(October 18th, 2005)

XB COPIED ME ISTG
MAN

I get a boyfriend then whoop-di-doo xB decides that he's going to get one too. The nerve. I guess it's not the four of us anymore, but it is in fact the five of us. There's a new kid in town.

He's gotta earn his keep.

...That's a joke, I'm genuinely really happy for them. Though Hypno's totally sad that they're the only single in our friend group now. Oh yeah he might also be sad because his crush got a significant other...

AND YES. I SAID IT. HYPNO HAS A CRUSH ON XB.

Honestly it's obvious. I blackmailed them into telling me in grade ten… Hypno is helping me write this and they're saying they're not that obvious. But they are. Trust me.

Anyway, xB has a boyfriend, and there's a shit ton of *chef's kiss* ~tea~ that comes along with the story.

It was just a few days ago, the 15th or 14th of October I think, and for once we decided to eat outside in the feild instead of at our usual lunch table. Wels, Hypno and I were all there, we were just waiting for xB. When he arrived though… That's when things got a bit crazy.

"How LONG is xB taking goddammit!" I checked my watch, almost smacking my pillow, Wels, in the face. "It's been like 15 minutes!"

"Shut uppp he said he'd only be a bit." Hypno said between bites, watching the feild entrance from across the grass expectantly. "He just needed to talk to Etho."

Wels tilted his head. "Who?"

"Etho." Hypno repeated. "He's in Creative Writing with me and xB. Have you never heard of him?"

"No..?"

"Oh." Hypno looked confused, "xB talks with him alot. I thought he'd mention him. "

As if we summoned them, xB walked over with the biggest grin..

And Etho's hand proudly in his.

Etho waved awkwardly with his free hand as he and xB sat down. Nobody said a thing as xB unpacked his lunch. I sat up and exchanged a look with Hypno, who was not looking all that happy.

"Hi." Hypno said, eloquent as ever. "Uh, Etho.. This is Wels and Jevin. Jevin, Wels, this is Etho."

xB laughed and gave Hypno a playful punch, finally speaking up. "I'm supposed to do the introductions, Hypno!"

"Okay then Mr. Craftéd." Hypno said, actually doing a pretty good job at pretending he wasn't TOTALY SUPER SAD. "Introduce us."

xB glanced at Etho, whose eyes wrinkled with a smile. The latter tentatively leaned on xB's shoulder, further confirming Hypno's fears.

"Guys, this is Etho." xB said. "He's in mine and Hypno's Creative Writing class. And, he's my boyfriend."

I gasped dramatically, just to avoid any possible awkward silence. Then a smile crept onto Wels' face.

"Woah!" Wels laughed, "'m happy for you two!"

I grinned, "Me too!"

Hypno's smile was tighter than mine and Wels', but the guy tried. He avoided xB's eyes and turned to Etho. "I don't know wbat you see in him, but to each their own. Congrats."

Im not sure if anyone else noticed xB's brow furrow.

Etho laughed, "I'm as lost as you are, Hyp. This one is something else."

Hypno nodded. "Lost is a good word." He muttered.

"What?" xB asked.

"WaHT-?" Hypno replied.

"What do you mean by that?" xB clarified, and it occurred to me that maybe Hypno wasn't that good at hiding their emotions from the guy they spend the most time with.. "'Lost is is a good word'"

But what his facial expression said was: 'Are you okay?'

Hypno shrugged, closing up, "I'm just surprised."

xB's eyes narrowed. "Surprised that I got a boyfriend?"

"No! Surprised that it's--" He stopped himself, "Surprised you never told me you liked Etho."

"..oh"

Etho cleared his throat, probably trying so save all of us from a very uncomfortable silence. "But yeah.. I asked xB out, and he said yes so here we are..!"

xB's grin returned, though his eyes were still clouded. He brushed the hair out of Etho's eyes. "You barely did the asking out."

"Okay, maybe I was a little quiet but--" Etho messed his hair up again with a small, exasperated smile. "Heyy... You know I like it like that!"

"But how do you function with the hair in your face? It'd look just as pretty if you pinned it back with like a-"

It was getting pretty awkward for the rest of us, until Hypno abruptly clambered up, his shoulders tense. Everyone turned to glance at him.

