The stars twinkled in the dark, night sky, as Benny was sitting alone one night. He seemed to be distracted. Shoulders hunched and trembling, head hanging low, arms hugging his knees to his chest.

When you approached, you heard the heart-breaking, unmistakable sound of a sniffle. Was he crying? After the thought, a shaking exhale was heard leaving his lips. Yeah, he was crying.

Benny noticed your presence, and quickly made a half-hearted attempt to compose himself, awkwardly chuckling and sniffling as he roughly rubbed his eyes dry, but the tears would quickly come back, so the process went on for quite some time.

When asked what was wrong, he immediately got defensive, seeming almost offended that you would care. "Wh-what? Nothing's wrong, no... no, of course not! It's just- hah- allergy season, y'know? Gets me... all worked up." Benny even made a show of pretending to blow his nose.

But he could sense the look on your face. That pitiful, sympathetic look that always made him crack. He sighed, letting his happy facade fall for just a moment. He was always comfortable being vulnerable around you, and he could never find himself able to lie whenever the two of you spoke.

"It's.. it's just.." He sighed, mid-sentence, before continuing, "I thought... thought he'd like me back, y'know? Like.. like I had a chance with him anyway, huh?" He harshly chuckled at his own words, shaking his head as if he were scolding himself.

Watery tears still shimmering in his eyes, brown curls falling over his face, as if he was almost waiting for your reaction.