II AFFABLE FREAK II

03 - LOST AND FOUND

A thirteen year old boy was sitting by the school's indoor pool. All by himself, staring at the clear water. He had no emotions on his energy drained face, tear strained cheeks now pale.

He didn't even budge when some boys of the same age came upto him and asked what was he doing there.

He didn't bother to answer, hands still around his folded thighs raised upto his chest. The other kids were annoyed by his behavior now and began pulling his hair playfully, trying to get a reaction out of him.

Kids were always like that, no matter which generation they belong. They want to go after their curiosity, involving themselves in things bigger than them.

They don't mean it but sometimes end up hurting others. That's what the lifeless kid was going through.

"Leave him alone!" a girl with a braid and round glasses yelled at the boys. The boys seemed hesitant initially but then they thought there was no use since he wasn't speaking.

They decided to leave. Before that, one of the kids pushed the boy into the pool. Another kid from the group panicked, "What did you do? He doesn't know how to swim!?"

The boys were worried about themselves being punished and ran as fast as they could.

The girl ran too. But towards the pool. The boy was drowning but didn't try to flap his arms or legs as if he wanted this.

The girl dived in and dragged him to the corner. She managed to pull him up onto the ground. The boy was not responding.

She kept thrusting her hands one over the other on his chest, water gushing out of the boy. Still nothing. The girl raised her arms, her hands intertwined and the next moment she hit his chest with all her might. That made the boy sit up straight.

The drenched kid was coughing bad, stopping only after a while. "You okay Asher?" The girl asked, water dripping from her glasses. "Why did you save me?" The boy asked in return.

The girl was surprised, not expecting that as a answer. She stared at his dark eyes for a moment to think about what to say.

"I don't know why you're talking like that but you should know...there are people out there who cares for you deeply, wishes to be with you everyday while some waiting for you at home. If you think doing this will make you feel better than you should think about those people first." The girl said not knowing if it was helping.

The boy gave a faint smile after a long time, which reflected on the girl too. "Thank you, Nemo." he said with a little cheery smile than the earlier one.

The girl chuckled, "I'm gonna let it slide because you seem happy now, but don't call me that just because I look small."

The boy leaned a bit closer, "I called you so because you dived into the pool in your orange tee and white trousers to save my ass" he said, laughing a little now.

"Also because you looked cute." The boy mumbled to himself.

"Can't believe that I'm meeting this Knuckle head in six years after you moved away so suddenly from middle school." Ava said keeping her milkshake down, taking in the grown up version of her once childhood friend.

"And I can't believe you still call me that when I look like this." Asher retorted, moving his hands up and down, pointing towards himself.

No kidding but he did glow up from being a lean kid who could be blown away in the wind and no one would've noticed.

"Hold your horses big guy." She laughed heartily. "You're still a knuckle head to me. But I'm glad I found a familiar face here. Let's stick together till the end, for old times sake, shall we?" Ava hold out her hand for a shake.

"Till the end." Asher said sincerely, holding onto a little more firmly, as if his eyes were promising, he won't leave again like the last time.

Ava opened the door to her dorm, throwing her backpack on the bed. Keeping her phone on the table, she prepared her toiletries and towel for a bath.

"Someone had a busy day." Eleanor chirped, turning her chair like the evil CEOs in old movies. "Huh?" That's all she managed to utter.

After a hectic day of long lectures, she didn't have any brain cells left to read in between the lines. That's when the sloth decided to help the dumb kid.

"She saw a hot dude hugging you when he dropped you at the dorm. I didn't like it at first so then I did a background check on him. Don't ask about the source. Got to know he's the topper of your batch. I approve it. You can always discuss clinical casses." She said all that without lifting her gaze from her papers.

Ava was shocked beyond her wits at who the hell was Scarlett's source and how she still managed to shove in their studies in between the apparently dating scandal.

What Ava forgot was that her three little pups on the other side of the call, were now growling like hounds.

"HE WHAT!?" Joe yelled in shock.

"YOU DATING WHO!? Ethan shrieked in a pitch higher than Joe's.

"He better not leave the campus before I CHOP OFF HIS FREAKIN' HANDS!" Damian shouted the loudest.

You feel alone only when you don't find the faces you're used to. Open your heart a little, and you'll know everyone's looking for someone to be their home.