Stand by Me: Better Worst Date Ever

He'd become too accustomed to a life like this to imagine it any other way; the decadent food, servants catering to his every little whim, even the expensive school uniform he wears and the fragrance of the expensive cologne that drifted from the regal, navy blazer. The day had presented little to him so far (it was only late afternoon) that was worth thinking about twice and listlessly, Aki trudged to basketball practice—at least he had that to look forward to. After having nearly fallen asleep on his arm and decorated his sleeve with his own saliva, he hoped a game or two of basketball would make him more alert. The blonde didn't enjoy the sport (but he enjoyed very little in general and it had everything to do with how picky he was. Aki could never be satisfied with good enough) but the school was attempting some sort of character-building exercise and sports were a good way to go about that ... to his chagrin, a generous donation was not enough to waive this requirement away. 

With a huff, the teenager changed into his sports uniform—a loose top that cut off mid-thigh and shorts—and tried to evict the sounds his top-of-the-line shoes create against the polished floors. In his hand was his gym bag, filled with more top-notch equipment; it was a shame, money could buy everything he needed except his interest in the game. His disdainful thoughts about the school and basketball were disturbed by a question directed, presumably, at him. Aki threw a glance to his left from where the voice projected and eyed the owner of the question for a moment before answering. She seemed new, he could tell from the stutter in her words. Anybody who had spent longer than a week in this school knew a stutter was the perfect way to be turned into the butt of a joke.

But above all that, Aki noted the sea green bow at the girl’s collar; she was in the same year as him and he had never seen her before. The school wasn’t small by any means, the campus was massive, the facilities were boundless, but it wasn’t as populated as public schools tended to be. Everybody knew each other—they were all hopelessly tangled in each other’s social circles, through school, business or family.  It was inevitable.

“Who are you? I’ve never seen you before.” The words left his mouth before he had even fully registered the rudeness of his thoughts. Aki shook his head but withheld an apology, it wasn’t that rude, he defended himself internally. “If you’re going to the gym you could just follow me.”

But—

“What do you even plan on doing there though? Basketball for boys is on this afternoon.”

He led her to the gym, regardless. Some people had too much time on their hands, evidently. 

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481 words