Chapter 2

Before he could type anything, a message from Rain popped up on his screen.

Rain: "Hey. Is everything okay?" 

Lyke: "Yeah"

Rain: "Why have you been avoiding me then? Did I do something wrong? If I did something wrong then you can tell me." 

Lyke: "No you didn't do anything wrong." 

Rain: "Okay... can you tell me what's going on?" 

Lyke: "No, nothing's wrong." 

Rain: "Obviously there is, Lyke. She's been texting you, hasn't she? Nicky?" 

He sat for a minute thinking about how he should respond or whether he should respond at all. If he responded, would Rain go to Nicky? How would she respond?

Rain: "When you asked who I gave your number, you asked because of her, right? Nicky would have told you it was her if she were texting you about the club. So you would know who I gave it to if she told you. and if she didn't and the message was talking about the club, you would have known who it was still. But you didn't. I thought maybe she was texting you with bad intentions. That's the only thing I could like of as a reason to why you're avoiding me."

Lyke: "You don't know anything, so stop acting like you do." 

Rain: "But I'm right, right? You can tell me." 

Lyke: "You always pry and pry and pry, Rain. Why can't you just leave it be? If I ask you to leave me alone, then leave me alone. If I tell you I hate you, would you just listen to me? I don't need you to sit there and tell me what you think you know. All you need to know is that being close to me won't get you anywhere. It'll just make me hate you even more than I already do."

Rain: "Aren't you tired?" 

Lyke: "Of what?"

Rain: "Of being afraid. Don't you know how to just ask for help? Or are you so insistent on doing everything by yourself?"

Lyke yelled and threw his phone at the ground. Of course he was tired, but if he wasn't afraid, would he even be human? Wasn't it only natural to be afraid? And if he asked for help, what would happen then? What Rain didn't understand was that it wasn't so easy to ask for help when all the help Lyke ever received was just false promises and lies.

The shattered phone screen lay on the ground as tears traveled down Lyke's face. The fist that hit his head repeatedly was a reminder that everything he was doing now was only for the better. He had to know it was for the better and one day he would be able to live his life peacefully like he always wanted.

-

Tuesday 

Jay was back on campus.

Rain wasn't waiting by the group as usual. After the events of the previous night, it wasn't a surprise. After all, Lyke had all the intention to hurt Rain with his words as much as he possibly could.

Why would he be surprised?

"Good morning!" Lyke greeted his friends normally attempting to mask how scared he really was.

"Where is your first class? I'll walk you," Olive quickly said.

"It's over in the music department. That's where all my classes are today."

"Okay. I'll walk you over. Don't wander off by yourself. I'll come and get you for lunch."

Lyke nodded his head, separating from Sana and Lin, walking side by side with Olive. She surveyed the area like a hawk, making sure that Jay wasn't in sight.

"Lyke," Olive started as they walked, "Why did you say that to Rain?" Lyke paused. 

"What did he do wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing."

"Then why would you say that?"

"Because. I wanted to hurt him as much as possible."

"Lyke," Olive turned around suddenly, " It's okay for you to talk to me. I promise you, I won't do anything to hurt you. I'm here to help."

"Olive it's fine. There's nothing wrong. He just doesn't need to be around me."

"But what do you mean? Why? I want you to talk to me," Olive replied.

"I told you already, Olive. Please leave it."

"You haven't told me anything. Nothing you are saying makes any sense. Can you tell me? Something? Anything?" She was practically begging now.

"What do you want from me?" he said.

"What do you mean, Lyke? I said I just want you to talk to me."

The persistence broke something in him. It was like a wave of anxiety came crashing down on him and there was no way for him to breathe.

"Lyke?" Olive reached out her hand and placed it gently on Lyke's shoulder.

"Please don't," Lyke flinched away.

"I'm sorry. I'll stay back here," Olive stepped back, "But can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I'm exhausted, Olive, that's what's wrong, and I need to go to class and do all my work like nothing is wrong. I mean I need to function as if there isn't a guy walking around who tried to kill me."

"I'm sorry."

"I think I'll walk myself to class. Thanks."

The rest of his day was spent without interaction, the hood of his sweatshirt wrapped to the side of his face for comfort. It was the most alone he had felt since he started school there.

Again, he was isolated.

He was utterly alone.

He kept his head low as he walked quickly past the cooking club and towards the front gate. He didn't want to talk to anyone or do anything except lay in his bed and sleep. The past 24 hours had drained him through and through, so much so that he couldn't even think about what the next minute would look like. As if he hadn't already heard enough, the gods weren't ever going to let him have peace. As he walked past the cooking club door, Rain speaking to Nicky could be heard.

