Chapter 23
Nicolas lightly snored. He was roused by the warm light that rested on his eyelids. He rubbed his eyes, mainly to shield them from the overwhelming sunbeam.
Looking around, he noticed that there wasn't much activity going on. He thought about going back to sleep, not wanting to waste his energy, but a pull forced him out of bed and motivated him to get ready for classes.
He sighed, knowing that he wasn't going to get any extra rest, even if he wanted to. He got up and traipsed over to his chair, snatching his waistcoat off of it and quickly put it on himself. He turned and walked over next to his bed where he put his toe, black-leathered snowshoes and acquired them to his attire.
He grabbed his coat, put on his newsboy hat and neck scarf, tied and tucked his dark emerald tie in his collar and headed out the door with nothing on his mind. When he exited his dorm, he was surprised to see no other children walking through the halls. It relieved him a bit knowing that he wouldn't need to interact with anyone.
It was a leisurely feeling that overcame Nicolas when he decided to leave the igloo and wonder around the winter camp. He trotted down the stairs, noticing two children that passed him on his way down, and confidently walked out the door.
Once he stepped outside, he was greeted by the comfortable feeling of fluffiness on his rubber soles. The cold wind grazed his neck with a soft breeze, and it was at that moment that he knew he was a winter person. He closed his eyes, breathing in the frozen air that surprisingly had mercy on his lungs.
He looked to his right and saw a few boys playing with a ball, throwing it high in the air and watching as one of the others ran to catch it before it hit the ground. They did this for a fairly long time until it was thrown to the point of no return; one boy chucked it so far up and away that it gracefully soared over yonder the milky mountains behind the igloo. It almost looked as if it had been shot to the sun.
The other boys reprimanded him, one mentioning how expensive that ball was and how he just threw hundreds of dollars to the mountains. With there being nothing to play with, the three of them just went back inside the school. Nicolas decided it was best to follow them.
HALF HOUR LATER
Nicolas was sitting on a bench located on the side of the corridors. He was looking off to nowhere, trying not to think of anything that may cause the same attack he had early this morning. It was sort of a battle he was fighting within himself, an armored soul that warded off the darkness of angst and neglected a fearful part of him...
A wave a relief had came over him once he saw the four faces he knew well: Ravi, Patton, Zachary and Azure were talking and, once they saw him, waved and made their way over.
"Nicolas!" Exclaimed Azure, getting to him first. The others beamed and greeted him... But it was as if they knew what he was thinking. He exchanged careful glances at them, trying to get information by sight.
Unfortunately, the bell rang as soon as their faces fell a little flat, and tens of children came in from all open sides of the halls, rushing to get to their classes. As they swept by Nicolas, he wondered where all of them were all of this time.
Could it be... Could it be that he mentally shut every single person out just to cope with his internal fights?
...
No, he thought. I don't have the mental strength for that.
End of Chapter
I literally have been working on this for a week, no joke.
I'm impossibly sorry for the wait but tell me in the comments if you think it was worth it :]
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nobodyimportant out—
