School, for me, wasn't exactly fun. It's not the work that bothers me, I get fairly good grades, with the exception of "participation." No, the work is fine, I have trouble being around large groups of people, or really any size group, even just one person can make me very uncomfortable. My mother died when I was an infant, and my father never really got over it, so I was raised by my older brother Griffin. My father, though, was a violent drunk, and constantly beat me and my brother, though Griffin tried to take most of the hits for me. One day though, when I was about seven, the inevitable happened, and Griffin was killed taking a beating for me, and from then on I couldn't stand being touched, or stood too close to. Anyone who got near me, I would have to move several feet away, completely out of range, which means I've never had any friends. To this day, 9 years later, nothing has changed, not even when I was taken away from my father and put into foster care. I didn't mind it, but little did I know it was about to change.

After walking the familiar route to school, carrying my ragged, worn-out backpack, I spent the morning as I usually do. My teachers all know I'm not exactly a normal student, and after little persuasion I now have a seat in the back corner of every class.

The morning passed quickly and soon it was time to head to the cafeteria for lunch. I never bothered with the lunch line; I took the quickest way possible to the small empty table in the back, trying to avoid any close confrontation. It didn't take long to eat my usual lunch of an apple (I've never had much of an appetite), so soon enough I was headed towards the library.

Before I could make my way out the door, I was interrupted by someone I didn't immediately recognize.

"Hey!" I was greeted by a tall, athletic looking boy with ash-colored blond hair and strikingly clear blue eyes.

"H-hi," I muttered quietly, trying to be polite, but stuttering a bit in my utter surprise. Who would want to talk to me, of all people?

"You're Rowyn, right?" He asked with another step forward. Whoever this guy was, he was quite obviously used to being very close to other people. Maybe he lived in a crowded house. Whatever his deal was, I was very uncomfortable very fast, and took another step back. He wasn't even that close though, two, two and a half feet maybe, but still, I didn't like it.

"I…" I cleared my throat, brushed my vibrantly dark red fringe out of my light green eyes, and started again. "Yeah, I am. I… I'm sorry; I don't know your name."

"You don't?" He asked, as if it were obvious who he were. I shook my head apologetically. "I'm Azuriah! Mostly people call me Az, we have three classes together, haven't you noticed?" Again, I shook my head. "They're math and history," he pointed out, as if proving a point.

"You said three classes," I reminded him.

"We both have Mr. Jefferson for study hall," he said, looking a bit disappointed that I hadn't known any of this. At this point he was still subconsciously moving forward, making me step back again. Now trapped against the wall, he was about three feet away and I could only hope he didn't step forward again.

"I-it's nice to meet you, I guess," I stuttered awkwardly. "I-I'm sorry, I don't exactly like people." He stepped forward and offered his hand, obviously meaning for me to shake it, but I could only look down at it and press my hands to my sides stubbornly.

He had stepped forward again, and I normally like to be a few feet away from the nearest person, which for most people is a rather awkward distance to be socializing. I couldn't step back again, but I tried my hardest, and pressed my back against the wall as if trying to force myself through it, my head inclined slightly, and I knew my expression must've showed some sort of discomfort because he tilted his head looking confused.

"What's wrong?" He asked worriedly. After all, we were still about a foot and a half away, which was pretty normal for most people.

"N-nothing," I stuttered, my voice quiet and strained.

"You look terrified, what's the matter? I can help," He stepped towards me again, and though to most people he wasn't even that close, about a foot, I was starting to panic.

I shut my eyes, finding it easier to speak properly that way, and tried to ask as nicely as possible. "C-could you maybe just… s-step back a little?" Feeling my face burning with embarrassment and panic, I looked down to try to hide it from him.

"Step back…?" He paused for a second before realizing he was the one making me so uncomfortable, and then hurried to try to fix it. "Oh, yeah, of course I can! Hey, I'm sorry," he said, taking a few steps back.

I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding and began to relax a little.

"It's fine," I said, a bit more confidently now. "It wasn't your fault, you couldn't have known."

As soon as I'd said it, the worried expression immediately melted away into a radiant smile. I was confused as to why he was so happy that I didn't blame him, he hardly knew me at all, nor I, him.

"Anyway…" I was glad my voice had reverted back from the high-pitched nervous tone back to its usual softer, quiet one. "I was just headed across the hall to the library."

"Cool, I'll come with! I need a book for my history report, anyway," he said, making a face at the mention of his homework.

So, careful now to keep a distance, he walked with me across the hall and I helped him find some useful books before settling down at one of the tables to read, even though break was about to end.

I looked up at him as he flipped through his newfound books. "It's Azuriah, right?" I asked, making sure I had his name right.

"Yep!" He responded cheerily with a small nod.

Taking a shot in the dark to satisfy a strange curiosity, I asked, "That's a strange name… what does it mean?" barely able to get the sentence out before the bell that signaled the end of break resounded throughout the halls. We both stood up and made our way to the hallway as he answered.

"I'm pretty sure it means 'aided by God,'" he said. Giving me a playfully confident smile, he teased, "I guess that means I'm an angel," before taking off in the opposite direction. Shaking my head with a disbelieving little frown, I watched him go before heading to class, wondering why someone as energetic as him would've possibly wanted to spend all of break in the library with me.