AN: Hi, everyone! I just want you all to know that I do plan on continuing Revenant Assistant, I just had a lot to do lately, but do not worry, I have not forgotten it, nor have I forgotten Puppy Blaine either. So a couple of warnings: bullying, bad words, a huge amount of fluffiness and just overall adorableness. Enjoy!
Chris bit his lip to keep the tears from flowing. His small fists were clenched as he looked at his broken Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figure on the ground. Boys just a few years older than Chris' seven year old self were laughing boisterously, some even pointing at his face.
"Aww, is Christina going to cry?" a boy in a red shirt said, making the other boys laugh harder. Chris bit his lip before snapping, "Shut up! That's not my name!"
The boys mockingly 'oohed', some chuckling. "What are you going to do about it, fag?" the same boy asked, stepping forward, purposely crushing Michelangelo's head, making Chris cry out, "No!" The red shirted boy looked down then back up, grinning cruelly before stomping on the rest of the toy to pieces. Poor Chris, all he could do was watch as the rest of the boys joined in with the stomping. Chris wanted to fight back but his mother told him only bad and mean children fought with their fists and Chris was not a bad boy. They were the bad boys and he didn't want to be like them. Oh, but how much he wished he could just pound his fist in their faces.
He didn't cry though. He knew that they would just laugh more if he did, so he kept biting his lip, a habit he picked up from his mother. He closed his eyes so he didn't have to see poor Michelangelo was viciously crushed by the seven and eight year olds. When the boys saw that he wasn't going to give them the show they wanted, they grew bored and with one last spit towards both the toy and Chris' direction, they left.
It wasn't until he knew they were gone that he picked up what was left of his toy and ran blindly, unable to stop the tears now that he was alone. So he didn't see the other person when he collided bodies with them.
"Ouch," Chris heard while he himself fell on his back. Thankfully he landed on grass or that would have hurt a lot more. He gasped though, knowing that he probably hit one of the boys that had bulled him. Someone who probably chased him to kick him or something. He kept his eyes shut and waited for the hit or kick but to his surprise, there came none. Instead, he heard a gentle voice ask him concernedly, "Are you okay? I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going. You didn't scrape your elbow did you?"
Out of shock, Chris opened his eyes, mouth agape and looked up at the person. The boy above him couldn't have been more than nine or ten, his dark brown hair in curls which were not kept well under a baseball cap. His eyes were hazel and at the current moment, lit up with worry. "Are you okay?" he asked again. Chris opened and closed his mouth many times. "Here, let me help you up," the boy said and without waiting, took Chris' hand, pulling him up easily. The boy seemed a bit small but was very strong. Chris should say yes to the boy's previous question, he's fine and go home. Then his mommy can fix his cuts and maybe bury Michelangelo in the backyard who also laid to rest his red Power Ranger and stuffed dog that was in an unfortunate mowing accident.
But this was the first time someone looked at him like that. Kindergarten wasn't so bad, but those older kids were always picking on him, calling names. He asked his mom and dad what the names meant, but that only made them angry and sad. He remembered he heard mommy crying into daddy's arms when Chris asked one day what the word "faggot" meant. He never learned what it was, nor did he want to anymore.
But now there was this kid he never saw before, looking at him with such concern, his eyes were so warm and trusting, Chris couldn't help but burst into tears, clutching his broken toy close to his chest.
The older boy became flustered, "Hey! Don't cry! I'm sorry! Want me to get you a band aid or something? Maybe some apple juice? Please don't cry." But Chris just kept crying, one hand curled up to his eyes, trying to wipe the tears away in frustration but that just made it worse. In an effort to help, but not really knowing what else to do, the other boy rubbed Chris' back, just like his mom did whenever he or his brother was upset. "Want to go sit down?" he asked softly, not wanting to startle Chris. The upset boy nodded and let himself be led over to a bench nearby. He noticed finally that he had run all the way to the park. His mommy wont be too happy that he had gone too far from home. That made him even more upset.
