the prince and the peasant | skephalo | DISCONTINUED

back to the graveyard

~Darryl's POV~

I make my way to the graveyard, hoping Zak hasn't been there yet. We never had a set time from when we would meet up at the graveyard. Sometimes it would be directly after school or late at night.

It was dark, I could barely see the detail in things. I was able saw a slight shine so I walked up to what I saw. I crouched down and saw the cookies next to the rock and the piece of paper. I smile knowing Zak was coming soon.

I didn't know why I needed to see Zak, but it felt right. I wasn't sure if I was going to tell him about the kiss, I just knew I wanted to talk to him. I wasn't sure how I felt about Vincent so I needed some time away from him to think.

As I stared at the piece of paper and rock, a figure appeared in front of me. I look up and see the face of Zak, he seems to laugh when I look up at him. I start to smile too. "Hello there," he says while giggling, his voice bubbly making me smile wider.

"Hello," I reply.

He squared down next to me. "What's this?" He grabbed the cookies and smiled while looking at me. He leaned in in front of me to grab the note under the rock. He read the big, bold words on the front out loud before unfolding the note. "To: Zak, read me! Smiley face, from: Darryl,"

He excitedly unfolded the paper and squinted the eyes, trying to read my small writing in the dark. "I can't read it," he handed me the note.

I laugh while taking the note back. "It just says that the cookies are yours and I wasn't going to be here when you came because I was having a sleepover with Vincent," I explain.

His smile fades and he stares back down at the floor. "Oh." I hear him mumble. "Are you leaving now? Where's Vincent?"

I still have a slight smile, but hearing Vincent's name makes my heart ache for some reason. "No. Vince and I came here earlier. I came back because I wanted to talk to you. I sort of ran away from Vincent," I shuffle into a more comfortable sitting position, Zak does the same.

I look over at him as he focused on the stars. "Did you two feet into a fight?" He asks.

I shake my head. I sigh while brushing my bangs out of the way of my sight. "No. I'm just confused. Very confused. I think I might need some time away from Vincent. We're not mad at each other or anything but I feel like everything has changed. I can't see him the same way,"

Zak stopped watching the stars to focus on me instead. He seems concerned and confused as well. "What did he do to you?"

I grin, it was cute seeing Zak worried for me. I start to explain. "Nothing bad. Nothing that hurt me,"

"Good," I hear him mutter, causing me to laugh a little.

"He just kissed me. It was so out of nowhere. He told me that he loved me but I don't love him back. I only see him as a friend. I think I just need some time away from him to think but he's at my house right now in my room. He thinks I'm in the bathroom changing but I came here instead. He'll probably check the bathroom soon, it's been a while,"

He nods. Zak starts to process the words, "Wait. Vincent kissed you? On the lips?" He exclaims, though his voice was loud, though he didn't seem too excited about it.

"Yeah. He told me loved me too,"

"What did you say?"

I sigh while I rub my eyes. "I asked him to stop having feeling for me. He said that he would but I'm still not sure what I should do. I'm scared that I made him mad,"

"Darryl. I don't think someone can just magically lose feelings for someone. He's lying so that things can go back to normal. You should just set him straight and tell him that you don't have feelings for him and you never will,"

I frown. "That's a bit extreme. I don't want to hurt his feelings. Plus, I already told him I didn't like him back. Then, he started asking me all these questions I didn't know how to answer,"

"Well what did ask,"

"A lot of things. I can't remember all of them. I just remembered that he asked me if I didn't like him because I liked you,"

There was an awkward silence until Zak spoke up again. "And what did you say?" He asked curiously. Before I spoke, Zak started to talk again. "Nevermind. That was weird. I don't think I want to know,"

I giggle. He spreads his legs out and leans his hands down on the floor, both inside the space between his legs. He sighs and stares back up at the stars. "Did you enjoy the kiss?"

I scoff, a bit confused on why he was asking all of these questions. "I'm not sure. It was my first kiss so I don't know what a good kiss is,"

He stares back at me with a serious expression. "That was your first kiss? Did he at least at you if he could kiss you or not?"

"Technically. It was still out of nowhere. He just asked if he could try something. I let him and he just leaned in and it happened,"

I notice Zak's expression. It turned from playful to a serious, gloomy one. "Darryl, that's not good. A first kiss is an important moment. Vincent just took from you, you didn't want it,"

I start to feel even more confused. "I'm not mad at Vincent though. It wasn't too bad," I try to say in a lighthearted manner seeing as Zak seemed upset.

"Still. He didn't get your consent. I would be mad if someone just kissed me without asking if I wanted it or not. Especially if it was going to be my first kiss. Did he apologize?"

I started to think, trying to remember everything he told me. "No, I don't think so. I think I apologized for making him upset,"

Zak's eyebrows furrow. "That isn't right. He's the one that kissed you without asking. You should be the one upset." Zak tells me, his voice lower than usual. "Did he accept your apology?"

I nod, which seems to make Zak even more upset. "Darryl, he's manipulating you to make you feel sorry for him just because you don't like him back. He should've rejected your apology because it wasn't needed. You should probably stay away from him for a bit,"

My heart starts to ache. My frown was stuck where it was and my hands only got colder. "But he's been my friend since the beginning of time. I can't just drop him. You and him are my only friends. And he's my only friend that goes to my school,"

"Look. You don't have to drop him, just beware. If he doesn't apologize, then it's best to stop hanging out with him. Plus he doesn't like me. He wants you all to himself,"

That worried me even more, especially since it made sense. "Is that risking our friendship?"

"Not at all. But if you let Vincent just take you for himself then maybe. Just be careful, Darryl. Vincent is starting to turn out toxic,"

"I know. Thank you Zak. You're a good friend,"

He smiled, taking the cookies and opening up the box. He stuck a cookie and started to chew.

"No problem. That's what friends do,"

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Thank you for reading part 13 :)

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Words: 1317