For Lea (Axel) Lovers: You are Mine! (Pt 10)

    “Isa’s out of town,” you told Lea over an ice cream sundae. You were sharing just one--as neither of you had much cash at the moment--and Lea was eating his half with fierce enthusiasm. He glanced up at you and paused for just a second, waiting for you to go on. “One of his graduate classes is having a field trip out of town and he said he’ll be gone for a week.” You stared down at your spoon, now holding only liquid cream. “He didn’t even say goodbye.”

    Lea hummed thoughtfully as he shoved another scoop in his mouth. “I think that’ll be good for you guys. Maybe some time apart is what you need to figure things out.”

    “I suppose.” You let the liquid slip back over the solid sundae. It dripped sadly back to its original spot. “I still wish he’d say something to me. This silent treatment is killing my weak heart.”

    “You think you’ve got it bad.” Lea gestured to your half of the treat and you nodded. He took it for himself, speaking through the chocolate and vanilla mix. “We’ve been best friends for years. I’ve seen his silent treatments before, but none were so vicious as this one.” You dropped your head onto the table, feeling something sticky settle into your skin.

    “This is miserable. I wish he’d yell at me. Or SOMETHING.”

    Lea dropped the empty cup and put some cash on the table. You pulled your forehead off of the table to do the same. “Look, just take this opportunity to relax for a bit. Don’t think about Isa’s mood so much.” He led you both out of the diner. The day was at that point of shifting from the afternoon to the evening, and the store’s lights were starting to flare. The Lucky XIII was already up and running and you could hear shouts coming from inside.

    “You ever been there before?” Lea asked you. You shook your head. “Good. Don’t.” He started walking down the street. You chased after him, your gaze still lingering on the neon sign.

    “What’s in there?”

    “Nothin’ good, kid.”

    You got to Lea’s side, matching his pace. “Have you ever been there?”

    “Let’s talk about somethin’ more interesting.” He gestured to the beach. “Did you know that the last time I was there with someone--present company excluded--I nearly drowned?”

    “Really?” You had been successfully distracted by the man, forgetting all about the club behind you. “What happened?”

    “Well, Isa and I used to come here long before college. One night, we went walking along the beach to see the ocean. No matter how many times we’d seen it before, it was still beautiful. I was telling Isa about one of my adopted brothers falling at work and getting a head injury. For a while, we didn’t think he was going to make it--although now the guy is on his way to getting a Nobel Peace Prize, the cocky bastard, but I digress….”

    You sat on a bench over-looking a park on a hill. You got a clear view of the ocean from that spot.

    “Isa was telling me the usual: it was stupid to worry as my family was full of doctors, only a fraction of the population dies from concussions, blah blah blah. Then, I thought I saw someone out in the ocean, drowning. I hurried out to find her, but I must’ve been high or something. Nothing was there but some driftwood. Anyway, a huge wave came over me, knocking me into the water. I tried to flail my way out of it, but that only seemed to make this worse. Isa swam out and saved my life.”

    “Wow,” you breathed. “Isa never told me that.”

    “That’s not all he did, though.” He leaned back in the bench, moving his hands into his pockets. “I swallowed a lot of water in there, so Isa ended up taking me to the hospital, just in case. While I was there, he went out to visit my brother and their doctors. Did Isa ever tell you that he’s good at making medical herbs?”

    “He mentioned it.”

    “Well, he took something to my brother. It made him recover in half of the time it normally would’ve.”

    Your eyes widened. “Really?”

    “Yep. He’s a great guy, _______.” Lea gave you a sad smile. “You landed a good one.”

    You stared away from him. “Yeah, I did. But you’re not so bad yourself.” Lea laughed.

    “What makes you say that? I’m definitely no Isa.”

    “Maybe not. But I do remember Isa mentioning you once.”

    “You do?”

    You smiled at the stars. “He didn’t directly, but he told me one day about a friend that really helped him out. He’s always wondered about who his real parents were, but never had the resources to find them. One day, a dear friend of his came over and threw a folder on his desk.” You laughed, just as Isa had when he told you this story. “His friend had gone and stolen his birth records, just so he could learn about his real parents. Isa was more than grateful to him, but….” You looked at Lea. He stared towards the ocean, smiling to himself.

    “He refused to look at them,” he finished. “Even after all of that hard work I put into getting those things for him. I can’t even begin to tell you what it took to get those things back before the orphanage knew they were missing.”

    “He didn’t want to get you in trouble,” you insisted. “He cared about what happened to you.”

    “Yeah, I know. I still think that, of all people in the world, he deserved to know who his real parents were.”

    “Did you find your forms too?”

    “No. I have no desire to see mine. They left me there, and as far as I’m concerned, it was the best thing to happen to me. Isa was the only one who really wanted to know where he came from.”

    “Did you look at his papers?”

    “Of course I did.”

