Silent Cry (BoyxBoy)

Four

Ethan's brows furrowed as he walked out of the cafeteria to find the boy. He didn't mean to drop his food on him or scare him. He was frustrated with himself for not watching where he was going, but most of his anger was aimed at that kid who just had to bump into him to make his situation awkward. Hearing almost everyone in the cafeteria burst into laughter when his plate fell onto the blue eyes boy made Ethan feel bad. So much for first impressions, he thought.

Ethan wasn't a bully. He would never hit someone for no reason at all or intentionally hurt another person. But at this moment, he felt like one. He opened the door to the boys' bathroom and tried to listen intently for someone sniffing or even breathing. Though he couldn't hear much, Ethan sensed the presence of another person other than him so he bent down to check under the stalls and finally, he found him.

He quietly knocked on the door and he could have sworn he heard the boy's breathing hitch.

"I'm sorry for what happened back there. I'm really sorry," he apologized.

The boy didn't answer and Ethan felt dumb. Why won't he just say something?

"Come on, I said I'm sorry."

Still, he wasn't answering. If anything, it seemed as though the boy was afraid of Ethan and that made the blond boy uneasy. He hadn't meant to hurt him, truly. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you okay," he said, making sure that the boy knew he came in peace. "I just wanted to say hi and someone pushed me. I'm sorry so please open the door."

He sighed when even after his explanation, the door remained closed. This was going to be a long day.

"I'm not leaving till you open alright? I just want to see if you're fine."

The door creaked a bit and he saw the boy peek out. Ethan sighed in relief. At least, he opened the door. But still, the boy wasn't getting out.

"Aren't you going to come out?" Ethan asked.

The black haired boy immediately shook his head and went back behind the door again making Ethan chuckle. Was he playing peek-a-boo with him? He smiled.

"Listen, I don't know your name or anything about you and since you're new, I just thought I could say hi to you. I don't know why but I think I wanna be your friend so uh, just come out and I don't know, look at me?"

Ethan was lost. This boy was acting pretty weird. It wasn't like he had a gun or a knife to kill him with. He was only trying to be nice and perhaps, make a new friend. Although it made him uneasy, his curiosity far outweighed his worries.

Ethan waited a little bit and after a short minute, the door opened. The boy's head was hung down when he peeked out. Ethan raised his hand to the boy's shoulder and he instantly flinched, making him withdraw his hand swiftly.

"Did I hurt you? I'm sorry."

The boy shook his head and Ethan took it as an answer to say he didn't hurt him and nodded.

"Okay, uh, I'm Ethan."

It was weird for Ethan, having some sort of an introduction in the bathroom. It was even weirder since Ethan was doing all the talking. He expected the blue eyed boy to at least mention his name. That was how these things worked. When one person says their name, the other replies. The boy looked uncomfortable, or better still, afraid which worried Ethan further. What could have happened to him to make him this way? Surely it couldn't just be because of the food, could it? He had hoped for a mere whisper of a name, maybe a John, or a Joshua or Daniel...something!

"Well, if you're not gonna talk, I guess I'll see you after school," said Ethan. The shorter boy nodded quickly, accepting that. Ethan gaped, a blush coating his face as feelings of rejection seeped into his skin. Maybe he had read the room wrong and the boy didn't even want him there. That sucks, Ethan thought. Knowing there wasn't much he could do at the moment, Ethan walked out of the bathroom and realized that lunch was over. Now he was going to be hungry. His stomach rumbled as if on cue and he took a chocolate bar from the pocket of his jeans.