112

Tobias balls up his hands around the chains.

"Well, you didn't have to follow me…"

As if succumbing to gravity, you watch as Tobias lowers his head onto his chest. You hear him let out a long breath—and then another, with a twitch of his shoulders that sets the chains clattering slightly. Those same breaths come a few more times, each one shaking his shoulders a little more.

It's only when you hear the hitch in the back of his throat that you realize he's crying.

Next

You can't pretend you're not shocked. You know that Tobias has seemed a little low before now, but never like this.

But still, the moment doesn't seem right for you to talk. Instead, you step around the swing and face Tobias, and for the first time, you can see the tears that are pouring down his face as he sits hunched over on the swing. After a short pause, you crouch down slightly and rest a hand on his shoulder.

When he feels you touch him, he flinches away. It doesn't take too much longer before he grows quiet, and as his sobs turn into sniffs, he throws you a hesitant glance.

"How come you came to find me?" he asks. "I mean—did you just happen to be out there as well?"

You explain how you overheard the shouting, and when Zoe saw you she asked you to try and find Tobias because she couldn't get over the fence. Tobias nods.

"Sorry you had to do that," he mumbles. "I wasn't thinking, I just—wanted to get away. It was stupid to jump over the fence."