    “What? And you never told him??”

    “No way. He decided that night that he didn’t want to know about his parents that bad. He asked me to take that folder away and to promise to never let him be involved with the crime. If he knew what was in that folder, I’d be in big trouble. We’d both probably end up in jail or worse.”

    “He wouldn’t want to have any reason to turn you in,” you concluded. “Then again, I don’t think Isa would ever do that to his best friend.”

    “Maybe not before.” Lea slouched further in his seat, resting his neck against the back of the bench. “But now, I’ve taken the best thing that ever happened to him.”

    “You didn’t take me---well, nevermind.” You tilted your head up.

    “What made you like the stars so much?” He asked, looking over at you.

    “Isa.” You answered. “He and I got into a fight one night and I ran off to hide in a park. I didn’t want to go back to an angry boyfriend right away, but I ended up falling asleep in the grass. I woke up to the amazing night sky. It reminded me of when I was a kid and I would go hide under the stars whenever my parents had a big fight. It was comforting, but also kind of a poor memory because I’d always pray to escape to the planets and galaxies above. That night, there was no other place that I wanted to go to than those other worlds. I dreamed about it for hours and hours and hours….

    “Isa found me later that night, totally out of breath. He’d been looking for me all night. We talked things over and shared a kiss under the stars. It was the perfect moment and made me realize that, although most of my memories under the stars were of times when I wished to leave my troubles, they were also like an estranged family to me. I wanted to get to know them better…in case I ever needed to escape again.”

    “Huh.” He followed your gaze. “Sound like Isa has a pretty big influence over us.”

    “Definitely. He’s strangely the best thing to ever happen to me.” As the statement flowed, you got this feeling that you were wrong about that. You looked over at Lea and felt your heart grow warmer. “You’re a pretty great guy, all things considered.” He laughed.

    “Um, thanks I guess?”

    “I mean it.” You turned your entire body towards him. “You’ve been nothing but kind to me since this thing started. I can’t believe that I ended up with a friend like you after this.”

    “Thanks.” He sat back up straight and noticed that you were shivering. You’d tried to hide it under your jacket, but being a girl, warmth was just impossible to obtain. “If I was wearing a jacket, I’d give it to you.” You looked down at his puffy maroon vest, which would be perfect for the winter weather if it had sleeves.

    “Thanks anyway,” you told him, squeezing your arms tighter around your body.  “I’ll be alright.” Lea shook his head.

    “C’mere.” He scooted closer to you, wrapping an arm around you. He pulled you into his chest and you felt like you’d just snuggled into the center of a space heater. Your mind told you to pull away, but your body declined. It was so wonderful to be held and the icing on the topping was when he slowly and uncertainly leaned his cheek on top of yours. You hadn’t had someone be this affectionate to you in so long.

    “We should probably get you somewhere warm,” Lea muttered.

    “Mmm,” you agreed. However, neither of you moved for a long time, instead enjoying that moment for as long as you could stand the weather. Before God, the glimmering stars, and the endless blue sea, you took a moment to just relax.

    He walked you to your dorm after midnight, and neither of you were surprised to see it was empty. Larxene probably wouldn’t be back for another five hours or so. Lea faltered outside of your door for a few moments.

    “Well, goodnight,” he at last stated. He aimed to give you a quick pat on the head before he finally walked off. You waved and shut the door behind you. Drowsily, you pulled off your pants and made your way to your bed. It was incredibly frozen and empty. You saw a small heart on your calendar and got up just so you could tear it off. Stupid schedules. Stupid boyfriends. Stupid you.

    Slipping back into your covers, you felt it get a bit warmer. Maybe everything would be alright. Things could change. They could get better. You’d live through this experience no matter how hard the journey. You just had to pick yourself up eventually. Lea did it, why couldn’t you?

    Someone knocked on your door. You hurried over to it, knowing his very tap at this point.

    “Hey,” he said softly. “What’s up.” He shifted really uncomfortably, which wasn't like him. “Can...Would you be okay if I stay? There would be no funny business or anything like that. I just don’t want to leave yet.”

    You didn’t even pause. “Sure.”

    He came into your room, still standing a distance from you. He seemed to relax a bit when you closed the door behind him. You didn’t even care that he saw you in your underwear and a tee; he’d seen you in less. You went over to the bed and pulled the covers up to your shoulders, scooting over to make room for Lea. He only climbed on top of your sheets, trying to retain some respect for your boundaries. His arm draped over your side, creating a shield of warmth against the outside world. You burrowed into his chest, breathing in his sweet cinnamon scent. Everything else faded, all other sights, sounds, thoughts, and smells. It was just Lea now, holding you as though you’d slip into a dark sea while he slept. But you knew you wouldn’t fall; not as long as he was there. Even if Isa and Kairi and the rest of the world left you, it wouldn’t matter as long as the redhead could protect you in his strong, solid arms.