>"...you ready to talk?" Fang asks gently, trailing her hand up and down my chest doing her best to avoid the bruises generously donated to me by Volcano High's stairs and Bollards.
>"About?" I ask, dreading the answer.
>"Your old school. I get why you left but I want to know the whole story.... if you're ready." she says, honey and warmth emanating from her.
>Her sweetness melts my heart and be it the weariness from the whole ordeal or her defusing words I feel I'm ready to talk to her, at least a little.
>"Used to live in a place called Rock Bottom." I start, Fang listening intently.
>"Like the namesake, the place sucked. Royally. Nothing to do, no real things of note just mountains and shitty weather." I sigh, remembering the place.
>"Born and raised there, parents moved there a few years before I was born. Claimed it was a nice quiet place to raise children." I continue, my mind starting to drift into remembering my sophomore years.
>"As you already know I was kind of, well not kind of, I was a loser. Weeb, loner the whole nine-yards." as I say this Fang grasps my hand, as if to hold down my self-hatred.
>"Had a few friends." I wince, remembering how those pictures got around in the first place.
>"Had." I put extra emphasis on the word.
>"We shared video game interests. Rock Ring and whatnot." I gesture blindly towards the Xrox on the ground,not wanting to meet Fang's gaze. Not wanting to see the tears forming in my eyes.
>I swallow to give my voice a second to regain it's composure. "One of the guys, Levi, I'd known for a few years."
>"Been to each other's houses, talked online, ate lunch together. I'd wager he might've been my best friend." The story takes it's toll on me, my voice cracking as I continue, face dampening as the tears have now escaped their ducts. I sniffle unconsciously and wipe my face before I continue.
cont. this hurts to write