A bit odd (BoyXBoy)

"Hello"

Zayden's POV

I see him all the time, huddled under his dirty, ragged blanket in the alleyway next to my home. He has this look about him, like he isn't sure
whether or not he could do anything. The only time I've ever seen him peaceful is when he falls asleep. Right then, the instant he drifts off while his mind is blank. He's still innocent, his eyes still bright and wonderous, even though he's seen just about as bad as the world gets.

Every night, like clockwork he comes around. He walks into the alleyway- unsure of himself, ready to give up the place at the mention of a risk. He skims over his stuff once, counting it over. Then he goes back and touches every one of his items, counting them over and over until he's sure that it's all there. Then he hides away, tucking his small form under the blanket that he holds onto so dearly. I watch his face now, slowly relaxing and letting the innocence shine through the dirt and scum on his face.

In the morning I get up, glancing at the clock which tells me that it's already 7:30. I sigh, knowing he won't be in the alley. On top of that, I was late.
See, I work about five minutes away from my house, as the head barista at a bar. I say barista, but I do anything, from working the bar to cooking up some of the fancy $15 snacks in the VIP section. Mainly though, I like the bar, it's comfortable and I don't get cought up in too much trouble. That could be due to my build some, since I go the the gym a lot and eat healthy enough. My mom used to always say I had big bones, and that any lady would be lucky for it. Lotta good that's gonna do me.

I get there ten minutes later, shouting my arrival to the boss, Anita. She comes out and throws me an apron. That means I'll be working bar tonight, Thank Hades. It's not much of a surprise that I'm late actually, since I usually am. As I start tidying up the counter, getting ready for the morning rush (There's a small pub area in the place, open all day) my mind wanders back to the Boy In The Alley, as I like to call him. He'd shown up about a year ago, but he looked like he'd been living on the streets a lot longer than that. I've never talked to him, 'cause I'm kinda scared that he'd break if I tried. He looks so fragile and small, how would he even react?
I'm snapped back to reality by one of my Co-workers, Jace saying that I was needed in the pub area. What is it now...?

Kalix's POV

The first thing I thought when I woke up was that I was hungry. It made sense, but I couldn't spend my money on the food, not yet. I could get something small... an apple or some kind of defect fruit. That's it, I'll get something on sale, a bruised banana or something. My mouth started watering at the thought, and before I knew it, I was walking to the store. I had all of my money in hand, exactly $7.86, mostly made of quarters and such. I walked into the store, finding the small cart of defect items in the back and dug through, trying to find a food item or fruit. I found one, a small, dented can of peaches, and checked the price. It was marked down to $0.75, and was a decent size, about a cup of fruit in all. I walked up to the counter, waiting for my turn to check out.

"Hey bum! I'm going in front of you, ya got it?"
I guess I kinda jumped and moved back, because the guy behind me came forward, a cart full of items in hand. He snickered and elbowed me, moving in front of me in the line. My can of peaches fell, and I quickly bent down to retrieve it.

A short while later, The man was done checking out, and left to his car with his things. I gave a small smile to the cashier and handed her the peaches. She gave me a look and scanned it.
"With the markdown that'll be $0.75, sir"
I nodded and gave her three of my quarters, taking the peaches in a small bag and quickly leaving.

Once I got outside, I darted back into my alley and opened the can. After eating two of the sweet slices I decided to save the rest, and wrapped the can upright in my blanket. I left, walking around town and scanning the ground for change. I found a dime before I got to the forests edge, and stuffed it into my pocket. I walked into the forest, touching each tree lightly and letting my mind wander. I thought about a make believe life, not where I was rich, but where I had a partner, a person to love and share my life with. Oddly enough, this make believe person didn't have much of a face or name, just a simple interest in me. I loved this person so much, it hurt me to come back to real life, with the cold streets and the rocky riverside where I bathe and wash my raggy clothes.

I'm there now, stepping in with my clothes on after carefully removing and counting the money in my pocket. I got used to the water with my clothes on, then took off my shirt and swirled it around, occasionaly scrubbing my body with it. I do the same for my pants and such, seeing most of the dirt leave me and my clothes by the time I get out. I pulled on my wet clothes and laid out of a big rock, facing the sun so I could dry my clothes while drifting off.

Third person POV

Zayden was already feeling more relaxed as he took a stroll through the woods, letting the tension leave him after a long day of work. There had been a cartload of chaos at every turn, and he was glad to finally have some peace. His mind was in the clouds, and it was a while before he found himself sitting down on the ground, next to a running river and field of long grass and flowers. He laid down, stretching out his limbs and savoring the feel of his overworked bones popping. He sat like that for a minute or two, soaking up the sun on his face before slowly returning to earth. Suddenly he realized that he'd zoned out. While walking in the woods. He had no idea where he was, and he'd managed to leave his phone at home. He groans loudly, knowing that he would have to find his way back to the trail that wound through even the deep parts of the forest.

Kalix woke up, feeling that his clothes were dry. He was about to get up from his rock, when he heard a groan.

Needless to say, he panicked, and ducked under the cover of the rock. Peeking around, he saw a man who looked oddly familier. He couldn't quite figure out where, but he'd seen the man before. He watched the man look around, looking lost. Kalix wanted to get a better look, so he started slowly climbing up the rock, keeping his body below the edge and peeking over the top.

"Snap"

Both Kalix and Zayden froze, hearing the stick break loudly. Kalix dropped himself from the rock, out of view and pressed his back to the flat side. He started breathing heavily, his anxiety racking up. This man had to be, just had to be dangerous, and now he was coming.

Zayden's eyes darted to the area where the loud snapping sound came from, seeing a large rock. He went into defensive mode, bearing himself for the fight he thought was about to come. Creeping over to the rock, he made a small but threatening noise, ready to fight whoever was there

Kalix's POV

He's going to kill me, he's going to kill me, he's going to kill me

My Anxiety was flaring, screaming at me to get out of there, and I was about to bolt. I heard a noise come from him, a growl that nailed me down paralyzed me with fear. I was shaking and scared, about to black out from pure anxiety and fear. My mind went blank, and I let out a tiny, terrified wimper. My hands flew to my face, covering my mouth, but I knew it was too late. My mind told me that this was a predator and I had to be the prey.

Zayden's POV

I crept closer, and was about to look over the edge when I heard it. A little fearing noise, and for a second I thought it was an animal, some tiny critter stuck in a branch or something. But no, when I looked over, I saw a small figure, shaking against the rock. It was the boy from thealley, frozen in place, staring ahead with his hands clamped over his mouth. I slowly put my hand on his shoulder, and he yelps and shuts his eyes. I don't even think he's looked at me, but he keeps shaking, tensing up the instant I touched him. I slowly let go, moving my hand and talking calmly
"Hello"

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1600 words! I hope it looks good, I had a ton of random motivation to start this

Please tell me what you think! I'm super new to all of this as well, so if you have any tips, I'll welcome them with open arms!

Hope you enjoyed! <3