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A couple days after coming back from Summer Camp, Nathan took a nighttime walk by the elementary playground. Dismantling stray chains and picking the locks, there was no way the staff would tell that he broke in. Of course, school started in less than a week. But those five days were his vacation.
What better way to spend it than by dormant jungle gyms and seesaws? The only peaceful way, where warm wind blew nostalgia. Away from his parents and far from the loud activities that the other kids would participate in. Instead replaced by faint growls of nearby mountain creatures and light sparkles of stars. Like summer and school should have been. While between his hands, he smoked a cigarette. He'd do so at camp too, but it was hard to even get rest there. His eye bags typically weighed on him until October. Nobody would really want to get it and he never had the energy to even bother explaining for what was probably the hundredth time; then get shut down, again. Which is why he didn't even mention to Mimsy that he was trespassing tonight. He needed rest too, even if Nathan lied to himself that Mimsy also hated camp. But it was an easier lie. This was his favorite person, after all.
Each step kicked mud and gravel. Beneath the neon stars, another figure sat by a far off swing set. Nathan flinched, immediately pulling out a pocket knife. He couldn't make out much, but they seemed to be staring at him, surrounded by pastel mist. The sunglasses didn't help in the dark either.
As though attacking his chest, they called to him.
“Do you go to my school?”
It was a girl's voice. One with a hazy, slightly off tone. But Nathan didn't answer. At this hour, flirting shouldn't have even crossed his mind. Anyone could have had any intention this late. And maybe hers was sinister.
While considering cutting the peacefulness short, she spoke again. From an outsider, it would have looked like she was screaming into a starlit void.
“If you go to this school you can come sit with me,” she said, “If you want, th- that is…”
Nathan only eyed the swing set. Pondering the invitation until deciding he was too tired to argue. Once he stepped to the swing poll, he held the pocket knife to his side.
The girl tilted her head, looking at him strangely. She had long black hair and a headband. A dead looking alien or robot creature was on her shirt. She was definitely in his grade. Still staring at him, she pointed to the swing l next to her.
“You don't have to attack me,” she faintly smiled, eying the knife, “if you are bothered by my presence you can just leave. I warn you, I can do way worse to you than you can to me with a knife.”
Putting the knife back into his trench coat, Nathan hopped into the swing next to her. Taking a drag of his cigarette, he leaned against one of the chains. “What is there to be bothered by if you're not gonna hurt me?” he asked. “It's three in the morning, if you're out here, then surely you are already bothered yourself.”
The other scoffed, turning her head to get one good look at the new person she just met. “I actually guess you would be correct, I am quite bothered,” she replied, her tone with minute shaky paranoia, which if the playground was any bit louder would have been easy to miss, “school starts up in a few days and the new principal is already spamming my email with personal threats. I hope he doesn't continue his streak of hatred towards me.”
Nathan blew some smoke. “My gal, just enjoy the couple days you got ‘till then. That is what- hm… That's what I choose to do…”
The other didn't answer, only looking towards the elementary building with the pastel fog still floating around her; as she fidgeted with the swing’s chains. It appeared like the idea of the emails shook her, but was deep in jitters of thought. Before Nathan spoke again.
“If you don't like school,” he said, “then what, uhh, what drove you to hang out so early in the damn morning?”
“If there is one thing I am very fond of in this god forsaken town, it would definitely be the swings.” She replied.
“Huh…” Nathan trailed off for a bit, “I guess I am fond of walks… Pfft, or something, not that I give a shit.”
“Don't you humans need sleep?” She questioned.
“Wha-”
There was a brief silence, with Nathan just blankly staring at her. Humans? Either way, she laughed a little, slightly manically. As though trying to ease the conversation.
“My life differs from yours, for I am only sentient," she told him, to his surprise one of her eyes was glowing cyan, “admittedly, I view many as disposable aids to my goals. I'll mostly rot in my own programming.”
There was another moment of silence, with Nathan simply taking a longer drag this time. Sure that scared him a little, but anything could be uncertain at any time. “Understanding that is very simple,” he whispered, “I knew a guy on missing posters once, Bradley Biggle… Turns out, he was an alien all along. Nothing really surprises me anymore.”
“Hm…”
The two ideally swung next to each other for a couple of minutes. Or more so just sat there. The sky still decayed with the starlit mountain tops. Like the warm winds, it was as though they were a locked door. Slipping beyond the night, although being guarded by summer twilight.
“Why so are you here at three in the morning?” she asked, his up tilted head making it hard to read his face. “What may be bothering you?”
“Summer.” Nathan replied.
“I am sorry to hear that…” Although she lacked the expression, there was still something genuinely empathic in her tone, “Was yours not good?”
“I'm not telling you shit.”
“You don't have to,” the other replied, “I suppose you don't have to tell me anything really.”
“Then don't… Don't even fucking think about questioning me.” He shook a fist at her, although subtle.
“You asked about my summer…”
Once again, no answer. Only the faint scent of cigarette smoke. However, she frowned, turning to face him. “I have a feeling you also use others,” she stated, to which he only scoffed, “I don't see the value in bonds, but I oddly enjoy your sheer presence. You seem like we can match, maybe that would be ok with you?”
Nathan turned to her. “Wha… What the fuck do you even mean?”
“I mean we can start an alliance,” she suggested, “we could talk more often, since we both had the same idea of coming here so late…”
“Pfft, do tell me what that would look like?”
“Well,” she replied, “first tell me your name…. I'm Leslie.”
“Nathan.”
“Nice to meet you, Nathan,” she tilted her head while speaking, “and now, we can hold hands whilst thinking about the prospect of murder.”
She offered him a hand.
And after a short while, he took it without looking at her.
And soon enough he was particularly squeezing it like she was going to let go.
Somehow Nathan could tell that Leslie didn't mind it though. She only walked off the swing set with him, occasionally returning the gesture by caressing her thumb against his.
“Yeah, we are… Definitely allies now,” Nathan replied. Anyone could hear a smile in his tone.
Nathan and Leslie did a couple laps around the playground, before resting on a patch of misty, dandelion scented grass. The pastel followed them like the twinkling above. Which was much warmer than the rest of the summer had been. They refused to let go of hands, with Leslie only letting Nathan lean on her.
Before she knew it, he fell asleep next to her.