Blooming

The exams came and went, now the friends enjoyed the parties their classes hosted on the last day before Christmas break. Food galore and drinks to drive ones bladder crazy. Secret Santa's were new to Aelita though, but soon she got the hang of the concept. After the last bell rang, Aelita walked out of the school and going through the front of the school where countless other students waited for rides to pick them up.

She wanted to get a taste of the cold and cloudy day outside, and instead she found someone sitting on a bench. Her heart began to race because the person was wearing a hoodie and she wondered if it was Jeremie. As she walked closer to the student she got to see it was just Nathan. She breathed a sigh of relief and took a seat by him.

"Well fancy meeting you here." She laughed putting her binder beside her.

Nathan didn't say a thing he just stared out to the parking lot with one earphone in.

"Is there something the matter Nathan?" she felt worried.

Aelita felt even more when see noticed a tear fall from his right eye. She tried to be optimistic and thought his eyes where getting dry from the cold front air. But soon he started to sniffle and attempted to suck in his tears. He looked down and away from her.

"Please tell me what's bothering you?" she began to plead and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Leave me alone!" he snapped at her and got up.

Nathan started to walk away real fast, she got up and grabbed his arm. But it looked like it felt like venom to him. Yanking his arm free he ran away from her he disappeared behind the music building to the dorms. Aelita felt sad and pained, was she the cause of his abrupt behavior?

Later on she went to her dorm and found her other friends there playing on Guerrmo's new game platform. Terra looked from the game and saw her favorite pink haired girl looking depressed.

"Ha ha! I got you….you just died by my plasma gun!" Kila roared with accomplishment throwing her fist into the air.

Guerrmo kept his glance on the screen and kept his focus on it. While Terra got up and walked to her friend sitting on Kila's bed.

"What happened, you look like you failed a test or something?" Terra put her arm around Aelita.

"I ran into Nathan out by the front of the school, he wasn't in the best of moods." Aelita looked to the floor, "I tried to talk to him but he just brushed me off like a flea. Did I do something, am I offending!" Aelita tried to answer herself even though Terra was to answer.

Just then Guerrmo heard her and pu the game on pause, causing Kila to get furious.

"Why did you stop for huh I was about to beat you?" Kila asked slamming her controller to the floor.

"I know why he's acting like that. Don't worry it's not you, really it's to do with his family." He explained.

"His family?" Aelita felt confused.

"Yes, things I suppose are not going so well at his home. Lately I think from past issues or something he held in all of his emotions and so he's all bottled up. It must of gotten bad because of the holidays coming up, if I remember it has to do with the arguing and loss of family that's got him crabby. Word of advice be careful around him when he's going through the relief phase, he might harm you by accident." Guerrmo warned.

"What do you mean last phase?" Terra and Aelita asked in unison.

"I think he gathers all of that into a rage and lets it out at any time. Recently it's been his room, found it with holes in the walls and floor I think he punched. He won't remember a thing after the whole mess, no memory." He sighed and attempted to get back to the game.

"Wow, standerd case of repression but over stimulated. Aelita I think it's best you stay away from him till he cools off. Hey why don't you go to the cafeteria and get a soda and come back, it'll help you take him off your mind." Terra suggested.

"Okay, well I'll be back in a couple." She waved her friends and left.

She took down the three level stairs, passing a few students either dressed up and a couple of punk rocker Goths. Going through the main halls and through the history hall, she exited to the back of the alley way to the science portables. The cafeteria was just a short stroll away, but suddenly she hears grunts coming from the opposite way to the science rooms.

Curiosity took the best of her and she proceeded to the sounds of what now became pain. She walked to the corner and got a bad vibe just being so close. But her mind again took over and she jumped into the open sound area.

One could say her eyes opened like the whole sky went black with shock. What was making the grunting sounds was a fight. Two boys held someone against the wall while another was throwing free punches at that persons stomach and face. She turned to the right and saw Kathleen watching the event but turned sour when she noticed the familiar pink haired girl.

"Stop!" the girl shouted.

At that the three boys stopped like dogs and Nathan fell to the ground. Aelita rushed to him without hesitation and flipped him over.