"What did you text him?" Rain asked angrily.

"Who?" Nicky responded with clear agitation.

"Lyke. What did you text him? What did you say to make him suddenly say he hates me? I know it was you."

"I didn't do anything. If he says he doesn't like you, then why are you still going after him? He always seemed rude to me, maybe he never liked you to begin with. Besides, he's bad news."

"Because I know it's not true. He didn't hate me before and he doesn't hate me now. I know it," Rain said.

"What? How would you know? He barely speaks anyway. He's just a rude know-it-all. The other day he pushed me to the ground. I gave him another chance in the club instead of kicking him. I hope he uses my gracious chance to fix his attitude." Rain ignored Nicky as he stood in thought.

"If I find out it was you, consider yourself dead to me." Nicky looked dumbfounded as Rain walked away, stunned that he didn't seem to care about the accusation she made and even more shocked that she might soon mean nothing to him.

"Hello?" Nicky's voice rang out again after a silent 30 seconds.

"He just came to ask me about him too." There was a pause. "He thought you did something to him? I wish you would. Rain is obsessed with him. He didn't even care about me, only that sad little bitch. Hm? Yeah, I'll text instead. Bye."

Lyke stood in silence for a moment then continued on his way. He couldn't have cared less at the moment, but the pain set in later as he sat on his bed waiting for a text that wouldn't come.

*Ding*

"What did you do to get him so obsessed with you? You're probably some dirty bastard, right? Cute face, nice facade but your just a dirty whore aren't you? You've got two days to fix it."

Fix it.

He wished he could fix it, whatever "it" was.

-

Wednesday 

Lyke dragged himself out of bed, not wanting to start the day but not wanting to skip class either. His new goal was to try and avoid everyone he could.

That didn't work out. By the end of the day, a couple of girls came to him, asking about his absence from Cooking Club.

"Lyke! Come on, Ni!" One of the girls called out.

"Hey Noelle, hey Ni. What's up?" He responded as they ran up.

"Well-" Nicole (Ni) started but an excited Noelle interrupted. "Cooking club is today, are you coming? We all miss you, please come back."

He didn't want to go back after what he had heard, but the girl's pleading eyes made him feel sorry for being absent without notice.

He smiled gently, "Alright, alright lead the way. What are we making?" The two continued to talk his ear off until they all got to the club room. Nicky seemed disgusted by Lykes presence as usual, but this time some of the members began to pick up on Nicky's disdain, causing them to shy away from her and to Lyke. The members gathered around him as he showed them how to make some cookies. In the other corner, Nicky had a smaller group making a different dish. Once the cookies were in the oven, Lyke walked over to Nicky's group to help.

"Here," Nicky pointed at a cartoon of milk, "can you measure out two cups of milk?" She pointed again to the other side of the room, "The measuring cups are over there."

"Yeah," he smiled and grabbed the milk. As he was walking, Nicky was suddenly standing at his side and the two collided, spilling milk over them both. Nicky gasped and stared at him with a glare that could cut through stone.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't see you," Lyke said as he grabbed paper towels, quickly wiping the milk away from her pant leg.

"It's okay. It was a mistake." She snatched the wad of paper towel from his hands and turned away; even though she said it was okay, she was obviously angry. Another girl, a friend of Nicky, came and took the milk from his hands while glaring. Lyke stepped back to his group and cleaned the milk off himself while feeling bad about the accident.

"Do you need help?" Nicole asked, rushing over while holding paper towels. He smiled in response. 

"No, I'm fine"

 "What's up with you and Nicky?" Another girl asked.

"What do you mean? It was an accident on my part. I didn't see her."

"It really looked like she hit you on purpose."

He paused.

"What makes you think that?"

"She was watching and stepped into you! I agree, it was totally on purpose." He looked to see his groups nodding heads and murmurs of agreement.

"I'm sure she didn't. You guys shouldn't speculate too much," He scolded and was met with grumbling. "It's time to take out some of the cookies, let's go, let's go." The group rushed away, Lyke following close behind.

He returned shortly after to Nicky's group.

"Nicky. Hey. I'm sorry about the milk. I should have been paying more attention, I didn't mean to hit you." She smirked and looked him up and down.

"I said it was an accident. You're okay. Want to help us out still?"

