go ahead and help him fix it.”

I debated whether or not to tell him about the rumors that have been going around. If I was careless with what I told him, it could result in things getting worse for our group, not better. But if I didn’t tell him, I’d end up going nowhere fast.

“There have been some negative rumors going around about him. I don’t know all the details, but he hasn’t exactly been comfortable with them, that’s for sure.”

“That could work,” he offered.

“But how am I supposed to dispel those rumors?” I asked, “I don’t have a lot of credibility inside the grade, and some of the rumors involve me, giving me a vested interest in discrediting them.”

The response I got surprised me. But not because it didn’t make sense, or because it was obvious. The surprise is that it didn’t come from Mr. MacArthur at all, but the ball of energy sitting on my lap.

“Just yell at them,” Gibson said.

“What?” I asked, shocked.

Looking across the desk, I could see Mr. MacArthur’s eyes widen, before he waved his arms out.

“Gibby, please don’t interrupt.”

“I yell when I’m mad,” he continued, “So yell at them.”

“Gibson!”

Mr. MacArthur grabbed Gibson off my lap, and sat him in a chair nearby.

“I’m sorry, Retter,” he said, “Can you come back another time? I need to have a talk with Gibby here.”

I nodded, understanding what was going on.

“Thank you for your time,” I offered, before leaving the office.

I hesitated while making my way toward the door, looking around to make sure nobody was following me. While normally I wouldn’t bother with this sort of due-diligence, after the altercation the previous day, I was more than a little paranoid. I was worried that Miles could come out of nowhere and attack me again, and this time he would have even more reason. After all, his closest friend had outright rejected him in favor of me, and if this morning was any indication, it was still weighing heavily on him.

Thinking about my conversation with Mr. MacArthur, I had to admit that he had brought up a good point when it came to returning the favors Cap has done for me. If I was going to make myself worthy of being Cap’s friend, I had to do something about those rumors. However, my conversation with Mr. MacArthur had not borne much fruit because Gibson decided that it was the perfect time to interrupt midway through the discussion. While I was definitely fond of that kid, he let me down this time, leaving me to try and decipher the solution to this puzzle myself.

Thankfully, I made it to the bus without incident this time, and by the time I got home I realized that I would once again have a normal evening of homework and self-reflection. But I was beginning to realize that ‘normal’ was going to have a new meaning in the near future, and while it scared me plenty, I was also beginning to feel a grain of excitement wondering what the future had in store for me.