It was the first of September, as students of all ages were forced out of their summer afterglow to make their way towards the yellow school buses.

In a small town stood a tall male by a rusty worn down bus stop. He was dressed in torn up jeans, a leather jacket and combat boots giving him a very 90's kind of look. Yet his thick, black hair, covered in hair gel made him resemble a 50's greaser. Leaning against the rusty, red bus stop, he dove his hands into the pockets of his leather, while casually puffing out smoke from his cigarette. As soon as the bus arrived, he dropped the smoke and entered the vehicle, ignoring the glare he received from the bus driver. In the back of the bus was a small group of aggressive looking teenagers. A tall and slim girl with short, black hair and two long braids in the back of her head smiled sarcastically towards the boy.

- Well look who the cat dragged in. – she said, leaning in and tossing an arm on the blue seat in front of her. – Decided not to take your bike to school?

Covering most of her round face were short, dark bangs and a pair of neon pink glasses.

- Good to see you too, Meenah. – replied the boy grinning back at her with the equal amount of sarcasm in his voice. – Because somebody thought it would be a brilliant idea to jump off the fucking molo on the beach, it's at the repair shop.

That said he glanced over to another shaggy-haired boy sitting in a two person seat, sprawling out his long, thin legs over both of the seats. He chuckled cheerfully with his arms crossed on his chest and a goofy smile on his lips.

- I said I was sorry, bro. I paid for the repairs. Don't be hatin a brother cause he got a little drunk.

- You weren't ,,a little drunk", Kurloz. You were fucking shitfaced. – said the boy slightly irritated about his friends ignorance. It was his 16-th birthday present after all. Another boy sitting next to Meenah by the window groaned covering his tanned face.

- Cronus, just shut the fuck up. Be happy he paid for it at all.

Meenah grinned widely at him making a sound that imitated an annoyed cat indicated towards the boy.

- Hung over maybe, Rufioh?

He ran his fingers through his red and black mohawk and glared darkly at the girl.

- Yes I am, thanks to you. – he said slumping down in his seat. – Cause having a fucking party a day before the beginning of the school year is just genius.

Meenah snorted amused.

- Oh, please. I didn't heard you complain. In fact, you were the first one to get drunk.

Rufioh huffed, not in the mood to be receiving embarrassing reminders of yesterdays party and decided to flip her off without a word. This caused the girl to burst out laughing and ruffle his spiky hair.

It didn't take long for the bus to arrive to the school district. Once all 4 of them stepped off the bus, waiting for them by the entrance was a girl. She turned her head sharply and smiled widely at them. She had long, wavy brown hair and was dressed in a green sweater and short black skirt.

- Kurloz! – he squealed and ran up to the shaggy-haired boy, jumping into his arms.

- Meulin, baby! – he chuckled, wrapping his arms around her waist and doing a few twirls, both giggling like little children.

- For the love of God, save the cheesy reunion for when I'm not here. – grimaced Cronus, tossing his military backpack over his shoulder and placing a toothpick between his teeth.

The girl smiled at the cranky teenager thoughtfully.

- Aw, you want a hug too? – she said holding out her arms.

Cronus smiled slightly.

- I would, doll. But not with your boyfriend hovering behind you.

- Smart choice. – smiled Kurloz with his hands in the pockets of his baggy jeans.

Meulin laughed punching the shoulder of her boyfriend lightly and grabbed her green backpack.

- Have you guys heard the news? There's gonna be a new kid in our school.

Cronus walking beside Meulin and Kurloz shrugged his shoulders.

- Yeah, Meulin. That happens every year, when people enter first grade. – he said sarcastically.

I wasn't finished yet. – she said glancing at Cronus with a mischievous look in her lime green eyes. – Supposedly he's mentally handicapped, yet I don't understand why a person like that would go to a normal school.

- That depends. – answered Kurloz. – If he will be receiving assistance from someone.

Cronus snorted, playing around with the toothpick in his teeth.

- Oh my god, he's so screwed.

Meulin looked up at him questionably.

- What do you mean? Maybe he'll be nice.