"What can I do?" He asked

"Here," She picked up a pot, "can you dump this?" It had just been used to boil noodles, the steam still coming off the water. Her friends behind her no longer shared Nickys' look of satisfaction. Instead, they had one of fear. They motioned to Nicky, seemingly wanting her to put the pot down, but she didn't listen.

"Nicky, maybe you should let it cool off a bit," A girl from her group said finally.

"What? It's fine, he can still dump it," Nicky snarked back.

"Nicky," her friend called her attention, giving her a pleading, serious look.

"What are you guys problems? Why are you all ganging up on me?" Nicky was getting angrier by the minute.

"Just put down the pot, I can dump it later," her friend sounded scared now, "let's not blow this out of proportion."

"You know what? You guys are such bitches. Are you even my friends? It's just a pot of water seriously grow the fuck up." Nicky exploded.

"We are the bitches?" All groups had gathered around us now.

"Nicky you should put the pot down."

"Yeah Nicky, just put it down."

"ALL of you? Why are you treating me like this? Is it because of him? Maybe he should be the leader since you guys think he's so great and I'm just a piece of shit?" Nicky shoved the pot of water into Lyke's arms and, feeling the heat against his skin, he pushed it away, causing the pot to drop and splash the water as it hit the ground. Most of the members moved out of the way, leaving Nicky and Lyke in the splash zone. The water slightly splashed Nicky on the leg, causing her to scream, whereas most of the water hit Lykes already cast-covered hand as he pushed the pot away.

"You fucking idiot! Why would you push the water at me? Ow, you fucking bitch!" Nicky held her leg in pain as he rubbed the water off his hand and onto his pant leg.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. Are you okay? Someone get ice for her." He grabbed a cloth, soaking it in cold water, and applying it to her leg. 

"Get the fuck off me!" Nicky swiftly kicked him away.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry" Lyke repeated, but she was too concerned with the minor burn on her leg. People from outside were swarming now after they heard Nicky scream.

"First you pour milk all over me THEN you try to burn me with boiling water? You're a fucking psycho and now everyone here has seen it. What did I ever do to you?" Nicky looked around for support but everyone only stared at her.

"Nicky," a member started, "We all thought it was on purpose but Lyke told us not to speculate. It's true, right? It was on purpose, right?" Murmurs of agreement rang out.

"What? Do you think I would pour milk on myself? He's just a fucking klutz who doesn't look where he's going."

"No," Nicole started, "It was definitely on purpose. I saw you looking, watching him, waiting for the moment to step into him. I saw you laughing with your friends after," she pointed at the now guilty-looking group. 

"Come on, you don't believe that, right? He's clearly trying to hurt me here." Nicky said.

"Nicky, stop it." One of her friends, Ani, spoke up. "It was on purpose. Why won't you just admit that? The water was on purpose too. But you wanted him to hurt you more, the water didn't fall right though. Admit it. You told us everything. But how are we supposed to stand by while you try to hurt an innocent kid? And for what? A-"

"SHUT UP!" Nicky turned to swing at Ani but her other friends held her back.

"What is going on here?" Rain entered the room.

"Nicky, uh, she, uh," nobody could seem to tell him what his friend had done.

"Nicky, stop it, now." Rain said and Nicky turned around faster than the speed of light.

"Rain!" She ran to hug him. "He just pushed a pot of boiling water on me! He also spilled milk all over me too." She sniffled and pointed at Lyke. 

Rain turned to see who she was talking about, and seemed surprised to see Lyke standing there.

"Lyke? Did you do that?" Rain questioned disappointed.

"I didn't mean to," Lyke responded, looking at the ground. 

"He didn't do it! Well, he did, but it was because of her! She hit him on purpose while he was helping with the milk and she pushed the scolding hot pot into his hands and he just pushed it away," Noelle yelled. "And shut up you absolute bitch! You got the tiniest burn I've ever seen in my life! Maybe if you weren't such a whore you wouldn't have got it in the first place!" Lykes jaw dropped. "Not to mention almost all the boiling water fell on him?"

"Nicky? Why would you do that?" Rain looked confused.

"They're all lying! They are all his friend so of course they would be on his side. Remember when I said he pushed me? He's been trying to hurt me for a WHILE now. It's not true, I would NEVER do that. You know me, come on, you know I wouldn't." Nicky was practically begging.

Rain looked around, looked at Nicky's friends, and then back at Nicky. 

"Are you okay?" He asked Nicky. She immediately looked happy, nodding yes with enthusiasm. 

