Perfectly Broken

"Today has been okay so far...I guess"

"Do you need help getting around the school?" I found myself asking, "I mean because your new and all and it's a pretty big school and," Stop talking.

He blankly looked at me, "No one has asked me that before".

I looked up at his looming face. His hair was dark, and slicked back, about medium length. This told me that he wanted people to look at his face. So I looked.

As I gazed into his dark features I could feel him staring. I kept looking, almost searching for something that I should find. Like a child digging in a sandbox I was determined to find the prize that lay hidden beneath.

"What are you doing?" He asked again, his voice never changing pitch nor tone.

"I don't know?" I asked myself, snapping back into reality, "I'm sorry for staring at you, I sometimes zone out and don't realise..." I trailed off awkwardly.

He looked foreword and blinked, "It's fine". For a brief moment, it seemed as if he were amused.

He didn't talk much, but I could tell he was smart. It wasn't so much as what he said, but rather what he wasn't saying. His absence of emotion was strange yes, but we've all seen stranger things.

The bus stopped and I looked out of the frost covered window at the school building. It was a nice school to be truthful, sure there were a few asshats, but isn't that life? We stood up, and after seeing his full size I felt intimidated; he could have swatted me aside like a fly I he wanted to.

He seemed calm.

I watched as the others begin filing out of the schoolbus. They hurried along and ran across the walkway to get inside the building before they would freeze. I hopped off of the bus after saying goodbye to the bus driver, as per my habit, and immediately regretted not having worn a thicker jacket. The wind pierced through the thin layers like razor blades on my skin.

I huddled my things together and walked out of the way so the remaining others could exit. You should have worn something warmer, I heard.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and felt the warmth being transferred between us, I looked and was immediately afraid of the figure I saw.
"What are you doing?" I asked meekly, as they shoved me down into the icy ground and I felt the air being crushed out of my lungs. They laughed as I struggled into the ground as they planted their foot on my stomach.

Blake had been doing this for months. I didn't know why, but he seems to enjoy hurting other people. I guess it makes him feel better about himself.

I was snapped out of my thoughts and I saw him kick my thermos across the ground. They pulled me up and out of the corner of my eye I saw him standing, watching almost. That's when I felt a fist connect with my cheek, felt the blood leak from my face into their knuckles, felt the warmth of the adrenaline rush that was racing through me.

As suddenly as it had started, they were gone. And I was left sprawled out onto the ground. I could feel the chilled air surrounding me as I lay dazed and confused. What did you do this time?

"Absolutely nothing" I said out loud to no one in particular.

That's when I felt warmth. A thick black coat about twice the size of me had been later over me. I looked up and I saw him standing up in the snow.

"You offered to show me around the school". He said flatly.

I felt weird looking at his face, here you were lying in the snow after having the shit beat out of you, and this guy comes out of nowhere and asks you that? I heard that too familiar voice ring.

"Y-yeah," I stuttered.

"I need you to tell me the location of the Nurse's facility".

"Why?" I asked as I laid in the now melting snow.

"Are you not in need of medical assistance?" He said as he picked up my bag, it's red colour contrasting against the snow.

Yes. God you are you idiot."I-I think so?"

He helped me up to my feet but I fell back down into the snow. He let me lean on him and we slowly made our way to the separate facility that held the faculty and staff offices.

We made our way into the Nurse's office and she gasped at the sight. You couldn't blame her, it looks like you've gotten the shit beat out of you.

Her eyes widened when she saw him however and she snatched me away from my new friend within a second. "Nathan?!" She yelled, "What have you done?"

"It's Nathanial" was all he said in response.

I was confused and managed to wriggle our of her grasp. "H-He brought me here to you? I got hurt and he helped me come here, w-what are you talking about?"

She stared back at me like I was crazy, "You mean he didn't..?"

He stood in the doorway and watched the scene unfold. He may have been intimidating, and he may have looked scary, but he had helped me.

"Oh," she whispered, dumbfounded, and she walked back into her cabinet. She returned a few moments later with a few bandages and wiped my face clean. She asked me a few questions and I replied normally.

"How has you day been Milo?" She asked, "Oh and did the sleeping pills I suggest help any?"

"Well," I started as she began wiping dried blood off of my forehead,"today has been okay so far...I guess".

"Hmm," she nodded, for I had been quite the regular of the Nurse's office. Whether it was for anxiety attacks, my clumsiness, or people taking their anger out on me.

"The sleeping pills however," I paused, "honestly I stopped taking them because I would just conk out and not remember anything".

"Ahh yes, that is one of the negative side effects..." she trailed off and threw the dirtied towelette away, reaching for a bandage in her cabinet.

"I'm not going to bother asking you if you want to report the incident," she began, "However, even though I enjoy talking with you, you simply need to stay out of harms way".

"Well you know me, I'm just too dead on the inside at this point to really feel anything anymore".