"Hey, hey, come on kid, don't cry. Are you hurt? Did you you get cut anywhere?" the other boy asked, not stopping his hand from rubbing Chris' back. Chris heaved slightly before finally calming down. He wiped his face, using his t shirt as a tissue.
"Oh, wait," he heard the boy next to him say, and suddenly there was a piece of cloth his hand. He blinked at it before looking up at him again, looking confused. The other boy smiled sheepishly, "It's a handkerchief. You use it to clean your face and when you sneeze and stuff. Don't worry, it's clean, my mom always washes it for me. It smells like lilac! ...Whatever that is." The boy scratched his chin, his eyebrow burrowed, trying to remember what lilac was.
Chris stared at down at the strange boy before smiling a little and then giggling softly. The other boy's eyes widened and grinned widely, "Hey! You stopped crying! You laughed! Success!" The boy jumped up and started to dance in place, what looked suspiciously like the Macarena which only made Chris laugh more.
Glad to see that he made the younger boy laugh again, he went to sit next to him, "Hi, I don't think I told you my name yet. I'm Darren. What about you?"
Chris suddenly felt shy, wiping his eyes and nose, "I-I'm Chris..." Darren's grin, if possible, grew bigger, "Really? Your name is Chris? That's so weird. My last name is Criss, but it's spelled different."
"Really?" Chris asked, thinking that that was cool. Darren nodded, "Really, really. So...are you okay now? I didn't hurt you did I? Cause then I'd have to tell my dad and then we would have to get a lawyer and that's just too much pressure for a nine year old." Chris giggled again and shook his head, "No...I'm okay. I just...my well..." He looked down at his toy, his lower lip starting to tremble and bit it again. Darren saw it and said, "Hey, hey don't do that. You'll make your lip bleed." To Chris' utmost surprise, Darren took his thumb and pulled Chris' lip away from his teeth and massaged it gently. "See, it's all red. It's already bleeding."
This boy was so weird, Chris thought. None of the other older boys would ever stand too close to Chris, much less his touch him. He had 'the gay'. He was contagious, they said. He moved away, making Darren jump and laugh abashedly, "Oh, I'm sorry, I just met you. My brother says I tend to forget about personal boundaries and just be everyone's best friend. Say, what's that in your hand?"
Chris looked at his lap where his broken toy lay and pouted sadly, "It's my toy..."
"Wow...what happened to it?" Darren asked, picking up what seemed to be part of a leg. Chris' lip trembled again but didn't bite it this time, "Some mean bullies stomped on it. Even though I told them to stop."
"Well that's stupid, why would they do that?" Darren asked, tilting his head to the side. Chris shrugged, "I don't know...they just don't like me. They think I'm too girly to be playing with Ninja Turtles." Darren frowned at the girly commented but then smiled, "You like Ninja Turtles too? Which one was this one?" Chris smiled sadly, "Michelangelo...they even broke his weapons."
Darren patted his back, "I'm sorry those bullies broke your toy. That's stupid, I don't think you're too girly. They're all a bunch of buttfaces, don't listen to them." Chris giggled and said, "Mommy says that's a bad word." Darren gasped and clapped a hand over his mouth, "I'm sorry."
Chris waved it off and instead asked, "I've never seen you...did you move in?" Darren shook his head, "Nah, we're just came back from a trip to L.A and wanted to visit some family here. We live in San Fransisco. We're going home tomorrow."
"Oh," Chris said sadly, looking down at broken toy again. It was too good to be true, he should have known by now. Sensing his disappointment, Darren took his hand, "But hey, I don't have anything to do today. Want to play until I have to go home?" Chris nodded eagerly. He never had a friend before, at least not one that wasn't his family. Darren pulled him up, "Oh, wait, what do you want to do with your toy?" Chris bit his lip before remembering he shouldn't, "I was...going to bury it in my back yard." Darren blinked, "Like a funeral?" Chris nodded slightly, feeling a bit foolish. "Okay," he heard Darren say, much to his surprise, "We'll go to your house and bury him. I'll even bring flowers and stuff." Chris stared at him for a minute before breaking into a huge smile, "Okay!" Darren laughed, "You know, for a funeral, you're way too happy." They got to his house and after a small scolding from his mother and a surprised hello to Darren, they got to work.
