The Original Crowd (A Whole New Crowd 0.50)

I glanced over, and saw that Tray was watching me. I smiled, a soft smile and he returned it.

“That’s a Tray that I’ve never seen before,” Brady remarked, catching the look we shared.

“What do you mean?”

“He’s transformed.”

“But he’s still hot,” Lexie put her two cents in.

“He’s like a tamed panther,” Molly remarked. Which shocked me. She was talking with two strangers. Getting with Larkins was working, kinda like action therapy or something.

“Kind of, yeah,” Brady remarked, frowning slightly at Molly, like she was an enigma to her.

Molly noticed the look and quickly looked to her lap. She was back to being an Invisible.

I nudged her shoulder and commented, “Tray’ll like being called a tamed panther. I’ll tell him that tonight when we’re having sex.”

“Oh God.” The blush was back. I couldn’t go a day at school without at least one from her.

Brady and Lexie grinned, seeing my amusement.

“He’ll think I’m calling him a sex panther.”

Anchorman was just one of the greats. No way around it.

Brady and Lexie laughed at that.

“Do you have to be so loud and annoying?”

Of course, I couldn’t go through one morning without at least one attack by either Amber, Sasha, or now Tristan.

This time, it was Sasha.

“Mr. Hauge,” Sasha whined, her voice actually grating against my ears, “can they please work quietly? This isn’t social hour.”

But before I could blast her right back—and I had the perfect comeback—Tray yawned, and remarked casually, “Just shut up the fuck up, Klinnleys. You’re irritating.”

And that was all it took. I knew Sasha wouldn’t say one word to me for the rest of the year.

The sleeping panther god had spoken.

“Yep,” Brady whispered,” tamed.”

But Sasha had been quieted. Now I only had Amber and Tristan to look forward to.

Note that Tray didn’t get reprimanded for swearing in front of the teacher. The panther god was above that rule. But whatever. He was mine.

Third and fourth passed without event. And lunch was a surprise. I sat with Brady and the rest. Molly even came over towards the end when Kayden and Angela had sulked off to the shadows. She was welcomed whole-heartedly, which made me happy. But sad at the same time because it meant Kayden and Angela might be losing a friend. But another Invisible would probably take Molly’s place, eventually.

I didn’t look for Props, figured he was already on his computer.

Tray sat, sleeping, at the table with the ‘popular’ crowd: Carter, Amber, Jasmine, Bryce, and Devon. Devon had been watching me throughout lunch, but I had no inclination to go over and talk to him. I’d done my part and had called Mandy. That was enough. I did not need to go make nice to her probably-future-cheating boyfriend.

By seventh period I’d come to the realization that school had become boring. When did school become boring? People either didn’t say anything to me, especially after Tray shot down Sasha, but I noticed that this had started the week before. I must’ve been getting a reputation not to be messed with. Maybe. I don’t know, but I realized that either they didn’t say anything to me or whatever I said, went. Just like that.

I’d never had that power.

That’s what Tray must feel like on a daily basis, for years now.