"She'll make friends with the other girls and avoid us like all of them." Stood to reason. So Edward just shrugged his shoulders and watched Lee idly now, curious where she'd choose to sit. "Why would she want to join our group?"
But he did like her. Not as a girl, of course! But she got riddles and she hadn't made fun of him so far, that was special. "It'd be nice to take her to the arcade. Nicer than taking Oswald."
Well, Oswald was excessively annoying when he wanted to be.
"The arcade is boring. And expensive. And loud, it's so damn loud. And the music there? Urgh. Worst." Oswald whined as he slumped on his desk, not wanting to do English. He was sleepy and he wanted to go home, do nothing and have his mother cook for him. That'd be way nicer than this.
The teacher asked Lee where she wanted to sit and she pointed towards Ed, smiling a little at him. Coming over, she sat beside Ed again and smiled. "Can I borrow your books again? I assume you scribble on these too, huh?"
"Ugh-- Yeah." Edward blinked a bit too much, bending down to get his books out and, yes, there were scribbles all over. A couple poems too, embarrassingly enough, but luckily they were hidden between everything else. He hoped. "You could borrow from someone less-- Less me."
He gestured behind him. "Like Oswald. You could sit next to him. We'd be a square."
"Yeah but sitting like this makes us an L. For Lee." With a playful smile, she shuffled closer to Ed and peered at his book, trying to read his notes curiously because he always had the strangest notes.
Lee didn't seem deterred by Ed and neither did she show any indication that she would change her mind either. She wanted to sit by Ed. "What do you like to be called, by the way? Ed? Edward? Eddie?"
"...it's all fine." It was weird that she was asking him. "Lucius says Edward and Oswald says Ed." Usually, anyway. For some reason bullies had a tendency to go with 'Eddie', he wasn't sure why, but he could deal with that too. Actual name-calling, that was what he couldn't stand.
He glanced at Lucius and Oswald, trying to ask for help with his eyes. What was happening? Why was she so insistent on sitting next to him? Maybe it was a trap.
Lee leaned back in her chair and watched the other kids, smiling politely and complimenting one girl on her shirt. They even had some very normal and very nice small talk, even if the other girl gave Ed a weird look. No one could quite work out why Lee was sitting with him but most assumed it was cause she was new. She'd learn.
Oswald watched her and her very normal social skills before giving Ed a baffled look and shrugging, mouthing at him 'she's crazy'.
It was making him uncomfortable, honestly. It wasn't as if he enjoyed being an outsider and freak, it just happened to be that he didn't have a choice and he had gotten used to it. But now Lee was there, all normal looking and definitely not from the worst part of town, able to talk to people in a way that made them like her, and she was being nice to him?
She'd stop being nice to him. Then it would burn more again, that he was like this. "...do you like English?" He sounded like an idiot.
"It's okay, I guess. I'm not the best at it. My mother tongue is Portuguese, that's what we speak at home. I always get confused when I have to jump between the two." Her parents could speak English but they liked to keep the culture alive so they often used Portuguese for home and English for going outside. "I prefer math and science, honestly."
She was more in that mindset than any language type stuff. "What about you? I assume you're more of a math person too."
"Not really. I love language. I love words." They were so much fun to play with! Edward wondered whether Lee would understand that. "There's a lot of power in it too. The way we talk, it shapes how we're perceived. That's why I wouldn't talk the way I do right now anywhere close to where I live."
Or that's why when he did, he usually ended up being punched a lot. Simple lessons, really. "I like math, science, language, everything. I like to know. I'll learn Portuguese. Can you teach me?"
"I dunno how well I can teach you but sure, we can totally do a language explain. You can get me more interested in words and I'll teach you some new ones." She laughed and pulled her leg up, hugging it close as the teacher set the tasks on the board to do and everyone around them chatted and got out their stuff. She didn't really have stuff yet but she'd get some soon, now she knew what she needed.
"Maybe after school one of the days, we can hang out and practise portuguese?"
"Yes!" Wait. "...I know it likely won't happen. so you can't make fun of me later for believing it would." There, that should cover that. He never got his hopes up, he didn't have any dreams, so nothing could be dashed. Ed knew how the world worked. Lee didn't seem to, but whatever. Maybe he could learn something before she was too cool for him
"You should stay away from Butch. That's my one advice. He's bad news." Even if he was charming. He didn't want Lee with a gangster kid.
"Why would I make fun of you? It's my language, silly. I want you to know it. The more people who know it, the better. Do you want to do it this Friday? We could go to the park near mine." That way, he wouldn't have to freak out about where he lived or whatever the issue was. "I don't have to be home until around 6ish, that's when my mom finishes work. Both my parents work a lot so it's either go out or stay home with my sister."
And she was just the worst. "Who's Butch?" She looked around to try and find the guy, unsure who she was looking for.
"The one who looks like an ape." Oswald jerked his head in the direction of Butch, just helping Ed out.
"Yeah. That intellectually challenged gorilla over there." Butch was big for his age, tall for his age and - Edward found - stupid for any age. But he always somehow had a girlfriend and he always flirted with girls and he was popular and really good at beating them up. All things that made him even more repulsive in his eyes. "He's a brute and a bully."
