Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Rock was starting to feel himself drifting away from the current lesson. It was first period, and he hadn't gotten much sleep last night as he had discovered that Rush, his most precious canine companion, had fallen ill.

He tried his best to pay attention to Mr. Layton's explanation of the mystery of Atlantis, but found he could not concentrate, to his dismay. To his side, his twin sister, Roll, seemed to be doing as bad a job at staying focused. That was somewhat reassuring.

 He let his gaze wander, mindlessly twirling his pen as the ever enthusiastic mystery aficionado went on about how the city was most likely real, and that he himself had planned a trip to new possible coordinates. The students called him 'The Gentleman', as he acted like one and happened to wear a top hat constantly. In fact, he wore it so often that it was common to discuss wether or not it hid some kind of dark secret.

Rock's eyes caught on to a lone cowlick, shining in the morning sun. Pit was sitting by the window, and contrary to him, seemed completely engulfed in whatever their teacher was talking about.

At the sight, Rock couldn't help but smile a little. The other boy always looked so cute whenever he was listening or talking about something he was passionate about. And he was passionate about a lot of things.

He suddenly felt a jab at his chest, and turned to glare at his sister, who sported a tired yet satisfied smirk.

“Pay attention, loverboy.” She whispered.

Rock gave her a deadpan look, and reluctantly went back to listening to whatever he was supposed to listen to.

When the bell rang, he stretched out his arms and yawned. He felt a little bit more awake than he had been at the start, but would still rather be in his bed than in school.

The next class was going to be calculus, so he found comfort in knowing he could afford to drift off yet again. After all, this was a class he was sure not to fail. He had even gotten the 'Robot' nickname from his mathematical prowess, though he also figured out it might have come from the fact he usually wore a neutral expression wherever he went, and followed the rules. He wasn't too fond of the name, however, and hoped he one day would have the chance of getting a new one.

Nicknames, everyone in this school had at least one of those. So much so that some people's real names seemed to have been lost to the void, as the teachers were also in on it whenever they did the roll-call.

“Come on, 'Robot', let's go to your favorite class!” His sister said as she tried to stiffle a yawn of her own, heading out of the room.

“Don't patronize me, 'Cinnamon'!” He chuckled, and as he followed behind her, he looked over his shoulder to see Pit animatedly talking to Mr Layton, apparently about a movie of sorts.

 Rock sighed, taking in how bright the boy's eyes looked, and how wide his smile was. While he may still have trouble figuring out the exact origin of his own nickname, there was no doubt why Pit's was 'Angel'.

Once the rest of the morning was over, the students headed straight over to the cafeteria, and like everyone else Rock was no stranger to the call of food. Along with Roll and Pit, they followed the crowd along and waited in line. Today's menu was mashed potatoes and ketchup, or as it had come to be called, 'The Goop”.

The mashed potatoes seemed particularly flabby today, and quite a few students scrunched up their noses at the sight.

After they picked up their trays, they finally reached the end of the line, and made their way into the cafeteria.

The place was huge, and it had to be, as it was used by both the junior and the senior high school of Smash Brothers Academy. This was in part why most people knew each other well once they were able to set foot onto the senior high school grounds.Though, some students didn't go to school in the same facility, and simply came out of nowhere as freshmen. Pit had been one of those, along with …

There he was. Sitting at a table dressed in black and with a permanent scowl on his face was Pit's identical twin brother, Pittoo, or as anyone who didn't have a death wish called him, 'Dark Pit'.

A fitting name, since the boy had dyed his hair black and favored purple contacts to differentiate himself from his older brother. Not that it was needed, as the sight of his frown would easily tell you he definitely wasn't his ever-so-cheerful twin.

 “Hey Pittoo.” Rock greeted, and was met with a cold glare.

“Aw, come on Too-too, don't be mean.” Pit teased him, effectively ruffling his brother's feathers.

“Call me that in front of everyone again, and you can say goodbye to your precious ice-cream stock.”

Pit gasped. “You wouldn't!”

“Oh, I so would.”

“Well then I guess I'd just have to bleach all your clothes in retaliation.”

It was Pittoo's time to be shocked.

“You'd never do that. You're too much of a wimp.”

“You're right … a-and I don't mean the wimp part!”

 They quickly took their seats, both pair of twins sitting across the table as Pit had sat down next to his brother when he had been bickering with him, much to Rock's chagrin.

 “Hey guys, can I sit with you today?” Came a voice from behind them.

“Oh, hey Coco, sure, you can.” Pit smiled.

“Are the boys getting too rowdy?” Roll winked.

“Ugh, tell me about it. They keep talking about some cryptic things and chuckling about it, they're like little kids.” She shook her head, a small smile playing at her lips. “Anyway, thanks for letting me stay, guys.”

“If you don't mind me asking, is your brother okay?” Roll asked her friend.

“Well, he's been doing better. Not sure he's completely over Tawna yet, but as dumb as his friends can be, they've been a great help in cheering him up.”

“That's good to hear! It was weird seeing him be so … down.” Rock chimed in. He didn't know Crash that well, but he knew Sonic, one of Crash's close friends, and he had learned from him just how much Coco's brother's break up with one of the most beautiful girls the school had ever seen had affected him. And it hadn't been pretty.

“Yeah, it was pretty tough at home, too … so I'm glad things got better.”

“Seriously though, how could he have not seen it coming?” Pittoo quipped. “She looked exactly like the type of chick who'd act like that.”

“Because he was in love, Pittoo.” Roll said, a glint of a warning in her eyes.

“Pff, wow, what an amazing excuse to not call him what he his.”

“Hey ! My bro might be dumb, but only I can say and imply that!” Coco said as she stood up, leaning against the table.

“And what do you know about being in love, uh?” Roll added, as she stared him down.

 As Roll, Coco and Pittoo were arguing, Pit and Rock were having a conversation of their own.

 “So, you and your sis seemed awfully sleepy this morning. Did something happen?”

“Yeah, we didn't get much sleep last night because of Rush ...”

“Why?”

“He kept whining over and over, and when my dad came to check on him, it turned out he had thrown up … we called the vet this morning and they think Rush got a cold, so me and Roll are going to go buy some meds after school is over.”

“Man, that stinks. He's such a good dog, he shouldn't have to go through this ...”

“Heh, it's alright. It could have been worse, and not knowing what it was is exactly why I had such an awful night.”

“Heh, in that case, you're lucky you don't do sports today. I don't think Roll is going to be able to run a single lap in that state.”

Rock chuckled. “Oh, trust me, I think she'll be fine for the most part.”

“Really? Well, if you say so. You're her twin after all!”

Both boys went back to eating, eyes on their plates, but Rock felt the need to carry on the conversation. Hoping to see the smile he had seen earlier this morning, he decided to bring up Mr Layton's lesson.

 “By the way, I think I heard you talk to the Gentleman about a movie this morning. I'm guessing it was about Atlantis?”

 Pit didn't respond, however, so Rock quickly turned his attention away from his meal to figure out what was happening.

Ah.

There it was.

The dopey smile.

That meant she must have had entered the cafeteria.

Indeed, Zelda had come in with her own tray, talking to Link while he simply nodded, unable to respond so long as his hands were busy.

To be fair, Pit wasn't the only one looking like a mushy doofus : nearly half the school's heart melted at the sight of the one the students called 'Princess'. And even he had to admit, she was a sight for sore eyes. And as pretty on the inside as she was on the outside.

He groaned internally. Of course his crush was interested in someone else. And of course he couldn't find anything wrong about said person to be petty about.

To his surprise, Roll was also gawking at her. Great. It was spreading.

Since most of the cafeteria was currently looking at Zelda, either in awe or in jealousy, few people noticed the student representative, nicknamed 'Mayor', who was trying to grab everyone's attention.

Luckily for him, the three not-officially-student-representatives-yet-they-do-the-job-anyway seniors, namely Sonic, Crash and Rayman, stepped onto a table and shouted for the crowd's attention.

“Hey everybody listen up!” The blond student started. “The Mayor here has an announcement to make!”

 A few of the students stopped gawking or talking, and others simply paid no mind and carried on to their business.

 “It's about a party!” Sonic added, not without shouting an excited 'whoop'.

 Most students followed his example and cheered loudly before everyone went quiet.

The Mayor cleared his throat, satisfied that everyone was finally paying attention.

 “Thank you, you three.” He then shuffled the paper he had been holding. “ I am here to announce that there is indeed a party planned at school in the next few weeks. Two weeks, to be exact. As you may have guessed, it will be Halloween related.”

 Some students cheered, and the Mayor waited for them to finish.

 “Everyone who comes will have to wear a costume. This year, there will be no particular theme, so you're free to wear what you wish, as long as it stands in the school guidelines.” A few frustrated grunts could be heard. “The party will be held in the gymnasium as usual, and the exact date and time the party will start will be notified on the main board, where you'll find the inscriptions sheets. Friendly reminder that anyone not registered at least three days before the event will not be permitted to enter, and that the junior high schoolers will need permissions from their legal guardians. Any questions?”

 The cafeteria fell into silence yet again, and the Mayor took it as a clear sign.

 “Well, if there are no questions I will leave you to your lunch. See you all at the party!”

 A bunch of students clapped and cheered, and soon the place fell back into its usual hubbub.

“Man, I can't wait until two weeks ! Pittoo and I have already started working on our Halloween costumes!” Pit said excitedly, nudging his twin.

“Uh? Oh, yeah. They're coming along pretty well. I just hoped I'd have won the game and decided on them ...”

Pit pouted cutely at his brother, and both girls at the table laughed at that, while Rock was trying not to melt inside.

“So, what are you going to be then?” Roll asked.

“No telling!” Both Pits said in unison.

“Aw … what about you, Coco?”

“I'm afraid I can't tell you either. You'll just have to wait and see.”

“Man, you guys are just party poopers. Rock, don't you tell them what we'll be going as!”

“ 'Wasn't planning to.”

The conversation came to a halt as the end of the lunch break was coming near, and their mashed potatoes were getting cold. They all ate in relative silence, much like most of the neighboring tables. When suddenly ...

“BOOYAH!”

 … a flurry of mashed potato goop came flying about.

“EVERYBODY TO YOUR TRAYS! THE INKLINGS ARE AT IT AGAIN!”

“FOOD SPLATFEST! WOOOH!”

“WOOMY!”

Indeed, the Inklings, a popular group of students, had flung the leftovers from their table at their rival group, the Octolings.

In a matter of seconds, half the cafeteria was under the tables, some shielding themselves with their empty trays, while others tried to escape as fast as they could before things took a turn for the worse. The other half simply joined in, and soon most of the students had their clothes stained with mashed potatoes and ketchup.

Rock, Roll, Coco and Pit had taken refuge under their table, while Pittoo had immediately joined in on the fun, despite his twin's protest, and was now running around amongst the chaos. A chorus of screams and laughs echoed around the place, frightening the freshmen junior high schoolers.

“Aw man, I hate it when they do that … it's such a waste of perfectly good food!” Pit whined.

“You call that good?” Coco asked, unimpressed.

“It's still food!”

“What I'm more worried about is all the poor people who are going to have to clean that mess up!” Roll huffed, looking around and sending death glares to anyone involved.

“Oh, don't worry Roll, if they get caught, then my best bet is that the main perpetrators will be the ones doing the cleaning.” Rock said as he internally chuckled at his sister's antics.

As he was saying that, a stray shot of food goop caught his eye, and he used his tray to shield himself and the others from it.

“Thanks for the save, Rock!”

“It was nothing, Pit.”

Coco stood up all of a sudden, almost hitting her head on the table.

“Something the matter?” Rock asked.

“Yeah! I forgot to bring my external battery with me, and my laptop's almost out of juice! I have to go to our next class right now and find an outlet before there's none left!”

“But you'll be covered in food the moment you get out of here!” Roll noted.

“As long as my laptop works, I'll be fine.”

And with that she took her schoolbag, crawled under the table and took a sprint start. She almost made it out of the cafeteria, but a bunch of food made its way to her, and the trio back at the table could only watch as it inched closer to her by the moment.

Her brother appeared just in time to take the hit for her.

“Phew. I thought she wouln't make it.” Roll said, leaning back against one of the table's feet.

“I gotta say, she's got a good sprint going on!”

“Pit, stop being such a jock.” Rock smiled.

“What? It's true.”

While they were talking, the food fight had been decreasing rapidly, as it had caught the attention of two of the school's monitors, 'Snake' and 'Vampire Killer', who forcibly and efficiently put a stop to the whole thing.

“Well, looks like you're in trouble. Wait 'til the Principal hears about your little stunt.” Snake said to one of the Inklings, 'Orange'. She just grinned back at him.

“Looks like the coast is clear!” Rock said, carefully stepping out of their temporary hideout, like many others.

“Great! Let's head to practice right away, Pit! I don't want to be late! Miss Daisy can be scary when she wants to ...” Roll said as she urged said boy to follow after her.

“Meh, Palutena's scarier to me.”

“Ooooh, yeah, she did become the school's superintendent. Is she liking the job so far?” She asked.

“Yeah, she is. She's also really digging her new nickname. I also think it suits her.”

Rock had to agree. The woman had some kind of powerful aura that he couldn't quite describe, and the title of 'Goddess' fit really well with this. Since she was also the Pits' legal guardian, it brought the whole thing together. A goddess and her angels. He smiled at the thought.

“What'chu thinking about brobot?” Roll asked.

“Nothing important. Didn't you say you didn't want to be late for practice?”

“Oh shoot ! Well, meet me after class! Pit, let's go! ” She grabbed onto the taller boy's arm and dragged him along as if he were nothing, and they both disappeared from Rock's sight.

Chapter Text

After he had made his way out of the cafeteria, Rock had headed straight for his IT class and met back up with Coco, who had already been nose deep in her laptop, and Tails, who had greeted him on sight. His real name was Miles, but for some reason his nickname turned out to be Tails, and stuck. He was actually one year younger than Rock, having skipped a grade, and tended to stick around Sonic.

“Hey, Robot! How are you doing?”

“Not so great, haven't slept. Spent the morning unfocused.” He said with a sheepish grin.

“That's too bad. Well, don't worry if you can't focus, our project is coming along pretty well anyway!”

They kept talking until class started, and then continued working on their project to the best of their respective abilities. Both of Rock's partners were actual geniuses. He was pretty much considered one himself, but as much as he was a good mechanic and a pragmatic thinker, he found he lacked the vast imagination which brought fame to his father. It seemed like Roll had inherited that trait instead.

Once this class came to an end, the students went to their technology class and took their respective seats. The project they were working on linked the two classes together, so they didn't waste any time and continued their work. However, they soon noticed that the teacher, Mr. Robotnik, more commonly known around the school as 'Eggman', was late.

They waited for a good twenty minutes, and the teacher still didn't show up. A few moments later, they heard hurried steps, but to their surprise, it was the Vice Principal, Luigi.

Said man took some time to steady his breathing, before speaking up . “Ah! Kids! I-uh, I'm afraid-a the teacher called in-a sick, so class is-a dismissed. Sorry about-a that!”

Some students groaned but immediately made plans to work on their projects at the library, others thanked Luigi for informing them of the issue, which made the ever-shy man blush, and Rock was one of the few who sighed in relief. He couldn't wait until this day was over.

His partners seemed to have no will to continue working either.

“Well, that'll give me time to rest at home … so I'm not against it. And a day without Eggman is a good day.” Coco said as she stretched, before carefully putting her laptop back in its bag.

“Yeah, and I'm going to be able to spend time with Sonic!” Tails said as he enthusiastically organized his belongings. “We usually can't hang out much on days like today.”

“Guess I'll be coming along with you to the sport complex then. Roll and I planned to go to the vet. The sooner the better.”

He sent a text to his sister saying he'd be waiting for her outside the changing rooms, and he and Tails went on their way after saying goodbye to Coco.

Right after lunch period had ended, Roll and Pit had ran to the gymnasium, where some students were already stretching and mock-running along the track field.

As they were heading to the changing rooms, their teacher, Miss Daisy, went to see them.

“Ah there you are! Hi to you two. Caught in the food fight as well?”

“Yes Miss. Sorry we're late.”

“I'll make an exception today for all the late students. By the way, where is your brother, Angel?”

“I actually have no idea … but I'm sure he'll come, eventually.”

“He'd better be. Come on all of you! Go get dressed! Training starts in 10 minutes, stat!”

 Once he got done changing and went back, Pit saw his brother, who was arguing with the track team coach, 'Captain Falcon'. His twin seemed to be losing the argument, and then stormed off towards the main building, ignoring his brother on the way.

As for Roll, she hadn't gone out of the girls' changing room yet, so he tried to see if he had someone to chat with.

He was startled by a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, how are you Pit?”

He turned around to see Ness smiling at him, his trusty cap sitting upon his head. He was the captain of the baseball team, but tended to participate in track as the sport still required fast feet.

“Oh, hey Ness! I'm fine. Just … could you not scare me like that next time?”

“What if next time is at the Halloween party?” The boy countered.

“I'll make an exception.”

They talked about their day, but cut the conversation short as Daisy and Captain Falcon called everyone to the starting lines.

In the midst of the crowd, Pit could see Roll had made it just on time. And so had his brother, who seemed to still be annoyed with whatever he and the Captain had been arguing about.

He decided not to bring it up, wanting to focus on the race that was coming up.

Most students took the practice race as such, practice, and went at their own leisure.

Some, not so much.

“Hope y'all are ready to eat my dust!” Sonic said, and right after that the race started.

Pit was running at a regular pace, his brother behind him. Sonic was already well ahead of everyone, not having to compete with anyone ever since Shadow had graduated.

They were soon joined by Roll, who had managed to catch up to them after some chitchat with other students.

In between measured breaths, they talked about the morning classes and the upcoming competitions. Pittoo was nodding only to some parts of the conversation.

It was clear that Roll had trouble keeping up, but true to Rock's words she still managed to go on.

Soon enough, the pratice race was won by none other than Sonic, and Captain Falcon called for a break.

Most people sighed in relief, latching onto their water.

The twins and Roll were doing the same, until Pittoo jabbed his twin in the arm, pointing at their teacher who was looking in their direction.

“Hey, Pitstain. Do you think she wants us to come over?”

His brother hadn't even had the time to answer, when their teacher started to speak.

“Pit, Pittoo, can you two come with me for a second? It wont be long.”

They both knew why they were being called over.

Despite having rather athletic builds, and strong legs, the twins had a tiny little problem. Their Achilles tendons were weak, which was kind of ironic for the Greek Mythology nerd that was Pit.

As such, they could still do sports, but had to get regular check-ups and try not to overdo their efforts. Not many knew about their predicament, especially since Pit tended to participate in a lot of different sports.

They trotted to their teacher, knowing they'd get lectured about not having brought any medical certificate for a while.

“As you may know, the first few competitions are coming around the corner, but I can't sign you up on the track team, or any teams for that matter, if I don't have your doctor's approval.” Their teacher said as she practically went up in their faces.

 “Oh, yeah, that. Well … thing is, our old doctor retired this summer, but we've got an assignement with a new one, on saturday” Pit said.

“This late ?”

“Hey, they had a tight schedule, do you know how hard it is to find a doctor these days ?” Pittoo huffed.

“Pittoo ...” Pit muttered, staring disapprovingly at his twin.

Their teacher didn't seem phased by his outburst, however. “Alright, give me the approval note on monday then. I'll sign you up in the meantime.”

“Really? Thanks miss!” He sighed in relief, having feared it would not go so smoothly.

“Just doing my job. Now go back with the others and don't forget to stay hydrated!”

And so they did. The rest of the practice was going to be a synchronization exercise, coupled with endurance, which was Pit's least favorite part of the training.

Once again, they lined up on the starting lines, and were set in pairs. Roll was designated to go with him, and she happily trotted to his side.

“Phew, I'm so glad, I was scared I'd be paired up with someone who'd go way too fast for me … I think I'm starting to feel the effects of my sleepless night ...”

“Hey, you've been holding your own so far. Though I'm glad you'll be too tired to nag me.” He grinned,.

“Why you little-”

Captain Falcon blew on his whistle, and everyone started running.

Endurance was Pit's least favorite because he had to focus on both his breathing and his pace, and for a long time at that. Not to mention his little problem made things a bit difficult, as he was scared he'd overdo it in the long run. But the gist of it might have been that he simply sucked at it. At least compared to sprint and other short-term running exercises. Even then, as he did with a lot of sports, he still enjoyed it. He was just not exceptionally fond of it.

Now, as paradoxal as it may sound, thinking about other things than what he was doing at the moment usually helped him get into focus. And that's just what he was trying to do, so as to get into a steady rhythm.

Unfortunately, those 'other things' he could think about happened to include Rock Light.

He had to repress a blush as the boy's smiles throughout the morning came back to his mind. He did his best to shoo these visions away. They made him feel as happy as they made him miserable.

Pit would have wanted nothing more but to start a relationship with the boy of his dreams, unfortunately it had seemed like life had other plans.

After all, he had learned the reason Rock had gotten his nickname was because of his apparent lack of strong emotions, and rumored inability to fall in love, amongst other things.

It had been nearly two years ago.

 “Hey kiddo! You're one of the newbies, huh?” A voice had come from behind him.

“Uh? Oh, yeah! My name's Pit! Nice to meet you!”

“Aw shucks, you're so enthusiastic, it's adorable. Name's Sonic.” Had said a rather friendly-looking blue-haired boy.

“Um, thanks?” Pit hadn't been so sure what to think at that moment. He also had been pretty sure 'Sonic' was just a nickname.

“So, let's cut to the chase. I couldn't help but notice you looking at Rock. Quite dreamily, too. Can't blame ya. Puberty's hit him nicely, unlike some people ...” He had jokingly pointed to himself.

“A-are you his brother or something?” Pit had asked, worried the guy would have started threatening him.

“Oh, no, no, I've simply known him for quite a long time. I just wanted to tell you something, before you fall even further and your heart breaks and no one can pick up the pieces.”

“Uh, w-what do you mean?” He had been both confused and worried. What was that about his heart breaking?

“Well, thing is, in the time I've known him, in the time everyone's known him, he's never, ever been interested in dating anyone. There are even rumors he's incapable of having romantic feelings.”

“Oh … is that why his nickname is 'Robot'? ...” Pit had felt a painful pang of both disappointment and apprehension in his chest.

“It's part of it, yeah … Now, look, I don't like getting into other people's business, and I leave the door open for everything in my life. That's how I roll, I just follow the wind, ya feel? So should he fall in love with someone one day, I'll just say I was wrong, and move on. But I also don't want you to get your hopes up. You look like a good soul, and I'd hate to know you sad, that's why I'm telling you this.”

“I-I get why you're telling me this … thanks ...” He had sighed. He was definitely feeling disappointment.

“Heh, buddy, don't look so down. Maybe he will fall in love one day, maybe it'll be you! Heck maybe he's already fallen in love before and kept it a secret. But I'm sure you know romance isn't everyone's cup of tea right?”

“Right …” He definitely knew his own brother despised romance.

“So what I want to tell you is this : I'm rooting for you, but if he ever declines your affection, don't push it, please. Some people will simply never fall in love, and that's okay.”

“Of course that's okay! A-and I wont push myself onto him! I'm not a creep!” He couldn't have helped but feel offended. Why would that guy he had never met assume that about him?

“Heh, I should have known. You look like a literal angel. Maybe we should call you that : Angel.” Pit had been seriously starting to wonder what was up with this school and nicknames. “Anyway, you should still go talk to him again. I bet you two would be great buds. And should the day come when you're together? Remind me to organize a little something for you, okay?”

  And with that, he had given Pit a folded up paper for some kind of 'party agreement' and his signature, and had ran off who knows where. Left on his own, Pit had let some tears fall down, as he felt his heart shattering.

After that conversation, he had gotten information from various sources, namely Roll, that the rumors were apparently true. No one but his brother knew how much he had cried once the realization kicked in that he had little to no chances of this crush ever working out.

Sonic had also come forth and had apologized, feeling like he had come off too strong and had been a jerk. Pit had accepted the apology, on behalf of payed-for food, but also had thanked him for warning him and make him take caution.

Ever since then he had been trying really hard to fall out of love. To smother these feelings. It had been two years, and his heart still felt like it was about to burst out of his chest whenever Rock did so much as smile.

Despite this, he claimed to everyone who wanted to hear it that he no longer had any feelings for Rock, half-hoping convincing others would also help convince himself. It hadn't done much yet.

But the worst thing was, that while all of Pit's crushes over the years hadn't lasted long, no matter how much he had wanted them to, the one crush he was actively trying to get rid off was sticking around, and not letting go.

He felt like some kind of cosmic force was out for his blood at times. Maybe he had angered some ancient gods in a previous life?

Lost in thoughts as he was, he suddenly snapped right out of them.

“-rth to Pit?”

“Wha- uh what?”

“What were you thinking about? Jeez, you were almost going off the track!” Roll laughed.

“Z-zelda?” He tentatively said.

Ah, yes, his newest cop-out.

One of his genius strategies while trying to repress his feelings for Rock was to try and fall in love with other people. All his attempts had ended like most of his crushes, but so far this one had lasted pretty long.

There was just one problem. Two actually. One : he was still really, really crushing on his friend. Two : his latest 'crush' was probably interested in her childhood best friend.

He turned his attention back to what Roll was saying.

“Really? You kinda looked sad. Why would you be sad thinking about your crush?”

“Because I'm never going to get together with hi-her?”

There were actually three problems. The third was slip-ups.

Thankfully, Roll was apparently way too tired today to pick up on his mistake.

Once this exercise was dealt with, they did plenty more varied ones and even had time to spare to chat a bit among themselves. Their teacher had seemed satisified, and had congratulated them on their positive behavior, though she reminded Sonic not to take everything as a competition, to which the senior nodded rather sheepishly.

At the same time, Tails had come onto the track field, waving at his older friend. Once the class officially ended, they went back to the dorms, much like a bunch of other students.

Everyone who was still there went to the changing rooms, and Pit changed back into his regular clothes while most of the other boys, including his brother, had gone to take a shower.

He sighed as he tried to fix his hair, which was clamped down by sweat. He would have gone to take a shower, but that meant he'd have to get naked in a room with other people. And that would make him highly uncomfortable.

Not wanting to wait in the sweat-filled room, he headed outside and opened one of his apps on his phone while waiting for Pittoo.

 Rock, now alone ever since Tails had gone to see Sonic, had been doing the same thing while waiting for Roll.

After a while, he heard a door opening and closing, and familiar-sounding steps.

He turned around to see Pit, who was invested in one of his games. Rock decided not to make his presence known at first, wondering how long it would take Pit to realize he wasn't alone.

Turns out it took a while. And it only happened because Rock had yawned.

“Rock?” Pit had asked, confused, after he noticed the other boy was here.

“Hey, Pit. So, how was practice today?” He decided not to bring up how long he had been standing there.

“It went well, as always. Sonic won the traditional 'practice race'. And everyone groaned, as usual.”

Rock laughed at that. “That's great to hear. Where is everyone, by the way?”

“They're back in the changing rooms. I'm waiting on Pittoo to finish his shower and change. What about you ? What are you doing here, I thought you had class?”

“Teach called in sick last minute, so I've been waiting for Roll here. Do you have a clue as to when she'll head out?”

“Well she went straight to the lockers as soon as practice ended, so I guess she wont be long. Unless she finds someone to chat with, of course.”

“Cool. Well, guess we'll both be waiting for our younger twins.”

They chuckled at that, and fell into silence. A few minutes passed, and they could hear some boys laughing, their voices echoing inside the building, as a girl playfully screamed in the distance.

Rock tried to keep himself busy by tapping his finger lightly on his schoolbag, in a somewhat wonky rhythm, stealing a few glances at the other boy when he was sure he wasn't looking.

As for Pit, he was trying to puff out his hair, straighten his clothes and wipe his brow. He sighed.

“Man, I can't wait to get back home and rid myself of all this sweat under some warm water. I hate feeling like this.”

“If you do, then why aren't you taking a shower as well?”

Pit actually blushed at that statement.

“Well, you see … the thing is … you know that … the showers are not … private. We all take our showers together.”

“And?”

Pit mumbled something, too quietly for the other boy to hear.

“I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that? ...”

“I said, I'mafraidthey'll-” Pit went back to mumbling.

“Again, I-”

“I'M AFRAID THEY'LL LOOK AT MY BUTT!” Pit shouted, and went red in the face as Rock just stood there, surprised. Why would he be so concerned about other boys looking at … there?

 That's when Pittoo came out of a nearby room, slapping his twin on the back as he passed by. “Don't worry about it, Pitstain. I can assure you, none of the guys at school would want to look at your 'sacred buns'.”

Well that's debatable … Rock mentally slapped himself for even thinking that.

“Anyway, we gotta get going. Palutena's waiting for us, so get your Ô so precious bum over here.” Pittoo said as he was already reaching the limits of the school grounds.

“Okay! I'll be with you in a bit! And stop talking about my behind!”

“You started it!” His twin shouted in the distance.

Pit shook his head, and turned to Rock.

“Alright, well, see you?”

“Y-yeah … but, uh, why exactly-” He was interrupted as Pit put his hand on his mouth, his face still tinted red.

“I'm just really self conscious. That's all.”

He then started to trot towards what Rock assumed was Palutena's car, and they waved each other goodbye.

“Oh, my, gosh.”

Rock startled and turned around, finding himself face to face with his sister.

“How long have you been standing here?”

“Long enough. Seriously though, he talked to you, about his-”

“Okay, no, stop-”

“And you think he's straight-”

“I'm his friend, it's totally normal to talk about this kind of personal stuff!”

“Oh, yeah, because Coco totally talks to me about-”

“Can you please stop?” He whined, turning redder by the minute.

“Alright, alright. But we'll talk about this again. It's a promise.” She grinned, elated to see her brother getting flustered.

“It honestly feels more like a warning …” He mumbled.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. Come on now, we have to go buy those meds for Rush.”

They gathered their bags and went on their way, and after their thankfully short visit to the vet, who informed them of the necessary precautions and dosage, and advised them to keep their dog inside for the next few days, they walked back home and were given a quick greeting by their father, who seemed worn out.

Roll didn't refrain from pointing it out.

“Wow, dad. You look awful!”

“Don't throw stones if you live in a glass house, Roll.” Doctor Light smiled, focusing back onto whatever work he was doing.

“Hey!”

She turned to her twin, hoping for his support, but Rock just shrugged.

“What? It's true.”

“Well you look like a zombie! And not the good-looking kind!” She huffed, before marching towards the kitchen to get herself a drink.

Rock payed no mind to her usual antics, and turned his attention back to his father.

“But you do look awful. Don't you want to rest?”

“Can't rest, my boy. I need to finish up these plans before next week.”

“Do you need help?”

“No, no I'm alright, you go and follow your sister.”

“Are you sure? You know one of my class was dismissed, so I didn't do as much work as I would have ...”

“Rock, isn't there a dog in this house who needs medical attention?” The scientist chuckled. “On a more serious note, you should really give him the medicine. I think he hasn't been able to sleep all day, the poor thing.”

Rock knew his father had only said that to get him off his back, but he decided he'd let it slide for once, and left him alone.

