Jolene sat at the bench on Oakland point, looking out into the horizon. At that point, the sky was turning a beautiful shade of blue. She was surprised, Oakland Point never disappointed. It was known for its unforgettable dusk view, with its breath taking sunset over the horizon, but it was the dawn’s humble beauty that was a view to see.

The sun behind her was illuminating the whole plain, the fog over downtown Bettisonville was lifting, and the corn was showing. She was sure the view over the Bettisonville roofs behind her was beautiful as well, but she was lazy to look. She had hoped that the cold would take her overnight, but she was not that lucky. She had gone there to jump, but she did not have enough courage to do it, so she settled to sit there on the bench and hope the ghost of Emily Thorn would come and take her to Sive, who was also a ghost recently.

“This is one funky town,” Jolene said to herself.

“You can say that again,” a voice behind her spoke.

Jolene was startled, so she turned quickly and her eyes fell on the chubby boy from the festival. He was standing there holding a Captain Kick fleece blanket. “What are you doing here?” she scolded him.

“I could be asking you that same question,” the boy responded, covering her with the blanket, and she pulled it closer and it started warming her up right away. He then bent down, picked up a flask, and went around to take a seat next to her. “Are you trying to freeze to death?” he said as he poured her some tea.

“Unsuccessfully,” Jolene responded, grunting and studying the boy. He was looking at the view with an expression like he was at peace with the world.

“Well, whatever it is, suicide is never the answer,” the boy said, leaning towards her like he was telling her a secret. “It’s cowardly and never amounts to anything but more pain.”

Jolene snorted. “And what do you know? How old are you, thirteen? But you think you can lecture me?” she scoffed. “In fact what are you doing in the woods this early in the morning?”

“First of all, I know a lot. Secondly, I’m fourteen, and lastly I was, uh, camping with my friends over there,” the boy responded, gesturing behind them.

Jolene knew the boy could be lying, but she did not care, so she turned towards where he was beckoning. She saw six other kids there, two girls and four boys, talking and walking slowly downhill while carrying heavy bags.

“I was born with a bit of Autism,” the boy said, nodding a bit. “I never told anyone before, but I’m not just socially awkward, it’s an actual disease with me.” He then chuckled. “I couldn’t read social cues and had more other ailments.”

“Where is this going?” Jolene asked, now warm.

“My father wanted me to be normal, so he booked classes to train me to be normal. It cleaned his bank account out, and he got into debt, so with all this debt and a lot of mouths to feed, and a freak child who wasn’t getting better, he developed depression,” the boy said, looking at Jolene in her eyes, phlegmatic. “He blew his brains out, and didn’t tell his family what he was going through.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jolene said, feeling cold inside.

“Oh please no, it’s okay,” the boy said, looking at the horizon. All the fog had lifted, and the plain was fully lit at that point. “He fell victim to his weakness and left my mother with overwhelming weight on her shoulders.” A proud look developed in his face. “She’s stronger, she accepted the challenge and fought her problems head on, even today she’s fighting, and not a day goes by that I’m not inspired by her.”

After pausing, the boy took Jolene’s hand and held it tightly. “So, whatever you’re going through, you gotta live through it and fight it until it’s a blessing to you,” he said and sighed at the view.

Jolene marvelled at the boy’s wisdom. She was speechless, but she wanted to say something. “Wh-what’s your name?” she asked finally.

“Toby,” the boy responded, and then turned and smiled. “Toby Balm, but my friends call me Noobie.”

“Well Noobie, thank you,” Jolene said, smiling as well. “You just saved my life.”

Noobie snortled. “I’m glad to be of service,” he said.

“Is your brother Bobby Balm?” Jolene asked, holding her cup closer.

“Yeah, why?” Noobie responded.

“He’s a douche nozzle,” Jolene said with a chuckle.

Toby laughed vehemently. “Yes, yes he is,” he concurred.

“In a way, I owe him though. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have met the love of my life,” Jolene said, slipping lower on the bench and relaxing. She was reminiscing about all the fond memories she had with Sive, and she did a little prayer for him and smiled.

“He’ll be alright,” Jolene said internally.

***

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