Title Sweet Sixteenth

Rating PG- for very minor swearing

Category Tales of the Abyss/ completly AU

Paring /

Author's Note One o'clock in the morning fiction for Karkar's birthday! –shot-

Disclaimer Hm. Not mine XD funny that

It has to be perfect.

Guy's just like that. You can see it every morning when he squeezes out a smear of gel onto his palm and has to get every spike right, or else he'll just wash it out and start all over again. Obsessive compulsive.

Guy didn't use to be like this. The strange hiccup in his personality only appeared about ten years ago, while hanging off his side of the fence, and suddenly being hit with a jet of water, the sound of laughter, and a voice saying 'Ohmigod! Are you okay?' then seeing a set of twins giggling helplessly on the grass, hose in hand.

This compulsive order might have awakened at that time, but it only really came out at a certain time of the year. He would have the need to straighten up his garage, or alphabetise his book shelf, or something ridiculous like that because he starts to stress at this time of year.

Because it was that time of year when it was the twin's birthday.

Guy didn't sign up for this. Oh hell no. It's not his fault the obnoxious brats had doused him head to foot then announced they were his new next door neighbours, and Guy's pretty sure he can't remember ever agreeing to be friends with them- but it happened.

And nobody can really blame Guy for yelling at shop assistants for why the hell don't you have green bananas, because everyone knows how impossible it is to buy for the red heads.

Asch is judgemental. He won't say it out loud, but his expression beams out and what the fuck is this supposed to be? And you half expect the present to just erupt into flames.

Luke is just oblivious. He won't bitch about it like his dear older brother, but will instead grin and make you feel that you hadn't totally embarrassed yourself until he would ruin it with .... and what is it, exactly?

This year is the worst of them all. Sweet sixteen. A landmark in most adolescent's life. And most possibly the end of Guy's life.

You see... Guy is supposed to be their best friend. Key word supposed. When it's birthday time, Guy doesn't really feel like a best friend. Apart from all the other times the twins argue over who exactly comes first in Guy's mind, it feels like Armageddon when it comes to giving presents.

Because- well. You can't exactly give them different presents, now can you? God forbid, Guy has tried that. But it only results in- whose is bigger, more expensive, cuddlier, brighter, noisier, popular- the list can go on and on when it comes to them battling it out.

Another thing he can't do is give them the same present. Because if one dares to have even a stitch out of place while the other doesn't, Guy will either get pinched by Asch, or shot a withering look from Luke.

The last opinion has been giving them money. For a few stress free years, it has miraculously worked. They each get the same amount, and can buy what they please. Then Asch has to open his mouth on the third year of money giving.

'Money's a default present. Are you telling me you don't care about us anymore?'

For once in his life, Luke had wholehearted agreed with Asch, both brothers proceeding to ignore him for the rest of the week and whenever his back was turned- throw water bombs and paper darts at him.

So on top of the hardship of deciding what kind of present, how to present it to them, and needing everything to be perfect, it was their sixteenth birthday. Not as important as ten or thirteen, probably not as important as eighteen either- as hopefully they would have grown out of presents giving by then- but sixteen.

Guy feels ridiculously immature for playing the twins sick little mind game, but unlike them he actually has a heart and even though he knows how they react every year, he still feels over welled by crushing defeat when Asch looks away and Luke sighs sadly.

So it has to be perfect.

Guy has been working on the thing for what feels like months. Pottering away at it in his spare moments- or staying up till ungodly hours in the morning until it feels like his eyes would cry blood.

Right now he's at work on it in the garage, almost missing a call from Asch behind him. He clocks his head painfully on the table edge, but still manages to cover the present up and stand without falling, so that give him merit points. The red head still giggles at him though.

"What are you doing?"

It does look a tad suspicion. On his hands and knees, almost under his work bench- but this is what the twins have reduced him to, so they won't be little nosyparkers and find out what he's working on. It's only a day left until their birthday, and they've been hovering around him like flies, trying to guess or unearth their present. So joint at the hip, Guy wonders where Luke exactly is, as it's only Asch with his long hair up in a pony tail, cat eyes narrowing in a growing smirk. His hair distracts him from the question. Guy heart has always bled for Asch's hair, because it's so long and such a gorgeous red and Asch positively ruins it by dying it unnatural colours just to piss him off and flip out that it'll grow stiff and snap right off. Right now it's black tipped, which spider web up the strands and it looks hot as all hell but the silver had been better.

