Hidden Messages [Klance AU]

1: A Letter to The Ocean

"Good morning, how may I help you?" Keith asked in the cheerful voice he only used at work.

"Hello! I was looking for some flowers for a friend. Her favorite color is blue," She told him. Keith could hear a bit of a British accent showing through in her voice, and noticed a slight blush creep onto her cheeks as she spoke. He nodded and led her over to where most of the blue flowers were.

"These are the blue flowers we have, or if you want a bouquet I can show you those too." The girl thanked him and began looking at the various flowers. Keith watched her, growing uncomfortable from the silence. "So," he started, "What are you getting the flowers for?"

"I'm going on a date," The girl replied, smiling. Keith smiled in return. He looked around the shop, then picked up a bouquet of blue flowers, some pastel and others a darker shade. "How about these?" He asked as he showed her the flowers.

The second she saw them, her face shone with an even wider smile. "These are perfect!" She exclaimed as she took them from Keith's hands. He led her over to the cashier, where Colleen greeted them and he rung up the flowers. The girl thanked the both of them and Keith wished her good luck as she left the shop.

Soon more customers came in. While they weren't serving anyone, Keith and Colleen chatted with each other, and in the afternoon one of Colleen's children, Matt, arrived. He greeted Keith then took over his spot at the café counter. Keith grabbed his bag and left the shop, then turned down the street in the direction of his college. He was an English student at the local college, and wanted to become a writer when he graduated.

Keith was greeted by his professor when he entered the classroom for his creative writing class. The class went by quickly, and they were assigned a project at the end of it. Keith was about to leave when the teacher pulled him aside. He looked up at the man with a confused face.

"Professor Wimbleton?" Keith asked. The man ran his hand threw his ginger mustache.

"Yes, Keith, you see, I've been noticing that you have been acting off lately. Is everything ok?" Keith sighed, a sigh of relief.

"Yes, I'm fine." The teacher raised an eyebrow.

"Of course you are! But I can tell when something is bothering someone, and you, my friend, seem very bothered. You have more of a scowl on your face than usual!" Keith shook his head.

"Really, sir, I'm fine, just tired is all—" Keith started, but was cut off.

"No, no, you're much more than tired, I can tell. You don't have to tell me, but at least tell someone. Or, even better, write down your thoughts! Well, being a writing teacher, I might be a bit bias... but anyways! Just try it! Now, get going! You college students have busy, busy lives!"

Keith left the room, chuckling to himself. Writing down his problems? Like that would help bring him back.

~ ♆ ~

Keith sat up in bed, unable to sleep as usual. His eyes darted around the room as he tried to figure out what to do. He was sick of having nightmares, sick of being tired all the time. He just wanted one night of rest, that's all. Why couldn't the universe just give him that?

His eyes slowly trailed to the desk across the room. It was illuminated by the moonlight that soaked in through the window, as if inviting him to come over. He shook his head. No, that's a dumb idea. It's not going to help. Wimbleton's a crazy man, his advice isn't going to do me any good.

Keith debated with his mind for what seemed like ages. With a sigh, he finally stood up and wandered over to the desk. His notebook was already opened to a blank page, left over from the last time he used it. He picked up a pen and brushed a strand of hair behind his ear. Well, here goes nothing, he thought as he touched the tip of the pen to the paper. He paused. How could he start it? He looked around the room, as if that would help give him an idea. His eyes landed on the jacket bunched up in the corner, then out the window to the ocean. He looked down at the blank paper once again, pondering his idea. Whatever, he thought as he started writing.

Dear Ocean,

I hate you.

Keith smiled a bit at what he wrote and continued.

I hate you so much. I hate the fact that I can't go near you without feeling like I'm going to throw up. I hate how you're constantly taunting me with your waves that crash against the rocks in the night. I especially hate that you took my brother. He was the only person who was there for me, the only person who I felt close to. Because of you, he's gone. And I miss him so much. I miss him so much it hurts. Because of you I have nightmares every night about it. About that night...

Keith heard thunder crash outside, and rain splatter against the window. He shivered.

That night plays over and over again in my mind. All the time it haunts me. The memories, his screams... God, I hate it so much. I wish it could just stop. I wish I... could just stop. Stop thinking about this, stop having to worry that he's really gone, that maybe I won't ever see him again. Sometimes I worry, that maybe... maybe I really won't. And it hurts so much to just think about that. I'm starting to feel a hole in my heart the more time that passes by. It's been three years; I don't know how much longer I can last.

~ ♆ ~

Keith's eyes slowly fluttered open. He blinked as his pupils grew accustomed to the bright light that shone in through the window. His hands moved to his face; only then did he notice the pen that was resting in his left hand, and all the memories of last night flooded in.

The letter he wrote still lay on the desk, wrinkled a bit in some places from the tears he had shed. The boy simply stared at it for minutes. A scowl grew on his face; he was angry at that piece of paper. Angry because a little piece of paper carried all of his secrets and problems. He brushed the paper onto the floor aggressively, and stood up to get dressed. As he walked to the bathroom something glistened in the corner of his eye, and he turned to face it. On the shelf across the room, was a small glass bottle, sealed by a cork.

Keith lifted his eyebrows, and idea coming to him. He glanced back to the letter on the floor. Maybe... I can make it disappear completely. He picked up the bottle and unscrewed the cork, then rolled up the letter and slipped it inside. After quickly throwing a shirt and pants on, Keith ran out to the beach in front of the beach house. It was originally owned by his brother's parents— Keith was adopted— and him and Keith had been living there for his brother's work, also while Keith looked for a college; that is until he disappeared. Since Keith didn't have anywhere else to go, he stayed at the house and then went to the same college that was in the town nearby.

The boy walked down the beach a little, enjoying the feeling of the warm sand under his feet. He actually enjoyed beaches quite a lot, the only issue was his fear of the water. He made sure not to get too close, and climbed on a large rock.

Keith looked out to the vast ocean. The waves were calm today. He shuddered, and glanced down to the bottle in his hand. He juggled it a bit up and down, then lifted his hand back and threw it into the water with the most force he could muster. Keith watched it for a few seconds as it sank beneath the dark waves.

As he turned to leave, a single thought repeated in his mind— At least no one will ever read it.

A/N:
Hi! I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter. Sorry for angst so early— but yeah... there's going to be a lot more of that to come... Sorry :') ಥ_ಥ
- Soni