Blank Space {a Garrence FF}

Day 2: Gifts

Laurence sat on his bed, it had only been two hours, but he felt like his entire world was changing. A person next to him? Was he doing something wrong? Why was this happening?

Questions flew in his mind, faster than they had in years. He had planned out a few things to say to this "Garroth", and hopefully get some information. His curiosity was peaked.

Hesitantly, he headed over to the switch, and flicked it on.

Silence.

Laurence felt his shoulders droop. Perhaps he really was going crazy. Summoning up the courage he had, Laurence cleared his throat.

"Hello? You still there Garroth?" He hoped he was saying that right. After a moment he herd scrambling from the other side, as if someone was getting up off of the floor.

"Yeah, I'm here. Why did you turn the speaker off?" Garroth questioned, defiantly closer to the wall now.

Laurence felt overwhelmed again, but cleared his head and kept on with his plan. "That's not important, tell me why you are here." His voice was firm and cold, yet he really didn't know what he was doing. He just had to wrap his head around what was going on.

Garroth began speaking casually, as if he hadn't even picked up on the cues in Laurence's voice. "My father put me here. Wanting to see what it would be like if he put me, a 16 year old boy who has socialized his whole life, to be in isolation." He said. "And for you, to see what it would be like for you to deal with limited socialization."

Laurence relaxed. "So you are like me. Taken away from your family and forced into this awful situation?" He asked, now feeling more calm at the fact that Garroth had felt his pain.

"Well.. uh.. I guess you could put it that way..." Garroth whispered, sounding slightly confused.

Laurence shook it off, must just be for the nerves of the first day. "I've been in here for 12 years straight." He said to Garroth. "It doesn't get better." He put his back to the wall and slid to the floor, rubbing his hand through his brown locks.

The familiar voice came back.

Three times in one day?

Laurence thought as he sat on the ground, waiting.

"Alrighty boys, here are your little gifts. And play nice."

The door for food slid open automatically, ad Laurence sprang to his feet, hardly believing his eyes. A real, live, guitar, right in his food slot. He gripped it quickly, pulling it out like a little kid in Christmas morning. He had seen pictures, but never a guitar in real life. He ran his fingers up and down the smooth wood, and pricked at a few of the strings. The sound was completely new, and he dropped the guitar with surprise at such a noise. It was like over stimulation for him.

His sudden drop of the guitar sent sheet music scattering across his room. He couldn't believe it. Papers teaching him how to play and make music. It was amazing.

Across the wall Garroth moaned. "I got paint, dude. Just paint." He obviously sounded annoyed.

Laurence was too excited to pick up on his tone of voice. "That is so cool! I've never seen paint in real life before! Describe what it looks like, or smells like, tell me everything!" He pressed up against the wall as Garroth hesitated.

"Never seen paint before?" He asked, confused and hesitant.

"Of course not! Now tell me about it." Laurence was excited about his gift as well, but he could play with it at any time, he was pretty sure humans weren't available all the time, so he wanted information on Garroth's gift as well.

"Well.." Garroth started, still sounding quite confused. "I have red, blue, yellow, black and white paint. They smell like... paint."

It suddenly occurred to Laurence that Garroth was not good at being descriptive. "I got a guitar!" He said with excitement, running his hand over the strings, making a delightfully woody and whole sound.

Garroth groaned. "You got something cool and I got something lame, now I have to spend forever with just these paints?" He herd the frustration in Garroth's voice.

"Hey, be happy with what you have." Laurence snapped, scolding Garroth as if he were a child. "I've been in here for 12 years. You learn to love any sort of difference that comes your way." He gripped onto the guitar. He had felt so many emotions in the last few hours than he had for a long time. He looked up at the mirror, and got a shiver of chills. He only saw himself in the mirror, his shaggy brown hair and freckles face, but he had a feeling like Garroth was staring right back at him. He looked away.

Everything had changed now that Garroth was here, and this beautiful guitar. He picked up some instructions on how to play the guitar, and ran his fingers over the strings, but this time holding the top strings with his other hand. It made a different sound, and he smiled.

"Something different.."

He whispered.