And then Butch turned his head to look in their direction and Edward hastily looked down at his book. Butch smiled and waved, very friendly.
Lee waved back because it was stupid not to, smiling to Butch. Looking anything but friendly would give the game away but Oswald and Edward were doing a fine job of that anyway. They both were looking away as hastily as they could, pretending not to know what the issue was.
"Okay, gotcha, I'll avoid him." Lee turned away and gave Ed a small smile. "Any other jerks I should avoid or just that guy and all his buddies?"
"They wouldn't hurt you anyway. You are a girl." Had to give them that, they really didn't hit girls. Sexist? Probably, but it'd be in Lee's favour. "Everyone here is an enemy to the three of us. It won't be that way for you."
They weren't going to have the same experience. At least Edward highly doubted it. "I can give you a list of who I don't like why, but-- Mostly just avoid befriending actual gangsters. Like Butch. That's dangerous."
With a mock salute, Lee took the book and looked it over, trying to catch up with what the teacher said and mulling over what Ed had told her - so apparently Ed and his friends were big time targets of the bullies here? That sucked. Did they really deserve that? "Of course, if you stop being friends with me, I'll have to befriend gangsters so maybe you should keep being my friend." She gave him a playful smile. "Just saying."
"I could be a gangster. For all you know." Well, he could be. Maybe he didn't look it, but still. His father was kind of a gangster. Well. He probably didn't even rank high enough to warrant that description, more like a crook. Too drunk to be a gangster, definitely too stupid. Some subspecies below that. "I don't know why you want to be friends. People don't."
"Maybe people don't cause you keep asking them why they do? I just do, okay? Stop being a baby about it." Lee teased, looking at Ed with amusement despite her words. "I like you. You're smart and I don't have any friends so I want to make some. Ones who have stuff in common with me. I think we do. So we can hang, promise."
She held out her pinkie playfully and wiggled it. "Come on, promise me. Don't ditch me, Eddie."
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no subject
But he did like her. Not as a girl, of course! But she got riddles and she hadn't made fun of him so far, that was special. "It'd be nice to take her to the arcade. Nicer than taking Oswald."
Well, Oswald was excessively annoying when he wanted to be.
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The teacher asked Lee where she wanted to sit and she pointed towards Ed, smiling a little at him. Coming over, she sat beside Ed again and smiled. "Can I borrow your books again? I assume you scribble on these too, huh?"
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He gestured behind him. "Like Oswald. You could sit next to him. We'd be a square."
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Lee didn't seem deterred by Ed and neither did she show any indication that she would change her mind either. She wanted to sit by Ed. "What do you like to be called, by the way? Ed? Edward? Eddie?"
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He glanced at Lucius and Oswald, trying to ask for help with his eyes. What was happening? Why was she so insistent on sitting next to him? Maybe it was a trap.
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Lee leaned back in her chair and watched the other kids, smiling politely and complimenting one girl on her shirt. They even had some very normal and very nice small talk, even if the other girl gave Ed a weird look. No one could quite work out why Lee was sitting with him but most assumed it was cause she was new. She'd learn.
Oswald watched her and her very normal social skills before giving Ed a baffled look and shrugging, mouthing at him 'she's crazy'.
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She'd stop being nice to him. Then it would burn more again, that he was like this. "...do you like English?" He sounded like an idiot.
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She was more in that mindset than any language type stuff. "What about you? I assume you're more of a math person too."
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Or that's why when he did, he usually ended up being punched a lot. Simple lessons, really. "I like math, science, language, everything. I like to know. I'll learn Portuguese. Can you teach me?"
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"Maybe after school one of the days, we can hang out and practise portuguese?"
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"You should stay away from Butch. That's my one advice. He's bad news." Even if he was charming. He didn't want Lee with a gangster kid.
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And she was just the worst. "Who's Butch?" She looked around to try and find the guy, unsure who she was looking for.
"The one who looks like an ape." Oswald jerked his head in the direction of Butch, just helping Ed out.
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And then Butch turned his head to look in their direction and Edward hastily looked down at his book. Butch smiled and waved, very friendly.
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"Okay, gotcha, I'll avoid him." Lee turned away and gave Ed a small smile. "Any other jerks I should avoid or just that guy and all his buddies?"
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They weren't going to have the same experience. At least Edward highly doubted it. "I can give you a list of who I don't like why, but-- Mostly just avoid befriending actual gangsters. Like Butch. That's dangerous."
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With a mock salute, Lee took the book and looked it over, trying to catch up with what the teacher said and mulling over what Ed had told her - so apparently Ed and his friends were big time targets of the bullies here? That sucked. Did they really deserve that? "Of course, if you stop being friends with me, I'll have to befriend gangsters so maybe you should keep being my friend." She gave him a playful smile. "Just saying."
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She held out her pinkie playfully and wiggled it. "Come on, promise me. Don't ditch me, Eddie."
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Now, what she would do? He supposed only time would tell.