In the fading summer sun

[rudiehall]

The sun sunk slowly behind the horizon, the glowing orb bleaching the sky a vibrant shade of pink. How often had he seen this sight? Heck, as a six year old, he and his older brother playing in the backyard, this same thing happening over and over again. Yet, he had never truly appreciated it. Granted, he had been six, and at that age you never really appreciate anything.

Now? Every single moment with his brother, it was paradise, really. No father, and a mother that was too depressed to handle anything. His brother was the only family he had left, yet the time they spent together was few and far between.

He strode through the deserted playground, with no real idea of why he was here. He sat down on one of the swings, rocking back and forth on it slowly. He was a loner. Since coming to Northgate, he had made no real friends. Heck, he hadn't even met anyone. The place seemed small and quiet, as if it was still developing. That was fine by Rudie. Making friends, or hanging out with total strangers - it just wasn't his thing. But, being lonely all the time? He didn't think that was, either.

[Layla Donaghue]

It wasn't like she'd wanted to come to Northgate. It wasn't like that at all. In fact, it was the opposite. But she guessed it was like that for most people. She'd walked around for days attempting to find the appeal of it, the appeal other than the fact it was a private school. Always a private school - well, while she was with her dad anyway. Her mum had wanted her to have freedom. Public school, a choice of hobbies - a mind of her own. But her dad disagreed. "You have to discipline them when they're young. They need to know what's right and wrong." And what was wrong with them figuring that out at a public school? This was the question that Layla could never find the answer to.

You see, Layla Donaghue would always be a failure to her father. The outcast. The misfit. Why couldn't she be like her brothers? Or her sister? Dux's of their school in consecutive years, best and fairest sports awards... She could never live up to them. Why did she have to be so much like her mother? It would be the downfall of her one day. She would always be nothing to him. And sometimes in hurt. But most of the time? She honestly didn't care.

So as she walked down the path of this strange park, she must have just seemed like an ordinary person on the street. And in a way she was. People were dying of starvation in Africa. She had a good life. Well, so she'd been told. But if this was good? Well, Africa almost sounded appealing. But she was hopeful. Maybe at this new school she'd fit in. She wouldn't be "that dissapointing Donaghue. The one of which they expected so much, and received so little". No. Here she couldn't do that. She was the first Donaghue at Northgate High, and she'd be the one they'd remembered.

Plonking herself down on a swing, she finally noticed a guy sitting next to her. How rude she must seem. But it wasn't her fault. Smiling, she lifted one hand in a wave-like gesture.

"Oh... Hey. Sorry if I'm interrupting you, I just... Just got here... To Northgate... And I kind of needed some time out. If you want to be alone I can just..."

She threw one hand out to the side, lifting her butt slightly of the seat, in a gesture that said she would leave if he wanted her to. He was here first. And she of all people could respect that. Whoever started first, stayed first, and that was just how it was. No thing or person could change that. Unless, so she decided, that person's name was Layla Donaghue.

[rudiehall]

He tensed up, now a natural reaction to strangers. He was portrayed as rude, as antisocial from someone watching in. Or out the window. Always the outsider, that's how he'd remain.

He shook his head slightly as the girl spoke, understanding how she felt. Alone. The word fit Rudie. Though, maybe it fit everyone in this town. It was empty, no one could have very many friends. Heck, he hadn't seen anyone around. Granted, this was his first time out of the school, but even there. A couple of people by the Oak Tree when he looked out his window, maybe. Other than that? Nothing.

"No, it's fine. You can stay," he said, his voice hardly above a whisper. "I could...I could use some company."

A loner? Yes. Did he want to stay one forever? No.

[Layla Donaghue]

Smiling, she replaced herself on the seat, allowing her arms to wrap around the chains of the swing. It was so nice here. Well, the atmosphere and everything. The people? Well, she hadn't met them yet. Except this guy. He seemed nice. Quiet. Alone? Similar to herself. It was a familiar feeling to her, being alone. Even in her own house she'd felt that way, and that was supposed to be where one felt the most secure. But she'd never felt secure. Not since she was around eight years old. Eight years of feeling unsure. That was an awfully long time without support.

"Yeah. I know the feeling. A bit too well actually..."

Her voice, though slighty louder than his, was anything but outgoing. It wasn't that she wasn't confident, or that she wasn't talkative, it was just that at that present time, she was sort of trying to figure out what the hell came next. Okay, so she was at Northgate. Big whoop. Now what? Most would say friends. Some would say study. But Layla wasn't sure. She had alot of catching up to do, if she was going to be the awesome person she kept assuring herself she would be.

"Oh yeah... I'm Layla..."

She continued to smile as she spoke, her white teeth showing through almost completely. Pushing her blonde fringe behind her ear, she sighed, wondering if this guy would continue talking to her.

