I meant to write a Christmas chapter, but this is my apology chapter. I think you'll like~
(Yes I know it's late sh)
*Garroth*
I drum my fingers against my knee as Zane drives his new car. It's new years eve and Aph needed help setting up for a party, so Vylad, Zane and I thought we'd head down and help. Of course, Vylad won't be doing much, since he still has a cast on his leg, which tends to hamper with one's ability to work.
"Left here?" Zane asks, breaking the silence.
"Right." I correct.
"Does that mean, 'yes, go left,' or 'no, go right'?" Vylad laughs.
"No, go right." I snicker, running a hand through my significantly shorter hair.
"Heh, Garroth, ya gotta be more specific." Zane chuckles, making me smile, sinking more into my seat.
"Suuuure, baby brother, I'll try and remember that. Turn here." I laugh and look down, tugging at the pale pink sleeves of my sweater. Vylad got it for me for Christmas, so I thought I'd wear it. Even if it was a size too big.
Eventually Zane pulls up into Aphmau's driveway, and I swing my legs out, stretching. It's just a bit cramped in there, but it's not horrendous. I help Vylad out, who pulls his scarf closer.
"My Irene, it's cold out here!" Vylad squeaks.
"Then let's get your sorry behind inside, silly!" I laugh, heading to the door and swinging it open. (Garroth you gotta knock wtf is wrong wif u)
"Mauuuu! We made it!" I shout, stamping the snow from my boots.
"Garroth?! Is that you? Why didn't you knock!?" I hear Mau shout as she walks into the front room from the kitchen.
I shrug, hopping a bit as I take off the boots, tossing them on the floor. "I didn't see the need."
"Mother of Irene, Garr--" she's cut off by another familiar voice.
"Aphmau, mija, who's there?"
(Hell yeah its aph-mom)
Ms. Sylvanah walks into the room, holding a box of streamers, which she promptly drops upon seeing my brothers and I. She runs up, pulling the three of us into a hug.
"Oooh, my boys! It's been so long! Aw, I haven't seen you in forever!" She cries, letting go.
"Miss Sylvanah!" Vylad grins.
Even Zane seems happy to see her. "Hey, it has been too long, hasn't it?" He says, and I can tell he's smiling under his mask.
"Far, far too long, Zuzu." She smiles softly and wipes away a tear at the corner of her eye.
Without noticing it, I had been clutching my mom's necklace, to the point where my knuckles were white. I let it go, the pendant falling back into place. I smile.
Aphmau giggles happily. "Now cmon, you guys, I need help decorating!"
An hour passes quickly, with jokes and decorating taking up each minute. Another passes with hot drinks and a nice chat with Ms. Sylvanah. I yawn, smiling softly. Ms. Sylvanah was the closest thing I've had to a mother in years. I've missed her.
~°~°~°~°~°~
*Laurance*
I knock on Aphmau's door, waiting outside for a moment before the door swings open. The raven haired shortie instantly puts a finger to her lips, shushing me. Before I can ask what's going on, she grabs my arm, dragging me inside.
Surrounding the couch are Dante and Travis who are both snickering quietly. Probably because they're piling fake flowers over a sleeping Garroth. I have to hold back a laugh. The flowers are tangled in his curls, wrapping around his head, and a few lay on his chest, atop his pink sweater (which he looked hella cute in, by the way). I shake my head, grinning. I poke the blond gently on the cheek.
"Garroth," I say softly. "Garrrrr~otthh. Wakey wakey."
I grab his shoulder, shaking him slightly. Slowly, his blue eyes open, an ocean framed by pale blond lashes. He groans slightly, sitting up as he rubs his eyes.
"Did I fall aslee-- where did these flowers come from?" He mutters, waking himself up some.
"No, you're actually dead, this is your funeral." Aph says, leaning over the arm of the couch opposite of the blond.
Garroth rolls his eyes, smiling slightly. He grabs the flowers and lays back down, crossing his arms over his chest like a dead man. I look at him for a moment. The white and red flowers wrapped around his head almost hid his new haircut (that was also hella cute), and his cheeks were the same rosy pink as always. His long eyelashes curled upwards, casting small shadows over his barely visible freckles. Cutie.
"Garrrothh." I whine slightly, and a partial smile flicks at his lips. "You can stop playing dead now, quickly, before someone cries."
He laughs softly, sitting up. Pulling a few of the fake flowers out of his hair, he smiles at me. "Not dead."
