Sorrowful

The three of them walked to the exit of the building among laughter –mainly from the other two class presidents– and small strokes from Jade. Jack did not let go of him at any time, leaving the black-haired guy somewhat uncomfortable by the proximity of the other boy. And not because he had not dealt with him before, because they were together in the student council since tenth grade, but he did not think they were close enough to embrace that way. It was also necessary to emphasize that the blonde was too sociable and very easy to deal with, being one of the first to enter into confidence. Something quite different from Sebastian and which he was envious of.

The road was not troublesome at all. For a few moments, he forgot about all his problems and enjoyed the time he had with both of them. It's been a long time since he remembered having such a pleasant conversation with them –or at least with Jack, who was always busy with something–. However, when his friends had to go their different ways, he found himself alone again. Jade had insisted on walking him home, but he couldn't allow himself to let the girl arrive home later.

In addition, he had to visit another place before returning to his home.

Once he lost sight of the other members of the council, he began walking by the residential streets. Hirsch's house, where he was going, was not far away, taking advantage of the travel time in what he would say when he got there. Because, honestly, he didn't know what his script would be once the redhead opened the door. Although, now that he thought about it, he preferred Mrs. Lovejoy to open the door. That way he wouldn't get slammed in the face.

However, he knew that the mother-son relationship they had was quite strong, so Mrs. Lovejoy would already be aware of the fight they had. And probably of everything Sebastian caused them to stop being best friends. And how bad a person he was. And then both Hirsch and his mother would hate him. He would not blame them for doing so, because they were not the culprits. It was him. The culprit was Nathaniel Moonchild.

Because who else could be the culprit? If he hadn't pissed him off in the morning, none of that would have happened and he wouldn't have to apologize to Hirsch for something he hadn't caused. Or at least not entirely. If he knew anything, it was that the silver-haired boy was teasing him into being angry and thus the red-haired man would prefer Nathaniel over him. He couldn't find a more logical reason than that.

Nathaniel wanted to take Hirsch away from him.

And he was succeeding at it.

Upon reaching the cream-colored structure, he rang the bell once, waiting for someone to open the door. After ten seconds –which seemed like infinity–, the lady with brown hair and a heart-shaped smile opened, revealing part of the room. He greeted, showing respect for Mrs. Lovejoy, who mimicked his action at the same time. Straightening up, he looked for a sign of the redhead inside the house, expecting to see his clothes in the hall or his green backpack thrown near the sofa. But nothing. There was absolutely nothing.

"Sebas", said the woman with a big smile on her face, "what brings you here?"

"I'm looking for Hirsch", when he pronounced his name he felt as if it were ripping his throat. "Is he at home?"

"He hasn't arrived yet. I thought he would be with you and he forgot tell me". Mrs. Lovejoy opened her eyes in surprise and then her expression changed to one of concern.

"D-don't worry," he hastily said, shaking his hands in denial. "He probably went out with other... friends".

"I find this strange, Sebas. Hirsch would never leave you behind when it comes to hanging out with friends". The woman stroked his cheek, tenderly, just like Jade did moments before. How long has it been since he felt that compassion in a person? "Did something happen between you two?"

"I... I've been somewhat absent these last few days", he confessed, scratching the back of his neck. "I've failed him too much lately and... maybe, it's better to give us a little time".

"Sebas..."

She took him by the hand leading him inside the house, throwing his backpack at the entrance. Sebastian sat on the pistachio-colored sofa, hugging one of the cushions that rested on the sides. Even though it wasn't his own home, it felt more like home to him than his own house. The smell of incense, fresh food, fresh flowers... Everything was so familiar to the black-haired boy and at the same time so distant from his reality. It was something that, even when he was close, was not his. And it could never be. Because, while his house was based on problems, orders and stress; in the Lovejoy house there was only affection, joy and trust. Three things Sebastian was never taught.

Mrs. Lovejoy took a seat next to him, taking his hands and stroking them with her thumbs. Her gaze was fixed on the boy, while his was glued to the dark wooden floor.

"Sebas", she called again, "you know you can tell me anything. Did Hirsch do something? He can be something... hurtful with what he says".

"I... I did something that bothered him", he blinked a couple of times to calm himself down, "we got angry and stopped being friends".

The woman widened her eyes in surprise. Sebastian knew what she was thinking at the time: "How was it that, being such good friends, they stopped being it so suddenly?" and it was something that he also questioned. While he accepted that he hadn't acted as he should, he didn't think that was enough to make Hirsch stop loving him. "Or maybe he stopped loving me too long ago", he thought, lowering his head and letting the tears run freely down his cheeks.

The lady, realizing this, pulled him to her and began to stroke his hair to reassure him, which was working. Sebastian hid his face in the woman's shoulder, snuggling up like a child seeking the protection of his mother. And that's how he felt: she treating him like just another child in the family.

He had never met such a sweet woman as Mrs. Lovejoy, not counting his own mother, of course. His ex-best friend's mother was young and quite beautiful, with a charisma that could make anyone fall in love with her. However, she had raised Hirsch on her own. Many would believe that the redhead would then have problems for not being raised by a father, but Mrs. Lovejoy gave him as much love as possible, encompassing what two people could deliver. And while he admitted that they had a hard time when it came to money, Hirsch was the happiest boy he could have ever met and was not at all ashamed of the life he led, and so was his mother.

In short, the woman was a great role model.

"Why did they fight?" The woman asked once the boy was calmer.

"There's a boy," he began, "who became friends with Hirsch, but I don't like that boy. And then, I yelled at that boy and Hirsch stayed on his side" he sighed, stroking the bridge of his nose at the urge to cry again.

"Why don't you like that boy?"

"Because ... he's too clumsy. He always bothers me and ruins everything. I just hate him".

"Sebas, is that just why you hate him?"

"He took my best friend away from me", he replied, pulling away slightly to observe the woman's dark eyes. "Isn't that enough to hate him?"

"Honey", she caressed his face tenderly as she spoke, "the only thing we can hate are things we don't like about ourselves. Therefore, when someone shares the same characteristic as us, we tend to hate that person".

Did that mean that he and Nathaniel shared characteristics? No, it was impossible. How could they be similar when they were opposite points? It was easy to understand, and Sebastian understood perfectly. They both lived in different worlds, in different minds, in different situations. Nathaniel was too useless, nosy, foolish, and he loved playing the victim role. While he was...

"Useless, obtrusive, silly, and I love being the victim". He covered his mouth, realizing that perhaps what the woman had said was right and they were both alike.

"No", he said, shaking his head from side to side, refusing to believe what he had just heard. "We are nothing alike".

"Sebas, honey, just think about that, okay?"