s e v e n t y - s i x

                                    

                                          
NB: this chapter  happened in the past too, a day or two before Xander decided to be a brave asshole :3
                          
Chapter 76: Close to you
                          
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Deep in his eyes, I think I see a future
                          
* * *
                          
[Randall]
                          


                          


                          
Fück, fück, fück!
                          
That was never supposed to happen.
                          
Things were never supposed to go that far.
                          
How did things go that far?
                          
Where was the self-control? Why did it flee at the moment it was needed the most?
                          
Groaning quietly, Randall ran his hands down his face, his frustration and anxiety teaming up to fuel the war raging in his head, and south, every time Randall as much as closed his eyes. Because then, his mind would drift back to someone kneeling before him their eyes fluttered closed as they bobbed up and down—
                          
A loud slam startled Randall back into the present with a start.
                          
"Fückinghell!"
                          
He looked up to meet the look of an equally shocked and perturbed kid with a head full of blond curls. In the white lighting exuded from the overhead lights, it looked like a frizzy overgrown halo. Pulling out a chair next to Randall nonetheless, Sage aimed his best friend a curious look as he drew an A-level Human and Social Biology book from the pile. "Sorry," Sage mouthed to him. "Are you okay?"
                          
"Yeah, I'm good," Randall quickly confirmed. His shoulders relaxed at the sight of his friend and the evidence that the red-headed boy he desperately tried to avoid was nowhere in sight. But for how long? "I'm just a little ... buzzed, I guess?"
                          
"Hm," Sage hummed thoughtfully, his greyish hazel green eyes flicking over Randall's countenance in some sort of analysis. "A-are you ill? Your face is red, R-Randall. Should we go to the nurse?"
                          
"I'm okay, honest. School's just annoying sometimes."
                          
"R-right." Sage bobbed his head to show his agreement. He jabbed a finger at the stack of books he'd obnoxiously dropped to the table. "These were all the books we borrowed, s-so let's go."
                          
"What?"
                          
Sage's thin eyebrows sloped to display his confusion.
                          
"T-to return them, r-remember? It's the due date." he pointed out, flipping open the book at the top of the stack to prove his point. Afterward, Sage's quizzical gaze lifted to meet Randall's, who'd moved forth to gather most of the book. "I-I can carry some, you know?"
                          
"I don't mind. You know this, Sage," Randall cooed, ruffling his hair. The blond tensed up, dropped his eyes and nodded, but offered no more words of protest. It was a weird reaction, but before Randall could query it, Sage had moved and already vanished behind the door of the classroom. Sighing, Randall followed after him, his eyes glued to the books in hand for the entirety of the walk to the library. They were a great distraction too. Some smooth, some having a rougher texture and a more musky, old-book scent that frequently made Sage sneeze.
                          
Sage entered the library first holding the door open for his friend. Together, they walked to the front desk, where the hawk-eyed librarian glanced up at them from underneath her thick frames. Her eyes darted between them, shining with recognition once she assessed who they were — the two noisy pair of boys she'd once reprimanded for misconduct but overtime they recently became her regular customer, and favorite too.