"Huzzah!" Aphmau shouts, tackling him in a hug.
"Oof! Mau, be careful, or you might actually kill me." Garroth teases.
"Oh shush, you never die! Not on my watch!" Aph grins.
The doorbell rings, and Aph runs to get it. Sunshine stands up, stretching, his slightly too big sweater raising just a little. Just enough for me to spot a long scar across his hip that I hadn't notice before. I frown slightly, and decide against mentioning it. Not in front of everyone. I look away, towards the kitchen, where I see Zane giving me the death glare and a thumbs-up from Vylad. What the actual f--
"Hey guys!" Katelyn, KC, and Nicole are here now, I guess.
"I brought sweeeets!~" KC says, raising a giant tray above her head.
"Kawaii~ Chan, that plate looks as if it's half your weight, at the very least." Garroth laughs.
"I think it might be." Nicole smirks, shaking her head at the meif'wa.
"I wouldn't be suprised. Besides, it looks like Aphmau set out a bucket of pocky anyways. Might as well just give up on those new years weight loss resolutions now." Katelyn rolls her eyes.
"Hey! Pocky is delicious!" Aphmau squeaks. (*has never had pocky before*)
"The day I care about losing weight is the day I weigh too much to get on an elevator." Travis nods.
"Which might be soon of you try to eat too much of KC's cooking." Dante smirks, rolling his eyes. Travis punches him in the arm.
"Ouuuch, Travis!" Dante whines, faking a pout.
"To be honest, Dante, I think you were asking for it." I snicker.
Garroth purses his lips for a moment, an action I wouldn't think much of in any other circumstance, but now? It just sort of bothers me a little. Should I ask him about it?
I shoot down that idea before even seriously considering it. I could ask him later, but not in front of everyone.
"Alright, alright boys, break it up! Now, we need to get our party starteedd~! What should we do first?" Aphmau asks, breaking me out from my Garroth-induced trance.
"Let's play a game!" Nicole grins, gray eyes shimmering.
"I wholeheartedly concur."
"Dante, stop trying to use big words to make you sound smarter, it's not working. And yeah, games sounds fun." Travis says, elbowing Dante in the ribs.
"I think it could be funn!~" KC chirps, nodding, her brightly colored hair bouncing.
"What do you think, Aph?" Katelyn asks, smiling at the ravenette.
"Let's do it! Everyone else seems to want to! Yeah, guys?" Aphmau smiles brightly to the room.
"I guess I have to, then." Zane grumbles, walking out from the kitchen. He sits down on the couch crossing his arms.
"Grumpy, grumpy." Vylad shakes his head at his other brother, sitting next to him.
"It is his middle name." Garroth laughs, pulling another flower from his head.
"Zane Grumpy Ro'meave; it does have a nice ring to it." Katelyn rolls her eyes.
"Whatever, what game are we playing so we can get this over with?" Zane huffs, a bit of black hair falling slightly out of place, which he quickly fixes.
"Maybe Aph should pick, she is the host." I say, nodding towards her.
"Well, we haven't played Never Have I Ever in a while." She shrugs.
~°~°~°~°~°~
All of us sit on the floor, besides Vylad, who stays on the couch, curled up in a blanket. I sit between Dante and Garroth, the blond chewing his lip slightly. He's obviously deep in thought. So I mean obviously I poke his cheek.
"Whatcha thinking about, Blondie?" I ask.
He stares at me blankly for a moment, before mumbling: "Just about how I owe Vylad fifty bucks..."
Before I can ask why, Aphmau skips back into the room, sliding down to the floor next to Katelyn and Nicole.
"You guys ready to start?" She asks, pulling out her phone.
A murmur of 'yeses' and 'sures' go around the room, and one 'as I'll ever be' from One Eye. Aphmau nods.
"Okay, soooooo basically, raise your hand if you've done the thing. Never have I ever... eaten a crumpet." Aphmau says, looking around the room.
Garroth sighs and raises his hand. "I'm the only one? Really?"
I laugh, covering my mouth.
"Looks like it, Garroth." Katelyn says, grinning.
"You're all boring." He responds, shaking his head.
"Or maybe you're the boring one." I smirk, pointing that out.
He shoves me lightly. "S-shut up."
"Okay, Stutter Prince." I whisper the last part.
~°~°~°~°~°~
"What do you mean you've never had a pumpkin spice latte?! You literally eat anything and everything sweet!" Dante yells.
