Author's Note: The reviews were definitely appreciated, thank you all for the kind comments. I won't bore you with talk though. On with the story.

Chapter02: No Air

My first impression? Well, it was long. Very long. It looked pretty hard too, but don't they all? It was also thick, though I guess wide would be a more appropriate word in this case. And...oh my. I shouldn't have to clarify this, but in case you're wondering, I'm talking about a building here. HM Prep, to be exact. It was definitely a cool-looking place, I felt like I was one of the X-Men at Professor X's school. My guide, Sydney - an attractive older woman with red hair, pale skin and green eyes, who also happened to be the school counselor - placed an arm on my shoulder. "Don't worry," she said, "You're going to love it here." I wish I could've been as sure about it as she was. To be quite honest, I'd never been so nervous in my entire life. Not even when Colin had threatened to knife me after school - and yes, I'm sure he would've looked good doing that to.

I followed Sydney up the long staircase that lead to the entrance of the school. We passed other boys - cute boys - in school uniforms, playing catch, wrestling, and doing other activities that seemed even more homoerotic when they were done at HM Prep. The double doors leading into the school were gorgeous, and probably hand crafted. I was trying to figure out what they were made from when Sydney turned to me and said "They're made from oak and they i were /i hand crafted in Italy." I blushed a little - I couldn't believe a woman was making me blush - now I really felt like I was at Professor X's school for mutants.

"How'd you know what I was thinking?" I asked as we walked into the hall. HM Prep was just as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. It had stone floors - I know, how amazing is that?! - covered with scarlet coloured rugs, which seemed to be made from velvet. The walls were lined with pictures of different historical figures, from Leonardo Da Vinci - the Da Vinci code is my favourite movie...and the only one I saw last year - to Henry VIII - Oh. My. God. Jonathan Rhys Meyers in the Tudors. Okay. I've never actually seen the show, considering I don't have a tv. But I did see him on a billboard when I went into the city and wow. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn't hear Sydney answering my question.

"Jaydon!" I jumped, she didn't seem like the kind of woman who would raise her voice. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?" I asked, turning to face her. She had stopped walking and was a few feet behind me. "I said, I knew what you were thinking because, regardless of how masculine you come off, you're a gay boy attending HM Prep, I expect you to know quality when you see it." She said. I raised my eyebrows, and blinked a few times. She tilted her head to the side, and laughed softly. "Now. Let me show you to your room." She grabbed hand, and lead me down one hallway, then another. After a few minutes we reached a door with the number 7D on it. "Here we are. You'll be sharing with a girl. We have co-ed rooms at HM Prep for what, I hope, are obvious reasons." She knocked twice, rather loudly.

Quite obvious, I thought to myself. It's not like they had to worry about the guys shacking up with the girls and vice versa. The door was opened by a very pretty girl - shit, don't tell me coming to HM Prep is going to make me straight. She had curly dark chocolate brown hair, grey eyes, and tanned skin. She was wearing black pajama bottoms and tight white tank top. "Hey Syd. Is this the new kid?" She asked as if I wasn't standing right in front of her. Talk about tactless. "Yes. Jaydon, I'd like you to meet Teall Gavers. I'm sure she'll do her best to make you feel welcome," she said. It almost sounded like she was warning the girl, which made me feel a little uneasy, I have to admit. Teall smiled - it looked forced - and said, "Of course. I'll even give him a full tour later." Syd smiled back, and turned to leave without another word.

Teall stepped back and I walked into the room. My bag was next to one of the beds, so that's the one I sat on. Teall sat down on the bed across from me and just stared. I found it hard to look her in the eye, so I found myself staring at the floor for a good five minutes. "So, where you from Jaydon?" I looked up. She wasn't smiling, but she seemed interested so I thought I might as well tell her. "Montana. I'm from a really small town that I know you've never heard of." I said. She was smiling now. "How small?" she questioned. "Uh...we have a well in our town square. Some people still use it." I replied. I was sure it sounded like a joke, but I swear I was telling the truth guys.

