Right off the bat, things were going so much better than last year. Mason was a wonderful start to something that could have gone off the rails before it even started running. Casper kind of wanted to thank the young man, but that would just have been creepy. ‘Hey, thanks for being nice to me, I haven’t gotten a lot of that at the Academy.’ That if anything would put a clingy stamp on Casper’s forehead, nothing he wanted to carry around. In fact, Casper didn’t want to count on Mason being around, either way. He was a wonderful guy it would appear, but once they hit the shores, anything could happen. Mason could pack up and leave to hang out with other people and forget about Casper all together. 

Being the asocial kid Casper was, one could perhaps think that he hated close contact or being around other people. That is far from the truth. Shy and reserved never did equal the desire to be alone all the time. In fact, Casper loved close contact. He loved being hugged, he loved hugging others. He loved being with others. It was just that he was very shy and cautious. He was afraid. Behind the reserved exterior dwelled a person eager to free all of his colours, something that quite clearly seeped out in small doses. His hair, his bright coloured shoes and the rainbow bracelets he sometimes wore, they were all small parts of his inner self that managed their way through the shell and carefully shone with a faint light. It could perhaps have been clear for someone able to read others, but otherwise Casper would seem like nothing but a colourful but reserved kid who was alone all the time. 

Mason approaching him the way he did unlocked a door Casper assumed would be closed. It was a welcomed but highly unexpected addition to this semester, something that filled him with both longing and fear. One should always be cautious around people because half of them are out to get you, right? Well, that might be an extreme generalisation but better safe than sorry. 

Casper would realise that he was lost in thought yet again as he heard a second voice, this time belonging to a female. Snapping him back to reality, he noted her compliment and found himself blushing again. He wasn’t used to comments like that, what did you call them…oh yes, compliments. “H-hello…” He gulped, looking at the new girl. “Uhm…no story.” The boy shook his head slightly in response to her question. “I just…like pink…” Casper managed a faint smile, though tried to avoid looking her in the eyes due to the heat in his cheeks.