Fool.

Kenny had been a fool in thinking that when he walked away from Damien that, that would be it. That, in some part of his brain he thought he'd somehow not see him again. Like it had been up until yesterday. But that didn't seem to be the case. It seemed that life had other plans in store for him. Plans that he didn't want to be a part of.

When he went to school yesterday, everything seemed fine. The morning classes passed by per usual, as did lunch. However, it wasn't until after; when his afternoon classes came along, did his troubles begin to surface again. All of them in the form of a tall dark cladded individual named Damien.

At first, he didn't know how to react to seeing the individual that now sat in his History class. And thought about giving into his first instinct to run, but knew that was a bit of an overreaction. So he settled for walking into class and just trying his best to ignore him.

He had thought Damien would try and talk to him during it, but was relieved to find that he didn't. When the class ended, he thought that was it, that he wouldn't see him again. So suffice to say that he was quite shocked when seeing the tall dark male in his following class, and then in the remaining ones thereafter.

Needless to say, he wasn't exactly thrilled to be going back to school the next day and having to go through seeing him all over again.

The morning classes pass by per usual, as does lunch, and up until that point Kenny was fine. But knowing what class was coming next and who he'd see in it, came the creeping feeling from yesterday. Same as last, he finds himself frozen in place in the class doorway, his eyes on Damien sitting at the far end of the classroom. The other male seemed to pay him no mind though, his gaze focused elsewhere. However, that gaze seems to shift onto him as he steps into the class. Kenny freezes for the briefest of seconds, before quickly walking to his seat and sitting down, pretending he didn't see him.

He thinks he can sense something, a smirk, but when he spares a small glance, the other is looking away again. Still, the strange sense of it lingered.

Thankfully, the remaining classes once again pass by without any direct interaction with Damien. Thinking he's in the clear for another day, all he had left to do was get his stuff from his locker and head home.

But as does all things in life, nothing is ever simple.

"Hello Kenneth."

Kenny nearly slams his locker shut at the sound of that voice.

"What do you want?" Kenny asks, peering from behind the locker door, at the tall form of Damien.

"Am I not allowed to greet you?"

"If that's all you wanted to say, then leave already," Kenny replies and looks back into his locker.

"I didn't mean to scare you—"

"You didn't."

"Well regardless, I wanted to ask if we could talk for a while?"

Kenny tenses for a moment before closing his locker and swinging his bag over his shoulder.

"Can't, need to get home," he replies.

"We could talk on your way home?"

"I'm headed home with my sister today."

"I see," Damien murmurs, "well, maybe tomorrow then?"

"Can't, spending time with my girlfriend then," Kenny replies and starts to head off.

"Girlfriend?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I hope that we can talk soon," Damien says after him, not moving from his spot. "We used to be very close when we were young. I'd like to catch up with you a bit."

Kenny stops in step for a moment, his grip on his backpack strap tightening a bit. Blood pumping faster, his grip grows sweaty. He opens his mouth and—

"Kenny!"

He stops and looks up. Karen was now standing at the end of the hall, waiting for him.

"I have to go," Kenny ends up replying with, before continuing on.

He can feel Damien's gaze linger for a while, until he meets up with Karen and the two head off.

The questions his sister asks about his day and how things went, only vaguely catch his interest. His thoughts were much too full on the brief conversation he had with Damien. Which only consumed his thoughts more, as the remainder of the day progressed.

Something about the conversation eats away at him well into the next day. Something that he can't quite place a finger on. Was it guilt? Or something else that ebbed away at his insides? He wasn't sure. But when seeing Damien again, it only seemed to grow.

Maybe part of him was curious what Damien had to say. Or maybe he just wanted to get some things off his chest after all this time. He didn't know. But whatever the case was, he now found himself approaching Damien at the end of their History class.

"Hey," he says, catching him as he leaves class.

Damien stops, seeming almost surprised. Kenny wants to flee the moment his gaze lands on him, but pushes the reactive instinct away.

"Yes?" Damien asks.

"After school," Kenny replies.

"Hm?"

"We can talk after school today."

Damien seems to want to say something more, but Kenny doesn't wait around to hear it and takes his leave.

It doesn't dawn on him that he's meant to go over to his girlfriend's house after school that day, not until receiving a text from her during last period. His mind was so preoccupied, that he actually forgot about it. Shooting a quick text back, he tells her he can't go over today and closes his phone.

But despite it, he still finds her waiting in front of his locker at the end of the day.

"Sally?" he asks, confused, "What are you doing here? I thought you were heading home right away. Didn't you get my message?"

"I did but, I couldn't help but worry that maybe you weren't feeling very well or something. So I just wanted to check in on you and see if you were alright," she replies.