[rudiehall]

He looked at the girl, mildly surprised. She didn't know what feeling a bit too well? Loneliness, maybe? But, she didn't look like that type of person. She looked popular, like she'd have a lot of friends. Like she'd have no trouble making them. Like she was the complete opposite of Rudie.

"Yeah...I'm Rudie. I'm 16."

Say little, but make what you say important. That's what he had been told once. For some reason, it had stuck with him. He didn't know who had said it, probably his mother. She had been a bit of a loner too. He looked around at the slowly darkening playground. He should pronbably get back before it got too dark to see. But, he could still stay here a bit longer, couldn't he?

"Hey, uhh, you go to Northgate, right? What classes have you got?"

[Layla Donaghue]

Taking in what he'd said, Layla nodded slightly, kind of answering his half-asked question of whether or not she went to Northgate. Looking up at the sky, she took in the sunset, the beauty of it almost breathtaking. She'd always liked the sunset. To her it represented normality. Well, the beauty that could be found in normality. It was like a constant reminder that maybe one day, her life that had been so ordinary, would turn into something beautiful, something worthy. Something that everyone could look at and say "Wow, I wish I was just like her." But noone had ever told her she was beautiful. And she knew she wasn't breathtaking, and she didn't particularly care. She was aware that she was moderately okay looking though, and you would expect that maybe even her parents could say something. But no. Not since she was seven. And that had been when she was going in a concert. Her mother had taken her in her arms, and Layla, dressed in her fairy costume (that she'd hated) had been told that she was beautiful. That she was special. And not to let anyone ever tell her differently. But they had. That's all they had told her. And to be honest? Sometimes it did get to her.

"I'm sixteen too... And I have Maths, SOSE, CloTex, Languages and Art. How about you?"

Such an ordinary question, such an ordinary answer. She almost wished that she could have thought of something more abnormal to say, just so that her words could match herself. So that this guy would see past her exterior, past the unintentional mask that her looks provided, and would see her for what she really was. Because noone ever did. And it was starting to hurt.

[rudiehall]

Something about this girl wasn't quite right. Rudie had spent a lot of time, making up the stories from many a person, from close friends to complete strangers. Yet, this one...it didn't seem to be a happy one. It seemed like his own, like she too had led a sad and lonely life.

"Yeah, I have Maths and Languages as well. And English, P.E. and Food and Nut."

This would have been the longest conversation he'd had in over a year. And heck...he had to admit, it wasn't going that badly at all.

[Layla Donaghue]

It was strange. It was like there was almost something in his eyes that said he understood. But that couldn't be true. Noone understood. Noone knew. Everyone thought she was fine, that she was happy, that her life was perfect... It was like "Well, come on, her father is one of the richest men in Australia, what could possibly be wrong with her life? What could she possibly be missing?" Well, that was what she had trouble with. There were alot of things she was missing. Her mother, for one. Well, her mother for all really. Since... Well, she wasn't one to discuss it. And it wasn't just that. For most of it, what was wrong was what she did have.

She did have a father that had more money than two poor countries put together.
She did have two older brothers who were both the best on their football teams, (rich clubs of course) and were both dux of their school. Oh, and did she mention that they were both dating girls that were also unbelievably rich?
She also did have two older sisters, both of whom had received medals for academic achievement all through school, and were both incredibly good looking. One was pursueing modelling, and excelling, and the other holding a high paying executive position. Oh and again with dating the rich people.

But people would never understand those things. How could those things possibly be bad? Well, it sort of came back again to what Layla didn't have. Layla didn't have a job. Or seventeen billion certificates. Or a rich boyfriend. Or even a boyfriend full stop. So she was a failure. And always would be. Unless... Unless things changed.

"Cool... So that means I have two classes with you... At least I'll know someone..."

Pausing for a moment, she accidentally began to steer the conversation in a direction that she most certainly didn't want it to go.

"So... Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

Why did she do that? She hadn't meant to. Really, she was interested to know if he had brothers and sisters. It was her own that she was worried about...

[rudiehall]

He stared at her, silently. The eyes, they showed...sorrow? At a glance, she looked like she should be happy. But closer? No, there was something wrong. Something not quite right. Should he try to delve in? No, that wasn't him. He could tell her about himself...but, he hadn't told anyone. Yet, he had to say it eventually, right? He looked down at his black Converses, kicking the sand a bit, only raising his head again when she began to speak.

"Yeah...someone I'll know. Better than nothing," he replied, his head still distant, mind arguing with itself. Then, she said something that decided it.

"Yeah...a brother. He moved out about the same time I came here. Dad died in a car accident and Mum got all depressed and shit, and couldn't handle us. I was too young to live on my own, and my brother couldn't support both of us, so..."

No, this wasn't like him. He wasn't supposed to bare his soul to a complete stranger...was he? He didn't know.