"Well, I've never had one! They just don't interest Kawaii~Chan!" Kawaii~Chan yells back.
"Ooookaay, I think maybe it's time to stop this game... Dante, you need to chill." I say, trying not to laugh at my friend's lack of composure.
"I HAVE NO CHILL."
"We can tell, Dante. We can very much tell." Vylad snickers, patting Dante's hair.
Dante relaxes slightly, leaning against the couch. He peers up at Vylad who just smiles and shakes his head at him. Zane scoffs.
"So now that that's over, what do we plan on doing now? Its almost ten- thirty now." Zane says, looking at the clock on his phone.
Garroth tucks a stray curl behind his ear and looks over to Aphmau, who makes a thinking face.
"Hmm... snacks and some TV? Or we could play on the Waa, if you guys wanted." Aph suggests with a grin.
"I'd love to watch these nerds try and beat me in dance dance revolution, honestly." Nicole smirks.
"Hey, I take that as a challenge!" Travis yells, slamming his fist on the floor. Garroth winces slightly.
"This sounds like it's gonna get violent real quick. I'll go make some popcorn." Aph says, running to the kitchen.
Vylad and Garroth exchange mildly disturbed glances. Zane continues to look perpetually angry with life. Dante is making bets with Katelyn over who will win the Dance-off. KC was eating her weight in sugar. So yeah, everything was normal.
"I'll set up the game, then." Katelyn says, getting up to go turn on the TV and game console.
"Do they take this game so seriously all the time?" Garroth turns to me, trying not to laugh.
"Yeah, these guys tend to get pretty competitive when it comes to this sort of stuff. Besides, I'm obviously gonna win." I smirk, and Garroth rolls his eyes, chuckling.
"Yeah, suuuuure you are."
"You sound like you're doubting me, good sir!"
"Maybe it's because I am, good sir."
"Oooh, I see how it is. You don't think I can win!"
"Please, I'd put money on it." (Bro dont do it)
"Oh really? Ten bucks says I win the game."
"I'll take that bet. You're on, Zvhal." (Oh my god)
"I think you'll be regretting that bet soon enough."
"Hm. I doubt that." Garroth stands up, walking into the kitchen.
" I swear to Irene, Garroth is gonna go bankrupt if he keeps making bets like this." Vylad laughs.
"Yeah, he said he owed you fifty bucks, too." I chuckle.
Vylad's face lights up and he grins evilly. "Oh really? I hadn't heard I had won that bet yet! I'll have to talk to him about it later."
Well then. I decide against asking what the bet was about afterall, since I honestly no longer want to know if Vylad went from cinnamon child to Brendon Urie in the Emperor's New Clothes music video that quickly. I stand up myself, stretching.
"Well, anyhow. I have some peasants to beat in Dance Dance. If you'll excuse me."
~°~°~°~°~°~
I lost.
I lost real bad.
Normally I'm super good at the game, except this time there were some extra contributing factors:
1. There was a very cute boy watching me.
2. Said cute boy liked to shout the wrong dance moves to throw me off.
3. Did I mention the cute boy?
4. Like, by cute, I mean so extremely cute that it's hard not to look at them without smiling and letting your eyes lingers a bit on their face.
5. Maybe hot is a better word.
6. I got very hungry midgame too and that's pretty distracting.
7. Boy.
So I think it was totally understandable that I lost, in my view. Except everyone else didn't quite understand, so I didn't really get a chance at a rematch.
I sigh, shaking my head. Garroth sits on the stairs, looking down at his phone. Focus lines his brow and his tongue sticks out just a little from the corner of his mouth. The last of the fake flowers hangs on to a loose curl in his hair. I laugh softly and sit next to him. He looks up at me, putting down his phone. He smiles.
"So when can I expect my ten dollars?" He says, with a grin.
"Pfft, you cheated. You're not allowed to yell put the wrong directions." I pout, batting my eyes.
"You never set any rules. That was your fault." He laughs, smiling hugely at me.
I huff. "You're a meanie."
"You're a sore loser."
"...touchè."
Garroth chuckles softly, rubbing his eyes.
"What time is it?" I ask, tilting my head to the side.
Garroth just stares at me for a moment, smiling slightly, his lips just barely upturned, and then he snaps back to reality. He checks his phone. "It's eleven forty-seven."
"Wow, already? That Dance-off took longer than expected." I say, pushing my hair out of my face.
"Yeah, that was interesting to watch." The blond shakes his head, rolling his eyes.
