"The Rarest Color" Chapter 1: Sun And Shadows

Today was just like every other day. Dawn was creeping on the horizon. The phone on the nightstand blared “Waves on High” as the alarm Lucas had selected the night before. Lucas raised his arms to the ceiling and stared at the levels of bruising left over from the last week. Lucas dreaded school on an unnatural scale, and alternative rock felt soothing to his soul. Lucas staggered out of bed to the bathroom and then to the kitchen to make eggs and toast. He had to pull an all-nighter to finish his Rosa Parks book report. 

Lucas readied himself and headed out. Lucas rode his bike to school in his usual monochromatic look. Torn black jeans, a gray t-shirt with a bloody rose, leather boots, a black jacket with self-sewn purple plaid patches, razor black hair swept to his left side, covering half of his face with a burgundy knit beanie. Everything looked dull to Lucas, like the colors barely seemed present. As he sped past house after house on the sidewalk, he noticed someone new had moved in six houses down two weeks ago and had almost finished unloading everything. Suddenly, ten feet away, a girl ran out from behind the bushes at the edge of the yard. Lucas slammed his feet to the sidewalk and fell to the ground.

“Oh my god, are you okay!?” The girl shouted, hoping he wasn’t severely injured.

“Ouch, hey kid, you need to watch where you’re going. I could’ve seriously hurt you.” Lucas advised sternly. The front door swung open, and a boy ran out, wondering what all the noise was.

“Adalynn! What happened? I heard noises and shouting!” The boy exclaimed, walking onto the scene.

“Your sister nearly got run over when she popped out of nowhere,” Lucas said as he fumbled to pick himself off the ground.

“Oh goodness, here, let me help you. Are you hurt at all?”

“Not much, I’m fine,” Lucas reassured them.

“Are you sure? Because your arm says otherwise.” The boy pointed to Lucas’s forearm, which had been exposed on impact. Lucas pulled down his sleeve faster than a running rabbit.

“That’s nothing. Those have been there for a while, I’m fine.” Lucas picked up his bike and rode off. He didn’t feel comfortable staying near them. They reminded him of a memory he wished so badly to forget. The boy watched until he turned the corner and then looked at his sister.

“You should start heading to the bus stop and be cautious.” He kissed her head and waved her off. He turned back to the direction Lucas had gone, feeling a little concerned. The boy returned and heard his phone ringing on the kitchen counter. The caller ID was in Korean, as that was the phone's selected default language. He then answered the phone and said.

“An-nyeong, ha-se-yo, what’s up, Mom?”

“An-nyeong Jaune, I just wanted to ensure you are getting to school alright?” Jaune looked at the kitchen clock, then answered his mother.

“Yeah, don’t worry, I’m covered. I also saw Adalynn off, so she should be on the bus as we speak.” He hoped talking about his sister would lead her off the fib he had just told.

“That sounds good, and listen, I know it’s the first day, but try not to worry about feeling out of place. I promise you every teenager feels the same, just be yourself and do your best to make some friends, alright.” His mother said, sounding very uplifting and spirited.

“Yeah, gamsahabnida mom. Stay awesome, Jal ga.”

“Jal ga, don't forget you said you would help your father at the bakery today. Have a good day, sweetie.” The call ended, and Jaune frantically walked to his room to get dressed. He knew already that he was going to be late. Just how late, he couldn’t say.

Walking through the halls of Blackview Valley High became one of the worst parts of the day for Lucas. He wouldn’t be more than twenty seconds through the front doors and could say it was the highlight of his day. A few people here and there called him names and said he only bruised himself for attention. Lucas only had a few more months left of high school, and he could not be happier about it. He would finally be able to move out of town and get away from it all. He could get away from all the small-minded bigots and the bad memories, but most importantly. He could get away from him.

