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In the two years that felt like a life time spent at this school, Till had developed what he came to know as his safe spot.
It was a staircase on the far side of the school that most other students didn’t use, tucked away from the cafeteria and exit doors. There was space under the stairs itself, perfect to tuck oneself under to for a private cry or alone meal.
It was a perfect escape, and it was his. So as he shoved through the door into the stair case, further smearing blood over his face and palm as he wiped at his nose, he’d put no caution into storming to his little spot.
It had only led him to being caught off guard by the small girl curled up under the stairs. Her knees pulled to her chest tightly, arms wrapped around her legs, face tear and horror stricken.
Sua.
Till stared at her in equal horror.
Neither of them moved or spoke. Till’s pretty sure Sua wasn’t even breathing. It felt like an eternity before Till snapped himself to his senses, slowly sitting down in front of her as he shoved a hand into his bag.
Fumbling for his pack of tissues, he took one out before offering it over to Sua. She eyed it, then him, before reaching out a shaky hand to take the pack. She shifted her legs down, smoothing out her skirt and taking a tissue to dab her cheeks and blow her nose.
“...You got into a fight, then?” Judging by her tone, Till knew it was more of an accusation than a question. He nodded, jamming part of the issue up his nostril. She scrunched up her own nose and turned her head away from him.
“What about you?” Till asked, and Sua didn’t respond nor did she look back to him. Till shrugged to himself and scooched over against the wall the stairs connected to. Back against brick, he slipped his bag strap off and left it leaning against himself.
He tried not to be bothered by her. If anything, Till was worried she was bothered. At least she’ll know this is his spot.
Five minutes passed in silence before Sua stood, collected now as she picked up her bag and walked away. No further comments from either of them. Till rubbed the back of his head and sighed. He really didn’t know what to make of her.
At least the shock of running into her had shaken him out of how upset he’d been.
Till kept himself pressed as tightly as he could into the space between the stairs and wall, crying into his arms. He’d gotten good at crying silently since he was a bit too young to understand why crying was supposedly so bad to begin with. It was, at least, quite helpful when the stairwell door opened and footsteps rattled up the stairs.
He’d held his breath still, of course, but once the door above slammed shut he let himself continue.
Lunches like this were the worst. He felt so stupid, getting this upset over some nobody asshole grabbing his sketchbook. Even if Ivan got it back for him quickly, it didn’t stop the sickening humiliation that washed over him. He’d grabbed it back as quickly as he could, slamming his locker shut and sped off. Ivan had called out to him, he thought, but he didn’t give chase. And maybe in part, that’s what upset him the most.
The door opened again, because it must be Till’s unlucky day. If anyone does pass through here during lunch, it’s only once.
Except rather than steps rushing up the stairs, they walk around them. Till’s blood runs cold as another student stops a few feet ahead of him.
It’s not Ivan. Ivan’s footsteps are much heavier, and he doesn’t know that this is Till’s sulking spot. He lifts his head, eyes meeting purple.
A month had passed since the incident of Till running into Sua here. Why she was here again Till could only assume was bad timing.
She held two bottles of iced tea, eyebrows scrunched up. She knelt down under the stairs, the far side from Till. She held one of the teas out to him, and Till stared at her as if she’d grown two heads.
“You should drink something if you’re crying a lot.” Sua stated, as if it explained anything. Till sniffled, wiping his face on his wrist cuff a good few times before reaching out and accepting it.
“Thanks, I guess.” He mumbled, cracking it open and taking a sip. Sua did the same for hers.
“You guess?”
Till winced. “Ah- no-” he bit the inside of his cheek, staring at his shoes. “Thank you.”
He felt Sua’s gaze on him for a moment longer, unsure of it was pity or judgement. He didn’t want to look up to read her expression and take a guess.
“You’re welcome.” She said finally, soft rather than smug like he’d expected. He didn’t know why he expected that. Sua was never particularly smug.
Perhaps he was being much too guarded, but Sua always seemed to dislike him.
Sua said nothing more to him. She didn’t questions or bother him. When the first bell rung, she once again stood up and left. Till followed suit. The next day he got a candy bar from a vending machine and slipped it into Sua’s desk, for the tea.
She never brought it up to him. Till isn’t sure if she knew it was him. It didn’t really matter if she did. Till never brought it up either.