Keith walked along the sidewalk towards his home through the rushing winter winds. Small droplets fell from the sky quietly and he almost didn't notice them sinking aimlessly between the fibers of his coat. The echo of his feet clopping against the concrete ground hit his ears, almost as if it were the only sound he could hear on his lonesome, silent walk through his static neighborhood.
He stumbled over a tiny crevice and tripped, falling to his knees and crumbling in on himself within the silence of the street. He stretched out his legs and arms against the dampening grass of a stranger's front lawn— that looked like it could belong in any other suburban neighborhood— and laid his crossed hands behind his head, giving it a place to rest. The wind rustled through one ear and scurried out the other and blew droplets that attached themselves to his eyelashes.
With his eyes shut he sat there, willing to catch a cold if it meant this silence could be his for the taking. Just for a moment, buried in its wake rather than swallowed by his own inner voice. But, all of a sudden, he heard a faint whisper calling his name.
"Keith... is that... you?" The boy sat up, straightened his spine, and craned his neck.
"Allura!" the boy said in surprise, "I didn't even realize this was your house! My bad."
"I don't care about you laying in my lawn you idiot. Why are you out here in the rain? And in winter for quiznack's sake?" She hurriedly offered him a glove-covered helping hand, the other wrapped around her waist holding together the edges of her silk robe.
"I was just... thinking. That's all. Don't worry about me."
"No, you weren't. Don't lie to me. We all know what day it is," she said pulling the boy up off of the ground and attempting to dust the mud off of the top of his beanie, "Which is why Shiro didn't chew your head off this morning about almost being late for the bus. He knows you woke up this morning... thinking... dreading. Regretting..." Her eyes locked with his and she could see the buried sorrow brewing beneath the darkness circling his pupil.
"I don't regret anything. I broke up with him for me. I was sacrificing too much of myself and he understood that which is part of what made him so amazing, Allura. We both understood. But just because I don't regret it doesn't mean I don't miss it... miss us. I'd do anything to have him back on better terms, but you already know that so there's no reason for me to declare my love while swimming in a pool of my own dread, ok?"
"Keith, I didn't mean to—"
"I know," the boy stared down at his feet that swallowed the water falling from the sky and threw his tossed bookbag back over his shoulder, "I'm just gonna head home, alright?"
"Yeah... sure," she let go of his hand and started to walk back towards her porch, its light drawing her in like a moth in a dreary cave, "Just give me a text when you get home. I'd like to know if my best friend is alive or not if that's alright with you Mr. Grumpy Pants." She stuck out her tongue playfully.
❅ ❅
When the boy reached his house, their porch light seemed to shine brighter than usual; a blaring torchlight paving a darkened path. He noticed something white and rectangular plastered against the dark wood of the front door with a sticky note attached to it. It read:
"Sorry for the insincerity of a sticky note, but I was late for work at the bar and didn't know when you'd be home so I didn't exactly have the opportunity for a hand delivery. I'm not sure if you're ready for all of this and I know it'll be a big step if you decide to take it. But this is a note from Lance. I haven't read it. I think you should be the first."
YOU ARE READING
𝟙 𝕐𝕖𝕒𝕣 𝕌𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕝 ℕ𝕠𝕨
Fanfiction" He laid the envelope against the mat at the entrance of the Kogane household, rang the doorbell and scurried off like a frightened creature of the night. Shiro opened the door slowly, clearly unexpectant of visitors at a time like 7 am. But he loo...
