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The Time When He Was Studying Alone
"Так как ты, Борис?" Theo mumbled gently, staring up at the silvery spines that kept the umbrella open above his head.
He was laying on his back in his dorm room with the black contraption open and his books spread out all around him. The ghost of a person sat by his feet, watching him with the warmest smile, the softest eyes.
"Your accent is terrible, Potter," Ghost Boris laughed. "You sound like an American."
"Well, I am an American," Theo retorted, sitting up and looking at the boy.
He had not grown. He was as young and mischievous as ever.
The same could not be said for Theo, who was now twenty and growing in to his glasses. New ones.
"Still!" Boris insisted. "You can do better."
"Will you just answer the question?" Theo asked, exasperated. "I need to ace this test. Speaking grades are the worst."
"Я в порядке," he said, smirking at Theo as the words tumbled effortlessly from his lips. "Как твои дела?"
"Я в порядке." Theo sighed, flipping through his book. "Спасибо."
"Пожалуйста," Boris said gleefully. "You are getting it, Potter."
"I'm trying my best," Theo relented. Then he hesitated, looking at where Boris sat, shaded from the light trickling through his dorm room window by the umbrella. He was close enough to see his freckles, like dark constellations on his cheeks.
"Я люблю тебя," he whispered.
But of course there was no reply. Boris wasn't really there.
Theo shook his head, slamming his books shut and climbing up into bed despite the fact that the sun was still out. He closed the umbrella and hugged it to his chest, frowning and tossing his glasses onto his bedside table.
The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
He had never felt more alone.
OOO
I don't speak Russian, so I used a translator. I apologize for any errors. Here are the translations:
1. Так как ты, Борис? - How are you, Boris? 2. Я в порядке, Как твои дела? - I am good, how are you? 3. Я в порядке. Спасибо. - I am good. Thanks. 4. Пожалуйста. - You're welcome. 5. Я люблю тебя. - I love you.
