Elven Love (SAA Book 1) ✔

Part Seventeen

Clayton's foot tapped Oren's side, to which the elf yelped and squeezed the phone tighter. The elf was in disbelief, maybe even beyond that. He knew he's grown needy and his head's been filled with nothing but the stupid blond, but he didn't think it was... this. Quickly, Oren cleared the app history and shuffled out of the bedroom. He slammed the door shut and went wide-eyed.

Oren suddenly felt captivated by the warmth of his raging blush. His heart pounded and blood boiled beneath his freckled skin as he mentally fought with himself. He was panicking in the the cramped hallway, pacing in short steps as he held his breath. Clayton was just in the other room. He can't know. He can't know. He can't--

Oren huffed and inhaled shakily, pulse thundering wildly as he tried to stifle whimpers. He was both in ecstasy and fear. He knew, and he wanted Clayton to know.

He was certain. This was the problem.

Thinking about the human made his fingers twitch. His nerves jumped and legs grew sickeningly weak to the simple thought of Clayton. His heart leaped and his face heated.

Why? Why him? Did Oren even like guys? He's never spoken to a girl except Clayton's mother, but she's a woman.. At school, the girls seemed snobby and stuck-up. He didn't want do deal with any of that. Oren didn't know what to do. The poor thing didn't know what having a crush felt like. He was overwhelmed, frustrated tears pooling at the back of his eyes as he desperately pushed them away. Clayton couldn't see him like this..

So pathetic.

The human would never want someone like him, for many reasons. Anywhere he goes in public, he always stirs up trouble, even when he doesn't mean to.. Nobody would want to deal with someone like that. Too much of a hassle, really. Oren inhaled through his nose and released through his mouth, trying to calm his thundering pulse that ran just below his pale, paper-like skin.

"How do I tell him? He'll probably think I'm crazy if I rush it.." he muttered aloud, eyebrows caved in as he fought with himself. He turned and thrust open the bedroom door, only to find a startled Clayton in his wake. Upon realizing it was only Oren, the blond resumed the game he was playing.

"What's got you so extra today?" he asked with a nonchalant laugh. Oren, now knowing today's odd discovery wasn't a mistake, stepped into the room and shut the door behind himself. The elf knew well that Clayton's reaction could be varied; anger, disgust, wary, bashful; and Oren didn't want any of that.

"Nothing, it's just..." he trailed off, sucking in a deep breath and swallowing down his anxiety. Then, he shook his head and shoved it to the back of his mind. He can wait, just a little longer.. It's better that way.

Two Days Later; 5:30 PM; Sunday

He's tried to deal with it. He couldn't mistake this; everything added up. That one missing piece of information completed the puzzle Oren was constructing. Two days have passed and the elf still couldn't muster up the courage to confess. He's tried the last forty-eight hours to tell the human, but ended up procrastinating.

As of now, the two were in Clayton's bedroom, the human on the bed and Oren sitting on the floor, internally panicking. His pulse was racing as he mentally prepared himself for the moment. He's been waiting it out, painfully too.

"Clayton, can you put down the controller for a minute? I need to, uh... ask you, no. Just, can you stop playing for a second please?" Oren requested, his voice shaking as his breath released in small patches. He felt like his lungs were closing up on him and it made him want to flee. But, he stayed put, watching as the human slowly obliged with a raised eyebrow.

"Okay, you're not gonna suddenly shut down again, are you? What's with all the stuttering, man? What's up?" Clayton sat down the controller and turned his attention to the nerve-wracked elf.

"Okay okay, right, uh. I've been thinking.. for a long time now, actually. Ever since the water dimension we went to a bit ago." Oren pushed a strand of loose white hair behind his twitching ear. "Back then, I didn't know why my heart hurt every time I was next to you. I would get all sweaty and I would make lots of mistakes in front of you.. but I want you to look past that real quick because it'll make me even more nervous and I don't think I could handle tha--"

"Oren," Clayton piped. The elf froze, eyes outrageously wide. "You're rambling," he noted, "try to slow down and start again."

The elf did as he was told and took a breath. He didn't know if he could do it or not. The nerves buzzed all the way to his heart strings and tugged. "What I'm trying to say, is that..." All he had to say was three words. I like you. I like you. I like you.

"I... Ever since the water dimension, I realized that I.. Actually, what I looked up on your phone the other day, I-I searched-- I have a fluttery feeling every time you're within-- every time you're near me. I.. I just wanted.. I mean, I like... you.." his voice trembled and he ended his sentence with a wavering whisper. The whole room fell silent. Only the pause menu music played from the TV, and that alone made Oren's heart skip multiple beats.

His anxieties were suddenly magnified as Clayton hesitated. The hair at the back of Oren's neck had raised in alarm, his breath growing irregular and ragged.

"Oren, I gotta tell you, I.. well, heh, I'm really flattered, but.."

Oh.

"..I like girls. I just don't think I'll ever like a... a boy that way, ya' know?"

Oren was struck with a searing pain that he couldn't properly describe. A shiver ran down the boy's spine, giving his heart a cold squeeze as the words wrapped around his mind and suffocated him from the inside. He could not exactly understand why his words pierced so deeply. Now he simply thought this was a horrible idea. He spluttered for a moment, collecting his thoughts.

"R-Right," his voice was thick, and his ears were bent down, "of course. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it, I-I'm--" he choked on his own stifled cry, a hand clasping over his mouth as a hot tear rolled down his freckled cheek.

"I-I'm sorry... I must be d-disgusting.. right?" he stammered, to which Clayton was hit with the gut-wrenching pain of guilt. Oren was now fully sobbing, unable to care about how he looked or how loud he was. He just wanted the pain to end. He didn't like this one bit.

"I'm s-such an i-idiot.." the boy wept, soon finding he couldn't stop.

_____

Thanks for reading Part Seventeen!

I told you, more angst incoming :)