A Moment Too Soon (Yaoi boyxboy)

Nowaki

My fingers held the letter carefully. I kept my eyes from actually reading it, because I knew it would only make me feel worse. Instead, I was laying on my bed, examining his handwriting. I noticed that the beginning was very neat and smooth, but then it started to look shaky, and uneven. Kida must have been crying then...it made my chest ache to think about it. Other parts were scrawled quickly, as if he couldn't bare to write what he was saying, but knew he had to anyways...

I laid the letter on my chest as I stared at my ceiling. For once, my curtains were actually open, so my room was brighter. It was nice compared to the darkness my room was always enveloped in. I shut my eyes for a moment and just soaked in the silence, doing nothing else. My friends were probably worried about me. My phone had died a few days ago, but I hadn't bothered to plug it in since then...I would have to do it soon, or else Elisa would start bugging me about it.

I hadn't been to school for the past week. I wasn't sure how I managed to convince my Mom to let me stay home, but I had. I just needed one more week before I got started again. I had spent the whole time trying to develop a schedule of some sort. I got up, got ready, ate breakfast...I was trying to make it so that I wouldn't have such a hard time dealing with school.

Knock, knock, knock...

It was so faint, but I swore I heard someone knocking on the door. My Mom wasn't back yet, so I knew that I had to answer the door. I sighed as I folded it the letter, then placed it in my notebook where I always kept it. I didn't hear any more knocks, so I thought that maybe I hadn't actually heard it. Still...it would be good to go check.

I stood lazily and trotted down the stairs. Maybe Mom had ordered a package and they just needed a signature or something. It was kind of a pain having to come all the way downstairs for that, but I guess it was better to open the door to see someone there...at least that wouldn't make me feel like I was losing my mind. Without bothering to check out the window or through the peephole, I swung the door open. Who I saw standing there surprised me.

"...Yuuichi?" I tilted my head in confusion. Why was he at my house? How had even found it?

"H-hey." He let out a nervous laugh. I stood in the doorway, just staring at him. He looked like he wasn't even sure why he was here. Maybe he had gotten lost, and just came up to the first house he saw for directions...? He stared back at me, just as silent as I was. I took an awkward breath before deciding to break the silence.

"Um...what are you doing here?" I was worried that I might have sounded rude, but he didn't react like it was.

"Well...I..." He searched his mind for something, and I waited. It suddenly occurred to me that even though I might not have sounded rude, I wasn't being very polite by making him stand outside.

"Do you want to come in or...?" I stepped aside to make room for him.

"Sure." He said as he came inside. I closed the door and then turned around to face him. He took his shoes off at the door, which I appreciated.

"Did you walk here by yourself?" I asked as I led him to the kitchen. He looked around a little bit while he nodded. "Oh...well, do you want something to drink?" I offered. He thought for a moment and then asked for water. I got a bottle out of the fridge for him and handed it to him.

"Where are your parents?" He suddenly asked. I pulled a bottle out for myself while I answered.

"My Mom is at work." I told him. He nodded. "So...how did you find my house?" I asked.

"I asked Elisa." He said. I nodded, and he continued. This time he gave me an answer to my earlier question. "You hadn't been coming to school and everyone was wondering why. So, I just came to see if you were okay."

"By yourself?" I repeated. "Elisa didn't send you or anything?" He shook his head.

"No...I was on my way home and just decided to run up here. I was just kind of worried." He gave me a bright smile, and I found my eyes trapped on him. I was sort of shocked that he had come to see if I was alright...I was glad, actually. For some reason, I felt that if it had been anyone else I might have been annoyed.

"...Thank you." I finally managed to say.

"Sure." He looked at me with shining eyes as he spoke. "Anyways, I should probably get home. I didn't exactly tell anyone where I was going besides Elisa."

"Right..." I answered and walked him to the door. I didn't say anything as he pulled his shoes on and stepped out the door. Right as I was about to say goodbye, he turned around and faced me.

"You should come to school tomorrow." He had a sincere expression on his face, like he hoped I would agree. I was hesitant, but I finally answered.

"Alright." When I said it, his face lit up a little bit and he smiled again. Once more, I found myself caught in his grin. It was so cheerful and welcoming...

"See you tomorrow then." He waved goodbye, and then walked down the driveway, out of sight.