"You see that's what you get for messin with me, never get between me and my work or else? And you, what happened to him will be worse when I get my hands on you. Lets get out of here." She waved and that gang walked away laughing.

Aelita began to cry a little and got her cell out, she called Terra and let her know of what went down. Terra helped her calm down and gave her word she'd be down with help. So a few minutes to kill before some aid came, leaving Aelita with the semi conscious boy alone.

"You didn't have to protect me you know, I'm new and if I did something wrong then I should pay for it and no one else." She choked back her tears.

The black haired boy muffled some words, "I've…been looking…for someone…special.", he smiled a little through the bloody and split lip, "I think that person is you…I'll be okay just a few days in bed should…..do me good."

"What are you talking about?" she tried to make sense of the first part.

"I have had a troubled past….all I want is a little love from an angel to get me by." He coughed but with the pain from his bruised diaphragm.

"Iam I that angel?" she asked as her tears fell on his face.

"Y….ye…..yes." he got out and quieted.

"Iam I worth all this trouble?" she said occupying herself by dusting off his shirt and the blood from his face.

Unfortunately he wasn't able to answer that when a cop pushed Aelita out of the way and tended to the fallen boy. Aelita got up and she saw her dorm mates and Guerrmo running to her side.

Boy, that cloudy day sure had it's stormy moment.

Nathan filed a report about his attackers and stayed in the infirmary that day. Aelita left with Kila back her dorm room with a soda she was given. It wasn't till the next day did they get to see him but with the temporary scares and bruises. The kind pink haired girl went to his dorm this time, she was greeted by his best friend who had a wooden katana on his bed. She banished the thoughts of what it's uses when in a tight situation against enemies. There lay her savior on his bed asleep, Guerrmo left her with him to get some coffee in the level's student lounge for him and her.

She sat by his bed and combed his hair way from his forehead. Looking over his body, she saw all the bruises since his shirt was off. Apparently Guerrmo turned on his stereo to help his friend recover peacefully. It was Coldplay's Amsterdam, a band she hadn't heard before.

Come on, oh my star is fading,
And I swerve out of control,
If I, if I'd only waited,
I'd not be stuck here in this hole,
Come here, oh my star is fading,
And I swerve out of control,
And I swear, I waited and waited,
I've got to get out of this hole

But time is on your side, its on your side, now
Not pushing you down, and all around,
It's no cause for concern

Come on, oh my star is fading,
And I see no chance of release,
And I know I'm dead on the surface,
But I am screaming underneath

And time is on your side, its on your side, now
Not pushing you down, and all around,
No it's no cause for concern

Stuck on the end of this ball and chain,
And I'm on my way back down again,
Stood on the edge, tied to the noose,
Sick to the stomach

You can say what you mean,
But it won't change a thing,
I'm sick of the secrets,
Stood on the edge, tied to the noose,
And you came along and you cut me loose,
You came along and you cut me loose,
You came along and you cut me loose

Something about that song felt like it spoke of what he had told her before the help came. She thought of it's words to what Nathan was going through, then Guerrmo came back with two cups.

"I got Café Mocha, I hope you like chocolate with your coffee?" he chuckled.

Aelita drank her beverage carefully cause it was hot, while Guerrmo gave her further info of what led to him getting beat up so bad. The rest of the day they talked and pasted the time and almost got her dorm mates worried. But with a quick call on the cell Aelita cleared up things and spent the rest of the afternoon with Nathan and Guerrmo.

"Personally, I think he's just lookin for true love. And you and him really seem to fit that definition." He told her.

"He protects me like I'm his…his.." her sentence was finished by Guerrmo.

"Love?"

She didn't say anything and kept her gaze on the boy sleeping from the pain killers and exhaustion.

Out of the blue she knelt by Nathan and slowly drew closer to his face. Kissing him on the lips ever so softly for ten seconds or so. She withdrew and touched his face getting up.

"Well tell him I visited if he wakes up." She asked starting to leave, it was close to sunset now.

"Sure" Guerrmo promised as she closed the door quietly and left.

Aelita got to her dorm room with a quaint smile, she spent the rest of the evening introducing Jeremie to her dorm mates. It was nice and very amusing when Kila brought up Odd.

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