Rush was laying onto his bed near the sofa in the living room, and when he saw his master approaching he tried his best to get up and waggle his tail, but quickly stopped, drained out, and fell back down onto the soft fabrics, letting his tongue stick out as he stared up at the boy.

“Hey Rush. How are you boy?” Rock said as he pet his dog as gently as he could. “Me and Roll went to get your medicine. You'll feel better, trust me.”

After saying that, he went to get Rush's favorite food and mixed the medicine with it, putting it in a bowl along with water. Despite feeling weak, the dog happily yet tiredly made his way to the food and dug in.

Rush was having difficulty swallowing, and kept whining ever so often, but was too hungry to stop eating. Once he had had enough, he quickly nuzzled Rock's legs and went back to his bed.

The boy followed him all the way, scared his dog would faint, and then stayed at his side to try and pet him to sleep.

“You're a good boy, Rush. You'll make it through. And when you'll feel much better we'll go on a big walk around town, okay?”

The dog opened one of his eyes as if to answer, and quickly closed it, falling asleep.

Once Rock had made sure everything was all right, and that his dog was sound asleep, he informed Roll of the situation, grabbed a can of his favorite energy drink, and went upstairs to do his homework.

He took a longer time than usual to complete his work, and once he was done he sighed in relief, slumping in his chair. He could tell Roll had finished a few minutes earlier, as he could faintly hear music coming from her room, as well as some whistling from her blue parakeet, Beat.

He went back downstairs to check on Rush, who seemed to be sleeping soundly, to his satisfaction. He was about to go check on his father as well, but found the man had locked himself into his laboratory. Rock shrugged and went back to his room, petting Tango on the way, the cat mewing at him.

He felt exhausted, and went to lie on his bed, deciding to check his phone for the first time since they left the school.

He had a bunched of missed texts, two of which were from Pit.

Pit: hi agin

Pit: hows rush?

Rock: Hi to you too, I'm fine, thank you.

Pit: rush? :o

Rock: No, Pit. No.

Pit: oh

Pit: ooooh

Rock: And I'm the one who didn't get sleep.

Rock: Though him being able to text would be pretty sweet.

Pit: yea

Pit: so? u didnt anwser me you stinky stink

Rock: He's resting. We gave him the medicine about two hours ago and it seems it calmed whatever ache he had.

Poor bud hadn't slept since last night …

Pit: cool! hopes hes bettre soon! :)

Rock: I hope so too.

Rock: But while we're talking about things that weren't answered ...

Rock: What were you talking about with Mr Layton? Should I be worried you're going to run off and be his assistant?

Pit: oh! we talkd about teh movie antlatis, dats all. an he alredy has Luke to be an asisstant.

Pit: :c

Rock: Well, you seemed pretty passionate. You're getting yourself ready for the field trip at the end of the school year already?

Pit: …

Pit: actualy i dont think ill come

Rock: What do you mean? This is the class you're best at after sports and spanish?!

Pit: but teh think is

Pit:* thing

Pit: i dont hav the mony :(

Rock: In that case I'm sure Layton wouldn't mind lowering the price for you.

You're one of his best students. Definitely assistant material.

Pit: pf

Pit: plz

Pit: im a dumdum

Rock: No you're not!

Okay, you can be dense at times, sure …

Pit: see?

Rock: But you're ressourceful and never give up!

Look at how much you progressed!

Two years ago you wouldn't have been able to type in this conversation.

Pit: aw stop

Pit: ur making me blush ^^”

Pit: dats just becus you guys hlped me

Pit: an i still do lots of mistakes sometime :/

Rock: No matter how much you deny it, this was all your doing.

And the mistakes don't matter much as long as we can understand what you're trying to say. Especially when texting.

Pit: .///.

Pit: u dont make mistaks tho

Rock: I'm just a grammar freak, Pit.

Pit: u sure it not jus to train me or somethink?

Pit: *something

Rock: Ask anyone I've ever texted, and you'll know I always type like that.

Pit: u nerd ;p

Rock: You jock. ;p

Pit: u jus used a smily

Pit: u never use em

Pit: stop coping my stile >:c

Rock: *copying ;)

Rock: and *style B)

Pit: >:o

Pit: dats it

Pit: dis is war

Rock: Oh nooo …

Pit: oh yes

Pit: u bettre belive it

Pit: *better

Pit: >:/

Rock: Anyway, I've got to put down the phone. Dinner's coming up.

I'll be going to sleep right after so, see you tomorrow?

Pit: ya, see u

Pit: but dont think i wont forget dis :/

Pit: smileys are my thing c:

Rock: Sure they are. ;)

Rock: Good night. :*

Pit: roooooock!!!!! D:<

Chapter Text

“We're late! We're so, so very late!” Pit yelled as he and his brother finally reached the high-school porch, under the falling rain.

“This is your fault, Pitstain!” Pittoo yelled back, between huffed breaths.

“How is it my fault?!”

“If you hadn't insisted on staying in your bed a little longer, we would have had time to spare, and had gotten there on time!”

“Sh-shut up! At least I was prepared on time! You were still putting on your mascara when Palutena called us down!” He tried to appear intimidating, but the rain in his eyes made him wince. His brother sneered.

They both sighed in relief when they entered the main hall, and ran to the school reception. There, Pit greeted the school monitor who was in charge for late notes this morning.

“Hey Simon!”

The man looked up from his desk and let his gaze wander, as if he was scrutinizing them. Pittoo shuddered under the stare, while Pit kept on smiling.

“The angels. Might I ask what you are doing here so late?”

“... car broke down.”

“Already?”

“Yeah ...”

“I suppose Palutena will be in a sour mood today, then?”

Pit winced. He really didn't want this school day to end too quickly. Palutena had already been furious enough at her car this morning, and he wasn't too eager to see how much her anger had worsened over the day. Thank the gods they could go to their appointment by foot tomorrow.

“I'd better not make you any more late than you are. Here's your note. Now go.”

“Thanks Simon!”

And with that, they both took off.

“I still don't get how you managed to be on friendly terms with that guy.” His brother said while his stare stayed focused in front of him.

“He's a really nice guy once you get past the cold and distant attitude!” Pit laughed as his twin turned to him, looking at him as if he were crazy.

“You're a weirdo, you know that?”

As he said that, they stopped right in front of their classroom. Pit tentatively put a hand on the handle, and knocked.

“Meta Knight's going to kills us ...” Pittoo whispered through clenched teeth.

“No he wont!” Pit whispered back.

He knocked a second time.

“Entra!” Came a powerful voice from behind the door.

They gulped, and Pit opened the door, immediately talking.

“Lo siento señor!”

“That's okay, so long as you have a note, that's fine. The class hasn't really started yet. Just don't make a habit out of it, alright?”

“Gracias!” He sighed, and went to give their teacher the note. He then looked around to see if there were some free seats left.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Ness gesturing to them, as him and his group had kept two seats for the late twins.

He smiled and took his brother by the arm, much to his protest, and guided them towards the empty chairs.

“Thanks you guys!” He whispered.

“No probs.” Ness grinned.

They started to settle and take their stuff out of their bags, ready to take notes. Well, Pit was. His brother had his phone in hand, and was scrolling down his twitter feed, clearly not ready to pay attention yet.

“Why are you so late anyway?” Asked Nana from behind them.

“Palutena's rental car gave up the ghost ...” Pit explained.

“Gee, that really sucks.” Lucas said.

They turned their attention to their teacher as he coughed, and gave them a pointed look.

“In spanish, please.”

“Yes sir!”

They made sure to speak in spanish for the rest of the class.

They did a bunch of listening comprehensions, which were a breeze for Pit and his brother, and Meta Knight let them off a bit earlier than usual after giving them their homework, and after asking Pit if he wouldn't mind babysitting his son the week after, an offer which the teen eagerly accepted.

The group took advantage of the extra time to head to the cafeteria's vending machines and buy snacks, Ness and Pit racing each other to them. Pit let out a victorious cry as he reached them first.

The two boys carefully chose their snacks and almost immediately started munching on them. Lucas gave them a worried look.

“That can't be healthy ...”

“That's what I've been trying to tell Cap!” Paula said, exasperated.

“Hey!” Ness protested in between moutfuls. “I do sports, so I can eat whatever I want! Plus I'm still growing!” Next to him Pit hummed in agreement.

“That's now how it works you guys!” Toon Link laughed. “But keep on believing what makes you happy.”

“Gee, what a bunch of sad losers, am I right?” Popo high-fived Ness, as he had come from his previous class and stopped to buy a little stack of snacks of his own. Tails, Flora, Isabelle, Jeff and Diddy were on their way as well.

“Popo!” His sister sighed exasperately.

“What? It's my money, I can spend it however I want.” He said as he opened up a bag of chips and shoved some in his mouth. “Want some?” He offered to the group.

“Well, I didn't really eat much this morning ...” A shy Tails said from behind him.

“Then you better eat something now. There's still a class between us and lunch.” He said as he opened up the bag further for the younger teen to take some, which he did.

“Thanks!”

“Great, now he's converting the youth.” Nana sighed.

“One of us! One of us!” Ness chanted.

“Please don't do that with your mouth full! You're going to choke!” Isabelle warned him.

“Wont any of you leave a guy alone with his one true love?” The boy protested, keeping his snacks close to his chest.

“Not when that 'one true love' is a widow maker!” Flora, aka Rosie, told him as she tried to snatch a few of his snacks away from him, attempts that the boy kept on dodging.

“I second that!” Paula said, and joined Flora in her attempts.

“I wont let you take my food alive!” Ness cried out.

“Die then!” Pittoo shouted over the small crowd.

Meanwhile Pit had been listening to the conversation while happily munching on a piece of candy, waiting for the next bell to ring, when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

He turned around and saw Orange, the leader of the Inklings, the rest of her group behind her.

“Excuse me, but is that a KitKat bar? There aren't any left in the vending machines, and I really wanted one ...”

Pit swallowed what food he had left in his mouth, and handed the bar over. “Really? Well if you want it, here you go.”

“Wait, don't you want me to pay for it?”

The teen winced. He knew that most of the school was aware of his financial situation, but it was easy to forget that fact at times. Hopefully with Palutena's new position things would take a turn for the better.

“No, not at all! I have plenty more to go around anyway!” He smiled as he handed her the chocolate bar.

“Cool! Thanks dude! That's so fresh of you!” She said as she gratefully took the snack from him.

“Whatever you say!” Pit laughed.

Orange then headed off with the rest of the Inklings, probably to chat on the 'Splatform', which was nothing else but the remnants of an old building that had been taken down years ago.

After a while, the bell rang, and they all headed to their english class, with Miss Rosalina.

Once there, the group met up with the Mayor, aka Johan, Coco, Tetra, Rock and Roll, who had just come out of their previous class. Despite not really liking to fight, the twins had taken a martial arts class, that doubled as yoga and fitness, as their father had felt they needed to learn how to defend themselves. Coco was just doing it for fun, though, much like Tetra and Johan.

Meanwhile Pit was trying not to check Rock out. He always got curious about the other boy's muscles each time he came out of that particular class, he just couldn't help it.

He had always suspected the teen had other activities, because he doubted doing Karate once a week would help you get biceps this fine. And he had been right, as it had happened that Rock also attended a local gym in the center of town, or so he had told him.

Soon, Miss Rosalina let them in, and they took their usual seats.

The classroom was very warm, so most students hastily removed whatever clothing they didn't need. The Ice Climbers removed their parka, and most of the group was trying to get Ness to let go of his cap, which he adamantly refused. As for Pit, he removed his scarf, and nearly squeaked when he noticed that Rock had removed his usual hoodie, leaving his arms exposed. This was the only class in which Rock was his constant tablemate, so Pit internally thanked whatever gods had decided to make his crush wear a short-sleeved T-shirt underneath his hoodie for this blessing.

Then again, maybe this wasn't exactly a blessing, as it was incredibly distracting. He kept glancing at the teen next to him, in between taking notes from the lesson. Not only that, but he often caught himself daydreaming about how it would feel to be hugged tightly by the boy next to him.

At one point he had been interrupted in his reverie by their teacher asking him a question, and would have surely made a fool out of himself had Rock not whispered the answer to him. He hastily gave it to the woman, and turned to thank his tablemate, who just smiled softly at him, and he'd lie if he said that it didn't do things to his insides.

He had tried to use all his willpower to focus back on the lesson after that incident.

After a while of explaining things, their teacher had set them up in pairs to work on an exercise. They were currently studying theater scripts, and had to explain what each of the little things were. Pit found it boring. The only thing being this exercise's saving grace was the fact they were working on a greek theater piece. And maybe the way Rock's hands kept brushing over his.

“So, that's a didascalia ...” The dark-haired teen said, as he filled-in the worksheet.

“Why can't they just call them the stage directions? Isn't that what they're called anyways?” Pit huffed.

“Focus, Angel.” Rock smiled.

“I am focusing! Look, that part uses stichomythia! Hemistichomythia even!” He said, pointing proudly to the second page of the book.

“Wow, you're right. We might find an antithesis somewhere in there ...” Rock wondered aloud.

As he was doing that, Pit looked the worksheet over, and he stumbled upon a word he wasn't sure he knew how to pronounce.

“Robot … what is that?”

“What is what?”

“That word.” He said, putting his finger right next to it.

“Soliloquy?” Rock asked once he found it.

“Is that how you say it?”

“Yes, how do you say it?”

“... solailokwy ...” Pit said hesitantly.

Rock tried to stiffle a laugh. “Well, that's close to it, at least ...”

“Hey! I just told you two words that I'm sure you didn't even know how to pronounce!” Pit pouted.

“Okay, okay, sorry if I offended you.” He said, though his tone betrayed the fact he wasn't really that apologetic.

They continued to work like that until the bell rang. They were assigned to complete the worksheet for their next class.

As the students got out they each put their clothing back on, as the air on the way to the cafeteria was rather chilly, and Pit tried his best to steal one last look at Rock's arms.

Lunch went without an itch, as Snake had sat at the Inklings' table, ominously munching on a piece of bread the whole time. Despite him being there to keep them in check, Orange seemed elated to have the school monitor sitting at their table, excitedly pointing to him as people passed by, to let everyone know he was there.

The entire group ate together this time, as they had found a free row of tables big enough to fit all of them. Ness and Pit, and Popo to an extent, basically acted as the table's own trash cans, as they were eagerly eating whatever was left on their friend's plates.

Said friends were always amazed at how much food the three boys' stomachs could handle.

Once they were done eating, they all headed to their next shared class.

Olimar, their biology teacher, wasn't exactly what you'd call capitvating, but he had least had enough presence that the class wouldn't feel bored out of their mind. However, today, their teacher had decided to let them work on their own, much to the class's relief. The catch was that they couldn't choose their partner, and were given one randomly.

Pit anxiously waited for his name to be called. He didn't really have anyone he didn't like in this class, but he was hoping he could spend a bit more time with Rock today.

Unfortunately, his partner ended up being Tetra, and Rock's was Johan.

The girl smiled at him. “How are you, Angel?”

“I'm good. What about you?”

“I'm doing fine. Kinda would like to be anywhere but here, but, eh, whaddya know. School is a thing that exists.”

Pit let out a chuckle. “Yeah, I'm not really a fan either … well, unless for some classes, especially the outdoors ones ...”

“Those are the best.” Tetra said as she stretched. “Anyway, what is ol' captain planet asking us to do today?” She asked to no one in particular as she took the worksheet. She frowned.

“Boring?” Pit asked.

“Yeah. But at least it's about the sea, so that's fine by me.”

Their assignement, as it turned out, was to explain the rise in temperature, salinity and acidity in the oceans. Not exactly a thrilling subject, but they got to work nonetheless.

They were halfway into their work, trying to decode and explain a graph, when Pit noticed Tetra had stopped paying attention.

“Something the matter?” He asked, not really wanting to continue his work. He noticed she was looking at where Rock and Johan were working together, eagerly talking about climate change and whatnot, and joking with each other.

“It's kinda weird … I mean, they're getting along just fine, but sometimes I can't for the life of me shake that day out of my head ...”

“What day?” Pit was confused. Was there something he didn't know?

“Oh, right. You weren't there in junior-high, when it happened.” Tetra said as she turned back to look at him.

“What happened?” Now he was curious.

“You see, the- wait, you don't know the history behind Robot and the Mayor? Nobody told you what happened?” She looked genuinely surprised. Pit frowned at that.

“No?”

“I guess those memories aren't exactly the best to recall after all ...” She muttered, looking away from him.

Pit was getting increasingly frustrated. What was this thing that everyone apparently knew but him? And why had Rock and the others kept it from him?

“So? What was that thing that happened?” He asked, trying his best not to sound like a bratty kid who didn't get what they wanted.

“Nothing earth-shattering, let me reassure you. It's just … first off, what you need to know is that the Mayor had a major crush on Robot.”

“Come again?” That was new. That was definitely new. Johan had had a crush on Rock?

“He kept giving him those glances in class, but never did anything about it. And then one day he started to give him gifts, a little something each day of the week. He always looked super nervous, and made sure Robot would never see him putting the gifts, wether in his locker or on his desk.” Tetra smiled as she recalled the memories.

“Aw, that's so sweet!” He felt a little pang of jealousy, but brushed it off.

“Yeah, it was. But they were anonymous, and made Robot uncomfortable. The worst thing was that Cap had started to spread rumors that maybe there was a stalker from another school giving those gifts to him.” Pit could see Tetra looking to the side, where Ness and Jeff were trying to work on their assigned task.

“Yikes.” He didn't know how he would have reacted had he been in Rock's place, but he bet he would have freaked out. Badly.

“But one day, the Mayor gathered up enough courage to finally ask him out. He left Robot a note to tell him to meet him at the center of the schoolyard, next to the old oak tree ...”

“That's so romantic.” How would he ever top that? However, something wasn't adding up. ”But … I thought Robot had never dated anyone?”

“And you'd be right. He rejected him, in front of everyone.” Tetra told him, deadpan.

“Uh?”

“It was just a formal rejection … though a bit harsher than intended, from all the stress I guess … or maybe it was because of the Mayor's insistence … but then things took an ugly turn because some other students started mocking Robot ...” The girl visibly winced. Pit did too.

“Ouch ...”

“And after that, there was sort of a divide between the students? Some defended Robot, others defended the Mayor ...”

“Really? What side were you on then?” He raised an eyebrow, smirking.

She looked sheepish for a moment. “Mayor ...”

Pit mock-gasped. “How could you?”

“Hey! In my defense, Toon brought me along. I preferred to refer to myself as a … neutral party.”

They both laughed as quietly as they could, but something was still unclear.

“So, how come they're getting along now then?”

“I guess it came naturally?” Tetra shrugged. “I don't know the full story but they simply showed up together one day, and just started to hang out as friends? To be honest we all kinda felt stupid after that ...” She chuckled a bit. “We were all pretty dumb back then ...”

“Do you think he still likes him?” Pit felt like he should really stop asking these kinds of questions if he intended to keep his lasting crush on Rock a secret, but he found it hard to resist.

“Oh, no, I don't think so. I heard from his closest friends that he had completely moved on. In fact, he happens to have a new crush. I don't know who it is, but this time I doubt he'll use the same tactics as the ones he had used back then ...”

“That's too bad. It was incredibly cute.” Even if he had felt a tiny bit jealous throughout, he had to admit that he had only ever heard of these romantic gestures in the soap operas he watched with Palutena.

“It was! But it didn't work out that well ...so that's understandable.”

They would have kept talking, had their teacher not decided to check on the progress each pairs were making on their work, which forced the two of them to hastily finish their analysis of the graph they had been working on.

However, Pit was having more trouble than ever focusing. He felt like a lot of things he had been confused about were finally starting to make sense.

Namely, Sonic's warning had taken a whole new meaning now.

Once class was over, the group of friends stayed to talk a bit, before most of them had to go their seperate ways, waving goobyes, as most of them wouldn't see each other over the weekend.

Pit had decided to get a head start at going to the Archery Club he attended, as they had practice on fridays. His twin stayed behind, as well as Toon Link's brothers, so the two of them made their way towards the Archery club's premises, along with Tetra, as the club was on her way back home.

They were talking about various things, and making bets as to who would land the most arrows in the center of the targets.

“Sooo … I heard you have a crush on my sister?” Tetra asked Pit out of the blue.

“What? Ah, uh, yes.” Pit let out a smile, thinking about the pretty girl he was trying to stay enamored with.

“As does, like, seventy percent of the school?” Toon Link chimed in.

Tetra ignored him and put a hand on Pit's shoulder.

“Look, Angel, I like you, you're one of the few people at school who doesn't get on my nerves daily ...”

“Hey! You never said that to me!” Toon cried out, and Pit couldn't tell if he was genuinely offended.

“... and I'd hate for you to have a broken heart ...” She continued while ignoring her friend.

Man, those words sounded somewhat familiar. Pit gulped

“But she's … interested in someone else ...”

“She is?” Toon asked, seeming genuinely surprised.

“Yes. So I'd suggest not to build your hopes up, Angel.”

“I wont. I think I know who she's interested in, anyway ...” He felt disappointed. So his suspicions were true. Guess he'd soon have to jump off that ship. Again.

“You do?” Both asked.

“Yeah. It's Link, isn't it?”

“What?! My brother?” Toon cried, shocked

“How do you know?” Tetra asked him, arching a brow.

“I just … know? I mean, she stares at him like … like that, you know?” And he had stared at her long enough to notice it, dense as he was.

“Well, as long as you don't say anything ...” Tetra started.

“I wont. And I wont push myself onto her, don't worry.” He smiled, but inside he could feel the turmoil, and the desperation rising in his heart. Was he never meant to find true love? But his optimistic nature quickly took over. He had been through other letdowns, and he was still here. He'd get over it.

Tetra smiled at his response, and then looked up at a sign on a big door. “Well, we're here. See you, boys!”

She waved at them as she went on her way.

The two boys were left on their own, having arrived a bit early. Next to him, Toon was fidgeting, giving him nervous glances.

He coughed a few times, seemingly wanting to ask something, and his cheeks were starting to get red.

Pit's interest was piqued, so he didn't hesitate to ask.

“Are you okay?”

Toon Link stood up straight, taken off-guard. He looked around and motioned for Pit to come closer, which he did.

“Y-yeah. I just wanted to know … how did you guess Zelda has a thing for my bro?”

“Like I said, she stared at him like … like she was in love. And since I stared at her … a lot ...” He awkwardly coughed before continuing. “It was just something I picked up from it.”

“So you just noticed the stares and that's it?”

“Basically, yeah.”

They fell back into silence for a while, waiting for the gate to open, as a soft breeze flew through the air around them. However, Pit had a feeling his friend hadn't wanted to just ask him about how his discovery came about.

And apparently he was right.

“S-so you see … “ Toon started. “I kinda wanted to know if you really could do that and … tell me if someone in particular … looked suspiciously like they were in love … you know? ...”

“Well, unless I stared at them a lot … I wouldn't know, sorry ...”

“Oh, so for instance, you don't know who I'm crushing on then!” Toon proudly said.

“Wait a minute, you have a crush on someone?!” Pit asked, positively surprised.

He saw Toon's face get redder by the minute, as the teen realized his mistake.

“N-NO!” He shouted, starting to sweat.

“But then why did you just say ...” Pit started, getting confused.

“Ugh, I hate this! I had even managed to keep this hidden from Tetra, and my siblings!” The teen repeatedly slapped his face, muttering 'idiot” over and over.

“Well, um, sorry?” Pit didn't really know how to handle his friend's outburst.

“No, don't be. It's just that … you look so trustworthy, I always forget my secrets are even secrets!” Thankfully Toon had seemed to calm down, and was tentatively smiling.

“I get that a lot. Though it's nice hearing that it's because I'm a nice person, and not because I'm a dunce who will forget about it the next day ...” He practically muttered that last part. “But don't worry, your secret's safe with me!”

Toon smiled a bit more. “You know, it's great that you're not a gossip. I'd hate to see Rosie have that kind of power ...”

“Oh please no!” Pit laughed. “School would be a nightmare! Everyone's secrets and crushes exposed!”

Toon Link joined in on the laughter.

Pit wanted to ask more about the situation, but the gate opened next to them.

The other participants joined them, and the two boys went with their brothers to form the team duos.

It was time for practice.

They had a few laughs together, and Pit had his usual stand off with Link at the end, trying to see who'd land the most arrows in a limited time. This time, he won, and didn't shy away from displaying his pride.

Toon and Pittoo tried to get him back to earth, but the teen wouldn't comply. Everyone left in a good mood, safe for Link, who was a bit of a sore loser, but still congratulated Pit on the win.

He said goodbye to the others and ran straight to home, eager to text, eat and relax, while his twin trailed behind him, asking him to slow down all the way through.

However, the atmosphere back at their flat was sort of eerie, or maybe it was because of the fact Pit had just remembered the problem with the car as he stepped inside.

He decided to save the thoughts for later, and went straight for the fridge, while his brother went for their room.

He served himself a drink and some food, and texted his friends as he watched whatever was on TV at the time. After a while, he noticed Pittoo hadn't come out of their room yet, and wondered if he was hungry.

He opened the door, not bothering to knock, and peeked inside.

“Hey, Too, aren't you hungry or something?”

For some reason, his brother was looking at him like a deer caught in the headlights.

“What are you doing here? Go back to stuffing your face or whatever!”

“Rude! And for the record, this is my room too! I have every right to be here, whenever I want!”

He was about to rant some more, but froze when he heard a little squeak coming from right next to his foot.

He looked down to see a small furry critter staring right back at him.

“Is … is that a rat?!” He screamed, as the little creature scurried away into his brother's hands.

“Shhh! Shut up you idiot! Palutena could be here any minute now! She's going to hear you!” He whispered harshly.

“Where did you find it? You're not going to keep it in our room are you?” Pit asked, whispering this time.

“I found him at school. He had crawled into my bag. And of course I'm keeping Pichu here.” Pittoo said as he affectionately scratched the rat's head.

“Pichu?”

“That's his name. Right Pichu?”

The little rat squeaked at the sound of his name.

“B-but we can't keep a rat? What if it -he's- filthy? What if he comes crawling into my bed and bites me?” Pit was flailing his arms around, his whisper starting to get louder.

“If he was gonna bite you he would have done so already, Pitstain. He's been here for three days.” Pittoo deadpanned.

“WHAT?” Pit shouted, his eyes as wide as saucers.

“I told you to shut up!” His twin spat.

“And how do you expect me to react when I'm told a rat has been trotting around our room for all this time and I never noticed!” He was trying hard to whisper again, despite his panic.

“I expect you not to freak out?! I thought you liked animals!”

“Yeah! When I'm warned that they're here! And when they're not crawling freely around our bedroom without me knowing!”

“Okay, okay, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner!”

“You better be!”

Seeing as the two brothers' argument had decreased sufficiently, the small rat decided to approach Pit again. This time, the teen tentatively put his hand down at rat level, and the rodent sniffed his hand, before licking it.

After that, Pichu jumped into Pit's palm, surprising both teens. Feeling confident enough, Pit lightly pet the rat's back, earning him a small appreciative squeak from the critter.

“Uh, I guess he's … kinda cute.”

“See? Now give him back.”

As Pit gave the rat back, the boys heard some shuffling from the staircase.

“Sh*t!” Pittoo hurriedly hid his pet under his bed. “You stay there Pichu, okay?”

Despite being offended he hadn't been warned of the rat's presence, Pit wasn't about to let his twin get caught, and decided to buy him some time by distracting their caretaker.

Said woman practically threw the door out of its hinges with the force she opened it with. As expected, she was fuming. Pit gulped.

“I can't believe it! They can only do repairs in two weeks? Two whole weeks? And in the middle of a work day, as if that loveliness wasn't enough!” She started to rant as she placed her bags on the table, not even sparing a glace at the teen standing next to her. "And don't get me started on the fact they can't get me a replacement car!"

“Hey, Palu ...”

“Seriously, do they think I'm a housewife or something? I don't have that kind of time, mister! I need a car to work!” She opened the fridge wide. “Hello Pit.” She slammed it back into place after she got some juice, and practically downed the bottle.

“... Bad day?”

He immediately regretted his question after the woman decided to take it as a cue to rant some more about her entire day. Thankfully, she calmed down after a while and turned on the TV while eating snacks, watching her favorite soap opera.

Pit would have joined her, but decided he'd let her have some space.

He carefully opened the door back to his shared room, and saw his brother pretending to read a magazine.

“The coast is clear.” He whispered.

“Are you sure?”

“She's watching TV.”

“Great.”

He watched as his twin cooed at the rat so as to get him to crawl out from under the bed, and had to refrain from chuckling when he saw that his twin was making cute little faces and sounds as he pet the little rat.

He decided to leave him be, and text his friends instead.

While he was doing that, he thought back to all that he had learned today, from the confirmation of Zelda's crush on Link to the discovery of what could have been the root of Sonic's speech way back then.

He also thought back to the archery practice they had just been to, and smiled once more as he thought of his victory against Link.

He may not have won the war of hearts, but he had least had won a battle of arrows.

But now that he knew he'd have to give up on Zelda, he found himself right back where he had started, with only Rock on his mind. He was racking his brain trying to figure out how he'd keep his persistent infatuation a secret if he didn't have the cover of a second, less powerful crush to fool everyone, himself included. Though he usually didn't have to wait too long until someone else caught his eye and his heart ...

Where will the next arrow land … he thought.

Despite himself, he thought back to this morning's english lesson.

Or maybe I should focus on the one target …

He blushed at the thought, and instead opened his twitter app to take his mind off of things, though his heart beat took a while before it went back to its usual pace.

Chapter Text

The following week had been punctuated by various chats about the upcoming Halloween party, and an impromptu eating contest, but overall had been pretty uneventful, safe from the fact Rock had mustered up the courage to ask Pit out on a date.

Well, it wasn't officially a date, not a romantic one at least. Just a friendly outing. But it was still something. Just the two of them, strolling about around town.

Rock had been a bit nervous all the same.

“H-hey, Angel, can I uh, ask you something?” He had managed to catch up to him once the second-to-last class of the day had been over and done with.

“What is it, Robot?” The other teen had smiled at him. It had been one of these easy smiles that could easily take Rock aback. Then again, all of Pit's smiles seemed to come easily.

“Would you like to hang out, after school? Maybe we could go buy ice cream? My treat.” Rock had felt like he was about to be out of breath.

“... What?” Pit had stopped in his tracks, apparently waiting for his friend to clarify.

“Y-you know, we'd uh… it's just a little outing, between friends.” He had made sure to put an emphasis on friends, hoping to get his point across.

“Why?... It's not that I don't want to but... it's kinda weird you're asking me now.”

“Well, Cinnamon is busy this evening, and the weather's rather nice today...” He had been starting to grow impatient.

“In that case… okay! But it's only because you're paying!” Pit had laughed, and headed for his last class, shooting a smile to Rock over his shoulder.

“Of course.” Rock had smiled back, sighed longingly, and trotted to his own last class of the day, eager for it to end before it had even started.

Once school had been out he had anxiously waited for the boy to join him, consulting various apps as time went on. He held in a breath as Pit came smiling his way, and they both headed off on their own.

