The alarm started ringing, echoing through the room but Fabien already lied wide awake. He turned to look through the room as the sun shone through the curtains in a misty beam. His face was long and pale as he hadn't got a wink of sleep. He couldn't. It didn't last long. In this one night, he had the same dream over and over again. The new student's face appeared in front of him multiple times. I have to ask him! He thought. He jumped out of the bed to get ready for school as fast as possible.
The boy put himself in his clothes with his toothbrush still hanging in his mouth, stumbling around the room. It was the same dilemma every morning for him. He took his bag while noticing something strange... Does it seem lighter than yesterday? He asked himself as he lifted it with his little finger. He looked thoughtfully before shrugging his shoulders.
He went for the door but suddenly someone opened it with excitement.
"Get up brother!", Margery said with a mischievous look. Her body language reminded him of a witch as she crawled her hands together. As soon as she noticed him already standing right up to her nose, her face grew disappointed and surprised.
Another tickle attack?
"Try again next time.", he said, ruffling her hair. He walked past her, covering his mouth to stifle a big yawn as he went downstairs.
Fabien looked rather calm as he walked to the dining table while looking at his very normal breakfast. He just grabbed a banana as he forced a smile on his face.
"I have to go. I don't feel like eating breakfast today.", he said with a weak smile as he walked quickly to the doorway. But after saying that, it felt like his mother teleported right behind him with a dreadful aura.
"No. We had that talk. You have to eat regularly now.", she said, worried. Fabien turned around, sighing in guilt.
"Yeah, I know. I'll just grab something from the cafeteria real quick.", he said, finally disappearing through the door. Ariane wanted to say something but the boy was already out of the house. She glared at the door while crossing her arms.
"You're so dead if I find out that you collapsed again.", she said, smirking darkly. She returned to her breakfast before getting ready for work.
Meanwhile, Fabien walked over to his friends who were waiting in the car. He exchanged handshakes and fistbumps before sitting next to Max. For some reason, the blonde boy was totally out of it today. He was surprised by Fabien's presence as soon as he sat next to him. Fabien gave him a weird look.
"You're so jumpy today. Did your mom lend out on you?", he asked him and Max just stared at him with wide eyes.
"Yeah. There is something I wanted to talk about with you... Do you have a minute after school?", he asked him, while looking at the road. Fabien tilted his head in confusion as he saw the glimpse of nervousness in the stern aura of his eyes.
"Yes, sure. You look so serious... Like when you're preparing for an exam.", he managed to say as he put his seat belt on. Théo barked in as he gave Max a teasing smile.
"Ohh, is it a confession? Why aren't we invited to listen..?", he asked sarcastically with Tristan holding him back. Max began to sigh deeply.
"Fuck off, shithead.", he said, rolling his eyes. Théo and Tristan began to laugh while Max finally started to drive off. But Fabien was the only one quiet in his seat.
He turned his gaze towards the window while enjoying the view of the city. He didn't get involved in his friends' conversation this time. He would give a simple "yeah" or "no" a few times as he leaned against the glass. Max eyed him the whole time, asking himself what was going on in Fabien's head. He was always usually someone who wore his heart on his sleeves.
