A Spirit Between Us (bxb)

Chapter 20 - Company.

Finn stirred at the sound of someone calling his name, soft but insistent. His eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the dim gray of the overcast sky, and he saw Lyla standing over him, her arms wrapped around herself against the chill.

"There you are!" she said, relief washing over her face. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Finn blinked groggily, his mind struggling to catch up as he adjusted to waking. His eyes landed on the familiar figure beside him, and confusion flickered across his face. "Lyla?" His voice was hoarse. "Shouldn't you be at school?"

She flopped down beside him with a casual air, swiping stray blades of grass off her skirt. "School finished an hour ago, Finny."

His heart jumped as he bolted upright. "An hour ago?" he repeated, rubbing his eyes. "You're kidding. I've been out here that long?"

"Yup," she said lightly, crossing her legs and leaning back on her hands. "And I had to walk all over this stupid town to find you. You're lucky I like you."

That earned her a weak smile, but it quickly faded. Finn pulled his knees to his chest, and stared at the ground. The tension in his posture was unmistakable.

"Finn," Lyla said gently, her voice dropping to a softer tone, "what's going on? You don't just skip school and disappear for no reason."

At first, he didn't answer, he didn't want to. He was so convinced that nobody would ever truly acknowledge or care about how he really felt. his fingers clawing at the grass as if it might anchor him. But then, after a few seconds of contemplation, like a dam breaking, the words tumbled out, his suppressed emotions finally making their way to the surface after days of being locked away.

"I can't do this anymore," Finn choked, his voice trembling as if it might shatter completely. Tears slipped down his cheeks, hot and unrelenting, betraying the wall he'd tried so hard to keep up. "I'm so tired, Lyla. Of everything. Of school, of football, of pretending I'm someone I'm not. Someone everyone thinks I am but isn't even real."

His breath hitched, and he buried his face in his hands, fingers digging into his hair as though trying to hold himself together. "I feel like I'm losing control of everything. Ovf me. It's like I'm watching my own life from the outside, and it was never even mine to begin with. I don't even know who I am anymore. I don't know how to stop it, and I sure as hell don't know how to fix it."

His words hung in the air, raw and broken, as he finally let go of the storm he'd been carrying for so long. For a moment, it felt like the weight of his own voice was suffocating him.

Lyla's eyes widened in surprise, but she didn't interrupt. She simply waited, her expression softening as he continued.

"And the worst part?" Finn's voice broke completely as he buried his face in his hands. "I feel like I'm letting everyone down. My parents, my team, you. Everyone expects so much from me, and I can't do it. I don't know how to make it all stop."

Lyla hesitated for only a second before scooting closer and wrapping her arms around him. "Finn, listen to me," she said firmly but kindly. "You are not letting anyone down. You're allowed to feel like this. You're allowed to not have it all together."

He sniffled, his shoulders shaking as he leaned into her embrace. "But it's too much. I don't even feel like myself anymore."

She pulled back slightly to look him in the eye. "You're still you, Finn. The you that people love. And you don't have to carry this alone, okay? Lean on the people who care about you, me included. I want to be there for you."

Finn blinked up at her, surprised by how steady and sincere she sounded. Lyla, who was usually so chatty and bubbly, suddenly seemed wise beyond her years.