Evergreen

beauty

Looking at the boy with one eye, caused Zahri physical discomfort. There was something off about him, it was as clear as day.... the black hair, the whitest eyes with barely visible pupils and the strikingly solemn face which stared so terrifyingly at him...all of it caused the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end and cold sweat to trickle down his spine.

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"...ahri.....zahriiii....ZAHRI!!!!"

Kaylee found herself practically shouting into Zahri's ear, her face one of annoyance once he'd slid back into reality. "God RiRi, you had me worried out of my mind thinking something was wrong!" Zahri had sprang back to life as if true essence had filled his soul, which was about the time he realized that they were, in fact, not at school any longer and was very nearly approaching his house. "Why..what..How....?"

"What? School's done...? Remember? Buuut, now that im thinking about it, you probably dont remember a thing...you looked pretty out of it." Kaylen said concernedly, observing Zahri's face out of curiousity.

It wasn't a long walk from school to their houses and they weren't even a block away from each other, so... after school, Zahri, Kaylen and Kaylee would walk home together...they would've been able to walk to school too, if Zahri wasn't the type of person to get up so early in the morning.

The evening walk home was one of the things that made Zahri feel as though things were back to normal, the evening air, the dashing out-of-city atmosphere, the calming aura of it all...Zahri loved it so very much, but the domineering, harsh reality soon came raining down upon him...killing whatever positivity lay wake.

Noticing the soon turned dejected look on Zahri's face, Kaylee lightly nudged him, a warm smile adorning her lips, "Hey, don't worry, okay? I know you're going through a lot... and, I just want you to know that you are so strong and amazing for dealing with all of that so well! They'll handle the situation before you know it-and find out who did it in no time! Oh! And remember we're always here for you!" Kaylee said, brimming with joy, hoping to infect Zahri enough so that it'd coax him into a smile-regardless of the fact he wasn't really flexible with his facial expressions.

Fortunately, she always seemed to know how to hit his soft spots. So it didn't take very long for an awry smile to place itself on his lips. Though, Kaylee was unsatisfied, she found it fit that she encourage him into a full-fledged smile to appropriately lighten the mood, so, without warning or buildup, she abruptly pulled Zahri into a full-on bear hug.

The effect she expected the hug to produce was the smile she was looking for, maybe even a hug in return... but, what she didn't expect, was water to lightly soak the translucent blouse she wore and light sobs to echo so calmly into her ears, that it reminded her of a sorrowful melody. A little surprised but understanding the situation clearly, Kaylee squeezed Zahri a little tighter and a few moments later, he wrapped his loose hands around her too.

It wasn't very often that Zahri would cry and even less often for it to happen in front of others, so, when Kaylee realized that he had shown such a vulnerable side of himself to her, Kaylee couldn't help but feel heart broken. "It's okay RiRi, go on...I understand..."

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The hug was contained for a mere few minutes, but to the two of them, it lasted a millennium. The only reason why the hug truly didnt last so long was because of Zahri, who couldn't allow himself to stay crying on the street near his house.

They soon parted ways, waving goodbye and sharing mentions of when they'd talk next. Kaylen even shared a brief hug with Zahri before the two of them set off to their house. Now Zahri stood alone, at the front of his house- its rustic yet cozy stature now seeming less comfy than it used to.