Chapter Five

The school day was over, and most students had made their way to the school's compound where they talked to their friends as the crowd thinned with time. The sun was harsh, so most people were by the school's brick walls, trying to take shade under the small bit of roofing that curved over the building's walls. Quinn was with a group of his friends. They were talking by the school entrance.

"Hey! How are you?" A voice said, rising above the voice of the other students in the front yard.

Quinn looked up, finding Lindsey making her way to his group of friends. She had an expectant grin on her face. She stopped in front of Quinn, making his friends back away to give them space.

"Oh. Hey Lindsey..." Quinn muttered, not matching her enthusiasm. He ran a hand through his hair as his gaze flickered to the dirt floor. She hadn't spoken to him in days, and he had falsely believed that maybe she had stopped wanting to date him.

Here we go again. Quinn thought to himself when Lindsey moves a little too close. Her perfume made him feel a bit nauseous, and Quinn wanted to leave. His friends could see he was uncomfortable, but no one got in the middle of a love quarrel. They even elected to give the two more space, by wandering even further away from them.

Lindsey leans into Quinn's face. "Can we talk now?" Her voice fans Quinn's ear in a low tone, making him quiver.

"Sure..." he trailed, watching as the girl smiled before taking his hand and pulling him along with her. The two of them walk off to the other corner of the wall together. Quinn put his hands in his pocket before staring down at the floor, while Lindsey crossed her skinny hands over her small chest.

"So?" she started, breaking the silence between them. Quinn looks up at her, gauging the expectant look on her face.

"So, what?" he ended up asking, making Lindsey let out a sigh before rolling her eyes. She turned, resting her back on the red brick wall before looking out into the school compound.

"Acting like you're oblivious is getting old. I'm not sure whether you think it's cute, but it's not. I'm asking about what I asked you to think about. Will you give me a chance? We can go for a date and you can decide then." Lindsey said, making Quinn look away before running his fingers through his hair.

"Lindsey..." Quinn trailed, not finding the heart to reject her out flat. He wondered if she would take it well, and that made him nervous. situations like this always made him nervous.

Lindsey frowned at him. "What? Don't keep me waiting," she said, leaning off the wall. "What is it? Say something."

"I'm not interested, I'm sorry." Quinn managed to blurt. He watched as the frown on Lindsey's face shifted from one of hurt to anger in the span of seconds.

"So, it's true," she muttered under her breath??her voice just high enough for Quinn to catch it. She held on to the sides of her face, closing her eyes before cursing under her breath.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked, stepping forward.

"So, it's true that you're gay," Lindsey said, opening her eyes. Quinn felt light a bucket of cold water had been poured on him. He didn't say anything, and Lindsey considered that proof that her snitch was true.

"I mean, it makes sense. You won't date me, you won't date any other girl, and look at you..." she trailed, motioning towards his appearance. "You're good looking. Are you telling me that you've not even considered dating? Not even once? Even with the number of people that approach you?"

"I??" Quinn started, but he couldn't find the words to say. "I have thought of dating some people, it's just..." he trailed, squeezing his hands into fists before casting his gaze to the ground again. The words coming out of his mouth didn't sound right. If Quinn had to be honest to himself, he'd never thought of dating anyone at all. His life had been mostly friends, sports, and home. Although his friends talked about the dates they were going to or the people they'd laid, the whole discussion had always felt annoying to Quinn??sometimes even gross.

"Sure, I believe you," Lindsey chuckled. Her tone was jeering??stained with sarcasm. The two stayed within distance for the next few minutes. After a while of silence, Lindsey huffed before walking away. Quinn watched her disappear into the crowd before sighing and walking back to his group of friends.

"How did it go?" Hozier asked when Quinn was within earshot.

"I guess she was a little pissed," Quinn said, and his pals laughed before going back to the conversation they'd been having about an animation show before Quinn showed up. They hung around the front yard, changing their discussion topic from time to time. Quinn couldn't follow any of it. His mind was buzzing from his interaction with Lindsey, and he felt numb all over??and a bit like he had been aired out in the sun to dry.