[Layla Donaghue]

Wow. Honestly, had anyone ever opened up like this to Layla? Probably not. Not to this extent. Not this soon after meeting her. It wasn't like she hadn't had friends or anything... But they just hadn't been close to her. Not in the sense that they had been anything more to her than people to sit with at lunch time. People to aid her in making it seem like maybe she was okay. In fact, she'd always longed for a real friend. Someone she actually enjoyed spending time with. Maybe, along with everything else, Northgate could do that for her. Or... Maybe things would be no different.

"God. I'm sorry... It must be awful."

She'd never been good with sympathy. Not in feeling it, in showing it. She never knew what to say. And so she decided to do something that she never would have thought she'd do. She launched into her own story.

"Well... I have two brothers and two sisters, all are... I dunno, they're great I guess. And I have dad... Who wants us all to move mountains and be the first humans to achieve flight unaided. Which apparently is something I'll never do. Just because they're so awesome, and they're all angels and they're all going to find cures for cancer, I'll never be as good as them. He'll never accept me as his daughter. Not as I am. And my mum... She couldn't take it anymore, and she divorced dad when I was eight. I saw her on and off for about a year, but then they found out she had cancer and... I dunno. I didn't get it. I was nine years old. Things like that didn't happen to nine year olds. The world then was supposed to be about sunshine and rainbows, and happy fields filled with... Colourful daises and shit. Not death and abandonment."

She became breathless, realising that she'd almost been yelling as she got to the end. Sighing, she turned to face Rudie, her deep brown eyes now stained with tears.

"The only person who ever believed in me, died seven years ago."

Where had all that come from? Well, it had pretty much been buried inside her since she was nine years old. It seemed that she had just simply never found someone that was willing to listen to it. Someone that would just shut up and give her a chance. But if she had it her way, that was all going to change. Covering her face with her hand, blonde hair falling around it, she shook her head slightly, before attempting to wipe the tears away.

"I'm sorry."

[rudiehall]

And there it was. The reason her eyes looked so...sad all the time. Or, for the 15 minutes or so Rudie had known her. He slung an arm over her shoulder, patting her gently.

"Man, that's gotta suck. I mean, I sorta know what you're going through. There's only one person who can believe in me, and now I never see him. It's not the same, but it's pretty close."

Sympathy. Helping other kids out. Listening. That was what he was good at. Year 1, he was the 'therapist,' the kid everyone would come to for help with their problems. Year 5, he was told every secret, they trusted him not to tell anyone. He never did. Year 9. He was the one helping everyone else patch up their problems. It was just the way it had always been.

It was dark now. He figured it would be a 20 minute walk back to Northgate, and he wasn't that sure on the way back. He pulled out a tissue from his pocket, and offered it to Layla.

"Hey, it's pretty dark. Do you wanna go back to Northgate? We can go to my dorm and keep talking, or just go to sleep or something. It's up to you."

It was odd. In the space of 20 minutes, he had met someone else, he had completely opened up with her, and now he was doing the whole, "Hey, wanna come to my house thing?" Normally, it would have taken months to get this far. Maybe he saw something in Layla. A kindred spirit? Didn't matter really, looks like he finally had the chance at making a friend. Looked like he wasn't going to be a loner anymore.

[Layla Donaghue]

Taking the tissue, Layla wiped her face quickly, attempting to manage a smile to show that she was okay. But was she really? Well... Had she ever really been okay? Not quite. But she was trying, and maybe Northgate was helping. Well, it had to be right? I mean, for the first time in years, she was opening up to someone. And he was a complete stranger. That had to be a good thing... Didn't it? Of course. And it shocked her. But what shocked her more, was what the guy said next.

"...We can go back to my dorm and keep talking, or just go to sleep or something..."

It honestly made her feel great. It showed that maybe there was someone that wanted to spend more time with her at Northgate. A friend? She hoped so. It wasn't that she hadn't had friends back home, just not this soon. Not like this. This guy seemed nice, kinda different, and it made her feel good. Not in a "oooh lets go out" kind of way. It wasn't like that. In fact, she hadn't even thought about that, but hearing the sentence back over in her mind, she realised just how suss the guys back home would have found that. Ahh. Guys. It was sad. Well, most of them were anyway.

"Sure, that'd be nice."

Smiling, she went to stand up from the swing, before something hit her. A thought type thing, not a rock or something.

"Ahh... Just a quick, possibly insignificant question. Do you have any idea how to get back to Northgate? Cause I have noooo freaking clue."

She couldn't help it. Suddenly, she started laughing, an awesome feeling coming over her that she hadn't felt in awhile. At that moment, she was happy. Happy away from home. Not that she was ever happy at home, that was exactly the point. And with a bit of luck, she'd only have to spend time there for like, a week every holidays. Honestly, things couldn't get any better for Layla Donaghue.

[rudiehall]

"Haha, yeah. Just follow me."

He jumped off the swing and began walking back to Northgate, occasionaly checking that Layla was following him.