"I'm fine," Kenny tells her and offers a small smile, "see?"

"Then why did you—"

"Oh my, am I interrupting something?"

Kenny and Sally pause, before their gazes are slowly drawn over to the new occupant who has now joined their small conversation.

Damien.

"Who…?" Sally trails off, confused.

There's a brief moment of freeze when Kenny makes eye contact with Damien, before he quickly looks elsewhere.

"Sally this is uh, Damien," Kenny informs, "he's… an old friend of mine. And recently came back to town not too long ago. He asked if we could catch up today and I agreed. But I kinda forgot that we were supposed to hangout today too, sorry."

"Oh," Sally replies. There's a pause, as if she's processing something more behind her gaze while examining Damien. "Alright then," she finally says, "I'm just glad to know that you're not sick or anything."

"Sorry," Kenny apologizes again.

"It's fine," she shakes her head, "you two probably have lots to catch up on. We can just reschedule for later," she smiles.

"Thanks," Kenny says and returns the smile.

"Text me later?" Sally asks, and gives a quick peck on Kenny's cheek.

"Yeah," Kenny replies.

"Sorry for stealing your boyfriend away," Damien says and Sally laughs.

"You two have fun," she says, taking her leave with a small wave, "I'll see you later Kenny!"

"She seems nice," Damien says, once she's gone.

"She is," Kenny murmurs and opens his locker.

"Is she?"

"Yes."

"No trouble in paradise then, I assume?"

"None."

There's a moment of silence as Kenny rummages through his things in his locker.

"I'm curious to know why you changed your mind to talk with me?"

"So am I," Kenny replies, shutting his locker and slinging his bag on, "don't make me regret it."

They leave the school grounds and walk until coming to a bench and taking a seat there. The whole way there is silent and mildly apprehensive for Kenny. He wasn't sure what was about to unfold, but he had already convinced himself to come this far. There was no turning back now.

"So?" Kenny speaks up, "What did you want to talk about?"

"Whatever you wish to talk about," Damien replies.

"I thought you were the one who wanted to talk to me and ask me the questions. Not me asking you."

"I have many questions I could ask you, but I doubt you'd feel comfortable answering them all. So that's why I say, whatever you wish to talk about."

Kenny pauses, while he knew he was right, it didn't stop him from being both frustrated and annoyed with Damien by that response. Hell, he was the one who wanted to talk with Kenny in the first place! And now this? Kenny's irritation grows, but he knew this was Damien who he was dealing with, not someone else. Would he really be willing to answer any question he'd be asked by him?

"Fine then," Kenny sighs, taking the initiative, "why did you come back?"

"I have… my reasons."

"Reasons? That's all?"

"For the time being, yes."

Kenny sighs and shakes his head at that.

"Okay then, where did you go?"

"Away."

Kenny glares at him.

"Look, if this is how it's going to go, then I might as well just leave now."

"I'm sorry, but just as you have your reasons, I do as well."

Kenny frowns at that.

"Then you ask me something, or we're just going to go around in circles all day," he tells him, giving into frustration.

There was no way he was going to play this dance with him for answers. He was much too tired for this shit.

"Alright then," Damien says, "Why haven't you and Craig spoken since I left?"

The moment the question is asked, Kenny immediately regrets telling Damien to ask the questions.

"Oh… I don't know… we just drifted apart is all. I guess…"

Kenny's gaze drifts elsewhere and stays there. It was a lie. And he knew it was. But he wasn't going to admit it.

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

There's a knot that forms in Kenny's gut under Damien's weighted gaze. One of guilt.

"That's quite a shame," Damien says, "then how's your social life? Made any new friends since last?"

The questions are much easier to answer this time around, but Kenny's gaze remains averted. Unable to look at him again.

"Yeah, a few I guess," he replies.

"Many relationships?"

"Only a couple. My current one with Sally, then one from 2 years ago."

"I see."

There's a bit more of small exchange between the two, before Damien takes his leave. The chat doesn't last as long as Kenny thought it would, and figures the cold must be why it's cut short. Which Kenny himself was also starting to feel by the time their conversation came to its end.

It wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. Damien thankfully kept the questions to simple ones after he asked about Craig. Kenny's nerves had mostly calmed over time while talking with him. Which made him feel a bit dumb for how he was reacting before. There had been an odd sense that drifted through him while talking with him, one he couldn't quite place. But things were fine. He was fine. Everything was going to be just fine. In fact, he was so sure that he was going to be fine, that he even agreed to talk with Damien again some time. Yup, everything was going to be just fine. Fiiiine and dandy.

His thoughts quiet and a hand runs down his tired face.

"What the hell am I doing…" he mumbles.