Shorts (Literally. Maybe Even Coming Off.)

Bay and Ash 6

Bay limped to his English class. His leg burned but he needed to finish his essay and how was he supposed to do that in a hospital? The teacher announced they would be working in the library and Bay almost cheered. That was his favorite place to be in this school. It was very quiet and easy to concentrate. People didn't mine if he went off in a corner to work by himself. Sometimes he'd even stay there a while a skip his other classes.

He needed another source for his essay on rare marine iguanas, so he headed to a shelf. Unlike many of the people in his generation, he preferred books over internet sites. They had a certain thing about them that made them more comfortable, familiar, and personal. As he scanned the bottom row, he saw a tuft of black hair behind a book about macaws. He turned the corner to find a seemingly familiar figure lying on the floor.

At first he thought the person was asleep but when he knelt down beside them, he saw golden brown eyes searching his face. "Hey," he began shyly. "Remember me? Sorry I didn't catch your name the other day. I'm Bay. Thanks for helping me. I was pretty out of it."

The other figure, who appeared masculine, sat up scrubbing his face with his sleeve. "Don't mention it." His voice was strained and rough sounding. "I'm Ash." He held out his fingerless leather gloved hand. Bay shook it.

"I know this is none of my business but may I ask what you're doing in here? I'm supposed to be working on an essay, but it looks like you were... brainstorming."

Ash laughed, though his eyes weren't smiling. "You could say that. Definitely had some deep thoughts to think." His face merged back into a frown.

Bay took a deep breath. "Do you think you could use a friend to help you think?"

"Friends are always welcome," Ash said, smiling again.

"Great." Bay scooched over next to Ash. "So... what is on your mind?"

"Well," Ash looked down. "This is sort of awkward."

"Don't be embarrassed," Bay encouraged. "You've already seen me in one of my worst moments."

"I-I have a friend that hurts them self. They keep doing it often and a lot. It makes me very upset because I want to know why they feel this way. Im worried about them. I'm afraid of... what could come next."

Bay wasn't really sure how to respond to that. What do you tell someone when they tell you their friend self-harms? He decided the best option was comfort and he reached over to Ash and hugged him.

Ash was very surprised. He wasn't used to getting hugs from other boys. Not that he had anything against bugs. In fact, this one felt kind of nice. He relaxed into it. Bay stopped panicking as soon as the tension drained out of Ash.

"Thanks," Ash said, gruffly. He was starting to tear up but he didn't want to cry again in front of Bay. "It's very kind of you to want to help me."

"Anything for a friend."

"This is nice, but I really should go back to class now." Ash pulled out of the hug. Bay felt a tiny bit emptier as Ash's body heat left him but he tried to ignore it.

"See ya." He gave a little wave.

"Bye."

They both stood up, Ash preparing to leave and Bay now scanning this shelf for research materials.

Ash turned around as he reached the end of the shelf. "Hey, can I get your number?"

"Sure..." Bay's voice trailed off. He was feeling extremely lightheaded.

"Bay?" Ash said concernedly. He ran forward to catch Bay as he fell. Ash held the unconscious boy in his arms for a second, trying to take in the situation. A kid had just passed out in the library. He should really tell an adult but he didn't want to leave Bay unattended. The teachers were all on the other side of the library, making this the perfect place for crying and working quietly. It was not, however, the perfect place to deal with a medical emergency.