chapter 23

Chapter 23

The walls of the school greeted him late as he entered following the man he'd met on his walk home the other day, he wore a clean but not professional demeanor and lacked a name he never asked for. He never walked too fast and never made Ronin speak when he didn't want too, he would wonder if the man forgot he was following him as he walked so precisely, as if he'd been through each hall thousands of times.

It was at the corner before the gym that he stopped, Ronin coming up behind him suddenly met with Percys smile that was ultimately filled with the mans warmth even as he had left sometime between their greeting and Percys insistence on joing Ronin.

Percy had begun speaking another language as it filled the hall, he seemed almost incomplete as wren was missing from his side, her hand missing from his.

"Where's wren" Ronin broke Percys speech instantly, as Percy puased turning to Ronin with the same smile, "she's with Mr Owens until lunch" he said watching as Ronin began to speak again avoiding eye contact, as he asked where they were, surprising Percy as he slowly answered, cut off as ronin nodded before glancing the halls, "do you want me to take you there?" He asked with a growing intrigue and a peculiar eyebrow that perked under his round glasses as ronin nodded once more.

The boys had walked the halls as Percy rambled into a conversation asking who the man that had picked him up the other day after his confrontation with the teacher, to which Ronin spoke quickly with a high tone, "that was Fraser" he said with resting face, "he's my friend" Ronin finished with a now growing smile.

Percy looked at Ronins check as it grew with the smile, as he begun speaking his overly joyous opinion that had again sparked Ronin to a passion for the conversation as he'd grown curious of the man.

"Fraser listens, like you. And, and he doesn't let me be stupid, or get scared." Ronins voice began to flow into a natural dioluage Percy had never heard from him, each word perfectly hit the others, and ended in a grin he would only support as he'd joined in that same flow, feeling it from Ronins words and using it to add to them in a way he knew Ronin liked.

Turning the corner Percy had jogged ahead gesturing Ronin to the green door that sparked with the off white walls, Percy had talked between unaware Ronin had turned him off, taking the handle as he melted into the room, pushing himself through the barely open door in a sneak.

The room was like all the others and yet so different, the walls were filled with everything the students said, all coming from the circle of chairs that met in the middle. There heads turning towards Ronin in hesitant composure they all seemed to have.

His eyes had locked on wren as he ignored the voice of mr Owens, let alone hear it. Her even mumbled a greeting to her before putting a hand on his shoulder as her eyes hit his, her hands holding each other on her lap as she struggled to return his words.

Ronin had tapped her shoulder, before then sliding his hand down her arm as he tried to pull her from her chair gently, she gripped the bottom of the chair with a grasp of her fingers that began to twitch in a timed pattern.

"Wren cmon" Ronin urged as his eyes flashed to the others that glued to him, his legs begining to try to ground themselves on the floor that acted as ice, his face grew scrunched, "I wanna talk to you wren, don't you want to talk to me" his voice quivered as his ears had failed to block out me owens, for it clicked back in like a switch he didn't know turned on, as now he'd begun to speak over him, "why don't you wanna talk with me wren" Ronin hands gripped his pants as he bit the inside of his cheeks, looking around the room his arms unable to rest in a position.

"What are you looking at" it came out in a shaking rise in his failing tone.

His eyes moved back to wren whos nails had begun to scrape the bottom of the chair in a repetitive motion, Mr Owens nealing next to her who shook her head in the same pattern, she would start to rise from her seat and then sit back down. In between glances with him

The man had put his hand over her chair as he slowly raised himself from the ground aproaching Ronin with a hesitant demeanor, as he watched his eyes locked on his movements.

"Hey Ronin, do you maybe want to join us?, I don't think right now is a good time to talk to-" his voice cut as wren lifted herself from the seat walking into the corner of his eye, before towards Ronin, with a new form, her feet timed in a comfortable rowing that captured Mr Owens expression turning it quickly as he'd inched towards his seat again holding it's edge as his eyes lit up.

Wren joined at ronin's side, her presence crawling up his arm in a warm shiver as his mouth lacked the words he'd prepared, instead he had walked slowly opening the door for her as quickly followed behind shutting it gently behind him.

Mr Owens fell slowly into his chair still holding the back in a shocked stature, his expression containing itself as he looked back at the students that sat in the same as when his eyes had left them.

Ronin and wren had only made it to the edge of the hall that led to the room they left, she stood next to him as his hands tried to place themselves comfortably on the wall he leaned on, building the conversation in his head before he could say, waiting for him to say it first.

"Hi Ronin" wren said pursing her lips gently awaiting his response with her eyes that would circle the room eventually landing on his as he spoke, "hi wren" he returned breathy before laying his head on the wall met quickly as she said it back, creeping a grin to his face, "you don't look like shit wren" his voice planted itself watching her reaction as she ran her hand threw her hair slowly, "I'm sorry" she said quickly heard by Ronin as his voice went high "it was a compliment" responding quickly Ronin made sure she understood as he watched her face change with the realization as she begun to thank him interrupted as ronin spoke over her, "what do I look like" he almost said desperately, his tone etching wrens flinched expression.

Wren lifted her hand to her lip slowly, locking eye contact with Ronin as he did the same hovering over where his father had hit him.

"Are you hurt?" Wren asked dropping her hand to the buttons on her shirt, "no. I scared him" Ronin responded weakly while he looked up at the ceiling, "I scared him really bad wren" he ran his tounge over his father lip clasping in his words.

She listened to, Ronin knew she was listening, she didn't need to say anything, and she never did.

That was one thing that didn't change with her hair, her clothes her eyes, her smile

"I don't want to scare him anymore, I want to get better-like you did" Ronin said asking her what only she would see as a question, and only she would know the answer.

"Wren, will you help me get better?" His hands layed themselves on his jeans as he found the words, his eyes returning to hers as he pleaded a response.

Little did she know he would praise a response, any response, bitting the inside of his cheeks as he waited for it.

"Ok" wrens voice stood strong in the word. Leaving her mouth in a promise rather than a sound, and staying in ronin's head as a new path rather than any thought it could've been.