The next day, Sebastian headed into the classroom and noticed that Delilah hadn’t arrived yet. He clearly remembered that she said she would be back today; however, her absence made him wonder if she had experienced a sudden relapse. When he looked up at the clock, his eyes widened when he noticed the time.
Wait, we still have twenty minutes left before the start of homeroom? Did I really get here this early?
As he wondered that, he looked around the classroom and finally realized that he was all alone. Not a single student had arrived yet which made him feel a bit awkward.
I know I’ve been early a time or two before but it was to avoid Delilah but I don’t think I’ve ever been THIS early. I’m kind of at a loss here but, more importantly, I could have sworn that I left my house at the normal time but, come to think of it, did I?
To be honest, I don’t remember if I ever checked the time before I left. Maybe I just assumed that it was time to come to school and left a bit prematurely. Granted, I was genuinely excited to come to school today… but did I let my emotions dictate my pace this much? I must have because I’m here all alone. It’s just that… I haven’t felt this way since Bryce…
As he thought that, a sudden feeling of sorrow washed over him followed by a slight pain in his head. As a precaution, he reached into his pocket for his pills; however, he was able to shake it off. Right as he fended off another possible vision, he heard the sounds of footsteps approaching. When he turned his attention to the door, he saw Delilah step into the classroom with a smile on her face.
“My, someone got here early. What’s with you being the early bird?”
“Ah, I mistook what time it was when I left. I thought I had left right on time but it turns out I was early.”
“I’ve done that a few times before. When you plan something and want to make sure everything is perfect, you sometimes mix things up. I remember that I was supposed to go to a party at a friend’s house back in my old town and I was so excited that I accidentally left an hour early. When I got there, she was shocked to see me. I compensated by helping her set everything up but I was so embarrassed that I was the first to arrive way ahead of schedule.”
“I don’t think that’s my problem here. I don’t think anyone is ever truly excited to come to school,” he said as he tried to hide the fact that it was the reason he was so early.
“Well, I wouldn’t say that. I think different people find different reasons to be excited for just about anything, school included.”
“Hmm… maybe…”
As they carried on their conversation, more and more students began to file in. Before they knew it, the class had filled up and everyone was in the middle of their conversations. Sebastian and Delilah halted theirs as that certain magical feeling of having a private one-on-one had been lost. They silently acknowledged that they could talk later and began to set up the things they needed for their classes.
As the lunch bell approached, Sebastian began to scratch the side of his head. He had decided that he wanted to try something but he had become a bit nervous. However, before he could think clearly and make a final decision, the bell rang so he knew that it was now or never. He stood up and grabbed his backpack but hesitated as he watched Delilah do the same. Before she could take a single step, he cleared his throat and called out to her.
“Say, would you like to have lunch together?”
The thing was, Sebastian wasn’t exactly quiet or subtle about it. While most of the class paid no mind, those who truly knew him overheard the question and were stunned into silence, especially Bryce, Kayla, and Shiloh. They immediately began to whisper amongst themselves to which he took notice but he didn’t care. He was trying to turn over a new leaf and what he was looking at was the past that should remain dead and buried. Ignoring their whisperings, he glanced back over at Delilah whose cheeks had become slightly tinted with rose.
“S-Sure! I’d love to!”
“Let’s go, then.”
The two of them left together. Sebastian was only about a half-step behind her but it was enough distance for him to glance over at Bryce and give him a cold stare as if to say that he saw them whispering about him. Bryce returned his glare with a look of disgust before turning his attention back to Kayla and Shiloh.
Sebastian asked her where she wanted to eat lunch. She mentioned the picnic tables again so that’s where they ended up heading to. As they were eating, Delilah’s mind had done enough wondering.
“So, I couldn’t help but notice that this was the first time that you asked me to do anything. Usually, I’m the one asking you. Not that I mind, though but I was wondering why the sudden change?”
I don’t know, to be honest. For some reason, asking you to have lunch just felt like something I needed to do to see if I could trust you. Had you declined, I’m sure that would have had me second-guess my decision. Maybe I’m just sort of looking for a way to justify if this was a mistake or not. I guess I owe her an answer so, for now, I’ll just make up something that sounds convenient.
