New Place, New Feelings | Horrid Henry x Rude Ralph

[7] Hidden Feelings

You're such a mess.

Ralph carefully examined his reflection in the bathroom mirror. His eyes were red and watery, and his usually pale face was also tinted red.

Why did you have to go and say that? You could have given any excuse in the world, and instead you ruined everything!

With a depressed sigh, Ralph turned on the cold water and rinsed his face, hoping to make himself look at least a bit more presentable. He didn't know how he was going to face Henry after this.

After drying his face, he rested his elbows on the counter where the sinks were and buried his face into his palms.

Stupid feelings...

The door suddenly opened, causing Ralph to jerk upwards. He quickly turned to the mirror and acted as if he were fixing his hair.

"Oh, hey Ralph!"

Ralph turned towards the source of the voice. Once he saw who it was, he felt his body relax a bit. "Hey Al..." he replied in a weak voice. The tall, blonde boy examined Ralph, a concerned look on his face.

"Have you been crying?" he asked softly. Ralph knew there was no point in lying - his face gave it away instantly.

"Yeah, it's nothing though," he mumbled, pulling himself up onto the counter. Al did the same, sitting on the other side of the sink Ralph was next to.

"You can talk to me about it you know," Al said. Something about the tone of his voice was comforting to Ralph. Aside from... Henry... Al was possibly the person Ralph trusted the most.

"W-well... I accidentally told someone something that they weren't meant to know, and now I don't know what they think of me..."

Al patted the shorter boy on the shoulder. "I'm sure they won't think of you any differently," he said with a reassuring smile. "What was it that you told them?"

Ralph hesitated for a moment. He looked down at his lap, fidgeting with his hands. "I told them that I like them..." he mumbled quietly. "They weren't supposed to know but I just... blurted it out. I think they hate me now..."

Al sighed. "Maybe they just need some time to work their feelings out. You probably shocked him a bit if you blurted it all out on the spot." He gave a small chuckle. Ralph's eyes widened.

"D-did you say 'him'?"

"I've seen the way you look at him Ralph," Al admitted, a guilty grin on his face. "I know things might feel awkward for a while but trust me, he still cares about you as much as he always has done. He just needs some time to figure out his feelings."

As Ralph looked up at Al, he realised that there was, in fact, more to the boy than an airheaded jock.

"Thanks Al," Ralph said with a genuine smile. "I didn't realise it was so obvious though... does anyone else know?"

Al tapped the side of his nose, confirming that nobody knew and he wasn't going to tell anyone else. Ralph gave a sigh of relief. "I still can't believe he thought I liked Margaret..."

"Well, he's probably never considered the fact that you could like him, or even like boys in general," Al explained, "so if you started acting jealous he would most likely assume that you are jealous over a girl, not him."

"That makes sense, I guess," Ralph said, remembering how he had dragged Henry away from Margaret a few days ago. A small smile grew on his face as he thought about how confused Henry must have been.

Meanwhile, Henry was doing anything but smiling. He was still in shock from Ralph's words. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to ask someone for advice, but the only person he could think of was Ralph and, well, that wasn't exactly possible at that moment.

What does he mean by saying he 'likes me'?

Henry paced around the school yard, trying to figure out what Ralph meant.

"Ugh, why are people so confusing?!" he exclaimed in frustration, collapsing onto a bench and resting his head in his hands. There had to be someone who knew what to do... but at the same time, did he really want to talk to anyone about this? No... this felt like something that should be kept private.

Still, he needed to think of something to do. He glanced around the yard at all of the people, when someone caught his eye.

Brian... he's smart, what would he do?

Henry wanted to ask him for advice - after all, he seemed to have an answer for everything - but at the same time he didn't want to talk about it, and besides, things had been a bit awkward between them since what happened the day before.

Wait... yesterday! That's it!

The realisation hit Henry like a truck. Did Ralph really like him in... that way? A strange feeling built up inside of him.

No, surely he doesn't. I'd know about it, right?

Laughter was what brought Henry out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Margaret and Susan standing in front of him. "What are you laughing at?"

"You!" Margaret exclaimed, continuing to laugh.

"Yeah, you!" Susan copied, also laughing for a moment before stopping. "Uh, what's so funny?"

"Look at his face!" Margaret replied.

"Yeah, his face! Uh, I still don't get it Margaret..."

"What's going on?" Henry asked, confused. Margaret rolled her eyes and pulled out a mirror, aiming it at Henry.

"Your face is what's funny - you look like a tomato!"

"Oh, I get it now!" Susan said, laughing.

"It's hot out here!" Henry exclaimed, trying to explain himself. He did feel quite hot all of a sudden, so it wasn't a lie, right?

"No it's not!" Margaret said, smirking. "You've got a crush on someone, haven't you Henry?"

"Have not!" Henry argued, crossing his arms.

"Whatever, I bet she thinks you're horrid!"

"Yeah, horrid!"

Margaret walked away with Susan following close behind her. A small part of her wished for her neighbour's secret crush to be her - but she'd never admit that to anyone.

Henry, on the other hand, was thinking about what Margaret had just said.

A crush? On... Ralph?

Huh. Maybe Brian was right after all...