The End

Chapter 1

Tanner Prakash was a young boy, only the age of seventeen. He was standing outside the town school when Milo walked up behind him, and gave him a pat on the back. This caused Tanner to flinch so hard he nearly fell to the ground, unfortunately not to Milo's surprise.

"It's getting worse, isn't it?" Milo asked, although the answer was clear already.

Tanner looked down at the ground with a furrowed brow before looking up with his rehearsed lines. "He doesn't mean it, it's the alcohol. He's not even aware of what he's doing." The boy loosely pleaded for his father, but the countless number of bruises told a deeper story. His father was a drunk, he didn't lie about that part, but Tanner knew his father remembered every time their skin met in violent fashion. That's what he lied about. He couldn't look his own father in the eyes because he knew that even if he stood up to him there would be no escape. Yet, he still wanted to believe that deep down he still cared for him, so he lied to himself.

"I'm just saying, I have a place where you can stay. Whenever you need me, man. I just- I cant keep seeing you like this, you're not happy—" Milo was right, and he knew it, but Tanner shook his head in refusal.

"I'm fine, it's nothing. I swear."

With that the bell rang and the two boys parted ways. Each only had one another for friends, but they never had a class together.

Milo walked into history and sat in his usual spot right in the front, close to the door. The class wasn't particularly Milo's favorite, but he had a decent grade. As for the more important part of his history class, Smith was in it.

Smith wasn't much to marvel at to most. He was of average complexion, and had a rather quiet and calculated demeanor. He warded most people off with his bluntness, and something about him seemed stuck in the past, vintage, per say. His face was usually slack, which, paired with his hauntingly blue eyes, almost made him look surreal.

But Milo was not one to judge someone based on their most outer appearance, and his intuition told him there was something great inside of Smith. He longed to hear about his life and every one of his opinions. Though Milo was rather quiet, and lacked the ability to walk up to someone he didn't know and spark a conversation. So instead he sat one seat behind Smith, and waited for him to do the talking. Which, in all the years they'd had classes together, had yet to come.

Eventually the class ended and Milo went on with the rest of his day, seeing no one else he found interesting, and returning home.

___

Smith Newport lived the most average life possible to the outside eye. Nobody saw the most intellectual and divergent thoughts he kept within.

His family was all business, and considered it cliche to have feelings, so at a very young age he learned to think to himself. He wasn't stuck in his head, though. No, he just processed everything from the outside world and kept it to himself. He noticed nearly every detail, down to the extra grain of dust on the floor. So it was no surprise to him when Danny waltzed up to him with a giant grin and gift bag.

Danny had been planning on confessing to Smith for about a week by his observation, and he had already planned out how to deny her. He even knew, before Danny did herself, what she would get him as a gift.

"I know you don't really like anything fancy or wild, but I thought maybe just this once you could make an exception." She tried to hide her grin and pretend to be shy, but Smith didn't find it appealing in the slightest. In fact, it annoyed him.

"You're right I don't like anything wild," Smith almost broke from his preparations, but took a breath and started again, "but you didn't get me anything wild."

The grin on Danny's face got smaller and she looked genuinely upset. Imagine, Danny upset. It seemed impossible to Smith, the girl always had a smile on her face. This was the girl who's ponytail got cut off in class and she just turned around and thanked the culprit for a haircut.

Nevertheless Smith knew that he couldn't pretend to have the same feelings for her as she had for him, and he had to let her down somehow.

"I'm flattered Danny, but I can't accept this. I don't think we'd be a good fit." And with that, he walked away. He had something to do anyways.