Hope and Friendship

Part 9

*One and a half week* 

Mark was still avoiding me. I don't know why but I felt awkward everytime I passed him. I started to remember what my dad told me. "He might be what you need right now..." Maybe I can run a one man army. Maybe I can pass through the rest of my high school years by myself. Maybe I can do everything without help. Maybe I.............am just fooling myself. I always tell myself things to block and reject the truth. I know I need Mark but.......am I truly anything to him? I made it to English and I saw Mark already there. He glanced at me then down. I blew air and sat my stuff down and sat down. I tried to explain my apology. "Mark.......I um.....crap, this is....um..neevrmind." I chickened out. I felt like I was choking on my words. "You feel like no one can help you or you feel helpless. You try your hardest but you tend to fail most of the time. All you really, truly want is for someone to be there for you?" I looked at him with watery eyes. It hit me on spot. I started blinking really fast to dry the tears, but one managed to escape but I quickly wiped it. "How'd you....." "I feel the same way. Don't you hate when people say they understand and know what you mean when sometimes you don't think they do or don't want them to?" My brain shattered. He WAS different from the rest of my old friends. Maybe I should just leave the past......in the past. We walked to his house and before he went into his house, I said, "Thanks..." and I walked up and gave him a friendly hug. "See yah." "See yah." I walked home. When I walked through the door, everything was quiet. In the living room, I saw my dad. "Hey dad...?" He didn't even look back. "Hey son." I started walking to my room and he said, "You're grandmother died this morning..."