Part Two

•••••

Early November, the trees were dying, but before the managed to take their final breath they turned a vibrant orange, their leaves still proudly on display. One or two would fall slowly to the street, and Dallon would watch them fall. They would flip, and flip, and drift and dodge small invisible missiles in the sky. Dallon thought they were the prettiest things he'd ever seen. He steps over them carefully, not wanting to ruin the beauty of the leaf. The sky was gray, the sun was nowhere in sight. It was getting darker a lot earlier, now.

He was on his way to the school, to see Walker. Last week, Walker gave him a new shirt. He wore it today, and he felt extra clean (although the layers of dirt and grime left him somewhat unrecognizable). It was a plain shirt, but it was the first time Dallon had owned anything clean, without holes. After thanking him profusely, he promised he would get Walker something in return. He clutched the largest, blood red leaf he could find by the stem, firmly in his palm. Walker would like it, for sure. Him and Walker had even spent an entire day looking at leaves, once.

Dallon can see the schoolyard now, and the few kids that stood by the front of the school. He looked to the pathway that led to the back of the school where the old shed was, along with the playground. He smiled to himself, and started walking towards the path.

Before he could make it to the path, he felt a rough arm wrap around his waist, his smile dissolving. Before he could scream, another arm wrapped around his face, silencing him. He dropped the leaf, and reached up to pull the big arm away from his face. He wanted to scream, anything, but all his screams were muffled by the sleeves of the unknown man.

His dull nails scraped at the mans arm, not doing much. He felt his weight being pulled onto his heels, and then he was being dragged away.

•••••

Jon waited for Dallon a bit longer than usual, and then decided he wasn't going to show up. With a small, dramatic huff, he began to walk up the path to the front of the school.

A small gasp escaped his lips as his eyes scanned the pathway, and he saw a large, red leaf.

"A maple leaf!" He exclaimed, excited to have found such a big leaf. He clutched it in his hand, making a mental note to show Dallon later. Dallon would love it.

•••••

The days after the attack, Dallon refused to leave home. He was terrified of the roads and the streets. For once, he felt safer at home, even surrounded by the insanity it offered.

Jon made other friends, and Dallon stayed away. Dallon never told anyone what happened. Jon never told Dallon his first name, which he'd come to regret, but not all at once. Jon went on to make other friends. He mostly forgot about Dallon.