"Okay then. Ani, Rachel, Yas, is she telling the truth?" Nicky whipped her head back to stare at them. They all shook their heads no.

"Okay, I thought so. Well, Nicky, if you're okay then you can leave perfectly fine, can't you?" Rain smiled in her face, twisted in rage and anger. She looked at Lyke, then at Rain, and back to Lyke. He then realized that, from the look on her face, his worst nightmare was coming, just as she said it would. 

She stormed out, parting the sea of people that gathered. At the entrance was another familiar face: Jay, the boy from the gym. It was the first he had seen him since the attack, the sight of him sent a chill down Lyke's spine. All he did was stare back at Lyke, then a smile crept across his face.

"Lyke, are you okay?" Rain asked.

"Hm?" He looked down at Lyke's hand, "Yeah. It's fine."

Lyke didn't want to talk to Rain, or anyone. He felt that he had much, much bigger things to worry about. Surely Nicky would not let her humiliation go, but he had no idea what she would do next. Lyke pushed through the crowd and left, leaving people staring in confusion. his other friends, who were observing the situation from afar, saw him walking toward the exit.

"Is that Lyke?" Lin asked.

"Yeah. Something doesn't seem right. He looks upset."

"Do you think something happened in the cooking club?" Sana asked.

"Man, the one day you don't go something happens..."

"Shut up Lin. Shouldn't you be worried about Lyke?" Olive scolded, "Come on."

*Ding*

A notification from the University forum popped up on every student's phone screen. It was filled with pictures of Lyke taken at various places around the campus, all with the title stating that Lyke "loved to be a whore" and that people should "watch out for your boyfriends." Before he knew it, everyone was looking at their phones, whispering to those next to them. The comments exploded by the second.

"That's a shame. He's pretty cute. Always hurts when a cute face goes to waste because they love to sleep around like that"

"I think he tried to get with my boyfriend. What a freak"

"Woah, really? This is why I hate these people. Hopefully he doesn't try to get with me because I would punch him right away."

"Man, he's really good-looking. Why do good-looking people do stuff like this? It's disgusting"

"I heard he tried to get with Rain. Like a slut would have a chance with him. He's straight anyway, so he should stop trying. Just because he was a pretty face doesn't mean he can get anyone! He's probably so desperate he sleeps with male strippers. Maybe he IS one."

"He tried to get with the entire basketball team AND my boyfriend, Basically had to peel him off."

The more he scrolled, the more his stomach churned. People started commenting saying he did drugs, drank, and slept with anyone he could. He wanted to scream at the top of his lungs that it wasn't true, but the comments wouldn't stop flooding in. It was blowing up, and there was nothing he could do to make it stop. All he could do was stand there, refreshing and looking at the comments until someone grabbed his arm.

"Lyke?" It was Olive. "You are as pale as a ghost." She looked down at his hand holding his phone, the comments section open. "What is that?" Before he could react, she grabbed the phone. Lin, who was walking up behind her, was already reading the post.

"It's not true, is it? You're not really..." he stopped. 

"Lyke... why are you looking at this stuff?" Olive questioned,

He grabbed his phone from her hand, not knowing what to say. Honestly, he was in shock. They all looked at him as if he were an alien, unmoving and accusing. As he looked back at them, he began to feel like he was guilty of some crime, like all the accusations were true, as if the thoughts of others were speaking them into existence, making them more viable with every second. He felt like a monster, overwhelming guilt consuming him as he turned and ran away.

The night was spent scrolling through comments until he fell asleep. It was the only thing on his mind. How could there be anything else to worry about? Thinking over and over about every word being spilled, he fell asleep sick to his stomach.

____ 

The next day, everyone was silent wherever he went. Girls snickered and the guys looked disgusted by his presence, but he said nothing, and nobody said anything to him; until Rain walked up to where he was sitting.

"Lyke. Can we talk?"

"You probably shouldn't talk to me," Lyke answered without looking at him.

"But I want to. Look, I don't care about what people are saying because I know it's not true, alright?"

"Just leave me alone," Anger slowly rising in his voice.

"No. I'm sorry but I'm not going to until you tell me what's going on."

"Did nothing I said reach your brain?"

"Was it really you saying that or were you forced to say that?" Lyke finally turned to face him, angry tears started to well in his eyes.

"You just don't get it, do you? I don't know what you want from me, but you will never gain anything good from being around me. Stop it and leave me alone before someone starts making assumptions about you."