They went through town, looking at the various shop windows and their displays. As they walked, Rock sometimes tried to make it so their hands would meet and lightly brush against each other, but not too often, as he didn't want the other to suspect anything. It wasn't that hard to do, as the other teen tended to bump into him ever so often, always apologizing when he did, though his cheeks went pink sometimes. Rock attributed it to the cold air. It was october, after all.

They had been walking aimlessly until they reached one of the city's beaches. They were partially deserted this time of the year, safe from people walking their dogs and others looking for seashells. Sometimes some people crazy enough would take a dip in the waters, but not for long.

Pit tugged on Rock's sleeve, forcing him to come along with him, and they walked to the water, their shoes getting a bit soiled from the wet sand, and Pit looked around for whatever the sea had left behind. Rock watched as his friend bent down to grab something and show it to him.

“Look! A cuttlefish shell! That's the kind of stuff you give to birds!” The other exclaimed, proudly lifting his discovery up in the air.

“But you don't have a bird. What use would it have?” Rock teased him.

“One of the kids I babysit has a bird, so take that, smartass!” Pit smirked, and immediately after trotted on the sand before bending down once again. “… hey, look, sea urchins! Uh… their skeletons, at least...” He said as he put his findings into his schoolbag.

Rock snorted, and casually followed the other boy as he tried to find more shells and the likes, when a small pool of water with rocks and boulders caught his eye. Upon closer inspection, it appeared it hosted various kind of marine life.

“Hey, Angel! Come and see this!” He shouted over the wind, pointing down at the pool.

The other boy ran to him, and crouched down. “Wow! That's a lot of starfishes!”

“And a crab.”

“Where?” Pit looked around, but found nothing looking remotely like a crab.

“Aw, too bad, you missed it. It went back under the sand.”

 He chuckled at the pout Pit sent his way, but raised an eyebrow when the boy's expression turned into a satisfactory smirk.

 “You got the crab, but you missed the fish!” Pit said triumphantly.

“There's a fish?” This time, it was Rock's turn to look around for nothing.

“Yup.” He grinned mischievously, looking up at his friend. “That's what you get for making fun of me!”

As he said that, a small group of shrimps darted from one side of the pool to another. The two boys also noticed a periwinkle with a pointed shell going up another periwinkle with a rond shell.

“Aw, just look at these two! They're friends!” Pit cooed.

“I'm not sure...” Rock frowned. “I think that's the winkle Tetra always talks about. You know, her favorite?”

“The one that pierces the other winkles' shells and eats them?” Pit asked, a glint of suspicion in his eyes.

“Yeah, that one.”

There was a beat, and the next thing Rock knew was that Pit was feet first into the pool, determined to save the mollusc from peril. He succeeded, checked to see if the shell was still intact, and gave Rock a thumbs up along with a proud yet dopey grin.

Meanwhile the other boy was trying to process what had just happened.

“Why did you...”

“I couldn't let him be eaten before my eyes! It just wasn't right!” He said, and Rock swore he could hear the passion in his voice, and almost wanted to let him have his moment. But the opportunity to tease him won over this desire.

“Yeah, tell that to all the other winkles about to get their afternoon snacks.” He snorted, pointing to what looked like and armada of pointy-shelled winkles gently moving onto the sand.

Pit made a face, and though it took a bit of time, seemed to admit defeat. He ended up gently placing the predatory winkle back into the pool, amongst its hungry peers.

He grumbled as he made his way back to dry ground, taking his shoes off to get the water out of them.

“Not a word.” Pit muttered, not looking at Rock directly.

“I haven't said anything.” He said, his face as neutral as ever. “... that was very brave of you though. Surely you're that periwinkle's hero.”

The boy turned to him and stuck his tongue out.

“So, where to next?” Rock asked him, ignoring his childish antics.

Pit seemed to ponder for a moment, his mouth stuck in an indecisive pout.

“I don't really know… the harbour maybe? There's a really good ice cream parlor over there I haven't been to yet... and that talk about winkles eating each other made me hungry somehow.”

“You sure know your places.” Rock smiled.

“Of course! Who do you take me for?” Pit smiled back.

Once Pit's shoes had dried out a bit, they took a stroll along the harbour, laughing about the dumbest things, most of which were gossip and fun happenings in some of their differing classes, or the latest conspiracy over who had been tagging those cryptic messages and bizarre drawings in the school's bathroom.

They were so involved in their conversation that they almost didn't notice when they reached the ice cream parlor.

Once there, the teens watched in awe at the large selection of ice creams said parlor sold. Rock looked at the prices, and quickly understood why Pit had never set foot in it yet. Not even a toe.

“Look, I know I said I'd pay, but please don't buy the whole selection...” He laughed nervously.

“Are you crazy? For once I just want to savor it, not stuff my face!” Pit laughed as well, but it was more earnest.

They went to wait in line, and had to wait a while, as the place was pretty popular. Rock was puzzled by this.

“Who wants to buy this much ice cream in the middle of october?” He whispered, leaning a bit into Pit.

“Plenty of people, apparently. Including me. Ice cream doesn't have a season if you're not a coward!” Pit whispered back, leaning as well.

“Or not wanting an indigestion...”

“Oh, hush, it's not worst than yogurt. Trust me, just buy one for yourself, and you'll understand.” Pit easily slid an arm over Rock's shoulders as he talked. Rock looked away almost immediately, and went over the selection of flavors displayed by a huge poster to try and make his choice, though it was mostly to distract himself so as not to blush from the contact.

“I don't know... I'm not really hungry...” He muttered.

Pit huffed. “You're never hungry, Rock. Did you drink a lot of that energy drink again?”

Rock tried his best to appear neutral. “No...”

The other teen didn't say anything and simply looked at him disapprovingly.

After a while they finally reached the counter and Pit masterfully picked his order, choosing a flavor for Rock despite his protests, and the both of them left after paying a hefty sum that Pit was glad he didn't have to spend a single cent for.

They walked around the port for a bit until they found a rather isolated spot and sat down, letting their legs dangle from the ledge, the water softly clicking against the walls beneath.

They tried to resume their previous conversation, but soon had to fall silent and eat their food before it melted. The sound of the boat's bells and chains resonated in the air, along with the screams of the seagulls.

Pit didn't waste time in eating his icy treat, but kept an eye out for Rock's reaction once he'd start eating his own. To his satisfaction, the boy's eyes opened wide in awe after the first bite.

“Wow! It's really good!”

“See? I told you!” Pit smiled.

“Yeah, you sure did. Then again you're really knowledgeable when it comes to food.” He said, leaning a bit on his back, and licking at the ice cream again.

“Heh, I'm not an expert... I just like to eat.” Pit said, trying to brush off the comment, though his legs dangled a bit faster, betraying the giddiness he felt from the compliment.

“Which, in my eyes, makes you an expert. And is yet another thing you're good at.” Rock said matter-of-factly, not tearing his eyes off of the treat he was now intent on eating whole.

“Oh...” Pit turned around to hide his face, blushing a bit. “Thanks...”

They stayed in relative silence for the rest of that, both busy eating. A group of seagulls watched the pair from afar, aware of every little crumbs that would fall off the cones at times.

Once they finished eating however, they went back to talking about their friends, and the freshest gossip. Then the conversation turned to their daily lives, and Rock happily mentioned how Rush was feeling way better.

Pit mentioned in passing the ongoing problem with Palutena's car, before informing his friend about the newest addition to the household.

“A rat?” Rock had asked in disbelief.

“Yeah. A young one too.” Pit sighed, rolling his eyes. Though the fresh memory of his brother cooing over the little rodent made him feel happy.

“Do you even have a rat cage? A big one preferably? What about litter? And food?” Rock ranted, as Pit watched him fondly.

“I don't know... it's Pittoo's secret pet and- hey, uh, you wont tell him I told you about it, right?” He panicked a bit. He knew Rock would never put him in a bad situation, but he hadn't exactly meant to reveal that to him. It had just happened. It was hard keeping secrets when Rock just looked so trustworthy and reliable.

“No, of course not. Well, unless I have to intervene...” Rock pondered for a moment, and then turned to Pit, eyes almost shining. “Hey now that I think about it, I happen to have an old rat cage lying about! It's technically Sonic's, but he wont mind if I lend it to you.”

“You sure?”

“One hundred percent. If you ever need one, just ask me.”

“Thanks! I'll keep that in mind.” Pit was really thankful. It was nice to know there was a plan B in case they didn't find one themselves, or they had an emergency with the rat. And he hoped Pittoo would get a cage soon, because as cute as Pichu was, Pit did not want to spend the rest of his nights wondering if the little rat was crawling about on his bed.

Then Rock looked at Pit a bit more intently. “As for the car-”

“No! I already told you. No tinkering with the car.” As great as Rock was with machines, Pit was pretty sure Palutena would throw a fit if a teenager tried to repair one of her most prized possessions.

“Aw. You're no fun.” Rock grinned.

They continued to talk until the sun was about to set down, and started heading back home, Rock offering to accompany Pit to his apartment complex, the teen accepting almost as quickly as he was asked.

But on the way to his home, Pit had become more and more silent, and this unnerved Rock, who was used to him being really talkative, usually carrying the conversation and cracking up jokes when he couldn't settle on what to talk about.

He was about to ask if something was wrong, as he felt he was a moment away from freaking out, when Pit stopped in his tracks and looked straight at him.

“So, um, sorry to ask you that… I know it's out of the blue... and it's kinda personal but… do you think Zelda likes me?”

Ah. Fantastic. Of course he'd have to bring her up.

Rock hated feeling that way. He knew it was wrong to be jealous, especially since Pit always seemed so happy whenever he talked about this newest crush. And it had been going on ever since the school year had started. Which he thought was a record for the other. Though he usually tried not to keep close tabs on his friend's love life for quite obvious reasons.

But he was one of Pit's best friends first, and the guy crushing on him for years and kinda getting jealous of all those who got his romantic attention second.

So he put on his best fake smile, the kind he put on whenever investors came by their house, and tried his best to answer. As any good, supporting friend would.

“It'd be weird for her not to, so, yeah, I think she likes you.” But I like you more!

“Y-you think so? Why?” Pit looked really unsure. Maybe confused.

“Well, you're a great person. Reliable, lovable, and fun to be around. She should at least appreciate you as a friend, if not more.” He took Pit's hand in his as he said so, looking reassuringly into his eyes. Unfortunately, initiating this gesture made him think up things that he would never dare utter aloud.

You're also breathtakingly beautiful, your eyes leave me feeling weak, and your smiles are always on my mind, I would love nothing more but to hold you close and tell you about how wonderful you are.

“Wow, um, t-thanks.” Pit blushed. Rock assumed thinking that Zelda thought of him that way was the cause of it, missing the quick glances Pit cast at their joined hands. “Do you think we'd be good for each other? Would you be okay with us being a thing?”

He internally winced, and hoped that this would be the last of his questions. What were those questions anyway?

“Yes, you'd definitely be good for each other. For one thing, I'm sure she'd make you as happy as you'd make her.” But I'd make you happier.

“Oh, so I guess you do agree with the idea of us dating...” For a moment Rock felt as though Pit had been disappointed by his answers, but dumped it on wishful thinking.

“Why not? You'd be a perfect couple!” He smiled wide, letting go of Pit's hand, reluctantly. We'd be a perfect couple too.

“Well, thank you for your answers… I know it was kinda awkward...” Pit fiddled with his hands, looking anywhere but at Rock.

Oh, it was.

“But, I really appreciate you listening to me, and being there.” He looked at him again, a shy yet sincere smile gracing his lips. He looked beautiful.

“Of course. I'll always be there for you Pit.” Rock returned his smile, though with a hint of sadness. Unbeknownst to Rock, Pit found him to be beautiful as well.

They then said their goodbyes, wishing each other good luck on their homework, and on his way home Rock had tried really hard to think about all the little moments they shared together, and to erase that last conversation from his mind.

Chapter Text

The morning after, Pit sported a wide smile, so wide that his brother had actually scorned at it, muttering that it would blind him for sure.

The boy couldn't help the smile, though, as he had had a pretty good night's sleep. He had been happy for the time spent with Rock the day before. It wasn't every day the other boy took initiative, so Pit had really felt special.

Those good feelings were enough to mask the slight disappointment he had felt when the mention of Zelda hadn't gotten a reaction out of Rock.

He had been curious to try and see if he could get his friend to be jealous, but got quite the opposite of what he would have liked to see, and hear.

And he couldn't really share his frustrations with anyone, as he was sort of supposed to be over his crush. And to have been for years.

He comforted himself with the knowledge that Rock had held his hand, and had looked at him with such care. He could swear he still felt tingles there sometimes.

Once breakfast was had, the two boys made sure not to mention anything remotely related to cars as they and their caretaker made their long way to the high school, by foot.

Thankfully, Palutena had seemed to be in a good mood. The twins had shared a secret look of relief.

The day went by quickly, and since most students felt sleepy, both with it being the end of the week, and because of the dark grey clouds blocking out the sun and leaving the world in a permanent penumbra, school almost felt like it had been a dream, had it not been for the reminder and call back to reality that was known as homework.

Archery practice had been cancelled due to the weather, and rightfully so, since as the twins were about to head out and go back home for the week-end once the day came to an end, a literal wall of water came crashing down onto them. They scurried over back to the buildings, their clothes soaking wet, as they shook their heads to try and get the excess water out of their hair.

“Damn it! If that stupid Chemistry teacher had let us out on time-”

Pit tuned out his brother's angry and swears-filled rant as he heard someone letting out a long, amazed whistle by their side. He turned to find it was Sonic, looking outside at the pouring rain.

“Nasty weather we're having, right?” The boy said over the drumming noise of the water.

“We noticed...” Pit sighed. “I hope it calms down soon, or we wont make it back home before sunset...”

“Yeah, don't get your hopes up bud. I heard these storms were last minute things, and they're going to be awful, and persistent.”

Pit's face fell, and he let himself slouch down against one of the nearby walls, effectively leaving a trail of water on it.

“Crap...” He uttered.

“Pit! Language!” His brother spat, though it was clear it was just another way of teasing him.

Sonic let out a semi-repressed laugh. “Looks like you two are going to be stuck here for the evening. What do you say about coming over at mine's?”

“Yours?” Pittoo asked, rasing an eyebrow.

“Yeah, me and the guys devised an impromptu sleepover at lunch.”

“Really? Who's going?” Pit asked, though he would gladly go no matter who was invited.

“Eh, friends of mine, some from this school, mostly seniors, and most of them from my class, though Tails will be there for sure... also the Inklings. I asked the Light Twins, but they said they wanted to work...” Sonic chuckled. “ Well, Robot did, at the very least.”

“Oh.” Pit pondered about the offer. It wasn't often he got to hang out with the older students, and he'd love to go, but he wondered if Palutena would be okay with that. That, and he kinda had a babysitting job to attend to in the morning, but he figured he'd manage to get there on time regardless.

“Heck yeah, we're going!” Pittoo exclaimed. It seemed like his brother didn't have the same worries he had. Then again, he had always been the least obedient of the two. Pit wouldn't dare cross their caretaker.

“You sure about that? I don't think you've had the time to inform the Goddess of the change of plans, right?” Sonic asked, smirking as Pittoo's frustration clearly showed.

“Oh, right, that...” He sighed and took out his phone, texting the woman herself.

While he texted, Pit got up, and leaned over his shoulder, whispering.

“Hey, uh, that's great and all, but what about Pichu?”

“He'll be fine.” Pittoo whispered back. “You know he's hidden away in my night stand, and he has plenty of food to go by.”

“I still think he would be better off in a comfy rat cage...”

“Maybe, but how could I buy and sneak in a cage without her noticing?”

They stopped talking as Pittoo's phone vibrated. But Palutena had only informed them she had just gotten back home and would have to think about it.

“... well, Robot has a cage he can lend you.” Pit whispered again.

“Oh my g- don't tell me you told him!” Pittoo hissed.

“I didn't!” He lied.

“Yeah right. I totally believe you.”

“Told him what?”

They both startled as Sonic leaned his head over the phone, intruding on both the boy's personal space.

“It's none of your business!” Pittoo yelled, going red in the face.

“I heard something about a cage, and Robot. I remember giving him a rat cage because I didn't have enough space to keep it in my dorm.”

He silently stared at Pittoo, and his features slowly changed into a teasing grin. “Sooo... what's your pet rat's name?”

“I don't-”

“Pichu.” Pit said.

Then the three of them went silent for mere moments, until Sonic cooed.

“Awww, that's adorable!” He tried to reach for the boy's dark hair, to try and mess with him, but Pittoo recoiled, while glaring daggers at his twin.

“I am so going to kill you.”

“What? He had already figured it out!” Pit tried to defend himself.

“No he hadn't!”

“Yes I had.” Sonic said before putting his hands on his hips and starting to impatiently tap his foot. “So, has the Goddess given you her blessings?”

“She said she'd think about it...” Pit explained.

The moment he stopped talking, Pittoo's phone vibrated again. Still embarassed and frustrated, the boy took it as a distraction from the other two.

“She says she's cool with it as long as we keep her updated... Ugh! We're not six anymore!”

“Cool! Follow me then!” The blue-haired teen said, as he led them through the buildings leading to the dorms.

“Whoa!” Pit had exclaimed mid-way, while Sonic had been using one of his keys to open a door. “I never thought it was possible to go all the way to the dorms without having to go outside!”

“Well now you know it is. Only if you have the keys, of course.” He had said, jiggling said keys in front of the boy's nose.

A bunch of long, empty corridors and multiple turns later, they were standing in front of Sonic's door, who opened it for the twins and held it like a butler would.

“After you...”

Sonic's dorm was sort of a special case amongst the school. It was the biggest of them all, mostly because the teen was the only one out of all the students who stayed over during the week-end and holidays. It had been a small favor given by the principal, with permission from the Hands, the origin of which was a secret to most.

Because of this, back in his first year, Pit had naively asked if Mario was Sonic's father. Said teen had quickly turned into a sputtering mess, desperately trying to clear up Pit's confusion, all the while the witnesses to the conversation had been laughing their heads off.

Since this was a permanent housing, it was pretty cluttered in some places, but it still had a homey feeling.

“Come on! Make yourselves at home!” Sonic said as he closed the door. “The others should be there in a few. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some snacks to bring out of some cupboards.”

“I can help!” Pit said, not really wanting to stay and wait.

“Suit yourself.” Sonic shrugged, as he showed him around.

Once they got a small table covered with various snacks, they heard a knock on the door.

“Come in!” Sonic said as he readjusted one of the bags of chips, that was threatening to fall over.

“Hey Sonic!” A young blond teen opened the door and made his way inside, soaking umbrella in hand.

“Hey Tails, buddy, how was the road?” Sonic asked his friend, raising his hand up.

“Awful.” The younger teen smiled, giving Sonic his awaited high-five, before turning his attention to the other guests.

“Oh! You guys are early!”

“They were last minute guests. Escorted here by yours truly.”

“Why-” He looked out the window, the rain a curtain so thick you could barely make out the shape of the buildings that were usually visible. “Oh, yeah... your car... the rain...” He said shooting an embarassed smile at the twins, before showing his umbrella to Sonic. “Uh... where do I put it?”

“There's an old laundry basket I don't use anymore, you can put it there, I don't mind.”

They then went on to talk about stuff only they would be interested about, while Pittoo played a game on his phone.

Not having anything worthwhile to do as the four of them waited for the other guests, Pit had gone to the window to look outside, his elbows resting on the window sill as he watched the rain falling, the wind making the water dance, shrouding everything under a greyish chaotic mess.

He was glad Sonic had invited them. Had he not, and should the storms last as long as the blue-haired boy had said they would, him and Pittoo would have had had to try and make it home under this nightmare.

There was a flash of light, and Pit's shriek was quickly covered by a powerful crack of thunder.

He heard his brother chuckle, and as he turned around to glare at him, the door opened again.

This time, Rayman, Crash, two guys he knew to be named Ratchet and Clank, as well as Banjo and Kazooie made their entrance, alongside Tooty and Coco.

They looked to have been animatedly talking on the way to Sonic's place, and greeted their host before falling back into their previous conversation.

“Seriously, do you always have to bring your sis with you everywhere you go, Crash?” Ratchet asked.

“Hey, at least I'm his sister. What is Tails doing here?” Coco said, trying to defend her presence.

“He's like a brother to me, Coco! And this is my place! I can invite whoever I want!” Sonic quipped from the other side of the room.

“No need to fight! I'm a sister too!” Tooty said, trying to calm everyone down.

“The best!” Banjo said as he put a hand on his sister's shoulder.

“Ugh, whatever, where's the food!” Kazooie asked as Pit pointed to the hefty stack on the table. “F*cking finally!”

“Hey, hey, hey! Kazoo! There are children here!” Rayman laughed.

“Call me Kazoo again and I'll cut your arms and legs off, Raymond.” She sent the empty threat as she went for a bag of chips, claiming it as hers.

“Geez, sorry...” Banjo said.

“Dude, don't apologize, we already know how much of a b*tch she can be. But she means well.” Ratchet said, following suit and serving himself a drink.

“Guys, again, the kids.” Rayman repeated, making a show of covering Tails' ears, who only rolled his eyes, used to the antics.

“Heh, don't worry about us. Angel swears like a sailor!” Pittoo exclaimed, looking up from his phone.

“I do not! You're the one who's rapping up swears every sentences!” Pit argued, crossing his arms.

Pittoo mustered up his best innocent look. “Me?” He put a hand on his heart, feigning being hurt. “Why, I am the most well-behaved student in this whole school! City, even! How could you spread such nasty rumors about your own twin, Pit?”

“I like this kid!” Kazooie said in-between mouthful of chips.

The door knocked again before anything else could be said, and some new people let themselves in.

Pit immediately recognized Amy and Knuckles, as well as Rouge and Shadow. The other five, however, he was not at all familiar with.

“Hey! Look at that, you all made it!” Sonic greeted enthusiastically.

He immediately started chatting it up with the newcomers, and only after a while did he turn to the guests who were already here.

“Oh, right. I should maybe do the introductions... even though the Inklings aren't there yet...” He muttered. “Anyway, Knuckles brought along his buddies from the other school. They call themselves the Chaotix.”

Three of the boys greeted them. Pit learned they were named Mighty, Vector and Espio.

“And, from that same school, this is Silver...” Sonic pointed to a silver-haired teen who shyly waved at them. “... and this is Blaze!” The girl next to him gave the crowd a curt nod.

“Pleasure to meet you.”

There was yet another knock on the door, and once prompted, the Inklings made their entrance.

“Hey everyone!” Blue greeted.

"Glad to see the rain didn't keep you from coming!" Sonic said, making it so the newly arrived group would have space to come into the already crowded room.

“Sonic, dude, how many people did you invite?!” Orange asked, looking at the other guests.

“A bunch. As they say, the more the merrier.” He grinned. “But unless we have uninvinted guests coming along, that should be everyone.”

“Uninvited guests? In this weather?” Clank remarked.

“Yeah, ugh, I hate it when it rains...” Purple sighed as she flopped down onto the floor.

“So.” Sonic clapped to get everyone's attention. “What do you guys want to do to start up this sleepover?”

Everyone had immediately gone to the food, and once the craving for nutrients had been quenched, they decided to put on some music, putting the volume as loud as they desired, since no one else spent the night at school.

Some of the guests danced along with each other, some showed off some moves, like the Inklings, who were a pretty good team when it came to improvised choregraphy.

Once the novelty of the music wore off, and more and more people starting chatting amongst each other, though staying in their own groups, it was decided they'd do some sleepover activities.

And as in every good cliché sleepover, they chose to play Truth or Dare first.

They had been playing for a while, and a lot of embarassing secrets were revealed, and stupid dares were done.

Pit was thankful, as for the moment, the pringles can they were using to determine who would answer hadn't landed on him yet.

Instead, it had landed on Ratchet.

“Alright Banjo, you get to ask the Lorax!” Sonic said with a grin.

“It's the Lombax.” Ratchet corrected, sending a long tired stare Sonic's way.

“Whatever dude, just play the game!” Kazooie scoffed.

“Ratchet. Truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“Is it true you were an angry rebellious teen?” Banjo asked.

“Still am.”

“Why?”

“Hey, hey! One question only!” Sonic scolded.

“Aw.”

“Ratchet, your turn bud!” The blue-haired teen turned to face the other boy, who took the can for his turn.

“Great.” He spun the pringles can around. “Ray, truth or dare?”

“Truth. I am not drinking toilet water again.” The teen scoffed. His friends snickered.

Pit and Pittoo shared a look, and instinctively scooted closer to one another. What were these parties really like?

“Quit spoiling everyone's fun!” Ratchet smirked. “Alright, uh... is it true that, as a child, you tried to win a girl over with a dead rabbit?”

“I didn't know it was dead!”

Most of the room broke into laughter, some even clapped. Pit wondered what was so funny, feeling like he'd understand their laughter better if he was aware of the story behind it all, but joined in anyway.

“Alright, alright...” Sonic tried to calm the group down. “Ray, spin it!”

The pringles can spun around and very narrowly missed landing on Pit, instead landing on Orange. Pit let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

“Orange! Truth or Dare!”

“I'm feeling bold.” The girl said, grinning. “Dare.”

The room erupted in 'Ooooooh''s, and Rayman smirked.

“Big mistake!” He almost cackled. “I dare you... to draw a picture of your crush.”

Orange's face went red, and the other Inklings broke into laughter.

Despite that, once the girl was handed pen and paper, she started drawing, and once done, she proudly showed everyone the result.

“Oh, hey, isn't that that girl... what was her name again?...” Banjo pondered.

“Nana?! You have a crush on Nana?” Amy asked, eyes wide.

“What? She's cute.” Orange muttered, looking away with a fond look on her face.

“That's a really nice drawing!” Tooty said. “You must like her a lot!”

“Oh, she does!” Green laughed.

“She talks our ears off about her any chance she gets!” Yellow exclaimed.

“Guuuys... quit it...” Orange whined, her face still red. “Hand me that can!”

Blaze threw the pringles can her way, and she ate one of them, before spinning it.

Unfortunately for Pit, it seemed as if his luck had just ran out, as the can designated him to be the next victim.

“Alright, it's Angel this time. Orange, go ahead.” Sonic said, a playful smirk making its way on his face.

“So, truth or dare? Which do you pick?” She bent over slightly, as she was seated not far away from the boy.

“Truth.” Pit absolutely didn't want to pick dare at this point.

“Do you have a crush on anyone right now?” She smiled, as if she already knew the answer.

Pit's mind immediately went to Rock. He tried really hard not to blush.

“No!” He answered, a little too loudly for his taste. The others gave him looks.

“Really? What about Zelda?” Sonic asked, and the room went quiet, some people awaiting the answer, while others just looked bored or confused.

“I'm… I'm over her.” He admitted, his voice dimming down. It felt weird saying it out loud. Like he was admitting it for real this time. Like speaking it into existence had made it tangible. And official. And, really, it did. Soon the news would surely spread.

There was no going back, was there? He really was going to go after Rock.

“What?” Coco asked, dumbfounded.

Pit tried to find a way he could explain his sudden loss of interest without the others finding out the complete truth behind it. It should be pretty easy, he'd just have to play it off as yet another crush that he hadn't been able to keep from fading away. Which, really, it was.

If only he could stop feeling so nervous. And suspicious.

“I mean, she's pretty-”

“True.” Most people said.

“But she was interested in someone else already, and I guess she just wasn't the one...” He trailed off, his mind going back to the unofficial date he had the day prior.

“So then, who do you have a crush on?” Orange asked yet again, picking up on the somewhat dreamy look on his face.

Pit willed his previous thoughts away. “I don't have a crush on anyone!”

“Dude you agreed to play by the rules.” His brother reminded him.

“And I chose truth, and told the truth! Now leave me alone!”

He crossed his arms and sulked, not caring if it was childish. The subject was too confusing and too fresh on his mind for him to think about it rationally.

Next to him, Orange fidgeted.

“I accept your answer.” She finally said, smiling apologetically.

Despite that, Pit stormed off into another room, needing some time to himself.

He had stayed alone with his thoughts for almost an hour, playing games on his phone, feeling too chicken, not willing to go back and risk ruining the mood, especially since it sounded like everyone was having fun.

He was supposed to be someone fun to be around, and he wanted to uphold that reputation, but anything that had to do with the matters of his heart left him feeling vulnerable, and a vulnerable Pit tended to be a fighting Pit. He wasn't really one to naturally go for flight.

He sighed when he lost yet another match of the crappy, yet free, rip-off of Avenue Brawlers he had been playing once Shape Run had gotten boring.

That's when he noticed someone was standing next to him.

“Whaddy'a want?” He asked.

“You, back with us. I'm trying to be a good host.”

Pit didn't even spare Sonic a look. Instead starting up another match.

He heard, more than saw, the older teen sit down next to him.

“So, what was that?”

“What was what?” Pit knew what he was talking about. He just didn't want to talk about it.

“You're over Zelda?” It didn't sound like a question, more like an observation.

Pit still nodded, focused on trying to get a combo.

“And you really don't feel anything for anyone?” Sonic's tone made it obvious he wasn't waiting for a "No."

Pit didn't care.

“Nah, nothing.”

“Not even for Rock?" Sonic actually paused, as if he was gauging Pit's reaction. "You really got over him?”

Pit lost this match too. He actually thought of what he should say. Obviously he had never gotten over Rock. It had been made more clear than ever to him over the last few days. But Sonic didn't need to know that.

“Y-yeah. Totally. I like us as friends, nothing more.” He winced when he realized he had stuttered.

There was a beat of silence. “You know you're a terrible liar, right?”

And okay, Pit panicked a bit. “What lie?! It's true!”

“Dude, I know it must be hard to repress your feelings like you do, and I know you're doing your best, but you kinda slip up sometimes.”

Ah, yes, his infamous third problem. Slip-ups. So some people did notice them.

Pit hung his head in shame, blushing ever so slightly.

“You said I'd never have a chance … that's why I'm doing it.” He spoke after a while, his voice small, as he recalled that conversation.

“Oh my g- no, look Pit, what I said was that I didn't want you getting your hopes up. I never told you to give up!” Sonic looked almost guilty, his hands reaching out to Pit as if he wanted to comfort him, but not touching him.

“But he's never going to fall in love with anyone! Let alone me! Who would love me? And how do I know I wont fall out of love if we, by some miracle, end up together? I never had a crush that lasted!” Pit had wanted to stop himself from saying all that, as it felt too stupid and too personal to say, but it seemed as if his heart had decided to hijack his brain for the night.

“Oooh, smells like teen angst.” Came Rayman's voice from the other side, before he joined them moments later, and looked at Pit. “Don't be so hard on yourself kid. You're just a cœur d'artichaut. It's not that big of a deal.”

“A what?” Pit asked, feeling dumber by the minute.

“An artichoke heart.” Sonic translated for him.

“And what does that mean?” He asked, again, looking up warily at his senior, half-suspecting he had just been insulted.

“It comes from an old french saying. “Artichoke heart: a leaf for everyone.” It's often used to describe someone who falls in love easily and rather often.” Rayman answered.

A rather fitting expression when it came to him, Pit had to admit. Though he remembered artichokes had a core beneath all the leaves, you just had to get rid of them to see it properly.

Could Rock be the core to his artichoke heart? It sounded stupid, yet it made sense. Somewhat.

It was still stupid. But a good kind of stupid. The kind that made him smile.

