Aria sounds out of breath behind him but Rick wipes his eyes on his sleeve and keeps running up the stairs. He just had to get out of there, has to find somewhere to be alone, but he doesn't have his keys so his room is out (Kit would choose today to have a lab report due and an important meeting with his professor). The lounge it is. At least there's a couch; he practically falls onto it, curling up and shaking.
It's like he can still hear them. Frat boys in their car, cruising around the fucking campus of liberal hippie students, looking for targets. He's a fucking faggot, is he? Wears girl's jeans and blue eyeshadow, doesn't he? And then two of them got out and pushed him around, goddamn jocks, so much faster. They took his bag, too.
In fact, the only reason they stopped was that Aria came running, threatening to call the cops. She has the angriest eyes of the whole campus when she wants to, and a voice that can cut through the loudest of crowds. She always says it's a remnant from leading the high school drama club; it gets shrill when twenty dramatic high school students get together, real fucking shrill, so she had to learn to bellow.
And so she saved him (again, she keeps doing that and he's not sure what that means). But he's hurting, now, even though only two of them landed punches, and he can't stop crying for some reason.
Aria has an uncertain hand on her back, she sucks so much at the comforting part, but Rick is glad she's here, can't stop leaning into her touch. He just wants Kit here too, slow voice and calm hands.
Just before
Aria sounds out of breath behind him but Rick wipes his eyes on his sleeve and keeps running up the stairs. He just had to get out of there, has to find somewhere to be alone, but he doesn't have his keys so his room is out (Kit would choose today to have a lab report due and an important meeting with his professor). The lounge it is. At least there's a couch; he practically falls onto it, curling up and shaking.
It's like he can still hear them. Frat boys in their car, cruising around the fucking campus of liberal hippie students, looking for targets. He's a fucking faggot, is he? Wears girl's jeans and blue eyeshadow, doesn't he? And then two of them got out and pushed him around, goddamn jocks, so much faster. They took his bag, too.
In fact, the only reason they stopped was that Aria came running, threatening to call the cops. She has the angriest eyes of the whole campus when she wants to, and a voice that can cut through the loudest of crowds. She always says it's a remnant from leading the high school drama club; it gets shrill when twenty dramatic high school students get together, real fucking shrill, so she had to learn to bellow.
And so she saved him (again, she keeps doing that and he's not sure what that means). But he's hurting, now, even though only two of them landed punches, and he can't stop crying for some reason.
Aria has an uncertain hand on her back, she sucks so much at the comforting part, but Rick is glad she's here, can't stop leaning into her touch. He just wants Kit here too, slow voice and calm hands.