Shadows linger
Only to my eye
I see you, I feel you
Don't leave my side
It's not fair
Just when I found my world
They took you, they broke you, they tore out your heart

Ralph's strong arms picked me up off the cold ground and pulled me into a tight embrace.

"I better not see you lay so much as a finger on Angel or you'll be sorry," Ralph's masculine voice threatened.

Jack raised an eyebrow, clearly intimidated, but keeping a cool composure. "Whatever, Ralphie. We have to go to choir practice anyways." He beckoned to his cloaked peers and they obediently stood to follow. As they filed out of the cafeteria, Jack winked at me on the way out. "I'll see you later, beautiful." And with that, he was gone.

Ralph rolled his eyes before he turned to me. "Are you okay?" He asked.

Tears streamed uncontrollably down my face as my brain struggled to process all my feelings. I wasn't crying because I was sad or scared or worried. I was crying because I always had the sickening thought that I would never see Ralph again lurking in the back of my mind. And now here he was, showing up like my knight in shining armour, saving me and being here when I needed him most. The overwhelming feeling of joy that spread through me like wildfire was unfathomable as I struggled to make a sound.

"Ralph." It was the only thing I could croak out. I drank in the sight of him. Time had done him well. I hadn't seen Ralph since he was 17, and here he was now nearing 20. His face had thinned out and become more masculine. He had a slight 5 o'clock shadow with brooding shoulders and a few extra inches on his height. He had to have been a little over six feet tall now. I looked into his familiar green eyes and instantly felt at home. They weren't as full of life as they had once been, but they still had some fight and love left in them.

"Angel."

The both of us just stared at each other as if neither one could believe the other was actually there. I couldn't imagine what I looked like to him this time later. I was the epitome of brokenness. All the life had been taken out of my eyes. Instead of a shining hazel, they were now a dull, greenish colour. Thick, dark circles hung underneath my eyes, implying I didn't know how to sleep properly at night. My dark brown hair hung limply in waves that were a little too long for my liking, and I was sickly scrawny. I wasn't a pretty little girl anymore; I was an 18 year old something that felt hopeless, lost, and defeated.

My eyes bore into Ralph's and he gazed back obsessively. Then I suddenly launched myself forward into his arms, hugging as tightly as I could. Like a breaking dam, the tears flooded out of my eyes at an uncontrollable rate. My chest heaved in as out as I struggled to breathe in between choked sobs. Ralph's arms wrapped around me as he kissed the top of my head.

"Come with me."

He led me to the dormitories and stopped in front of room 202. He effortlessly scooped me up and carried me inside bridal style, as if I weighed nothing at all. I sighed and snuggled against his chest, appreciating his gesture; a public meltdown on my first day here would probably not help my quest for normalcy. Ralph laid back onto the bed and pulled me with him, cuddling me up against his chest. My tears began to stop as I melted into him, finally relaxing my tense muscles.

"I'm awful glad to see you again," he whispered in my ear. The heat of his breath gave me goosebumps that prickled across my arms and legs. His possessive grip on me tightened.

"I'm glad to see you too," I softly replied. A whisper was all I could muster. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again."

His hand ran down my back and through my hair, gently stroking me affectionately. "I'm here now, baby."

I smiled, a genuine smile this time, and nuzzled against him. "So what have you been up to since I saw you last?" I asked curiously. I wanted to know everything I could about my Ralph.

Ralph's face grew solemn as he drew a breath. "I went through a rough time after all the..." He paused and furrowed his brow, searching for the right word. "Aftermath of it all. It wasn't easy, Angel. I struggled more than you could imagine."

I frowned. I know the feeling, Ralph, my subconscious sympathized. Still, I raised my head off his chest to look at him.

"I struggled too. We went through some pretty traumatizing events, especially for kids our age. PTSD is completely normal after all this," I recited, sounding a bit like the lectures my psychiatrists would drone at me during my frequent visits.

Ralph didn't look convinced, as his facial reactions remained indifferent. He lazily shrugged as he decided to change the subject.

"I'm majoring in criminal justice here," he started. "I wanna get into a field that stops all the bad in the world." His face remained a neutral mask. I raised an eyebrow, wondering what kind of emotions he was hiding. Something seemed off.

"I'm majoring in journalism," I replied back simply. It was no where as exciting as his field of major.

Ralph pulled me back to him and held me a little too tightly for my liking. I felt him slightly quivering, as his breath hitched in his throat. My arms held him back, and I could have sworn I heard Ralph trying to holding back tears.

It was then I realized my protector, my hero, was just as broken and fragile as I was.