- Well maybe he will. – he started. – But that won't stop the other kids from picking on the poor guy for being a retard.

The dark-haired girl sighed sadly.

- Oh … that's right.

Before the conversation could carry on, the bell rang and everyone hurried to their classrooms. Cronus walked the back of the class and sat in the final seat by the window. The last thing he wanted was his homeroom teacher to be on his ass for being such a disappointment. Once everyone was seated a familiar short-haired girl with pink glasses sat in the seat next to him and smiled.

- Well I'll be darned. – he said leaning back in his chair with his legs on his desk. – I wonder what made you transfer to my class.

The girl huffed pushing up her glasses.

- Somebody's got to keep an eye on you. – she said suggestively.

Suddenly the teacher entered the classroom and everyone ceased their conversations. The tall, tired looking man sat down in the office chair, resting his arms on the metal surface of the desk.

- I hope you all enjoyed your summer, cause starting this semester you'll be working like dogs. – he said dryly. He was never a fan of his class. – Well then let's start with your schedule.

He passed around the class a sheet of paper containing everyone's timetable. After that, he spent the rest of the hour spewing bullshit about text books, after school classes, responsibilities and how much of a failure everyone was to him. Once the bell rang everyone ran out of the classroom, not even checking twice if the teacher finished his monologue. Cronus slowly followed behind Meenah, when he was stopped by the teacher.

- Cronus, just so you know. Now that your in senior year and all. The punishments will be harsher. Just to give you a heads up. – said the teacher smiling proudly.

Cronus grinned back with the equal amount of hate.

- Good to know, Mr. Hussie.

Once the stare showdown was over, Cronus walked out of the room into the hallway.

- So. – began Meenah. – I'm getting the vibe that you dislike each other.

- You guessed right, baby doll. – he said wrapping an arm around Meenah's neck. – Ever since I ,,accidently" did a graffiti paint job on his car in freshman year, the fucker hated my guts more than his job. – he said priggish.

- Well, well. Your quite the naughty boy, aren't you? – purred Meenah moving closer under his arm .

- I thought you like naughty boys. – grinned Cronus and turned around to face Meenah, pressing her against the lockers.

- I never said I didn't. – she replied. – But sometimes you don't know your place.

- Oh, really?

Cronus leaned in closer to the girl, till their faces were millimeters apart.

- Are you implying that I need to be tamed?

Meenah chuckled and took a handful of his shirt in her hands pulling him closer. – You could use a firm hand once in a while.

Cronus closed in on her red lips, licking and biting them, till she opened her mouth, granting him entrance.

- Meenah?! – squealed a voice behind them.

Cronus irritated by the sudden interruption, turned around to glare at the person. It was a short girl with ginger hair, freckles on her rosy cheeks and white-framed glasses on her nose.

- You were supposed to meet me by the library, exactly after the bell rang! – she growled.

- Shit, sorry Aranea. – said Meenah, slipping out of Cronus's arms.

Following Aranea, Meenah turned around to glance at the pissed off greaser and wave her fingers at him.

- See you around. – she smiled widely.

Once they disappeared, Cronus grabbed his bag, face burning red from fury and turned around to walked to the exit.

- Aranea that fucking bitch. Ruining a perfect make out session. – he sneered through his teeth.

Walking in a fast pace and not paying attention to his surroundings, he slammed into another student and flew back on his ass.

- God fucking damn it! – he growled rubbing his ass from the sudden collision. – Watch where your going, asshole!

He looked ahead to see the person he collided with still on the floor, groaning silently. He felt there was something off about this guy. He other individual slowly lifted himself up with both hands on the floor to keep balance. The boy had very fluffy, black hair and dark freckles covering his nose and cheeks. He was wearing a neon yellow and black jumpsuit, which intensity practically burned Cronus's eyes. Yet, for some reason he was intrigued by his face. When he looked up at Cronus, he reveled his striking dual colored eyes, which was a sight Cronus has never seen before. One was a light blue, the other tinted cherry-red. Cronus puzzled couldn't help, but stare at his distinctive face. He heard footsteps approaching from afar.

