Arson stared longingly at the bus as we walked past it. It looked much fancier than before since the team's budget had allowed for a revamp of the basketball team's bus for away games.

"Are you alright?" I asked as we walked into the school building.

The familiar wave of conditioned air welcomed me in, a nice change from the heat outside.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Of course." He must have seen the disbelief on my face because he went on, "It's just that there are only three games left for this championship league and this started out as my best year yet."

We sneaked our way through the crowd of students inching slowly through the halls as if the first period wasn't starting in two minutes.

I waited for him to continue because I sensed that there was something else bothering him.

He rubbed his neck, indicating that this was awkward for him to discuss. "I was also sort of hoping to get a scholarship from this to help Mom out."

I sighed and tried to find something helpful to say but I only found idle optimism.

"Maybe you'll recover before the last game if we qualify for the championship," I said, struggling to hide the uncertainty in my voice.

He nodded but he didn't seem to believe it either.

"Arson!" Coach William came out of the gymnasium as we passed by it, a classic silver whistle hanging down his neck.

"Coach," he simply said as a greeting to the tall and thin man that made us both crane our necks to look at him.

Coach looked pained to ask. "I wanted to, well, pick your brain. I have to name a replacing captain for the rest of the championship and since you've supervised the team's training for a while, I thought you would have some ideas."

Arson's face scrunched up as he thought about it for a while. I awkwardly stood next to him, unsure if I should just go to class while I still had the time or wait with him, so I just stood there.

"You can take some time to think about it." Coach chuckled. "Just let me know before we leave for the game tonight." He gave him a pat on the shoulder and walked back into the gymnasium.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed him glance down at the splint around his wrist as though his burning gaze would combust it into ashes.

I wished it would.

I wished I knew how to help him.

Maybe he heard my unvoiced thoughts because he turned and gave me a genuine smile that filled my heart with gratitude.

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Avan offered me a ride home after school. Maybe it was because the shadow hunting me never quite left my mind but I accepted.

I hadn't mentioned it to anyone since I first noticed it, partly because I believe it was a figment of my imagination since I hadn't seen it again after the fair.

Avan silently walked alongside me in the halls, occasionally sending furtive glances my way as to prompt me to say something and break the disturbing silence.

He cleared his throat and it seemed he was about to say something when we noticed Victoria waving in our direction.

She jogged toward us and the wave of students in the hallway dramatically parted to let her through.

"Avan," she said when she finally reached us after briefly looking at me.

"Hi, Vicky." He smiled.

Vicky? I bit my lip to hold back any sound or remark that would betray my disapproval.

"I was hoping I'd catch you." She glanced at her watch and anxiously glanced behind her. "Well, let's hope the bus doesn't leave me. Listen, I know this isn't your scene, but I'm hosting the after-party tonight after the game and you have to be there." She then turned to me with a solemn smile. "Oh hey, Avery."

I nodded but couldn't shake the feeling that she only spoke to me to appeal to Avan.

"You know I don't do parties anymore," he drawled, brushing back the long strands tickling the side of his face.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I stopped inviting you. But this one is super important and you'll save my life if you come." She thought about it for a while before adding, "You can invite your friends too if you must. Don't worry, my parents will be home so it won't be anything too crazy."

"I'll think about it."

She seemed to take it as a yes, and a large grin crept its way onto her face. "Thanks! You won't regret it." She walked past us, rushing to the exit.

I wasn't sure what to say about it so I decided to shrug off the interaction. Avan looked at me, expecting a question about it that never came.

Instead, I chose to ask about his spring break plans as we headed toward the parking lot.

"I have no idea," he replied. "Though I should probably get started on the stack of missed homework piling up if I ever dream to make it through senior year."

"Oh, are you still hoping to make it into college?" I asked, smiling to make sure he knew I was joking.

The sun seemed much more bearable this afternoon with the company of someone other than the lone resident of my thoughts.

"You are my sole distraction, Avery," he answered, the hint of a smile on his lips. "So if I fail, I'll know who to blame."