"Why would you say that? I don't care what people think and you shouldn't let vicious lies dictate who speaks to you either."

Lyke slammed his hand on the table.

"But what if isn't lies? What if it is true? Then what? What are you going to do when people see you talking to someone like me? Do you want that image?"

"..." 

"It's only like this because you just couldn't leave me alone."

"Lyke, can you please talk to me? Please I'm sorry." Lyke got up to walk towards the exit of the campus but was quickly stopped dead in his tracks. Shock spread across his face, fear was in his heart and mind.

It was "him".

Lyke knew that smell. He could tell from a mile away who wore that cologne. He spun in circles, trying to spot where he was, but his eyes couldn't find him. He couldn't find his figure in the crowds of people no matter how much he scanned.

"Lyke?"

Rain snapped him out of it.

"He's here,"

"Who? Are you okay?" Rain asked.

"I can smell his cologne. No, no, no," Lyke crouched down into a ball, "no, no no."

"Lyke, who found you? Talk to me, it's okay." Rain said as he pulled him into a hug.

"He can't find me," Lyke started to cry, "He can't, he can't find me. I can't go back. It's because of that post. It's got to be from the post."

"Come on, let's go somewhere else. Come on, up." Rain pulled him up, covering him with his coat as they walked to an empty classroom.

"Who found you?"

Lyke sat in silence. Rain couldn't tell what he was thinking at that moment but the look on Lyke's face told him that there was profound fear in his mind.

"Look at me, Lyke. Who found you?" Rain repeated.

"He did"

"Who is 'he'? I can't help you if I don't know."

"I didn't ask for help. I told you to leave," Lyke screamed and pushed him away.

"I can help you. Just please tell me what is going on. You're shaking, why are you shaking?"

"He found me again, can't you hear me? I told you he found me." Lyke started to hit his head with fists in anger. Rain wouldn't listen, and that only made him feel more trapped.

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter," Lyke whispered softly, "He found me." Hearing it come from his own mouth made it even more real. Tears wet his face like he had just been caught in the rain. 

"Okay," Rain finally said, "So what if he found you? Why are you running?"

"Why does it matter to you? It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter to you." Lyke yelled.

"It does because I see you sitting here crying and shaking, scared for your life just because you smelled a cologne. That's not normal. It might not even be him."

"It's him. I know it's him." 

"No, you don't. So many people can wear the same cologne. You don't need to be afraid."

"You don't even know what you're saying," Lyke finally lost it, "you'll never know what he did. You'll never know all the things he did. Just stop acting like you know everything. You'll never know." The anger in his voice rang out in the empty classroom.

"Calm down, calm down. I'm sorry. You're right. I don't know. But that still doesn't change the fact that it might not be him. The chances that he found you from the University forum are slim to none." Lyke paused again.

"I made the cologne"

"What?"

"I said I made the cologne, Rain. Nobody else has it. Nobody else is wearing it. It's orange and lavender but the scents don't mix quite right. There's a hint of rose and pomegranate but I put so much orange that you can barely smell it. There's too much lavender, so much that it's nauseating. I liked all the scents but couldn't choose. I know it like the back of my hand. It's him. I know it is." Rain fell silent. 

"So if it is him, what are you thinking he'd do? What did he do?" He asked.

"He didn't do anything" From the moment when Lyke contradicted his own words, Rain knew that whatever had happened, Lyke wanted to keep it buried. There was nothing in the world that would make him confide in Rain, so he didn't pry.

"You don't have to tell me. But I want to know if you're safe. If you are concerned he will hurt you, then please let me help you. Even if it's just you texting me. Even if it's just you talking to me when you need help. Can you do that?" Lyke hesitated then nodded.

"Do you want me to walk you home?" 

Lyke thought about it for a moment then agreed. If the damage was already done, he didn't have to avoid Rain anymore. They could talk again, but he never wanted it to happen like this. It was a situation where he didn't know how to feel, whether he should feel terrified or happy.

Lyke kept his head down as they walked back to the exit. 

"Do you smell it?" He asked Rain.

"What? Yeah. I smell it."

"Remember it. If you really want to help me, you'll remember it." Lyke said.

"I will. I promise."

"Can I meet you at the gate in the morning?" 

"Of course you can. You always can."

"Can you bring the others?"

"Of course."

Lyke smiled at him and Rain smiled back.

___

The next morning, they all met at the gate. Everything felt like it was back to normal. For once.

