Post by Cornflower on Mar 14, 2010 17:26:10 GMT -5
It was cold. Not as cold as November, or December, even January and February was colder then this. But still, Corn was cold. He huddled against the protective wall of the playground slide. Hoping the brightly colored toy would protect him from the cool breeze that blew through the area. It made the swings not ten feet away sway in the wind. Like a small child just learning to kick off on their own, they swung back and forth softly, fruitlessly. The metal hinges groaned in protest even at this slight movement. Corn sighed softly, his cheek pressed against the plastic. So cold. He tried to pull his jacket tighter around his shivering body, but it only shifted a little. Letting a breath of chilly air slip in, sending an icy finger down his spine. He cursed under his breath incoherently in a mixture of English and Japanese. Corn didn’t like being cold. Tightly he gripped at the plush doll in his arms. Naked fingers caressing the velvet scarf around it’s neck—a sort of comfort for the frozen, frightened boy. If Corn didn’t like being cold, he liked the dark even less. At least, when he was at its mercy.
Just like any human, he was frightened of the unknown. What he could not control. It worried him. After all, if you didn’t know your enemy, how were you to protect yourself from it? Every rustle of the trees, crack of a twig, howl of the wind, trick of the moon put him on edge. Made him jump from his spot, eyes locked in the direction of said noise or shadows, desperately looking for the offender. After maybe 45 minutes of looking, he’d relax a little. Shoulders would slump, spine would curve, legs would curl and slowly the music that rang in his ears would lull him into an almost sleep. And he’d stay in that state for a while, sometimes 5 minutes to luckily an hour or so, his mind and body resting, but eyes were not quite closed. Mind still looking for some sort of danger, and, when it thought there was something to fear. He’d jerk out of his sleep, alert again. Corn couldn’t sleep peacefully, not out here. He hadn’t slept peacefully in months, much too terrified of what might be surrounding him.
Originally he had been sleeping in a better lit area, closer to the school. And Corn, for the most part, felt safer there. But it hadn’t worked out, sure, it was better lit and perhaps even warmer there, but there were too many people. Too many curious eyes, all wondering why the boy was sleeping outside so close to the school—after all, it looked like he attended it. They woke him up, asked him, and offered him places to stay. But he didn’t know these people; there was no way he could stay with them. Besides, even if Corn had known them, he wouldn’t want to inconvenience them. There had even been a kind, elderly couple who nearly forced him. Grabbing both wrists they dragged him along for a while, blabbering on in a mixture of Spanish and broken English. Telling him that he was such a pretty child, and that he shouldn’t be out here alone, it was dangerous.
Corn remembered writing in their grip, twisting his arms against their rough, calloused hands—probably from a life of manual labor. He remembered begging them to let him go, that really, it was okay, he was just waiting for a friend and had dozed off. That his friend would be here any moment, and he really needed to get back to the bench. The elderly couple didn’t believe him and kept on their way, merrily talking to the boy. From their words, they really seemed like a sweet couple, who maybe, just wanted someone to look after, but Corn didn’t know this for sure. As a last resort he forced himself to cry, and buckled his knees. At that moment they let go of the half-Asian boy, so they could turn around and comfort him. But in that moment, he was gone. He ran full speed into the shadows, sobbing his apologies to the couple. After that, Corn couldn’t bring himself to sleep on that bench. He had to find a new place. By some miracle he had made his way to the fun park, and the child’s playground next to it, sure, it was darker—scarier, and sure, it was father away from the school—safety. But at least he was pretty sure no one would find him here. Still, he was scared.
Corn was beginning to think that maybe, maybe he should try going to the dorm he had been assigned. That maybe, meeting his roommate might be better then this. But every time he stood out of the door, hand posed to knock, he froze. He just, couldn’t do it; he was too painfully shy when it came to inconveniencing others. Besides, his roommate had probably already gotten used to life without having to share the room. Could Corn really take that from them? He wasn’t sure. Perhaps the hidden monsters in the night were the better option.
Corn sighed, flipping up the hood on the thick jacket. That was thought for tomorrow. For now, he could hopefully get in more then a few hours of sleep tonight. His eyes fluttered, closing them for the most part; arms still clinging almost violently to the plush doll in his arms.
Tag: No one! Open to anyone!
Words: 914
Notes: Huurrrrr, elderly couple thing totally happened to me while I was waiting for a friend. Since Corn is my manself it seemed like I should do it to him as well. Anyway, lolololol failure post has been a while since I’ve written anything.
Music: Wine Red by The Hush Sound.
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