Lucas growled under his breath as he entered his first class. He sat at his desk in class, waiting for the day to start while drawing in his sketchbook. The book looked vintage and well-used with its soft leather-bound cover and swing hook latch. The book came with an 1840 fountain Pen, however, the pen was quite old and valuable, so Lucas kept it in a special pen case at home. His art had a variety of concepts. He especially liked graffiti and graveyard settings. Students, one by one, pass by to get to their desks, filling the room with medium-tone chatter. Anyone could always tell when Mrs. Peters entered the room. She wore so much perfume that you could smell her from ten feet away. The scent always gave Lucas a headache, but he didn’t complain. The bell rang so he put away his sketchbook and got out his book report on Rosa Parks. He noticed the desk next to his right was empty.

‘Is someone absent?’ he thought. Mrs. Peters starts taking attendance on a clipboard while slowly pacing in front of the whiteboard.

“Daniel Grand”, Mrs. Peters called.

“Here”, Dan replied, tapping his pencil on his desk.

“Richard Anderson”

“Present”

“This is English Class, Mr. Anderson, not gym, stop bench pressing those ten-pound weights and put them away, please.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You as well, Mr. Crowvale, take your hood off, please. Miss Pine, put away your nail file. This is not a salon."

“Jaune Noe…” Silence pierced the air. It was painful.

“Jaune Noe”, suddenly the door swung open, and a boy popped through the entrance.

‘Wait… It’s that boy from this morning?’ He thought with a Mona Lisa smile on his face.

“I’m here, I’m so sorry for being late!” He said. He said, breathing a little heavily.

“You must be Mr. Noe… are you alright?”

“Yes, that’s me, and yes. I just need a second to settle down.”

“Alright, if you need a drink of water, you may go. Don’t be late again. If you’re late three more times, you will need to serve an after-school detention--” While Mrs. Peters lectured Jaune about the consequences of being late, Lucas just sat staring at him as discreetly as possible. Lucas pretended to look over his report. Jaune kept giving him soft boy vibes. His hair was styled in a way that made him look like he belonged in a K-pop boy band and it had a red cinnamon hue, his skin is the color of creamy caramel, and he was wearing a brown and white striped V-neck long-sleeved shirt with a soft yellow button down cardigan, boyfriend jeans, and white platform slip-ons. Lucas couldn’t put his finger on it; something about this guy seemed nice. He convinced himself it was nothing, and I brushed it off.

“The desk next to Mr. Crisanto is open. You can sit there.” She directed as she pointed to the desk to Lucas’s right.

“Thank you.” Jaune bowed and started walking in Lucas’s direction, and Lucas's eyes were dead focused on him. Jaune stands before Lucas and extends his hand with the softest expression he has ever seen.

‘Who is this guy?’ Lucas thought. He was in awe, he didn’t know what to think. But if he was correct about his emotions, he needed to shut this down.

“Hello, it’s good to see you again. I didn’t formally introduce myself this morning. My name is Noe Jaune, and it’s nice to meet you.”

Lucas sat silently for a moment, not knowing how to respond, but he didn’t want to come off as rude. Hesitantly, Lucas gave Jaune a firm handshake.

“Likewise, I’m Lucas,” He replied, sounding friendly yet nonchalant. When Lucas looked up to meet his eyes, he let out a soft auditory gasp. Jaune’s left eye looked like a warm golden sunset, his right eye reminded him of the moon over a clear blue lake.

“…Amazing,” Lucas spoke softly. Realizing what he had said, he snatched his hand away from Jaune’s and pretended to examine his report.

Jaune let out a light chuckle and sat at his desk. Mrs. Peters continued roll call. While she checked off her list, Richard slipped a small note onto Jaune’s desk. He opened the torn sheet of paper and was offended by what he read.

'Sorry that you have to sit next to this freak! Want to sit with my group at lunch?' Jaune refolded the paper, then ripped it into pieces. Richard scowled at this, but Jaune did not look back to see this. Lucas was shocked, to say the least. On one hand, he wanted to tell him that no matter what was on the paper, he shouldn’t have ripped it, as he had just painted a target on his back. On the other hand, he didn’t know this guy or owe him anything. He kept asking himself why he should care. Jaune gives off studious theater kid vibes, but also gives off the impression that he stands up to others or fights back. Yet he had just done something Lucas himself shuddered to think of doing.

