As The World Falls Down

A Piece of Dream

On Saturday afternoon, Robbe was finally having enough of being cooped up in his flat. He considered going to the skatepark, but the boys could be hanging out there. He walked into his room, looking around, thinking, his eyes fell on Jen's camera on the sidetable. He hadn't returned it after he stopped talking to him, and Jens hadn't the guts to ask for it back. Making up his mind, he put on his jacket, grabbed the camera and put it on his backpack. He was slipping on his sneakers in the hall, when Milan came out from his room.

"Hey, Robbe, where are you going?"

"Just going to take a walk, to a park maybe."

Milan was studying him, "The boys haven't talked to you yet?"

Robbe shrugged for his answer.

"I am sure they will, some people just need time."

"How much time? It's been almost two weeks."

Milan looked at him in sympathy and squeezed his shoulder. He had been so supportive and helped a lot when Robbe was tentatively taking small steps out from his closet, sometimes he felt like Milan had always suspected. The self-assured, curly-hair guy was wise and dependable, though he could be totally crazy and got on his nerves.

Robbe looked at the floor. He asked, "Did you lose friends when you come out?"

"Yes, some of them," Milan smiled, "But I also got new friends, better ones."

Robbe didn't say anything to that. "Okay, I am going out, bye."

"Careful, see you later."

When he was outside the building, he unlocked his bike and started to cycle, he decided to just go to a quiet park, around fifteen minutes cycle distance. In the park, he strolled around, taking random pictures of trees, people, capturing butterflies' whispery wings, playing a bit with different light. Peering through the lens, swiping the camera at no where in particular, his hand froze, when the focus fell on a boy. Robbe dropped the camera down, and stared at Sander, sitting on a bench by himself. He was wearing a black leather jacket over a grey shirt with a red lighting bolt on it, one ankle over a knee, supporting some kind of board, fingers moving, looking up in a direction once in a while. Is he drawing?

Robbe walked toward a bench that had a direct view across from it and sat down. At first he only made brief glances, afraid that Sander would notice him, but the boy looked totally absorbed on what he was doing, so Robbe was on full staring mode now. From the way his fingers moved, and how he would glance up at two little kids playing with pigeons near the fountain, Robbe was sure he was indeed drawing them. Robbe couldn't look away from the sight, the seriousness on his figure was so out place in the relaxed atmosphere of the park, with breeze rustling the trees, and laughters ringing, people walking leisurely. But in the same time, he was so in harmony with his surrounding, with the clear blue sky, with drifting red-tinged leaves floating toward the cobblestreet.

Suddenly the little boys were chasing something that was rolling toward where Sander was sitting. It hit his foot and stopped there. One of them, seeming to focus on his toy and nothing else, crashed onto his legs, and then another boy, probably his brother in turn crashing on him from behind, half-fell on Sander's lap making his pencil slid in a hard, long line across the page, before the pad slipped and fell to the bench. Sander frowned, looking at the laughing boys, entangled around his lower body. Shit. The kids didn't look like they cared of anything, they were still giggling and wrestling, one of them was half-climbing Sander's body. What happened next was so suprising, because he had never thought of seeing it from the intimidating boy. Sander was laughing, not small chuckles, but a full, genuine laugh, he ruffled the kid's hair. When the kid shamelessly climb onto his back, seeming to ask for a piggyback ride, Sander indulged him with evident delight. To his eyes, Sander was glowing. He was standing with the other kid on his back now, whirling him around and running a bit, the kids looked like they were having the best time of their lives, when the mother finally realised that her kids were gone and was walking toward them now. She talked to Sander, probably apologized, she was chuckling, Sander smiled and ruffled the kids' hair before they were dragged by their mother.