Nathan and Micah

Help Me Nathan

Song: I couldn't think of a song
*TRIGGER WARNING* This chapter hints at the idea of an eating disorder.

"Hey. Can I sit with you?" I am standing in the doorway to the Collaboration Space. The Collaboration Space is a room in the middle of our classroom that is meant to be used when you are doing group work. But really, people just go in there when they don't want to do their work. Or if they want to play Minecraft at lunch, apparently.
"Of course, Micah!" says Nathan. I walk in, closing the door behind me. I hop onto the stool next to Nathan. He is playing Minecraft with all of his friends. I don't really understand why he loves that game so much, The Sims 4 is much better.
"Micah, you don't normally sit with us." One of Nathan's friends says.
"Yeah. All of my friends have debate club."
A few minutes pass where no one talks. I think Nathan can tell that I am feeling kind of uncomfortable because he dies on purpose, in the game.
"Oh, wait. I just realised, I lost my inventory. Damn!"
"Sorry." I say.
"Don't worry about it. I was going to stop to eat anyway. Have you had your lunch yet?"
"Um, no. I'm not very hungry."
"What?! How are you not hungry? You said that you didn't have anything for breakfast either."
"I'm fine." Nathan is staring at me, it's like he is searching for something in my eyes.
"Come with me," Nathan grabs my hand and pulls me out of the room. I can feel his friend's eyes on my back. We walk outside and find a bench to sit on, away from everyone else.
"Tell me what's wrong, Micah."
"I'm fine. Seriously!" But we both know that's a lie. The stress of everything, everything, in life is starting to get to me. It's affecting almost every aspect of my life. The one thing it hasn't touched is my relationship with Nathan. That's going to change today.
"Ok, I'm not fine." I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths. I can feel Nathan grab my hand. I open my eyes again and look around. None of our friends know about us yet, and I would like to keep it that way.
"Sorry." Nathan whispers, letting go of my hand.
"It's ok. No one can see us anyway," I grab his hand again and squeeze it tight before starting, "I have been feeling quite stressed recently. It's affecting my sleep, my concentration during class and also my eating." I talk for 10 minutes, barely pausing to take a breath. Nathan listens patiently, not saying a word until I am finished.
"Oh, Micah. I am so sorry." Tears are rolling down my face, my cheeks feel hot. I can't meet Nathan's eyes.
"I'm sorry, Nathan. I'm so sorry."
"Micah. Look at me." I shift my gaze from the ground to Nathan, "Micah, you have nothing to be sorry about. You did nothing wrong."
He wraps his arms around me. I am so grateful for the tree blocking us from the rest of the school. I need these few moments with Nathan. I need him to hold me close and tell me that he loves me. I need him to stay by my side.
"Help me, Nathan. Help me."