"Lyke, we wanted to say we were sorry. We weren't trying to make it seem like we believed the forum. We don't, obviously," Olive said.

"It's okay guys. I get it. It's fine."

"Also you shouldn't listen to those comments," Chimed Lin, "I spent a while going through responding to them. I took care of it," He added.

"As if, I commented way more than you did," said Sana. 

"You guys didn't need to comment at all. I believe you even without that. I was just upset that day is all. That's why I left." 

"Lykeee we thought you hated us," Lin came forward to hug Lyke, clinging like a sad puppy to his waist. 

"What are you doing?" Lyke laughed. Olive and Sana looked at each other and suddenly started fake crying, coming over to hug Lyke as well. "Aye, get to class. Go!" Rain shooed them off as they ran away giggling amongst themselves.

"Lunch?" Yelled Olive as she walked away.

"Of course!" Lyke yelled back.

"Let's go. We'll be late." Rain said.

"Are you sure you want to walk with me? I don't think you should, people will..." 

"I don't care what people think, I never have, and I probably never will. So don't worry about me. People that believe vicious shit like that don't deserve my attention anyways. Are you still worried about it?" 

"No, It's fine."

"But are you okay?" Rain asked. Lyke paused, "Yeah. I'm okay." 

But still, people whispered everywhere he went, looking at him with disgust. He went through his classes with his head down, face hidden in a book. The only time he felt he was allowed to speak without being judged was at lunchtime. It was refreshing. The bickering, shameless ego of Lin and the witty remarks from Sana seemed to complete his day and crush every anxiety he had. For a moment he could forget how abnormal he was in the world. How insignificant.

"Oh, I wanted to ask, have you talked to Nicky at all?" Olive questioned Rain.

"No. Why would I? I don't have anything to say to her. She's been texting me nonstop though. Saying she's sorry, saying she's innocent and stuff."

"What a skank," Sana said out of the blue.

"Sana, my lord! I've never heard you say anything like that before. I almost choked on my fries." Olive's jaw had just about disconnected from her face.

"She says that stuff all the time," Lin grumbled, "I hear it every day."

"You deserve to hear it. Hey," Olive leaned over to Sana, "if you remember, you can call him 'Bean Machine' and he gets super mad..."

"OLIVE!"

"Ooooh bean machine! I haven't heard that one before!"

"Sana, if you can me that, I will NOT be your friend anymore."

"I am so scared."

"I won't! I will leave! Bye! Good riddance!"

"Ok... Bean machine," Sana said quietly.

"What did I just hear???? Was that??? The sound of our friendship BREAKING?"

"Uh ohh,"

"You're done, you're done!" Lin dramatically said.

After his last classes, Lyke waited for Rain's practice to end, receiving dirty looks from the players and the girls watching. Once it ended and Rain walked up to him, the faces of both the players and girls dropped in horror.

"I'm sorry, maybe I shouldn't have waited here."

"Don't say that. Many people come here to wait for their friends to finish practice. I'm glad you came." Rain said, smiling gently.

"I wish I were like you. You never care what others think, but their opinions mean everything to me. I'll wait in the cafe next time, okay?"

"You really don't need to do that, I don't mind. But if that's what you are most comfortable with, you can do that. I won't force you. Do you want me to walk you back home today?" Rain asked as they started walking towards the gym exit. 

"I should be able to make it by myself. I-" Lyke started to say but Rain stopped suddenly in front of him.

"Get behind me," he said.

"Why?" Lyke took a couple more steps and then smelled it.

"Rain..."

"I know, just get behind me." Lyke quickly stepped behind Rain, gripping his leather jacket.

"What does he look like? I'll see if he's there."

"Tall. About your height. Black hair. He usually wears a black jacket with patches."

As Rain went out to look, Lyke clung close to him.

"Clear," He said after a minute.

"Are you sure?" 

"I didn't see anyone at all. I'm sure. He wouldn't come up to you if I'm here, right? I'll walk you home again."

"He's following me. You know that right? What are the chances I stay to wait for you in the gym and then we smell his cologne at the gym." Lyke said.

"Just stay calm. We can report this to campus police if it happens again."

"No police, we don't need to involve them," A shiver went down his spine, "What if you aren't around next time? Then what?" He asked.

"Call me. I will stop everything and come to help you. Would you want me to tell Olive?"

"No, that's okay. She shouldn't have to worry."

"Okay. If you ever change your mind, I can tell her. She can help you too."

___

*Ding* 

Rain texted Lyke for the first time in a while after dropping him off at his house. 

