Beginning Of Introduction 2

Neil felt his body getting colder and colder from time to time. His eyes were hard to open and his body seemed to float between conscious and unconscious. Neil took a deep breath and was still grateful he was able to breathe air this time. Neil's skin was still in contact with the warm water that previously washed his body, this time it felt very cold piercing every nerve ending in Neil's sensitive skin.

How long has he been here?

Where's Sain?

A similar question escaped Neil's lips, he opened his voice but didn't find any sound coming out of it. Neil tried again but all that came out was a deafening creak of a door.

Neil's body felt numb from staying in the water for too long, Neil's breath that was blowing slowly felt hot against his face. Neil is sure he will fall fever after this. Neil's head ached the more he wanted to try to move. Neil could only blink weakly under the bright bathroom light.

Neil's teeth gritted against the cold that hit him mercilessly. A thought flashed across Neil's face as he thought this was the end of it all. Neil thought Sain might be happy when he came back and realized Neil was still in the bathroom, maybe what Sain saw later was Neil's stiff body.

Neil closed his eyes, becoming a little calmer than before, as he imagined that Sain might laugh at Neil's stupidity when he met Neil here. Very slowly, Neil shifted creating pain behind his back.

He continued to retreat slowly shifting and smiling weakly feeling the slow-moving process. Neil made a choking sound in the back of his throat as he felt a throbbing pain in the back of his body and a spinning headache.

Neil slowly positioned his body in such a way. His head was level with the water, the smile not fading from his lips this time even as he slowly submerged his head into the water, leaving his nose to breathe one last time.

Neil convinced himself, images swirled on the outer surface of Neil's mind. His father smiling, Skylar smiling, Michelia smiling at Skylar, and even Faiz was smiling as if they were supporting Neil to do this.

In one fell swoop, Neil submerged his head into the water with a strong thump, until Neil's head accidentally hit the ground, followed by a stinging pain in the back of his head, and this time Neil completely lost his consciousness again with a thick red liquid polluting the water.

***

Sain didn't answer right away, he was silent for a long period for Neil. The eyes that Neil was watching in front of him seemed to be blurry as if he was remembering something in his mind, then they refocused and sharpened making him speak during their silence. "Whatever, you ask a lot of questions," said Sain quickly.

Neil's eyes narrowed at Sain's harsh-sounding answer, his lips suddenly twitched. At first, Neil thought a little maybe he could be friends with Sain later. However, Sain said something else. So, Neil immediately replied, "Okay we are not friends."

"You're angry?" Sain asked mockingly with his eyes deliberately widening.

Neil narrowed his eyes. "What's your problem with me? Ever since you introduced yourself in front of the class, you seem to be looking at me with your disapproving look. Have we met? Have I done anything wrong to you before that I forgot?"

Sain stepped forward more and more towards Neil, he was about to back away but Neil was cornered this time.

"You never look at yourself in the mirror?" asked Sain

pulling a question mark in Neil's mind.

Neil immediately answered by shaking his head. "What's wrong? I don't think there's anything wrong with me."

"Surely, you won't feel anything wrong because you never realized."

Neil flinched when Sain suddenly grabbed his shoulders and with a jerk turned Neil's body to face the mirror, so Neil could see himself in the reflection of the mirror in front of him. Neil felt immense shame as Sain with enough force pushed himself closer to the mirror. Neil rebelled but he couldn't even push Sain away. "What do you want? Get off!"

Neil rebelled from Sain's grip, they didn't know each other but Sain had done this to him. Neil asked in a slightly raised tone. "What should I see in the mirror?"

Sain raised his hand and pinched Neil's chin to bring Neil's face back to the mirror. "You look at you Neil, can I just take my eyes off you? You're as if challenging me to treat you like this the first time I saw you. How can I bear it?"

"What do you mean? You can't speak clearly and in the right position? Why does it have to be like this? We don't know each other yet. So let me go now!" Neil squirmed away Sain's hand from his face, which looked useless. "What's wrong with you?"

