CLAIMER: I own this story and every character in it. Remember, folks...I worked on and cried over this story. Stealing is impossible, when its a part of me.
Notes: This prologue, I don't like it as much as the actual story. My style doesn't really show much in it. Please, don't stop reading if you don't like it. Its short, and later on the story gets much better (IMHO). I'm a highschool student, and a procrastinator, but I try to update as much as possible.
Thanks to Redjester, for editing and pre-reading! You rock!
-Emiko
ps. this story is getting to be old, and I would like to acknowledge that the plot could have been better/more original and that I will never be able to accurately portray a gay male as I am not one myself. If you are a gay male, you can read it if you want...just keep in mind that I'm not trying to use my characters to paint a picture of typical gays. They act the way they do because its within their personalities.
If you want to give me pointers, I'd be happy to listen, although I don't plan on going back to fix this story up. I'm anxious to wrap it up (currently working on part 12) and move on, because I think I can write better things. I still love my guys, and writing about them, I just want to start something fresh and hopefully better.
thanks, baibai ^_^
Prologue
It felt natural falling in love with Gavin, the most natural thing I've ever done. It's strange, really, to think how many people would say it's just the opposite: unnatural. But I didn't stop to think about the implications of what was happening, I just...accepted it. It was easiest that way, I think.
I worked in Chapters, You know, the book store? It must be one of the best jobs available, to be surrounded by books all day. Thousands of letters, words, repeated thousands of times. I walked into Chapters about a week ago, I suppose. He was standing behind the counter, a new employee, gazing out the window. His hair was brown and hanging in his eyes, set in a delicate face. That face enchanted me, and all I wanted was one thing: to see the colour of his eyes.
It was curiosity, at first, unless you believe in love at first sight. I never have, but sometimes I wonder...
"Thio!" That was my boss. Thio is my last name, he calls everyone by their last name. He told me I was on 'walk-around', which means I have to wander the store assisting customers. I wanted to work behind the counter with him, to find out what about him had me so mystified.
I wandered through the store, pausing occasionally to smile offer help. I was neatening a table of books when they walked by, Laura was giving him a tour. She smiled brightly as she talked, but he didn't seem affected by her cheerful chattering. His expression remained calm and unreadable, passive. as they walked by, he glanced at me.
His eyes are green. I still hadn't spoken with him, still didn't know his name, but they're green. I was sitting outside on my lunch break, drinking ice tea from Star Bucks. It was overcast, the cool wind passing easily through my thin shirt. I shivered and headed inside, just as he passed me coming out. His name tag says Gavin.
I know his name, but that doesn't make him any less mysterious to me. We're both standing behind the counter, and I wondered what he thought about as he gazed out at the darkening sky. We never spoke, the most I could do was offer a friendly smile when our eyes met accidently. He didn't smile back, althought he nodded slightly.
It was the end of the day and I stood outside, the stars blotted out by thick, dark clouds. People walked to their cars, pulling out and driving away. I was annoyed. Where was she? My mom was supposed to pick me up 15 minutes ago, and here I stood, freezing. I was beginning to think everyone was gone when he walked out.
He looked at me, took several more steps, and stopped. He sighed softly, turning to face me.
"Aren't you going home?" His voice was smooth and musical, his tone questioning. I blushed, hoping the darkness would hide the colour in my cheeks.
"My-my mother was supposed to pick me up. She must have forgotten." I felt childish, standing there and telling the dark haired boy I was waiting for my mommy.
"I could drive you," he offered quietly. I began to stammer my thanks as I followed him to his car, climbing into the passenger seat.
After giving Gavin directions, I simply sat and observed while he drove. Streetlights flashed by, shining in his eyes and casting shadows across his pale skin. I tried not to stare, concentrating instead on my hands. However, I found my eyes drawn magnetically back to his profile in minutes. We were on my street, now, and I pointed out my driveway so that he could pull over.
"Thank you for the drive, I really appreciate it," I said shakily, and his eyes settled on my face. I swallowed, uncertain. He didn't display any emotion as he cocked his head, replying,
"It was on the way." I opened the door, trying desperately not to trip as I climbed out of the vehicle.
"Good night," I called quietly before closing the door, taking several steps back as he pulled into the road.
*******************
I stood on the lawn a moment, gazing at the house. It was shabby and small, the lawn overgrown. Light from the TV lit up the window erratically, telling me my mother had left it on. I opened the door silently, toeing off my shoes and padding into the den. I saw her sprawled on the couch, snoring faintly. If I were anyone else, I might assume she'd fallen asleep watching television, but I'm me. And I know.