“Well, it’s just as you said. You’re the one that’s always asking me to do things so, I felt kind of guilty and wanted to be the one to ask you this time.”
“But, you did it in front of Bryce. Aren’t you worried that he might target you again for hanging around me?”
Of course, I’m worried. Both Bryce and my father are the two reasons why I have a difficult time putting my faith in anyone. Luckily, my father is someone I never have to deal with ever again but I still see Bryce every single day. He serves as a constant reminder that I’m better off alone in this world but… I’m trying to change that and, yes, it has me scared and I am scared of him seeing that.
“He can think what he wants to think. It’s not like we’re friends or anything. It shouldn’t be his business who I choose to be friends with. Sorry if that sounded a little harsh.”
“But you two used to be, though. Judging by what I saw, it seems there are still things that haven’t been resolved.”
“And they may never be. That’s just something I have to live with. Despite that, I don’t think that should stop me from making new friends. Everybody is different. You’re not Bryce and neither am I. It’s just something that didn’t work out. I guess that’s a part of life.”
The more they talked, the more Delilah began to realize that she had distracted him from drawing another anime portrait. She apologized but Sebastian waived it off as if it wasn’t a big deal. Suddenly, he swallowed hard as he decided to initiate a new test… one that he fully admitted to himself that he wasn’t ready for but was going to try anyway.
“S-Say… um… Delilah? Are you busy after school today?”
“No, why?”
“W-Would you like to hang out with me?”
Delilah’s face lit up with pure joy. Even though he had previously offered a raincheck, she didn’t expect him to ask her this soon. Naturally, this made her genuinely happy and excited on the inside.
“Of course! My house or yours?”
“Well, I saw your house yesterday so want to come over to mine?”
“Technically, you saw my foyer but I guess that still counts for something. Sure! I’d be happy to visit your house after school!”
Well… I asked and she said yes. Needless to say, I was kind of hoping that she would have said no. Maybe she was still feeling a bit sick and wanted to rest or maybe she had to do some kind of errand but, here we are. It’s not like I can take it back now. Of course, I could have just not asked but after asking her to lunch and getting a positive response, I was just curious if it would happen again. Maybe I need to learn a thing or two about patience or maybe this is something I truly need. Either way, the deal is done. Looks like I’ll be having her over at my house today.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
For the rest of the afternoon, Sebastian was on pins and needles. He could barely concentrate on taking notes as his mind continued to weigh the pros and cons of having her over. He still wondered if he made the right choice by asking her to visit. Despite his uneasiness, he hid it quite well by pretending to be laser-focused on each of his classes. However, while he felt nervous, Delilah was delighted that she got to hang out with him after school. She couldn’t wait for the final bell to ring and that made time crawl by for her.
Eventually, the bell did ring and school was over for the day. Sebastian internally sighed as he knew that the time had come and there wasn’t anything left to do but to get it over and done with. They packed up their belongings and headed out. The walk home wasn’t one that was filled with conversation, though. It was as if they were just enjoying the silence of each other’s company; however, after a while, it was a little too quiet so Delilah decided to break the ice.
“By the way, I’m sorry for talking your ear off during lunch. I asked you if you could draw me another portrait and I distracted you too much.”
“It’s fine. If you want, I could draw it for you once we get to my house.”
“Sure! So, what else do you want to do when we get there?”
“If it’s not too nerdy, maybe we can work on our homework together and get it out of the way? After that, maybe do some gaming?”
“I don’t think that’s nerdy. It makes sense to get the homework out of the way first. That way, we’ll have more time to relax and hang out together. OH! Speaking of that… I should probably tell my parents that I’ll be over at a friend’s house. I’ve been so excited that it completely slipped my mind!”
She pulled out her phone and began to tap out a text message to her mother. Sebastian didn’t pay much mind to her words at first; however, as they echoed in his mind, he began to realize what she had said.
Wait… did she say that she was excited to come over? Well, I guess since I figured out that she has a crush on me, it’s only natural that she would be but to hear her say that out loud, it makes me feel… no. I shouldn’t let my guard down like that! There’s still a good chance that all of this is for nothing. I should just take this one step at a time and observe along the way. I shouldn’t expect or want anything to happen. No… I should just watch and see what does happen.
“There! All done! My Mom is happy that I made a new friend so quickly!”