“Alright, time to present your reports, who’s first?” February is one of Mrs. Peter’s favorite months for literature assignments. She used Black History Month as an excuse to see how much research the students put into the assignment given to them. From a list of names on the board, the students had to pick a historical figure, research them, and write about the impact they made. They also had to give their thoughts on the person they chose. Since Lucas is always so quiet, Mrs. Peter always picks him first to present. Throughout the class, Richard constantly did things that made Lucas uncomfortable. He threw crumpled papers at him and poked the back of his head with his pencil.

‘Why isn’t he saying anything…?’ Jaune wondered as he looked around the room. No one else seemed to notice what was happening; if they did, they didn’t care.

‘Why isn’t anyone else saying anything…?’ he thought exasperatedly. By the twentieth pencil poke, Jaune was thoroughly annoyed with the situation. He raised his hand to get the teacher's attention. It was just as quickly yanked back down to his side. Lucas held Jaune’s hand to his desk, looking forward, and lightly shook his head. When Lucas let go of his hand, Jaune caught his jacket sleeve between his thumb and forefinger. Not knowing what to do, he let go and went back to listening to the student reports. Richard was the last to present his book report, for which Lucas was thankful. Lucas felt as though the class seemed to go much faster than usual. Before he knew it, the bell rang and people were leaving. Lucas stayed to pick up all the papers Richard had thrown at him. As he puts the paper balls in his hand, he sees a figure through his hair picking up paper, too. Jaune stayed behind, too. Lucas had mixed feelings. He didn’t know if this was pity or if he thought he couldn’t take care of himself.

“I don’t need your help or your pity; you can just go to your classes.” Lucas proclaimed, sounding cold and distant.

“I’m not helping you out of pity. I’m helping because the way you were treated wasn’t fair.” Jaune declared. Although he couldn’t get something off his mind.

"Why didn’t you tell the teachers about it?” He pleaded with Lucas.

“Look, I don’t need some knight in pastel polyester armor swooping in to save me. I’ve been fine on my own. Leave things well enough alone.” Lucas demanded as he picked up his backpack, walking out of the classroom. Lucas was pissed at the prospect of someone barging into his life without warning and suddenly trying to fix every little crack and crevice. All he wanted to do was make it through the last few months of high school, and then he wouldn’t have any reason to stay in this town.

Blackview High was proof that progress could be selective: diverse students, modern ideals—but no working cameras, no funding, no real safety. If someone did anything bad, there would be no undeniable proof. Nobody would have an alibi, and no one can say you did anything wrong.

Lucas started hearing footsteps behind him as he went outside to go to another building. He turns to see that Jaune has skidded to a halt behind him.

“Stop following me, kid!” Lucas shouted

“I’m following you because my next class happens to be in this direction,” Jaune said as a matter of fact. Lucas turned away to hide his embarrassed blush. And continued walking.

The main building held general education classes such as Math, Science, English, etc. A second building, a few acres away, holds extracurricular classes such as Art, Choir, Drama, etc. Lucas and Jaune walked along the sidewalk while Jaune asked questions about Lucas.

"What's your favorite color?"

"What music do you like?"

"What food do you like?"

The questions weren't very personal, but he didn’t want to get too close to this guy and frankly, Lucas thought all the questions were starting to get annoying. The longer he avoided talking, the more he could tell that Jaune looked disappointed. Lucas took a breath and let out a low sigh.

"Smokey gray and purple, Alt Rock, Asian food. Are you satisfied?" He answered while Jaune had a goofy grin on his face.

'This kid… doesn’t seem half bad, I guess.' He thought as they continued walking.

The path to the second building goes through a line of trees, almost like a border. Amid the trees, Jaune asks him another question.

“By the way, Lucas...Do you want to be friends--”

“Ouch!” They’re cut off as Lucas reacts to something that snapped on the back of his head. He knew exactly who was to blame for this irritating feeling.

“What the hell do you want, Richard? It’s not lunch hour yet.” He asked, picking up the rubber band, he launched. Richard hates him. He has for the last three years. They were very good friends growing up, but something happened near the end of eighth grade that Richard will never forgive him for. Lucas didn’t ever expect him to. He accepted and He knows that it was his fault and Richard never failed to make him feel like shit for it every day. Richard Anderson, captain of the basketball team… and Lucas Crisanto, an anxious, depressed kid who stands out and blends in at the same time, a kid that nobody cares about.