“Alright, enough about that!” Sonic said, clasping his hands. “I actually came here because your bro kept bragging to everyone about how good the both of you are at nail painting. And I can only believe what I see.”

“I want in too.” Silver added, his head poking out of the door.

Pit's smile fully settled in at the prospect of not only taking his mind off of things, but also being the center of attention for a fun activity. However he'd need the supplies.

“I'd love to, but do you have-”

“We've got it covered.” Sonic interrupted. “Rouge has quite a hefty collection on herself. And I've got a few old bottles lying around in the bathroom.”

This was perfect. “Alright, let's do it!” Pit said as he quit his game and got up, ready to go back.

“Yes!” Sonic then dashed to the other room. “He agreed!”

Cheers rang out, and Pit smiled as the party-goers let him make his way to his brother, who was already going over the various brands Rouge had brought with her. Next to her stood a certain redhead, looking disgruntled.

“See, Knuckles, I told you carrying all this stuff around wasn't pointless.” The woman grinned sweetly.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever...”

The twins ended up painting the nails of quite a large number of guests, as a lot of them wanted to try it out once they saw the first few results.

They were met with a bunch of compliments, and heard a lot of gushing around them from the people whose nails they had already worked on, trying to get the most reticent ones to participate.

Once everything was done, and most of the nails had finished drying off, the group collectively decided it was movie time.

Despite some protests, it was decided they'd watch a movie adaptation of a video game, which just so happened to be Avenue Brawlers. The whole thing was so bad it was hilarious, though that kind of humor was understandably not everyone's cup of tea.

To quell the displeased guest's frustrations, Sonic put on another, more mainstream movie, and that seemed to do the trick.

Once said movie was done, though a lot of people were tired from their week or even just the day, no one felt like they wanted to go to sleep just yet.

The party devolved into friendly chatter, either about gossip, plans, or even just getting to know each other. Pit had tried to chat with Shadow, mainly about his time on the Academy's track team, and he had surprisingly managed to get more than grunts and hums from him, before it had been obvious the guy had wanted his space, and Pit had let him, instead going to chat with the people he knew less about.

However, when at some point one of the otherwise various pleasant conversations turned to a particularly sensitive topic for most of the people present here, namely Blues' disappearance's upcoming anniversary, the host demanded everyone go to sleep.

Everyone agreed, as the combination of sleep deprivation and a stormy night's thunder claps in the distance was starting to obviously become a problem.

And if any arguments and insults were left without a proper response before most people hit the hay, well, there would always be the upcoming morning for things to be settled.

Somewhere else in town, Rock was having a rough night. Turning again and again in his sleep because of a nightmare involving his brother, he soon found himself entangled into his bedsheets, and harshly woke up as a lightning startled him and made him fall out of bed.

Disoriented, he pawed at the ground to try and find the light switch, before he finally noticed he wasn't in his bed anymore.

He climbed back into it with a grunt, and did his best to tidy up his sheets, before trying to go back to sleep.

He jumped when he heard his phone vibrate not one, but several times in a row. He begrundgingly took his phone from the night stand, winced at the light from the screen, and glared at the sender's name.

It was Sonic. Of course.

Sonic: yo

Sonic: rock

Sonic: my man

Sonic: my mega man

Sonic: rockman

Rock: Sonic, I hope you have a very, very good reason for texting me at 4 AM?

Sonic: ur fault for not using sleep mode

Sonic : also ur obvsly not sleeping

Sonic: nightmares again uh bud?

Rock: How do you know?

Sonic: dude ive known u like 4ever

Sonic: and that also means I know whatll cheer u up

Sonic: just look at dis

Sonic: [File attached]

Rock opened the file, expecting to be met with some kind of vague, niche meme, but did a double take at what he actually saw.

Rock: What?

Rock: Is

Rock: Is that Pit?

Sonic: sure is

Sonic: cute right

His crush was sleeping peacefully on some sort of makeshift bed, underneath comfy looking blankets. His hair was all puffy and he looked like he was actively snoring. He was laying in a weird laid out postion, akin to a puppy. It was adorable.

Rock sighed and lovingly stared at the picture. Sonic had been right, he had effectively forgotten he had just been woken up by his reoccuring nightmares. But something didn't exactly feel right.

Rock: Yeah…

Rock: Hey wait, where did you take this picture?

Sonic: my dorm

Sonic: y

Rock: What do you mean your dorm?

Sonic: the one i live in

Rock: What is Pit doing sleeping over at yours?

Sonic: he and his bro came over at the sleepover

Sonic: we watched movies and had a good time

Sonic: lots of bro talk

Sonic: also sharing secrets n stuff

Sonic: kinda like girls night but with dudes

Sonic: n gals 2

Sonic: and lemme tell ya da twins nail painting games are on. point.

Sonic: i feel fab rn

Rock tried to process the information, and remembered that Sonic had told him he was hosting a sleepover and asked him if he wanted to come, an offer the teen had declined in favor of homework and sleep. He was kinda regretting his choices at the moment.

Sonic: ey wait y do u care y hes here

Sonic: u jealous or sum

Rock: Jealous? No. Why would I be?

Oh he was. He so was. And he hated himself for it. What did he care what Pit was doing without him?

Sonic: o

Sonic: m

Sonic: g

Sonic: u totes are

Sonic: its adorbs

Rock: I'm not!

Sonic: ey dude dont get defensive

Sonic: i promise i wont steal ur boo

Sonic: cuz i dont have the feelies for anyone

Sonic: unlike a gremblin i know

Sonic: *gremlin

Rock: I don't have a crush on him!

Rock: And for the record, I'm not that short!

Sonic: calm down man im jus messin w ya

Sonic: or am i?

Rock didn't know what to respond and figured he'd leave it at that, so he put his phone away and tried to go back to sleep.

But it seemed like his friend had other plans.

He took his phone again and silently cursed the blue-haired boy, but his eyes widened at the sight of the words.

Sonic: Seriously dude, real talk.

Oh no. Not the proper grammar and punctuation. Anything but that.

Since Sonic was usually a happy-go-lucky carefree guy, the moments where he was actually serious were quite unsettling. And in those moments Rock was always taken aback by how many things he knew but didn't let on.

It looked like this time wasn't going to be any different.

Sonic: I see you making goo-goo eyes at him, like, all the time...

Sonic: Yeah, you may think you're slick but I see you.

Sonic: Also you're much more expressive when he's around.

Sonic: I noticed you always smile his way.

Sonic: And I'm not the only one.

Sonic: I admit you managed to fool me for the first year and a half. I thought maybe it was just that you opened up a bit as you got older. But then you started doing all those things.

Sonic: Things only people in love do.

Sonic: And it was weird, man. Nobody had ever seen, let alone imagined, you being like that.

Sonic: But it was also pretty cool. Seeing you get flustered and stuff.

Sonic: But now it's getting worse. You've fallen deep, man.

Sonic: And what's worse is you feel like you missed your chance, right?

Great. Sonic knew of his jealousy towards Zelda. Superb.

But he was more concerned about the fact that several people knew about his crush. And who they may be.

Rock: Do you know if

Rock: I mean

Rock: Do you think that

He was struggling to find the right words. He wasn't sure he'd ever be able to show his face to Pit again if his crush knew every little thing about his feelings for him.

Sonic: Whoa there, bud. Don't worry, he doesn't know. I would know, we played truth or dare.

Rock was about to argue that this game wasn't foolproof, when Sonic sent him another message.

Sonic: That's also when we learned he was over Zelda.

What.

Sonic: Hey do me a favor and pretend to be shocked if he tells you this.

Sonic: Because I kinda may have broken the bro code.

Sonic: But since I've known you the longest, you're technically higher on the bro scale, so I guess telling you is simply following hierarchy and not a breach.

Sonic: I just want to be on the safe side.

Sonic: Rock? You there buddy?

Rock had discarded his phone for the moment, and was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling, a hand on his forehead.

His heart felt like it was about to get out of his ribcage with the way it was beating.

Pit was over Zelda. Pit didn't have any feelings for Zelda anymore.

He didn't have feelings for anyone. His heart was free to take.

Rock started giggling, despite himself. A wave of relief washed over him. He had been worried about nothing. This crush hadn't lasted, yet again.

Yet again…

He stopped giggling, and instead started to feel guilty. He briefly thought back to that one conversation they had, at the end of their friendly outing. Had Pit secretly tried to get Rock's help as a last resort to find reasons to try and stay in love?

It must have had been hard for Pit to admit to himself that he had failed to stay infatuated with yet another person. It was just another failure in his book.

But then again, it usually wasn't long before Pit fell for someone else and managed to forget about his previous crush.

Yes, Pit was sure to fall for someone again. And this time, Rock was determined to make it so that this person was none other than him.

Chapter Text

Pit woke up with the urge to sneeze. When he did he heard a groan from his side. He tried to move, but found he couldn't. Why, he didn't know. He still hadn't opened his eyes.

When he did open them, he had a bit of trouble adjusting to the light. He took on his surroundings, and started midly freaking out when he didn't recognize his room right away.

He was about to call for his brother when he remembered he was at Sonic's.

Speaking of which, there the guy was, drooling over a sleeping Crash.

Ew.

The weight on top of him shifted, and Pit found out that both Banjo and Kazooie had been using him as a pillow for the night.

The girl glared up at him as she woke up, though it was hard to tell if she was feeling any anger or not, as it looked like she was stuck with this expression every single minute of her life.

But two could play at that game. Pit always felt pretty pissed off when he hadn't had a good night's sleep, and he wasn't really fond of being used as a pillow by people he didn't have a crush on.

“Get off.”

Unfortunately, Kazooie didn't budge, and instead smirked his way.

“Nope!” She sang. “In fact, I think I'll stay. You make for a pretty comfortable pillow, you know?”

Pit growled, and with the strength only a pissed off person could muster up, threw Kazooie away from him. The girl stayed confused long enough for him to make his escape, Banjo falling off of him with a 'thwump', but not even stirring from the action in his deep slumber.

“Hey! Ow! What was that for!” Kazooie hissed.

“I kinda have babysitting duty to attend to.” Thruthfully, Pit was starting to feel guilty about his actions the more awake he felt, but there was no way he was going to apologize for his behavior. Maybe.

“You think I don't?” Kazooie jeered, pointing to her passed out friend.

“I meant with an actual baby.” Pit said dryly, fetching his phone, quietly cursing when he saw it was nearly out of battery, and almost simultaneously gasping when he realized what time it was.

“Your brother was right, you do curse a lot.” Kazooie commented.

“Don't you have anything better to do other than bother me?” He sighed.

“Nah.”

Pit pouted her way. She looked somewhat guilty herself, at least. Though she quickly dismissed the look. “Whatever, you'll head out anyway, and everyone else is out cold. I might as well fall back asleep.” She said as she unceremoniously dropped onto Banjo's sleeping form. “You're a good pillow, kid. But not as good as that goof over there.”

“Gee, thanks...” Pit muttered, going over to where he thought he saw his twin sleeping. He tried to wake him up, with no success. He bit his lip, gripping at his phone showing the quick passage of time. He didn't really want to leave his brother to wake up in a room other than their own only to find out he had been ditched, but he kinda had to show up at Meta Knight's house at the time he had promised he'd be there.

Whatever. Pittoo could take care of himself. Unlike Kirby.

The rain outside was still falling, though it now felt really light. Still, Pit hated the feeling, it was like each droplets he came into contact with clung to his skin.

And it was cold. Very cold. And the persistent wind didn't help one bit.

He should have probably dressed for the season, but he just loved tank tops and shorts too much to give them up, even when summer had long since ended. At least he had a jacket on.

To warm himself up, and also to try and get to his destination on time, Pit had taken up to running. The people who were going about their morning in the streets he jogged through gave him either confused, curious or judgemental looks. He tried to pay them no mind: if they wanted him to walk and freeze to death before he'd make it to the warmth of his spanish teacher's house, that was their problem.

He made it to the last street, and Pit's jog gradually fell into a quick walk of sorts, as he passed by a familiar house.

The Hal's and the Light's were neighbors, although they lived at opposite ends of the same street. Pit's heart did sommersaults as he allowed himself to look and see if Rock was up, and indeed it seemed he was, if the open blinds were any indication.

Unfortunately, he couldn't linger and see if he could catch a glimpse of the boy, as when he checked his phone he saw he was already two minutes late, and Meta Knight was a sucker for punctuality.

Too tired to go back into running on his way to the house, he made peace with his fate and made it there walking.

When he finally got there, Meta Knight looked him up and down, told him he could use the towels in the bathroom to dry himself up, and left in a hurry, skipping the speech he would have normally given the teen about showing up on time. Pit heard the distant screeching of tires as he made his way to the bathroom and used the towels as he had been advised. He sighed in relief as the heat of the house finally got to him.

He usually had a bit of time to himself before Kirby would wake up, so while waiting for the toddler to join the waking world, he made himself some breakfast, making sure to prepare Kirby's in the meantime.

He then sat it out in front of the TV, eating a bowl of cereal, and replying to the angry texts his brother had sent him on his now charging phone.

It was pretty great, the fact that Kirby's parents let Pit do whatever he wanted around the house. Though Pit did feel a bit uncomfortable sometimes, being able to do as he pleased and eat their food like some kind of freeloader. But the men had insisted they were okay with it, and the young man had long since stopped trying to change their mind.

After a while he had come to check on Kirby, and had found the toddler awake. Kirby had greeted him with the energy only toddlers had in the morning, asking to be hugged and carried like a prince to the kitchen, where Pit made him sit in his high chair and took no time in serving the child his breakfast.

As usual, Kirby ate everything in record time, and soon enough Pit was chasing after the giggling toddler all over the house.

Apparently Kirby had decided they would play hide-and-seek for the day. Unfortunately, Pit had a bit of trouble keeping up with the child, and at one point stumbled on a small stack of toys that sent him face-first onto the floor, much to Kirby's entertainment.

He got up, grumbling, and suddenly felt very tired.

He briefly wondered if he would be able to handle his babysitting duties in that state, but figured he would manage. After all, Pit had had many babysitting jobs, and Kirby was amongst one of the easiest children he had had to deal with. He wasn't the perfect little girl that Cream was, as that child often left him wondering if he was the one being babysitted, but he was still far from the terror that Viridi had been. The blonde had not taken well to the fact that her babysitter had been a bit too close to her age for her taste, and had made it her life misson to torment Pit as much as possible.

Pit was glad that this little brat had grown old enough not to need a babysitter anymore. But, as crazy as it may sound, he kinda missed those days.

Once out of his musings, he turned back to where he had last seen Kirby and nearly had a heart attack when he saw that the little boy was not only not there, but was instead grappling at a stack of cutlery on the kitchen counter. A stack containing knives. Sharp ones.

“NO ! Kirby, don't put your hands in there!” He said, biting down his urge to shout so as not to scare the tot.

“Poyo?”

Pit had no idea how the toddler had gotten up on the counter. Children were definitely ressourceful. He took a sharp intake of air, and took him in his arms, trying to muster up his best scolding look. But Kirby's innocent staring cut that act short.

Pit was starting to feel exhausted already. The toddler in his arms felt like he weighted a ton.

There was no way he would be able to do this all day long.

“Oh, I am so out of it today … I guess I'll have to call for help.”

And that, he did. After he made sure Kirby would stay put on the sofa, he took his phone and tried to call all his friends. The toddler next to him grew fascinated by how the teen's face seemed to crumble a little more as each call was made. Nobody was free.

He tried to call Roll, but his calls kept getting ignored.

As a last resort, he selected Rock's number.

After three rings, he picked up. And was rightfully surprised.

“Hello? Is there any reason you're calling me on a saturday morning? That's a bit unlike you.”

“Well, I know it's out of the blue, but I kinda need your help… see I promised Meta Knight I'd watch over his son but… yeah.” He tried to explain his situation the best way he could, but it was kinda hard to do when he himself didn't really understand what was going on with him.

“So what exactly do you need help with?”

“With keeping him in check?”

“... What do you mean? You're really good with kids!”

“Y-yeah, I know, but, I don't know what I have... I guess I've just been feeling tired lately.”

“Angel, I'd love to help, but you know kids and I...” Pit swore he could hear Rock cringe through the phone call.

“I know, I know, and I've tried calling the others but they're all busy! Please, Rock! You're my only hope!”

He heard Rock chuckle, and Pit allowed himself to fully appreciate the sound while no one was around to see how much of a sap he could be. No one who could tell on him, anyway. “Ugh, I guess you win. I'll be coming right away.”

“Oh, thank you so much! You're the best of the best!”

He had a big smile on his face as he ended the call. He did everytime he could speak with Rock without the other being able to see him.

And if he added a little smooch after he had made sure the call had properly ended, well, that was only for him to know.

Kirby had really stayed put for once, having only moved to take the remote in his little hands and hold it next to his ear to mimick the teen, and was watching him with curious eyes, wondering what had gotten his babysitter to look so happy all of a sudden.

“So, how about we read a book, uh Kirby?”

The toddler gasped, got down the sofa and excitedly trotted to the small library that contained his books, picking one up and eagerly presenting it to his caretaker.

“Oh, the one with the animals! You've got good taste, sir!”

The little boy smiled at the compliment, and climbed back onto the sofa next to Pit, putting the book in the teen's lap.

Pit started reading it aloud, and asked Kirby what each of the animals on each pages were, and the kid always replied without fail, happy to share what he had learned so far.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in! The door's open!” Pit said to his friend.

Rock entered the living room, paused to look at the two, and smirked.

“Aw, you're teaching him how to read?”

“Well, yeah?” Pit was confused. Was Rock really that ignorant in how to care for a child?

“I was talking to the kid.” Rock's smirk grew bigger, though with no trace of malice.

“Why you little-!”

“Shh, not in front of the baby.” Rock interrupted him, clearly enjoying this.

“You know, I'm almost reconsidering asking for your help.”

“Come on, that was a little joke. You looked stressed.” Rock looked genuinely apologetic.

“And now I'm angry with you.” Pit huffed, looking away.

“But you're not stressed anymore. So it worked.”

Pit grumbled half-heartedly, and pretended to be ignoring him, trying to get back onto the page where they had left off.

“So, what's that Kirby?” He asked, pointing to a turtle.

“Tudle!”

“And that?”

“Bib!”

“What about this one then?”

“Hamta!”

“And what is that little guy over there?”

“A Fiss!”

“Wow, that's great! You know a lot of words” Rock chimed in.

Kirby turned to him, his eyes now fixated on the newcomer he had apparently just noticed was here. After a bit more staring, he looked up at Pit, and lightly gripped his arm, pointing to Rock.

“Poyo?”

“That's Rock.”

“Lo?”

“Rock.”

“Loc.”

Said teen approached carefully. “Yeah,my name's Rock. I'll help Pit watch over you today, you okay with that?” Rock said, crouching down to get to the toddler's height. Pit could tell his friend was a little nervous.

The toddler didn't seem to understand much, but smiled at him, and pointed to Pit. “Pid poyo!”

“Oh… yes, Pit. I know him. We're friends.”

“Fwend.”

“Yes.”

“Pid fwend poyo.” The toddler pointed to himself.

“Pid fwend poyo, also.” Rock said, mimicking the toddler.

However, Kirby frowned, and stood up on the sofa to be taller than Rock, wobbling a bit, and Pit got ready to catch him should he fall.

“Pid fwend, poyo!” He said, a bit louder this time, pointing more intently to himself.

To Pit's surprise, Rock frowned as well.

“Well Pit's also my friend!”

“No!”

“Yes, he is!”

“No! No fwend!” Kirby insisted, pointing at Rock.

“I've known him for longer than you were alive!” Rock protested, a hand on his chest.

“Pid wuv poyo!”

“Well maybe Pid wuves me more, poyo!”

“Robot...” Pit started to chuckle.

“No!”

“Yes!”

“No no no!”

“Yes yes yes!”

“Rock...” Pit couldn't finish, almost choking on oncoming laughter.

“What?” His friend had turned to him, clearly pissed. His face immediately returned to normal when he saw that Pit was trying hard to stifle his laughter.

“Oh.” The boy looked sheepish, a faint blush starting to spread as the realization of what he had just been doing hit him. “Oooh… I, uh...”

Pit let it loose and started to laugh, hard, startling Kirby, who ultimately joined in after he got over his initial shock. As for Rock, he was trying to hide his face behind his hands.

This went on for a while, until Pit's laughter started to die down.

Still laughing, he tried to wipe a few tears around his eyes.

“And they say-” Another laugh. “-they say I'm the dumb one!”

“Don't you make fun of me!” Rock huffed, his embarassement clearly showing.

“Says the one who mocked me earlier!” Pit grinned, knowing the other wouldn't be able to come up with a retort.

“Well I, uh...” And he was right, Rock was speechless. Pit, on the other hand...

“Oh man, I'm almost bummed I didn't think of getting it on camera...”

“Angeeel...” Rock was positively mortified.

“What kind of title could I have given it? 'Almost threw hands with a two-year-old.'?”

“Please stop...” He whined, but Pit kept on ignoring him.

“I bet it would have gone viral or something… right Kirby?”

The little boy smiled at him, but then frowned, his eyes watering.

“Oh, oh no, Kirby what's wrong?” Pit asked, ready to comfort the child.

“Pid… Pid wuv poyo?”

“Yes, of course, I love you Kirby. You're my friend.”

The toddler was smiling again, and hugged the teen, not letting go.

“Pid fwend. Pid wuv poyo.”

Then he turned to Rock and stuck his tongue out at him, thinking Pit wouldn't see him. He did.

Rock made an indignant face and looked at Pit, gesturing in a way that clearly said “Did you just see that?”.

Pit simply followed Kirby's example.

“Do you want me to order burgers?” Rock asked.

The rest of the morning had gone by fairly quickly. Rock didn't have to do much, only helping Pit whenever the teen felt like he was becoming overwhelmed.

At one point, Pit complained about his throat feeling sore, making Rock question if he was coming down with a cold. But Pit denied his explanation, claiming he never got sick, and chugged half a bottle of soda to get rid of the itchy feeling. It had worked, though Rock had not been impressed, and they had agreed to sweep the issue under a rug for the moment, as lunch time was drawing near and they had to decide on what to eat.

Which looked like it would be burgers.

“Buber!” Kirby smiled, his mouth watering a bit.

“No, Kirby, not for you.” Pit told him as he picked him up from the ground.

“B-buber...” The toddler looked disappointed, but quickly forgot about it and started giggling after Pit made him jump up and down in his arms.

“I'd like it if you did, but the nearest fast food is usually full at this hour… so...” Pit had started after he had managed to get the toddler to go into his baby park.

“Then I could make some?” His friend said.

“You can?”

Rock smirked. “Of course I can! Burgers are one of the easiest things to make!”

“That'd be great if you could make some, but I doubt we have what we need in there...” He said, pointing to the fridge.

“Well, since my house is near, I could go take some stuff from our fridge and bring it here. Think you'd manage without me for a while?”

Pit looked back at the baby park, where Kirby now played peacefully. His stomach growled at the thought of burgers. And even more so if his crush made them.

“Yeah, I think I will. Thanks.” He said, smiling wide.

Rock smiled back. “I'll be on my way then.”

He hadn't been gone for long when he returned with all the necessary ingredients, and Pit helped him unload all of the stuff he had been carrying in his arms.

As they were laying out the food on the table, Rock asked Pit if he wanted to help make the burgers as well. And the boy eagerly accepted the offer, though he quickly regretted having chosen to handle the steaks, because the heat coming from the stove he was cooking them on was making him feel a bit too hot for his liking. He found he had trouble focusing on stuff, as if he had just ran a marathon.

As silly as it sounded, he was feeling a bit upset about feeling uncomfortable, because it was hindering what would otherwise have been a wonderful experience.

Because, as it was, it was just the two of them, preparing a meal for the both of them and a toddler they were taking care of together. It felt so domestic.

And with the added feelings Pit was slowly starting to embrace fully, well...

“I know I've already said that before, but you really are good with kids. You'd make a great dad, you know...”

Pit flushed red at that. Why did Rock have to say that all of a sudden? Then again, he couldn't blame him. The other wasn't exactly aware of his state of mind. And simple friends who didn't have crushes on the other usually didn't take notice of that kind of intimacy.

“We-well, you too.” He replied. Rock turned to him, raising an eyebrow. “I mean, you'd be a great husband!”

It was Rock's time to turn red.

“T-that is if you ever wanted to marry someone... like me!”

Their was an awkward pause, as Pit slowly realized what he'd just implied.

He wanted to be engulfed by the earth or something. He wished he could just shut up, but as the morning had passed his mind had felt foggier and foggier.

“L-like you?” Rock croaked, his face redder.

“Yeah! Like me! As in I'd like to marry someone one day! And maybe you'd like to do the same too!” He shouted, hoping he could fix his little mistake.

“Oh. Oh, right, okay.” Rock said. He seemed to have bought it, and Pit was too out of it to catch onto the disappointment in his tone. Instead, he cheered in his mind. That had been a nice save.

They soon got everything done and started to eat, Kirby looking a bit curiously at his own carrot puree, and frowning at the burgers that were too far away for him to eat.

The burgers tasted amazing, so much so that Pit couldn't resist letting out an appreciative hum as he ate, catching both Rock and Kirby's attention.

“What's the matter?”

“Nothing. It's just that these are much better than the ones from fast food restaurants.”

Rock smiled, though a bit shyly. “Well, I'm glad you like them, but really it's nothing special...”

“Are you kidding? They're delicious! I just wish I could eat some every day!”

“Oh, um, well, thanks.” The other boy said, trying really hard to focus his attention back to his food and ignore the warmth and the little tingles that felt like butterflies fluttering about in his chest.

“No probs.” Pit said, not really noticing his friend's behavior in depth, though he felt really happy he had managed to make his crush a bit flustered. “Oh, hey, do you want a bite Kirb?” He said as he turned to the toddler who was pawing at the teens' food.

Rock looked up, having regained a bit of composure. “I thought he couldn't eat burgers?” He asked with a frown.

“Yeah, but these are homemade. So they pass.” Pit explained, smiling at the little boy who was currently tapping on the table with both his hands.

“Buber!” Kirby insisted.

“Alright, you can have some, but only if you finish your carrot puree!” Pit told him. Upon hearing those words, Kirby took his plate, and slurped its contents away. He licked what remained of the puree, making a mess on his face, and turned his attention back on Pit, showing him the empty plate.

“Buber! Now!” He demanded.

“Give the man what he wants.” Rock laughed. “He held up his part of the deal.”

“Aye, sir!” Pit laughed as well, cutting one of the burgers in small portions for Kirby to eat, before putting them on his plate. He handed it over to the awaiting child, but before giving it to him he looked him straight in the eyes. “But!” He started, gaining Kirby's attention. “Be careful! Don't eat it all at once!”

The toddler nodded, giving Pit one of his best smiles, and happily giggled when the food he had been pining for was finally right in front of him.

Pit smiled at the display, but then he felt a sharp pain in the side of his head. He instinctively reached for it, trying to massage the pain away as he winced.

He heard a chair creak, and a second later Rock was at his side.

“Is something wrong?”

“It's nothing I... I just have a headache, I think. Probably because I slept on the floor last night or something...”

“Are you absolutely sure you're not sick?”

“Psh. Me? I told you already, I never get sick.” He tried to laugh, but that only made the pain worse. “Ouch! Ugh... I might be tired, though. I need to lie down for a bit. Can you watch over Kirby for a while?”

“...On my own?”

“Yeah?” He looked up to see Rock biting his lip, and sending worried glances towards Kirby. He tried to smile, though the pain he felt no doubt made it look like yet another wince. “Come on, you'll manage. I'm sure you're not as bad at this as you think you are.”

Rock sighed, and playfully ruffled Pit's hair. Pit's mind went blank. It went even more blank when his crush helped him get up from his chair and put a hand on his back, guiding him to the sofa.

“Alright, you win.” He said once Pit was laying down on the sofa. “Get some rest. I'll do my best to keep Kirby alive.”

Pit snorted. “On second thought, maybe I shouldn't leave a helpless child under your supervision...”

Rock playfully glared at him, and flicked his nose. Pit heard him mutter something, and then gasp.

“No! Kirby! Pit told you not to put it all in your mouth!”

Pit snickered as he heard Rock's attempts at reasoning with the little boy, and soon their voices blended with one another, as sleep overcame him.

When he woke up, the lighting told him it was probably around the end of noon. So much for a quick nap.

Another thing he noticed was the complete and utter silence of the house.

Now, he trusted Rock, he really did, but waking in total silence, with no one in sight when there definitely should be, was a bit worrying.

Not only that, but Pit felt worse than he had before he had gone to lay down. Simply put, he felt like crap.

He got up, putting aside the blanket he knew hadn't been laying on top of him when he had fallen asleep, and the headache from earlier immediately came back. He groaned, and pushed through, into the kitchen.

The table had been cleared up. That was nice. But there was still no sign of life.

Feeling groggy, Pit walked to the sink, turned on the faucet, and put some cold water on his face. He sighed in bliss at the feeling.

Now a bit more alert, he decided to go look for his two missing boys.

Walking past the frige, he half-thought about getting something to eat, as he had basically skipped dessert, but for some reason even thinking about eating made his stomach churn.

That wasn't normal.

Was he really getting sick?

No, that couldn't possibly be the case. He hadn't gotten sick in what felt like forever. Sure, he had had the occasional colds that made him sneeze over and over, but nothing that would prevent him from going about his day.

He shook the thought away, and called out for Rock.

He was answered by a distant shush. It sounded like it came from upstairs.

Intrigued, Pit walked up the stairs, as quietly as possible, and went to the entrance of Kirby's room.

And there they were, Rock sitting on the floor, his back against the wall, surrounded by books, a sleeping Kirby on his lap.

It was a really cute imagery, one that Pit hadn't thought he would ever get to witness. He made sure to tell himself to remember this.

He let himself lean against the doorframe, and tilted his head once Rock noticed him standing there.

“What are you doing?” He whispered.

Rock looked around. He looked a bit lost. “He fell asleep in my arms, and I'm too scared to move. I don't know how to handle sleeping children.”

Pit had to try really hard not to snort. “How long have you been sitting there like that?”

“... I don't know?... Hopefully not that long?” Rock sighed, and then smiled down at the sleeping toddler in his arms, and Pit's heart did flips. His stomach joined in with an array of butterflies when his friend looked up at him with a soft smile.

“Enough talking about me. What about you? Are you feeling better now?”

Pit hesitated. He actually felt worse, but he didn't really want Rock to worry about him. Especially since Pit couldn't really imagine himself being fussed over, and even less so by the guy he kinda had a huge crush on. Mix that up with his growing inability to think straight, or think at all, and you would have a recipe for an accidental confession. At least that's how Isabella had confessed to Victor in one of the flicks he liked to watch with Palutena.

And there was no way Pit was ready to confess to his crush. Especially not in that state.

So, as bad as he knew he was at it, he lied.

He gave Rock a big grin and a thumbs up. “Yup! One hundred percent! I've never felt better!”

He almost failed to keep up the act when he saw Rock was scrutinizing him, one eyebrow raised and his mouth stuck in a doubtful pout. Thankfully, his friend was distracted by the fact Kirby was now stirring, and soon rolled over out of his lap, before looking up at Pit with a glare.