- Minuta! – yelled a dark-haired girl with red sunglasses.

She ran up to him, kneeling down beside him, removing the glasses from her face and placing them on the top of her head. – Are you alright?! You shouldn't run so fast!

She turned her head to face Cronus. Her eyes had an amazing turquoise color.

- I'm so sorry. He tends to not pay attention to his surroundings. Please forgive him.

Cronus stared at her confused and lost, not sure what to say. Telling her to keep her friend on a leash wouldn't cut it.

- Um, it's … fine? – he said and got up.

The girl grabbed the boys shoulders and shook him slightly.

- 'Tuna, are you ok? Respond if you can hear me.

- Latula, I'm fine. – he said. – Just a little sore.

Cronus smiled to himself. The girl just made her friend sound like a retard, yet he looks pretty normal to him. Suddenly Mituna's facial expression changed from serene to rabid, as he turned his head sharply and glared at Cronus. The greaser furrowed his eyebrows at the sudden change of nature.

- Next time watch where your going you stupid, fucking, bag of douche! – he yelled.

For a split second Cronus was bewildered, but collected himself and frowned back at him.

- Who are you calling a bag of douche?! Last time I checked it was YOU, who ran into ME.

Mituna started shacking from rage and quickly got up from the floor.

- You can kiss my ass, faggot! – he yelled and shot up his middle finger.

Cronus has never been so shocked in his life. Who the hell does this kid think he is?! The girl jumped in front of Mituna, grabbing his shoulders before he could even move.

- Mituna calm down! It was an accident! – she said calmly. – I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt you. It was just an unfortunate incident and it's over now, so you can relax.

Mituna's face changed with every word coming from Latula. His eyes started to tear up and he quickly covered his face.

- I'm so sorry, Tulip. – he said quietly. – I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

She took the tall boy into her arms and brushed her hand against his hair. Cronus grimaced, grabbing a toothpick and chewing it feverishly in his teeth. Before he could say a word, Latula looked at him apologetically.

- Yeah, I'll be going now. – he said finally. – Sorry for the trouble.

Without waiting for the girl to answer, he quickly walked away in the opposite direction. He never felt so awkward in his life. Once he left his school, he made his way towards the bus stop and sat down, pulling out his iPhone.

- ,,I think I just met the new kid" – he typed and sent the message to Meulin.

- ,,Really?! How's he like?!"

- ,,I'll say this much: I've certainly never met anyone so fucked up in my life"

He typed send and stretched out his legs staring up at the grey clouds. Great, it's gonna rain and from the bus stop to his house he has to walk 20 minutes. Cronus sighed and received another message from Meulin.

- ,,That sounds terrible! But, I hope we'll be able to get along with him."

Cronus laughed amused.

- ,,I highly doubt that."

Cronus spent the rest of the day constantly thinking about the deranged teenager he met in an unfortunate series of events. He thought about it through the whole ride to the bus stop and the long walk home, not even realizing he was soaking wet from the rain, until he entered the house. He removed his leather jacket and hung it on the rack, then pulled off his shoes and tossed them in the corner. From the looks of it, probably nobody was home. The usual. He father was off in the office, while his little brother most of the time drawing in his room after school. He walked into the kitchen and starting preparing himself some lunch, when he felt a tug on his shirt.

- Cronus? – said a small voice.

He looked down to see a little boy with curly, black hair and a large amount of freckles on his face. He looked at Cronus with big blue, pleading eyes.

- I'm hungry. – he said.

Cronus frowned. His asshole of a father forgot to make lunch for his little brother, again. He sighed and kneeled to look at him face to face and ruffled his curly head.

- What'll it be, chief? – he said with a smile.

The boy laughed and tugged on his arm.

- Pizza! – he cheered.

- Pizza it is then. – said Cronus, reaching out for the phone and taping in the number to the local pizza joint.

Once the meal has arrived the eager boy jumped up at the sound of the doorbell, dropping his gaming controller and racing to the door.

- Cronus! It's here, It's here! – he sang over and over again.

