GCR Drabbles

Uh Oh, Insecurity

"Ah, Aqua, there you are."

Her brother's voice caught her attention and she glanced at the near table. 

The frosted blue tips of her brother's hair made him stand out. The two of them shared the same hair color; a blonde not as pale as their mother's, with some streaks and tips of blue.

Ever since she found out that Sage and Orca were her siblings, they had normal times to hangout and catch up to know each other better, usually at the cafe. 

"Hi, Orca," she chirped in greeting, waving at him as she headed over to the table. 

Orca stood up from his chair to hug her briefly, and then Aqua took the seat in front of him as he sat back down.

"Where's Sage?" she inquired curiously, seeing that their sister wasn't anywhere in sight.

She gladly took the coffee he had already ordered for her as he slid it towards her. She used her magic to heat it up a little. 

Orca chuckled briefly. "Sorry. She couldn't make it; she's got a few clients to take care of that she forgot about."

Their sister was a cosmetologist known for her unique style, and she was getting requests from many, many people. Being the hard worker she was, she was determined to satisfy them all. 

"Aw," Aqua sighed. "Oh well. That's a shame."

Orca nodded in agreement but he chuckled again. "Oh, you know how she is. Busy but passionate. She really wished that she could've come though."

Aqua waved him dismissively. "It's fine. There's always next time."

The two of them chatted for a while about what they had done in the past few days.

But then, Orca inquired a dreading question.

"So... how's things with Emperor?"

She had been in a relationship with the British businessman for a while now, and he had a reputation as a cold, manipulative playboy who had tricked Devotee, another famous businessman, into some bad deals, along with some other people.

Of course, Aqua forgave him after he realized he wanted to make things right. He had a soft side, but then again, he only let her see it. 

Aqua sighed heavily, her eyes narrowing slightly at her brother. 

"It's going very well. He makes me happy." Her answer was full of honesty as she smiled. 

Orca didn't seem convinced, pushing his coffee to the side to rest his chin on the back of his hands as he placed his elbows on the table. 

"Aqua, you know you don't have to lie to me. Everyone usually describes him as unpleasant, and you know his reputation. He manipulated Devotee's company," he reminded her.

Aqua's gaze sharpened into a harsh glare. "Orca, I know you want to look out for me, but I'm perfectly fine with Em. What he did is in the past."

He seemed to cringe when she called him by the nickname, but she continued. 

"Like I said before, he makes me happy and I make him happy. I know what people say about him, but they're not true. You can't believe everything people say. He's changed."

Orca sighed in frustration, placing his arms back onto the table. Frost seemed to spark from his fingertips. 

"I'm just trying to look out for you!" he pointed out heatedly. "You and Sage are my only family left, and I don't want you to get hurt. I don't trust Emperor."

Aqua scowled this time. "And that's perfectly fine," she claimed fiercely with a calm voice. 

Orca stared at her blankly for a few moments before standing up, his chair skirting back behind him. 

"Fine," he said quietly. "I'll see you later, Aqua."

She didn't look at him, her still furious gaze fixed on his chair. 

She heard him sigh, then saw him walk away in the corner of her eye. 

Her glare softened and she eyed the table instead, her head tilted down slightly as she thought about what her brother had said.

It had been several moments when suddenly, there was the sound of the chair in front of her moving, and she could tell that someone had sat in front of her. 

"Seriously, Orca?" she sighed without looking up. 

"Now, now, elskan. No need to be rude," a familiar voice purred. 

Aqua immediately looked up, eyes widening when she saw that her boyfriend was sitting in front of her with a raised brow.

She had heard the teasing in his voice but she could see something dark colored over his face and in his green eyes. 

"E-Em?" she squeaked in surprise.

He tilted his head slightly, a faint hint of a smile resting on his lips. "That's me."

Aqua rolled her eyes but smiled. "What are you doing here?" 

Emperor's eyes suddenly narrowed. "What? I can't see my girlfriend?"

Aqua's eyes widened. "That's not-" She shook her head. "That's not what I meant, Em. Your appearance was just unexpected."

Emperor scoffed, taking Aqua by surprise. "Or unwanted."

"What?" Aqua snapped, staring at him in shock. "How can you say that? Em, love, what happened?"

"I heard you talking with your foul brother," he told her gruffly, crossing his arms. "I heard what he said about me."

Aqua blinked, taking in what he had told her. "First of all, you were spying on me? Second, my brother is not foul, just overprotective. And third, if you heard what he said about you, then you also heard what I said. What he says doesn't matter."

Emperor's eyes flashed for a moment. "Hey, I just teleported to where you were," he retorted. "And your 'overprotective' brother has a point."

Emperor's statement shocked her even more. "What? Em, you really don't think that, do you?"

Emperor frowned. "I've made bad mistakes that can't be forgiven."

"I forgave you," Aqua pointed out hotly. "You changed, and you're doing your best to redeem yourself. I accept you for who you are."

Emperor then scowled greatly. "Oh, really? You sure you don't prefer me like this?"

His eyes and entire form glowed for a moment, then his body suddenly shifted into Outpost, a friend of Aqua's.

Before Aqua could respond, her eyes wide, Emperor snapped again. 

"Or this?"

His form then took the body of Drake. 

"No!" Aqua cried out in protest, horrified. 

Emperor shifted back into his own form, looking unconvinced as he leaned back in the chair with crossed arms. His gaze was directed to his lap.

A little curl of his brown, white-tipped hair was flicked over his forehead, and it looked so out of place but adorable to Aqua.  

"Emperor, stop it," she huffed, and she had to reach over the table to pull at one of his arms so she could grab his hand reassuringly. 

Aw, there went that little curl.

Emperor dragged his gaze upwards to meet hers reluctantly. 

"Emperor, listen to me," she started fiercely, her blue eyes blazing in defiance. "No matter what happened or what will happen, you're the only one for me. I don't want anyone else. Okay?"

Emperor smiled softly. "Okay. Sorry, elskan... for doubting you."

Aqua returned his smile. "It's alright, love. Insecurity hits all of us."

"I was not insecure-"

"You were."

FIN