Life seemed to drudge by, like an endless sea of bittersweet bliss. I still didn’t know how to act after that kiss. Andy seemed unaffected by the kiss. It almost made me want to push him into traffic the last couple of times I saw him out of class. Which made me feel even more stupid, because the guy who kissed me, and I kissed back was acting like it didn’t matter like I should just go with the flow. I don’t even know why it was bothering me anyway. Andy is a jerk, and I should just get over it.

Could it be that simple? I thought while in my business class, jotting down notes. I have a test next week, and I need to make sure I maintain the grade point average I’ve kept since the beginning of school. Oh, and today is my birthday. Yeah, me! The only ones who remembered are Arian, my mom, my brothers, Yume, Gerald, and Marianne. The bell rings ushering the end of class, and half the students already at the door. I slowly take my time getting my backpack ready, and all my things stuffed in it.

At the door, I rush out. I could barely hear teach when she said her goodbyes. On the campus near the fountain, I happen to run into Kody. What was he doing here? I couldn’t even choke out a sorry. I was so stunned to see him. Kody is five-foot-eleven, short cropped brown hair, impossibly blue eyes, a shade lighter than mine. “Hey! Slow down. Where’s the fire?” he asked while staring directly at me. Just then my phone vibrated with an incoming text. It shocked me back to reality. Looking at him now, after all the time, with his half smile that didn’t quite reach his blue eyes.

I blinked, then I spoke in a hoarse whisper, “What are you doing here? I thought we agreed to never see each other again?” He frowned then, “I never made such an agreement. Besides, it’s a free country, and Trish just got out of her class. I was walking there to greet her.” I was stunned. Is he back with Trish again? Well obviously, so because the day of the kiss played back in my mind with total clarity. Trish was there, her hair color changed from her natural dirty blonde to straight blonde. I just stopped breathing for a minute far too long, and my vision was fading.

“Stevan!” I heard someone calling my name, could that have been Andy? Kody? I couldn’t really tell. I faded into the void of nothingness. I vaguely recall someone picking me up, and plopping me down on something soft. While in the deep sleep it came again. The cloaked figure that haunted me for years, because I could never escape it. Now it was, here again, pointing its’ boney finger directly at me and turned it upside down in a come here motion that chilled my very soul.

I needed to escape, but my legs wouldn’t move. I didn’t even realize I was holding in a breath. I let it out slowly, as I do I start hearing someone trying to coax me out of this sleep. It sounds like Andy, I think. I slowly start moving my feet. One in front of the other, walking towards his voice. Andy will help me, he’ll get me back to reality, and hopefully, this time old cloake won’t come with. As I think that last thought I see a white light behind my eyelids. I open one, and then the other, blinking twice before fully seeing the room I’m in. I’m on a twin sized bed, I look to my left, and see Andy there one arm propped on his knee, head in hand, eye’s closed. He looks so peaceful, I wanted to touch his face. I reached out, getting halfway there, and then thinking better of it.

It was then I noticed Andy had a mark on the side of his wrist, the one he had his head propped on. It looked like a crescent moon. I looked up from that mark and locked gazes with him. I held his for a little while before I turned away, and felt the heat rise through my whole body. I turned back, and he was still staring at me. “What?!” I asked impatiently. He blinked, “Sorry Stevan, I just… I saw you talking to that guy, and then when you fell down I rushed over and caught you before your head hit the cement. Wow! Do you know how scared I was? I thought you were going to hit the cement and crack your head open. That guy just stood there surprised to see you fainting.” He kept saying ‘that guy’ and it made me remember that Kody was there with me when I passed out. “Kody, his name is Kody,” I said finally after a minute of silence. “Kody? That’s his name.?” Andy mused, “Wait wasn’t he that guy who was in line with that blonde chick?” he asked with a puzzled look on his beautiful face.

