Blue's Rose

Prologue

Two boys stood solemnly facing each other right outside the international flight terminal. They appeared to be oblivious to their surroundings and to the attention they were generating. Oblivious to the girlish whispers, male envy, and whirling clicks of more than one cell phone secretly snapping pictures of them. They were impervious to the attention their stunning good looks and absorbed expressions were drawing from the passersby.

Both boys were striking, hence the large amounts of attention they were attracting. Yet, that was the only thing they had in common. Physically speaking, they were very different.

The one boy was lean and on the short side. He could only be described as beautiful. His thick hair was blonde and kept stylishly shaggy. It framed his light golden-brown baby face to perfection giving him an aura of innocence. His honey brown almond shaped eyes enhanced the angel-like picture. The thin up-tilted nose and the baby pink lips sealed the image of purity. Or it would have, if he had not been dressed from head to toe in black. He wore a black v neck t-shirt that snugly skimmed the contours of his lightly muscled torso and a pair of black military style cargo pants that rode low on his slim hips that were tucked into a pair of black steel toed combat boots. He held a black and gray camouflage print bag slung casually over his shoulder as he stood quietly looking up at the other boy.

And he did have to look up, for the male in front of him topped him by at least six inches if not more. He had a thicker build like a football player. He was all muscle. Not grossly so. Not bulky. He was more athletic. Healthy. Like the stereotypical all-American boy. The denim jeans, turquoise blue polo shirt, and named brand sneakers added to the image. Though, a second glance clearly revealed that he was of mixed race. His large obsidian eyes gave a clue that he was most definitely of Asian descent. The dark orbs were exotic in appearance compared to the otherwise aristocratic features. His skin was tan and his jaw strong. His nose straight and proud. His lips full and red and unsmiling as he stared down at the angel-devil in front of him.

The noise level suddenly dropped as the tall young man started to speak. Be it by coincidence or by design no one would ever know, but it allowed any curious onlookers a chance to listen in. Many feminine faces stared openly, silently screaming as they hoped to witness a real live BL moment.

Stuffing his right hand into his front pocket, and shifting his weight from his left leg to his right, cocking his hip, Blue Cavanaugh spoke somewhat gruffly in fluent English, "Your flight leaves in five."

The shorter boy nodded his head and pursed his lips together. He stared up at Blue for long seconds. His expression difficult to decipher. Suddenly with a shake of his head and twist of his lips he looked down at his feet his chest visibly expanding beneath the black t-shirt as he took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and clenched the fist that dangled down at his side before giving a quick jerking nod of his head, seeming to have come to a silent decision. Within seconds he shrugged the camouflaged patterned bag off of his shoulder. Twisting sideways he propped the bag down onto the railing that acted as a barrier to prevent anyone but passengers from entering and quickly worked the clasp. Opening the satchel, he reached in and pulled out a long somewhat thin white box.

Taking a deep breath, Kool Somboon turned back to face Blue, unaware of the many eyes straining to catch a glimpse of what was inside the box. He smiled, his simple sweet smile, up at the towering boy, and held out his gift. "Thank you," he said with an obvious Thai accent as he placed the light-weight box into his friend's hand. The onlookers watched in some surprise as the sweet smile turned bittersweet. They watched as his rigidly held body, obviously suppressing some deeper emotion, bowed formally and listened as he murmured, "I will never forget this trip and," he said, his voice starting to shake slightly, "And... I will never forget you!" But before anyone had the chance to hear the tall boy's response, the shorter boy grabbed his airline ticket from his back pocket and turned and sprinted through the gate that was accepting passengers for their flight.

Blue inhaled deeply as he stared at the retreating figure. He was caught off guard by Kool's sudden dash and even more so by the tears he had seen pooling in his gentle eyes. Blue felt his chest burn and he placed his free hand over his heart as if to ease the ache as he raised his other hand holding Kool's gift up for closer inspection. After several long seconds with barely minimal relief in his tightened chest, Blue gave into his curiosity and he lifted the lid off of the white box. He frowned down at the object for a second before huffing out a laugh, reaching down and drawing out a beautiful blue rose. "Idiot," he half chuckled.

Bystanders looked on. Many were frowning in disappointment at the gift and the response of the laughing boy. They didn't understand the significance or his reaction. Many frowned in frustration as they had expected some sort of drama to unfold. They felt cheated by the beautiful boys and they all gradually dispersed grumbling their displeasure as they went back to their mundane lives. That is all but one tiny, frail, wrinkly old woman dressed in a flowery, flowing pastel dress that made her look like a fairy of some sort. Her diminutive size putting her in the Tinker Bell category. She appeared to flutter over to the young man still holding the blue flower.

"Do you understand your gift, young man?" she asked in a papery thin voice.

Blue looked down at the petite figure. "Yes, ma'am," he answered back, showing a slight surprise that anyone was even paying attention to him. "My name is Blue, so he gave me a blue rose." Blue explained. "His idea of a joke, I guess," Blue chuckled.

The older woman pursed her lips and shook her head at him in reply. Her minute hand reached out and she touched a velvety soft petal with her fingertip. "From the tears in that boy's eyes, I don't think so," she murmured in her wispy voice, looking away from the rose and way, way up into the handsome face that now looked confused.

Blue frowned and whipped his head toward where Kool had disappeared. He pictured the last image he had of Kool before he had run off. He recalled with sudden clarity the rigid body, clenched fist and bittersweet smile. He glanced down at the blue rose he still clutched by the thorn-less stem and then back down to the elderly lady. "What else could it mean?" he asked.

Her answer revived the throbbing ache in his chest.

"The blue rose symbolizes secret or unattainable love, dear boy," she told him, patting the large hand that clutched at the rose, Kool had just gifted him. "It was a confession of his unrequited love for you."