The PE class drags on, and staring at his watch every 30 seconds isn't helping. Luca usually adores PE, but on days like this, when it feels like someone's stabbing him through with burning metal, sitting in a rough plastic chair for hours on end is a living hell.

  Luca stretches his arms behind him, trying not to pummel Marika Terere with his aching elbows. She's been sneaking glances at his crutches, leaned up against the wall, for the past half an hour. It's irrational, how much it annoys him. Marika's a nice person, and of course, she means well. She's just curious, like the majority of people.

  Yes, Luca needs the crutches, at least for today. No, he did not sprain his ankle. No, it's not a temporary injury. No, his illness is not in his head. Yes, he took painkillers. They did not help in the slightest. Yes, he does yoga.

  The pencil in Luca's hand is held loosely, having given up on writing notes for today. The feeling of his wrist bent around the pencil, his knuckles cracking and rubbing like rusted cogs in an old, broken machine was too much. He'd check the slideshow later, maybe. If his body would stop falling apart.

  The soft vibration of a text comes from his phone, tensing his throbbing leg. He checks it, holding it under the table. If Ms. Hayes sees him texting and not doing work, he'll most likely receive a detention, even though writing is practically impossible right now. Even texting might be too much. The number at the top of the screen continues to read 4:34, but the white bubble that pops up underneath his wallpaper is a text from Theo.

  Theo: Lucaaaaa

  Theo: I'm bored

  Theo: English is shit

  Theo: U doing ok?

  Bad pain days are despicable.

  Theo: :(

  Theo: wanna vent?

  Awww, not right now, though. Can't text too much.

  Theo: R u coming to d&d club?

  It's been a week since their last session, and their chaotic encounter with Mr. McKay. Luca's been looking forward to the D&D club, but right now all he wants to do is to return home, crawl into bed and get his dad to bring him a hot compress. The club's gained a spark, though, recently. It's small and could be easily smothered. That's exactly what Luca's worried about. There's a tenderness to the interactions, and Luca's not going to discredit the others, but he knows that his being there could help them all get along.

  There's so much new possibility with the club. Luca can't let that die out so soon. And, yes, maybe his anxiety over the club discontinuing has a little something to do with Lyric.

  I'll be there.

  Theo: okay, gtg.

  Theo: byeeee

  The teacher's spouting something about anatomy. They're studying the body systems this term, and being PE, there's a lot of focus on his greatest enemy, the musco-skeletal system. And the reproductive system. It's interesting, sure, but combined with the prospect of after-school swim lessons in togs, it makes his dysphoria feel amplified, shoved in his face.

  It's 4:46, and the school day is over. Ms. Hayes is still speaking, so Luca puts his hand up lamely to tell her the day is over. He can hear the subtle outpouring of relief through the classroom as she checks her watch and dismisses them.

  Luca knows that some of his classmates steal glances at him as he picks up his crutches, hooking them under each arm. He sighs internally as the pressure comes off of his hips, the bones of his legs no longer stabbing into his throbbing torso. When he crosses the doorway, Marika and her best friend, as well as a group of boys are looking at him.

  "What's with the crutches?" Henry asks, pointing at them. Thanks Henry, Luca hadn't noticed. Actually, it's surprising. He's used crutches at school a few times before. Using crutches seems to be a relatively memorable thing.

  "Turns out my joints think they're on holiday." Luca shrugs, which takes a particular amount of skill with crutches. He continues down the hallway, headed for the D&D club.

  What were they doing last session? Oh, of course. Aspen and Lyric threatened that NPC while that weird enchanted sheep ran away. He's never played a D&D campaign before, and it's endearingly absurd.

  The empty classroom is only populated by Haylie and Lyric when Luca arrives. As he swings himself into the room, Haylie greets him with a soft "Hey." It's a smaller group, so Luca's prepared for the inevitable questions.

  "Luca, hi." Lyric grins shyly, pulling up a seat for him next to her, hazel eyes pouring golden warmth into him.

  "Hey, Lyric," he says. "How've you been?"

  "You always ask that. Uh, good, mostly. How about you? I.. don't mean to assume, but I'm guessing you have chronic pain, right?"

  Luca nods. Lyric’s words are like a breath of fresh air. It's not fair, really, to expect people to recognise his condition, but he spends so much time explaining himself when he has flare-ups that it's almost revolutionary.

  "Haylie and I have an uncle with chronic pain, so, um, yeah."

  "Crap, that sucks." Haylie tells him while she unfolds her DM screen.

  "It's not too bad," Luca lies. "I do get some bad headaches though, so I might ask the others if they could be a bit quieter this session."

  "Hmm, yeah. They're loud." Lyric says, looking down.

  He takes a seat, rubbing his leg and stretching it under the table. There's a moment of content, Lyric humming a tune he's never heard before, as they prepare for the session.