As I approached, the heady scent of alcohol reached me, and I knew she had passed out. Her blond hair was tangled, her mouth slack. Fear crept into my mind, but I reminded myself firmly that if she was snoring, she was breathing. I switched off the TV and carefully picked up my mom, who is several inches shorter than me. Still, even at 5'7, I had to struggle to lay her down in bed. I am, after all, what some people refer to as 'scrawny'.
I pulled off her socks and covered her up before sneaking into my own bedroom. I sat on the edge of my bed and stared out the window, thinking of the storm to come.
******************
I woke up the next morning to my alarm and turned it off quickly. I always set it an hour earlier than necessary, to do some tidying up before my mother emerged. I showered and dressed quickly, then headed into the kitchen. Beer bottles lay discarded around the room, as well as dishes and crumpled wrappers. I sighed softly, resigned. My mother was never one for cleaning, not when she could be drinking instead. I always ended up cleaning in my spare time, before school and after work. I loaded the dishwasher and cleaned off the counters, putting some bread into the toaster. I heard he front door open and poked my head out of the kitchen. Sybil smiled happily, mouthing 'good morning' in my direction. She knew the drill, and had learned from painful experience that my mother is not pleasant when hungover.
We sat at the kitchen table, me buttering my toast while she went on about moving to her new house.
"How was work?" she whispered, and my thoughts flew immediately to Gavin. I've known her since I was six, and told her everything since then. She's my best friend, after all, but somehow I found the words sticking in my throat uncomfortably. How did I explain it? Was it a crush, and could I have a crush on someone I met so recently? I felt in awe of him, his silent confidence and unreadable green eyes.
"Well, there's...there's a guy at work. He drove me home because mum, uh..forgot." Sybil arched an eyebrow, grey eyes curious.
"And?"
"I don't know, there's just something about him...he fascinates me!" I blurted, blushing. Sybil's eyes widened, and she scrutinized me.
"But, Brody...You're a guy!"
end prologue
ps. Originally, this was written so the fact that the main chara was a boy would be a surprise. I can't NOT warn people of yaoi (m/m) so this prologue doesn't make a ton of sense. See? Trust me...it improves later...
-Emiko
Notes: This prologue, I don't like it as much as the actual story. My style doesn't really show much in it. Please, don't stop reading if you don't like it. Its short, and later on the story gets much better (IMHO). I'm a highschool student, and a procrastinator, but I try to update as much as possible.
Thanks to Redjester, for editing and pre-reading! You rock!
-Emiko
ps. this story is getting to be old, and I would like to acknowledge that the plot could have been better/more original and that I will never be able to accurately portray a gay male as I am not one myself. If you are a gay male, you can read it if you want...just keep in mind that I'm not trying to use my characters to paint a picture of typical gays. They act the way they do because its within their personalities.
If you want to give me pointers, I'd be happy to listen, although I don't plan on going back to fix this story up. I'm anxious to wrap it up (currently working on part 12) and move on, because I think I can write better things. I still love my guys, and writing about them, I just want to start something fresh and hopefully better.
thanks, baibai ^_^
Prologue
It felt natural falling in love with Gavin, the most natural thing I've ever done. It's strange, really, to think how many people would say it's just the opposite: unnatural. But I didn't stop to think about the implications of what was happening, I just...accepted it. It was easiest that way, I think.
I worked in Chapters, You know, the book store? It must be one of the best jobs available, to be surrounded by books all day. Thousands of letters, words, repeated thousands of times. I walked into Chapters about a week ago, I suppose. He was standing behind the counter, a new employee, gazing out the window. His hair was brown and hanging in his eyes, set in a delicate face. That face enchanted me, and all I wanted was one thing: to see the colour of his eyes.
It was curiosity, at first, unless you believe in love at first sight. I never have, but sometimes I wonder...
"Thio!" That was my boss. Thio is my last name, he calls everyone by their last name. He told me I was on 'walk-around', which means I have to wander the store assisting customers. I wanted to work behind the counter with him, to find out what about him had me so mystified.
I wandered through the store, pausing occasionally to smile offer help. I was neatening a table of books when they walked by, Laura was giving him a tour. She smiled brightly as she talked, but he didn't seem affected by her cheerful chattering. His expression remained calm and unreadable, passive. as they walked by, he glanced at me.
