flurries of pale snow drift lazily from midnight sky, settling over chipped paint of an empty playground. place had become his refuge after each sharp tongued quarrel with his mother. finds himself on old swing, chains creaking with every subtle shift of weight. frame rocks back and forth, not enough to soar, just enough to keep the ache in chest from settling too deep. a cigarette dangles from brims, ember flaring bright against gray dusk, smoke curling upward and disappearing into the cold. his solitude thinning when gaze falls on figure emerging through veil of light snowfall. “ did she send you to find me? ” takes effort to find his voice, adorning only thin band tee in the dead of winter, snow catching in dark tresses and melting against skin tinted crimson with frost. the cold bites deep, gnawing at bone and muscle alike, the numbness creeping through fingers — it’s almost welcomed. “ i'm not going home so whatever you have planned to say, just forget about it. would much rather freeze to death than go back there. ”