  Luca's liked Lyric for years now, ever since she sat next to him in math class and explained algebra to him, her kind and quiet tone washing over him like soft sea-spray. Since then, they've never been in the same friend group, but he's seen her frequently. She always smiles at him in the hallways, and she lent him a pen in a test last year, when he hadn't said anything. They always sit next to each other in classes when he's not being a self-conscious idiot and trying to prove himself by sitting with the other boys.

  Dani strolls into the room. Luca feels like he's got a new idea of Dani since he and Theo joined the D&D club. He's always been curious about her. She's infamous, but a lot of what people say about her is mostly tied to their homophobia. He has a lot of respect for her, though. Of course, being Luca, he hated her rudeness, but there was something about her. The fact she's unforgettably, unapologetically, herself. She doesn't have anything to prove. And sure, Luca's not like Theo. He's comfortable with himself, but there's always a nagging pressure to impress, or at least avoid disappointing others.

  "Murder time." She announces as she enters the room. Clearly she's got plans for today. Theo and Aspen arrive soon after, talking happily to each other about one of Theo's favourite fandoms. Those two are curious. There's a spark there, something precious and special, he knows. He might mention it at some point, but not yet.

  "Alright, everyone got their character sheets?"

  Luca stares down at Finnian Quickfoot's page, his looping cursive handwriting extending below the border of the page where he was supposed to write Finn's backstory. Lyric says his handwriting is gorgeous, but he thinks her bubbly letters are adorable. He still hasn't sent her any of his stories, despite having texted a few times since they made the D&D club group chat.

  His stories are some of what he considers most embarrassing about himself. They're alright, and his writing has completely improved since he really started writing frequently at some point last year. It's like this with everything with Lyric. He knows his stories aren't terrible (well, not terrible for a 17-year-old), but the idea of Lyric's hazel eyes tracing the letters he's spooled thoughtlessly into the pages, much of which reflects the ache in his chest when he thinks of her, is disconcerting.

  "You're standing in the square of the Fjanej citadel, and Erik's collar is grasped in Leaf's hands."

  "Oh, sorry Aspen, but can you try to be a bit quieter today? Nothing to do with you, just got a headache, hah."

  "Sure." Aspen's honeyed voice is warm and sweet, but undercut with a thin blade of violence as he continues. "Leaf threatens Erik again, asking where the nearest wizard is that they can pay for their services."

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  "Roll for intimidation."

  The clatter of dice on the table brings back deja vu from the last time that happened. Luca winces, hoping Theo's doing ok. He seems alright though. He's gaining some confidence within the group.

  "15 in total." Aspen smiles.

  "Nice. Erik frowns, telling you there's a wizard a day's ride to the north. He lives in a tower in the frozen woods of Reykavjin. "

  "Ugh, that's gonna be a whole goddamn journey. Fuckin' side quests." Dani groans from her position sitting on one of the tables.

  "Yep. You guys can walk from the citadel to the frozen woods."

  "What if we just stay here and kill the king?" Dani challenges.

  "There's no king here, so that wouldn't really work."

  "How long will it take to walk there?" Luca asks.

  "Around 5 hours? If you're at a normal marching speed."

  Theo crosses his arms, smirking as he says, "We'll end up going anyway, guys."

  "True... let's go then!" Aspen grins.

  Haylie checks something in her notebook. It's always with her, like a DM's bible. Not necessarily a great sign.

  "Okay, the party journeys into the frozen woods. As you venture further north, a light rain starts, which turns into snow the closer you get to the woods. The trees are bare and stark, and yellow and orange leaves dot the forest floor."

  Haylie ponders something, a query on the tip of her tongue. "What's your guy's passive perception?"

  A collective groan reverberates throughout the party. There must be some sort of monster or unseen threat nearby. Haylie cringes.

  "Guys, chill. It could be anything. I'm just hoping it's not some sort of enchanted creepy statues. 11 for me." Luca laughs.

  "12." Theo says

  "11."

  "10."

  "Don't you have our passive perception?" Dani complains. She's shadowed in the corner, hiding from the streak of sunlight that passes through the classroom from the window.

  "Uh, no, I kind of forgot about that."

  For someone so over-prepared for everything, it's surprising. Something's been distracting her, and Luca can guess the problem might come in the shape of a brooding, swearing teen who knows a surprising amount about dnd in the corner.

  Dani huffs. She doesn't look down at her sheet when she says, "10."

  "Well, the suspense is kind of ruined now. You don't notice anything, but suddenly a giant grey wolf jumps out of the forest, attacking Finnian."

  Oh, please don't let Finn die this early in the campaign.

  "It bites him. You have 10 hit points, yeah? So you're down to one now." Haylie's face creases with guilt. Roll a strength saving throw.”

  "Noooooo..." Aspen sighs.

  One hit point is not extraordinary. He rolls the dice, getting a 14.

  "That’s good enough.” Phew. “I think you get a free reaction for that?”

  “Can I just walk away from it?”

  "Yeah, sure,” Haylie says as she moves his counter 6 squares away from the wolf. “Lemme do initiative real quick."

