Frederick walked home, now regretting her choice to not take Marucho back with her. He could have run away again, taken another boat back to where he came from. Would that make her a terrible mother? It would seem like such an obvious question for some but for Frederick it was hard.
Marucho had already made an impression to be one to run away from things that he didn't want to do. He always covered himself up, hid himself from the rest of the world. It would make her a Allie mother to let her child do that to themselves, right? Probably. But she would be even crueler to not let them have space. Frederick didn't really know what to think.
She had never been in Marucho's shoes, so she shouldn't assume the way that he walks in them was wrong. Wrong. What was wrong with Marucho? She laughed, knowing she would probably never get the answer now. Maybe there really wasn't anything wrong with Marucho in the first place. Frederick wished that Marucho would have just willingly went to the doctors with her. Then she would have an answer and she would be able to fix it. Because that's what doctors do. They fix problems.
Marucho walked down the riverbank. He wondered if he should just give up. Let the people have him again like they did at his home. Was there any other option for him? As he walked he saw the fields in the distance.
Options. His last option. Marucho started to run again. There really was no reason to, but he felt like he had to. He felt like every breath he took was another breath of relief. He couldn't just give up. Well, not right now at least. He had just one more option.
One more chance. His last chance to see them. His last chance to feel accepted. He jumped over the gate and felt hope as he saw that big barn. He ran with every step being just as painful but relieving as the last. His body told him to stop but his mind told him to just keep running. He couldn't give up until he was there. He went to the barn and opened one of the doors.
His hope vanished as he saw that there was no one inside. He fell to his knees. His mind finally agreeing with his legs that it was time. His last hope was gone. Maybe he was taken away, punished for the last time. Marucho didn't want to think about the fact that Allie could be gone from his life forever. But he couldn't stop himself.
He took of his box, letting the tears fall freely onto it. It made it look like the box was crying too. The paint had already been smeared from the wet rocks near the river, but his tears made the paint smear in lines now. The box wouldn't be as good of use now that it was ruined. But what was the point in wearing it anyways when there was no hope. He threw it to the other side of the barn, making it bang against the wall.
The sound would probably attract someone to him, but he didn't care. It was finally time to give up. He would let that doctor inspect him, then he would be taken away every other day to be harvested. That was how fate was. And then he heard a creak of the door behind him. It was probably Frederick coming to pick him up.
He turned around to look the person in the eyes. And when he saw them, his eyes opened wider and he could feel his sobs becoming heavier. The person fell down to Marucho's height and hugged him. Marucho leaned into the touch. His hope was right there.
"Geppy, I thought you left me." Allie said. Marucho shook his head in the crook of Allie's shoulder. It was weird how neither of them acknowledged the fact that Marucho's box was across the room. Their only focus was on the fact that the other was still there.
Allie had been the first to calm down and realize that it would be impossible to touch Marucho's hair through a cardboard box. He looked down to see the back of Marucho's head.
"Marucho? What happened to the cardboard box?" Allie asked. Marucho stayed against Allie, thinking about whether or not he really wanted to show him. But Allie had the courage to show Marucho his face, so he should do the same. Marucho pulled away and looked at Allie with his diamond eyes. Allie looked at him in shock.
He grabbed his face and his glove was ripped slightly thanks to three shards on the right side of his face. But Allie didn't pull his hand away. Marucho smiled at the thoughtful gesture. Or maybe Allie was just stupid, but it would be rude of him to assume that.
"Wow Marucho. You look beautiful." Marucho averted his gaze in embarrassment. He felt bad graze his fingers over the blue freckles on Marucho's face and smiled wider. He should have felt uncomfortable in the situation, like he did with the other people. But Allie made him feel safe. Marucho felt his cheeks warm. A sensation that he had never felt before. His heart was quickening at every gentle touch on his face.
"Marucho, are you blushing?" Allie asked. Marucho felt his heart quicken even more in the embarrassment of being caught. He shook his head and turned away from Allie.
He knew what blushing meant. In his home town, they all talked about how love made them blush and feel a certain way. How their hearts would beat faster when a certain boy walked in the room. Marucho was never a part of these conversations, he heard everything that he knew about life from the nurses that cared for his wounds after treatment talking to other nurses. Or from his mom, who would sometimes come home and talk about the drama she had, knowing he wouldn't talk back.
"Marucho, you don't have to be embarrassed." Allie said. Marucho looked at him. He had a stupid smile on his face, purposefully showing his teeth.
"See, I'm not embarrassed about how I look!" Allie said. Marucho doubted that he loved Allie already, but he wouldn't mind if he did.
"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." Allie said. Marucho shook his head. "I didn't?" Allie asked. Marucho nodded.
Allie sighed, "okay, that's good." Marucho wiped the last of his tears from his face and stood up. He went to go get his mask back from the corner of the room and walk back to Allie. He pulled Allie inside the barn and closed the door. The barn became darker.
"Why'd you close the door?" Ba asked. Marucho took off the glove from his left hand, exposing the bone to the dark. Slowly, the diamond started to glow the same as his eyes. Allie reached for the hand but stopped halfway and looked at Marucho.
"Can I?" Marucho nodded and held his hand out to Allie. Allie took his gloved hand and carefully grabbed Marucho's exposed one. Held the hand carefully, and looked at Marucho for any sign of pain. Then he took off the glove from his right hand and interlocked their fingers. Marucho looked at Allie with confusion, but squeezed his hand in the grip as well. Allie smiled excitedly at the two of their hands.
"Look, now we both look pretty." Marucho shook his head. "What?" Marucho pointed at himself and shook his head. "But you are pretty, Marucho." Marucho let go off Allie's hand and pulled it away. He pointed at the bone sticking out and shook his head again.
'This is ugly.' Marucho mouthed.
