new old times

Eric was feeling lethargic, but he'd managed through the morning at school and had dragged himself to lunch to find that he wasn't really hungry. Just a roll would do and maybe some butter. But even that made him queasy.

He sat alone. He didn't feel much like socializing. He felt awful on so many levels. Why did he need Ellie so much? He should have been OK with everything, but she came over, and she had a way of making things better than what he deserved. He really had to get her something special for Christmas, but what? All he could do was remember her in those thigh high black socks of hers. He couldn't help but smile about that, and some other stuff that he hoped no one could read his mind. He did his best not to think about that since he knew there was more to her than just what he could see, but sometimes, it just felt nice to think about. Gave him something to smile about, and he definitely needed that on this miserable day. It was snowing again.

He looked up and saw someone in a Nordic ear-flap hat. It was Roger. Thinner than ever.

"What happened to you?" Eric asked aloud. Roger sat down across from him still with his cap on. "I haven't seen you in ages. I'd about decided you'd transferred out, or something." Eric looked at him for a moment, hoping Roger wouldn't think he'd throw up on him.

"Does it matter?" He wasn't at all like the Roger that Eric remembered who was always smartly dressed who always seemed to have the inside info on just about anything going on. He knew who was seeing who. He was like a co-host from Extra. All smiles and no substance. Usually.

"What gives?" Eric bit into his roll, and it felt like cotton candy melting on his tongue without the sweetness. He might as well have been eating toilet paper he thought. "Ellie's been worried about you."

"Ellie?" That almost made Roger smile. He played with his Italian casserole a bit but didn't eat it.
"We've all wondered what happened to you? Did anything happen?" Eric slightly recalled what Ellie had said from the Cory experiment. But he'd hate to bring it up. Even now.

"I'm fine." Roger shrugged.

"Then come hang out with us," Eric suggested. "We were going to go to the Faint concert, but they cancelled. Got sick or something, but our tickets are still good and well, a group of us are going, Kyle and his girlfriend. Probably Cory, too."

Roger cleared his throat.

"What? Is that a problem?"

Roger shook his head, no.

"Then its settled. It'll be like old times," Eric smirked. Funny, how none of those old times came to mind now.