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Chapter 19 - numinous

1 year later

Brad's POV

It's almost been a year since she left. 346 days, 8 hours and 12 minutes. But who's counting?

I stopped trying with the whole "bad boy" persona. I thought it was about time. Turns out Justin and I have 5 classes together the next semester. We're friends now.

Colin became the leader of the "gang". I'll just let them believe they're cool for now. Dylan joined chess club and Colin totally just exiled him. Typical. What's good is that Dylan still looks up to me, even though I tell him not to. He keeps bringing up the fact that I "saved" him from being a geek.

"There's nothing wrong with being a geek." I remember telling him.

Nobody saw Ray after that day. Blake came back and actually started living with us again. Though he still hangs out with his gang and does stuff that isn't exactly legal. He told me to stay out of it as usual and I did.

Veronica, same old, same old. Wasn't surprised when we found out she started dating Colin. I was happy for her, she didn't exactly do anything wrong. 

I constantly hang out with Justin and Dylan. Ashlynn and Justin are still going strong after so long, gotta admit, I do get jealous sometimes. If I played my cards right, that could've been Taybe-, Taylor and me. Play my cards? What was I talking about this isn't a game. If I treated her right. If only I did.

At first, Ashlynn was a little pissed at me. Okay, a lot. But after almost 12 months, a punch in the arm every time we meet has turned into a mere two fingered flick.

I could tell she misses Taybe-, Taylor. Every now and then something interesting happens, she looks interested and tends to look to her left, her hand ready to swat someone before her face fell with realisation that there was no one there. She became friends with Veronica, not close just friends.

"Brad, wanna go to Papa John's?" Dylan asked as I found him in in a circle with Justin and Ashlynn.

Ah Ashlynn, I rubbed my shoulder where she recently flicked me.

"Nah, I think I'll just walk home."

"Sure?"

"Yeah"

"Okay, bye then." They said in unison as they made their way to Justin's Volkswagen.

The streets were crowded today. People were bustling around buying Christmas presents. I hugged my jacket and zipped it all the way up. I was cold but not too cold. Little drops of snow fell onto the striped of knitted caps on children's heads.

The clang of coins dropping in a metal bucket by a guy dressed in Santa echoed through my ears as I stopped in front of him.

"Merry Christmas!" he said joyfully through his fake beard.

"Merry Christmas." I replied throwing in some change on my own.

"Now hold on there." he said right before I walked away.

"There will always be a distance between to words on a page, but no one ever said you couldn't fold it to make the words meet." he said, uttering every word carefully.

"Um thanks." I managed to say.

"HO HO HO! He carried on, thanking other people who dropped coins in his bucket.

"Hey little bro." Blake said ruffling my dark hair as I came home from school.

Yup, dyed it back my original colour.

"Hey."

Christmas Day

"Brad!" Blake called from outside my room.