Fairytale • Robby Keene

twenty four

Robby knew his time in juvie would be tough, but nothing could have prepared him for how brutal it really was.

The isolation, the cold concrete, the oppressive silence – it all chipped away at him, piece by piece. But what hurt the most wasn't just the environment. It was the betrayal that echoed in his mind, the bitter taste of disappointment that lingered whenever he thought of Daniel LaRusso.

He had once thought he could trust him. LaRusso had seemed like the kind of guy who could offer a lifeline. But now, Robby saw it for what it was: manipulation, a game of appearances. Robby had been foolish, so easily swayed by someone who was, in the end, just another part of the system that had failed him.

What stung the most wasn't just the cold metal of the table under his arms, or the harsh florescent lights that buzzed overhead. It was the realization that he had been wrong about Daniel. The guy he had once hoped would be an ally had turned out to be just another source of disappointment. Robby had trusted him, believed that he would be different, that he could offer him something beyond the bleakness of his reality. But instead, he got a 'lighter sentence' as if it could erase everything he had done, as if it could fix him. But nothing about this place felt fixed.

The juvenile detention center was a constant reminder of his mistakes.

The low hum of the walls, the long stretches of time between meals and showers, the sparse moments of freedom when he was allowed a book, a rare escape. His fingers turned the pages of Lord of the Flies, trying to lose himself in the words, but his mind was constantly drawn back to the events that had led him here.

He thought about Miguel. Lying there, broken. He thought about how Odette had looked before everything came crashing down, the hurt in her eyes as she struggled to keep it all together. She had been strong for him, stronger than he had ever been for her, and now... now he felt like he had failed her.

That one impulsive decision, that split-second anger, had sent them all spiraling into chaos. And now Odette was probably fighting her battles alone, just as she had before.

But Robby couldn't imagine her being that far away. He couldn't let go of the idea that someday, he'd leave this place. Someday, when everything was over, maybe she'd be waiting for him. The thought kept him going. Odette was the one person who hadn't tried to change him, hadn't tried to fix him. She'd just... accepted him, broken and all. And that acceptance, as distant as it felt now, was enough to keep the edge of despair at bay.

"Odette." He muttered softly, the name a whispered prayer against the overwhelming silence.

He missed her. He missed how she made everything feel a little less hopeless, how she made the world seem like something he could navigate, even with all the mess he'd created. He could still picture her face, her steady gaze, the way she would listen to him without judgment.

The memories were all he had now, and as painful as it was to hold onto them, it was better than nothing. They were the thread of hope he clung to in this cold, unforgiving place.