Between the surges of laughter and the constant stir of movement in the cafeteria, a pair of deep brown eyes found mine. He'd washed most of the morning's terror from his face, but the fear still lingered in his gaze. He seemed to be the only one who sat still in a sea of movement, the only one not smiling, the only one who noticed me. The rip in his t-shirt skimmed over his collar bone when he leaned his forearms on the table. He gave me a nod.

I didn't know what it meant, ...