Welcome to Paradise Chapter Eleven- To School

I awoke from my deep sleep as if I'd been drugged. Slowly rising to my feet, I wandered aimlessly across the room and gripped the door handle. I was in Trey's room, my toes digging at his floor. For a moment, the haze of sleep cleared and I found myself in much the same state I had been in the night before, wondering about his well-being and wondering if he was still breathing, still alive. I prayed he was doing okay. Surely they would have called if something had happened to him, but then again he wasn't human and they didn't really care about him at all, so they probably wouldn't call if something was wrong anyway. But still, I prayed they would should something happen. I prayed he was okay. I hadn't known him for very long, but he was a good friend and a good roommate. Derek had tried to clean the blood out of my room last night, but hadn't been able to do so, as he hadn't been in the mood. Cleaning Trey's blood up had made things a little worse for him, and he hadn't been able to go through with it. I could have still slept in my room, but couldn't, knowing what happened in there only yesterday. I couldn't believe it had only been yesterday that everything was fine, and now Trey lay near death. Swallowing back my fear, I exited Trey's room and went down the hall to the bathroom, taking a quick shower. I changed into a T-shirt and blue jeans and went down to the common room. Derek was standing by the door, a far away look in his eyes. It didn't take a genius to see that he was thinking about Trey. I was thinking about him too. I couldnt' believe what had happened. Derek was in worse shape than me, though. I hadn't realized him and Trey had been so close. I knew I couldn't even begin to imagine what this was like for Derek. I didn't want to know, it hurt too much. I glanced at the clock on the wall for a moment, watching it tick the time away. I didn't want to go to school, but I knew I had to. Derek had said that they didn't care about what had happened to Trey, that he could be dying or dead right now. I shivered at that thought and shook it away before it could completely develope.

"It's time to go," Derek whispered from where he stood. I looked back at him. He was looking at me, finally. He'd been looking through me, but now he was looking at me. I'd asked late last night why he didn't go to class. He'd answered me, but it was hazy, as I'd been literally exhausted. But the answer had had something to do with passing his exams and getting a week vacation. I didn't understand what he meant, but didn't question it aloud. He nodded toward the door. "Be careful, Shadow. Some people can be a little rough." I nodded. "I'll try to find something out about Trey. If I figure something out, bad or good, I'll let you know immediately, whether you're in class or not. How are you holding up with all of this?"

I frowned. That questioned deserved some thinking. Physically, I was in some pain, as my shoulder was throbbing relentlessly, reminding me of that blasted gun. My ribs were still sore from my beating, and it hurt to take in a deep breath. Emotionally, I was upset and frightened. Full of dread. I was worried about Trey. "I'm okay," I said slowly. "Just worried."

He nodded.

"And you?" I asked.

He seemed surprised.

"I mean about this whole thing with Trey," I explained in a quiet voice.

"Oh..." he mumbled, and averted his gaze to the ground. I frowned and let him talk at his own pace. I wasn't going to rush him. "I...I guess I'm okay," he finally said. "I mean, I really want to see him, but it's too early for visiting hours."

I nodded. "He'll be okay."

"...I hope so..."

"He'll be just fine," I said, trying to sound convincing. "And then you'll all look back on this once day and laugh. You'll see."

Derek tried to smile. It looked more like a grimace to me. "Thanks."

I nodded. "No problem. Well, if you find out anything, yank me out of class and tell me. I'll...see you later." I gripped the door handle and pulled the door open. Derek had gotten a new door late last night, but it didn't quite fit the doorway. It was too big and scraped across the ground when it opened and closed. We'd have to fix that later. I sighed and pulled my schedule out. Great. I had to go all the way across the school grounds for my first class. Sighing, I made my way out of the dorm building and slowly started walking across the school grounds. Finally, I entered another building and walked throught the halls until I got to my first class. Upon entering, I quickly sought out a seat at the back of the class, near a window, and migrated toward it. Sitting down, I watched as kids slowly began to filter in. I gazed out the window for a moment, but came to attention when I felt a tapping on my shoulder. A male was standing next to me. He was pretty tall, with green eyes and brown hair.

