From day to day, Alexander fell heavily to go to school. The mere avoidance of his classmates had meanwhile changed into open refusal. Chicanery and malice were the order of the day. He found support with his family and he did not have the opportunity to move to another school. More and more, he embraced himself and lived his creativity. Philip had done a great job. Every Friday he breathed a sigh of relief, for at least two days without a hostility. He spent the Saturday evening selling his figures.
That evening he had sold all figurines, and was wondering what he might surprise his mother after he had taken far more than planned. His mother never bought anything for herself, only for Alexander and his brothers. It was late. Few people were on the dark streets when he saw a squat figure sitting on the side of the pavement. Several other figures had just been bending over, but as Alexander approached, these figures disappeared. Alexander knelt down beside the figure, which was no longer moving. It was Philip, Alexander realized shudderingly. Why did he ever have to run across him? Why did not he still have peace before him outside school? There he sat, the cool, the rich, the strong, sitting there, unable to move and defenseless. Now his chance would be to repay him. Maybe he should just leave him alone. His so-called friends had also sought the expanse. Alexander would do the same. What was he doing to him? He had already passed on to Philip, determined to let him lie there, not to take care of him. Why, he would have done the same. It had been Philip who made Alexander’s school life a goat’s run. But after a few steps he turned and went back. Still, Alexander could not guess if it was good what he did when he took Philip upstairs and took him home, but he just could not make Philip leave it there.
The next morning, Philip awoke with a furious headache. But where was he? Children’s voices pressed to his ear, cheerful, free, uninvited children’s voices.
“Oh, you’re awake,” he heard a familiar voice, and when he looked up tired, he recognized Alexander.
“Where am I? How do I get here?” he asked weakly.
“I picked you up on the street yesterday and took you with me, to be sober,” Alexander replied gravely.
“I was not drunk, just this shit … But why did you do that where I treated you so badly?” Philip asked.
“Because I just could not leave you,” Alexander replied truthfully.
“I wanted to destroy you because I’m broken. I have admired and envied you from the beginning,” Philip admitted unhampered.
“You envy me? But why?” Alexander asked, confused.
“You have something I did not know, and then the creative. Actually, I admire it. You are a very special person. I thought you would not like me, so I attacked you so as not to be rejected by you,” said Philip, and Alexander sat down beside him and looked at him.
“You know, it’s sad that you mean affection is dependent on merit. You can do a lot more than you know yourself, much more than you know,” Alexander said thoughtfully.
“Do you think so?” replied Philip, and his voice sounded hopeful.
“I can tell with every word that you are going to open up more,” replied Alexander, taking Philip’s hand.
“Do you want to support me?” Philip asked.
“Yes, I would like that. And you, will you treat me as a human being from now on?” Alexander said.
“More than that, as the man in my life who saved me, saved me and my possibilities,” said Alexander truthfully, and when they kissed they knew it was true.
