It was the same routine everyday for so many people.  Wake up, hop into the shower, and clean every part of their body thoroughly.  They emerge, dripping water onto the floor, from the shower, grab their towels and dry themselves off, put on undergarments, slide on a shirt that gives a little glance of a smooth stomach, just showing the tiniest bit of tightness without being truly muscular.  Then come the pants, hard to put on because they’re so tight.  But they like them that way.  After all, “when you’ve got it, flaunt it”.

Then, each of them, usually kids between 12 and 18, run down the stairs, maybe grab some breakfast, somehow acknowledge their parent or parents, and run out the door to catch the school bus.  There are variations to the formula, but it’s generally the same wherever you go.  The bus drops them off at the school, where they enter the school, armed with backpacks that feel like they’re full of bricks, packed with yesterday’s homework, and all the books that were needed to do it.  Everyday, every week, every year.  It’s been like this for so long that even our parents remember it.  But at one particular school, something was different about today.

A few people saw it in the halls, gracefully moving amongst the jostling bodies, hips swaying from side to side in that tantalizing manner that hips have the ability to achieve when properly wielded.  Then the spectacle passed, and it was first period, butts in chairs, ready to learn, pretend to pay attention, or sleep for an hour or more, then onto the next class.

Schools can be different, but in this particular school, there were two lunches, one after second period, one after third, and students went to each depending on the class they had before.  The day drags on, slower and slower as the bell gets closer and closer to signaling to the kids that they can escape, free to converse with their friends and eat and have some liberty before being dragged back to the same old dull routine of school.

Second lunch changed everything.

The boys, as usual, watched the girls in their tight pants, and revealing shirts walk past, taking in every curve, especially the ones of the lower body.  These are those elegantly shaped girls, whose curves make men drool with desire with every swaying movement.  Their skinny, perfect bodies mock those of the outcast girls, who have some defect that keeps them from being wanted, such as being too fat, too short, not quite pretty or blonde enough, or, worse still, too smart.  The eyes watched the entering girls, staring at the curves, touching them with their eyes, and, although the girls wouldn’t admit it, that was exactly what they wanted.

A new body walked through the door, clad in the tight pants that showed off every curve of the body, running down to the small feet, which were graced with purple sneakers.  The curves, as should be expected, were nearly perfect, and the flaws only seemed to bring out the more perfect aspects of the body.  The stares moved upward, meeting a perfectly smooth midsection, slightly revealed before being covered again by a tight light blue shirt that revealed a body, which, although not muscular, was neither scrawny nor flabby.  The eyes moved to the face, smooth and delicate, light, but not creamy.  Then the eyes, bright, piercing blue, yet delicate as the light of the moon.  The hair, slightly dark blonde and cut medium length all around.  Those starting were no longer looking on in desire, but in shock and near horror at the figure now walking through the room.

Before, the room had been filled with noise, but as this new body had entered, silence had spread through the air like a vapor, and soon no one spoke as this strange boy walked up to the food line, which had stopped moving, and began to wait, standing with feet crossed beneath him.  He seemed unaware of the deafening silence, and didn’t seem to notice that the lunch line was immobile, both students and staff staring at the oddity which had chosen to barge in on the normal goings on of the school.

One of the staff serving the food made the first movement, suddenly averting her eyes and shaking her head as she returned to the mechanical task of scooping up bland food and dumping it onto the student’s plates.  The students in line, their attention returning slowly to the food, began to proceed like cars on the assembly line, one at a time getting their food, then going to a table to sit down.  Although no one could eat yet, not until the oddity had gotten his food and proven that it was indeed human.  Some were even expecting that the thing before them wasn’t even real; that at the slightest touch it would vanish, perhaps in a puff of smoke.

Soon, the boy had reached the line, and each of the serving staff tried to give the boy his food, but he held his tray back while they stood there, impatient.  Eventually, he held the tray gently to one of the staff, who promptly scooped his lunch fare onto the plate held before him.  Next, the tray was placed before a server backwards in the line.  The server, although puzzled, placed his food item onto the tray near the first.  The tray moved almost randomly amongst the servers, collecting four things before being carried out of the line and to one of the tables.

