A snippet of my Chris finds Eddie's HS diary fic that I will finish soon, I swear and then I'll post it. I'm trying to keep it under 70k, but idk how successful I'm gonna be lmao... maybe I should be somewhat realistic and say under 75k
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Chris gets assigned Beowulf for English and hates every moment of it, despite the fact he usually likes reading well enough. The old English they’re given just doesn’t compute in his brain though and it takes ages to get through it.
He texts Buck about it, but he cites dyslexia and leaves him to his own devices, which is rude. He could ask grandma. She used to read to him, he remembers, but he doesn’t like having to ask her for help. It always makes him feel a little incompetent.
Another person he remembers reading to him is mom and he misses her all over again. Why did he have to inherit dad’s talents and weak points in school subjects? Why doesn’t he have pieces of her there?
Everyone always tells him how much he looks like his mom and he’s tried to find her so many times, smiling into the mirror in the hopes of seeing her, but he never really did. He can’t find her smile or the eyes that dad mentioned, doesn’t see the resemblance that Marisol had commented on after seeing a picture of mom.
And here he is once more, lacking a connection to her.
Usually he’d be more okay with it, the grief of missing her so familiar and well worn it’s almost comfortable. However, today Mr. Smith called him Eddie by accident. He does that from time to time, ever since the first class actually. It has always annoyed Chris, but today it hurts.
He finds himself in front of a mirror now, trying to find what Mr. Smith sees. What about his face calls to mind his dad for the teacher. He makes all sorts of expressions, frowning and scowling, even looking constipated and surprised. He leans in and zeroes in on his eyes, his brows, his mouth. Looks at the shape of his face.
Nothing.
Chris doesn’t see it. And he is glad for it. Despite wanting to know more about why dad became like this and loving him through the anger and mistrust, Christopher never wants to become like his dad. He’ll struggle through Beowulf if that’s what it takes.
Edit: now finished