“I think you woke him up. You did forget to whisper just now.”

With Kirby awake, the teens played with the toddler while waiting for his father to come back home.

They were sitting on the ground in the living room, Kirby playing with his toys, and had been making small talk with each other, even though Pit felt like he was going to fall asleep at any given moment, when Kirby dropped his toys, and looked at the two of them.

He stood in place, silent, watching the boys talk with each other, until they stopped when they noticed the child's strange behavior.

“What is it, Kirby?” Rock asked.

Kirby smiled at him. “Dada!” He said, pointing to Pit.

“Don't worry, Kirb, your dad will come back on monday. Your papa will be here very soon though.” Pit explained, giving the toddler a tired smile.

The infant looked at him with curious eyes, and then turned to Rock, trotting towards him.

Despite himself, Rock moved back, and Pit bit down a snort.

Then, the child pointed to the dark-haired teen. “Papa!”

Both boys gave each other a look, confused. Pit looked at the toddler.

“No, Rock is not your papa.”

Kirby looked between the both of them, clearly confused as well.

He lightly stomped his foot, and pointed to the both of them, one after the other. “Papa! Dada!”

“...What's he trying to say?” Rock asked Pit, but the other boy shook his head.

“I have no idea. Or, well, maybe I have, but... it's ridiculous.” He felt a blush creeping on his face.

“Let's hear it anyway.” Rock insisted.

“...I think...” He gulped, trying to fight off the blushing. His interpretation might be very far-off, and would probably betray his state of mind rather than explain Kirby's confusion.

“I think he thinks we're like his parents.”

Pit watched as Rock's face scrunched up in confusion, until a look of dawning realization settled in instead.

“Oh.” He said, and then he was the one having to fight off an incoming blush. “Oh, no, Kirby, we're not...”

“Papa!” Kirby insisted, smiling, as he pointed with renewed determination in Rock's direction.

“Ah, betrayal, how bitter do you taste.” Came a voice from the room next to them. Both teen startled, and Kirby turned around to greet the newcomer.

“Papa!” The child nearly shouted, and ran to his father. “Up! Up!”

“Me? Your papa? Weren't you just pointing at someone else just now, you little traitor?” The man said as he picked his son up, with a voice that would have sounded stern had it not been for the smile on his face.

Kirby gasped softly. “Loc!” He said, pointing again to the teen.

Meta Knight raised an inquisitive eyebrow at Pit, who smiled sheepishly.

“I wasn't feeling up to the task today, so I asked a friend to come over and help me...” He felt his face burning again. “Is... is that okay with you?”

He relaxed as the man's hearty laugh filled the air. “Of course it's all right! I'd rather have a dozen people taking care of my son than none at all.” Then he paused, and looked at Rock. “Do you want to be paid as well, for your troubles?”

Rock shifted awkwardly. “Oh, no, thank you, I just came here to help out a friend.”

“Well, you can come back and help Pit anytime in the future. I think Kirby here took a liking to you.”

Rock's face was almost comical as he looked suspiciously at the toddler, who was wiggling about in his father's arms, trying to reach the teen. Pit smiled at the sight.

“Yeah, I think he does like you, Robot.” He said.

“No that's... that's crazy talk.”

“Lobo!” Kirby said. “Lobo! Hug!”

“Come on! Hug him!” Pit smiled, still not sitting up.

With a huff, Rock got up, and took the child in his arms, who giggled.

“Alright, alright! Here's your hug! Now go back to your father please!”

Said father was raising an amused eyebrow at the interaction, and then focused on Pit.

“Are you alright?”

“Uh?” Oh, right, he must have looked like crap by now. “Yeah, yeah. I'll be fine. I'm just a bit tired.”

“Very well. Then I guess I'll let you go.”

After discussing the way Pit would be paid, as well as when he would be available to babysit Kirby once again, the teens bid their goodbye to the Hals and went out in the street.

The clouds in the sky had completely disappeared, but the air was as cold as could be. Pit brought his jacket closer to his body, and tried to warm his hands by rubbing them together, when he felt something heavy and warm on his shoulders.

He turned around and felt his cheeks grow warm. Rock's face was mere inches from his own, and his eyes were looking him up and down in concern. And the thing he had felt was Rock's coat, currently draping Pit's back.

“You should really dress for the season. You'll turn into an icicle if this keeps up.”

“I'll be fine.” Pit said, trying not to shiver.

Rock looked like he wasn't believing him, and like he was about to say something else, but as much as Pit loved to chat with his friends, he was really feeling tired and wanted nothing more than to go back home to his nice, comfy and warm bed.

“Well, uh, thanks for helping me out today, Rock.” He said, and started to walk away.

He didn't get to go three steps away from Rock, as his crush grabbed his wrist and yanked him back.

“It's no problem, but are you sure you're alright? Do you want me to drive you back home or something?”

Pit felt tingles where Rock's hand was currently touching his skin, and he tried to ignore the sensation. He didn't really want the help, as nice as it sounded. He would just run back home, being mindful of not pushing himself, and that way he would not feel the cold as much. “Nah, I'll manage. See you!”

He started to jog and took a couple of steps, before he slammed his head right into a street pole. Hard. He fell down after the impact.

“Oh my gosh! Pit, are you okay?” Rock came running after him.

“Ow...” Pit swore he could see stars. But it seemed hitting his head had stopped his headache.

He gave a soft yelp as the pain came back full force. Okay, so much for the headache receeding.

And now Rock was fussing over him, trying to settle him down on the ground. Their faces were very, very close.

“What's your name and age?” The other boy asked him.

“I'm Pit and I'm 16?”

“And who am I?”

“You're Rock, and you're gorgeous.”

Rock looked at him funny, while Pit felt himself dying inside. Now was not the time to slip-up. Not in front of him. Don't be like Isabella.

“You look a little red… do you have a fever?”

“M-maybe?” Pit would rather he thought he had a fever, and was delirious. Then again, at this point, maybe he really had a fever.

Rock reached for his forehead with his hand. His touch was cold, so very cold. It felt nice. Pit closed his eyes for an instant, and when he opened them again Rock was frowning.

“I know I usually have cold hands, and you've always been warm, but your skin is far too hot. You are definitely not walking home. Come on.”

He offered his hand to lift him off the ground, which Pit took. He stumbled a bit once he got up, but Rock caught him in time before he would trip on his own feet.

Their hands still joined, Pit followed his crush along the neighborhood, but his strength left him halfway to the Lights' house, and, despite Pit's protests, Rock carried him there for the rest of the way.

There, he made Pit sit on the couch and went to get him water and the necessary pills.

As he waited for the other to return, Pit had been greeted by Rush. The dog affectionately nuzzled his hand and then rested his head on his lap, looking up at him. “Hello.” Pit smiled. “Looks like I'm the one who's sick this time.”

The teen absentmindedly pet him, only stopping when Rock handed him a glass of water and some painkillers.

“Take this, and try to rest. I asked my dad if I could bring you back home using his car, and he said yes.”

“You don't have to do this...” Pit said, meekly.

“I know, but I want to.”

Rock gave him the softest of smiles, and Pit's heart skipped a beat. “By the way, could you pass me your phone? I want to call the Goddess.”

Albeit reluctantly, Pit did as he was told, and took the medicine while Rock made the call.

“Alright, she says she will kill you if you go back home by yourself, and she'll be waiting for your arrival, so you have no choice but to come with me, got it?”

“Yeah... ok... I give up.” Pit huffed, laying on the sofa, a hand on his aching head.

Rock walked to the couch and sat on it, next to Pit's head. He looked a little stiff. His eyes were shifting about, as if he was internally debating about something.

This unnerved Pit, who tugged on his friend's clothes, trying to get his attention

“What's up?”

Rock's expression shifted, his gaze still on Pit, and his cheeks flared pink. He looked away and scratched the back of his head, mouthing silent words, and then finally, he spoke up.

“I uh, I was thinking... maybe...” He gulped. “Until the medicine settles, maybe I could... you know how your head is hurting? Migraines and all that? I was thinking I could massage your head to, uh, help you with the pain...?”

Pit looked up at him. He had stopped listening in the middle of Rock's ramblings, too tired to focus on more than one sentence at a time in this state.

“So, uh, can I?” Rock asked, his eyes shining expectantly.

Pit still didn't know what his friend had asked he could do, but he trusted him, so he nodded.

He almost yelped in surprise when he felt Rock's hand on his head, the teen's fingers moving carefully on his scalp, before he started massaging his aching temples.

Pit almost regretted not asking Rock to repeat himself. If he had, then he would have known this was what his crush had intended to do, and would have said no. Because, right now, he was finding it really hard to keep his composure and not melt from the gesture. He was really glad he had a fever because at least he didn't have to actively repress the blush he was sure was highly visible, as he could feel it even on his ears.

But he couldn't possibly ask him to stop. Not only would he have to come up with a solid reason other than the intimacy making his barriers break and risking a confession out of him, but this actually felt really nice and really helped with the pain.

Although most of it was motivated by his brain apparently being out on a vacation, Pit decided that he'd get over his self-imposed restraints. So what if it was possible he would never end up dating him? He could at least let himself enjoy the attention and care of his crush. And with that, he leaned into Rock's touch, and let the other fuss over him as much as his heart desired.

Rock stayed by his side until Pit told him, albeit a bit later after the fact, that the pain was gone. He went to park the car in front of the house, and to take him there he took Pit's hand again, much to his delight. He drove through town as carefully as possible until they reached their destination.

Palutena was waiting for them, as she had said she would, and this time she was the one fussing over Pit. The teen felt a bit silly, and a bit apprehensive, as he knew deep down that the moment he would feel better he would be in for a scolding about weather-appropriate outfits.

Then again, he would also probably get one from Rock, and some of his other friends.

But that would be for future Pit to take care of. For the time being, present Pit waved goodbye to his crush, and, guided by Palutena, made his way to his bed for a much needed rest.

Chapter Text

On monday, upon coming back to school, Rock was in a bit of a daze. The time he had spent with Pit, in such an intimate setting, had, unbeknownst to him, opened the floodgates for his daydreams.

He caught himself looking periodically at the empty seat the boy usually took, and did so more times than he would have liked to count throughout their morning classes.

Each and every time he realized that, yes, the other teen wasn't there since he was stuck at home and sick with a fever, his fingers itched to reach for his phone and text his crush.

Unfortunately, that itch kept bugging him even in the classes Pit didn't attend. But their current teacher was keeping a close eye on what they were doing. And what they were supposed to be doing, was a bunch of math problems.

And Rock, uncharacteristically so, had just been staring at a blank piece of paper ever since class had started, unable to think and focus. That odd behavior caught the interest of their teacher.

“Well? Aren't you going to work today, mister Light?”

Rock slowly looked up at the mention of his name, not coming up with any justification that would seem believable to explain his state.

He still tried.

“I'm just... feeling tired?”

“We all are, mister Light. Now if you please, get to work.”

Rock grumbled his dissatisfaction as he took his pen in his left hand and tapped the tip of it with his right hand, trying his best to focus.

Those problems were easy to solve. He usually went through them in record time.

What was up with him?

He looked around and found that most of the students, even the weaker ones, were already almost done.

Noticing his behavior once again, the teacher came up to his desk, and, with a stern look on their face, spoke to him again.

“Mister Light, I wont say it thrice.”

“I-I'm sorry, I just-”

“You know you have the right to ask for help if it's too difficult for you.”

Rock blushed as he heard students all around him whisper, and some started laughing.

“Robot having trouble with math?”

“That'd be a first!”

As he often did when in distress, he turned around to look at his sister, who sported a confused look.

“I don't need help!” He blurted out as he turned to face their teacher again. “I can do this, I just can't focus for some reason!”

“Mister Light-”

Before their teacher could reprimand him any further, his sister spoke up.

“Um... if I may... Rock has helped out a friend who turned out to be sick during the week-end... maybe he is becoming sick too?”

The teacher listened to her, but didn't seem convinced. Rock was about to tell Roll to simply let it go, but his sister was faster, and spoke again.

“If that's the case, he should go to the infirmary. Class is going to end in a few, anyway, and my brother will clearly not be able to do his work in that time.”

Surprisingly, Roll's arguments seemed to finally get through to their teacher.

“Alright then, go to the infirmary. Both of you.”

Rock sighed in relief, sending a smile is sister's way to show his thanks, and packed his bag.

The teacher informed them they would get their homework sent to them, and the twins were off.

On their way to the infirmary, Roll jabbed her brother in the chest. The boy winced.

“What's up with you?! You're not really sick, are you?”

“I don't know? I have no idea what's going on I just... I mean we'll find out if I'm sick once we get to the infirmary, right?”

“Right... all I know is you've been acting weird ever since you went to help Pit out. Did something happen?”

Rock deadpanned at his sister's teasing smirk.

“Nothing out of the ordinary.”

Though, recalling the events, he felt warm. And a bit tingly inside.

He could tell Roll wasn't satisfied with that answer, but she didn't get the chance to press him on further, as they reached their destination and the infirmary's door opened.

Only they weren't greeted by the nurse.

“Mister Principal?” The twins asked in unison.

Principal Mario was indeed standing there, a bunch of papers in one hand, a cellphone in the other. He smiled at them.

“Ah, mister Light. I was just on the phone with your teacher. You're feeling sick, is that right?”

A bit taken aback by the situation, Rock didn't say anything until his sister jabbed him in the stomach.

“Ack- I mean, ah, uh, yes?”

“Very well, I will examine you then.”

“W-wait, you can do that?” Roll asked. Rock was as gobsmacked as his sister.

“The nurse is currently on sick leave, we don't have a replacement available, and I happen to have the necessary qualifications to do her job for the time being.” The man explained, as if it was perfectly normal.

The twins looked at each other, clearly both puzzled and having many questions running through their heads. Never in their years at the Academy had they seen the principal do the nurse's job.

They broke out of that trance when the man cleared his throat, and Roll urged her brother to go through the door, staying outside to wait for him.

“Take a seat, mister Light.”

Rock did so, fiddling with the straps of his hoodie, as he waited for the principal to start talking again.

“So, what seems to be the problem, hm?”

“Oh, uh... I've been feeling a bit... how to say it... out of it?”

“How “out of it”?”

“I wasn't able to focus and didn't do any of my math assignements...”

Mario raised an eyebrow at that.

“Have you been in contact with a sick person lately?”

“Yes... Ang- I mean Pit. Pit Arpa.”

“Ah yes, he is absent today. In that case, I suppose I'll have to make sure you're not sick yourself. Now hold still so I can check your temperature.”

Once all the check-ups were done, Principal Mario sat back down, twirling his mustache a bit.

“There doesn't seem to be any signs of an infection.”

“But why am I feeling so... dazed then?”

“Maybe you have something on your mind?”

Something on his mind? Rock pondered what that could be.

At first glance, he didn't really feel like he had anything on his mind. Sure, a certain date about a certain event was coming up, but he wasn't exactly thinking about it yet. His grades were great, he had a lot of friends, so he really didn't have much to mull over. Except that ever since that week-end, all he had been able to really think about had been...

Rock blushed as he finally realized why he had been feeling that way all morning. It should have been obvious to him. He kept on looking at Pit's seat, and thinking about texting him.

No wonder he couldn't focus.

But he still felt incredibly mortified at failing to be a good student just because his dumb mind wanted him to be all lovey-dovey with his crush.

“I-uh-” He sputtered. “Maybe? Either way, whatever it is, I hope it'll pass... soon.”

“Naturally.” Mario agreed, still twirling his mustache, a knowing look in his eyes. “For now, I'll let you go have lunch. Classes are coming to an end anyway. But should you feel worse for wear in the afternoon, don't hesitate to call a doctor. Understood?”

A blush still creeping up on his cheeks, Rock nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“Buon appetito!” The principal said once everything was done, as he opened the door for both Rock, Roll getting up from her seat to join her brother.

On their way out, they passed the principal's actual office, where the twins met a very familiar student.

“Pittoo? What are you doing here?”

The boy looked up, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. Rock didn't remember having ever seen him so distraught.

“My stupid brother's sneezing scared away Pichu, Palutena found him, alerted the school, and now I'm in trouble!” Pittoo whined.

“He scared who?” Roll asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Their uh... not-so-secret, secret pet rat.” Rock explained.

“Come again?!”

“It came with me from school, and I kept it! Finders, keepers!” Pittoo huffed, putting back on his usual persona.

“You stole a rat from school?!...” Roll asked, incredulous.

“I didn't steal it!" Pittoo argued. "Didn't you listen?!”

“Mister Arpa?” Came the principal's voice, putting an end to their conversation.

Pittoo gulped, and the twins felt sorry for him. Principal Mario was overall a very sweet and understanding man, but he also had a harsh and cold side.

Seemed like he was in one of those rarer moods.

“We'll be sure to put Capri-Suns in your coffin.” Rock whispered.

“And make everything as black as possible for your funeral, and play Welcome To The Black Parade.” Roll added.

Pittoo, stiff as a log, nodded, and grimly followed the principal into his office, while the twins walked away, heading to the cafeteria.

“Poor guy...” Roll said, and turned to her brother. “How come you knew about the rat?”

But Rock didn't respond, wondering how much Pit had sneezed for him to scare away Pichu.

“Hey!” She said, snapping her fingers right in his face.

“Uh! What?”

“I said: how come you knew about the rat?”

“Oh, uh, Angel. Angel told me.”

“Aww!” She teased. “You're sharing secrets with your boyfriend?”

Rock immediately put his hand on her mouth, and gritted his teeth, wary of anyone listening in on them.

“Shut up!”

Roll frowned, took her brother's legs in her arms, and lifted him up over her head, before making him fall back down from a level where she was sure he wouldn't end up getting hurt. Or at least, not too much.

Not that her brother wouldn't complain anyway.

“Ow! What the heck?!!”

“Don't you dare put your dirty hands on my face again!” She said, still frowning.

“They're not dirty! I just washed them!”

“So, what's really up then?”

Rock looked up at her, a bit confused, before realizing what she meant.

“It's nothing-”

“It's Angel, isn't it?" She interrupted, teasing him. "You just can't keep your mind off him.”

“N-no!”

His sister didn't reply at first, and instead looked him up and down, a smirk slowly playing at her lips.

“So then, it's finally setting in. You're done for.”

She was right. For as long as his crush had been lasting, Rock had never taken action on it, too unsure of his own feelings and from his apprehensions about dating.

But lately, he had felt a bit more confident, and a bit more willing to put his hand through the fire, so to speak.

Rock had, up until that point, never thought dread and excitement could be felt at the same time. But as it was, they could. Oh yes they could.

“Yeah.” He breathed, matching his sister's smile. “Yeah I'm done for.”

They soon reached the cafeteria, and Rock felt like he had his head up in the clouds, almost forgetting to put some food items on his tray, his twin doing it for him, and each time Roll gave him a knowing smile.

They spotted their friends, explained Pittoo's absence to them, and lunch went on like usual.

While his friends were talking, Rock stabbed his food multiple times, mindlessly twirling the content of his plate around, not feeling hungry from the butterflies in his stomach.

He kept trying to think up plans that would help him make his feelings clearer to his crush, but all the options he pondered on ended in disaster.

Mostly because he had strictly no idea what he was doing.

“Guys … how do you flirt?” He blurted out.

There was a sudden, awkward silence, as the group looked at him, incredulous, and then the entire table erupted in laughter.

“What? What did I say?” Rock asked, feeling a blush coming on. He hadn't really meant to voice his question, but still he thought it wasn't so out of the ordinary for friends to be talking about that kind of stuff.

“Sorry Robot, but ...” Nana started.

“You just asked that out of the blue?” Popo said.

“And why would you ask that, anyway?” Lucas remarked, moving his fork around as he spoke, and getting some sauce on Red, who frowned.

All eyes were on Rock now, curious for his answer. The teen realized he had set himself up.

“Uh… it's just… I think there's someone I like. A lot?” He tried, hoping his friends would leave it at that, for his sake.

He immediately regretted his choice of friends.

“Who?!” Ness asked, practically screaming.

“Oh my god! Robot, you're in love?!” Toon said, almost as loudly as Ness.

“Keep it down!” Rock hissed, scared that other tables, where some of the more gossip-loving students were seated, could hear them.

“Would you asking us that question now be related to the fact that a certain someone isn't here today?” Nana asked, a sly grin on her face.

“N-not at all!” Rock sputtered, trying his best to save face despite knowing he was losing that battle.

“Really?” Lucas asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah! In fact, I should probably ask him first, he's the one most interested in romance after all.” He assured, speaking at a speed he didn't even know he could manage, his face getting redder.

“Relax, we're just teasing you!” Ness said, giving him a hearty slap on the back. “But it is Angel, right?”

Rock brought his fork to his mouth, and munched on his food to justify answering with a curt nod.

“Oooooh!” Popo cooed.

“I knew it!” Lucas cheered.

“It's sooo exciting!” Nana cheered as well.

“So, what have you done so far?” Tetra, who hadn't spoken until then, asked him.

“I've been... trying to uh, hype myself up for it. Trying to win his heart, I mean...”

Rock heard his sister go "Aw!".

“Robot, you precious little bean!” Leaf chimed in.

“So, you tried to make a move yet?” Popo smirked, wiggling his eyebrows.

“I've spent time with him? Alone?” Rock tentatively answered.

“Ooooh! So you mean you've already asked him out?” Toon asked, his eyes widening in excitement. Some other people followed suit.

“No!" Rock blurted. "Not like that! It was just... he thinks I did it as a friend! A-and it's kinda true...”

“So... you just hanged out. Nothing special?” Nana asked, clearly sounding a bit disappointed.

Rock shook his head, looking down at the ground. Did he really suck that much at this whole romance stuff?

“Did you try to flirt with him?” Ness asked.

“No I... I've been hyping myself up to try and ask him out, but I don't know if I'll do it because..." Rock started, feeling a bit lost when it came to expressing his feelings and reasoning to his friends.

Not only that, but the more he thought about it, the lamer his reasoning became. Still, he carried on.

"It's just that I still think there's a chance he might be straight. And I don't really want to make a fool of myself? Especially since I suck at flirting... so, until I'm perfectly sure...”

He trailed off when he heard snickers and snorts, as well as his sister's “told you!”, and looked at the table in pure confusion.

“Angel? Straight?” Nana started with a grin.

“What made you think that?” Her brother continued, and he looked like he would burst in giggles at any given moments.

Tetra was looking at him with an expression that clearly said "Really?" as she tried to contain both her laughter and the water she had just drank.

“Why-what's so funny?!” Rock asked, a bit indignated.

“He had crushes on, like, at least two guys in the time we've known him. That we know of.” Ness explained, nonchalantly stealing a piece of bread from Toon's plate, who frowned at him. “'Surprised you didn't know.”

“Eh, one of them was around the start of freshman year, and it lasted three days, if memory serves me right. Apparently the guy gave him his sandwich for free, with a wink, and bam! Angel was a goner.” Leaf recounted, being one of the most well-versed in gossip among them.

“And the other one was a dude in our Archery Club, about a year ago." Toon chimed in. "It lasted about a week, until the guy just up and disappeared from the club.”

Rock felt like all his breath had been sucked out of his lungs. He had never really involved himself in Pit's love life, unless the other made it very obvious who he was crushing on, but wouldn't he have noticed that when looking for signs he could have a chance?

“Really?” He asked, a bit disoriented by the revelation, and feeling a blush coming on at the prospect that a relationship with Pit might not be as much of an unattainable idea as he had thought. He felt really hopeful now, and happy.

“Oh my god, Robot, you're hopeless.” Popo laughed.

And maybe he was.

And speaking of which, there was a crucial domain in which he really was hopeless. And he still didn't have answers.

“So, now that... that's cleared up..." He awkwardly chuckled. "What about my question?”

“That's easy, Robot. All you have to do is be smooth and subtle.” Roll answered him, right as Pittoo finally joined them.

“Smooth and subtle for what?” He asked as he put down his tray onto the table.

“Nothing.” The entire table said, and despite Pittoo's suspicious glare, the conversation instead turned into the whole table relentlessly bothering their friend with questions about his visit to the principal's office.

Maybe Rock has made the right choices when it came to friends, after all.

Near the end of lunch break, a shrill sound came from the speakers, making most of the students jump and cover their ears in pain.

“Sorry, sorry everyone, might have-ah, done a bit of a goof with the mike there!” Said the principal's voice.

Said man was standing in the middle of the cafeteria, mike in hand, accompanied by some staff and a new face that looked like she could be a student at the high-school.

“I would like to have your attention.”

Rock focused his attention on the girl. She was blonde, and looked quite shy, almost hiding herself behind the principal from the curious gazes of the students.

“As you may have noticed, we have a new student among us.”

“Oh no...” Roll muttered, her hands gripping the table.

“What?” Rock asked, though he knew his sister well enough to know what was happening.

“She's cute!” She practically hissed, light pink already dusting her ears.

Rock just flashed Roll a teasing grin and turned his attention back to the principal.

“This is Miss Kalinka Cossack. She transferred here from abroad, and I expect you to give her a proper welcome.”

The crowd of the cafeteria erupted with various greetings, and the new student looked down at the ground, still looking shy.

Rock frowned pensively. “Cossack... doesn't that sound familiar to you Roll?...”

But it seemed like his sister was ignoring him completely in favor of both gaping at the new girl and listening to the principal's every words, as if she was waiting for something.

“Thank you all! Now, I'd like to know if any of our students would be interested in showing Miss Cossack around the Academy after lunch?”

“ME! I'll do it!” Roll shouted, standing up straight, her hands on the table.

“Looks like we have a volunteer! I appreciate the enthusiasm!”

“Smooth and subtle, Robot.” Rock mocked, in a poor imitation of his sister's voice. Their friends laughed and snickered, Pittoo looking around confused, while Roll shot her brother a dirty glare.

Before Rock could get murdered in cold blood by his own twin, the principal approached their table with the transfer student.

Roll's fury immediately died down when she spotted the new girl. She stood up and made a beeline to her, offering to shake hands.

“Hi! Name's Roll. Roll Light. But everyone here calls me Cinnamon.” She smiled, trying to appear cool and relaxed, though the hand she wasn't holding out was trembling.

A look of recognition flashed across the other girl's face.

“Light? Are you per chance related to the Doctor?” She asked, her voice soft.

When Roll stood silent and dumbfounded, Rock took the lead.

“Yes, we are. He's our father. I'm Rock by the way, Roll's twin. Everyone calls me Robot.” He shook her hand. “How's your father? Did he come here along with you?”

“Oh! I had no idea the Light siblings went to this school!” Kalinka laughed. “My father stayed back in Russia for now, and he's doing well, and I do hope yours is too.”

“As long as he can work on his robots, he's fine.” Rock grinned.

“Then it's really no wonder our parents are friends.” She rolled her eyes, more out of fondness than annoyance, and started laughing, Rock joining her.

“Wait wait wait.” Roll interrupted, coming in between them, and looked at Kalinka. “Your father is Doctor Mikhail Cossack?”

“Yes?”

“How come we've never heard of you then?!”

“Oh, my father is a bit... how to put it... protective? And he doesn't like having many people know about me.” Kalinka explained.

“That would explain it, yeah...” Roll said, pensive.

Kalinka shifted on her feet, and looked up at Roll.

“Sooo...” She started. “What's with the nicknames?”

Everyone at their table grinned, even Pittoo. Roll took the new girl by the sleeve and introduced her a bit more familiarly to their group, each person taking their turn explaining their nicknames, and the Academy's history with them.

Once introductions were done and over with, the rest of lunch time was first spent trying to decide on a nickname for Kalinka.

Some suggested “Doll”, others “Pie”, and the suggestions gradually became more and more over-the-top or ridiculous.

Since no one managed to agree fast enough for Roll's liking, it was decided she would be called “Kali” for the time being.

And in the amount of time they had left on lunch break, Roll decided to leave the table and actually show Kalinka around.

Rock had first planned to let his twin go on her own while he would stay with their friends, but their sh*t-eating grins in his general direction made him ask if he could tag along.

Surprisingly, his sister agreed, and he could tell she really felt nervous about this. He tried to put on his best reassuring smile as they were clearing away their trays.

“Chill. You got this.” He whispered, too low for Kalinka to hear.

“Thanks, brobot." She smiled, then took a deep breath and spoke to the new girl. "So, Kali, ready to follow us?"

They mostly stuck to showing Kalinka the most important spots when it came to social life and shared a few stories about the local folklore, so to speak, and gave her a somewhat detailed plan on how to navigate the various corridors and which buildings were actually important to remember.

While speaking of the various activities the Academy offered when it came to school life, Roll started to speak about the upcoming Halloween party, and upon hearing Kalinka's interest about it, she froze in her tracks, right as music rang out from the intercoms.

“Oh my gosh! If you want to participate, we have to sign you up for it, and fast!” She said as she grabbed the girl by the sleeve, once again.

Her brother came between them to stop her.

“Uh, don't you have class?”

“Aw frick... I forgot.” Roll sighed, dejected. “But wait, who's going to show Kali around?”

“I mean... I don't have class for the rest of the day.” Rock said.

“And you could go home?”

“Yeah but... I could also do your job.” He did mean that he could show Kalinka around just as well, but he also meant he would chat with the new girl and get to know her better. That had been, undoubtedly, what his twin had had in mind from the beginning, and she had yet been unable to do the second part.

Thankfully, Roll understood him, in the way only close siblings could.

“Alright then! But you better do it right!”

“Will do!”

He waved at her as she disappeared through the masses, and looked at Kalinka. She had a far-off look, her gaze settling on the crowd where some students were either freaking out about an upcoming test or playfully fighting each other, and she kept chewing on her lip.

“You okay? You look a bit stressed there.” Rock noted, picking up on the nervous tick.

“I'm... fine. It's just... coming to a new country, a new school, and meeting all those new people...”

“You're nervous, I get that. All new students are.” He grinned. He remembered the last time he had helped a new student get around the Academy. Said student's name had happened to be Pit.

Thanks to that brief reminiscing, the itch he had felt earlier came back full force, but he figured it would be rude to text a friend while he was supposed to help someone out.

He repressed the need, for now, and tried to focus on what Kalinka was saying.

“Thanks.” She said. “But it might also be because I'm not really used to being alone, you know? I mean my brothers came here with me, but they're not able to be with me here in school, and I've always had someone to look after me so it feels a bit... stange, you know?”

“I understand. My brother was a bit of a mother hen to me and Roll. Though a lot of the upperclassmen tend to look after us, too.” Upon seeing her still clutching her arms protectively, he lightly jabbed her with his elbow. “Don't worry, you soon wont feel that way anymore. And in the meantime, I'll protect you!”

The girl smiled at him, but it still looked shy and unsure. And there was also something else, that Rock had picked up on. But he couldn't for the life of him identify what was up.

He would keep it for later, as for the moment he did have to help the new student sign up for the Halloween party.

He wasn't sure if the girl would attend in the end, but he agreed with his sister's apparent opinion that it was better to be safe than sorry.

He guided Kalinka to the student council's room once they realized there weren't any inscription sheets available at the main board, and thankfully Isabelle was there to hold the fort.

The girl was one of the student representatives, and when she spotted Kalinka she enthusiastically introduced herself.

