Innocuous Confession (KevEdd)

Chapter 3 - The Countdown

"Double D!" Nazz called, running over to Edd and practically attacking him. She hugged him like a python, reducing his breath to an indignant squeak.

"Greetings," he managed, feeling like his torso would explode. She let go, and Double D bent over slightly to regain his breath and get rid of his sudden tunnel vision.

"Lets go in. We dont want any, like, prying eyes, or whatever, right?" Nazz said, walking toward Edd's porch. He wondered momentarily, though it was slightly rude and out of character, why he had once had a crush on her. Everyone had liked Nazz at some point, she was beautiful, and cool. Well, she was Nazz.

"I agree," he said, following her. He hugged himself, silently wishing for warmer weather, before pulling his house key out of his pocket. He let Nazz inside, "Please remove your shoes before stepping onto the rug," he said, removing two pairs of house-slippers from a neat little storage box.

Nazz obliged, "your house has cool rules. Chinese stuff."

"My mother is from Thailand," Edd told her, "and I personally feel that tracking who-knows-what into your living space is unsanitary."

"Don't they have the cool names? Like that dude Jackie Chan."

"He is from British Hong Kong, I believe. He speaks Cantonese. My mother is Thai, her name is Pim Mookjai."

"Interesting," Nazz said as they went through the house to the family room, "and you're from British Columbia."

"Exactly," Edd said, quite entertained by the fact that she had even mentioned Peach Creek's location with this conversation.

"On with the show, Double D. Like... Who did you kiss?" Nazz grinned again, "Marie Kanker?"

Edd flushed, "Of course it wasn't her... It was-" he tucked his knees up to his chest, his cheeks almost matched his red skinny jeans (he grown out of those adorable pants he used to wear in the winter) and he tucked his face down to hide.

"Come on Double D, don't be shy, I wont tell anyone."

"Thats the thing, Nazz. It's someone that you tell everything to."

"Umm," Nazz seemed enlightened for a moment, and smirked, "I see where this is going..."

"You do?" Edd lifted his face out of his knees and peered up at the blonde, a glimmer of hope shown in his eyes.

"Sure I do, it must have been someone from the cul-de-sac. Dont tell me, let me try to guess. If you think I tell them, like, everything..then it totally has to be someone I hang with a lot. Right?"

"Yes, if I understood your slang correctly, I believe you're on the right track." please let her guess, I'm not ready to admit it aloud yet, I might have a nervous breakdown!

"I always hang out with-..." Her eyes widened, and her cheeks turned rose-pink. "oh my gooosh!" she smiled, "that must be why Kevin has been so strange for the past couple of years. I thought puberty was making him so off, but it was you!"

Edd blushed and squeaked again, burying his bright red face in his hands, "oh, the humility!"

"Don't be embarassed dude! Its totally cool, its...different..." Nazz smiled, "I have an idea. We're gonna make Kevin melt like a popsicle in August."

"I...I think you meant July..."

"No, dude, August is totally a hotter month."

~'°'~

New Years Day

Kevin straddled the worn out leather seat of his bike, his baseball equipment in his sports bag on his back. It was getting closer and closer to baseball season, and he had been going to the park every day (even on this holiday) to practice his swing, and of course, pitching every now and then. He took off his cap and wiped a thin layer of cooling sweat off of his hair-line.

"Yo!" Nazz called, it didn't sound lame when she said it, "Kev!" she skidded to a halt in front of his bike, panting, fake mixed emotions in her eyes. Her plan was now in action.

"Nazz? What's wrong?" Kevin asked, putting down his kickstand; his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Double D..." she panted for real, running to the park from Edd's house was a chore, "he's in his house...he said for 25 cents he'll tell us all why he never takes his hat off."

"Why should I care? It's just another scam," Kevin said sourly, trying to hide how intrigued he was.

"Being one of the only people in, like, history to know why is totally cool," Nazz said, "and I don't have a quarter." She had won. Not three minutes later, they were paying the 25 cent fee and going inside Double D's home. Everyone crowded around the couch where Edd sat; Ed and Eddy were counting the money, they had heard this story before.

"Well, I didn't assume that this many of you would show up," Edd said quietly, a bashful pink shading his cheeks. He felt like people cared. For once in his life, he felt like people were really curious about him. "Alright, I guess I should begin. The reason I wear this hat is because I had a brain tumor when I was eight. I went through a few surgeries, therapies, and many other things that were not particularly enjoyable, before I was cured. I have a good sized scar on the top of my head, right here-" Edd pointed (through his hat of course) to the rectangular scar on the top of his head, more toward the back, "-and my hair still hasn't gotten to where I am able to completely hide the scar, yet."

Everyone was silent, they didn't know what to say. Even Nazz hadn't expected this. The silence felt thick and uncomfortable, until finally, Rolf asked in a gentle tone, "what challenges did you face after your surgeries?"

"I had problems with memory loss... I would sit one moment, and the next, I had no idea what I was doing or why. I desperately wanted to remember things, so I started to study everything, especially science. It helped me remember things. Vocabulary, science, math, mechanics, it all went together in my head and it stuck, and I started getting better and better and remembering. Now I don't feel much different than all of you. I still have problems with shaking, running is very uncomfortable, and I mainly get headaches right on my scar." Double D pulled his knees up to his chest and looked down at everyone, "I am not going to remove my hat."

Kevin felt his heart beating, moving his body just slightly, that's how still he was sitting. Brain tumor? Cancer? Not Double D, it couldn't be true. Maybe Eddy made it up, that dork was desperate enough...wasn't he? Surely he wasn't that scum-y. "Wow, Double Dor- I mean... Double D. I mean, Edd. Eddward. Whatever."

"Thats alright, I dont want any of you to treat me any differently than you would have before knowing. I want to be treated like everyone else." Edd said, but when he looked at Kevin, Kevin knew that the saying went for everyone except him. It was well past time to make a move, and Kevin had the perfect excuse-...plan. His idea was perfect, it was fool proof, it was rad. With this, he might get to be with Double D (his exact words while thinking were "might get laid"), and bring his D average up to an A or B. Tutoring.