Stranger

ch34

I'm finally back! 

Yeah, I know, dramatic, but it's true. And I just needed to let it out and say it out loud. In my head. Only to myself. Okay, I'm over it now. 

Anyway, as I was saying, the old Evie is back in town and with a full force. The nightmares have diminished greatly, the tiredness has gone all away. I think I was just under a lot of stress and once I let some of it out (the talk with my parents being a major part in all this) I feel myself great again. 

I was back at talking, joking, teasing, laughing and just enjoying the weather and everything around. Even the exams that were being thrown our way weren't getting to me and ruining my mood. 

But, this was me we're talking about. Devon however, well, let's say he was back to his old self too. You know, the one I first met at the beginning, the tough nut he used to be before we became friends. 

It has been almost a full week after our little fight, if I could call it a fight, and ever since the next day, he has been distant. My jokes fly over his head, my annoying comments don't even reach his ears and my teasing fails worse than paper airplanes. 

Something was up with him and it was point blank obvious. 

I wanted to stop him, shake him and finally demand to know what had happened on Monday after we parted ways because that's the only gap time that made him like this. 

This side of him I hated. No, it wasn't a side actually, it was his armor to be exact. He would pull up his walls when he wanted some distance and this time they were wired with thorn wires from top to bottom, reaching heights I couldn't even see the end of so I would overcome. 

Devon was shutting me out, worse than ever before and I was going mad about it. 

It was my own thoughts that were driving me crazy. Making up stories, ideas, reasons, possibilities of what I might have done wrong, what I could have said that lead to this, the way I have behaved, etc. 

All of this was giving me anxiety. I was going beyond the rational and logical reasons and I was starting to come up with stupid scenarios just so I could find a hint that would explain his behavior. 

Despise my curiosity, I did what he had done with me, give him time and space. I had to trust that once he came to some solution or conclusion he'd tell me about it all and I just had to sit back and wait. But, I sucked at this. Sitting things out is not how I do things, but I had to. For the sake of our friendship. 

So, for four days straight I am doing my best to lighten his mood and to accomplish anything, something, whatever it is. 

He sits silently through classes, barely touches his food at lunch and doesn't utter a word when we walk home after school. If I had to describe how hell would look for me, this was a very perfect example of it. 

Today we have the whole day together and I am waiting for any signs of change in him. So far I have come up empty, but I am not giving up. Not yet. Not until I explode that is. 

Following him to lunch, he doesn't even stop to order food and just walks to our table. I frown at his back as I watch him stride away, but I don't call after him. First food, then talking. 

"You didn't order a sandwich."-I say as I sit down in the seat opposite him. 

Devon is in his usual, slouched down on the chair with half his body hanging off of it, arms crossed over his chest and eyes trained on the table top position, his hair pinned high up. 

"I wasn't hungry."-he grumbles without looking at me. 

"Well, I took one for you anyway."-I say as I slide the food towards him.