Rock had to cut the greetings short, explaining the reason for their visit, and in record time Isabelle had all the paperwork readied up.

“Wow.” Kalinka said, impressed. “You work really fast!”

“Thank you!” Isabelle positively glowed at the praise. “I didn't get the nickname of “Secretary” for nothing. People always tell me I'm really organized, and I absolultely love doing things for others. Why, one time, back in 8^th grade-”

Rock tuned out Isabelle's ramblings, already knowing about the anecdote she was going to share with Kalinka, and instead used the bit of freedom he had to finally text a certain someone.

Rock: Hello.

Rock: How are you doing?

Pit: rock?

Pit: zat yuo

Pit: *you

Pit: sorry

Pit: wait of coarse it is

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Rock: Yes, it's me.

Rock: You're really out of it, uh? Guess I'd better leave you alone.

Pit: no

Pit: no!

Pit: is fine

Pit: am good :)

Rock snorted. He could easily envision the boy laying on his bed, trying his best to respond to his texts, but his mind too foggy to be fully coherent.

He looked up at the girls, chatting it up still, and smiled. He still had a bit more time.

Rock: So, you got your brother into some trouble?

Pit: really? :c

Pit: ho

Pit! *how

Rock: The rat. You scared the rat away.

Pit: dont have a rat

Rock: What about Pichu then?

Pit: oooooh

his no rat

he famly :>

Rock: Oh boy. I should really stop texting you, you're making less and less sense.

Pit: am fine!!!! :D

Rock: Go to sleep.

Pit: you go to sleep! >:(

Rock: I'd love to but I can't right now.

Pit: you have class???? :o

Pit: somethin happne?

Rock: Well, kinda.

Rock: A new student transferred today.

Rock: So I stayed at school to show her around.

Pit: really

Pit: why

Rock: Because? Also Roll volunteered first, but she couldn't do it.

Rock: And as her twin it is my responsibility to carry on when she cannot continue something.

Pit: aw

Pit: whats she liek

Pit: your not getting all

Pit: you now

Rock: All what?

Pit: sorry jus forget it

Rock: Okay?

Rock: But she sounds really nice, even though she's a bit shy right now.

Rock: And wouldn't you know it, she's actually the daughter of one of my father's colleagues.

Rock: It's a small world.

Pit: oh

Pit: I hope you 2 hav fun

Rock: Uh, sure?

Rock: As for you, take care, and sleep.

Pit: :p

Rock: Please.

Pit: k k

Rock looked up from his phone when he noticed the room had gone silent. The two girls were looking at him with a bit of an incredulous look, probably because of the dopey smile he had been wearing while texting Pit.

He awkwardly coughed, and forced out a courteous smile.

“So, uh, all done?”

“Yup!” Isabelle cheered. “All is in order, she'll get her invite in time!”

“Cool, thank you for your work, as always!”

They bid their goobyes and left, Rock aiming to show Kalinka the more specific classrooms that his sister hadn't had the time to go over.

However, he stopped in his tracks when he heard the girl's stomach growl.

Next to him, Kalinka was positively mortified.

“Sorry! I just haven't eaten at lunch because I wasn't hungry, but...”

“That's okay!” Rock reassured her. “But you'd better eat something though. There are vending machines not far away from here, if you don't have anything on you.”

As it turns out, Kalinka didn't have a single snack on her, and to the vending machines they went.

Rock let Kalinka make her choices, helping her understand what the snacks she was unfamiliar with were like. He then pondered what his next course of action should be.

He disliked small talk, but he barely knew the blonde girl he was supposed to help, and he figured if he could get as much information as he could for his sister, that would be pretty nice, and also make for a way to repay Roll for the times she had spent listening to his affectionate rambles when it came to his own crush.

If only he wasn't so horrible at starting conversations with strangers.

“So, uuuuh... you said something about brothers earlier? How many do you have?” He said, trying not to act awkward and failing horribly at it.

Kalinka blinked. “Oh, I have nine of them.”

“Whoa that's... a lot? No offense.” He winced internally. Who said those kind of things?

She laughed, thankfully. “I know, it always surprises people! Truth is, they're all my adoptive brothers. But I don't care that we're not related by blood, and neither do they.”

“Oh! Cool...” And he officially didn't know how to carry that conversation any longer. He only hoped Kalinka was better at it.

To his relief, she was a little bit better at it, as after taking a bite from a Kitkat bar, she spoke. “So... you yourself mentioned your brother earlier. Could you... tell me more about him?”

Unfortunately the subject she picked was a touchy one. Then again, he had kinda asked for it.

He took a deep breath, and tried to keep his smile from faltering.

“His name was Blues. He was Roll and I's older brother.”

Please don't ask why I used past tense. Please don't ask why I used past tense. Please don't ask-

“Was?”

Oh great.

Now, Rock figured he could talk in long detail about what happened.

He could tell her about how his brother had a heart condition that had to be treated, and how their father had signed Blues up into a specialized institute without consulting with him first. How his brother had lashed out at their father, claiming he would rather die young and free than spend the last of his teen years and first few years of adulthood locked up in a building.

How he had escaped their home, never to be seen again, around two years ago, right after Thanksgiving. How he and Roll cried, how the authorities kept searching and finding nothing, and how ever since then Rock had hoped he would at least know, one day, of his older brother's whereabouts, even if those ended up being in a ditch or something.

But he would feel incredibly bad for dumping all of that onto a girl he had just met, and who obviously had her fair share of anxiety, so he decided to keep it as vague as possible.

“He's gone... he ran away from home one day, and we've never heard from him again.” He explained, trying to smile.

Kalinka had stayed silent after that, looking down at her hands that were fiddling with the wrappers of some of her snacks, before she muttered “I'm sorry.”

“For what?”

“I shouldn't have asked.”

“It's okay. It happened almost two years ago. It's been a while.”

She looked up, and gave him a sympathetic smile. “Still... it must have been hard... I'm surprised my father never spoke of that event but then again...” She kept playing with the wrappers in her hands, and looked in the distance. “He probably did that to prevent me from worrying. I do wonder what I would do if that ever happened. If one of my brothers just up and left, and I never saw him again...”

“It's... I mean I guess it depends on people? I just know that I'll never forget him, and I wont ever lose hope that I will, one day, know what happened.”

Kalinka just hummed her agreement, visibly lost in thoughts.

Rock realized the conversation had maybe gone into too deep a subject for a simple small-talk. And he was still missing a lot of information that his sister would want to get out of him.

“Phew, okay, enough about that, and enough about me. Do you have any hobbies?”

Kalinka perked up at that. “Oh, yes! I am a pretty good Ballet dancer, and pianist!”

“Really? How long have you been doing Ballet for?”

“Oh, ever since I was 4, I think? And 6, when it comes to piano.”

“Was it your own choice, or...?”

“It was my choice. See... it's a bit embarrassing, but when I was little, I used to dream of becoming a princess. Since my brothers and I live in a mansion, and I was the only girl, they used to play pretend and act like servants and nobles.”

“Aw, that's not embarrassing, that's adorable!” And now Rock had yet another bit of information he could share with Roll.

Kalinka blushed at the comment, looking away, but Rock was oblivious to her actions and continued. “And that reminds me! You still haven't got a proper nickname, but maybe Ballerina could work?... Princess is already taken, unfortunately.”

The girl looked at him again, and seemed to ponder on it.

“Ballerina, uh? … Yes, I do like the sound of that.”

“Alright then, Ballerina, let's visit the arts department. I'm sure you'll want to apply to some of the clubs!”

Kalinka agreed, and they made their way to the theater. There, they met some of the theater kids, who were in the middle of reciting something.

“You foolish mortals shall pay for your brash actions with your life!” Rock heard Joker say in a blood-curling voice, before he made himself known, excusing himself for the interruption.

The older teen yelped, glaring at the others who chuckled at his reaction, and the band stopped to greet Kalinka.

Much like with Isabelle, there was a bit of chitchat, and Rock looked at his texts.

He had gotten a few of them from Coco.

Coco: Oh my gosh, Robot, please tell me you're still at school.

Coco: Tails isn't answering my messages.

Coco: You're my only hope.

Rock: What's happening?

Coco: I think I left R.O.B. plugged in.

Rock: You mean Buddyman?

Coco: Oh shut up, that name sucks and you know it.

Coco: Just answer my question!

Rock: It doesn't!

Rock: But I am still at school. I'll go check.

Coco: Oh thank you so much!

Coco: I would have cried if it had overheated.

Rock: No kidding.

Once all was in order for Kalinka to join the Music and Dance club, the girl mentionned her interest in joining the Cheerleaders club.

“Sure! I'll take you to the sports department, but I hope you don't mind if we check the robotics department on the way? I need to go check on something.”

Kalinka expressed no opposition, so the two of them walked there, and Rock went to look for their project inside the workshop.

The robot was indeed plugged into a power outlet, so he quickly unplugged it and went to store it somewhere safe.

“What's that?” Kalinka asked as she carefully observed the robot.

“Our group project! We have to build a helpful machine.”

“Does it have a name?”

“Yeah, Buddyman.” Rock lied. Though it wasn't really lying if none of the names were official. Yet.

“That's a... peculiar name.” Kalinka commented, and Rock felt it as a stab to his pride.

“I-it's a work in progress!” He protested, trying to defend his definitely amazing idea for a name.

“What does it do?”

“For now... not much. But it should be able to help people with chores and stuff.”

“That sounds ambitious.”

“We decided to aim high, yeah...” Rock explained, feeling a bit sheepish, until something came to his mind. “Hey, come to think of it, would you like to join the Robotics club too?”

To his surprise, Kalinka shook her head.

“No thank you... I don't really feel like it.”

From her posture and expression, Rock could feel as though something was up, yet again, but he decided not to investigate and waste more time. After all, Kalinka still had to go sign up to officially join another club.

“Alright, no pressure! Let's go then!”

The tour of the Academy had finally come to an end as Kalinka had signed the papers to the Cheerleaders club, with their coach fawning over the new girl as soon as she had entered the room.

They were now making their way to the gymnasium. Rock felt almost relieved it was all over. He did enjoy Kalinka's company, but he wasn't really much of a social butterfly and had to keep reminding himself he was doing all this both to help someone out, and for his sister.

“And I guess that concludes our little visit.” He said. “Roll should be done with practice in a bit, so she will show you around the gymnasium and all the other sports related stuff. She spends a lot more time there than I do, after all.”

Next to him, Kalinka was fidgeting, and once again looking like she was feeling uneasy.

“Everything okay?” He asked. It was kind of frustrating not knowing if it was because of him or not. He didn't want to make anyone feel uncomfortable around him.

“Yes, it's just... I don't really know how to say this but...” She started, and then looked to the side, clearly embarrassed.

“Say what? Come on, just tell me, I wont bite.”

“No it's... a bit embarrassing, in a way?...” She blushed.

“Hey now, you don't have to be afraid to talk about something.” He insisted, and Kalinka looked up at him, biting her lip.

“Rock, or, Robot is it? You're... I think you are really kind, and interesting, and you seem really smart...”

Uh.

That was strange.

What was she going to say?

“And I am truly grateful for the time you took to show me around...” Kalinka hesitated, but continued talking. “... and I think I get what you're trying to do but... I'm afraid I am not interested.”

The boy tried to make sense of what she had just said to him. Not interested? In what? Robotics? But she had already told him that.

But now that he really thought about it, that sounded a lot like a rejection.

Did she think he was into her? Oh no, that was what it was right?

But he had to be careful before he made any assumptions.

“Wait, are you... rejecting me?”

Kalinka looked apologetic. “Yes. I'm sorry, but I don't want to date you. I hope you understand.”

Upon hearing her answer, he openly laughed, so much so that he had to grip at his sides.

Once he managed to calm down, he looked back at Kalinka, and almost laughed again when he noticed the look of utter confusion on the poor girl's face.

“Are you okay?! Did I break you?! I'm so sorry!”

“No! I mean yes! I mean I'm alright... it's just...” He wiped a stray tear from his eye. “Kalinka, I never wanted to go out with you.”

“What? Really?!”

“Yeah. Long story short: I'm gay. And even if I wasn't, I already have my sights set on someone. So...”

Kalinka paled and started sputtering out apologies.

“OhmygoshImsosorryIdidntmeantoassumeIjustthoughtyouweretryingtospendtimewithmealonetoflirtorsomethingI-

Rock put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and smiled. “It's okay, I'm not mad. On the contrary, I'm really amused.”

Indeed, one moment he was lamenting about his poor flirting skills when it came to his crush, the next a girl he barely knew thought he had been flirting with her even though he hadn't meant to. It was both funny and sad.

“Oh, but I'm still sorry. I really shouldn't have just thought you were- I mean I like girls myself, so...”

She was interrupted by the sounds of hurried footsteps, and soon enough Roll was at their side, catching her breath.

“Heeeey!” She greeted. “I'm finally free from the clutches of mandatory training. So, what were you guys talking about?”

“We were just realizing how much we had in common.” Rock grinned, offering no further explanation despite his sister's inquiry.

“Ah, Robot." Roll sighed. "Ever so helpfully vague.”

To Roll's dismay, Kalinka was called back to the principal's office, and had to bid them goodbye.

The twins walked their way home, and despite his sister's constant asking, Rock didn't cave in, and he went all the way there without sharing any of the things he now knew about the new student.

Once they got back, Roll kept her pestering act up, even as Rock ignored her by serving himself some soda.

She sat on one of the chairs in the kitchen, acting like a child, elbows on the table and head on her hands, looking at him expectantly as the rhythm at which her legs kicked the air gradually went up as more and more time passed.

“Soooo?”

Rock gave his sister a knowing grin, while he ripped open a box of Oreos for them both to share.

Roll snatched a bunch of them, and started munching on one, her expectant gaze not leaving her brother for one second.

He figured he had made her wait long enough.

“She has nine adoptive older brothers. No, they don't go to this school. She can play piano, dances ballet, and lived in a mansion back in Russia. Her childhood dream was to become a princess. She doesn't seem that interested in robotics. She signed up for the Cheerleaders' club, so you'll definitely be able to see her around. Who knows, she might even cheer for you.”

His sister started to smile as she listened, and it grew giddier at each new bit of information he shared. He knew she was making sure that all those details became ingrained into her brain.

But, he had yet to share his greatest catch of the day.

“And, most importantly, she likes girls.”

Roll gasped and started to choke on the crumbs of Oreos that were still in her mouth. She coughed them out, and then launched herself at her brother.

“Rock Light, I love you so much!” Roll hugged him with all the force she could muster. Which was a lot. “You're the best brother ever!”

“Eh. I try.” He grinned, hugging her back.

That evening, as they were both going up the stairs to do their routine before going to bed, his sister nagged him.

“So, now we both have people we want to win over, right?”

“Riiiiight?” He asked, highly suspicious of where this conversation was going.

“And you most definitely suck when it comes to wooing your angel, right?”

This time he didn't answer, and simply squinted his eyes.

“Alright, let's work on them flirting skills then!” Roll shouted, taking her brother by the shoulders and moving him around the corridor.

“Roll, please don't-” He complained, though he knew he had already lost.

“Oooooh you're so not getting out of this.” She grinned as she now dragged her brother by the hem of his T-shirt into the bathroom, where, much to Rock's despair, she forced him to undergo some ridiculous exercises involving improvisation and mirrors, until she finally released him from this hell when their father came up to check on them, blissfully unaware of the torture his son had gone through.

Before he went to sleep, Rock set his alarm and noticed he had two missed texts from Pit.

He was ready to reprimand the other for texting him so late while sick, but he froze up when he read the messages.

Pit: you best in mundo

Pit: te quiero tanto

Now, he didn't know a lot of spanish, but he was pretty sure he knew what those words meant.

A bit shaken, he tried to make sense of it all, rationalizing that his friend had meant it as platonic, which was true.

Not to mention that he could easily blame Pit's incoherent state of mind for the existence of those texts.

But once he finally got into bed, he let go of all restraints and let out a silent, confused scream into his pillow, and hoped his racing mind and rapidly beating heart wouldn't be keeping him up all night.

Chapter Text

Pit had gone back to school on thursday, and Rock had been eager to introduce him to Kalinka, who had finally integrated their group of friends.

Surprisingly, Pit had acted a bit distant towards her, but the group had blamed his behavior on him being tired after days of being sick.

Still, Rock couldn't help but notice all the quick glances Pit shot his way whenever he and Kalinka were talking, or standing close to one another. Dread had settled in his stomach, and then his mind.

He hoped what was happening was not what he feared: that Pit was starting to develop a crush on the new girl. After all, she was his type.

But what's worse, if that was the case, then Pit was growing jealous of Rock because of the way Kalinka tended to stick to both him and Roll, still unsure of her place in theirs and the Academy's various friend groups.

His heart could probably deal, albeit with difficulty, to Pit falling for someone else than him yet again. He was unfortunately used to this. But to have his crush, his friend, look at him with envy and  disdain?

It broke his heart just thinking about it.

He shared some of his worries to his sister, who, to his horror, tattled to their entire group of trusted friends about it. Because of that, a group of teens showed up at his house -and raided the fridge- to give him various versions of the same pep talk.

But with the Halloween party being held that same evening, everyone had had to go home to put on their costumes, not before leaving Rock with a clear message: he had to flirt with Pit at the party. Get his attention away from Kalinka.

Rock had protested at first, not feeling the least bit ready despite his resolve, but reassurance from his friends that they would help him if he needed them got him to warm up to the idea.

Though he was still feeling nervous, as he put on the plates of his armor, and looked himself in the mirror of his room.

He had liked designing this year's halloween costume, taking inspiration from the robots in the comics and shows he liked. The light blue spandex wasn't too constricting, and the metal parts didn't weigh too heavy on his feet and arms. The part he was most proud of was the helmet, and he smiled as he put it on.

A childish part of him urged him to strike a pose, and he grinned as he did so. He looked like a hero, and fondly reminisced about one of his made-up characters during childhood. 'Miracle Rainbow Kid', he had called him. The secret identity of Akira Hikari, a super fighting cyborg who fought for peace and justice against a human supervillain who wanted to plunge the world into chaos by reigniting old tensions between humans and robots.

He felt himself blush as he recalled the way his siblings had made fun of him when they had found out about his various stories and drawings. He had kept them, somewhere in a box, but had never done anything with them.

He wondered if Pit would have liked those stories. The teen, despite having never done anything with it, had somewhat of an interest in robots and technology.

He looked at his reflection in the mirror once more, and grinned. If anything, he was sure this costume would gain Pit's admiration. Rock's heart started to beat a bit faster, and he felt his stomach churn in anticipation, playing out his crush's reaction in his mind.

He hoped everything would go well.

The ride to the Academy's gymnasium was a quiet one, safe for Roll's shuffling as she desperately tried to find a comfortable position to settle in, her cinnamon roll costume making it hard to fit in the seat of the car. More than once, Rock had to warn her not to mess with the controls, as she came dangerously close to bumping into the gearshift with each of her attempts to seat properly. They had a it of a squabble as they waited on some traffic lights, as Rock pointed out that he had told her she could have waited a bit longer to put her costume on.

Once they finally got there, it took a while of searching until he found a free parking spot, and he chuckled as his sister had to reluctantly ask for his help to get out of the seatbelt, not being able to reach for it.

He got out, and went to the trunk to retrieve his boots and gauntlets. He had had to remove them earlier, as he felt they were much too big for him to drive around with, and despite Roll assuring him it would have been fine, he really didn't want to risk getting arrested.

When he looked up after making sure his ride was locked, his sister was waving at him and telling him to hurry up. He shook his head at her antics, and tried to jog to catch up with her.

The both of them walked their way into the masses of students that were making their way to the awaited party, under the watchful gaze of the Principal, dressed up as a carpenter this year, instead of the traditional plumber.

Aided by Snake, they filtered in the students. The twins showed them their student cards along with a greeting, the principal smiled at them and let them through.

They had agreed to meet with their friends by a huge maple tree, and on the way there they bumped into Coco and Crash. Rock let out a gasp when he looked a bit closer at their halloween costume.

“Woah you guys! That looks like real fur, are you secretly shapeshifters or something?” He asked.

“Yeah, that's really impressive!” Roll added, wordlessly asking for permission to touch the fur to check its texture.

“It's all synthetic, and hand-made!” Coco proudly explained. “Granted, Crash did all the handy work, but I was directing him.”

“Naturally.” Rock smiled.

“You two look good too! Especially you, Robot. Did you use supplies from the school or your father to make it?” She asked, as she lightly poked at his helmet.

“My dad's lab had some leftover scraps of metal. I just had to grab some of them.”

“Ugh, that sounds so great...” Coco sighed wistfully, while her brother smiled sympathetically at her side. “I wish I could have seemingly endless supplies of techy stuff.”

Meanwhile, Roll, done with her inspection, spoke up. “So, are you dressed as mice or something?”

“No! We're bandicoots!” Coco said, exasperated. It seemed as if it hadn't been the first time she had had to explain it.

Crash didn't say anything, simply snickered, stopping only when Coco shot him a dirty glare. She sighed. “I knew we made the ears too big...”

“Don't worry, I meant it when I said your costumes were impressive!” Roll said, and Rock acquiesced to her statement.

As the party inside the gymnasium seemed to pick up, what with most of the students having shown up, they decided not to wait any longer and went all the way to their meeting place, where they could spot most of their friends already chatting and laughing about.

Upon their arrival, conversations stilled as they greeted the newcomers.

Once the group had complimented the bandicoot costumes -Coco looking on the verge of hitting someone if she had to explain what they were going as one more time-, the attention was brought onto the Light twins.

“Hey, you look good as a robot!” Nana complimented Rock.

“What about me?” Roll asked, feigning being hurt from being ignored.

“I thought it was obvious that you looked good as well, Cinnamon Roll.” Nana smirked, lightly pushing on the costume, making Roll fumble a bit backwards.

“I agree.” Came Kalinka's voice, and Roll turned around to see the other girl dressed in an elaborate gown befitting a princess. She looked like a porcelain doll.

Rock wasn't psychic, but he could hear the internal scream of glee inside his sister's head, and had to repress a smile as his twin basically hurled herself onto the new girl, showering her in compliments.

While the girls kept talking, Rock was approached by Lucas, who looked him up and down. “You look cool! I really like the helmet.”

The others approved, adding in comments about the color and the materials, and Rock couldn't help but feel slightly sheepish under such praise and attention.

“Thanks...” He managed to say out loud, right as a new person joined them.

“Sorry guys, I was calling dibs on some food by the buffet and- whoa, look at you all! You look so cool! Nana, Popo, I almost can't tell who is who! And Robot, my man, you look the best you've ever been!” Sonic exclaimed.

Rock snorted, both at his friend's excitement, and at his choice of costume.

“Why did you come dressed as a hot-dog?” Leaf asked Sonic the question most of them had on their mind.

“It's a chili-dog!” The older teen huffed, as he mocked being offended.

“Okay, but why?” Leaf wasn't deterred, however.

“Because I'm chill, and hot just the same.” He winked at his audience.

The collective groans that ensued were cut short by a voice coming from behind them.

“Hey guys! Sorry we're late!”

They turned around to see Pit and Pittoo speed walking towards the group.

And Rock swore his brain froze for a minute.

Pit, much like his twin, was wearing an angel costume. Only his was white instead of the black his brother adored. The golden bracelets and jewels he wore twinkled in the dim light, and the white clothing gave his skin a beautiful glow. The costume was spot-on, Rock thought, because he looked downright angelic.

The whole group went quiet for a few seconds until the two brothers were assaulted by compliments and questions about their costumes from the entirety of the group, while Rock gaped silently to the side.

“Oh!” Pit said as he stopped next to Roll and Rock once he had been able to move freely, positively glowing from the praise. “I see you guys also went by as your own nicknames!”

Roll grinned up at him, putting an arm around her brother's neck. “Yup! Great minds think alike, Angel!”

Pit walked closer to Rock, and looked him up and down, his gaze focusing on every little details. Rock forced himself to ignore the way his heart was racing under his crush's stare, and tried not to gulp, or show any outward signs of the awkwardness and tension he felt.

The observation was over soon, and Pit clapsed his hands together, almost cooing. “Aw, you make such a cute robot! And you're so much tinier without your hair out!”

To emphasize this, Pit pat the smaller teen's head, whose cheeks flushed.

“I am not!” Rock spat, though with no bite in his tone.

Instead of adding anything to further their pointless argument, the other boy smiled and stayed in place, lightly bouncing on his feet, sending shy glances his way. As if he was waiting for something.

Rock stared, wondering what he should say or do. From his side, he could see his sister – as well as a couple of his friends - mouthing 'Compliment him!'.

Oh. Right. He forgot.

“But… um… you're… your halloween costume is pretty cool. It makes you look… great.” He gave him an awkward thumbs-up. “You're great.”

He winced internally. That was so lame! He loved the other so much he swore he could write an entire book of poems dedicated to his smile should he get to it. So why was his brain failing him now of all times?

Roll seemed to agree, as he saw her facepalm. And he heard some stifled snickers from his friends.

He felt the tip of his ears grow hot from embarrassement.

However, Pit had happily accepted the compliment, his grin reaching his eyes. “Thanks! It was kinda hard to find the right material for the wings, but I think it came along pretty nicely!”

As if to prove his point, Pit did a graceful little twirl, the fake feathers ruffling a bit, and the loose cloths swaying in the motion, capturing Rock's attention.

“Yeah, that it did…” He almost whispered, in awe, until he mentally slapped himself. “I really like the um, toga?”

Pit's eyes twinkled as he reached for some of the fabric, showing it off.

“Oh, yeah! Those came from rags one of our old neighbors gave us. But it was the perfect material! Pittoo sew them in!”

“Don't tell them that!” His brother complained, clearly mortified.

Seeing the fair amount of skin the twins' angel costumes showed, however, Rock felt a bit worried. “Aren't you going to get cold though? Your skin is kinda exposed...”

“Yeah, and you just got out of a cold.” Ness added.

Pit nodded. “Don't worry, I'll try to stay inside. I bet it's really hot in the building anyway.”

“Speaking of which, let's go in!” Rayman said, holding a bag of goodies, as he slid his arms behind both Sonic and Crash's back. “You guys have got to check out the inside! It's crazy! And there's tons of free stuff to grab!”

The group didn't need any more convincing.

Getting inside proved to be more difficult than expected, what with the queue of students piling up at the entrance. Rock had no idea if this had been intentional on his friends' part, but he ended up finding himself pressed up against multiple people, including Pit. He felt awkward and uneasy at the situation, both uncomfortable at being forced to touch so many people at once, and trying to suppress his unwelcome thoughts about how warm and soft his crush felt against him.

However he soon came to understand that Pit didn't mind being so close to other people, let alone him, and that eased some of his tension away.

“At least that way, you don't have to worry about me getting cold while we're waiting outside.” He grinned, and Rock couldn't argue with that logic.

When they finally stepped in, Rock was assaulted by the noise. Thankfully, his helmet muffled the sounds of the music and loud, reverberated chatter, and he smiled as he could cross one worry off of his list for the night.

The flickering and bright lights of some of the spots in the dancing area were a bit too strong for his liking, but as he looked around his eyes adjusted, and he managed to take in all of the decorations inside the gymnasium. And there were a lot.

There was a cozy space with rows of tables for the students to come eat and talk, and they were adorned by chestnuts, mushrooms and dried-up autumn leaves, while electric candles and fairy lights gave the display a warm, hearty glow.

But everywhere else, there were bat guirlands, pumpkins carved and decorated by the middle-schoolers, ghosts and witches hanging from the ceilings, and what he assumed to be an animatronic of a vampire near the drinks' table. There were also a lot of skeletons, some naked, most clothed in strange outfits, as well as cobwebs and spiders galore.

Hidden speakers played ominous songs and sounds, and the entire buidling, safe for the dancing grounds, was as dimly lit as it was reasonable. Had the building not been filled to the brim with excited teenagers, it would have given the place an eerie feel.

“Woah.” Rock said. “They didn't hold back on decorating this year …”

“They sure did...” Pit agreed, looking around in awe, much like everyone else. “They got the spooky ambiance right.”

Rock steeled himself for what he wanted to say next, and let out a ragged breath.

“You can always hold my hand if you feel scared or something … i-if you want to, of course ...” There went his first real attempt at flirting.

But Pit turned to him, an easy smile on his slightly pinkish face, and shook his head. “Oh, no, that's okay… Pittoo's gotten me used to seeing scary things ...”

The pang of disappointement Rock felt right there was cut short by a snicker coming from behind him.

He turned around to see Sonic, as well as Toon and a few other of his friends, trying to suppress a grin. Rock sent a hearty glare their way.

They reached the buffet tables, and marveled at the assortments of various food, most of them in shapes that fit right in with the Halloween spirit.

The appetizers were promptly raided, as well as the drinks, despite the school monitors and helping staff's best yet futile efforts at keeping a crowd of hungry teenagers at bay. Pit and Ness had a small scuffle trying to get the last bat-shaped cake on display, but ended up sharing it in two.

Then their group disbanded, as they each partaked in either chitchat, or one of the various activities available to them.

Rock had joined Lucas and Johan, who were respectively wearing a street urchin and a sort of viking costume, complete with a fake axe. The three of them were chatting it up as they watched and commented on the vampire, werewolf, zombie and ghost players of a small basketball game.

Lucas turned to Johan, his eyes fixed on one of the players, that seemed to be having fun taunting the vampire. “Who's the person in the werewolf costume?”

“I heard it's Cloud, and that he came to assist the staff.” Johan explained.

“Really?” Rock was doubtful. He had been fresh into the Academy when Cloud was in high-school, but even then he had known enough about him to remember he was considered aloof and disinterested. Looking to his side, he saw that Lucas seemed to share his sentiment.

Johan looked at the both of them, and shrugged.

“It's intel I got from my position as student representative. Take it or leave it.”

They were about to resume their conversation, when Johan's phone rang, and he excused himself.

“Sorry, business calls.” He said, as he walked outside.

“Wonder who could be calling him.” Lucas wondered aloud.

“Yeah.” Rock said. “It's a bit strange. I mean, maybe it's the Hands?”

“Why would the Hands call him? They'd know he's busy.” Lucas rationalized, looked at his phone, and turned to face Rock. “Nevermind that. So, what's your plan?”

“Plan?” Rock asked intelligently.

“With you-know-who?”

“Oh. That...” He scratched the back of his head. “Haven't really got one, to be honest...”

Lucas gave him a sympathetic smile. “At least you tried back there...” He snorted when he took notice of Rock's scrunched up face as he recalled his attempt. “But you should keep it up! And the best way to do that is to spend time with him!”

“Thanks Lucas, but-”

“No 'buts'. Get out there, and go get'im!” He said, shoving Rock forward to where they had last sighted Pit.

Rock felt confused by Lucas' uncharacteristic behavior. “Wait, why are so adamant on doing this?”

Lucas stopped, and when Rock looked at him, he seemed sheepish.

“I, um...” He trailed off, and groaned. “Okay, I can't keep this a secret. Look.”

He shoved his phone into Rock's hands who, to his bemusement, was met with a groupchat filled with people discussing him and Pit. The latest message asking Lucas to 'give robot a lil push'.

He felt his cheeks grow red, and heard Lucas awkwardly clear his throat, taking his phone back from his hands.