A silly grin strolled its way across my face. Being a distraction was nothing to take pride in, but I would happily take what I got. My mission, after all, was to knock the superficial blank expressions off his face. If distracting him from his own mind did the trick, that's all I could ask for.

He unlocked the gray Nissan and held the door of the passenger's seat open for me. The bumper had a small dent but the rest of the car looked spotless and rarely used.

I climbed onto the comfy seat and waited until he started the engine to ask, "What do you plan on studying?"

He did not turn to me as he backed away from the parking spot but he wore a suspicious expression on his face.

"Why does it feel like you prepared a long list of those questions to use at the first chance you'd get?" he asked, stopping at the sign.

"Because I did." I laughed. "Doesn't feel too good to be at the other end of the questions, does it?"

He rolled his eyes but answered the question. "If only I knew. What are you going to study?"

"Irrelevant, Carter. We're talking about you."

Then I remembered that Riley once mentioned that he played an instrument.

"I almost forgot. You play music, right? I think I heard that you're good at it."

He laughed. "If Riley told you that, you should know better than to take her word for it. She loves overselling me. I'm not that good at it."

"Oh no, Riley's opinion is reliable. If I am to be wary of anything, it's your humility."

I realized that we both spoke about her as though she was still alive. It felt almost natural to talk to him about her, while it was so awkward for me to come up with coherent thoughts about her on my own that didn't send me into a depression frenzy.

"You'll have the occasion to hear it, then I'm sure you'll understand," he said. "My aunt complains about it all the time."

I held back a remark about his family, not wanting to overwhelm him with my questions.

He glanced at me in the mirror, with an arched eyebrow as if he had predicted my curiosity.

When I remained silent, he explained, "She's my guardian. My parents started a small international business together, so they're usually overseas."

"Do you ever get to travel with them?"

He shook his head. "No, and I don't think they will trust me to come along any time soon. Last time I took a trip, it didn't work out so well."

I turned to him, curiosity practically burning my tongue like a steam iron but I made sure it didn't show on my face.

"Where did you go?"

"Italy." His grasp seemed to tighten around the wheel as he spoke. "My aunt had to go there for a year-long art program."

Something finally clicked in my forever-resting brain. "A year? Is that the one you had to do over?"

He sighed and maintained a guarded expression on his face. "Yes." He didn't add anything else and I didn't press him for an answer either.

"Are you going to Vicky's party?" he asked, changing the subject to an irrelevant issue.

There it was again, the legendary nickname. I decided it was best to shrug it off.

"She did not invite me," I simply answered, though it was unlikely that I would go even if she did.

"All my friends are invited," he replied. "Besides, I'm not going if you're not."

I smiled at the childish answer. "Your presence seemed to be pretty important to her." I was grateful that he didn't appear to catch the sullen undertone of my statement.

A car honked at ours and rushed past it. I think I heard the driver yell that we drove like snails. I chuckled under my breath and Avan increased his speed to meet the indicated limit.

I agreed to go to Victoria's party against my best judgment. I offered that we stopped by his house first so he could change before heading to mine, since Vicky's house was closer to mine.

"What's your aunt like?" I asked as we walked across his driveway to the front door.

He opened the door and held it open to let me in, an amused smile narrowing his eyes. "She's weird; you'll fit right in."

I shook my head at the quip.

"Careful, the door paint is still wet," he added and I cautiously made it inside after him.

As I should have expected, there was not one blank spot on the walls. Flowery designs and decorated canvases embellished the walls, filling the house with warmth and a homely ambiance that hit me in the face the second I walked in.

A woman covered in splashes of paint came out of the kitchen. "I thought I heard you come in," she said, brushing back her brown hair, highlighted with indigo streaks.

Then her eyes landed on me. The paintbrush she was holding slipped out of her hand and tears welled up in her eyes.

A/N: Indigo streaks reference, anyone? No? ...Fine! I swear someone will come along that gets my Dear Evan Hansen references.

Thank you all for reading and voting.

Let me know in the comments if you have any thoughts or suggestions.

-D.T. ➷