"Hey Ethan, it's been a week we haven't seen each other... Do you want to eat lunch with us ?" Knocked Clayden, waking me up from my sleep.
I groaned before answering in a hoarse voice I was coming. Since when didn't I spoke to someone since that day ... ?
Dizzy and groggily, I headed towards the bathroom with my uniform and stared at my self in the mirror, startled. My eyes were red and puffy, my hair had many knots that seemed impossible to undo and my face was so pale anyone could easily guess that I hadn't seen the sunlight for a long time.
After trying to make me look more presentable, I went out of the room to face Clayden. I was quite surprised to see that he looked just as bad as me. His face was almost white, his eyes were bloody and his hands were shaking slightly.
" Let's go..." Even his voice seemed drained from all energy and life. When he started walking towards the canteen, his pace was slow and he stumble a few times forward or backwards and I eventually finished by holding him by the shoulder to avoid him from falling down the stairs.
Only, I didn't had much energy left for myself either and we finished dragging each other towards the canteen, making students look at us as we passed in front of them.
Finally, it was Lexan who helped us both by forcing our arms around his shoulder and he put his around our waist, making it easier for both of us to walk. He made us sit at a table, far away from all the looks and went to take our trays, guessing what we want for our lunch. Eventually, seeing we had no force to hold a fork or a knife, he finished by giving us our food.
"I can't take it anymore Lexan." Broke down Clayden as he choke on the food that was in his mouth, making it spit on the table.
His friend looked utterly terrified at what he just said and after feeding me some carrots, he took his fork and started cutting his meat.
"Do not say anything else McMillian. I know what happened but I want you to stay alive." He said in a warning tone.
I was too in my thoughts to realise that what he just said was something about death and life, something both of them were implied. Only, I was too tired to even listen to them,
"And you Green, wake up !" He yelled at my ear and the moment I opened my eyes — when did I even closed them ? — he stuffed some potatoes in my mouth. " You two, stop being so dramatic. Take your life in hand and stop acting like if it was the end of the world. And also, I don't think you would want to draw the attention on you..." He ended in a whisper.
" I need to go..." I said, feeling uneasy by what he said.
Nodding goodbye to them, I dragged my tired body towards my room where I locked the door behind me. I wasn't as exhausted as I was when I first woke up but I didn't have the energy to go to lessons. So I just laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling, my mind blank from all thoughts.
I missed Sebastian - or Archie-. His smiles, his laughs... I slowly wondered if he only wanted to become my friend to then break my heart.
I who thought that we were truly close. How naïf from me...
"Ethan..." A voice suddenly intervened in my thoughts and I didn't even have to open my eyes to know who it was.
"Leave before I throw my fist at your face." I warned in a growl, not in the mood to deal with a lying ghost.
"Listen, just listen. I'm sorry. I should have told you from the very start, I know that, but I didn't and I'm guilty of this. " He excused himself and I almost pitied him, almost.
"Why ?"
"I don't know. I just wanted to be Sebastian..." He answered in a whisper.
'Be like Sebastian' ? What did he mean by that ? What reasons would push him to do that ? What reasons would serve him as an excuse for lying to me ?
"What do you mean ?" I inquire, opening my eyes to see where Archie was in the room. What I saw made me sit on my bed, shocked.
Archie was crying, sobbing. His tears were like healing my broken heart, shattered by the same person who was suing it back together. And I suddenly realise that he was only a broken angel waiting and wanting to go back home. He wanted to see his mother, his father and maybe his friends again... Only for that, he needed my help.
"He was so popular and smart. I was always in his shadow... I was jealous of him even if he was my best friend. But at the same time, I admire him for all he did. And I wanted to be just like him, have the same wonderful grades, the same admirer, the same life... So when I learnt you didn't know who I was, I took Sebastian identity." He explained , crying this time even harder and I couldn't resist much longer against my own mind so I took him in my arms and hold him so tightly that tears were also falling down my cheeks.
I knew this feeling of being only the shadow of someone, I knew it so well I had this impression to be back at this time. This time where Melody would tell me to do her homework plus mine's and she would say it was only to make me smarter. Obviously, two years later, I learned she was using me.
"Archie..." I pleaded him to stop his tears, as mine were still flooding. "Shh..."
And I rocked him as if he were a baby having a breakdown, I rocked him because I have forgiven him and because he needed me.
Actually, we needed each other to survive in this school.
"Ethan, I have something to tell you." Archie said, pulling off the hug, a serious look on his face. "I might know why we died."