Anderperry - Somewhere only we know.

Midwinter evening reality.

{{Todd's POV.}}

I knew this was so excruciatingly important to Neil, and I knew I couldn't miss it or turn up to it looking a mess. I knew this well, so I'd done all my homework well in advance so I could spend my time getting ready. I mean, sure, everyone else did too but that was besides the point. Half of the other guys didn't even do their homework anyway, so it wasn't like they were missing much. I showered, picked out the best clothes I had and brushed my hair back, rather than letting it hang over my forehead as per usual.

I still looked like a lost puppy with a fancy hairdo, but it was the thought that counts, I guess? I probably looked a little embarrassed in the froth of boys in the bathroom, maybe a little lost too since I wasn't really close with them, and I only knew them at all because of Neil. I guess I owed a lot to him,
since he won me all my friends, all the respect that people give me now and he'd bought me out of my shell.

Well, I suppose the real way I could repay him was to go and see the show that he'd been working on for weeks, and that he'd seemed so excited about. I was bundled out in the midst of excited boys, who were all raving about Knox being dragged off by that girl he liked. Chris, was it? Yeah, I wasn't very interested in girls. I knew girls liked smart guys, so I thought I would wait until I was smart to try and get a girl, if I got one at all.

That would be a joke and a half, really. The only person who has ever told me I'm attractive was Neil, and that was because he wanted to copy my algebra assignment. He also told me he liked boys and girls though, and he knew that was strongly, strongly frowned upon... And yet it didn't hit me at the time, Neil cared about me as much as I did him.

Which is why I soon found myself sat on the third row back in a hall full of people, which I normally would never even fathom doing. Whilst I was waiting for the show to start I could've swore that the goosebumps left on my arms from the snow did not disappear, even after I warmed up and was laughing with our friends. I assumed I was just waiting tensely for the play to start, since I was excited to see everyone acting, and thanks to our Captain I was even excited that it was Shakespeare.

When it began, the whole buzzing room calmed down to a silence, allowing the actors to spout their artistic words. Except, nobody really seemed contented or convinced that their money had been well spent until Neil - Puck - came onstage. He managed to blur a lot of his own personality into his character, or vice versa since they were both cheeky and spritely enough to replicate each other. He was, as some would say, born to play the part. 

The final speech he voiced was so poignant, it left everyone speechless. He performed it in such a subtle and nonchalant manner, letting everyone in the audience soak up the words which dripped with the venom that we call passion. It left us all with our mouths agape, and all in awe of the simplicity of the last few words, yet the strength of them. All pairs of hands in the room clapped wildly; some stood, some yelped, some whistled and some cried for an encore. All pairs of hands in the room clapped but one.

However, something wasn't right, and I finally realised the look of sincere concern and defeat in Neil's dark brown eyes, which made my stomach turn. Once more I noticed: the goosebumps on my arms hadn't  disappeared.