She laughed out loud for what seemed like five minutes, and nearly fell off the bed. When she regained composure, she said, "Wow. That's so ghetto. Like, unbelievably ghetto. That's like the ghetto-est thing I have ever heard in my life." I frowned. Sure, I wasn't proud of my town, but it still sucked to hear her make fun of it like that. She tilted her head to the side, in the same way Sydney did. "Sorry Jaydon. I didn't mean to piss you off." Well she wasn't totally clueless. She could tell I was upset. "It's alright, and you can just call me Jay." I replied, smiling to let her know I really wasn't all that upset. Maybe this girl wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Alright, Jay. I hope my aunt didn't annoy you to much. I swear she has no respect for youth." Teall said. "Your aunt? You mean, Sydney?" I asked, surprisingly, I wasn't all that surprised...if that makes sense. She nodded. "My parents died in a car crash when I was young and I've had to live with her and her psycho-analytic bull shit ever since." She replied, though she didn't sound sad or angry. "Oh...I'm sorry to hear that." I replied. Lame. I know. But what else was I supposed to say? "S'alright. I'm a regular Harry Potter around here because of it. You know, seeing as how we both share similar stories. I don't have a scar or magical powers but HM Prep is my Hogwarts. Seriously. This place is amazing, I actually dread summer vacation." She said, and she didn't sound like she was lying. "Sounds great, that means you won't mind giving me a tour right?" I asked, grinning a little.

"'Course not. Just let me get dressed." She replied, with a smile.

XOXO

Two hours later, Teall was ready to go. And no, I'm not exaggerating. I would never lie to you guys. This girl had to straighten her hair and then try on like five shirts and six jeans. She asked my opinion on all of them, but even if my answer was positive, she changed again. Shit. This girl is like Stacy London on crack. She could host a five hour long What Not to Wear Marathon, though I think someone needs to help her figure out what not to buy. I mean, damn! HM Prep is a private school. A uniform school. She only gets two days a week to wear normal clothing, why the hell would she bring so much shit. Alright...I'm done venting now.

Anyway...

After what seemed like forever, she took me on that tour. And you know what, it was surprisingly boring? I mean the building - which looked more like a castle inside - was gorgeous but it all looked the same after a while. "Let's go over to the dining hall, we should be able to have some fun there." She said, grabbing my arm and dragging me in a random direction. Yeah. She was definitely related to Sydney. I was still trying to figure out which of the girls I preferred.

The dining hall was a huge room. It contained eight long tables. "Two for each grade..." she explained. She dragged me over to the third last table from the left. Apparently that's where the cool 11th graders sat. Did that mean I was one of the cool kids now? There weren't that many kids sitting there. In fact, the dining hall was rather empty. It was Sunday afternoon so most of the kids were outside or in their rooms studying. "We just missed the lunch crowd," she said sitting down across from another pretty girl. She had dark brown hair, almost black, that reached the middle of her back. She had freckles - adorable? i know - and bright blue eyes. Her only flaw? She had a ski slope of a nose, but it wasn't that bad. I mean, I wouldn't recommend she got plastic surgery or anything.

But she's not what caught my attention. I was more interested in the boy sitting next to her. He had brown hair like her, though it was a few shades lighter. It was styled in a faux-hawk. I know what you're thinking. Faux-hawks are lame, but I'm telling you, it was the sexiest faux-hawk I've ever seen in my life. His eyes were an even brighter blue than hers and his teeth were fucking perfect and his only flaw was that he had a rather large nose as well. But fuck, he was still the hottest guy I'd ever seen in my life. Colin? Colin who?

"Jaydon, this is Alexandra Anderson and her twin brother Ashton. Guys, meet Jaydon, he's the new kid, the one who won the contest, raffle thing," she said, smiling brightly at them. I was grinning like an idiot, and I was definitely embarassed, but guys...I want you to imagine the hottest guy you've ever seen. Are you imagining him? Do you think he's the hottest guy in the world? Well, you're wrong! Ashton Anderson, is the hottest guy in the world and I will not let anyone tell me differently. Again. I know what you're thinking? I've become surprisingly shallow since I've gotten to HM Prep. Well, you're wrong again. I mean, if you saw Ashton you'd understand how I felt.

