Character Analysis
Arthur is a "sissy," (12.1) who Jack picks on, but also kind of likes. They get into a huge fight when they first meet, but seem to get over that and become good friends. Jack likes him because "He had an arch, subtle voice that he used to good effect as an instrument of his cleverness." (12.1). He's also probably gay since "One night he kissed me, or I kissed him, or we kissed each other. It surprised us both. After that, whenever we felt particularly close, we turned on each other." (18.17) Jack really likes Arthur, but his discomfort at strong emotion means that he turns on him too often. It's a real frenemy situation, which is too bad. Both boys sound like they could use a friend.