"Atticus?" I asked nervously, watching the boy in front of me. "Can I help you?"

The last time we both stood here I'd ended up crying. I sure didn't want that to happen again. But Atticus nodded and gestured for me to follow him outside. I hesitated, before stepping out onto the porch and slamming the door behind me.

He began jogging along the path we'd taken before, not even checking to see if I was coming. Again, I paused, wondering if I should follow. Maybe I was stupid, but I chased after him.

The rain was still coming down hard, so I had to keep myself focused on Atticus's blue hoodie or I'd lose him in the fog. We finally made it to our destination about a half an hour later: an empty field. He plopped down on the wet grass, staring up at the sky above us where water continued to flood.

"Atticus what-?" I began, but he cut me off and grabbed my hand, inviting me to sit next to him. "Why are we here Atticus? What's wrong?" I asked. He shook his head and tapped my mouth. "You want me to talk?" I realized slowly. He nodded. "Ok...well, how are you?"

Atticus sighed in frustration and tapped my mouth again. Then he waved his hand around, asking me in his silent way to just talk, talk about anything. I cleared my throat, thinking carefully.

"Isn't it beautiful out here? Look at the rain and wind among the trees," I paused to glanced at Atticus. He was watching me carefully. "Do you hear the patter of it hitting the leaves? Oh Atticus, the stars!" I exclaimed, pointing wildly at patches of night sky through the clouds. "Do you know any constellations? My dad taught me most of them." I sighed. "See the Big Dipper? That's part of the Big Bear. The handle is the bear's tail. See it? Follow that up a bit...there! That's the North Star. It's not very bright, but it always stays in the same place. But I guess you probably know that, don't you?" I continued, leaning back on my elbows in the grass.

Atticus reached for my hand, and I felt a flood of panic rushing in. What was I supposed to do? I didn't dare pull my hand away, but he was my mission! This was never supposed to happen! His fingers weaved through mine, and he squeezed my hand slightly, telling me to go on.

"Um...Orion the Hunter's there. You can't see all of him because of the clouds, but his belt is always the first thing I look for. Scorpio's that way...Libra..." I trailed off, staring at the sky above me. The clouds were moving away and with each second we could see more.

"Cassiopeia, the Beautiful Queen to our right," I pointed out. "Andromeda!" I shouted, seeing the princess's constellation. "She's my favorite. The young daughter of Cassiopeia. The myth is that Cassiopeia claimed she was more beautiful than everyone else...including the Roman gods and nereids, the sea nymphs. Neptune grew angry and created a monster to destroy the land. The only way to calm the beast would be to sacrifice Andromeda," I continued. Atticus looked horrified. I only smiled.

"They chained her to a rock by the sea so the creature could eat her. But the great hero Perseus was flying by, and he saw her, all alone on the rock. He promised to kill the beast if she would marry him. And he did. They were married soon after. It was the goddess, Athena, who took her body and laid her in the stars after she died. Wasn't she amazing? I mean, she agreed to sacrifice herself for the good of others, and it was all her mothers fault!" I exclaimed. Atticus nodded and grinned at me, squeezing my hand.

"She was pretty amazing, wasn't she?" I asked softly. We sat in silence for a few minutes, just watching the stars, thinking over my story.

"Eris?" the voice startled me, and I jumped slightly. I twisted my head, looking for the source. "Eris," the voice came again, testing the word like they weren't sure if they were saying it right.

"Atticus?" I asked in disbelief. "You can talk?"

"Yeah...I could always talk. I just couldn't find the right words to say."

"But what...I don't understand, why now? Why me?"

"At first I didn't know if I could trust you. At school, you were always so..." he trailed off, searching for the word. "Blank. It was like you'd never gotten excited for ice cream, or jumped in puddles, or you've never seen a rainbow. You had no happiness. On that night, the last time we were out here, I saw the real you, the one with emotion. But I thought you hated me," he admitted, hanging his head slightly.

"Hate you? Atticus, why on earth would I hate you? This whole time I thought you hated me!" I exclaimed, squeezing his hand back. "But you're right," I continued in a softer voice, "I don't have anything or anyone, only Gabe and his stupid car. When did you know that you could trust me?"

"I didn't, not really. I wanted you to give me another chance, maybe if we could just talk, you wouldn't hate me. But now I know why you were never excited; its because you've been closed off, like me. Our sadness is so overwhelming, everything else just fades. But you're braver than I am. After everything, losing your family and home, you're still going, still talking. I didn't want to talk with anyone, hear a thousand more 'sorrys.' You're amazing," he said, admiration in his voice. I was quiet a moment, thinking over his speech.

"How did you know I lost my home?" I asked suddenly.

"I don't know, just the way you are around your cabin, like its the first place you've had in a while. Like you said before, we understand each other. Not to be rude, but what was it? A natural disaster? A fire?"

"Fire," I muttered, wondering if I was lying or remembering. "What about you?"

"My dad left us when I was seven. No note or anything, just gone. Mom and I did ok, she worked a few jobs and I learned to stay out of trouble for her. At my tenth birthday party, he showed up again, trying to take me away. The cops were called, I spent the night at a friends house while everyone sorted it out. My mom gained full custody, and my dad left. I'm only allowed to see him once a year. Then...my mom died from cancer, a year ago. My aunt took guardianship, and I lived with her," he sighed, and I could hear the trembling of his voice. It took me a moment to catch the problem.

"Wait, lived, as in past tense?" I questioned, stiffening. Atticus's shoulders began to shake slightly.

"Yes," he hiccupped, his eyes shining with a few tears. "I always knew she was depressed, I always knew! But I never thought she'd go so far...she was doing so well. She was happier, getting out of the house each day instead of lying in bed. She was better! What changed?" he sobbed, his head dropping into his hands.

"Atticus, what are you saying?" I demanded, gripping his shoulder.

"She's dead Eris! After school I rode my bike to my after school job, at the childcare center, and then I stayed there an hour afterwards because some stupid lady forgot to pick up her three year old. By the time I got home, she was just lying there, on her bed, gone. There was a note, saying she was sorry to leave me alone, but she couldn't raise a teenager by herself. I called the police and got out of there. Then I decided to find you," he was trembling with fear and anger as tears trailed down his face.

"Atticus..." I began, pulling him into a hug. "It'll be ok...I promise. You're not alone, I'll be with you every step if you want me to," I whispered as he wept. He nodded, still shaking slightly.

"Of course I want you there. You understand me, remember? You're the only one who knows."

"I don't want to say it...but you have to go back Atticus, go back to your house and help the police sort everything out. I'll come with you," I decided. He only nodded and helped me up. He dried his face on his sleeve and grabbed my hand again, keeping me close.

AHHH his aunt died!!! I'm sorry its so sappy and weird, but I couldn't think of anything else. What do you guys think is going to happen next???? Please comment any ideas/suggestions/critiques. I'll probably wrap this short story up in a few more chapters, like four or five.

I'm super duper behind on homework, so maybe I'll have time to post the next chapter on Sunday. Ok thanks for reading ya'll!