Her frame was hunched over, shoulders unnaturally tense, and he couldn't help but sit beside her.
She didn't glance up, just let her eyes trace the jungle gym in front of them, and watched the way the younger kids goofed off and laughed.
The preteen turned to him finally with the faintest of smiles on her face as she stared into chocolatey eyes that left a trail of butterflies in her stomach that batted her walls.
"Hi," She spoke up, seeming much less sad just by the gentle flow of that one word, "I'm Alya."
"Hello," His eyes twinkled, "I'm Nino."
"So Nino," She grinned, not appearing like she'd just been crying other than the tear stains on her cheeks and how her eyes were slightly puffy, "What brings you here?"
"I saw someone that looked like she wanted some company." He was too scared to say that she'd been crying and that that didn't seem right for a beautiful girl such as herself.
"How did you know?" She asked him, the tiniest hint of her crying remaining in her voice for a moment.
"You just looked lonely." He decided after a moment spent debating over what exactly to say and finally leaned his shoulder against hers.
Even if they never met again, he wanted to take on this fight with her.
"Okay." She sighed as she stared back at the playground before the words just found themselves on the tip of her tongue, "Do you ever feel alone among your siblings or friends?"
"Sometimes." It was whisper soft and just enough to ease a smile on to her face.
"Alright," She stared up at the sky as if following the pigeons with just her eyes, "I'm not alone then." The words seemed careful, new, and loving as they escaped her throat, and that was enough to bring a smile on to his face.
"Yeah, you aren't." She stood up after cherishing those words and let the smile on her face talk.
"I'll have to go. My family will start to worry." Her eyes shone with a new kind of joy that Nino felt he had to lean back and just enjoy the look on her face as she waved and walked away.