“And she’s okay with you hanging out with a boy?”
“I, um, didn’t tell her that part. She’s the type that would be fine with it but my father always likes to know everything that’s going on with the family and with him being military, if he found out, it would probably cause more trouble for you so, I kept your gender a secret until I can ease them into the idea of me having a boy as a friend.”
She was very careful with the way she phrased that but even still, the words boy and friend were relatively close together and even Sebastian noticed the look on her face after she said that. If that wasn’t a dead giveaway of the crush she had on him, then nothing was. Out of courtesy, he pretended that he didn’t notice and kept walking.
Soon, they arrived at Ambrose. Sebastian turned down and Delilah followed. She looked around as she hadn’t been down that street before so she was taking in the sights. All the while, she wondered which house belonged to Sebastian. About four houses down, they came to a small white house with brown trim. She took notice that the numbers on the door read 1650 and instantly committed them to memory.
“Well, we’re here. This is where I call home.”
Sebastian led the way and unlocked the front door. Much like he did at her house, Delilah scoured the layout and took notice of everything. Sebastian stepped forward and told her to make herself at home. There was a white fabric couch that looked a bit plain at first but when you got up close, you could notice that there were slightly brighter white flowers all over it. If the light hit them just right, it highlighted the flowers and made them pop but in any other standard lighting, it just looked like a plain, white couch.
“Pretty…” she muttered to herself.
“Hmm?”
“Oh, the couch. I like how the flowers on it are kind of an illusion.”
“Ah, yeah. My mother picked it out for that very same reason.”
Delilah sat down and immediately took notice of how soft and comfortable it was. Sebastian instantly took a seat next to her and unzipped his backpack. They had algebra, English, and history for homework assignments so he figured they could start in alphabetical order. Despite that, all Delilah could think about was that the boy she liked was sitting next to her so close. At one point, Sebastian’s leg gently graced hers to where he didn’t even notice but she did. She blushed a bit but snapped out of it when he asked if she knew how to solve a certain problem.
With the two of them teaming up, homework went by pretty quickly. By the time they were done, it was around 3:45. This gave them about an hour and fifteen minutes of some alone time. This is where Sebastian figured that he could test the waters to see just how genuine Delilah truly was.
“I probably should have done this when we first came in but, I can show you around if you’d like.”
“Sure!”
“Well, this is the living room, and to our left is the kitchen. If you’re hungry or thirsty, you don’t even need to ask, just take whatever you want. To our right are the bedrooms and the bathroom and, well, that’s about it. I mean, we have a basement, too which you can access through the door in the kitchen but we just have a washer and dryer down there. There’s not much to the house.”
“I think it’s pretty cozy. If it’s just you and your mom, I think the size is perfect! Say, I want to check out your room… if that’s okay.”
“Yeah, I can show you.”
Sebastian led the way. The hallway wasn’t all that long. Upon exiting the living room, taking a hard left would bring them into his mother’s bedroom. The only other doorway on the left was Sebasitan’s room. The bathroom was straight at the end of the hall. There was another door on the right wall that Sebastian hadn’t mentioned, though.
“Hmm? What’s this door here?”
“Oh… that’s a closet…”
When Sebastian said that, his memories of a time when he hid in the closet from his father instantly resurfaced. He quickly squashed them as he continued to lead the way into his room. Upon entering, his bed was pressed up against the corner of the room on the right. To the left of the bed was a solid wall with a nightstand that contained his alarm clock. In the opposite corner was a television with his favorite game consoles hooked up to it. On the wall opposite of them was a single window with a row of black 3-shelf bookcases underneath it. Immediately to their left was a walk-in closet with rolling doors.
“Nice room!”
“Thanks”
Sebastian showed her his game collection along with his anime collection. He figured that since they had similar interests, she would like to see what he had. They ended up having a few common games between them but Sebastian had quite a few that she hadn’t played yet. The same went for his anime collection. After she looked through them he asked if there was anything she wanted to watch or play. She remarked that there was… she wanted to watch him do another drawing.
Sebastian obliged and sat on his bed. He pulled out his sketchbook and began to lay down the basic shapes. Delilah sat next to him and paid close attention to what he was doing. He simply thought that she just wanted to watch him draw and while that was true, she was also studying his wrist movements and sketching techniques. She figured that a book could tell her how to do something but it wasn’t the same as seeing it in practice by someone who knew what they were doing.