Rain: "Hey I meant to ask you after I dropped you off at home. Would you like to do something tomorrow? There's that zoo not far from your place." 

Lyke: "There's a zoo near my home? I had no idea lol"

Rain: "Really? Are you not from here?"

Lyke: "No I just moved here a couple of months ago. I've been busy settling in."

Rain: "That's great then. Would you want to go?"

Lyke: "Sure. What time?"

Rain: "4 pm sound good?"

Lyke: "Yeah! That's kinda late though. What time does it close?

Rain: "11 pm. It's open a little later tomorrow."

Lyke: "Why?"

Rain: "You'll see"

Lyke: "Tell meee"

Rain: "I said you'll seee"

Lyke: "Ok :("

Rain: "You're going to make me sad"

Lyke: "Good"

Rain: "I'll pick you up at 3:30"

Lyke: "Ok. Good night!"

Rain: "Good night!"

Lyke was left smiling at his phone like a complete idiot before he knew it. He'd always loved zoos but hadn't had the chance to go to one for years.

"I have to choose what to wear," he said out loud.

Jumping out of bed and to his closet, he was left frustrated with a pile of clothes by the end of his mini fashion show, so he face-timed Olive.

Olive: "Hello?"

Lyke: "Olive help me pick out an outfit." She looked intrigued.

Olive: "For what?"

Lyke: "I'm going to the zoo tomorrow."

Olive: "Oh? With whom?"

Lyke: "Rain" 

Olive choked on her water.

Olive: "HUH? RAIN?"

Lyke: "What?"

Olive: "Hold on" 

Olive yelled for Sana to come to her room.

Sana: "Hello? What's wrong?" Sana walks into the frame and Olive whispers into her ear. 

Sana: "OH MY GOD?"

Olive: "RIGHT?"

"What's wrong??" Lin said from further away.

Sana and Olive: "GO AWAY" 

They disappeared and the door slammed, then they ran back into the frame.

Olive: "You realize that NEVER has he EVER asked anyone to go to the zoo with him?"

Sana: "And that he's the star basketball player, aka the most popular person in the entire University??"

Olive: "Seriously, this is big. He has never-" Olive stopped suddenly and grabbed Sana's hands, squealing.

Lyke: "Can you just help me pick out an outfit?"

Olive: "Okay, Okay, stay calm."

Lyke: "I am calm. Calm as ever." His heart was about to jump out of his chest. 

Sana: "What vibe do you want to go with?"

Lyke: "Well I had a couple outfits in mind. Can I show you them?"

Olive: "If they aren't a crime against fashion." 

Lyke put on the first one.

Sana: "You are a fashion terrorist"

Olive: "It's not that bad"

Sana: "It really is"

Olive: "Show us the next"

He put on the second one, warranting better reactions.

Sana: "Okay that's not bad"

Olive: "I think these pants with the first top would look good"

Sana: "Bro, I was thinking the same thing. Try that on real quick"

Lyke: "Okay"

Olive: "Yeah that's it. THATS IT! You look so good."

Sana and Olive high-five.

Sana: "Do you have any beanies?"

Lyke: "Yeah one minute"

I dump my basket of hats on the floor.

Olive: "You have a problem"

Lyke: "Yeah"

Sana: "That one. The blue one."

Olive: "Ohhh good eye"

Lyke: "So this outfit?"

Sana: "Definitely"

They paused and looked at each other

Olive: "So... how do you feel? Is this a date?"

Lyke: "A date? No, of course it's not a date. He just asked to go to the zoo."

Sana: "But like, how do you feel?"

Lyke: "I don't know. How should I feel?"

Olive: "Have you ever been on a date with anyone? In your life?" 

Lyke: "No..."

Olive and Sana: "What??" 

Lin: "What the hell is going on??" The sound of the door opening could be heard off-screen.

Sana: "You wouldn't understand go AWAY"

Olive: "Wait, Wait guys Rain is calling me. Should I add him to this call?

Lin: "Who are you on a call with?" Lin moved into the frame

Lin: "Oh hey Lyke! What's with the clothes?"

Sana: "I said you wouldn't understand. Also don't add him to the call, at least make Lyke leave. He's probably calling because he needs help."

Lin: "Help with what?"

Olive: "Lin get out of here"

Lyke: "I should go now. Go talk to Rain." 

Sana: "Bye!" 

____

Lyke woke up earlier than usual the next day.

