Arron and Trexx

Chapter 17

Third person pov

"Arron, don't cry." Shikamaru winced slightly. "I'll be back. It's just school. It's a drag, but it'll be over before you know it."

The rest of the weekend had gone smoothly with no more breakdowns from Arron. She still had nightmares, and hadn't talked since cloud gazing Saturday, but it was progress. Of course, the girl still got scared by every little thing and would latch onto Shikamaru when his parents were around, but she hadn't cried. She would eat if Shikamaru tested it first, and she was going through bottled water like crazy. Shikamaru took this as a good sign. Maybe they'd get her some clothes of her own soon.

"No." She muttered, staring up at up with scared and pleading eyes. She had on hand on each of his forearms, and she wasn't letting go. He sighed a little, not sure what to do. She was on the verge of tears. Honestly, Shikamaru really didn't want to leave her, but he also knew there was no way in hell she could come with him. Maybe one day in the future. The far, far future.

"Here." Shikamaru slid one of his arms softly from her grasp, to which she began hugging the other one, pressing her face into the side of it. Shikamaru took a step, and she took a step too. His eyes went to her shaking legs, and he blinked. For a second he could have sworn he saw shadows crawling up her again. The illusion was getting far too frequent to be normal.

Shikamaru opened his walk in closet and flipped on the light switch. Arron peeked out curiously, but didn't let go of him. "Choji and I hang out here and sometimes sleep in here when he comes over." He gestured to the mass pile of blankets and pillows. "It's our secret fort. Nobody can get inside. If you want, you can stay here while I'm gone. I have to go to school, which is troublesome, buy nobody will bother you in here."

Arron nodded, tugging on Shikamaru. "Stay. Closet." She pointed. Shikamaru laughed slightly. He wished he could skip school and sleep in his walk-in all day. That would be sm absolute dream come true. His mom would obviously kill him for it... That didn't stop him from dreaming.

"I can't. I have to go to school. It's a drag." He said. Arron frowned, the tears in her eyes looking ready to overflow. Shikamaru sighed, letting his bag slide off one shoulder. He stepped into the closet. He looked around. The posters of different shows, books and scenes he and Choji both enjoyed hung on the wall, making the space look brighter. Books were scattered about, but the Nara had to wonder if Arron could even read.

"Look, you have to stay at the house, okay? You can stay anywhere you want. In here, you won't have to see anyone, and I'm come get you. And you can come out whenever you want. If you get bored there's some books, and if you get cold, my jackets are in here too." It wasn't much, he knew, but he guessed it was far better than nothing at all.

Arron sniffled but let go, her whole body shaking. "Shikamaru... Come back?" He flinched at how broken she sounded, but smiled nonetheless. He tried to look reassuring but he was sure it came out more awkward than anything else.

"Yeah, I'll be back as soon as school is over. It's pretty troublesome, right?" Shikamaru laughed, and Arron stepped forward, wrapping her arms around him. Shikamaru froze, looking down at her as she took in a few deep breaths. He awkwardly returned to hug, his lips pressed into a thin line and his eyes squinted awkwardly as he tried to figure out want to do or say.

Arron pulled back and began pushing him out of the closet. "Leave soon, come back sooner." She said. Shikamaru let out a laugh. He pointed to the digital clock on his bedside table. "3:15 is when I get home. So when it says three-one-five I should almost be here." He told her. Arron frowned. She didn't like this. She didn't like this at all.

Hesitating to let go, Arron finally released him shirt, her sad, scared eyes following him as he went.

Again, she was alone.