  "Okay, it'll be Theo, the Dire wolf" -this statement is undercut with a groan of recognition from Theo and Dani- "Aspen, Lyric, Dani and then Luca."

  Haylie sets out a map, crossed by squares that Theo whispers mean 5 feet. There's counters for each character, blue for Luca. The white wolf's counter is right next to Luca and Theo, since they've been marching in two's.

  "Silas stabs the wolf with his short sword.”

  Theo rolls a dice to hit.

  “15?”

  “Yeah, that hits.”

  “That’s, uh, 1d6 damage, I think.”

  Theo rolls his dice on the table.

  “Yes, let’s go!” He grins, wringing his hands when the dice turns to show a 6.

  Haylie checks something off on her notebook/bible.

  “And then can Silas move away from the wolf?”

  Haylie nods and moves Theo’s counter 7 squares away from the wolf.

  “The wolf growls, blood spurting from the wound Finnian caused. It goes to hit Sprocket-” She rolls a d20. “But misses, snapping its jaws closed on air. Aspen?”

  “Leaf goes into a rage, smashing the wolf with their great-club.”

  “Roll to hit?”

  “Hmm.. 15!”

  “Alright, damage?”

  “Nat 1. The dice hate me. +2 for proficiency, so 3.”

  “You fumble with the great-axe as it cleaves into the wolf’s leg, and the wolf is seemingly unbothered by the small trail of crimson blood staining the wolf brown fur.”

  “I thought you said it was grey?” Lyric queries.

  Haylie purses her lips, cheeks reddening. “It can be grey and brown.” Lyric laughs at that, a sound so real and unfettered, he wants to record it and play it on repeat until it washes away the pain that throbs in his skull.

  “Cleanne’s going to shoot the wolf with her crossbow. And, um, 17 to hit.”

  “Yo,” Theo exclaims, passing her a d8 “Nice.”

  Lyric smiles at him, as she picks up the d8, the sleeve of her sweater covering her hand so it’s not touching the dice.

  “7.”

  “You have such good luck, Lyric.” Aspen chuckles.

  Haylie continues her narration, “a crossbow bolt thunks into the wolf’s side, and it jumps back, whimpering in pain. Uh, Dani, it’s your turn now.”

  The other girl looks up from the character page she’s been staring at intently for a few minutes, a fire burning in her eyes. Dani most definitely has an idea.

  “Artificers have Magical Tinkering, yeah? I can make an object emit any non-verbal sound continuously.”

  Luca sits up from where he’s been reclining to stretch out his limbs.

  “Yes…” Haylie hesitates.

  “Sprocket has artisans tools on her.” There’s a cunning look on her face, a complement to her smirk. “So, Sprocket enchants a paintbrush to make a wolf’s mating call. And then throws the paintbrush 60 feet away from them.” Dani draws a line with her finger to a spot 12 squares away from Sprocket, another 2 squares from the wolf.

  “Wolves have advantage on perception checks. It should be able to hear the mating call.”

  Haylie looks at Dani, perplexed, for a moment, and then frantically looks through the manual and her notebook.

  Theo, Lyric and Aspen laugh, and Luca grimaces despite the pain that still rolls through his body. “Hell yeah!” He cackles.

  “I- did you have to- I guess- hmm..” she thinks, tapping her chin with a finger. “Okay, fine, The wolf hears the mating call, it’s ears perking up. It runs toward the bushes, past your group.” Haylie sighs, shaking her head, but a smile peeks out being the curtain of her face. “I can’t believe you did that.”

  “Hah. Don’t start thinking you can predict me, princess..” Dani looks impressively proud of herself.

  “I’m still going to make you all do stealth checks to get around the wolf.”

  Luca nods, his head on an angle. Fair.

  There’s a roaring cluster of dice bouncing off the fake wooden table, the noise pounding against his tender brain. Haylie groans, so the wolf must’ve gotten a relatively low perception check.

  “12.” Lyric winces

  “22.” Theo cries, bouncing on the balls on his feet beneath the table. “Oh, sorry Luca,” he says as Luca rubs his head.

  “15.” Dani says, deadpan.

  “17.” Luca mumbles.

  “11? Crap.” Aspen wails.

  “You pass the wolf, continuing to trudge through the snowy forest.”

  “Fuck yeah!”

  There’s high fives all around, but Luca sits out. High fives are painful on a good day, and brutal torture during flare-ups.

  “Time’s up, guys,” Haylie tells them. “We’ve got to go if we don’t want to be caught by Mr. McKay again.”

  The group packs up their bags, like they do every week now, but there’s a chatter across the room that’s new. Haylie talks to Theo, and Aspen’s speaking with Dani and Lyric. There’s only 2 weeks left in the term now, but Luca hopes they can meet up sometime in the holidays.

  For now, he’ll just go home, lie in bed for a while, and maybe continue his 20k word fantasy novel. Maybe he’ll send what he writes to Lyric, he thinks as she offers him her packet of sour lollies.

  Has anyone in your party ever used a mating call to distract a wolf? I still can't believe Quill once did that