- Jesus, Eridan. Calm down I'm going. – laughed the older brother and paid the pizza guy. It pained Cronus to use his allowance, but he'd do anything for his little bro.

Once the youngling received his long awaited prize, he dug his teeth into the soft dough and smiled triumphantly.

- Happy? – asked Cronus allowing himself to take a slice.

Eridan nodded energetically and continued attacking his pizza slice. Cronus couldn't stop smiling at his brother. He remembered how he used to despise him and hate him, accusing him that he was the reason their mother passed away. And with age, he noticed how much his brother resembled his mother. His smile, his big, blue eyes, his artistic personality. Sometimes it pained him, but in the end he's thankful for having him by his side. He would do anything in the world for him to keep smiling like that. What he hated the most, was the way his father would treat him so indifferently. Cronus knew deep inside that he blames Eridan for his wife's death and because of that, he didn't have the decency to raise his own son. Instead, he hired nannies to do the job for him. But ever since Cronus was mature enough to take care of them both, he left that responsibility for Cronus to handle. To Cronus, his father was nothing, but a sperm donor who lived with them and provided them money.

Once they finished their meal, he took his brother to the bathroom and helped him take a bath, then prepare for bed. Once Eridan was tucked under the covers, Cronus was going to turn off the light, when he grabbed his wrist.

- Cronus? Can you tell me a bedtime story? – he asked.

- A story, eh? – said Cronus, as he grabbed one of Eridan's little purple chairs and sat down in front of him. – Let's see here. What kind of story?

- About a prince. – smiled Eridan.

- Ok then. Once upon a time, there was a prince named, Eridan.

With those words, Eridan shyly grabbed his stuffed seahorse and covered his beaming smile.

- He was a strong and powerful wizard, that ruled the seas with his army of seahorses. One day, while he was out on one of his magical adventures, he met a beautiful princess named , Feferi.

Eridan giggled at the name. Cronus was aware that it sounded weird, but he continued the story.

- Feferi was the princess of cuttlefish and the deep ocean and when she met prince Eridan, they instantly became the best of friends. Until one day, on one of their scavenges – Cronus stood up. – She was snatched by a huge monster with red and blue eyes. – he said and grabbed a stuffed doll from the floor, mimicking his story.

- Prince Eridan was furious at the monster and he followed it into it's cave. He pulled out his mighty sword. – Cronus took a plastic, samurai sword in his hands and placed it in from of him. – And very slowly walked into the monster's cavern. He could hear the princesses cries, as she was being tickled by the beast. The worst torture of all! – he exclaimed and Eridan giggled.

- Then he walked behind the monster, lifted his sword. – Cronus lifted the sword. - Then he suddenly dropped his weapon and took the monster in his embrace. The monster was surprised and shocked. Then Prince Eridan said: ,,It's ok, monster. I know your lonely and don't have any friends, that's why you steal people. But you don't have to do that anymore, cause I will be your friend." The monster was so happy, that he let the princess go and hugged the Prince saying: ,,Thank you, Prince Eridan. I've always wanted a friend and you made my dream come true." – Eridan's eyes beamed, as he stared wide-eyed at his brother.

- Then Prince Eridan, the monster and even Feferi became friends and went on wonderful adventures together. – finished Cronus with his arms wide and smiling triumphantly.

Eridan's eyes stared to tear up. Cronus kneeled in front of his brother and ruffled his hair.

- What's wrong? You didn't like it?

Eridan threw his small arms around Cronus's neck, tears rolling down his puffy cheeks.

- That's the best story you've ever told me. – he said, his voice becoming hoarse. – I love you, Cronus.

Cronus's heart sank. Every time his brother would say those words, he would see the image of his mother hugging him and saying the same words. He tightened his grip on Eridan and covered his face in his hair.

- Me too. – he replied holding back his tears.

- Cronus?

- Yeah?

- Can you sleep with me?

- Yeah.

He laid down next to Eridan and pulled the covers over them, holding him close to his chest. He brushed his hair gently with his fingers and kissed his forehead. He closed his eyes, a tear falling down his cheek and slowly drifted off to sleep.