"Mom, I don't care about how good its academics are, I don't WANT to go to an all-boys school!" Eli whined. His mother sighed- this argument had been going on for hours longer than she would have liked, and it was starting to wear on her patience.
“Young man, for the last time, this is not up for debate. Your grandparents have generously given you an opportunity that you can’t even begin to appreciate. You’re going to have the best education in the state, with some of the most helpful students in the nation, and you’re going to be a better person when you graduate because of it. End. Of. Discussion.”
In spite of being an only child to an only parent, Eli had grown up being as ordinary as any other kid- at least, initially. But at a young age, Eli had gotten beaten up badly by some bigger kids in his class, and since then he'd stayed as far away from other boys as he could. He got worse and worse, getting more introverted all the time, and at the end of his elementary school years, his mother saw a problem that needed to be nipped in the bud before it got worse. She got on the phone with her own parents, and between the three of them they had just enough cash to float Eli through an esteemed private school within the state, with just enough to help him with college if his grades were sufficiently excellent. Eli would make friends with other boys, and if he couldn’t do that, he could at least learn to cope with them, whether he liked it or not.
Eli’s complaints about other boys were heard, but discarded as nonsense then it became clear that was all they could be. Sure, the boys Eli went to class with had always been a bit large, but they certainly didn't grow at a rate you could track by looking at them. Eventually, Eli stopped talking about the matter, and it was decided that he had other reasons for not wanting to have other male friends- but what those were, his mother could only guess.
Well, fine, then. It still came to the same thing: Eli couldn’t keep being guy-shy for all his life.
They pulled into the parking lot, filled with hundreds of other boys, teenagers, and faculty, and began unloading Eli’s things from the car. At that moment:
"Heya, Eli!"
A chipper and jubilant teenager, obviously one of the seniors, waved at them. It was obvious he had been waiting for them.
“My name’s Matthew. I’m supposed to be your mentor for the first month of classes, to help you adjust. Everyone in the senior class has to do so, it’s school tradition.”
Matthew had messy brown hair and a winning smile. Modest muscles on his arms and legs showed he kept active, but they didn’t bulge like a weightlifter’s- he was probably into some endurance sport, like tennis or swimming. He wore light-tan cargo shorts and a dark blue three-button shirt with folded over collars. On both of them were printed “LAMBDA ACADEMY”, in white on the left pectoral for the shirt and at the bottom of the left leg for the shorts.
Eli missed most of this, however, because he was busy keeping his gaze tightly fixed on the ground.
“Mmm,” Eli mumbled.
“It’s optional, but most of the time, we start by giving the new guys a quick tour of the campus before bringing them back to their dorms-“
"I already know the layout." Eli muttered.
"What?"
"I know the layout, I saw it on the school's website.”
“Oh, really? So you know you’ll be staying-“
“In the southern wing, with all the other new first-class students. Cafeteria’s at the eastern building, with vending machines in the science and liberal arts buildings, which are on either side of it. My room is G-9, second-to-last room from the end of the hall on the bottom floor.”
"Wow, you really are amazing, aren't you?"
Eli said nothing, his eyes firmly on the sidewalk pavement.
“Well, is there anything else you need from me, or should I take off?” Eli’s mom asked.
“No, we can take it from here- one of the student guides will take his stuff to his room.” Matt whistled loudly, and a luggage handler in a uniform identical to Matt’s came and hoisted the suitcases in his arms. “G-9, please, and don’t hurt yourself.”
The handler laughed and took off with his cargo while Eli’s mom said her blessings for the school year. Shortly after, she left, leaving Eli and his guide alone in a teeming parking lot.
“So, I guess you’ll just want to get to your dorm room, then?”
“Yes, please.”
Eli’s silence at this point was going past "awkward” and getting to the point of “impossible to ignore.”
“Alright, you’re shy, I can respect that. Lots of kids have their first time going to private schools as awkward things.”
A pause here was indicated for Eli to say something. He continued not to do so. What was the point? No one would believe the truth anyway. No one even noticed it. If you couldn’t explain how the bullies that you’d been arguing with had grown several inches over the weeks following- and then several more in that fight that was insanely one-sided- how could you possibly explain why you wouldn’t want to risk arguing with anyone else again?
This was where they all demanded a response. They always did, and he’d have to lie about enjoying coming here and keep it up for six miserable years, and probably the rest of his miserable life.
Matt didn’t do that, though. “If you want to stay quiet, you can do so. The smartest ones always are the most silent.”
Eli looked up at him. This response was not what he was expecting. “I promise you this, though, Eli- these people are some of the nicest folks you’ll ever meet. Just try to give them a chance, keep an open mind, and you won’t regret it for an instant. I promise you, Eli-" and for emphasis here he slung his arm over Eli's neck and shook his shoulder, "-you're going to love it here!" with that, Matt dropped his arm and turned to lead him to his dorm.
Eli could've sworn that he was a millimeter taller when he pulled away.
He whimpered internally.
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