SGE His Darkened Heart (A Japaric Fanfiction)

CHAPTER 3 Blue Skies

"What? With chores?" Aric asked, raising an eyebrow as he reached out to tear the rag from Japeth's hand. "Who wants to do chores? Burnhilde has already piled us up with work that's due tomorrow by the way, and than on top of all that we're assigned lousy chores of all things."

Japeth tapped his chin like he was thinking. His eyebrows creased and wrinkles marred his forehead that gave him an adorable look. Aric had to suck in a gasp to compose himself at the sight.

"That's due tomorrow?" Japeth said, eyes wide in mock fear. "Well, it's too bad I didn't pay much attention in class today. Someone distracted me." He gave Aric a knowing wink that made Aric's heart skip a beat. Had Japeth been paying as much attention to Aric in class as Aric did to him?

"At least we'll end up flunking class together," Aric teased, shoving Japeth playfully into the table. Japeth responded by jumping away from Aric, a twinkle in his blue eyes.

Aric had thought of Japeth's beautiful blue gaze as two pools of water, refreshing and cool. But looking into them now, he compared them to something else.

Japeth's eyes glinted in the candlelight, and Aric could see the candle flames flickering in his gaze. It was mesmerizing the way the shadows danced across Japeth's skin, twisting his facial features as if he were a wicked monster. Not a hideous monster, but a good looking one. A wickedly good looking one that is.

But now Japeth's blue eyes reminded Aric of the clearest blue skies one ever did see. The skies which had no clouds in sight. The skies one would see the first day of the hot weather seasons.

For so long, Aric had become trapped in a cave. All he'd seen than was black. Darkness. An endless abyss that stretched on, blocking out all light. And for so long after escaping that cave, Aric had wallowed in the darkness, the pain and loneliness that squeezed his heart.

But looking at Japeth, for the first time, Aric felt a sliver of hope. He felt that as long as he had Japeth, his only friend, than the darkness would be at bay. Aric could finally bask in the light, knowing he wasn't so alone anymore.

What wouldn't change would be Aric's hard attitude. He would be hard to those around him, show people he wasn't a weak sad little boy in need of his mommy. But he felt he didn't need that tough exterior with Japeth, because now him and Japeth were friends, maybe he could trust Japeth.

Oh yes. Aric could trust Japeth. Japeth was his friend now after all. 

"Are you boys finished with your chores?" Miss Miyflower's sweet voice sounded behind them. The boys spun at the same time to see the woman looming over them, a smile upon her face.

"Yes!" Japeth and Aric blurted before the woman could take note of all the work they hadn't done. The two laughed as they hurried away, out of the dining room where a spiral staircase lay.

The staircase led up to the hall where all the rooms were. There were six rooms total with one of them being a bathroom and a storage room as well. All eight boys in Arbed House had to share rooms with one another.

Aric guessed Japeth shared his room with Rhian since they were brothers. But, oh how Aric wished he could share his room with Japeth. It'd be nice to have a friend keep him company at night. Unfortunately, Kei was Aric's roommate. How frustrating.

Luckily, the rooms were cozy enough. Much cozier than a dark, cold cave at least. Despite Aric's quiet statue of a roommate, it was by far the best sleeping arrangements he'd had since arriving in Arbed.