Mindful Secrets

Chapter 17 - Give Me A Break

Jasper

As I neared the classroom, the uncertainty to just run inside was increasing. He's clearly very angry and I don't think us being friends would stop him from probably hurting me somehow. I slow down to a jog at I reached the front door.

I couldn't see what was going on inside since the door didn't have a window on it. I listened closely for any sounds and I could still hear him punching the walls and shoving the desks. I think he may have flipped one from the sound of it.

I slowly reached for the door handle. I could just leave, pretend nothing had happened this entire time. Maybe he'll calm down after a few minutes. I mean, this isn't exactly something I need to step in. But then again, what type of friend am I if I abandon him now.

With that, I opened the door and head inside. To say I was surprised would be an understatement. Desks were on the floor, papers and pens were scattered around and the walls looked rather broken from both punches and kicks. In the middle of it all stood a wolf with his back towards me.

He was breathing heavily, an aura of rage surrounded him. His hands were balled into fists, making the veins in his arms pop out. At that moment, I had second thoughts about this. But, I quickly push them away and focused on the main task.

I close the door behind me but that proved to be a mistake. He heard the door closing and looked behind him. On instinct, I backed away. Unfortunately, I did not plan that through as I backed myself into a corner instead of the door.

He stared at me, rage in his eyes. I wasn't exactly the target of his rage but being the only other fur in the room with him, I don't think I can convince him otherwise. He slowly turns his body around, facing me now with his bristled fur and bared teeth. I audibly gulped at the sight.

Before I could even react, he ran at me with a fist raised high. At that moment, I saw my life flash before my eyes for the second time this year. This was how I was gonna die. Getting punched to death by a friend. The only thing I could do in that moment was close my eyes.

And close them, I did. I braced for the impact. At least, I don't need to deal with this life anymore if I'm dead. I wait and wait until his fist finally connected. But, it didn't hit my face, which was both strange and relieving to me. I slowly open my eyes to see what had happened.

As I did, I saw that his arm was just inches away from my face. He had hit the wall beside me. I looked over at him and saw the most heartbreaking sight. He had his eyes closed, tears streaming down his face. His teeth were gritted but I knew, it wasn't from anger this time.

This felt like a pile up of overdue emotions. It was a mixture of sadness, grief and also a bit of anger. I could hear him whimpering as we stood there, not doing anything. But, I need to do something. I need to calm him down. At that moment, I remembered something my mum used to do when I had a bad day.

I see your monsters,

I see your pain,
Tell me your problems,
I’ll chase them away,
I’ll be your lighthouse,
I’ll make it okay,
When I see your monsters,
I’ll stand there so brave,
And chase them all away,

In the dark we we,
We stand apart we we,
Never see that the things that we need are staring right at us ,
You just want to hide hide hide,
Hide never show your smile smile,
Stand alone when you need someone it’s the hardest thing of all,
That you see are the bad bad bad,
Bad memories take your time and you’ll find me,

I see your monsters,
I see your pain,
Tell me your problems,
I’ll chase them away,
I’ll be your lighthouse
I’ll make it okay,
When I see your monsters,
I’ll stand there so brave,
And chase them all away.

When I was finished with the song, I hugged him. With that final act, he just broke. He was loudly sobbing while letting small whimper inbetween sobs. He hugged me back, giving me the death grip as he cried. I pat him on the back as I tried to think of words to comfort him.

"It's okay, it's okay. Just let it out", I say. He continues to sob for a few more minutes until he finally regained his composure. "I-I'm so sorry, J-Jazz. I di-didn't want to hurt you", he stuttered out. I give him a reassuring smile.

"It's okay. I know you. You'd never intentionally hurt me", I say. He nods. "I know you might not be willing to tell me your problem right now so how about we go home", I suggest. "Okay", he says meekly. I went to grab my bag that had fallen onto the floor during my initial fright.

Just as I grabbed it, something fell out of it. A necklace. Wait a second. I look at Dakota and see him staring at the necklace on the ground. Isn't that his necklace? What the hell was it doing in my bag? Fear coursed through my veins as I realised what that dirty hyena just did.

I saw him moving towards me. Oh, give me a break. He was devoid of any emotions and that scared me more. He grabbed the necklace that was on the ground and stared at me. Suddenly, his free hand moved towards me and I braced for my inevitable doom.

He grabbed my shoulder and locked me on the spot. Oh god, he's gonna kill me for real. "We're friends, right?", he asks. "What?", I ask. "We're friends, right?", he asks again. I nod furiously at that. He lets a sad smile form onto his face as he stared down at the necklace.

"Yeah, that's good enough for me", he says. What just happened? "You're not gonna hurt me?", I ask. "For what? I know you wouldn't steal my necklace. You're...my friend", he says. A friend... "And, I do have a confession I want to make to you", he says.