"I'm sorry Marucho. I can't read lips that well." Allie said as he gloved up his hand again. Marucho smiled to show he understood. Allie then jumped up from the floor.
"Oh! Marucho come here!" Allie yelled as he ran to one of the corners of the room. Marucho followed him, letting his lit up hand guide him through the barn. When he got there, Allie guided his hand to the wall to light up the carving. Marucho's jaw dropped when he saw it.
"It's you, Marucho!" Marucho traced over the carving with his thumb, since he couldn't feel anything with his bone.
"I guess I have to make another one now too." Allie said as he walked around Marucho to another part of the wall. He sat down and got to work.
"Can you look at me?" Allie asked as he placed the glove he took off beside him. Marucho looked away from the first carving to look at Allie.
"Okay, now sit down too. It's going to take some time." Marucho sat down, putting his left hand on his right shoulder to illuminate his face.
"Perfect!" Allie said. Marucho watched as he started to draw Marucho's hair. He drew a base, then he started to carve in swoops of lines to make it more realistic. Then he drew Marucho's eyes, then eyebrows, nose, lips, and head shape. He drew his ears and then his neck and shoulders, making sure to include the hand resting on them. Marucho looked normal then. Like there was nothing wrong with him in the first place.
But Allie wasn't done. Marucho thought that Allie would just leave the carving at that, no mention of any insecurities. But Allie drew them so confidently on. Marucho never thought of them to be something to be proud of, but as he saw them being drawn on the wall, he felt proud. Proud that he wasn't just that normal looking person. Proud because they were something that Allie would even slightly want to include in the drawing. Maybe he wanted to include them because they were a part of Marucho. But Marucho wanted to think that Allie drew them because they looked pretty on him.
When Allie was done, Marucho took his place to look at it. "Sorry it doesn't look the best. I'm not too good at drawing faces." Marucho looked at Allie with a face of disproval.
"Okay, okay. I did good." Allie said. Marucho smiled and nodded. Allie smiled and looked at Marucho's face of complete admiration. The drawing really couldn't have been that good. Could it?
"Wait, Marucho." Marucho turned to look at him.
"Why are you here? Didn't your mom take you away?" Allie asked. Marucho nodded. Then he pointed to himself and used his index and middle finger to show the hand man running across his arm.
"YOU RAN AWAY?" Allie yelled. Marucho nodded, face not showing any regret or guilt.
"Marucho, you have to go back home and apologize to Frederick." Allie said as he stood up and dusting himself off. Marucho shook his head.
"Marucho, you can't be here if she doesn't want you here. Especially since she doesn't want you around me." Allie explained. Marucho just shook his head again.
'I'm staying here.' He mouthed and crossed his arms.
Allie breathed out in shock, "Marucho? You can't be serious." Marucho nodded. "Marucho. You need to go back home." Allie stated.
'If I go home then I won't ever be able to see you again.' Marucho said.
Allie sighed. "Marucho, I already told you that I can't understand what you're saying." And Marucho remembered, he couldn't talk to Allie either. But he was safe, he could probably speak with him. Right? That was the only way that he would be able to stay with Allie. But, as much as he wanted to, he couldn't fully convince himself to talk to him. Not yet. Marucho just hid in his cover and curled up.
"Marucho? Why don't you want to go back home? You'll just get into more trouble if they find you here." Allie said as he approached him. Marucho shook his head, then he put a finger to his lips to tell Allie to keep quiet.
"No, they'll be looking for you and then when they find you, we'll both be in trouble." Allie said, trying to reason with Marucho for the last time. Marucho grabbed onto his box and showed it to Allie, shaking his head.
"What's wrong with it? The paint?" Marucho nodded. "Just paint over it again! Then it'll be as good as new!" Marucho held the box close to him.
'I can't.'
"Come on Marucho, surely that's not the only reason you don't want to go back home." Marucho showed no reaction.
Allie sighed, "okay Marucho. You can stay here. But only for a little bit, like one or two days." Marucho smiled and nodded. He knew that he probably wouldn't like leaving, but he liked that Allie was giving him a place to stay.
"Okay, you know that you won't be able to come out of here, right?" Marucho nodded.
"And I'm going to be outside for most of the day." Marucho shook his head. "What do you mean, 'no?'" Marucho pointed to Allie and then the ground.
"Wha- I have to do chores and take care of the animals and farm. I have to go outside to do those things. I can't just stay in here the whole time." Allie joked. But the look on Marucho's face made it clear that Marucho was serious.
"You want me to stay in here instead. Marucho, how am I going to do that?" Marucho just stared at him and let him come up with the answer himself.
"You want me to get in trouble, don't you?" Marucho nodded. Allie thought for a second and then sighed.
"Okay, just wait here. Hide behind the hay bales, I'll make sure Tate doesn't see you." Marucho hid behind the bales and Allie repositioned some to keep him completely out of sight. Then he left the barn. Marucho waited patiently until he heard yelling from outside the barn.
Then he heard the door open, "ye know better than ta be doin' that. Now ye really got me mad. Two weeks. Ta think ya changed." Tate said harshly.
"Yes ma'am. I'm sorry." Allie replied. Then the door was closed and Allie happily approached Marucho.
"I think I'm quite a good actor, don't you?" Marucho 'laughed' as Allie explained what he did.
And soon, the day turned into night and Allie was asleep in the opposite corner of Marucho. Marucho really wished he had run away on a day that he was able to wear his hoodie. He looked over to Allie and started to crawl over to him. When he got there, he sat beside him and leaned onto him.
He immediately found himself heating up. He had heard his mom talk about how people who cared about each other slept together. And the thought of him caring about Allie, and Allie caring about him was enough to make him comfortable enough to fall asleep with Allie.
It was a comfortableness that he hoped he could experience every night.