As the oddity moved forward, hips swaying with every step, the eyes glued to him slowly managed to move to spots directly in front of them, and the other bodies in the room seemed to melt into the tables at which they sat.  Everyone wondered where this strange creature would stop, hoping it would be far from them.  It seemed to sense their distress, walking slowly, yet without seeming to be aware that it was moving at all, making it impossible to tell where it would decide to stop.

Ben saw the body moving his way, and knew it would soon be there, near him, behind him, then, perhaps pass him, or…  the oddity stopped near where Ben sat and turned, looking at where Ben’s eyes would be if they weren’t trying to stare through the table in front of him.  The body gracefully slid forward, gently setting itself down in the open spot next to Ben, which was gradually growing as the other kids surrounding the spot attempted to move covertly away from where the oddity had chosen to sit.

When it had stopped moving, comfortable in it’s new spot, those at other tables seemed to remember where they were and what they were doing, and eating and talking resumed, although the eating was faster, and the talking quieter and more intense.  They were all talking about the same thing.  What was this thing that now sat in their midst?  Where had it come from?  What was it doing here?  What was it doing beside Ben?

There was complete silence at the table where Ben and the oddity sat, as though they were all observing the death of a close relative.  Slowly, utensils were picked up, and food ingested, yet the eating was timid and half-hearted, with most of the table’s focus pointed at the oddity, which ate with feminine care and delicacy.  Ben was the only one completely unable to eat as he started along with everyone else.  Slowly, he let his mouth open, and eventually his tongue remembered how to form the words his mind was telling him to say.  Slowly, they slipped out, frightened, but determined, “so… you’re back.”  He paused, knowing he should add something, but unsure of what.  Finally, he settled on, “it’s been a while.”

The oddity looked at him and smiled gently, showing perfect teeth, “Yes, it has been a long time, over a year, in fact.  I’m happy to be back, though.”

Even eating had stopped now at the table, some forks and spoons frozen midway to their destinations as they watched the conversation unfold before them.

“You’re right, it has been a year.  Where have you been, Alex?”

Suddenly, the oddity had a name, Alex.  The noise at the other tables had ceased as well as all ears were tuned to catch every word uttered between Ben and Alex.

“I told my mom last summer, and she sent me away to another school out-of-state to “get better”.  When she saw that it hadn’t helped, she decided that she’d missed me too much to send me back, so she enrolled me here for my sophomore year.”

“Oh, so that’s why you weren’t here,” Ben said slowly, unsure of what else to say.  There was an awkward silence, then Ben said quickly, “you’ve changed a lot.”

The words caused both of them to blush, but Alex quickly responded, “You haven’t changed, too much.  You still say things without thinking about them,” He giggled a bit.

“I-I’m sorry…”  Ben stuttered, causing Alex to laugh more.

“And you’re still overly apologetic, too.  It’s okay; I have changed a lot.  You’re not the only one who notices,” Alex looked around the room, showing that he did indeed realize that he had caused the silence in the room.  There was a sudden increase in volume as all the kids in the room began talking in order to try and hide their interest in the goings on, even though they’d already been caught.

“Most of them probably don’t know or remember you, Alex,” Ben said, “you were the one most people ignored because they didn’t want to see you.  You were the star cheerleader in eighth grade, for God’s sake, Alex, everyone knew that you were gay.”

Alex giggled again, “Not all male cheerleaders are gay, just a lot of them.  I’m surprised that everyone forgot me, even after we won the cheering competition last year.”

Ben gave Alex a look that expressed regret for actions neither of them had any control over, “everyone remembered the girls, though.”

There was a silence after this, as both of the boys could think of nothing else to say.  They had been apart so long; so many changes had taken place.  Time ticked by again, food was eaten, the bell rang, and children filed to their classes.  The only difference in the age-old routine was this oddity, called Alex, who now walked among them, like an ugly duckling.