"Here lies Michelangelo, brother, friend and the best darn Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle the world has ever seen and ever will see. May he keep kicking butt in heaven, amen," Darren said as Chris pushed the dirt over the broken body. Cleaning his hands on his pants, Chris smiled up at Darren, "Thanks. No one's done that for me before, not even my daddy."
"Everyone deserves a good ubology," Darren said. Chris tilted his head, "What's a ubology?"
"It's a speech you give at a funeral, telling people how awesome the person was and stuff," Darren said expertly. "Ohh," Chris replied. Darren was really smart.
For the rest of the day, Darren and Chris played all over the back yard, since his mother told him he wasn't allowed on the streets anymore. They played Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, hide and seek, and they even sang. Darren said Chris' voice sounded pretty which made Chris blush a bit. All too soon it was mid day and Chris' mom came out to give them lunch on the patio.
"These cookies are so great, Mrs. C! They're like pieces of heaven! It's so organic!" Darren exclaimed, chomping down on the cookies. Mrs. Colfer just giggled, "Thank you, dear."
"What does organic mean?" Chris asked. Darren shrugged, "I don't know. My brother Chuck uses it a lot when he talks about music. So I'm guess it means really, really good." Chris just nodded along, not really getting it.
They played all day and well into the night. Well, not too far into the night. Darren's mom and dad came to pick him up at eight. Chris held Darren's hand as they walked to the front of the house. "I...I don't want you to go," Chris whispered, his hand tightening around Darren's. The older boy frowned sadly, "I don't either. Stupid San Fran. It's too far away."
"Can't you stay a little longer?" Chris asked, tugging on Darren's sleeve. Darren shook his head, "I can't, I have school on Monday. Mom will kill me if I miss it." Chris moved closer, his face buried on his shoulder, "Y-you're ma-my first friend...now y-you have ta go 'way." Darren felt the wetness on his shoulder and immediately turned around to engulf the thinner boy in a big hug. "Wait here, okay? I'll be right back," Darren said and pulled away, leaving Chris feeling very sad and alone. He missed the warmth.
Darren scrambled into the car and talked quickly with his mother about something. Chris was too far away to hear what was being said, but saw Darren's mom nodding and Darren climbing back out of the mini van with something in his hand. "Here, I want you to have this to remember me," Darren said, handing Chris a toy. It was another Ninja Turtle. "It's Raphael. I know it's not the same as Michelangelo but at it's the closet thing I've got. He's my favorite so you better take very good care of him, okay?" Chris looked at the toy and grinned through unshed tears, "Yeah, I will, I promise." They hugged once more, Chris felt like he was going to break because of how hard Darren hugged him but he didn't really mind. "Don't let those bullies get you down, okay Chris? You're a super cool kid and they're just jealous. Keep singing okay. You're voice is really organic." Chris giggled at both the word and the fact that Darren's breath was tickling his ear, "Okay. Promise you won't forget me, yeah?"
"Of course!" Darren said, pulling back. And to add to a huge list of surprises, Darren ducked down to kiss Chris on the cheek. Chris touched it and watched Darren smile sadly before going back to the car. Chris ran up to the drive way and waved Darren off who in turn rolled down the window to wave back. "Don't forget okay!" Darren yelled, the mini van starting to get smaller and smaller in the distance. Chris shouted back, "I won't! I'll take care of him!" They shouted their farewells until Darren's car disappeared into the night.
Chris held Raphael close to his chest. He didn't know if he would ever see that boy again, the strange boy who liked Ninja turtles and singing and had pretty hazel eyes. But at least he wouldn't forget him anytime soon. And maybe, if the universe was nice enough, he would see him again. That boy: the reason Raphael is his favorite Ninja Turtle.