Heyyyyyy this is an AU in which Jeremy doesn't have a squip, but Michael is one of the most popular kids at school. Keep that in mind, I won't say anymore lest I spoil ;P Enjoy! -May

Jeremy kicked a rock, looking up at the school he wished he wasn't at. Time to start the day, he thought to himself, sighing.

When he arrived at his locker, he put in the combination lazily and grabbed the things he needed for his first class. He had no one to greet. Well, he did have someone, but they probably didn't have time for him.

"JEREMY!" someone yelled, inducing a small squeak from Jeremy before he whirled around. He felt his heart constrict as he saw who it was. "How's it hangin'?" Michael Mell stood in front of him, panting lightly.

"'M fine..." he mumbled; his heart was racing.

"Dude, you totally don't look fine," Michael said laughing. "C'mon, I'll walk with you to class."

"But... we're in different first periods," Jeremy noted.

"Your point? What's so wrong about walking with my best friend to class in the morning?" He stuck out his tongue playfully, but Jeremy felt a small jab to his heart. Sighing, he gave in to the excited boy. Michael made a beckoning motion as he began walking down the hall.

Jeremy was growing nervous. Every few steps, another person greeted Michael. And every few steps, he felt another confused gaze. Michael was one of the most popular people at school and... he was walking with one of the least popular.

Michael had always naturally been able to attract people, but Jeremy could only watch. He had known Michael for as long as he could remember, but the more the two grew, the more Jeremy couldn't help but notice how different he was from Michael. Michael could make friends easily, Jeremy had very few. Michael could talk to just about anyone, Jeremy had trouble talking to just one person.

Jeremy felt his anxiety grow worse, so he began to put more and more distance in between him and Michael with every step. Even the smallest noises around him felt like they were echoing in his head, mocking him.

Then suddenly, they all hushed as he heard, "Jeremy?" It was Michael. He was gripping Jeremy's shoulders, but Jeremy couldn't speak. All he could do was push Michael's hands away as he took off to his first class... alone.

Jeremy felt awful as he slid into his desk. Why did I do that...? he asked himself miserably. Shaking his head, he buried his face in his arms, not bothering to listen to the lesson they were having that day. Instead, he pulled out his phone and saw seventeen new messages.

Are you okay?
Did I do anything?
Do you feel sick or something?
Jere please answer me

The texts continued, and Jeremy felt sick to his stomach. He knew if he told Michael what he was feeling, he'd tell him not to worry, but Jeremy couldn't convince himself to do it. Today had been the strongest he'd felt this way. He knew he had the next period with Michael, and that only made him more nervous.

He sighed as he locked his phone. He didn't have the heart to answer him; instead, when the period ended, he made his way to the bathroom.

Michael tapped his desk impatiently. Something was up with Jeremy. He went through all the things that he had said this morning, but he couldn't find anything that might've particularly bothered Jeremy.

So maybe it's not something I did... he thought. I need to ask him next period.

The bell rang and Michael stepped into their next class, confused. Jeremy was nowhere to be found. He glanced at the clock. It was 30 seconds until the tardy bell rang.

20 seconds.

10 seconds.

Jeremy wasn't coming. Michael was worried. Where would he be? he thought, ignoring everyone else's attempts at greeting him. Making his mind up, he stood right as class began and walked to the door. 

"Mr. Mell, where are you going?" The teacher called out to him, but Michael's own worried thoughts drowned the voice out.

He made his way up the stairs to the bathroom most people overlooked, figuring if Jeremy was in a bathroom, he'd be in there. He slowly pushed open the door and heard a small squeak. Stepping in, he looked behind the door to see a small huddled figure.

The person hid his face, but Michael immediately knew who it was. "Jere, why are you in the bathroom by yourself?"

Jeremy sighed into his sleeve. He couldn't bring himself to look up. He knew his heart would break.

Sure enough, when Michael gently lifted his arms, tears slipped down Jeremy's face.

"What happened, Jeremy? I won't know unless you tell me," Michael said, a concerned frown growing on his face. "Did I do anything? If I did anything to hurt you-"

Jeremy shook his head quickly. "N-No it's not you, it's just..."

Michael shifted from his original position in front of Jeremy to sit beside him. "You can talk whenever you're ready, okay?" He wrapped his arm around Jeremy's shoulder and sat with him for a bit before Jeremy stirred.

"Why are you friends with me?" Jeremy asked. Michael was taken aback at first, but slowly he pieced together what Jeremy was saying.

"Good question," he joked. Jeremy looked at him without a trace of amusement on his face. "Sorry, sorry," Michael said quickly, smiling apologetically. "Why am I your friend... huh? Well, for one thing, I'm most comfortable talking to you."

Jeremy's face scrunched up in confusion. "Hey I'm being serious," Michael said laughing. "I do hang out with all kinds of people, but you're the only one who'll play video games with me." Michael beamed.

"Then... Am I just your player two?" Jeremy curled into himself more.

"Well when you say it like that, it doesn't sound like a good thing. Think about it this way," Michael started, smiling. "You're the only one who gets to see me rage at Apocalypse of the Damned. You're also the only one I'd ever invite to get stoned in my basement, though you never agree. Hell, I haven't even had anyone over to my house besides you. Does that sound any better to you, player two?"

Jeremy felt his face heat up. He nodded shyly. "But aren't you embarrassed... walking next to me?"

"Why would you think that?" Michael asked, confused. Jeremy went silent, but Michael smiled sadly as he figured it out. "Jere, was I ever the type of person to put social status in front of friendship? Because if I was, I want to get a time machine to slap myself."

Jeremy giggled despite how he was feeling. "No..." he admitted.

"Oh, good. I was actually kind of worried." He smiled brightly, earning more small laughs from the boy next to him. "Plus... if you feel uncomfortable walking by me because you don't have many friends, I can help you meet some people! It'll be fun!"

Jeremy wasn't sure how he felt about that. He was more of an introvert, so meeting new people was somewhat difficult for him. And taking into account how many people Michael was friends with... His head began to spin.

"Hey, Jere? You okay? If you're uncomfortable with that, we can start slow."

"You're..." Jeremy started. "You're popular. Making friends probably just comes naturally for you, but I'm just... me. There's nothing special about 'me'..."

"What do you mean?" Michael said blankly. "You don't need to be special, silly. You're you, and that's enough isn't it?"

Jeremy stared at Michael. In one simple sentence, he had managed to blow away all of Jeremy's worries.

"So?" Michael continued, his smile returning once again.

Jeremy smiled in return despite himself. "Okay."

HIIII AGAIN. WELCOME TO A NEW STORY. I've been working on this for way too long because of friggin writer's block, sorry for the wait!! Hope you enjoy this! -May