“I... I know it's weird, and you must feel uncomfortable but... we only made this chat this afternoon. We did promise we'd help you out if you needed, and the guys thought it'd be better to talk over texts than out loud, in case some people overheard.”

Hearing the explanation being somewhat reasonable, Rock heaved out a sigh.

“Okay it's....a bit weird?” He admitted. “But I appreciate the sentiment? I guess?”

“Good.” There was a beat, then Lucas smiled at him. “Still, you should go find him. I have to take a bathroom break anyway.”

“Oh.” Rock said, feeling a bit lost. “Okay then?”

Lucas put a hand and his shoulder. “Good luck.” And walked away.

Left on his own, Rock searched for Pit, and saw him talking to Zelda and Link, dressed as a pirate and a... belly dancer? An ugly feeling stirred up in his chest and stomach as Zelda took Pit's hand in hers, and he had to physically shake the jealousy away.

Zelda wasn't a threat anymore. And to have ever thought of such a sweet young woman as one made Rock feel guilty.

He watched from afar as the pair excused themselves to Pit and went on the dance floor, happily swirling around amongst the students.

Rock chose that moment to join his crush, trying his best to look disinterested.

“What's up?” He asked, not really knowing what topic to pick. But Pit, as usual, had something to say.

“Not much... I just suggested that these two-” He pointed to the couple, still dancing without a care in the world. “Should dance and stuff.”

Upon hearing that, an idea sparked in Rock's mind. “Do you... feel like dancing too?”

“Hmm... not really. I still feel pretty tired, and I don't want to burn all of my energy just yet. I want to enjoy this night as much as I can.”

“Oh... okay...” Rock tried to hide as much of his disappointment as he could. “So uh... is that why you didn't ask Princess to go dance with you instead?”

He saw Pit's eyes widen, and then the teen looked away. Rock waited patiently. He knew he wasn't supposed to know Pit had gotten over his crush, after all, and had to act the part.

“I, uh... Actually, I don't feel that way about her anymore.”

“Really?” He asked, and was going to leave it at that, but a selfish part of him wanted to press on. “...Why?”

“Yeah... as for why, well...” Pit pointed to both Link and Zelda, their laughter ringing around the gymnasium despite the music and the chatter from the crowd. “Just look at them. They love each other, and I could never give her what he could.”

“Are you sure?”

Pit smiled, a bit sadly, as he looked at him. “I know you said I'd be good for her but... let's not kid ourselves here.”

At that confession, Rock felt soft, and somewhat protective.

And bold.

He reached for Pit's hand, and gave it a light squeeze, the teen looking at their joined hands with a puzzled expression, while Rock tried to keep his bravado up, even though his free hand was shaking.

“I meant what I said." He started, looking straight into Pit's eyes.

"I know she certainly cares about you, and values your friendship. Don't think you're not good enough. She may have gone for someone else, but had the circumstances been different, you would have had your chances, I'm sure.” He gulped, feeling his confidence and earlier bravado dwindling down by the minute, but determined to get his message across. “You're great, you know? I hope you know that.”

“Rock...” He startled as he heard Pit use his actual name. It felt strange. Almost intimate. “Thanks...”

Pit's smile and stance were soft, his eyes, half-lidded, were shining with an undecipherable feeling, and for a moment Rock swore it felt like the air around them was filled with electricity. He felt tingles where Pit's hand touched his, and took a step forward, as Pit did too.

Rock's heart sped up, and his gaze found Pit's lips, as his mind urged him to kiss him. A familiar ache, one that he already had in the past, and acted on, only to fail and never try again.

Until now. Because now he wanted to try again. And it would be so easy, he would just have to stand up on his feet and aim right, and they'd have their first kiss.

The music tuned down, instead replaced by a pleasant ringing as the blood rushed in his ears and cheeks the closer their faces got.

A loud, shrill sound cut through the air and the music, making every student flinch and cover their ears, including Pit and Rock.

And just like that, the moment was lost.

Rock muttered curses as the principal made his speech, once again apologizing for his clumsiness with a mike, and Rock had half a mind not to clap at the end, only being prompted to do so by Pit's questionning gaze.

Still, he felt moody even as his friends regrouped to eat the pumpkin pies that were now being served, short of Red and Leaf, who had decided to go compete in a contest to win some plushies. As everyone happily chatted and stuffed their faces, he stabbed at his untouched slice, sitting away from everyone else, and grew irritated at the regular glances from his friends, who were typing away on their phones.

He was about to snap and tell them to stop, when the seat at his right creaked as Luke sat beside him, wearing a victorian era outfit, a fresh slice of pumpkin pie on his plate.

The other teen, with whom he talked to sporadically, looked at him with concern.

“Everything alright?”

“Yeah.” He lied. “Why?”

“You look a bit sour is all...” Luke noted, and then flailed his hands in a panic. “Oh, pardon me, I didn't want to assume...”

He almost smiled at how much Luke worried about his manners, even though Rock had told him plenty of times he didn't mind. “It's okay, Assistant.”

He looked back down sadly at his mess of a pie, debating on wether he should tell Luke about what was going on. Then again, he knew the boy could be trusted. “I'm just... I just messed up a chance to kiss my crush again. Something stupid like that.”

“Oh, I'm sorry.” Luke said, sounding genuinely apologetic, until his eyes widened despite his clear efforts at concealing his surprise and excitement. “If you don't mind me asking, you have a crush? Since when?”

Rock smiled, and whispered in his ear. “It's been two years.”

“Two years...” Luke repeated, whispering, and he soon sported a proud smile. “I bet it's Angel.”

Rock blinked, impressed Luke had caught on so quickly. He was less close to the boy than with the people in his immediate friend group, so it was surprising. And a bit worrying.

Then again, much like the near entirety of the school, he knew of Luke's incredibly deductive mind.

“Spot-on as always. It's kinda scary, you know?” He said, and watched as Luke's proud smile grew.

“Of course! I'm not Layton's number one assistant for nothing!” Luke bragged, and went back to being serious. “And don't worry, I wont spill the beans to anyone.”

“Never doubted it.” He assured, and felt his mood had improved. He finally took a bite out of the pumpkin pie, and quickly took another one when he realized just how delicious it was, especially compared to the previous appetizers.

“Oh this is delectable! I bet it would go great with some tea!” He heard Luke say a bit loudly, and watched as Sonic perked up at that from the other side of the table.

“Thanks Assistant! I'll be sure to tell Peach and Vanilla!”

Once done with his slice of pie, Rock had managed to take another one, feeling a lot less moody and showing it, if his friends' texts and glances halting were any indication.

The party settled down a bit after the pumpkin pies had been eaten, and Rock joined in on various conversations. After a while, they collectively agreed they were getting bored, and were about to vote on which activities to try out, when Johan came back, and asked them what they were doing. Upon hearing about the current situation, he smiled.

“In that case guys, wanna see something cool?” Johan asked the group.

“Depends. I don't really trust your definition of cool.” Tetra said.

Rayman leaned over the table and looked Johan straight in the eyes, acting as some kind of criminal organisation's boss, even though the aluminium foil he had covered his arms and legs with as part of his costume crinkled and broke the act.

“That's right Mayor.” He said. “Tell us about it first, and we'll be the judges of said 'coolness'”

“Yeah?” Ness, who had been half-listening, asked.

“No, he said coolness, as in... you know what nevermind.” Popo explained.

Johan shook his head, and grinned. “Nah, follow me first.”

The entire group looked at each other, whispering amongst themselves, trying to decide if taking the teen up on his idea would be worth it.

A few minutes later, they were all outside, walking along a path going through the woods bordering the Academy.

“Waaaait a minute.” Lucas said, stopping in his tracks, almost making the teens that were walking behind him fall over. “Are we going where I think we're going?”

“You thought right! We are going there!” Johan smiled over his shoulder.

“Going where?” Kalinka asked.

“The old schoolhouse. The building that was already there before the Hands bought the land and built the Academy we know of.” Luke explained.

“Yup, that's right! And what other time to go visit it than near Halloween?” Johan grinned, picking up the pace.

Lucas violently shook his head. “There is no way I'm setting even a single toe in that place! It's haunted! Kumatora told me!”

“Ghosts don't exist, Lucas...” Pittoo sighed.

“Haunted or not...” Nana said, and paused while everyone turned to look at her. “Isn't that place basically falling apart? Wouldn't that be dangerous?”

“I second that.” Said the leader of the Inklings. “We tried to make it our base a few years back, and the moment we got there it was clear there was no way we would get out of it not injured.”

“Are you all chickening out?” Johan challenged them.

“I'm not a chicken!” Pit cried out, and took off to the old schoolhouse.

“Wait up you moron!” His brother yelled, going after him.

“Great. Just great.” Lucas commented.

“Welp. That's the pits.” Toon Link shrugged.

People laughed -Rock included-, Toon Link gaining a smug grin from it, until he sighed. “Okay, but we should really go after them and make sure they don't die or something.”

The group ran to find the two brothers in the middle of arguing over which of the two would be brave enough to open the door first. They ended up falling headfirst into the building when the door opened on its own.

“Are you guys okay?” Sonic asked them, having been the first of the group to have caught up to them.

“I think?” Pit said, getting back up and dusting himself off, while his brother flipped him the bird.

The rest of the group soon made their way to them, and Rock shot a both worried and judgemental look Pit's way. The boy either didn't see it or chose to ignore it, as he looked up at the huge building and grinned.

“But here we are! See? I'm no chicken!” He exclaimed, feeling triumphant.

“You've got its brain though.” Ness teased nonchalantly as he passed them both to take a step inside the abandoned building, looking around. “Ooooh... spooky.”

His voice echoing from the emptiness of the old school made some of the teens outside back away, as they felt uneasy.

“C'mon guys, it's not that bad!” Said Orange, as the leader of the Inklings joined Ness, and looked around as well. “Uh, weird. I remember this place being a lot more... crumbling.”

“Maybe they're trying to restore it?” Nana offered as she too took a step in, her brother following closely behind.

“One more reason why we shouldn't be here! Maybe we're trespassing!” Lucas complained.

“I agree with Lucas. This isn't right.” Tails said, trembling as he joined Sonic near the door.

“Aw come on. We made it this far...” Johan whined. “Do it for the spirit of Halloween!”

“Oh, what the hell.” Toon Link grumbled and forced his way through the people that were already inside.

Ness looked at him, unimpressed, and turned around to the still hesitant teens. “Come on people, get in there! The sooner it's done, the sooner we can get back without the Mayor whining to us about it.”

“Hey!” Johan protested, as the other teens looked at each other, still hesitant. Until they finally came to a decision.

The schoolhouse was even creepier on the inside. The old and worn wooden floorboards creaked ever-so-slightly under each of their steps, as more and more of them walked through the door. They each took in the slightly humid air, the particles of dust, and the smell of old wood.

Strangely, the building, though abandoned, seemed to still be in an acceptable condition. Once again, Orange wondered aloud as to how it looked much different than what she remembered, and Tails admitted he had heard about some restoration work around the Academy, but never heard about it for the schoolhouse.

“Maybe a ghost made its home here.” Rayman teased, and Lucas was looking more jittery by the minute after that comment, though he was far from being the only one. And while Rock happened to be one of the few that were looking anxious, his reasons had more to do with potentially breaking the law than some nonexistent ghost.

Once they were all inside, they waited around for a bit, but nothing happened, safe for some stomach gurgles that had the teens look around and try to find the source of.

When it was clear there wouldn't be any action, some of them decided they would go back outside, pushing back against Johan's and their more spirited friends' claims that they should all explore the school a bit more thoroughly.

But as they were arguing, the lights turned on out of nowhere, and the main door closed and locked shut in a resounding clang.

They all looked at each other, stunned, until some of the them started screaming, running to the door and desperately trying to force it open by either punching or kicking it.

When that didn't work, they tried to break the windows, but to their horror the glass seemed unbreakable.

“We're gonna die!” Orange screamed in her panic.

“Come on guys, it's not that bad!” Nana spat, repeating her friend's earlier words, even though she reached out to Orange to calm her down.

Crash brought Coco closer to him, and so did Sonic with Tails, yanking him by his costume's aviator scarf, shielding them both from whatever danger may have been lurking about. Roll took a trembling Kalinka's hand and tried to reassure her, Luke ready to intervene, while Ness, Popo and Pittoo resumed their efforts in trying to kick at least one window down, without much progress.

Pit was stunned, standing in a corner, as were Tetra, Toon and Rayman. Lucas was using the hat of his street urchin's costume to shield his eyes and himself from the commotion, and Johan was trying his best to calm him down, dropping his fake axe so as not to freak him out any further.

“Hello, children.” Greeted a booming voice, the teens' panic coming to a standstill, as they all huddled closer together, looking around them for the source of it.

“Hey we're not kids!” Rayman complained, before being shushed by Sonic, who had a question to ask.

“Who are you?!”

“You could say I'm... your host.” The voice continued, ignoring Rayman.

“Our host?” Tails asked, stepping a bit away from Sonic to properly adress the voice.

“I used to be the headmaster of this school.” The voice explained.

“Yeah well, as I just said, we're not kids.” Rayman repeated, earning some approving hums.

“That does not matter to me. Any soul entering these grounds belong to me by right.”

“Yeah right!” Pittoo exclaimed. “Let us go you f*cking psycho!”

The voice cackled, its laughter reverbating against the walls, until it died down.

“Oh, you poor, poor children.” The voice mocked. “You're not going anywhere... unless...”

The voice went on to explain that there was no way the group would be able to escape his grasp, unless they entertained him and proved themselves worthy, by finding a way out thanks to some clues he left around for them.

“And should you fail to get out before the night is over...” The voice warned. “You foolish mortals shall pay for your brash actions with your blood!”

As some of the less-terrified teens were about to complain, he showed himself to them for a split second, wearing a mask and grinning devilishly, only to disappear seconds later with a booming “Good luck!”

“Great. We're at the mercy of either a ghost, or a madman!” Roll groaned, ready to protect Kalinka from whatever danger may come.

“Who cares which one it is!” Orange complained, glaring daggers at the angel twins. “You guys got us into this mess!”

“We?! Pit was the one who ran first!” Pittoo argued, pointing at his brother.

“Yeah, and for what? To impress your new crush or something?” Tetra asked, jabbing Pit in the chest with her fingers.

“I didn't-”

Tetra didn't let Pit get his word in, and continued. “'cause I'm not sure Ballerina's impressed!”

The group murmured amongst themselves, while Rock felt a fire inside, urging him to defend his crush.

“Hey, we all made the choice to go in! It's not entirely his fault!”

“Yeah, of course you'd defend him.” Popo quipped.

Rock turned pink, hoping no one would comment on his obvious blush. He chanced a look at Pit, thankfully, his crush hadn't picked up on the implications.

“Come on, let's be rational about this.” Said Luke, and most of the group turned around to listen to him. “We were at a Halloween party. Halloween is a time for spooks. That has to be an elaborate prank or something.” He offered, his voice as soft as ever.

“And if it's a prank...” Ness mused, his gaze settling onto Johan. “Then maybe we could ask the one who was so intent on us coming here in the first place. Right, Mayor?”

All the teens turned to Johan, who looked horrified.

“I-I don't know anything, honest! I knew no one would be around tonight to see us come here. I just wanted us to do like all those urban explorer guys on the internet and get some thrills out of this!” He tried to explain, as the others marched towards him, backing him up against the wall. “I thought this stuff was a legend- I-”

That's when the lights flickered, and the room went dark. The resulting silence was soon filled with Johan's terrified scream. When the lights came back on, he was gone.

Silence fell over the group, as they tried to comprehend what had just happened. Some rushed to the spot where the teen had last been standing, trying to feel for a door or any kind of aperture.

“Johan?”

“Johan?!”

“Where is he?”

A dark chuckle was heard, the voice coming back to taunt them. “Oh, how careless of me. I forgot to mention I'd take out some of your friends should I see fit. Sorry about that.”

What ensued were screams, people running around the place either to escape or to search for their now-missing friend, while the other half of the group stayed in an angry stupor, the most vehement of them insulting the voice.

That is, until Luke's voice rose above the confusion.

“It'll be alright. We'll get out of there in no time.” He explained with a smile, his hand clutching onto something. “In fact...”

“Luke?” Tails asked, while everyone stopped whatever they were doing.

The boy in question opened his hand to reveal a neatly folded piece of paper, which soon showed a string of words: a code.

Luke smiled. “I think I just found our first clue...”

The clue Luke found led them to many others, and in no time flat they were all exploring the main hall and neighboring rooms, looking through the floorboards and walls and furniture to find even a hint on what was happening and what to do next.

Over time, it became clear that they would get everything done much quicker if they separated.

“Alright, let's split up gang!” Ness announced, and sighed in satisfaction, ignoring Lucas and Toon's disgusted stares. “Finally. One more thing off my bucket list.”

Rock ended up being thrown in the same group as Ness, Toon, Lucas and Pit. The latter standing at his side, their hands brushing against each other at times, much like in their latest date. Though, preoccupied as he was, he took little notice of it.

Their explorations led to a few encounters, facing jumpscares after jumpscares: one of them with what appeared to be a ghost, going straight through Toon, another with a possessed armored knight, who charged right at them. That is, until Pit chased it away, furiously swinging about some candlesticks he had grabbed to fight off their attacker, Toon, Lucas and Ness cheering him on while Rock stared on in awe.

Though they tried to make sense of what they witnessed, they were not able to find the source of what Rock claimed were projections and animatronics.

They didn't come across a lot of interesting hints, until, thanks to Toon's sharp eye, they found a key lodged in a crack in a wall. Pit pointed out it could easily fit in one of the drawers of the desk in the apparent abandoned office they had stumbled into.

Upon successfully opening the drawer, they found a paper filled with 0s and 1s. Rock took it upon himself to decode it.

“L-O...”

“Can't you read that any faster? This place is giving me the creeps!” Lucas whined.

“Everywhere in here has been giving you the creeps, Sunny.” Ness pointed out.

“Yeah... but he's right though...” Pit said, trailing his hand along one of the shelves. “I feel a bit more nervous here.”

“Must be the lack of windows.” Toon Link mused, knocking on one of the walls. “Hm, 'doesn't seem to be anything in there. Are you done Robot?”

“Yeah. It says LOOK LEFT.”

“Left, uh?” Ness pondered, and went to inspect the wall to Rock's left, managing to open a small gap. “Hey, guys! Looks like there's a door here!”

Ness went into the next room, Toon and Lucas following closely, and Rock was about to do the same when he noticed Pit was staying behind, fiddling with something under the desk.

“What are you doing?” He asked, watchful of anything that could be a trap.

“I'm tired of this stupid game.” Pit grumbled. “There's something like a lever in there, and I'm gonna see if it leads us straight to an exit. I'm done following dumb clues.”

“Whoa, Angel, are you sure? For all we know it could be some kind of tr-” Rock started, but before he could say anything more, his friend pulled hard onto the contraption, falling down backwards.

Pit shrieked, as the ground suddenly opened beneath him. “Ah! Help!”

Without thinking, Rock dove in to try and catch Pit before he fell in, but reacted too late, going down with him.

After a short fall, they landed on some kind of mattress, in a dark room. The trapdoor closed shut over their heads, leaving them in complete darkness.

Rock stood up immediately, taking his phone out of his pocket, and offered a hand to Pit, pulling him back up.

“Get on my shoulders.” He asked.

“Why?”

“We'll try to see if we can open it again from here.”

Pit did as told, and they used their phones as a source of light to guide them, but it seemed as if no matter how hard he pushed or pulled against the door, it didn't move one bit.

They decided to give up after their thirteenth unsuccessful attempt, and Pit let himself fall into a heap onto the mattress.

“This is it, and it's all my fault!” He lamented. “We're gonna be trapped here, and go hungry and-”

“Hey! Hey!” Rock said, placing a hand on Pit's shoulder. “Calm down, we're okay. We'll get through this, alright?”

He smiled at Pit, and once he deemed it okay, he left him a bit to inspect their surroundings. The place looked much messier than what they had grown accustomed to see inside the rest of the building: it looked more like a warehouse than part of a school.

“Looks like we're safe in here, at least. Kinda wish we had some kind of a light source other than our phones but I guess this will have to do. Right Angel?”

He turned around when all that answered him was silence, and saw that Pit was curled-up in a corner.

“Angel?...” He asked, slowly approaching him.

“Robot I'm...” Pit breathed. “I'm scared of the dark.”

The teen smiled softly as he murmured. “Hey, it's okay. I'm still here.”

Pit gave him a shy yet grateful smile, his eyes shining.

Rock's heartbeat picked up the pace, as a thought sprung up in his mind: he could try kissing him again.

Because they were alone. In the dark. He just had to lean a bit closer, and give him a quick peck on the lips. And then he could use the excuse that he tripped or something, should he get rejected.

Unfortunately, he did trip, and ended up kissing Pit's forehead.

He felt the other teen's shoulders tense up under his palms.

“Why did you-”

“S-sorry!” He squeaked, standing back up, and failing to notice the blush that was quickly fading away from Pit's cheeks. “I um- you were anxious, I wanted to hug you because I didn't know what else to do to reassure you but I tripped... so um... there there? It'll all be fine?”

Pit raised an amused eyebrow at him, and snorted. “... you're not doing that great of a job, you know. Kinda lacking in conviction.”

Despite the sad tug at his heart, Rock huffed out a laugh. “Nah, you're definitely feeling better if you can tease me like that.”

And as he had expected, Pit chuckled, as he couldn't find anything to say back.

They both startled when Rock's phone buzzed, and the teen looked at the screen, finding that he had a message from Lucas, asking him where they went.

He sighed in relief upon learning that his phone signal still worked, even in this room, and texted their current situation to the others.

And with that, they were left to wait again.

He didn't know if it was the somewhat stressful situation, the fact it was just the two of them, his consecutive failures to kiss him and confess, or the intimate darkness enveloping them, but he felt an urge to tackle the issue with Kalinka. Something he was sure he would have never dared to bring up on his own under different circumstances.

“Hey, Angel?”

Pit hummed, prompting Rock to continue.

“You've been acting weird about Ballerina...” He started, carefully considering his next words. “Are you... crushing on her or something?”

He couldn't exactly tell what expression Pit was wearing in the darkness, but his voice came out a bit strained when he spoke. “What gave you that idea?”

“I mean, you told me you're over Princess, and well, Ballerina, she's... she's kinda your type right?”

“I... guess?” Pit reasoned, but from his tone he sounded unsure.

Rock felt like there was something he wasn't telling him.

“Anyways, I was just asking because, just so you know, someone already called dibs on her.”

He failed to hear Pit's sharp intake of air, as he continued talking. “Don't tell anyone, but my sister wants to ask her out.”

“Oh.” Pit sounded sad. Until he gasped, his mood doing a complete overturn, as he looked up at Rock, beaming. “Oh! Really?! That's awesome!”

Rock was slightly shocked by how fast Pit's mood had shifted.

“Don't worry, I wasn't crushing on her anyways.” Pit explained, his grin still in place. “But please, tell Cinnamon that if she needs help in any way, I'm ready to be there for her!”

Rock blinked. “Then, why were you acting weird?”

“... because this was our thing...”

“Uh?”

He turned to see Pit pouting at him, idly playing with one of the crooked floorboards. He bit down his overprotective urge to tell his crush not to do that unless he wanted to get splinters, but figured Pit was more than capable of thinking by himself.

“... up until now I...” Pit muttered. “I was the only new student you had helped... I was special...”

The confession brought an affectionate and somewhat proud smile out of Rock. “Aw, come on Angel, that still makes you the first one!”

Pit's pout accentuated. “I know... but...”

“Trust me, that still makes you special.” He assured, placing a gentle hand on his crush's shoulder. “Besides, te quiero tanto, too.”

He felt Pit go stiff under his touch. “What?”

Rock belatedly realized how weird that must have sounded. “The, uh, the text you sent me a few days ago...”

He hadn't thought it would have been possible for Pit to stiffen even more, but apparently, it was. “Oh gods, I was hoping you forgot about that.” The boy hissed.

“S-sorry I-”

“No, no it's okay.” Pit reassured him, placing his hand atop Rock's. “I mean, I do think you're, uh, pretty cool. And I do like you.”

“T-thanks.” Rock sputtered, trying not to focus on the soft touch of his friend's warm hand on his, and failing. “You know, you're great too. I know I sound like a broken record, but I mean it. I'm so glad we're friends.”

“Yeah...” Pit laughed, though there was a sad tinge to it, that Rock failed to understand. “Your spanish accent is crap, by the way.”

“I changed my mind, you're a jerk and I hate you.” Rock smiled, gently pushing his friend back.

“Aw, you hate me?” Pit teased, as he retaliated.

“Yeah, so freaking much.”

While Rock could be patient, waiting on an update from their friends, Pit wasn't exactly one for inaction.

“Okay.” He said, after they had waited in silence for a little over five minutes. “I can't take this anymore. I have to move, now.”

“Suit yourself. I think I'll do the same. Try to figure out where exactly we ended up.”

With that said, they both started looking around. And quickly came to understand that the room they were trapped in was actually much bigger than what Rock had first thought, Pit managing to find a way to squeeze in behind some crates, where even more things were stocked.

Rock followed him, careful not to fall on the way, as he was less agile than Pit when it came to navigate the mess. He ended up going on all fours to climb a dangerously wobbly pile of boxes, and heard Pit snicker at his attempts to climb back down.

As he was trying to find some way to place his foot, he slipped, and fell on his side, Pit rushing to his aid.

“Are you hurt?” He asked, checking him for injuries.

Rock gritted his teeth as pain flared up in his elbow. “Just a little. It'll go away.”

“You sure?” Pit insisted, worry clear as day in his voice.

“I'm fine, I swear.” Rock said, righting himself up. Doing so, he noticed some wires a few feet away from him. “What's that?”

“What?”

Rock stood up, rubbing his elbow, and bent down to inspect the wires, as Pit followed along.

“Just some boring old wires.” He said. Rock shook his head.

“No. Not old.”

Pit looked at him in surprise. “What do you mean?”

“Not only are they in perfect condition... they are much too thin to have existed back when the school was still in use.”

“Well then, maybe Sunny was right, and this school is now a construction site.”

Rock shook his head again. “I don't think this has something to do with it... these wires look really familiar...” He wondered aloud. “Hang on, I'm going to look up something.”

He sat down and prayed for internet to still be working. Thankfully, it was, but from what little he could type and send in, it looked to be unbearably slow.

“Looks like it's going to take a while...” He sighed.

He heard Pit huff, and the floor creak, as the teen explored the area a bit more. Some time later he heard some shuffling, and groans, then the loud wails of wood.

“Angel?” He asked, as his eyes stayed on what was on his screen. “What are you doing?”

“The Macarena!” Pit spat, heaving from his effort. “I'm trying to find a way out! I think there's a door behind the wall!”

Rock ignored the other's angry outburst. “Don't hurt yourself.”

He heard Pit mock him, as he continued pulling at the wall's wooden planks. This went on for a while, and Rock started to wonder when he would-

“Ouch!”

There it was. He looked up from his phone, and saw Pit hissing, his hand brought close to his chest. “Let me guess, splinters?”

Pit glared at him. “Don't patronize me you jerk!”

Rock looked between his phone and his friend, who was now sitting down, blowing on his hand, and trying to pick the splinters out of his skin, a job made all the more difficult by the lack of a steady light source.

Rock took his phone along as he joined him, letting the page he was on load, and kneeled down, taking Pit's wrist and guiding his injured hand towards him.

“Take your phone in your other hand. I'll get them out.”

Pit didn't protest against his help, so he started working on his task, trying not to wince everytime he heard his crush hiss, whine or curse under his breath every single time he managed to remove one of them.

After a while, he noticed it became more and more difficult to get them out without hurting Pit in the process. Thankfully, he was now down to one splinter.

“You're trembling...” He noted, understanding why he was having trouble being gentle.

“I'm tired.” Pit admitted, yawning as if to prove his point.

“Yeah, you would be.”

Pit huffed, his mouth curling upwards. “Geez Robot, it's the second time you've helped me and it's not even been a week yet... must be getting old...”

Rock smiled, feeling soft. “Nah. I like taking care of you.”

His smile got wider when he noticed Pit looked flustered at his confession.

“R-really?” His crush squeaked out, looking anywhere but at him. “I thought you hated me?”

“Oh, I do.” Rock grinned, as he yanked the last splinter out of Pit's skin.

“Ow!”

“There, no more splinters.” He said, giving a few gentle taps on the back of Pit's hand.

Pit pouted as he smiled, gently blowing on the tiny spot that was still hurting. “You jerk...”

The page Rock had been waiting on to load was now available for him to read, and his smile grew wider as he took in the information, while Pit tried, much more carefully than he had previously done it, to remove some of the wooden planks that were still barring the way to their only known exit.

Satisfied with the answers he had gotten out of his internet seach, Rock put his phone in his pocket, and went to help Pit remove the planks. There was now enough light coming from the gap Pit had opened up for them not to need their phones around to see properly.

“So,” Pit asked, pulling onto a screw in the wood. “did you find anything?”

“I did.” Rock explained proudly. “And it turns out I was right. These wires, the brand, are from a tech company that didn't exist back when the school was still in use, and what's more, they specialize in robotics.”

“Oh! So that must be why you thought they looked familiar!” Pit smiled, as he ripped off another plank, making Rock wince.

“Be careful...” He whined, pulling at a plank as well. “But, yeah, it must be why. I don't have all the answers yet, since I don't remember where I last saw them, but I think this calls for a meeting.”

“Agree.” Pit groaned, then yawned, trying to remove the last few planks. “But first, we'd need to get out of here.”

“Yeah...” Rock looked around for tools and such, but found nothing of use in their vicinity. “Looks like we'll have to do it the old-fashioned way.”

It took some time, and a lot of effort, but they finally managed to clear the way and get out unscathed. He watched on in fondness as Pit improvised a little victory song as celebration of their newfound freedom.

While Pit danced around and sang the praises of dust-free air and acceptable amounts of light, he texted his friends that they should regroup in the main hall. And doing so made him think of something. Specifically, a particular thing their 'host' had said.

You foolish mortals shall pay for your brash actions with your blood!

He swore he had heard those words and that voice before.

But where could he have heard it? A movie, maybe? Or a show?

He remembered when he went to the arts department with Kalinka. And suddenly, everything became clear. He started making his way to their meeting point, Pit following him closely.

“Robot? Did you find out something else?” Pit asked, noticing his triumphant grin.

“Yes. And I'm now fully convinced it's all an elaborate setup.”

“How? We did see some pretty strange things.” His friend pointed out. “And you couldn't find where they came from.”

“Technology nowadays can be really subtle, and make amazingly realistic things.” Rock explained, feeling himself about to ramble on and focusing on not doing so.

He heard Pit chuckle. “You would know, uh?”

Rock froze in his steps, if only for a moment. Pit's voice had been so fond, it took him by surprise.

He turned around to face him, his lips forming a silly, giddy smile.

“Yeah, of course I'd know.” He winked.

Then whipped his head around to hide his blush. He could hardly believe he had been so bold as to unironically wink at his crush.

But in doing so, he missed Pit's desperate attempt at forcing down a blush of his own, biting down a surprised and flustered squeal.