"Hey," he said, his voice sounding slightly nervous. "Everywhere else is taken. Do you mind...?" he gestured at the seat next to me.

"No, go ahead," I said, and offered a smile. He smiled back; it was warm and somehow reminded me of Trey's smile.

"Thanks." he sat down and reached a hand out toward me. "Scott Hamilton."

I gripped it. "Samson Trathe." and we shook.

"You new here too?"

I nodded. "Yeah. You?"

"Yeah. This is my first day."

"Mine too," I said.

"Class," the teacher said suddenly, clearing his throat. His voice was stern, and I found myself flinching involuntarily. He was standing next to the chalkboard, writing something on it. It was his name. "I notice a few new faces in this class. For those of you who do not know me, I'm Mr. Cayo."

Everyone was silent.

I inwardly groaned. Today seemed like it was going to be a long and boring day. As if that wasn't bad enough, my mind kept wandering back to Trey. Was he okay? Was he going to be all right? Was he even alive? So many questions, so few answers. I hated it. I hated not knowing.

A few hours later, it was lunch. I was in line, gripping a plate of food in my hands. I didn't know what it was, and I didn't really care either. I wasn't planning on eating it. In fact, the smell of it was making me nauseous. Sighing, I left the line and carried my food to an empty table in the back, in the shadows. For a while, I was alone, and then two other boys came and sat down across from me. They smiled like they knew me, though I didn't know them.

"You must be Shadow," said the one with hazel eyes and brown hair. He smiled. "I'm Linger."

I nodded. "Erm...hi."

"I'm Cassius," said the blonde with blue eyes. His smile was kind and active. "But my friends call me Cass."

I nodded in acknowledgement.

"Shadow," said Linger slowly. "Have you heard anything about Trey yet?"

I blinked. How did they know about him? Then I sighed. Derek must have said something to them while I'd been asleep. "I...I don't know," I answered truthfully, not meeting their eyes. "We didn't get to see him last night. Visiting hours were over. Derek's trying to figure something out, though."

Cassius nodded. "Tell us what he finds out, okay?"

I nodded. "I will."

"Thanks," he said. "Trey's well-known around here. Not many people liked to hear about him taking a beating."

I looked away."Yeah..." I said quietly, poking at my food. I wasn't in the mood to eat.

"Well, I guess some people liked it," said Linger. "I mean, the humans did. Most of them, anyway. Dave didn't."

I looked up. Dave. I knew Dave.

Cassius smiled at me. "How's your first day been so far?"

I frowned. How did they know that it was my first day today? I sighed again. Derek must have told them that, too. "It's been okay," I said. "I made a new friend," I added, thinking of Scott. Me and him had talked that whole first hour, and he'd been in my third hour class as well. I liked him; he was a nice guy.

Linger smiled. "That's good. It's always good to make new friends."

"Yeah," said Cassius, winking at me. I smiled. I liked him too; he seemed fun. "Be careful of Hanson, though."

I frowned. Hanson. He'd attacked me on my first day at the school as I'd come onto the school grounds. "Trey told him to lay off," I said, shoving my food away, too nauseous to even look at it.

"We know," said Linger. "But that doesn't change anything."

"It did," said Cassius. "But with Trey out of commission, so to speak, he might try to get to you again."

My frown deepened. "Great," I groaned.

"Don't worry," said Linger. "We'll keep an eye on you."

"Yeah," said Cassius. "We won't let that bastard lay a hand on you. We'll enforce Trey's word."

I smiled softly. "Thanks."

They nodded as one. "No problem," they said in unison.

The rest of the lunch passed in silence as Cassius and Linger ate their food. Mine lay untouched off tot he side as I gazed down at a yellow stain on the table, my thoughts wandering back to the fate of my roommate.

Trey would be okay. He had to be.