"You can just call me Lexy," she said grinning. She had really large teeth. They didn't make her any less pretty, but yeah, they were pretty big. Ashton was reading a book, a rather large one that looked even less interesting than the dictionary. He didn't look up to greet me, until Bella smacked his arm. "Ashton, say hello!" She shrieked. And when I say shrieked, I mean shrieked. She was a loud girl. He looked up, and he was blushing. I think my heart melted. "I'm sorry, that was so rude of me," he said, in what I thought was an Irish accent. Yeah, what was left of my heart was gone now.

"Just ignore the accent," Lexy said, "Ashton hasn't made an effort to learn American English," she said rolling her eyes. "I like his accent," I said before really thinking about it. Thankfully, Teall rescued me from complete humiliation. Or at least she tried to. "You know, this guy comes from a town with a freaking well! They get their water from a well!" She exclaimed. Lexy laughed. And boy could she laugh. It was difficult to describe, almost like a hyena dying of a flesh eating disease. Thankfully, Ashton didn't think it was funny. "That's so cool! I've found that life in the country is so much more fulfilling than life in the city."

Did I mention, I love this guy? Because I do. Like a lot. "Stop trying to pick up boys Ashton," Teall snapped, she sounded jealous. I think. I mean, I don't see why she would be. She was a lesbian. Maybe she was bisexual? I started laughing just then, and I felt bad because Ashton probably thought I was laughing at him. I wasn't. I was just thinking that Teall could have her own show called A Shot At Love With Tealla Tequilla, and I thought it was quite funny. I remember the guys at the youth centre always talked about that show. They were upset that some girl named Dani didn't win.

Right. Back on topic. Ashton went back to staring at his book, looking rather dejected. I felt like an ass, but I had no idea what to say. Teall broke the silence. "Well, I'm gonna show Jaydon around outside. I'll see you guys later." She said. Lexy said goodbye, and Ashton mumbled a quiet 'nice to meet you.' Ugh. How did I manage to ruin my chances in ten minutes. I was able to keep my mind off of Ashton for a while though. Me and Teall watched some of the guys play football outside. One team wore shirts, the other didn't. I'm sure you can imagine what that was like. And if you can't, just think of an Abercrombie ad, but better because it was real life.

XOXO

By the time Teall and I headed back to our room it was seven o' clock. "I'm so tired," she said flopping down on her bed. The guys had invited us to play football, and it had been amazing. For the first time in my life, it didn't matter that I couldn't play football for shit. They were playing for fun and no one cared really cared about winning. Teall was so tired she didn't bother to change her clothes. I sat down on my bed, trying to hold back a yawn...which, as you guys probably know, is impossible. I eyed the phone on the dresser. "You can use it," Teall said. She was staring again. "It works from four o'clock to eight. So just make sure you're done your conversation within the hour," she said, yawning as well. I nodded, excited to call my mom and tell her how great my first day had been.

"Alright, g'night Jaydon. I'll help you find your classes tomorrow," she mumbled, rolling over. "G'night," I replied, though I'm not sure she heard me. Her breathing had already slowed. I'm pretty sure she was asleep. I picked up the phone and dialed my house number.

"Hello?"

What. The. Fuck. That was definitely not my mom's voice. It sounded like a guy. It sounded like my principal. "I'm sorry, I think I have the wrong number," I mumbled.

"No. You have the right number Jaydon, but it would do you well to forget it. Your mother has moved on to a new chapter in her life. One that involves God. Her life no longer has room for sinners."

"Give her the phone!" I shouted, not caring that Teall was asleep. "I want to talk to her!" I could hear my voice cracking and my eyes were already welling up with tears.

Click.

I cried.

XOXO

So that's it for now guys. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I definitely thought it was more organized than the last and I know I had fun writing it. Again, all reviews are appreciated and they encourage me to write. I've already got the first four chapters of this written, but I'm always revising up the last minute. The only reason I posted this today was because I got three reviews, and they made me smile.

Anyway,

Love You Guys,

English101