Laid on his bed in a sprawled manner was a youth — the sheets were crumpled, and his pillow rested asymmetrically with his current orientation.
The morning rays shimmered through the high-angled tilt of the blinds. The basking sun of the dawn's hue was a constant occurrence, nothing to really pay attention to.
Beep! – Beep! – Beeb!...
"Ughhh." The youth groaned in despair over his ended rest.
As with every morning, his phone's blasted alarm had awakened him from the climax of a particularly interesting dream, again.
He guessed he'd never have closure as to what happened to those peculiar tree monsters.
Reaching his arm over the space distancing him from his nightstand, Rue grasped his phone as in sync with routine. With a simple tap of his thumb, he shut off the patterned beeping of that annoying alarm.
With a hearty yawn, small insignificant tears welled in his eyes as consequence. Still groggy, Rue cast a glance toward his phone's homepage to take note of the time.
It was 5 AM. Fairly early in the morning, but the dreaded time of school was only several hours away. Rue had always liked mornings. Odd, but he believed following through with one's morning routine was the principle for a good prologue to the day. Humans are creatures of habit, and most habits die hard.
With a wistful grin replacing his earlier misty expression, Rue slipped out of bed before proceeding to fix his disheveled sleeping arrangements. Rue had taken the words of that Navy SEAL to heart: a nicely made bed leads the way to a good day. Simple actions like these allowed the foundation for one's personal growth, no?
After several quick minutes of cleaning the clutter, he eventually stopped after feeling content with its look. With a neutral expression plastered across his features, Rue scavenged through his lacking wardrobe, an assortment of mismatching and old-fashioned attire hung loosely aloof from the hangers. After gingerly scrolling through his garments, Rue fashioned an outfit that complemented his preferred look.
A pair of black fitted gym shorts and a complementary fitted white shirt were today's choice. While not flashy or anything of the sort, that wasn't Rue's style — simplicity was his forte.
A shower wasn't a necessity in the morning. Though its cleanse was nice, he simply didn't feel the need today.
With paced strides, Rue rushed heartily down the stairs.
"Morning, Mum," Rue curtised quickly after stealing a glance at his mother's silhouette.
"Good morning, Rue," she briskly replied with added maternal warmth. As with every morning, his mother's expression was as bright as a thousand suns. It was always a gift in itself to bask in her presence.
An oddity, perhaps, but that was just the natural splendor of most mothers — and breakfast smelled rather good.
Stood by the front door, Rue kept it ajar with his foot, not exiting the abode until giving his mother a lively wave of departure.
"See you in a matter of hours," Rue au revoired before his exit from his mother's home.
His mother smiled in response.
Their house was nothing special. The architectural grandeur was a mere copy and paste with a few added ornaments to differentiate it from the neighbors, thanks to the HOA's stringent policies.
It was one of the many white-collar neighborhoods scattered across the United States, yet it was his home. His mother and father had split only a few short years ago, and the recollections Rue still possessed of his father were hazed, muddled, and full of fear.
His father was an odd contrast to his mother's warm and cheerful banter. How did they even meet? …or better yet, how or why did his dear ol' mum even consider conceiving a child with such a bastard piece of shit?
Though such pondering was useless and only caused unneeded angst, it always seemed to help him understand his past, even if its contents troubled him.
Without voicing any unnecessary words, Rue gave a content sigh. The academic dwelling was going to be his forced accommodation for the next 8–9 hours.
Today might not be as dull. After all, it was another blissed Tuesday!
Structure and other such jargon was the common dogma within the labyrinth of twisted corridors, each leading to an array of subjects. Math, history, the classical arts, philosophy, and an excess of others that wrangled the minds of high school students.
Prestige was the reassurance the school drip-fed parents and guardians alike. It was a simple ideal: shepherding diligent students on their path to college or the workforce. In return for their toil, the school would receive a hefty sum of funding from the state. A mutual relation built of cause and causation.
Pedestrian traffic was, to a certain point, unprecedentedly clustered. Clichés of varied people all headed to their own destinations: salarymen clad in freshly dry-cleaned suits, youths with childish expressions that oozed carefree naivety, mothers tending to their kin, teens huddled together for no apparent reason other than to detail textbook-worthy information about the latest trends on social media, or some daring gossip about peers.
Rue, on the other hand, catered to none of these groups.
"Rue!" A cheery voice came, its composure lacking consideration for the surrounding people, who, to be frank, didn't seem to notice or care.
Rearing his gaze toward the voice's inception, Rue was met with the bubbly expression of a similarly aged peer of the opposite sex.
The person in mention wore lengthened white stockings that stretched to her knees. A navy-blue chunky knit sweater coated over a white dress shirt, paired with a modest midi skirt — these garments comprised most of her attire, with the added onyx sling bag that hung loosely from her shoulder. Appealing yet simple.
Stretched smoothly from her scalp was her unique platinum-blonde hair, which gave her chosen outfit a tinge of refinement.
Though such was far from the truth. The girl's bangs frizzled out in front of her face and her hair cascaded loosely down her shoulders. This extra detail added a touch to her already adorably excluded demeanor.
"Ritsue!" Rue quickly replied with equal vigor.
His heart fluttered as he saw his jubilant girlfriend. She was the color that painted his day. Man, men are such fools when in love.
Maneuvering around the mass of people impeding his path, Rue was only a few short feet away from her now.
Extending his hand, Rue offered it to his partner.
Witnessing this public display of affection from her annoyingly stoic boyfriend, Ritsue beamed. Her features conveyed joy. Yet this wasn't enough for her. Playfully swiping Rue's hand aside, Ritsue smirked as she quickly motioned her body forward, wrapping her arms across her partner's neck.
With a sigh of defeat and glee at the intimate embrace, Rue reciprocated, lacing his arms around her waist.
Now pressed against one another, the couple nuzzled into the node of each other's warmth. Words weren't exchanged. They already knew what the other had to say. The feeling of the other's steady pulse and the patterned compression of their lungs told them all they needed.
It was peaceful and sound. The excess background noise dulled into obscurity, reality at this singular moment didn't matter. It was just the two of them against the world. Corny, yeah, but most exchanges of love tended to be.
Purringly, Ritsue finally spoke. "You're such a sap," she mused with a grin, "but that's part of your charm," she teased into his ear.
Rolling his eyes in response, Rue retorted, "Maybe." He conceded with a mirth of amusement.
"Well," he continued, "let's take this somewhere else, since we're essentially acting as a blockade impeding these fine folks from their destinations."
With a pout, Ritsue pulled back. "Fine, fine," she said dismissively as she unlaced her arms from his neck.
Casting a glance furtively, Rue let off a rare subtle smile before firmly joining fingers with his partner.
"So, how was your morning so far?" Rue poised, casting a sidelong glance.