“You know what I’m after you emo shit.” He exclaimed, trying to pick a fight with him. Not like he needed to, Lucas was his punching bag either way.

“Hey, stop being so rude and calling him names, please!” This guy is new, but Lucas is still amazed he has the guts to stand up to Richard.

“Who are you to talk back to me, loser?” Richard marches over to Jaune and tries to pack a punch, but Lucas steps in and blocks using his arms in an ‘X’ formation. The force of the impact was stronger than he anticipated. He could feel that his wrist was fractured. Richard’s bullying became a daily routine, so it was easy not to show how much something hurt. Richard backed up a few feet as Lucas broke his stance.

"Bara! Don’t touch him! You’re crossing the line, Richard. Don't forget about the agreement we made freshman year." He proclaimed, holding his wrist tightly. They both looked at each other with scornful eyes. Their stare could have been hot enough to burn down the trees surrounding them.

“Lucas, are you ok…?”

“Noe, go to class and tell Ms. Matlight I will be late.”

“I am not going to just leave you here by yourself.”

“Go, there is no sense in us both being late.”

“I’m not leaving, friends don’t abandon one another--”

“NOE…” He shouted in irritation as he slowly turned to Jaune with an angry expression.

“We are not friends… I don’t need friends. Now go to class.” He expressed in a low tone. Jaune stares back at Lucas with confusion and determination as he grabs his hand. They stood like statues for a moment. Jaune broke off and then ran as fast as his legs could take him. Lucas felt he could breathe easier now that Jaune was out of the way. He didn’t want him to be caught in no man’s land between Richard and him.

“Aww, you care about him, don’t you?” Richard says sarcastically

“Pendenjo, you know I wouldn’t go through this hell if I didn’t care about anyone!” Lucas said and closed his eyes, preparing himself for whatever abuse was coming today.

“Yeah… you have always been soft. That is why I am stronger than you.” He boasted as he sucker-punched the left side of Lucas’s face, and Lucas fell sideways to the ground. He then kicks him in the stomach repeatedly. Lying, gasping for air, thoughts start running through Lucas’s head—thoughts he dared never share with the world.

“This is what you deserve!” Richard spoke in a degrading manner.

“HEY, STOP!”

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!” Voices echo from a distance. Lucas opens his eyes to see two people holding Richard down in shoulder locks.

‘Those two are from art class… Noe!’ Lucas thought as he felt someone propping me up in their arms.

“I told you I wouldn’t leave you alone…” he looked up to see Jaune smiling down at him. He was so shocked, yet couldn’t help but feel so happy in that moment. Tears just started falling down his face. Jaune took his sleeve and lightly wiped it away.

“Oh gosh, Lucas, are you hurt badly? Let me look at you!” Ms Matlight gasped with great concern. When Lucas tried to sit up, he winced at the pain in his stomach and fell back. Ms. Matlight lifted his shirt and was taken aback by the bruising that started to form from the number of times Richard kicked him. He had even managed to break flesh, so he was bleeding in a few places. He felt Jaune’s grip on him tighten a little, but he couldn’t bring himself to look at him.

“You need to see the nurse immediately.” Ms. Matlight said as calmly as possible. All the while, Richard was grunting and struggling a couple of yards away.

“As for you, Mr. Anderson… For this act of violence, the principal may suspend you for a while or even expel you. I don’t know what is going on between you two, but it ends NOW!” Ms. Matlight demanded sternly.

“Landon, you and I will take him to the principal's office. Meghan, please assist Jaune in taking Lucas to see the nurse.”

“Yes, ma’am,” They both said in unison. It was kind of cool. Meghan rushed over, and she and Jaune helped Lucas to his feet as carefully as they could. He couldn’t hide how much everything hurt, he made a lot of grunting and groaning sounds. He could walk, but it was difficult. Every step he took felt less painful; he supposed that was a plus.