I smirk slightly. "Did you enjoy the view?~" I tease, watch Sunshine's face start to burn bright pink.
"I-- Th-- er- no, I wasn't even- I..."
I burst out laughing. "Man, chill out, I'm just messing with you!"
He seems to chill a little, but he buries his pink face in his palms. "You're mean, Laur." He whimpers.
When will he overwhelming cuteness end?
He looks up from his hands, looking at me with his bright blue-green eyes. He bites his rose colored lip, as he studies me. I shift in my spot slightly, feeling as if he was looking right through me. Then his eyes meet mine and a cozy warmth spreads through me. He smiles warmly, and I feel like my heart is going to burst. I slowly reach over to him and adjust the flower in his hair, feeling my own face heat up. He looks down, now avoiding my eyes, with reddened cheeks.
"Garroth."
We both look down the stairs to see Zane looking up at us with an unamused expression. Garroth sits up and clears his throat.
"Yeah, baby brother?"
"Vylad's pretty tired, I'm gonna drive him home. You coming or staying?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at his oldest brother.
"I... urm... I'm gonna stay a little longer. I'll meet you guys back at the apartment later tonight, alright?" Garroth brushes his fingertips over the flower in his hair.
"Alright. Be home by two or I swear to Irene I'm coming to find you." HE mumbles something that isnt in english, and with that, Zane turns on his heel and walks away.
A moment of silence follows. Garroth is bright red, and I have a feeling that I would be too if I knew what Zane said. I'm stuck between asking him or leaving it be before I hear Aphmau squee.
"It's almost midnight!" She screeches, obviously very excited.
"How much longer?" Travis asks.
"Thirty seconds!"
"Oh my gosh, I'm not ready." Katelyn mutters.
"Well, you have to be, can't stop time, can ya?" Dante laughs.
"Guys! Fifteen seconds!"
I glance over at Garroth who looks at me. He scoots a bit closer, smiling. "Excited?"
"Just a little." I lie. I'm very excited. Something about how close he is, how I can feel how warm he is, and how I could swear he was leaning in just a little.
"Aaah! Ten!" I lean a bit.
"Nine!" Everyone has started chanting, except Katelyn.
"Eight!" I can feel Garroth's breath on my cheek.
"Seven!" His blue eyes flicker to my lips, then to my eyes.
"Six!" He takes in a shaky breath.
"Five!" My own breathing has stopped.
"Four!" I've stopped chanting, but Garroth silently mouths the words.
"Three!" I feel my cheeks burn.
"Two!" I stare at his lips. (This almost said hips that would be a much different situation)
Before the chant can be finished, squealing is heard downstairs, prior to a small, shocked squeak from Aphmau. Me and Garroth both jerk back, looking down.
But it wasn't us they were looking at (thank Irene). Apparently we missed what happened beforehand, but Aphmau had been pulled into into a kiss. By Katelyn. (*the author could be heard screeching in the distance*)
"My ship! My ship! My ship!" Travis was freaking out.
Dante was flailing his arms wildly in shock.
Kawaii~ Chan and Nicole were clinging to each other, jumping up and down excitedly.
Meanwhile, me and Garroth were pretty much attached to each other, staring down like idiots. Garroth grins.
Aphmau and Katelyn seperate, the shorter one blushing like mad. Katelyn just grins. "Happy new year, babe!" Katelyn says, smiling at Aph.
Garroth gasps. "I FREAKING CALLED IT. I knew they were dating."
"W-well, Garroth, you got it right. For o-once." Aphmau stutters.
"Ouucchhh, my feelings." Garroth pouts.
"MY SHIP? IS CANON??" Travis squeaks.
"Travis, calm down!" Dante yells, being a bit hypocritical. He was also freaking out.
"KAWAII~CHAN HAS NEVER BEEN HAPPIER! APHMAU~ SENPAI, KATELYN~ SAMA, WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL USSSS?" KC flails.
"I can't believe my best friend didn't tell me she had a girlfriend! I feel so betrayed!" Nicole jokes, smiling like an idiot.
"We... didn't want to tell you guys... cause we were worried you guys would get mad... or not accept it..." Aph says, her voice almost a whisper.
"Not accept it? Oh c'mon, guys, we love you two! Besides, that was too cute to be mad about." Dante says, giving them both a brotherly smile.
"Yeah, I've been shipping you both since high school! Like I'd not be excited for you guys!" Travis grins, eyes glittering.
