More Than Words

Death to the heart-full fool

You did text him the next day. The response was immediate- he texted with a lot of emojis apparently- and a small smile came to your face. He was a good guy. Granted, you already knew that; he'd always been kindhearted, even way back when. A chuckle left your lips as you remembered the time where you'd accidentally broken a vase, so Hisir- Douxie tried to fix it with magic, then took the blame from you when he couldn't fix it so Merlin wouldn't yell at you. He'd also made a habit to check on your after rough days with Merlin, something that had probably saved you from hitting rock bottom before your mom died. 

So when you opened up shop that day, you found that you had an extra pep in your step. The chilly hollowness in your chest had gone numb overnight; perhaps you would get a moment to enjoy your rekindled friendship. 

The door to the shop opened, the bell ringing softly, and you smiled, expecting Eli, only to be met with... Steve. 

"Steve? What are you doing here so early?" you asked, raising a brow at him while he situated himself at the counter.

"None of your business," he huffed, scowling at the counter. You sighed softly.

"Steve, may I get you something?" you asked, keeping your voice level as you approached him. He shrugged. You pursed your lips. "...how about some tea?" he shook his head and you hummed thoughtfully, before your eyes lit up and you smiled. "Hot chocolate it is, then," you decided. He looked up at you, eyes lighting up slightly. Bingo. You turned away to prepare the hot chocolate, listening for any movement from him. It didn't even sound like he was shifting in his seat; he was stock still. That's... concerning.

"Have you ever... have you ever been so sure of where your life is going, and then suddenly everything changes?" Steve asked quietly. You set the mug of hot chocolate in front of him, grabbing your can of whipped cream from a small fridge hidden behind the counter and shaking it for a moment, humming thoughtfully. 

"I've had that happen many times, kid," you started slowly, giving Steve a generous amount of whipped cream before capping it, setting it on the counter in case he later wanted more. "It's a part of life; things change when you don't expect them to, or even sometimes when you do expect them to. The best we can do is try and go with the flow, because the more you try and fight it, the more miserable you end up being."

Steve sipped his hot chocolate in strange silence after that, staring at the counter with a blank expression, clearly lost in thought. There was a few times you tried to break the silence, asking him questions about school, about his life, about the book he'd bought the last time he'd visited the shop; nothing seemed to pull him out of whatever dark cloud he'd drowned his mind in. You could only watch as he finished his hot chocolate, threw cash on the counter, and walked out, not looking you in the eye. 

You seriously wanted a word with whoever was raising him. This kid needed help. But what could you do? You were just the local book seller. 

Your phone chimed. Douxie. He was asking you for coffee. Well, he was asking you to go get coffee with him. What the hell, he was your friend, why shouldn't you have coffee with him? You typed out a reply, sending him your address as a reminder, and sighed softly, setting your phone on the counter and looking out where Steve had walked, feeling guilty you hadn't even been able to offer him a ride to school. It was funny, the teachers recognized you on sight you'd driven accidentally late kids to school so often. At first they all found it extremely concerning they were all showing up at school with a random 'college' kid, but after a long conversation was had with the principal, they came to realize that you meant no harm. Honestly, you just wanted to help. 

"Oh, I know that look," Douxie said, walking into the store, a small black cat at his side. You blinked rapidly to bring the world back into focus, giving him a smile.