He had never been to the zoo with anyone except his family, never with only one other person. Olive's insisting that it was a date played in his head and he started to wonder if she was correct.

He went out to meet Rain at 3:30 and was surprised to him all dressed up. Usually, he only seen him in his uniform, but today he dressed up nicely.

"Let's go. We have to catch the bus. It will only be a short walk" Rain said first.

"Okay. Can you tell me why it's open later now??"

"Fine, fine," He laughed, "It's because there is a light show. It has to get dark first obviously so they aren't closing until 11."

"Really? I've never been to a light show before. I've always loved looking at lights, especially when they shine on water. I think that's when they are prettiest."

"I think the prettiest is the sun. When the sun rises and the rays spread out like beams. And when the sun sets and the light turns pink, orange, and red. Sunshine is the prettiest thing I've ever seen." Rain looked at him briefly, "Oh shoot. We're going to miss it," he looked at his watch.

"What?"

"The bus," He grabbed Lykes hand suddenly and started running, dragging him behind.

"The bus stop is right by Olive and Lins," Rain shouted as they ran, "I told Olive we would stop by and say hi."

"Okay," he shouted back.

Arriving at their house, they were both so out of breath they could barely speak. When Olive and Sana came out, their hands were still locked together. Noticing their faces, they quickly let go and Olive and Sana pretended as if they had never seen anything at all.

"The bus is coming," they yelled at the two who were standing frozen and tired. Rain once again grabbed Lykes hand as he frantically waved while being dragged off.

On the bus, they were able to catch their breaths and laugh about being caught holding hands.

"Did you see the look on their faces?" Rain said. 

"Yeah, they looked so surprised I thought they might explode"

"I'll have to explain it was only because we were going to be late and you didn't know where to go."

"Yeah, otherwise they might have an aneurysm," Lyke joked. 

The zoo was massive, like nothing he had ever seen before. The aquarium had a huge tank, spanning two floors, full of all kinds of fish, some he knew and some he didn't. Rain seemed to know them all and they spent a while standing there as he explained where they were from, what they ate, etc. At some point, a little kid came out of the manta ray tunnel. She was crying, absolutely hysterical, terrified of the manta rays. Rain saw and walked over, pointing at a yellow fish, and told the little girl its name. She calmed down, nodding as Rain spoke to her. As he walked back over, Lyke smiled at him. At them moment while watching him, he realized just how caring Rain was to those around him.

"How did you know that would calm her down?" Lyke asked.

"I didn't, she just needed to think of something other than creepy manta rays. Those things shouldn't exist," Rain shuddered, "I used to hate them as a kid too."

"But they are so stupid looking. How were you scared of them?" Lyke laughed.

"Don't ask me! I don't know. I just think they are creepy and I stand by that." 

"Whatever you say"

"Anything that you're scared of?" He tried to change the topic to Lyke.

"Me? Hm... death, needles, and old men." I smiled and ran as Rain attempted to catch him after his sarcastic response.

"You know that's not what I meant!" He yelled. Lyke finally stopped running.

"I really don't know. Bugs? Yeah, I hate bugs." I responded.

"Alright, then we'll skip the bugs."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Let's go look at the big cats instead." He said.

Before they knew it, the sun was setting.

"Sunset is both a good and bad part of the day," Rain said as they watched the sun slip beneath the water's edge.

"Why?" Lyke asked.

"Well, the sunset is beautiful, but at the same time, I wish I could look at sunshine all the time. At sunset, the sunshine disappears. It's a kind of melancholy point of the day," he explained.

"I see. That makes sense. I personally like it when the sun sets. That way you can see the stars, the street lights, and lit-up buildings. You can also see the lights on the water," he pointed. 

"I guess so. You know," Rain paused, "you remind me of sunshine." Lyke was surprised.

"How so?"

"I don't know. You always seem to shine, like sunshine that never goes out. I like that about you. It's apparent you've been through so much, yet you always make it through. When I see you in the morning, it makes me happy. It makes me feel warm inside." He turned to look at Lyke. "Please don't give up. I know you're scared. But you have people who care about you."

"I'm trying. Don't worry. I'll be fine. I've made it this far."

"I will always worry about you. I've been worried about you from the first day we met." He said.

At that moment, the lights of the zoo and city lit up in a cascade of color. Lanterns flew into the sky as the pink remnants of sunlight painted the sky in an ombre.

"Do you like it?" Rain asked.

"Of course. It's beautiful."

"Good. I'm glad you like it," Their eyes met,

"Sunshine"