Hate. Hate was a strong word. Most people would often tell you not use it. 'You'll regret it' they would say. Which, in your opinion, was a load of bullshit.
You believe you had freedom to hate anything you wish. And if you regretted it or changed you mind? Easy. You could always say you don't hate it anymore. But this time, you were sure there wasn't gonna be an 'anymore'.
Enoch o'Conner was a sly, cheating bastard. He'd follow you despite all the times you've yelled for him to stop. He'd tease you once you were the only one there. He would have his little minions—oh what did he call them?—homunculus, he'd have them mess around with you just to piss you off!
And you were sick of it! Every bit of it, you hated. And nothing—nothing at all—would ever get you to change your mind.
It was another sunny day, September third as usual. You were under a tree, watching as the kids played around under the sun. You wanted to join in but see, the thing was you were lazy as fuck. So instead, you watched as Wyn would carry Claire on her shoulders and act like an airplane of some sort.
You smiled, yawning. The bright sun was making you feel rather sleepy. You closed your eyes and decided 'oh, just a minute couldn't hurt, could it?'
-***-
"Come on she's right there, go for it."
"Are you mad? She's asleep!"
"She's waking up, see?"
You felt your eyes slowly fluttering open. Enoch and Millard standing right in front of you. You rubbed your eyes, giving another last yawn. "What're you lot standing about for?"
Millard turned to Enoch, at least that's what you assumed since his hat turned in Enoch's general direction. "Me? Oh, nothing. But Enoch here has something to say." Millard said before walking away.
You stood up, dusting yourself off before glaring. "You. What're you doing here?" You asked.
Although everything about him looked the same, there was something different. His amused smirk was replaced by an unsure frown, he seemed to be fiddling with his thumbs. "So? Are you deaf?" You asked. "Ah, I see. What's this? Some kind of... twisted joke? Is a half-eaten sheep gonna scare me from behind this tree?" You looked behind it, just in case.
"No, this is s-something else..." He said, not able to look you in the eyes.
You raised a brow. "What then. Half-eaten pig?"
He shook his head furiously. "No, nothin half eaten."
You looked at him, this wasn't the Enoch who had been harassing you ever since you got here. This was brand new.
Taking a step forward, you asked, "Then what's this about, hmm?"
He looked to his feet, his cheeks starting to flush. "Uhm, you see, I may have gained a, um, fondness for you..."
You stared at him in disbelief, not believing a single word that escaped his mouth. "Really now?" You asked, leaning forward skeptically. You clapped. "You know, Enoch, your tricks are getting more convincing as the day passes. I almost believed you there for a second."
He tensed up. "This... isn't a trick..."
"So what, you're saying you actually have a crush on me?" You say, still doubtful. He nodded hesitantly, every bit of confidence he thought he had draining out of him at your less-than-enthusiastic reaction.
You scoffed. "Okay, right, sure."
He looked up to you. "I-I'm serious!" He said, silently cursing at himself for stuttering. You stared at him, nothing to say. He was being so convincing. Too convincing. This came off a little bit surprising for you. You didn't want to believe it, but for once in his life, he really seemed sincere.
"Wait, you're... you're not playing? You actually have a crush on me?"
"Of course I do," he said, trying to fake confidence.
Sudden rage filled you. "No... No! Stop toying with me! I've had enough of your dumb mind games!" You said, covering your ears and showing him your back. "You've been a dick to me for almost as long as I can remember! So... So stop trying to act like you like me to make up for it!"
He walked up to you, about to place his hand on your shoulder until you slapped it away. "Stop it! Stay away from me!" You screamed.
"Y/N, please, I-"
"I said stop!" You turned to face him, seeing a hurt expression on his face. You placed a finger on his chest aggressively, taking a step forward, causing him to take one back. "You were the one who would turn the water cold when I was in the bath!" You took another step. "You were the one who put gum in my hair and proceeded to laugh about my dumb new haircut for a week!" He took another step back. "YOU were the one—the only one--" she said with a miserable groan. "--who used your peculiarity to annoy me!
"You CANNOT like me! You are not ALLOWED to like me! You... You can't just do that! You can't just..."
"I'm sorry, Y/N, I'm sorry..."
She looked at him, enraged. "And sorry doesn't BEGIN to cover it! Just... If you really like me, just do me a favor and... stay away from me."
He kept himself strong as he watched her walk away but as soon as she was out of sight, he fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face.