Garroth gets to his feet and goes down to the others, and I quickly follow.
"Katelyn, Aph, you two have been my friends forever! Like something like this would ruin that." Nicole shakes her head, smiling sweetly.
"Kawaii~ Chan thinks you two make the cutest couple ever!" KC bounces excitedly.
"Yeah, seriously you two, like we would disprove of you guys. You're amazing!" I shout gesturing wildly. And almost accidentally smacking Garroth in the face.
Katelyn and Aphmau smile at each other. Then Katelyn fake-squints in fake suspicion at Garroth. "And what do you have to say, huh, Blondie?"
"Are you implying that I, the gayest person in the room, disprove of my best friend having a girlfriend?"
The room is silent for a moment. Everyone looks shocked (even me, for Irene's sake), expect for Aphmau, who is trying not to laugh at everyone's absurd expressions.
"Since when the frick frack are you gay?" Travis bursts out.
Garroth stares at Travis for a moment before laughing.
"W-wait, seriously? You couldn't tell?" He says,covering his mouth to keep from laughing.
Dante just looks at me.
"Guys, Garroth had never once acted like a normal straight man. How could you not tell?" Aphmau giggles.
"Hell yeah! I'm fabulous!" Garroth shouts.
"Kawaii~Chan knew it." I hear the meif'wa mumble passionately.
Nicole and Katelyn exchange the ~plotting best friends~ look, and then look back at Garroth.
"How could I have been so blind." Dante says, staring at the floor.
"How much longer are we gonna talk about this?" Garroth says, grinning. "Mau and Katelyn are a thing, I'm super gay, the sky is blue and sugar is sweet. And that brings and end to the shocking revelations of the day."
I laugh, shaking my head. "I'm honestly so shocked." I joke, even though I was a bit suprised.
Garroth smiles at me, locking eyes with me for a moment. Then he turns back to he others, leaving me with a sudden flutter of butterflies.
Oh my irene. Okay. So, the guy I've fallen for: Almost kissed me, is gay, and is the cutest nerd in this universe.
Please Irene, let me have a chance.
~°~°~°~°~
A hour or so later Nicole and KC left and after some chatting, Garroth stands up, stretching.
"Well, I ought to go, Zane will have a fit if I'm not home by my curfew." He jokes, rolling his eyes.
I realize something. Zane and Vylad took off without Garroth, who didn't have a ride.
"Garroth, do you need a ride back?" I ask, standing up myself.
"Oh no, I'll be fine." He shrugs. "I'll probably just walk back. Don't want to drag you away."
"Nah, I was planning on leaving soon anyways." I say, smiling at him.
He smiles back. "T-thanks, Laur, that'd be nice." He stutters, grabbing at the cross necklace he wears.
"C'mon let's go." I glance back at the couch, where Dante and Travis fell asleep, curled up to each other.
"Night, guys." Aphmau yawns, cozied up with Katelyn.
"See ya later, nerds." The bluenette says with a smile.
"Goodnight girls," Garroth pauses and looks at Travis and Dante. "Boys." He snickers.
"Bye, you two, get some sleep." I smile at the girls, leading Garroth out to my car.
Garroth laughs softly. "Now this is a bit forward," he says as I open his door for him. "Do you plan on buying me dinner first?"
"Shut up." I smirk slightly as he sits, and I slam his door.
I take my seat and start up the car. We drive in comfortable silence as I pretend not to notice that Garroth is staring at me the whole time. It's not uncomfortable, suprisingly.
"They're cute together, aren't they?" Garroth says, out of the blue as I make turn.
"Huh? You mean Aph and Katelyn?"
"No, obviously I meant Finn and Poe."
"Sarcasm?"
"Obviously."
I laugh, looking over at the blond. He almost seems to glow in the moonlight, in an oddly alluring way. His curls fell perfectly on his face, and that final red flower was still in his hair from when I fixed it. I look back at the road.
"Yeah, they're adorable."
We pull up at the building, walking inside quickly, diving into an elevator. I quickly hit my floor button. It reaches my floor, but before I can get out, Garroth grabs my arm, pulling me back.
"Garroth, what--"
He kisses me on the cheek.
"Happy new year, Laurance." He says with with a smile and wave.
"I-- Happy new year, Garroth." I smile back, getting off the elevator.
I get home and bury my face in a pillow. This could be a good year for me.
~°~°~°~°~°~
This shit is 3994 words long. That's why it's so late. Happy new year, though, loves