The Gray Case

twenty-three

"What?"

It seems like the crowded lunch room falls silent as a consequence of Lisa's voice echoing loudly through it, but as rapidly as it arrives, it goes away and voices melt back into the air.

"Yeah..." Maya sighs, dropping her fork down, palm placed under her chin, supporting her head.

Marcus is not sat with them. Eye contact was brief between them and she would've wanted to say more, but then and now, he is there but not quite, not fully, until he's gone the moment later.

Maya saw him walking down the hallways with bags under his eyes, tired looking and bloodshot as a whole.

His beauty is masked, today, he isn't the same.

"Well, I don't know what to say. I don't think it was a confession. Of course he has a little thing for you. Like even I can see that. But that's just him being protective and wanting attention. He just needs to sort himself out... And his real feelings," Lisa says before biting into her sandwich.

"Yeah but, there was something that wasn't right, something he wasn't telling me. I just know it."

Lisa shrugs. "Then I guess you'll have to wait for that. He'll tell you, maybe. Someday."

She doesn't receive anything more than a slight and unconvinced nod by Maya, still wondering, still vainly grasping onto Marcus's words.

A couple tables away is the spot in which the hazel eyed boy sits at, surrounded by his group of friends and acquaintances. He is unusually quiet, brows knit together as his mind runs wild; no rest, no peace.

Perpetual noise of insignificant talk is all he hears and it could almost disturb him if it wasn't for the fact that neither his mind could find solace. Looking at Sofia's blue eyes in front of him he rages, but tiredly-what he feels is inconclusive to his reality and the effect she has on him is close to null. It hurts to say and maybe that's why he hasn't spoken to her about it yet.

Void, he sits there. Kevin beside him is shaking his head being the only one right now, that knows what's going on with Alexander's relationship.

"When will you finally break it off with her? With all the crazy stuff that's happening in your life you don't need Sofia's craziness as well."

Classes are over and as always, Kevin is beside him, walking out of the school together, saying the truth that Alexander needs to hear.

But he doesn't reply. Kicking small sized stones below him, he keeps his head low. The sky's colors are unknown to him for the time being, eyes squinted and little, they don't look at what's up there. They don't even want to.

"I just know she isn't right for you anymore. And you know too."

That's the way his friend leaves, going towards a different direction, he goes and leaves behind bits of truth and with Alexander are left the scarse remains of a bittersweet heart.

Joseph turns on the car as soon as Alexander closes the car door. Melodies flow from the radio and fall right into place, peaceful but somehow melancholic.

And while Alexander tunes out of the world for a bit and closes his eyes, at home, the air is different.

"No. I don't care. He's not my dad. I shouldn't even consider him that," Ryan says.

He is sitting on an armchair in front of his mother, brow furrowed, eyes becoming faintly colored in a blue that's far away, angry crimson taints it like blood, but the surface still has the smell of sea waves-sad, deep, azure sea waves.