Comradery

Assistance

Kieran nodded, he knew where Danny's first class was.

Walking to the main doors, he caught one and held it for Danny to ensure the kid wasn't hurting himself. Then walking through the crowds, he made sure Danny was close, but not so much to be jostled, which could hurt.

A few students were whispering the rumors about Danny. They were curious, either wanting to learn more for adding to the rumor mill, or making things up for attention, despite the possibility of hurting the kid further.

Moving in between the worst of these kids and Danny, Kieran provided a body shield to physically protect the kid, but whether that was enough to prevent him from hearing the rumors, was difficult to say.

When they got to the classroom, Kieran sat the backpack down and expected to leave without any conversation. They hadn't talked through the hallway, so why now?

Instead, there was a soft comment from the kid, "Why?"

His reasoning was simple and straightforward, so why did he feel so awkward saying it? "You shouldn't have to," that summarized it, and he needed to be off or he'd be late for his own class.

Kieran nodded, he knew where Danny's first class was, and started walking. He made sure he got doors and put himself physically between Danny and many of the crowd.

They didn't talk, but when Kieran dropped his bag at his desk, Danny couldn't help asking, "Why?"

Shrugging Kieran seemed to feel a little awkward. Maybe he was embarrassed to say he felt pity for him? "You shouldn't have to," he simply repeated his earlier statement before going off to his own class.

Feeling awkward himself, Danny could only ask the teacher for the work he'd missed while feeling everyone's eyes on him. There were whispers too, but he ignored them as he didn't want to hear them.

His teacher seemed to calmly know what had caused the bruise so he only asked if he was okay before giving him the work.

It was awkward working through the class as he was tired and sore, but he managed to complete his missed assignment along with getting a good start on his work for the day before class was up.

Students had been whispering, but even the teacher was surprised when he handed the missed work in before slowly packing his bag after the bell rang.

The thought crossed his mind that Kieran might return, but then he dismissed the idea. Kieran had made sure to keep a distinct separation all year so his act of kindness wasn't likely to be repeated. His perceived duty was done; he had his own day to go through without helping him.

To his surprise, a set of feet appeared in his vision again and his bag was lifted away. His eyes followed it up showing his surprise to Kieran's face when their eyes met.

"Where to now?" Kieran asked much as he had before.

Unable to discourage him again, Danny eventually gave in and said where he was going.

Understanding

Ignoring the conversations around them as he walked, Kieran knew that witnessing what had happened was only part of why he was helping the kid. That implied pity, which was a minor factor. But, witnessing what happened was why he realized that he should do it, it wasn't his motivating reason. Although there were a lot of motivations built-in, he was doing it because it was the right thing to do.

Hearing a sigh next to him, Kieran glanced at the smaller student and noticed that he was aware of the whispers. It seemed to make him uncomfortable, but that feeling also seemed to be familiar despite how unpleasant it would be.

"You aren't used to people helping you out, are you?" Kieran noted, Danny's behavior indicated that he was used to being ostracized by his peers, he hadn't leaned on his mother or his aunt when they left after the incident, and he was reluctant to receive even the small assistance of his backpack being carried while he was hurt.

"No, I'm not," there seemed to be a lifetime of reasons behind that simple statement, but Danny didn't elaborate on any of it.

Repeating his motivation, his reasoning, Kieran answered just as simply, "You shouldn't have to be."

To his surprise, Danny had a rather intelligent response, and he was very realistic too.

Maybe he should show his reasoning differently, that even the little things could have larger effects? After all, simply carrying Danny's backpack was making the kid's day better while instigating conversation. "No, but that doesn't mean we can't do what we can to fix some of those things. Sometimes the little things make all the difference." Then he glanced at the kid and kept walking. Danny had shown himself smart enough to understand.

There wasn't any response, so Kieran continued his walk in companionable silence. When he reached Danny's next class, he put his bag down and left for his own classroom.

Continuing to carry Danny's backpack through the day, Kieran wasn't bothered by the commentary from his fellow classmates or Danny's. Whether they thought he pitied the hurt kid, or that he was a fellow geek helping another oddity like himself, they were right, and he was okay with that.

While they were walking, Danny heard the whispers about what had happened to him and why the senior next to him was taking pity on him. Apparently, Kieran had witnessed his tumble down the stairs which meant he probably saw his scars.

Sighing, he hated this feeling, of being watched, talked about, and pitied. He hadn't had much in the way of friends at his old school either. They'd watched him grow up through those awkward early years so they had their opinions of him. Then after his abduction had made a stir, he'd been the center of attention for the brief time he'd been back to school before the end of the year. No one wanted to be around him, but they sure enjoyed gawking from a distance. Now he was back in a similar situation.

"You aren't used to people helping you out, are you?" Kieran surprised him again with his insight.

"No, I'm not," Danny didn't elaborate. He couldn't talk about his father being arrested, his parent's divorce, or his mother's resulting depressions. Ellen was his only pressure release for the problems at home. At school, he just dealt with whatever happened alone.

"You shouldn't have to be," Kieran repeated his statement yet again.

"That seems to be your reasoning for everything. Shouldn't have to or otherwise, life is full of things that aren't the way they should be, and not everything can be fixed either." Danny was still struggling to understand Kieran. Pity was the reaction he was used to, but it didn't seem to be enough of a motivator for Kieran's continued presence.