"Are there other men like you?" Sain asked almost half whispering in Neil's ear which made Neil shudder. "With lots of red on your face and your lips."

Neil noticed his face, and he immediately turned his gaze in another direction in embarrassment to see his face. Sain might be right, only he dared to say that to Neil.

Sain was standing so close behind Neil that Neil felt Sain's hot breath rushing at the back of Neil's neck.

Neil's eyes dropped when he felt Sain's hand move around Neil's waist and stay there. And his chin resting on the top of Neil's head.

Neil felt his heart beating fast, the position they were in now seemed very awkward and strange. They had just met earlier and why did Sain treat Neil like this, as if they had known each other for a long time?

Neil flinched and with his sudden strength, he immediately pushed Sain away from him. Neil's hand rose to rub the side of his neck that was throbbing from Sain's sudden bite.

Neil looked at Sain who was standing in front of him with an innocent look as if he had never done anything before.

"What are you doing? You bit me?" asked Neil he lowered his voice a little afraid to be heard by others out there.

Sain raised his eyebrows, his arms crossed in front of his chest looking to challenge Neil to say many things to Sain.

"You bit me?" asked Neil again still not believing what Sain did to him.

"I just bet you didn't I, did something else," Sain said lightly."

"Only?" asked Neil sarcastically. Neil shook his head and pushed Sain away from him. "You are weird, stay away from me!"

Not content to just talk, Neil kicked the shin Sain and left leaving Sain behind

Neil determined to deal with a man named Sain again.

***

Neil has been a quiet friend for so long that he doesn't want to get to know a lot of people.

Neil brushed his hair back with his fingers, the scorching morning sun could always escape him in the classroom. Classes for the first and second hours were empty leaving only the assignments they had to do. Neil has done all the assignments and exercises in the textbook at home and learned all the vocational practices, for him school is a place where he can be free to play with himself while at home he has to be a butterfly that can't spread its wings.

Neil's stomach suddenly seemed to twist, he gripped his stomach tightly to make the pain stop. But instead of stopping, the pain just got worse. He forgot that he had not 'had breakfast' yet, this morning he had already eaten but at that time his father gave a lot of vegetables to his bread.

Neil of course can't refuse he has to eat vegetables even though he doesn't like and can't eat vegetables, he has to resist the urge to vomit in front of his father. So when his father left for work Neil vomited all his stomach contents, even the remnants of last night's food came out of his stomach. From the beginning, Neil didn't like eating vegetables, even though he could throw up the tip of his fingernail. His father never knew or didn't want to know.

Therefore he is now in the canteen with a bowl of meatballs in front of him.

Even Neil's mouth was bubbling to say that his order was not added with vegetables, it was useless, so all Neil could do was remove the vegetables one by one from the bowl.

"Come here."

"Huh, what?" Neil just realized he was here alone, why would someone like him. And so, Neil lifted his head to see someone bothering him when it was quiet.

Neil's eyes saw Skylar sitting across from him blocked by the table, his mouth that had been talking was chewing so Neil didn't know whose voice it was. Every time Skylar's presence in front of Neil can always pull him out of silence, but this time Neil just wants to be alone. The memory of the wound on him appeared when he saw Skylar, he couldn't look weak in front of Skylar. Neil has to run away for a while from the world of Skylar.

Neil looked around the cafeteria looking for a new place when he found him preparing to stand with a bowl of meatballs and his drink. But before he could stand up, Skylar had his feet lightly stomped on him. There was a question in Neil's mind why this morning Skylar's attitude had changed from yesterday.

"I said earlier, here the vegetables are going to run away," Skylar spoke looking annoyed. Neil just stared blankly at Skylar.

Without wasting time because Neil was also hungry he immediately put away the vegetables in his bowl to give to Skylar.

"Just go straight into my mouth here!" Skylar's mouth was already open to take a bribe.

"You're a freak, Skylar."

***

Neil opened his eyes and was instantly lit by sunlight hitting his face. He blinked a few times and shook his head slowly as he dreamed strange things that couldn't possibly happen.

"Finally awake again," said the voice.