Past the Guard

Midnight Crisis

Two days later, Rylin walks into the Stateside Diner. Lyla had planned for all of them to have a day out that Saturday and Rylin had reluctantly agreed. It was 12:46 pm when she got there, having gotten lost around Harvington St. She entered the diner and looked around for her friends. She smiled in relief when she saw Jared waving at her from a booth in the back. She walked briskly to join them. 

"Hey, Rylin!" Jared greeted enthusiastically. Rylin grinned at him.

""Hey Jared. Lyla, Titan," she nodded at both of the others. Jared had become a really good friend, but Lyla was still kind of stand off-ish. Titan didn't talk very much at all, but he sometimes smiled at her. Rylin had to admit that through his mysterious exterior, Titan was pretty cute. Today, he wore a My Chemical Romance t-shirt that said, "Welcome to the Black Parade". 

"Hi, Rylin," Lyla said and Titan gave her one of his rare smiles before scooting over so she could sit next to him in the booth. She sat gingerly as the waitress came to their table. 

"Hi, I'm Felicity, I'll be your server today. Can I get you some drinks to start you off?" She smiled at them dazzlingly. She was very pretty with perfectly curled brown hair and big brown eyes. She was about 5'6 and wore a turquoise uniform that somehow looked great on her. 

"Yeah, lets get an iced tea, a mountain dew, a coke, and... Rylin?" Jared looked at me, wanting to know what I wanted to drink.

"Uh, Dr. Pepper," It was my go-to drink. So, maybe I was an addict, but I loved the stuff. 

Felicity smiled at me warmly, "I love Dr. Pepper too." She winked, "And will that be sweet tea?" she asked Jared. He nodded and she fluttered away to get our drinks. We sat at the diner for a while, eating and laughing and trading stories until Lyla's phone rang. She picked it up and checked the caller before answering.

"Hello?" She listened for a moment before her face dropped, "Oh my god, I'll be right there. No, no, I'm on my way." She hung up and turned to us. "My brother is in the hospital. I have to go." 

Jared was  immediately on his feet. "I'll go with you." They both turned to Titan and I. "I'm sorry Rylin," Jared said, "We'll get together some other time. You can just hang out with Titan today." They left the diner after throwing down some money on the table. 

**

Titan and I walked down the sidewalk which was emptying more and more by the second. "So, how long have you been friends with Jared and Lyla?" I asked him. He looked at me from the corner of his eye. 

"Jared and I have known each other since we were kids. We've been friends forever. I didn't start hanging with Lyla until last year when Jared switched to Cannon." His words were short and precise, never straying from a syllable. 

"That must be nice," I mussed, "having a friend who's been there since you were young." 

Titan looked at me in surprise. "You've never had a childhood friend?" 

I chuckled lightly and shook my head, "Not one that lasted into my teen years." We fell silent, walking side by side. It wasn't until we rounded a corner that Titan said something.

"That's kind of sad. I don't know where I would be without Jared." He watched the ground in front of him as he walked, and I watched him. 

"You really love him, don't you?" I asked lightly. It was obvious by the way Titan talked. Jared meant a lot to the boy. 

"Yeah, I do." He told me quietly. It was then that we turned another corner and we were back at the diner. "I should get home." Titan told me, turning to face for the first time since Jared and Lyla left. His eyes looked sad, like he wanted to do anything but go home.