Three Months

                                    

                                          
Kinkade POV
                          
It's been three months. 
                          
Three months since that big crash outside the Garrison. 
                          
Three months since Keith, Lance, Pidge and Hunk went missing. 
                          
One year since the Kerberos mission. 
                          
And it's been terrible.
                          
The Garrison has taken away our ability to leave the base or ride the hover bikes.
                          
Adam fell into drinking again, and this time Mrs.Holt wasn't there to stop him. Iverson had to assign some Crutis guy to keep him sober during class. He just fell apart. First he lost Shiro, now he's lost Keith. During class, he'd look at a picture on his desk a lot, a sad smile on his face. Once, when I passed his desk, I saw that it was a picture of Shiro and Keith. They were leaning on a hover bike, big smiles on their faces.
                          
Veronica was kind of a mess too. Lance was her "baby" brother, and Pidge was her best friend. She'd lost them both in one fell swoop. It took her a few weeks before she became more like her normal self.
                          
James, James was the worst of them.
                          
Those bright brown eyes Keith used to drone on and on about? They weren't so bright anymore. He seemed to just be drifting through life aimlessly. He still went to class, still had the best grades, he even became the best in the sims. But he didn't seem happy about it. He seemed to be going through the motions of life. He had no energy, no drive. All the life looked like it had been sucked right out of him.
                          
Which I guess, it had been. Even though they were separate, him and Keith were always together. Texting, video chatting, calling, you name it. They did it. And ever day, James came to class with a smile on his face, pep in his step.
                          
Now, he just looked depressed. And tired. Like he hadn't slept in weeks.Christmas was in a few days, and I knew that it'd be an especially hard time for him. They'd shared so many memories during that time, and I knew that they had to be replaying in his mind, over and over again.
                          
Sometimes, he'd be looking at something on his phone, or someone would do something, and he'd smile, or even laugh while pulling out his phone. "Holy shit, I have to tell Keith." He'd say, tapping a few buttons, then his smile would fall. "Oh. Right." He mutter, putting it back away.
                          
Yesterday, he'd even fallen asleep in class. And the teacher didn't even care. He was still the best student, and he did all his work on time. I poked him lightly, trying to wake him up. "James." I whispered. "James! James Griffin wake the fuck up right now!" I hissed. He brought his head up wearily. "Hmm? Oh, hey Ryan. What's up?" I stared at him in mild shock. He NEVER called me Ryan. Only Kinkade. Shit, he really was sleep deprived. "You fell asleep." I muttered. "It's the middle of class." "So? I did all the work." He said, sitting up and stretching. "And I have an A. I can afford to sleep for a few minutes." "James, have you been sleeping at all?" I asked, filled with concern. He had obvious bags under his eyes, and his shoulders were slumped. "Uh, sometimes." "James! What the hell? Why not?" I hissed, and he shrugged. "Don't know. I just can't sleep." "James, I know this is hard on you, but if you don't take care of yourself it's going to be even worse." He sighed. "I know, okay? I'm just.... worried. No one knows where Keith is. He hasn't been seen in 3 FUCKING MONTHS. I have no idea where he is, and I can't do any goddamn thing to find him because for some reason in the Garrison you have to stay through your college years." He said, voice starting to rise. "James, quiet down. We're in class." I whispered. He looked around, eyes going wide before he nodded. "Yeah, right. Sorry." He put his head on the table, covering it with his hands. "I'm just gonna..." And he dozed off. I looked at him sadly. This whole thing was tearing him apart.