this is a truce not a tragedy.

***

The sharp sound of the bell signaling lunch period rang through josh's ears. students flooded through the halls like a flock of birds flying south for the winter. josh worked his way against the current, avoiding contact with wandering eyes. he kept his eyes trained on his own feet, being careful to keep his distance from the nearest stranger. the crowd thinned as he neared the second floor bathroom at the end of the hall. he pushed open the heavy door and threw his bookbag onto the grimy floor, before sitting down next to it. this was routine by now, as he had no one to impress and everyone to disappoint.

His mind drifted to thoughts of the best friend he recently lost. tyler was the only friend josh ever had. the two were inseparable, and though it took months for each of them to open up, they trusted each other with their lives. tyler had the most intricate eyes, always displaying his thoughts and feelings through them. josh could look into them to find comfort and warmth in any situation. he was josh's everything, and he knows it too.

When junior year started tyler found a new group of friends, conversing with josh less and less. josh tried talking to him about how he felt, to patch things up again. however, tyler turned away. josh could no longer find home in his eyes, for they were clouded and foggy. tyler began to expose josh's deepest secrets that had taken so much trust to find out. now josh was alone, with no one but himself and his music to escape. he shook his head, he needed to move on from tyler for he knew he would never get that back. He plugged in his earbuds and closed his eyes, letting the beautiful sound consume him.

No more than five minutes later, josh was jolted out of his thoughts by the sudden sound of the door opening. panic flooded him, his blood turning to ice and his heart accelerating. he anxiously examined the stranger, looking for any sign of relief.

"i'm so sorry! i didn't mean to scare you. i just needed to-" his voice faltered and he looked away for a mere second. "i'm brendon. may i sit?"

"y-yeah. sure." said tyler, a bit more at ease but still in shock.

Brendon gave a weak smile and a nod as thanks and slid down the wall a few feet away from him. A thick silence filled the space between them as josh studied the boy. he had black skinny jeans on and a blue polo shirt, along with a black jacket. his hair was combed to the side exposing his abnormally large forehead. josh noticed that brendon was staring at his hands and his eyes were faded, as if he was lost in thought. josh followed his eyes to see that brendon's hands were trembling ever so slightly. they sat like that for just seconds, however those seconds felt more like minutes.

Suddenly, brendon lowered his head to his knees and let out a choked sob. he started to cry, first attempting to hold it back but failing, as his body racked with sobs. josh was startled. he felt the need to help the poor boy, and being his nosy self he wanted to know what caused brendon this pain. being inexperienced with social encounters, josh awkwardly put his arm around brendon. that was the only thing he could think of to do. brendon allowed josh to hold him and josh adjusted himself to secure a more comfortable hug. brendon's tears eventually calmed to short sniffles and whimpers. josh held him in his arms for twenty minutes, and he would have done it all day if they hadn't been interrupted by the bell.

As the bell rang brendon slid out of josh's embrace. he slowly stood and josh did the same.

"thanks" brendon said. quite frankly it was an extremely awkward situation and neither of the two knew how to react.

"no problem" replied josh, still a bit uneasy but mostly intrigued. he wanted to know the broken boy better.

Brendon wiped his tear-stained cheeks and swiftly flung his book bag over his shoulder. he breathed in deeply, and it became as if he weren't sitting on the dirty tile crying just minutes before. josh picked up his bag as well, not nearly as smoothly and the two boys began to exit the bathroom.

"hold on" brendon said in a soft voice. josh stopped abruptly and watched he pulled a pen and notecard out of his bag. he scribbled something on it and handed it to josh. josh looked down at the paper reading "text me? ***-***-**** -brendon" josh smiled to himself. maybe things were finally going to get better. out of his peripheral he saw brendon swing the door open and disappear into the thinning swarm of kids. after stuffing the note in his pocket, josh did the same, observing the faces of passing strangers as he walked.