Despite that, he followed the group to the basketball when they decided to leave the school premises. The school compound was empty now, and freshmen might have gotten to the court before them. It didn't matter. They were seniors, so they didn't have to worry about anyone being in there. If a group of kids had made it there before them, all they had to do was tell them to leave.

They did just that when they got there, apologizing to the youngers as they replaced them on the court. A game started soon after, and Quinn couldn't focus. He kept thinking about Lindsey.

About what she had said.

Was he gay? Was that why he kept worrying about Cody?

Karl gave Quinn's shoulder a light punch.?"Stay with us, man. You're always drifting off," he said, making the two other lads passing him in the court laugh.

"I'm sorry," Quinn muttered under his breath, holding on to his head. No one responded to his apology since all was forgotten instantly and the game continued around him.

At a point, Karl noticed that Quinn was drifting off again. He rolled his eyes before tossing the ball in the direction of his friend. Quinn seemed to have jogged out of the musing in his head himself before he gets hit because he caught the ball mid-air. There was a roar of clapping as he dribbled it on the court, causing the game of disorganized basketball to continue.

Throughout the match Quinn found himself looking over at the bushes by the side of the rusty court gates, but he never spotted Cody. A feeling of disappointment mixed with worry consumed him, and he couldn't mask it properly. It caused his friends to ask him if he was okay from time to time as they bumped into him while dribbling and running around.

"Are you okay?" Hozier asked. He had come up to Quinn immediately after the match had ended. It was late in the evening now, and the warm orange glow from earlier in the day had faded to a yellow-blue. Quinn looked up. He had sweat dripping from his face as he heaved. He was bent over, trying to catch his breath. He'd got back in his senses in the second half, but Hozier had still noticed some oddness so he came to ask himself.

Quinn let out a sigh. "I'm fine," he said, stretching. His shirt rode-up his torso due to the action. He looked away from Hozier before cleaning the sweat off his face with his shirt and combing his hair with his fingers.

"Well, you don't look like you are," Hozier said, still probing. Yeah, some days Quinn was off, but his lack of concentration had been going on for the stretch of two months. He switches the basketball from under one arm to the other, watching as Quinn picked up his bag before standing up straight and sighing.

"I'm fine," Quinn repeated, walking past Hozier. Their shoulder's pushed, and there was a tension Quinn knew he would have to resolve later.

The group of boys walked home together, and people stopped at their individual houses as they continued their journey. Soon enough it was just Karl and Quinn by themselves. The two boys walked together in silence. Quinn wasn't in the mood to talk about anything, and Karl didn't want to be the one to poke at the brooding lad. They got to the apartment complex where their homes were before heading up the stairs for the sixth floor.

When the two were standing by their doors Karl decided he had to say something.

"If something's bothering you can tell me," he said, holding on to the handle of his apartment door. There was the sound of a buzzing T.V. in the hallway. The walls were thin in the building.

Quinn let out a sigh before smiling. "Thanks for worrying about me, but I'm fine. I promise." He insisted.

Karl didn't believe him, but he didn't want to confront him in a way that would lead to a fight in the hallway. "If you say so," he said instead, smiling a bit before opening the door to his apartment and walking in. Quinn let out a sigh and covered his face with his hand when Karl's door closed behind him.

He turned, opening the door to his apartment before walking in and closing it behind him.

As Quinn got around to taking a shower and changing, he continued to wonder where Cody had been today. He wondered if the boy was sick, or if he had just grown tired of watching him and his friends play basketball.

For some reason that last thought made Quinn feel a bit depressed.

Why does that bother me??Quinn asked himself as he climbed into his bed before lying down like a starfish and staring up at the ceiling. For the first time in forever, a bit part of his day was getting occupied by the thoughts of someone other than himself.