He Left Sparkles in his Wake

Silence (No Man)

Richard waited a few days to see if Jared would 'come to his senses' and apologize. He just wanted to be happy and have his storybook romance. He just wanted someone remotely nice to be with him, listen to him, remind him that the world has good things and good people in it too. He realized that Jared was not this fantastic person he had idolized. He pulled out his phone as class let out for lunch and sighed. He scrolled to who he wanted to text and began rapidly tapping the screen.

What Good Pussy Sounds Like- I'm sorry

What Good Pussy Sounds Like- I have been, just the biggest bag of dicks, and I'm so sorry.

WGPSL- You warned me about Jared....but I didn't believe you

WGPSL- I must be the biggest ass ever. And I lied to you about seeing him!

WGPSL- brb I'm going to launch myself out the window because I deserve it

WGPSL- Jimmy I am the biggest asshole to ever exist on this planet. Except for Jared...

WGPSL- Shit! Wrong chat, but it's true.

Skinny Penis- NO FUCKING SHIT SHERLOCK

WGPSL- Cake I'm sorry! It's a long story, but I'm finally coming to terms with it. You were right, and I was wrong.

Skinny Penis- I told you Sparkles McDickwad wasn't who you idolized him to be

WGPSL- I know

He put his phone away, not caring if it buzzed, and facepalmed. "Richard. Buddy. You screwed the pooch this time." He was despondent for the rest of class: not speaking or taking notes. All he could do was think. 'Where did I go wrong? Why did I think someone that polished on the outside could be kind? Why did I think I could replace Jewl?' He sat there long after class let out. No one had bothered to pull him out of his thoughts simply because no one noticed him. Finally, after hours of sitting still as a statue, Richard slowly moved to collect his things. His mind had finally fallen quite; for potentially the first time in his life Richard was surrounded by silence inside and out. He moved carefully so as not to disrupt this new experience and then left the building. It was early in the evening, so few students were scattered across the school's lawn. He scanned the area as he walked but his eyes weren't seeing. He felt numb to the core. Richard's books slammed onto his shoes before he could even realize what was going on. The faces were familiar at this point. The same group that Leo had been a part of. The same group that terrified him since he came to Asagao.

But he was numb. Richard raised his eyebrows in a signal of recognition, but proceeded to pick up his books.

"What? Cat got your tongue bitch boy?" The ringleader sneered. He raised his hand far above his head to smash down Richard's books, but Richard took the opportunity to slide past him and continue on his way to Bluebell. The jock froze before turning around to grab the back of the small boy's jacket. Two of his lackeys spun Richard around before the leader grabbed him by the lapels. "Alright wise ass, any last words before I rearrange your face with my fist?"  He snarled out. Richard found a laugh rising out of his throat although he couldn't feel any emotions. Everyone was surprised to hear the cold laughter coupled with his neutral expression. It was as if he was just a ventriloquist dummy that someone had laughed through.

"Punch my face. Do it 'cause I like the pain." He found the lyrics seamlessly gliding off his tongue as if he had planed this. And yet, Richard was still in complete silence. When the ring around him was mute, so was his mind. The grip on his jacket loosened from all sides, letting Richard once again move away and continue on to his destination. The members of the circle looked from face to face as for what to do. Their favorite play thing had just acted like a completely different person. A broken person. Someone who was so far gone that they were numb to the world.

Richard walked into his room without another disruption. He sat down and had his homework done in the matter of minutes. As soon as he stood to find something else to do, his eyes landed on his reflection. Richard made a silent agreement with himself to become someone else. Richard had loved Jared. Richard had been used and abused for other people's benefit. This boy, he was not Richard. He was not going to let anyone use him again. He swiftly moved to sort through his draws until he found the items he wanted. He pulled his desk chair in front of the mirror and began his process.

He managed to force safety pins through the earring holes in his ears. It hurt, but 'Richard' had meant to do something about his threatening to close holes for a while. And this was not Richard; this boy got down to business. He took his eyeliner pencil and heavily lined his eyes. He still looked more like a boy than a raccoon which was his goal. Next the unnamed boy painstakingly painted his nails black. He may still be Richard somewhere inside, but this new boy cared more about his appearance. He paused and looked at himself.

"Archie. My name is Archie." He said, momentarily breaking the silence. Archie walked back over to his desk and sifted through all his papers. Any that had a picture or mentioning of Jared on them we collected up and placed on the floor around his chair. The room was silent again. This time, the silence was broken by the humming of an electric razor. Locks of brown hair fell onto the pages below for minutes until silence rang through once again. Archie looked at himself in the mirror.  His hair was short on the back and one side, but still semi long and curly on the top and remaining side. He could see his ears again which was a nice change of pace. With a happy sigh, the sound of the world started up again as Archie felt his cold insides thaw.

(I am so happy with how this one turned out! I hope you all will enjoy Archie's arch!)