By the time the character took shape, it began to resemble a typical teenage boy that one might see in any run-of-the-mill high school anime. Even the hair was a typical bowl cut but the more Delilah stared at it, the more she began to wonder something. Sebastian placed all of the shading and highlights on the character which made it pop. When he was done, he ripped the page out of the sketchbook and handed it to her.
“Here you go.”
“What’s his name going to be?”
“Hmm… How about Noroi?”
“What does that mean?”
“I don’t know. I just remember hearing it once and thought it sounded cool. He kind of looks like a Noroi, though.”
“Really? Because I think that he looks like a Sebastian.”
“How so?”
“He kind of looks like you if you were an anime character.”
Sebastian looked at his drawing a bit more closely and pretended that he could see her point when, in reality, he realized that she had caught him doing an anime self-portrait.
“Can we name him Sebastian?”
“It’s for you so if you want to name him that, it’s fine with me.”
I guess that I made it a bit too obvious. Still, why did I feel compelled to draw myself as an anime character? For some reason, it was the only thing I could think of when she asked to watch me draw. Even though I knew what I was doing, I tried to make it seem different but, in the end, I guess I subconsciously just drew myself. Oh well… as long as she’s happy with it, I guess.
It wasn’t long after that Sebastian’s mother came home. She instantly noticed that there was a guest in the house and was delighted to see that Sebastian had finally brought a friend home with him. She also became a bit suspicious that it was a girl but she left that subject alone for now. As all mothers typically did, she asked if Delilah wanted to stay for dinner. She sent a text to her mother for permission and was told it was fine so she accepted the offer.
It only took about twenty minutes to cook dinner but Delilah was polite about it and asked if there was anything she could use help with. While Sebastian’s mom didn’t need any help, she took the opportunity to ask her a few basic questions as a way to get to know her like where she lived, how they met, etc. Even though the questions seemed innocent, Sebastian knew that she was digging for information and silently cursed her under his breath.
As they ate, Delilah remarked that she was a good cook even though the dinner was a rather basic one of pork chops and applesauce. Even still, it was nice to hear a compliment since Sebastian never really said much of anything about her food. After they ate, she helped clean the dishes and put them away but remarked that it was getting dark and she had to be home before the sunset as it was a rule of her father’s. She thanked Sebastian’s mom for dinner and told Sebastian she would see him at school tomorrow.
She was about to step foot through the door before she remembered something.
“Oh! Before I forget, give me your phone, Sebastian.”
He was a bit puzzled but he handed it over to her. Since Sebastian didn’t have much in the way of friends, he didn’t have the phone passcode locked. She navigated to both of their contact apps and then tapped her phone on top of his.
“There! Now we have each other’s contact info! See you at school tomorrow!”
She closed the door behind her and headed home with a little extra pep in her step. Sebastian couldn’t see it but she was smiling the entire way back. As he watched her leave through the front window, his mother folded her arms and sported a sassy grin.
“So… she was quite lovely, wasn’t she? You’re not doing anything foolish, are you?”
“No, mom. She’s just a friend and nothing more.”
“Okay. I’m just doing my job as a mother and making sure you’re being responsible. But I can tell you two get along well so feel free to tell her that she’s welcome over here any time.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
A friend and nothing more, huh? Well, I suppose that’s true but at least I got to show my mom that I do have a friend. It kind of covers all of the lies I told about the imaginary friends I never went to visit. Plus, I told Delilah about those imaginary friends too so if my Mom ever mentioned them, it would also justify those lies as well. Still, with Delilah, I don’t have to keep lying… or do I? What would they say if all of those friends suddenly disappeared?
I guess I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. For now, the first day was quite a success. I’m still not completely convinced I’m making the right choice here, though but I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t a little more confident after today.
That night, Sebastian went to sleep but something was a bit off. He didn’t pay much attention to it until the morning came. As soon as he woke up, he knew that something was wrong.
Jesus Christ… my throat is on fire… as is my head and… Oh, Great…
Sure enough, he took his temperature and the thermometer registered a 102-degree fever. Sebastian had caught the remnants of Delilah’s cold.