"Sorry." They mumbled, "I'll be in the washroom."

"Are you okay?" Etho called as Hypno basically ran away.

Hypno turned and gave the silver haired boy a sweet, sad smile, "Fine. Thanks!"

As soon as Hypno disappeared through the field doors, I sat up. "I'll go after him."

"I can-" xB began getting up, but I signaled for him to stay.

"No! I mean- No, I got it. You stay here with Wels and your boyfriend." I nudged Wels as I packed my lunch (and Hypno's cuz they left theirs.). "Maybe Welsie can write you two a love song."

Etho's eyes widened, "You write songs? Man, that's awesome!"

Wels nodded, his face written with pride. "Love songs, specifically. To sweep people off their feet. Jevin can tell you all about that."

I rolled my eyes as I scooped up a homemade muffin and shoved it into my bag. "Shut up, Prince Charming."

My boyfriend smirked. "Make me."

And so I kissed him, effectively shutting him up.

xB and I laughed at Wels' flushed face, and Etho nodded. "Had a feeling that was gonna happen."

I waved to my friends and Etho one last time then stood up, making my way towards the main highshcool building.

Now, once I found Hypno, I obviously comforted him. That's basically it, it really wasn't interesting… but there is something interesting that happened after lunch that day.

But I wasn't there, I was just told about it. So, I've brought in someone who was there and can actually do words to write about it!

Ladies, Gentlemen, Anyone in between, and Those who have completely abandoned the concept of gender, I give to you: Hypno!

…

Wowww hi book. I'm Hypno, (he/they), though I'm sure you've heard of me as I am famous. Before I start the story, let's get the important questions out of the way.

Are you sentient?

No? We're good? Okay, cool. I'm low-key scared of the idea of sentient books.

Anyways! We're talking about xB.

So, the story Jev wants me to tell happens right after that lunch, as xB and I were making our way to our next classes, which were conveniently right next to eachother. Etho had gone off to Science with his buddy Beef, who looked just as miserable that Etho and xB were together as I was. Poor guy.

I was probably looking especially sad as I imagined what was going through the 'Beef' kids mind and if he was feeling similarly to me.

"What's wrong, Hypno." xB asked, just as we turned the corner into the hall with our classes.

I pursed my lips. "Nothing is wrong. Seriously."

xB sighed, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Well,  hypothetically, if there was." He said, "You could tell me. We could skip class, make it to the park down the street before next period. I'd listen if you needed to talk."

I stopped in the middle of the hallway. That day had been just-- So pissy and I felt horrible and I wished I was mad at xB but I could only feel mad at myself for feeling so.. so jealous and it sucked. Then the guy swoops in and he's all sweet and caring and it just made me feel worse.

"Why." I croaked.

Tenderly, xB brought his hands up and cupped my cheeks. "Because I really care about you. I don't want you to be sad."

We stayed like that for a moment, other students weaving and shoving around us because we meant nothing to them. They didn't care what was happening. They didn't care about my problems.

But xB did. xB does. He just cares too much.

I took a breath and reached up to grip xB's wrists, tearing them from my face. "Stop it."

"...What?"

I stepped back, examining xB's face, his ocean eyes. I'm not sure what I was looking for. Shame? Understanding? ..Love? But his eyes held no distinguishable emotion. They were eerily calm, like glass. There was no current, no waves, just a clear, blank sea.

(I've been taking creative writing.)

"Don't touch me." I said. "Not like that. You have a boyfriend."

xB's eyes widened, "But I didn't- It's not like..."

He trailed off. He was blushing.

"I get it. You don't mean it like that with me." I said coldly, and my tone probably wasn't helping my case. "But I wouldn't want to make Etho feel bad or anything."

I tried to make a tactical retreat into my class, but xB stopped me, gripping the fabric of my sweater.

"Etho's not a jealous person, you know that." He insisted.

"Jealousy's a fickle thing, trust me." I pulled my arm away. "I'm gonna be late. Talk to you later, xB."

And I spedwalked away, not giving him another word.

Well, wasn't that dramatic. -Jevin

Special thanks to:
Hypno, for helping me write this and for adding his own entry