"No, but that doesn't mean we can't do what we can to fix some of those things. Sometimes the little things make all the difference." Kieran was able to keep up with him and counter his commentary? Danny wasn't used to that. Most people awkwardly dodged conversation with him about here and ran for it. Instead, Kieran just glanced at him and kept walking.

Pondering the difference in Kieran from other students, Danny didn't even notice when Kieran left after dropping his bag in the next class.

The rest of their day repeated the pattern of Kieran carrying Danny's bag from class to class. They didn't talk much, but they seemed to gain some understanding.

Respect

Kieran wasn't sure what he had expected from helping Danny, but it wasn't what he found.

To his surprise, Danny was smart! He had a deeper understanding of people and life than most people, he did well in his classes, and he could even grasp the advanced math that Kieran was taking despite being years behind him academically. The kid was a fellow geek, but he preferred being called a nerd so he understood the commentary and teasing that Kieran was used to. Danny was particularly tight-lipped about his family and home life, but Kieran could understand that his father wasn't in the picture, his mother was reacting badly to something, he had an aunt to help him, and he'd been through something horrifyingly traumatic. All of this made a very responsible, but sensitive, kid with an emotional outlet that seemed to be a mixture of his nerdy pursuits and art.

Still awed, Kieran could clearly remember that first day when he'd taken Danny's bag to the art room. He'd needed help finding his way, an attribute to his art skills being poor stick figures. When he arrived, he'd expected to find what he'd pictured, something akin to the work he saw other kids carry around, but, apparently, Danny stood out here too because his art looked like a mixture of masterpieces!

Not being into art, Kieran could only comment about how realistic it looked.

This brought an awkward response from Danny.

All in all, he grew to respect Danny. The kid faced life's challenges with intelligence and dignity and he didn't let what others did to him diminish those attributes.

The last lesson that Kieran had on this matter was when a larger bully cornered one of the boys Kieran had seen tormenting Danny. Kieran had expected Danny to walk by, maybe gloat, but he certainly didn't expect the kid to create a distraction allowing his tormenter to escape. Then Danny talked his way out of trouble with the larger bully as he turned on him. He didn't need, or want, Kieran to interfere.

At the end of the year, Kieran had a pretty good understanding of Danny. They'd developed something of a comradery, but they still weren't friends per se. Perhaps because he'd ignored the kid for so long, or maybe because Danny seemed to be just as awkward as he was socially?

Danny wanted to think he had a friend, but he could sense that Kieran didn't seem to agree. Instead, they'd further developed their acquaintance until there was something of a comradery.

Kieran only carried his pack until he was well enough to be carrying it before Kieran could arrive to take it. After that, they no longer walked from class to class together as there was no need for Kieran to go out of his way. However, Kieran had started returning his acknowledgments and would perhaps have a brief conversation if they passed in the halls.

Through this, Danny got to know Kieran better. He hadn't carried his bag out of pity, more out of compassion and a duty to someone who could use his help. Danny wasn't sure what to think of this, but he thought it was better than pity so he at least felt better about it.

Also, he discovered a fellow nerd. Kieran loved math and puzzles! When he managed to get his homework done around practice and work, Kieran always had a book of crosswords to work on. Sometimes, he even solved extra math problems simply for the challenge. He played baseball, but he wasn't as shallow as the jocks in their school, he could verbally spar and argue points of depth and understanding. Sure, he wasn't into art, computers, or comics, but Danny could tell that Kieran was a smart and caring person. He was awkward in some respects, and not because of his home life since he had a solid family, so it must be personality or simply that he was different from their peers.

Graduation

Having learned to respect Danny, Kieran was reminded of an old conversation, their second one really. Danny still needed a job. Whether he would use the funds to help around the house, save for college, or just for spending to support his art and nerdy hobbies, he needed to have an income.

Once this crossed his mind, Kieran couldn't shake it.

He no longer had the excuse of not knowing Danny's character, and he didn't have any complaints about what he'd learned.

With this in mind, he talked to his boss and told him about the kid. He was interested in at least giving the kid a chance to prove himself, so he'd hire him when the position opened.

Holding the business card, Kieran waited until one of the conversations with Danny where he got the chance to slip it in and pass the kid the opportunity without making a big deal of it.

Then he left. He didn't feel the need to say anything or make a scene, but he couldn't explain why.

On the day he graduated, Kieran didn't feel like he had a friend in the crowd. All of his peers were more focused on their own graduation. He had the consolation of his family being about, but that still left something missing.

However, as the crowd was dispersing, he noticed a figure walking away. Danny had come to see him graduate? Why didn't he talk to him?

When graduation drew nearer, Danny was surprised when Kieran handed him a business card. "I'm going to college next year, but I told my boss about you. Contact him in August and my job will be waiting for you."

That was the only time Kieran gave him anything, but Danny understood the significance. Kieran had trusted his name to him, had risked his local reputation on the new kid no one else had taken the time to get to know. Thanking him, Danny took care not to lose the card and made sure it was safe.

Then they'd gone about their usual days, but there was a difference. It was Kieran's last day. He was graduating the next weekend. They didn't really say goodbye, the passing of the card was about it, but they didn't feel a need to. For some reason, this wasn't goodbye.

Danny knew Kieran didn't see him in the crowds as he watched his graduation from the shadows.

Kieran had his family surrounding him and seemed to focus on his parents. As an only child with both parents present, he had a lot of attention being showered on him.

Instead, Danny enjoyed seeing what a normal family looked like through the closest friend he'd ever had. Then as the crowd dispersed, he went home and back to his life.

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