A Deeper Connection

Part One

"Hello?"

"Yes, this is miss Juniper calling from Canine Streams High School to inform you that your son is ill. Do you think you could come by and take him home? He has a fever."

"I'll be right over."

"Okay, thank you. Buh bye."

The nurse placed the phone back on its receiver and whirled around to face the flimsy boy. "This is the third time you have visited my office under a month. Are you sure everything is okay?" He simply nodded in response.

"It's quite unusual for you to come so frequently. I can only do so much in covering your other injuries, you know." She rotated her attention back to the extensive computer screen and began to type away.

The boy patiently waited, closing his eyes and breathing heavily. The scarf wrapped around the lower half of his face provided comfort and security, something he wished he could have all the time.

At least twenty minutes later of his foot tapping on the floor, the nurse sent him away to the front office. His mother was finally here to take him home. Without a word, he allowed his mother to lead him into her large car. In synchronisation, they closed the car doors and buckled their seat belts. Only, the boy fell to his side on the back seats and groaned.

"I didn't know you were sick. Why didn't you tell me?" His mother drove faster than usual. "Do you just have a fever, or?" "A stuffy nose, runny at times." The sickly adolescent replied in a hush. "I just want to go bed." He pleaded and struggled to not fly from the seats.

"I'll phone the doctor to see if you could get checked out today. I know you don't like them, but none of us know what you might have. Also, I might have to contact that friend of yours."

"Brenden? Why."

"Because I know he is responsible enough to drive you there and back home. He's the only kid I trust aside from you and your brother."

"But that means Brenden will find out, and I have been working hard to cut him off completely from my life. Why must you throw away all of my progress?"

"You and I both know that's not good for you. He's an important person in your life."

The boy sighed and closed his eyes. "Curse him for crossing my path all those years ago."

"Did you even tell him that you got picked up today?"

"Of course not."

"I guess I'll have to call him right now."

"Remember there are classes to attend to right now." "Oh, well drat. You win this time, Copper." Copper smiled to himself and sat up from his laying position.

"Expect Brenden at the door around three in the afternoon, okay? Love you bye." He stepped out from the vehicle and his mother sped away. He sighed deeply and trudged onto the steps of his petty house.

After unlocking the wooden door with the hidden key in one of the flower pots, he slammed and locked it back shut, dropped his backpack and made a beeline for his room. It was next to his older brother's, in the second floor, farthest from the stairwell. He stumbled inside and dragged his feet over the top bunk, where he carelessly threw a blanket over his naturally cold body. He let his rigid breathing fill the room as he buried himself deeper on the mattress.

The walls were originally supposed to be a solid sky blue colour, until Copper had painted white, fluffy clouds on any available spot. The ones on his ceiling were a dark shade of gray, resembling a storm threatening day. Copper rolled onto his side and sneezed, sniffing violently in an attempt to restore all the fluids that shot out.