Love from the fire

Comfort

After the twins had gone, Miles looked at me and stated, "You're really popular here."

"I'm not," I said. "Those are all classmates who just know me. They don't usually talk to me like this."

"I wish I was popular." Miles began. "Like, everyone talks to Gray and likes him. I'm always next to him, but no one ever pays attention to me. They never try to start a conversation with me."

"That's sad," I told him, understanding his situation. "Have you ever tried to start a conversation with anyone before? Maybe they all like Gray because he's chatty and social."

Miles rolled his eyes. "Chatty and social?"

"Yeah," I replied. "Anyways, I guess we can go to my house to rest for a bit. I'll show you around after that."

"Hm." He muttered, dragging himself next to me as we walked.

Since he was going quite slowly, I sped up in hopes to get him to walk quicker.

However, that resulted in something else. I felt my arm being pulled back aggressively. "Don't walk off," He muttered, sounding annoyed, in my ears.

"S-sorry." I stuttered. I was caught off guard and I felt really warm and nervous all of a sudden. It was probably nothing though. That's what I thought.

The feeling didn't go away though. I felt really nervous and I couldn't stop feeling that way. Fortunately, I was sure that Miles hadn't noticed.

We reached my home. Before I even touched the door handle, I swore in my head and I also laughed at my own stupidity. I didn't even have the keys.

"What's holding you up?" Miles asked.

I moved my hand away from the handle, unsure of what to do or say.

In a swift movement, Miles took the door handle and opened the door. My eyes widened in shock as he did so.

"What?" He asked, a slightly confident look on his face.

"My mom used to always lock me out of the house. Most nights, I slept at my neighbours house. Her name's Mia and she's really nice. She's moved away though."

Miles stood in the doorway observing me. I looked away.

"I'm sorry." He admitted.

"You don't need to be." I told him.

He pulled me inside and shut the door behind me. It embarrassed me so much that it was probably visible how nervous I was.

"It's always the good people who lack love and care, isn't it?" He asked, putting his arms around me and hugging me. "You're so sweet. You've never done anything wrong. Haven't you always craved attention from your mom? You deserved it, I'm sure, but you never got it."

"Even you Miles." I added. "You're a great person. You're caring and just as observant as Gray. You're interesting and relatable. Still, I doubt Gray has been kind to you. He's been using you, right? You haven't had any real friends. You're a lot like me. I met Gray. I met you. It's changed my life so much. You two are almost like everything my mom couldn't give me when I was younger."

"You understand me." His voice was breaking. "I feel happy for you, that you've found someone who makes you happy."

That was it for him. I felt my shoulder getting wet as his tears dropped on me. I let him cry. I said nothing. I only hummed a gentle tune that always made me feel a little happier.

"People are people." It sounded pathetic, but that's what came to mind. So, that's what I said. "Understanding other people is hard. I remember admiring Gray for being so good at it when I first met him."

I felt his grip around me tighten. It started hurting me a little, but I ignored it. "We always stay quiet when we're hurt, afraid to bother others. We're afraid that people will view us as weak." I continued.

It was ironic though. I was saying this as his tight grip on my shoulders was close to making me push him away.

"That's the kind of people we are." Miles laughed. "We always think that other people will hurt us. We're scared to trust anyone. We are weak. But we put up a strong act. We're all fake. People are fake."

"Exactly." I spoke. "Yet, we have a soft spot for people too. If someone comes to us, crying, for support, we'll give it without hesitation. But, even that strong act we put up is a sign of our inner strength. We are all strong because we haven't given up yet."

The expression on his face now was so mesmerising that it was difficult to explain. It seemed as though after a long, intense and tiring war, he finally found some hope and peace.

"Yes! We are strong!" He reassured the both of us."