Hey Guys!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! (*throws confetti and dances awkwardly, getting filmed by the dork in the corner*) So, how is 2015? Only 15 years until 2030! WHOO! I'll be so old! JK! Anyways, this is the newest chapter. I wrote it a while back, but I just edited it today!

Enjoy!

See ya at the bottom!

"So, uh… yep, right there. Yes, this is definitely the faculty area." Fabian ran his hands over the wall.

An electronic voice spoke from the iPad I was carrying. "How do you know?"

Fabian laughed. "Finally learned how to use that? It took Mara weeks. I'm pretty surprised."

I typed in a few words and the iPad spoke again. "I'm a fast learner."

Fabian nodded. He gently took my hand from his arm, and ran my fingers over the door. "Do you feel the way the wood is patterned? The different swirls. I imagine that each door has a different color. The faculty areas are the color red. When I run my hand over the door, I feel the swirls of paint. Red's my least favorite color, and I hate painting. I just put two and two together."

I nodded, and Fabian let my hand go.

"So, do you want to go sit outside? I mean, we already missed first block and half of second, so we can just get back for third."

I gave him my arm as a symbol of agreement. He complied, and we headed outside.

I guided up to a bench outside of the school. It was a half day, and we didn't bother caring about going to classes either way.

"So, what do you think of the school?" Fabian asked me, once we sat down.

I replied. "It's beautiful. Everything I dreamed of and more. I never thought I would ever be able to fit in, anywhere. I thought it was pointless to try."

"I used to feel like that. My mother had told me that even though I couldn't see, that I could still hear. And breathe. And smell. And taste. And feel. She said that my father couldn't feel anything, he was so hopeless to bear with, there was no point in trying."

"I'm sorry. My mom was like that. Heartless. Or so I thought."

"People aren't who think they are. You only find their true colors out after something bad happens."

"Did that happen to you too?"

"It did. But I've overcome it now. But it still hurts. It's like when you like someone, and then you're brokenhearted. You wake up, and tell yourself you're ok, and maybe one day you are. Then you see them again, and you realize you were lying to yourself. And you worry that you deserved everything you got."

I nodded, and I wondered what he'd been through that made him feel this much pain. "Tell me something about you?"

"Like what?"

"Family, friends, girlfriends, anything."

"Well, family. I have two sisters. Cierra and Sophia. Cierra's sixteen, and Sophia's ten. They both go to school at Greenburg Academy."

"Greenburg? That's like, four hours from here, right?"

"Well, that's where they live. With my stepdad. They love him. I've never really been something to be proud of in that house. I mean, despite my grades, guitar playing skills, and writing, they've always thought I was worthless. That's why they were so happy when I got accepted here, although my stepfather refused to pay for my bills. The full scholarship I got was able to cover the expenses."

"Do you ever visit them?"

"The last time I saw-" he paused and corrected himself "-spoke to them, I was ten. Cierra, Sophia, and my stepdad came to visit. Sophia was only six, and she made me this drawing of me in a classroom, and answering a bunch of questions. Cierra was silent the whole time, and I could hear my stepfather just forcing the words out. They used to live near here. He came to tell me they were moving, and they wished for me not to associate myself with the family. They spent a whole of ten minutes there. I could feel Cierra try not to look my way. She was so ashamed of me. Before they left, Sophia gave me a hug, and told me she loved me, no matter what. Then they were gone."

Fabian wasn't crying, but I was. I always thought losing family was the hardest thing. But listening to Fabian, I realized not being loved by them was almost as hard.

Fabian couldn't see, but he knew that tears were cascading down my face. He took his hand, and shakily placed it on my cheek. He wiped away the tears that fell, and when I stopped crying, he took my hand. "Losing them, in that sense, made me realize that life is so crappy, you know?"

I nodded, but he couldn't see. So I squeezed his arm, gently, in understanding.

He sighed. "So, what was next? Oh, right, friends. Well, there's everyone at Anubis. Mainly Mick, Joy, Amber, and Patricia. I don't talk to the others as much. Do you know about the couples?"

"No."

"Oh, well there's Mick and Amber… but they're basically over now. Um, I heard some rumors about Joy and Jerome from Amber, but I'm just assuming it's wrong. I've heard that Mick and Joy went on a date and kissed, and Jerome is working up the courage to ask Mara out."

