Conflicted Eyes, Confusing Feelings | Complete

s e v e n t e e e n

Listening to Here Comes The Sun by The Beatles really helped me through this chapter, mainly the first part.

It's a song that reminds me of Sage.

* * *

People who easily blush is a sign of them being a good lover.

* * *

It had been two days.

To my sweet little boy Alexander,

Love (no pun intended),
Mom ;)

It had been two days since Sage found the small locket hiding amidst blades of grass on the ground, alone, abandoned.

But why?

And it said Xander, so it must be his?

Sage didn't understand what pun meant, so he'd asked Vera, since Randall was still shit at explanations, even if it was for the purpose of saving his life. His seventeen, incomplete years.

"A pun ... it's like a word that can be used in multiple contexts or way. For example, you know that ..." she'd hummed, thoughtfully tapping her chin. "Like in the locket for example. You say Love is his last name, and you know that you can love someone or something. See?"

Sage had thought for a while. "Yes. And like a cat in a bag?"

"Yup. But it would be literally instead." Vera shot him a thumbs up. "Hey, this guy. It's the one you like, right."

A small gasp exited his mouth, quickly accompanied by a blush on his cheeks. He lowered his gaze, shyly tucking a lock of hair behind his ear as he nodded.

Vera laughed. "Love, huh? If that's his last name, then that means he's a lovely guy!"

Sage didn't get the last joke, but Vera laughed her head off, explaining it to him soon after. The next item on that agenda had been name mashing and last names being merged like that of marriage. Had Sage's face gotten any hotter, he was a thousand percent that he would collapse right there and then.

Call him paranoid, but Vera was talking pretty loudly, and Xander and his groupie could've strolled in, or magically popped up. Frankly speaking, Sage didn't think he could handle another uppercut from Xander without losing consciousness.

* * *

That morning, going to school, Sage felt weirder than usual.

When he came down from the top of the stairs, Cecilia and Anna turned from their tea-party to stare at him. Like ... stare.

The proceeding providence comprised of him being showered in compliments and hearing about how well his friends had done for him. Sage had blushed, sheepishly accepting the compliments which, for the first time, he felt was true. Anna had even felt the need to ask him if there was a special girl in his life or a boy.

Cecilia laughed, firmly telling her that Sage only liked, 'beautiful young ladies'. The way they were acting, coupled with the way everyone gazed at him, only confirmed his suspicions; that he had been shamelessly unsophisticated before. He felt his lips twitch up in a small, nervous smile. He couldn't help but wonder what Xander would think.