His eyes are green. I still hadn't spoken with him, still didn't know his name, but they're green. I was sitting outside on my lunch break, drinking ice tea from Star Bucks. It was overcast, the cool wind passing easily through my thin shirt. I shivered and headed inside, just as he passed me coming out. His name tag says Gavin.
I know his name, but that doesn't make him any less mysterious to me. We're both standing behind the counter, and I wondered what he thought about as he gazed out at the darkening sky. We never spoke, the most I could do was offer a friendly smile when our eyes met accidently. He didn't smile back, althought he nodded slightly.
It was the end of the day and I stood outside, the stars blotted out by thick, dark clouds. People walked to their cars, pulling out and driving away. I was annoyed. Where was she? My mom was supposed to pick me up 15 minutes ago, and here I stood, freezing. I was beginning to think everyone was gone when he walked out.
He looked at me, took several more steps, and stopped. He sighed softly, turning to face me.
"Aren't you going home?" His voice was smooth and musical, his tone questioning. I blushed, hoping the darkness would hide the colour in my cheeks.
"My-my mother was supposed to pick me up. She must have forgotten." I felt childish, standing there and telling the dark haired boy I was waiting for my mommy.
"I could drive you," he offered quietly. I began to stammer my thanks as I followed him to his car, climbing into the passenger seat.
After giving Gavin directions, I simply sat and observed while he drove. Streetlights flashed by, shining in his eyes and casting shadows across his pale skin. I tried not to stare, concentrating instead on my hands. However, I found my eyes drawn magnetically back to his profile in minutes. We were on my street, now, and I pointed out my driveway so that he could pull over.
"Thank you for the drive, I really appreciate it," I said shakily, and his eyes settled on my face. I swallowed, uncertain. He didn't display any emotion as he cocked his head, replying,
"It was on the way." I opened the door, trying desperately not to trip as I climbed out of the vehicle.
"Good night," I called quietly before closing the door, taking several steps back as he pulled into the road.
*******************
I stood on the lawn a moment, gazing at the house. It was shabby and small, the lawn overgrown. Light from the TV lit up the window erratically, telling me my mother had left it on. I opened the door silently, toeing off my shoes and padding into the den. I saw her sprawled on the couch, snoring faintly. If I were anyone else, I might assume she'd fallen asleep watching television, but I'm me. And I know.
As I approached, the heady scent of alcohol reached me, and I knew she had passed out. Her blond hair was tangled, her mouth slack. Fear crept into my mind, but I reminded myself firmly that if she was snoring, she was breathing. I switched off the TV and carefully picked up my mom, who is several inches shorter than me. Still, even at 5'7, I had to struggle to lay her down in bed. I am, after all, what some people refer to as 'scrawny'.
I pulled off her socks and covered her up before sneaking into my own bedroom. I sat on the edge of my bed and stared out the window, thinking of the storm to come.
******************
I woke up the next morning to my alarm and turned it off quickly. I always set it an hour earlier than necessary, to do some tidying up before my mother emerged. I showered and dressed quickly, then headed into the kitchen. Beer bottles lay discarded around the room, as well as dishes and crumpled wrappers. I sighed softly, resigned. My mother was never one for cleaning, not when she could be drinking instead. I always ended up cleaning in my spare time, before school and after work. I loaded the dishwasher and cleaned off the counters, putting some bread into the toaster. I heard he front door open and poked my head out of the kitchen. Sybil smiled happily, mouthing 'good morning' in my direction. She knew the drill, and had learned from painful experience that my mother is not pleasant when hungover.
We sat at the kitchen table, me buttering my toast while she went on about moving to her new house.
"How was work?" she whispered, and my thoughts flew immediately to Gavin. I've known her since I was six, and told her everything since then. She's my best friend, after all, but somehow I found the words sticking in my throat uncomfortably. How did I explain it? Was it a crush, and could I have a crush on someone I met so recently? I felt in awe of him, his silent confidence and unreadable green eyes.
"Well, there's...there's a guy at work. He drove me home because mum, uh..forgot." Sybil arched an eyebrow, grey eyes curious.
"And?"
"I don't know, there's just something about him...he fascinates me!" I blurted, blushing. Sybil's eyes widened, and she scrutinized me.
"But, Brody...You're a guy!"
end prologue
ps. Originally, this was written so the fact that the main chara was a boy would be a surprise. I can't NOT warn people of yaoi (m/m) so this prologue doesn't make a ton of sense. See? Trust me...it improves later...
-Emiko