I nodded my agreement, which might have been a mistake. “Isn’t he the one you we had to duck in the restroom of the Starbucks to get away from?” Damn, I wish he hadn’t remembered Kody from that time. I nodded looking innocent, then the memory of what happened in that restroom popped into my head, and the heat underneath my skin became hotter. I wanted to sit up and kiss Andy again just to reconfirm something I already figured. I sat up slowly never leaving his gaze. Until I caught a hint of red on his cheeks as he looked me over stopping at one spot that I could only guess what it was. My gaze went to the spot he stared at. Just then the nurse came into the infirmary saying, “Well it looks-,” she stopped mid-sentence.

It was then that we both turned away, him blushing all the way to his ears, and I join suit. The tension was so thick you could practically see it in the air all around us, and it was just awkward tension either. The nurse quickly left the way she came in, and the tension eased. Then of course, because the fates didn’t think we were embarrassed enough as it was Kody popped in with Trish in toe. It was then I was stunned to see them both, here. “Hey there, how was your nap little guy?” Kody said nervously with a half, hearted twitch to his left side of his lip. “It was alright,” I said with a smirk I didn’t feel. Maybe he could tell because the next thing he said was, “Well I’m glad you woke up. Trish would’ve to beat my ass if you died, and I didn’t do anything to help.” This stunned me, ‘Trish would’ve beat his ass?’ Trish? The same girl who didn’t like the idea of me and Kody as sex friends, the same Trish that unfriend me on Facebook, and then proceeded to block me, and stopped talking to me altogether at school? I couldn’t believe it. I just couldn’t take it. My switch flipped, and the last thing I remember was lunging at Kody with the intent to maim and burn.

When I came to, the first thing I saw was a bloody pool at my feet, and I was soaked in it. It was then I noticed the bloody tips of my fingers, and that my hair was now down to my shoulders, jutting out in every direction. “Stevan, are you okay?” Andy was there the instant he saw I came to. “I… I don’t know. What happened?” I asked stunned by the gore. “Well, you leaped off the bed, and grabbed Kody, punching his face in. While you were doing that Trish tried to pull you off him and that just made you even angrier. You kicked her away, while still punching the loving daylights out of Kody. There was so a lot of blood because you guys broke the cabinet that contained some blood bags, and those popped while you and Kody were tumbling around like animals. When I caught in, I noticed that your hair had grown a few inches, and I grabbed you long enough for you to release Kody. You then punched me, and I flew back. You calmed down quite a bit after staring at your own reflection in the small pool of blood. After that, well you know the rest.” Andy helped me up from the floor, and we left through the front door.

Andy took me home, to my apartment. The car ride there was a daze, and I barely registered that I unlocked the door, and let myself in and left it open for Andy to close it behind him. He whistled his approval of my apartment. I went to the kitchen and raided my, fridge pulling out a cold water bottled. Twisting the cap off taking a long gulp of cooling goodness. I offered Andy one, but he passed walking to the couch and sat down. I walked out of the kitchen, sat down on the couch.

Again, there was silence and tension. I didn’t know how to break it. Lucky for me Andy was cool with it. He just sat there and looked a picture I had on the wall behind me, for a long while. I did something unexpected. I went over to him and kissed him. Slowly at first, seeing his reactions as I proceeded. He was reluctant at first, and then slowly got into it, which made the kiss even hotter. I don't know why I did it, I just wanted to confirm to myself that I was grounded in reality and that this was real. He was real and really in my house kissing me.

Before I knew it, it had gotten late, and I didn't want Andy to leave, so I offered him the couch but what I really wanted was to cuddle with him in my bed. Nothing sexual, just some spooning, and blissful sleep. Of course, he was a total gentleman and graciously accepted the couch. I went to my room and got ready for bed. As I was about to turn off the light on the nightstand beside my bed I heard Andy call out, "Stevan!" I answered in turn, "Yes?" "Do you need anything?" he asked. I was just about to say, 'You' when I noticed the tremor in his voice that was so unexpected I said, "Is everything okay Andy?" I heard rustling on the couch, and then footsteps edging closer to my bedroom door. "Could I actually snuggle in your bed with you?" He asked in a soft tone I almost had to strain my ears to hear him. "Sure" I heard myself say before I could think better of it. He proceeded in and got to the bed without too much trouble. He slipped under the covers and got comfortable.