"How do you know?"

"I saw him struggling to learn sign language. He is ok with it, but he isn't the best. Maybe you could help him out sometime."

"Maybe."

"Well, let's see, what's next… oh, um I heard Patricia has been checking out this boy at school, Eddie. He's in the normal program, so Patricia thinks she has no shot. Yeah, and this information is straight from Joy, so it has to be true."

"They're best friends, right?"

"Yeah, since they were thirteen. They lived a town away from each other, and met when they were both treated in the same hospital. They became best friends, and they both came here together, because their parents thought it was a great chance for them to get better.

"Oh, wait, there's one more couple… um, Alfie and Amber! Alfie has gotten so much better since he entered the program. It took three years, but they are discussing releasing. I couldn't be happier. There is no better friend than Alfie. That is when he isn't pulling pranks on you. Well, anyways the crush on Amber is one-sided, and she never really noticed. Maybe she will now, since her and Mick are done."

"Yeah, maybe."

"Um, you said girlfriends next, right? Well, I've never had one. Big surprise. No one ever wanted to go out with the kid who couldn't see. Girls were probably worried I would kiss a foot instead of a mouth at some point."

"People are cruel. I've never had a boyfriend. They all think I'm the freak, because I can't talk. It's not like it was my choice."

"Frankly, though, I must admit, being handicapped has its positives."

"Like what?"

"Well, you can tell who people really are. If they treat you the same, the person is real, and true. If they treat you differently, they never loved you at all. Plus, sometimes when people feel bad for you, they let you off the hook for small things. Like handing a paper late, forgetting to do the dishes, stuff like that."

"I don't want to be treated different. I wish people would treat me the same."

"They do. Just at times, they let you off. No one ever does it to me, but it's nice to know I have a back up."

"Oh."

"Um, Nina, I have to ask you something."

"Ok. Go ahead."

"Can you describe yourself to me? Like physical characteristics? The only reason I'm asking is because I always ask people, so I can see who they really are."

Nina agreed without hesitation. "Ok. I'm fifteen. I lost my voice at thirteen. I have dirty blonde hair, and green eyes. Um… I have a scar on my cheek from the time I fell off my bike when I was seven. That's it."

"Which cheek?"

"Left."

He smiled, and breathed in, as he was taking in this information instead of air. "Thank you, Nina."

"It was no problem."

"Tell me something about you. About homeschooling, yourself, family." He paused, and corrected his error. "I mean, if you want to."

"It's fine. I went to homeschooling for two years at the orphanage. My teacher, Ms. Roberts, was nice, and she always treated me like just another person. She was the reason why I decided to even come here. She had a thing for the guy in charge, Mr. Richards, but she was always too shy to talk to him. Um, I had five other girls in my room, and there was only one bed. The others, Macy, Lily, Diane, Rosa, and Karen, thought that my 'disease' would rub off on them, so they refused to let me take the bed. The four of them rotated, two each night. I slept on the floor daily. But it's not like I could do anything about it. Anyways, sometimes they'd lock me out, so I'd sleep outside on the floor.

"So, things about me. I like to paint, I love to write, I was a pretty good runner, but then I quit. I used to be a really good singer, but… anyways, my favorite color is white, and my favorite song is Ordinary People by John Legend."

"I love that song," Fabian interjected.

Nina smiled. "It's awesome. It really describes… what I think of the world." She cleared her throat and continued. "Right, um… family. I lost my parents when I was thirteen. I had no other relatives, so I went to the orphanage. Um… not much there…"

"You don't have to go into specifics. I understand."

"Thank you."

The third period bell rang, and Fabian stood up. Nina followed suit, and interloped her arm with his. The clunking of cane, led them to the main doors, where they headed off to class, together.

Hope you liked that!

Spoiler alert: I already have one of the last chapters for this planned out. So DO NOT think I will quit on this story! It is beautiful and perfect!

New rule: I have decided that the first person to review, will get a spoiler for the story. It is in the form of a riddle, and will either be for the next chapter or future chapters. Or I will go crazy and do for a different story. This is goes for all my stories starting NOW!

Good luck!

See ya!

~IfWritersCouldSpeak~