“A-anyway, let's regoup!”

When they reached the main hall, they were the last ones to arrive, and it seemed as if no one had really calmed down from when they had split into different groups.

But Rock knew the confusion wouldn't last long. With a glance, he told Pit he would take care of things, his crush heaving out a tired sigh as he walked to his brother, Pittoo making him sit down to fret over him in his own, detached way.

Rock tore his eyes away from the twins, going to see Luke, who looked to be arguing with one of the Inklings, who stormed off.

“Hey, Assistant, how's it going?”

Luke turned around, looking defeated. “Ugh... they wont listen to me. Some of them still think it's monsters and ghosts! Or some kind of maniac that's going to kill us all!”

“Don't worry, I found proof.”

Luke's eyes shone with hope. “Really?”

Around them, chatter died down, as everyone started to listen in on their conversation.

“Yeah. There's no way these wires would have been used when the school was still up and running.” He said, loading up the photos he had taken, and showing them to the teen. “'sides, those are not your everyday wires. I'm pretty sure they came from the Robotics club.”

Tails perked up at that, and looked closer at Rock's phone, noticing the brand and recognizing them instantly. “You're right! They are! Come to think of it, the vice-principal came over at the start of the year to ask if we would be okay with the school borrowing some of them!”

Luke grinned, snapping his fingers. “You mean- those things really were animatronics!”

Tails nodded, as equally excited. “Yeah, and good ones too! But that doesn't explain the voices, and shadows we saw...”

“Could be actors?” Luke offered.

Tails shrugged. “Maybe, but who would-”

“I know!” Rock interrupted him, turning around to look at Kalinka. “Ballerina, remember when you first met the members of the Drama club?”

Kalinka nodded, though by the looks of it she was confused as to why he was asking her that. Roll, standing next to her, raised an eyebrow at her brother.

“What do you think they were rehearsing for?”

He let the girl think, and smiled as he could clearly see her reaching the same conclusion he had.

“They said- the thing! That boy said the exact same thing as the host!” She exclaimed.

“What thing?” Luke asked.

“You foolish mortals shall pay for your brash actions with your blood.” Kalinka repeated. “That's the line we heard when I came to sign up for some of the clubs.”

“Exactly!” Rock grinned. “I don't know why, but everything we witnessed was just some kind of really well-executed prank, nothing more.”

Ness playfully slapped Rock on the back. “Alright gang! Looks like that's another mystery solved!”

“Sherlrock Holmes on the case!” Rayman went to fistbump him.

Rock couldn't help but blush, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. “More like John Lightson. Assistant is the one who clued everyone in in the first place.”

“Alright then, hurray for Sherluke Holmes and John Lightson!” Rayman repeated, going for another fistbump with Luke, who tentatively returned the gesture, his eyes shining with excitement.

“Tails helped too!” Coco complained.

Rayman looked at said boy, sliding an arm behind his back. “Uuuuh... you can be Lestrade. Tailstrade? Milestrade?...”

“Gosh, where would we be without nerds.” Popo teased.

“Alright, gigs up you filthy theater kids.” Sonic taunted, looking at nothing in particular.

The masked man appeared again, smirking. “Shut up you insufferable jock.”

The mystery man soon removed his mask, revealing himself to the rest of the teens.

“Joker?” Some teens exclaimed, as soon as they recognized him.

“Yes. I hope you enjoyed the show?” Ren asked, giving them a courtesy bow, a sly smile upon his lips.

“Dude, you play the murderous host like a pro.” Sonic complimented him, walking forward to pat him on the back. “It's uh, kinda scary, now that I think about it...”

“Okay, enough of that. Why did you do that?” Orange interrupted, glaring at Joker, as did most of the people present.

Joker blinked, looking visibly confused. “...What?”

“This whole thing? I mean, it could have been fun to know what was going on, you know?” Roll argued, as the crowd nodded and chattered about how confused and scared they had felt.

“...You mean... you didn't know?” Joker realized, whipping around to stare, baffled, at Johan. “You didn't tell them?”

The teen in question shrugged. “Hey, you just asked me to find you some people to test things out. I figured not telling them what was going on would just add to the experience.”

That's when a new teen, in an elaborate knight costume, joined them. “Why did you think that was a good idea? One of them assaulted me!”

Rock recognised him as the knight Pit had attacked earlier, and chanced a look at his crush, who seemed quite mortified. Meanwhile, Johan had the decency to look apologetic. “Sorry, Luminary...”

After a bit more prodding, they learned that the Academy officials, after years of discussion, had allowed the Drama club to use the old schoolhouse as grounds to make some sort of 'Escape Room', that they could model after whatever event may be taking place, and open to the public, as long as the revenues went back to the Academy.

Johan had been responsible for finding volunteers that would get a chance to test it for free, but had wanted to put a spin on it, to spice things up.

Some of the tension among the crowd dissipated after they were given the explanation, but most of them were still shaken up.

“Okay. I'll admit, maybe I was more scared than I would have been if you had told us.” Toon admitted. “But pull this stunt again, and you'll regret it.”

“Wait? We're just going to let him go scott free, like that?” Lucas pointed out.

“Yeah, after what he put us through, I feel like that's a bit too generous...” Nana agreed. Luke, Tetra and many others nodded.

“Aw, come on guys, it's all in the Halloween spirit!” Popo argued, having been one of the few to roll with whatever had really been happening.

“And it was free!” Rayman added.

“I still say we make him pay somehow.” Roll said, glaring daggers at Johan, who awkwardly looked away from her.

“With what?” Luke asked, visibly worried about what kind of madness the other teens may come up with as punishment.

“Oh, we'll think of something. It doesn't have to be immediate.” Tetra grinned, as Orange put a hand on her shoulder.

“I like the way you think.”

Sonic clapped, bringing the attention to him. “Well, now that all is settled, what do you say we all get out of here and back to the party?”

On the way out, they made sure to congratulate the Drama club's members on their performance, and on their determination over the years that had made it possible for this crumbling place to have been renovated into something new, and promised they would spread the word to the other students.

On the outskirts of the building, Luke was looking at his phone, a smile still plastered on his face.

“It looks like we'll be back there just in time for the scary-oke!” He told the others.

“Uuuugh noooo... I hate that part.” Nana whined, Orange chuckling at her side.

Toon walked past her, and lightly bumped her arm. “Don't worry. As long as Robot doesn't sing, we'll all be fine.”

Rock immediately took offense to that. “Hey!”

Ness, who was at his side, chuckled. “No offense, Robot, but they're right… your singing is...”

“Atrociously off-key?” Toon completed.

“As bad as your drawing skills!” Coco noted.

“The absolute opposite of you grades!” Lucas added.

“It hurts my ears.” Roll stated, looking smug. Rock allowed himself to glare at her, pouting.

Sonic joined them, visibly amused. “Oooh, is it picking-on-Robot day?”

“I mean, it is Rocktober.” Pit quipped.

Rock decided not to tell any of them about how much he had improved in the singing department since the last time he had attempted -and horrendously failed- to sing, instead sharing a knowing smile with Sonic, Crash and Rayman. “Well then, I'm glad to see we're all back in good spirits-” He started.

“HA!” One of the Inklings, Blue, exclaimed.

“-but please, everyone, shut up.”

To his chagrin, he got teased a bit more by his close friends -and others-, but the cold night and the chance of missing some of the fun back at the main party soon motivated the group of teens to get a move on.

Most of them started walking away from the old school, and Rock was about to follow, when he felt a tug at his arm. He jumped and screamed, his cry fading and ending on an awkward note when he realized it had just been Pit's hands.

He glared at his friends who were openly laughing at his reaction, until they lost interest and left the both of them to tag along behind them.

Meanwhile, Pit was staring at Rock, face flushed and eyes shining, and Rock was briefly reminded of earlier that night, and the chance he had let slip away.

He was so focused on looking at Pit's lips, that he didn't register him talking.

“Sorry I- did you just say something?”

Pit looked at him, a bit confused, and awkward.

“I-I said... nevermind.”

“No! No, it's okay, say it!” Rock asked, his voice a bit strained.

“I, I um... Robot I...” Pit let go of his grip on his arm, and Rock mourned the loss of his touch and warmth.

“I was wondering if you could...” The teen clenched his eyes shut, and blurted out the rest. “If you could carry me back to the party?”

Rock took a while to fully register the request.

On the one hand, carrying Pit around sounded like something that would only happen in his fantasies. On the other hand, he'd have to put up with his friends' endless teasing and the near-entirety of the Academy's student population's staring.

But still... he had already missed so many chances, and the night was still young.

With luck, maybe some other event would get the students talking, and his little moment with Pit would be forgotten outside of their friend group.

Besides, looking at his crush standing before him, surprisingly shy, under the pale moonlight, he felt motivated to take a gamble.

“Of course!” Rock smiled, covering up how nervous and eager he felt about it. “You did mention how tired you were. But why me?”

He watched as Pit looked around, quite obviously stalling for time to come up with his answer, until his gaze settled back on him. “Um... you look... pretty strong?”

“Really?” Rock asked, letting himself accept the compliment.

Pit nodded, looking him up and down, and Rock felt himself shiver at that. “Yeah. Really.”

“A-alright then. But I'm carrying you on my back. I want my hands free in case I fall.”

“O-of course.” Pit seemed flustered, but Rock ignored it as he crouched down for Pit to comfortably settle himself on his back.

“You really didn't have to do that, you know?” Pit teased. “You're short enough as it is.”

“Shut up.” Rock whined playfully as he abruptly stood up, startling Pit who held on for dear life, before bonking him on his helmet along with uttering a plethora of lighthearted insults.

Rock laughed, Pit joining him, and they made their way back out of the forest.

When they reached the gymnasium, Pit was already fast asleep, having dozed off on the way, his hands lightly gripping at the edges of the metal plates of the robot costume.

As he had expected, Rock found himself sporting a blush that was only made worse by his friends' loud teasing and wolf-whistling, but managed to enjoy the rest of the night, staying by Pit's side for what was left of the party.

Chapter Text

Weeks after the party went by in a blur of preparations for exams and various competitions, leaving Rock with little time to hang out with anyone outside of his club activities, let alone Pit. Kalinka sometimes came over at their home, courtesy of Roll: the two girls had been growing closer and closer in the short timeframe they had known each other, and Roll had recently been a bit fidgety, cryptic and secretive. Though Rock had an inkling something was up with his twin, he was far too busy to put any power into figuring it out.

He had to work harder to finish the project from his Robotics club, given that one of their project partners had been ill for a while, and some minor yet time-consuming bugs and issues had shown up. There was also the matter of Sonic's band, that was still a secret to everyone but the members for the time being, and that Rock had recently been invited on, forcing him to work twice as hard to reach to the others' level. Add to that the Sunday soccer training, and the school assignments, and all Rock could do to communicate with some of his friends were some measly texting, some far and few gaming sessions, and small talk in the school's corridors.

“Rock, get your lazy bum up and running. We're going to be late for school otherwise.” Roll yelled as she knocked on his door, startling him out of almost falling back asleep. He groaned, but got up anyway, not wanting to actually show up late to class. He had had a few close calls recently, as always around this time of the school year, his body yearning for more rest than he could feasibly get.

Once he got out of his room, his sister almost ran into him, zooming past to go to their shared bathroom: there were other ones in the house, but one of them was tiny, not well-lit, and in the process of being renovated, while the other was only accessible through their father's bedroom, who was still asleep.

“I call dibs on the good bathroom!” Roll said as she unfortunately reached her goal faster than Rock.

“Ugh... noooo... you always take years in there!” Rock complained, though he was already resigning himself to his fate.

Roll scoffed, and rolled her eyes. “It's called a morning routine, stinky, and I frankly think you'd do well having one too. Now get out!”

With no time to lose, he went to the kitchen, still in his pajamas, and served himself breakfast.

Going to sit on the living room's sofa, he turned on the TV, put on his favorite news channel, and nearly choked on his cereal.

There, on the live footage, was the apartment complex Pit's family lived in. And it was burning down to crisps.

“ -we just learned that there are over seventeen people suffering from light injuries, and eleven more were sent to the hospital over health concerns, including five in a critical state. Firefighters are still trying to contain the inferno to the left side of the building in hopes of extinguishing it as soon as possible, and preventing it from spreading to nearby structures, but according to official sources, all remaining inhabitants have been successfully evacuated- ”

Rock tuned out the reporter's voice and frantically reached for his phone, texting a very panicked R U OK?!!! to Pit. To his dismay, the boy didn't respond within five minutes. That was well enough time to send Rock's brain into an anxious loop.

The news had said five people had been sent to the hospital in critical condition, right? Pit, Pittoo and Palutena were three people. What if they were part of the ones who had been sent to the ER? Or maybe they were part of the seventeen injured?

The teen was starting to heave with worry, so he looked back at the live footage displayed on the TV screen. He caught a glimpse of the Arpa's apartment, and it looked like it had been spared by the fire for now.

Rock let out a relieved sigh, but still clutched his phone, sending out another text.

Rock: please respond

Rock: I saw the news

Rock: I'm worried

Rock: where r u?

Rock: Pit?

Rock: D,:

Pit: hopsital

Rock: WHAT

Rock: U OK?!!!!

Pit: clam don

Pit: down

Pit: its my bro

Rock: really? what happened?

Pit: he go back in

Pit: for his rat

Pit: got smoke in lung

Rock: Ouch

Rock: How is he?

Pit: not dat bad

Pit: he cant relly talk but he still complain :/

Pit: its funny becus his voice is wierd ^^

Rock: Oh, good to know.

Rock: Wow, you had me really worried there.

Pit: sorry :c

Pit: was bsuy

Pit: and lots of peple wanted to know if i'm ok

Rock: No it's okay.

Rock: I understand why you couldn't respond.

Rock: So are you staying at the hospital all day?

Pit: no, palu say I hav to go

Pit: but not in the monrig

Pit: morning

Rock: Well, I have to go to school so, see you there?

Pit: k

Rock: Be strong.

Rock: And tell your brother I hope he gets better soon.

Pit: thanks...

Pit: will do :)

Rock put his phone down, and took a bit of time to truly calm himself down before he finished his bowl of cereal and went to the bathroom. Roll came to the living room to watch the TV herself, and when he heard her gasp, he quickly yelled that everyone they knew were okay.

Monday mornings were already dull and seemingly had the intrinsic ability to stretch time, but this particular Monday morning had felt like a final boss.

By the time midday came, Rock would have cried tears of relief, had it not been for the looming threat of public humiliation and this moment being brought up over and over for the rest of his academic life.

Instead, he packed his belongings in record time and, an unusual sight for his classmates and teacher to behold, was the first one out, nearly running through the halls in hopes of meeting Pit as fast as possible. Though he knew his crush was okay, he still had a strong desire to see the proof of his wellbeing for himself.

Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long: Pit was already there, alone, leaning against a wall as he scrolled through his phone, and when he heard him approach he turned around and greeted him with one of his trademark sunshine smiles that Rock's heart apparently liked so much it would like to escape its host's chest just to see said smile closer.

“Are you alright?” Rock asked mere seconds after catching his breath, and asserting that, yes, Pit was, at the very least, not sustaining any physical injuries.

“Yeah, I got out okay from this mess.” The other teen answered.

“I meant... psychologically.”

Pit shrugged, though Rock could not ignore the way his friend's gaze dimmed, even just a little bit.

“You know... it's okay to say this whole thing sucks, right?” Rock offered, leaning against the wall next to Pit, their arms brushing up against one another.

“I guess it does...” Pit sighed, before going uncharacteristically silent, and shifting slightly in a way that their arms were no longer touching.

Rock coughed, hoping to alleviate the awkward air this conversation had been surrounded in. “How's... Palutena doing?”

“She's... doing. I guess. I don't know, she looked... all over the place.”

“Yeah, I get she must be really stressed out... have you guys figured out where you're going to live? I'm not saying, for when this all settles, but rather, for the time being, you know?”

Silence, again. Only now Pit had completely discarded his phone, and was instead looking at Rock while gaping like a fish. “W-what do you mean?”

“... I don't know how to put this delicately...” Rock admitted, “...but I highly doubt you'll be able to go back to your apartment today. Or tomorrow. Or even in weeks. Or in worst-case scenarios... ever?”

Pit kept on looking straight at him with wide eyes, until he shook his head and looked at the ground, muttering something.

Rock was about to gently guide his friend to the ground, fearing a panic attack or something, when out of nowhere Pit snapped his head up and caught Rock's shoulders in a death grip.

“OH MY GOD! We're homeless! We don't have a home! And no family here!” He yelled, Rock's gaze flitting between Pit's crazed eyes and the few people who had come in from nearby classes, who were looking between the two of them with growing interest and confusion.

“A-Angel! Dee- deep breaths! Relax!” Rock tried to calm his friend down, and caught his hands in his, hoping to free his shoulders, but neither of his attempts worked. Panic was one hell of an emotional state.

“Calm down?! Robot, do you hear yourself?” Pit said as he started shaking Rock “We lost all our stuff! What are we going to do?! How will I pass this semester?!”

“Y-your buil-building looked rather s-steady even af-ter the f-fire! I'm s-sure you'll be ab-able to get some of y-your s-stuff back!” Rock managed to say despite how dizzy being shaken about like a ragdoll made him feel. Thankfully, Pit stopped doing it upon hearing his words.

“Y-you're sure?”

“I mean... I'm no expert, but in some cases firefighters manage to go back and take the belongings out of the damaged building, whenever it's safe to do so. And your apartment was standing opposite of the fire so... maybe there's a chance.”

He visibly and physically felt Pit relax at his words, finally, and loosen his grip on his shoulders. Then their eyes met, and Pit bit his lip in worry.

“But... What about shelter? There's very few cheap places around, and hotels are hella expensive!”

Rock gently removed Pit's hands from his shoulders, and smiled in a way that he hoped looked reassuring and optimistic. “I know, but if worst comes to worst, I'm sure all our friends would be glad to pitch in to help you guys out. And before you say anything, no, it wouldn't be a bother. Last I checked, you guys didn't start the fire.”

To his relief, Pit smiled mischievously. “Are you sure about that?”

Rock snorted. “Dork.”

“But... thanks, for looking out for me, I mean... and sorry for... you know? Freaking out and all that.”

“No worries, 'sides, I like it when you freak out, you get all clingy and stuff.” Rock risked a little bit of tactical flirting. He hadn't had much practice, so now that Pit was not going through a major crisis, he figured he could try.

The result was pretty positive, as Pit sputtered and blushed faintly, quickly deflecting by looking at a nearby clock and exclaiming they needed to stop talking and put their mouth to their primary use.

“Not talking?” Rock chuckled. “So... kissing? Oh my, Angel, in public? How outrageous.”

Pit's previous blush intensified, and he laughed as he gently whacked Rock behind the head. “You knew I meant eating, you menace! What has gotten into you these days?!”

Rock figured he had gathered enough data for today, so he decided to spare Pit from a comment that may or may not have involved tongue.

They headed over to the cafeteria, where Pit was swarmed by concerned friends and classmates: most had heard of the news back then, and the professional gossipers had done their work to ensure no one was left in the dark.

Rock made idle chitchat with Lucas, but when the Mayor caught the blond's attention, Rock had little else to do than eat, so he checked his messages. His father had woken up and asked about Pit's family's situation, so Rock explained all about how they didn't have a place to stay at for the time being.

A couple minutes later, as Rock finished eating and had managed to strike up a conversation with Nana and Ness, he had to excuse himself to read his father's responses.

Father: Well why don't you invite them over to stay?

Father: We have a couple of guest rooms, don't we?

Rock: Ok

Rock: Hold on, let me ask Pit.

Though, to get Pit's attention for himself, he had to get up from his seat and shove his phone in his friend's hands, looking at how the teen's brow furrowing down in mild confusion over the text messages.

“Hey, uh, so, as you can see... my father wants to know if you and your family would want to stay at our place until everything settles down?”

“I... yeah, I get that,” Pit started, “but are you guys sure about this?...”

Rock shrugged. “As I said, it's no burden. If my father says you guys can stay, then you guys can stay. Simple as that.”

“Oh, okay, well, cool, thanks!” Pit said, obviously feeling a bit awkward. “I'll have to let Palu and Pittoo know, though. I don't have a problem staying over, since your house is cool and all, but-”

Rock interrupted his rambles with a light shove, ignoring Pit's playful protests. “Dude, no pressure. If you don't feel like accepting it right away, no worries, the offer stands indefinitely. Or just take it as some kind of backup plan, okay?”

They went back to eating, with the offer still up in the air. Rock wondered, all through a rather uneventful afternoon, if Pit and his family would really come live with them. He let himself dwell on how things would change and, most importantly, on the fact he would see Pit that much more often.

As classes came to an end, he was still debating if he was feeling more ecstatic or terrified at the prospect, torn between hoping for or dreading a positive response, when Pit cornered him, a half smile plastered on his face, with Roll by his side.

Nobody else had enough space to take the Arpas in.

Rock and Roll, with Pit in tow, walked to the Lights' house, to find Pittoo and Palutena waiting for them on the porch, with Pichu's cage and bags filled halfway with whatever belongings they had managed to grab, Rock's father bringing some of them inside.

“Welcome to our home.” The man said to the new additions to their household. “And yours, for however long it will take you to find a new place to live.”

“Thank you so much for helping us, it really means a lot to us.” Palutena said. “We hope we won't be a bother?”

“Of course not! Even with you living here, there'd be enough rooms left to have one more family staying over!”

Rock winced at his father's words, afraid they might come off as bragging, especially in front of people who technically didn't have a home at the moment.

“That sure eases my worries!” Palutena smiled, and turned to the two teens behind her. “Come on, boys, thank our hosts.”

For once in his life, Pittoo had a good reason not to talk, so he instead shook everyone's hand and offered them a curt nod.

Pit on the other hand, thanked Roll and their father over and over, shaking their hands with fervor. When he reached Rock, the teen extended his hands, but to his surprise Pit went in for a hug instead, holding him so close Rock could feel his heartbeat.

He saw his sister wiggle her eyebrows suggestively at him, but ignored her in favor of listening to Pit.

“Thank you so much for everything.”

Rock snorted, feeling a bit awkward. “Come on, now, I didn't do anything. My dad's the one who offered this.”

“Still...”

“Rock, Roll, will you show our guests their rooms?”

Pit was a living bundle of nerves as he looked up at the house he would be living in until they got a house of their own.

Ever since the Halloween party, where he had felt like the bond between him and Rock had evolved somehow, they hadn't had that much time to spend together, and with the distance he had feared his feelings for him had started to fizzle out, his love deflating like a sad balloon, and lamented the fact that his heart chose to forgo his long term crush right after he had finally embraced it.

But as it was, he had been dead wrong. This new situation of being forced to move out and live his everyday life alongside his crush had sent his feelings into overdrive. He almost felt sick from it, and he was sure his heart would burst out from the sheer amount of things he felt. Joy, happiness, love, apprehension, fear, sadness... he was a mess.

He bit his lip in worry. He was still shaken from their building -their life- burning down, but now he had to try and not accidentally confess to his crush, as a rejection from Rock would mean he would have to go through his days in constant awkwardness until they could move out.

All the while trying not to fail school. Something that wasn't exactly looking to go his way.

But on the other hand, he would be spending a lot more time around Rock, and it sounded amazing. He couldn't wait for them to bond even more, and maybe, just maybe, he would get many occasions to steal Rock's heart for himself.

The thought of that made him feel giddy, and even alleviated a bit of the tension he felt.

Settling in had taken less time than Pit had expected: Palutena took up one of the guest rooms, while the twins, between being offered to sleep in their own rooms or sharing one, wordlessly agreed and took the second option, not daring losing what last threads of familiarity they could somehow cling to.

Unpacking their things was also a breeze, considering they barely had any time to get anything from their place as they fled, safe for a couple of clothes, pajamas and hygiene products, and of course some precious game systems that they always kept in a bag in case such a situation would ever happen. And of course, Pichu and his cage, that was now proudly standing on the desk separating the two beds.

To Pit's surprise, the Light twins told them they could get top priority on using what was dubbed the “good” bathroom. Much like many of the other guests, the teen had always been using the other, less spacious and modern one whenever he came over, so he felt touched by the offer, if ever a little bit awkward at the special treatment.

Nevertheless, the evening went by in a blur, and soon enough they had to go to their rooms and sleep, needing to go back to school in the morning.

But the onslaught of feelings Pit was faced with, as well as the unfamiliar bed he was staying in, made it hard for him to relax enough to finally fall asleep.

He would check his phone to see the hours go by, stressing out about the lack of sleep he was getting.

Fed up with this situation, he reached out to his brother, selfishly hoping his twin was in the same boat.

“Hey, Tip? Tippy? Pittoo, are you sleeping?” He whispered.

The boy answered him with a groan, one eye opening to glare daggers at him. “I was trying to.”

Pit brushed off the answer, getting straight to the point. “I can't sleep either.” A pause. “... can we cuddle?”

Pittoo's features morphed into mild disgust. “... Are you for real? What are you? Eight?”

“Pittoooooo... come on, pleeeeaaase... you know you wanna!” Pit half-whined half-teased, perfectly knowing it was a deadly combo that somehow always worked on his brother.

“Ugh, you're so annoying.” Pittoo complained, but then opened his arms wide. “Come here.”

Pit grinned, satisfied his masterplan had worked yet again, and scurried out of his bedsheets, almost tripping while crossing the short distance between the beds, immediately snuggling into his brother's side once he finally reach his goal, making Pittoo scoff. “I can't believe you're the older one.”

“Maybe that just means you need to loosen up a bit. Be immature.” Pit said as he stuck out his tongue.

Pittoo was about to make what would no doubt have been a dry remark, but he let out a dry cough instead. Pit immediately fretted over him, until Pittoo managed to tell him to fuck off between coughs.

It didn't discourage the older twin from tapping on his back, no matter how useless.

“Man, that smoke really messed you up...” He said, feeling sorry for his brother. “Is it what's making it hard for you to fall asleep?”

“Maybe...”

Feeling the end of their conversation coming, but not yet ready to be met with silence, Pit blurted out the first thing on his mind.

“I'm a bit scared that this house is gonna catch on fire, you know? That's in part why I can't sleep.”

“Don't wanna talk about the fire...” Pittoo mumbled.

“Wanna talk about something else, then?” Pit offered, not exactly feeling up to talk about flames and their destructive properties. “Wanna know what else is on my mind, keeping me awake?”

“I'd rather sleep.”

“And I'm gonna ignore that.” Pit grinned, huffing out a laugh when his brother jabbed him in the shin with his foot. “'sides, it's a personal thing. I feel like you'd wanna hear about this. ”

“Highly doubt it, but do go on.” Pittoo said, feigning disinterest, and failing horribly.

Pit rolled his eyes, knowing too well about his twin's love for gossip. “Okay, here goes: I've been keeping something from you...”

“What?” Pittoo whispered harshly. “I thought we had a deal! No secrets between twins!”

“Oh, right, and you held it up so nicely.”

“Name one time!”

“I can start with that little guy over there.” Pit said, pointing to Pichu, fast asleep in the cage.

“That was three days. “ Pittoo defended himself, though both twins knew he was losing the argument. “Three days I kept a secret from you!”

“Still counts!” Pit noted, guffawing as his brother stuck out his tongue, retaliating on principle.

Pit made a show of congratulating his sibling for being fast at picking up the immaturity that was his birthright – and being shoved off the bed for saying so.

He climbed back on his own bed, still giggly, but settled himself to finally tell his brother about his secret.

“Okay, so, the other reason I'm having trouble sleeping is because I'm kinda nervous about staying here, and that's because I kinda, sorta, still have a huge crush on Rock.”

Pittoo's reaction looked really close to offense, and Pit had to try really hard not to laugh at it, lest he'd pushed off his own bed.

“What the- I thought you were over that crush!”

Pit sighed. “Head-over-heels, more like...”

“Oh my fucking gods, you sap.” Pittoo groaned, practically burying his face in the pillow.

“He's just perfect! How can I not feel that way?” Pit said, feeling his face grow warm.

“By not feeling that way?” Pittoo deadpanned.

“How could I?!” Pit argued. “ I mean, have you seen him when he-”

“No! Oh no! I never gave you permission to start rambling on about your dream boy!” Pittoo hissed. “And I still can't believe you ever fell for someone like him. He's a nerd!”

“Hey! He's got the brains and brawns!” Pit argued. “Like, dude, his bare arms? 10/10 on the hotmeter. I want him to crush me with those!”

Pittoo grimaced at that bold statement. Pit knew his brother wanted to retort something, but found nothing. He relished in his small victory.

“Whatever.” Came his twin's awaited response. “I thought you were more into blondes though? And girls? You had way more crushes on blonde girls than brunettes, redheads or guys.”

“Sometimes the heart does funny things...” Pit admitted. “The point is I...”

Pit fell silent, contemplating what he wanted to say next. Though his brother was growing impatient.

“You?... You what? What's the point?” He asked. “Come on, out with it! I want to sleep!”

“I love him.” Pit said, surprising himself with how sure and final he sounded. “I love Rock. I want... I can see my feelings lasting. I can see us dating for... forever?”

His brother snorted, rolling his eyes. “Dude, you're only 16. Calm down. Chances are you will break up before graduating. If you're lucky. ”

Pit frowned. “Not if it's true love!”

“True lo- oh my motherfu- Pit.” Pittoo looked serious, laying straight on his bed. “You can't be serious.”

“Well I am!” Pit assured, feeling defensive. What was so bad about being hopeful for the future?

“You said the exact same thing about that bitch back in 7th grade.” His brother reminded him, and Pit wished he didn't.

Still, he tried not to let that phase him. Too much. “She was not a bitch!”

His brother lifted an eyebrow, but otherwise his face remained impassive. “Uh, funny, how d'you know who I was talking about then?”

This time, Pit was the one at loss for anything to retort. His brother shot him a self-satisfied smirk, and continued.

“Seriously. She was your first kiss, I know. But she lied to you, and then dumped you for another guy after wasting your time and money!”

“But it's different!” Pit pouted, truly feeling like he was twelve again. “How do you explain this crush lasting and all the others fading? And I know Rock! And he would never do those things to me!”

“How do you know?” Pittoo argued, still looking judgemental, though Pit could tell he was struggling to keep up the act.

“I just do. And even you can't deny that he's a good guy at heart.” He retorted.

Pittoo pouted, murmuring “whatever”, and Pit knew he had won that battle.

He couldn't help but tease his twin a little more, though. “Aw, do you care about me little brother?”

Pittoo turned around, and despite the darkness, Pit knew said little brother was blushing. “Shut up. I'm not playing this game right now.”

This only encouraged Pit more. “I love you, Tip.”

“I-I said shut up!”

Silence stretched between them, Pit staring straight at his brother's back, watching as his shoulders sagged, waiting for his twin to give in. He knew he would.

“Love you too... Pit...” Pittoo sighed, his walls breaking down, only to be built back up again. “Now go the fuck to sleep!”

Pit giggled and gave his brother an unseen shit-eating grin, turning away from his twin and snuggling into the covers. His heart felt lighter, and he soon managed to grasp at the elusive waves of sleep, even while knowing that, only two doors away, his crush was most likely already dreaming.