"I asked what is it you're doing," he demands, because Guy is still rubbing at the sore spot on his head.

"It looks like a globe," and Guy is pretty sure that was the sound of the rest his spirit being crushed, and- how the hell had the little monster gotten around him without him noticing anyway- but Asch has always been the distraction so Luke can do the dirty work.

"Oh. It's in the shape of a heart to- I told you he had it in the garage. It's wash out, by the way," Asch adds with a cheeky whack to Guy's bicep, knowing he's always been a sucker for his hair. For a hysterical second Guy wonders if it's physically possible for his ego to weep like this, then grows quite alarmed when the boys hoist their present out from its hiding place and into the light.

Can't they even give him well earned minute to spazz out and try to stop them?

"Ah! Wait!! It's not what you..."

Think?

What they think is written all over their faces. Not only are they quiet for once, their expressions are close to astonishment.

Luke is right. It is a globe. Obscenely in the shape of a heart, it's made up of a highly polished metal so light it could pass as silver. The base, melted down onto a silver plaque so it won't topple over. It's the size of a human head. Looking closer, the boys realise it isn't just made up of metal. String, nuts and bolts are strung pell-mell inside the globe, and from them, hang tiny notes.

"Here. It works like this," Guy says, admitting defeat and seeing mounting frustration of not being able to read the writing with everything in the way. Taking hold of a loose string end that has been hanging by Australia, Guy tugs. A scroll of paper comes whizzing down the line, screws clanging together to help the paper move faster. It jams itself between two bars.

"December o' nine. Skiing," Luke reads out, puzzled. It soon clears, and he glances curiously up at Guy. "Are you saying-"

"-that last year on our skiing trip, Asch pushed you much too soon on the slope and you ended up breaking your leg," Guy recites.

And- this was what makes it worth the effort.

Even though they grumble, fight, and act like selfish brats every year, Guy notices Asch wear the pair of ear rings he had brought him, or see Luke still sleeping with the stuffed bunny he had got him years ago, and knew he'd managed to do something right.

"So. We're the other one?" Asch wants to know, snapping Guy out of his happy mood.

"Other.. what?"

"The other one."

Guy feels a small thrill of uhoh starting to set in, while Luke rounds on him as well.

"Do you mean... we have to share it?" the younger boy sounds positively revolted at the very idea of sharing with his brother.

"I refused to share with an incompetent moron like you. You'll break it the minute we get home," Asch snips back at the fiery red head, whose angry flush deepens to the point of burning off his face.

"Why you- I doubt you can even comprehend the thought Guy put into the present..." the twins stare at each other, a small, silent, message zinging between them, and Guy feels his stomach plummet in dread. Then clutch as they whip to face him, hating the fact they always have to turn to the responsible one.

"Guy," Asch speaks first, voice purring but authority still etches into his posture even though Guy is quite a few years his senior. "Who did you have in mind when you made this?"

"U-um.. both of you, of course," Guy wishes that to be the correct answer, but it never has been, and probably never will be.

Luke stamps his foot, hands on hips. "We know that. But who first. Me. Or him."

"Ah," Guy stutters, thinking that if his stomach cramps even more he'd be on the ground gasping. "How could you even think that? I could never choose between the both of you."

"Are you saying you like us equally," Asch growls, and Guy feels a jab to the gut at each word. "How selfish can you be! If you can't have one of us, then you'll just take both of us. Is that it? Who do you think we are. Some kind of doll that can be passed around if the first doesn't please you?"

Luke huffs, agreeing with Asch's flawed logic, and Guy really can't draw breath to argue when Asch yells and twists his words around like that even though they make no sense whatso ever..

"Exactly. So you have to choose. Even if you like us both, you must like someone better than the other," Luke presses.

"What's so wrong about liking you both?"

"Because it just doesn't work like that," Luke sniffs, arms crossed over his chest. "And don't you dare say my bastard of a brother, or I'll never speak to you again!"

"Well you can't possibly like the eternal idiot over here, otherwise I'll make sure you'll never have a peaceful night sleep again!"

"Guy, please!"

"Guy!"

"Nnnh."

END