Metal Chocobo: This story has wanted itself to be written for several months before I finally sat down and put it on paper. For most of that tie I had been trying to mold Riku and Sora into these roles, but then I realized that Zexion and Demyx fit this story perfectly. Unlike a lot of my writing, this story actually has some personal meaning to me, which I would prefer not to specify, so I would like it if any comments on this piece are made with some sort of value and not simply meant to be insulting. Thank you for taking the time to read this note, please enjoy.
DISCLAIMER: I own none of the characters or places mentioned in this work of fiction. The only thing I can truely claim as mine is the writing itself.
The Element Demyxium
Demyx was both excited and apprehensive when Zexion invited him out to get coffee. This was the first time in the four years Demyx had known him that his friend had invited him to something. Zexion had called him on the phone, an anomaly since he considered phone conversations distasteful, and emails a sin against the English language.
Putting a fierce grin on his face, Demyx entered the diner where he was suppose to meet Zexion. It was 4:14, a minute before their appointed time. If this was anyone else, Demyx would have been at least ten minutes late. However, this was Zexion, and he abhorred tardiness. The man was almost always half an hour ahead of schedule and he never made exceptions. Demyx had missed many rides to and from school because he wasn't ready.
Demyx spotted Zexion immediately. He was sitting in the booth farthest from the door. He was also the only one wearing a button-down shirt and tie.
Demyx waved frantically at the other youth and saddled over to him. Zexion had his nose buried in a thick textbook and didn't looked up when the other sat down. Demyx plopped down across from Zexion so his back was to the door and poked the other in the forehead.
"What'cha reading?" Demyx asked, propping his head up with his hands.
Zexion looked up and carefully shut the book after inserting a bookmark. "Gray's Anatomy, third edition."
"Oh," Demyx said as he chewed on the inside of his cheek. "Have you ordered yet?"
Zexion shook his head. "I was waiting for you," he responded.
Demyx nodded and smiled eagerly before waving over the waitress. He ordered coffee with as much sugar and cream that could possibly dissolve in the beverage. Zexion ordered his black. That was another thing strange about Zexion, Demyx reflected. Zexion always took his coffee plain. It wasn't that he was trying to be manly by taking it in the most bitter form, it was simply the fact that he didn't see the point in trying to dress the beverage up.
When their drinks arrived, Zexion took a small sip and then set his coffee to the side. Demyx, on the other hand, swallowed a large mouthful and moaned about the wonderfulness of his sweetened drink. Zexion's lips twitched slightly at Demyx's actions, but then his face returned to its usual mask of neutrality.
Demyx's eyes swept over Zexion's torso. He wore a light blue button-down shirt instead of his usual iron-pressed white one. Zexion also had on the gag tie Demyx had given him for his fourteenth birthday. It was a black tie, like all of Zexion's others, but this one had Scooby Doo frantically trying to keep from falling off the end. Demyx was certain that he had never seen Zexion in more relaxed clothing. Even in gym, Zexion had somehow managed to keep his dress shoes and tie immaculate as he was stuck dodging balls.
"What's with the casual clothing?" Demyx teased.
Zexion's eyes flickered. "This is the weekend. It is customary for one to wear casual clothing during this time period, when one is not obligated to dress formally."
Demyx scratched the back of his head, feeling a little underdressed in his torn up blue jeans and Scissor Sisters t-shirt. The old dog collar around his neck didn't help matters either.
"So what'd you call me about?" asked Demyx, licking the rim of his cup. "It must have been pretty important for you to call me up outta the blue. Or did you just miss me since high school is over and we don't see each other daily anymore?"
Zexion laced his fingers together on top of the medical textbook. Zexion took a deep breath and answered Demyx's question. "I have been accepted in to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At Demyx's blank look, Zexion added, "MIT."
"You were what?" Demyx squawked. Zexion opened his mouth to repeat his statement, but Demyx hurriedly cut him off. "No, no, I mean I understood what you said, Zexy, but I just can't believe it. I mean, sure you're smart, but I guess this means that you're Ivy League smart, which I guess I already sort of knew."
They sat there in a moment of silence before a thought occurred to
Demyx. "But wait… I'm going to the Twin Cities. In Minnesota. That's like a billion miles away. We'll never see each other again!" Demyx, cried raising voice exponentially.
When Demyx stopped talking, Zexion responded quietly, "I know."
They sat in silence. Zexion drank some of his coffee while Demyx played with the saltshaker and contemplated the loss of his friend. "What'll I do without you, Zexy? You're my best friend," Demyx whined, grabbing Zexion's hands and clasping them to his chest tightly.
Zexion's eyes twitched. "You have Marluxia," he said. "In a month's time, the two of you will be living together."
"Pheww," Demyx huffed waving a hand dismissively, "Marly is only my boyfriend, you're my best friend." In Demyx's mind, there was no comparison between the two positions. Best friend was forever, while boyfriends came and went.
Zexion tried to smile. At least, that's what Demyx thought he was trying to do; the ends of his mouth were not pointing downward as much as they usually did, and he seemed to have a pained expression on the rest of his face. "Demyx, you have no need for me." Zexion awkwardly patted Demyx's limp hand.
"When are you leaving?" Demyx asked.
"In three days. I want to leave Iowa as soon as possible," Zexion paused. "That is why I called you here today."
"Why, do you want me to help you pack?" asked Demyx, confused.
Zexion shook his head. "No, I finished that a week ago." He stopped talking, but Demyx knew that Zexion wasn't finished. "I wanted… to make a confession of sorts."
"About what? I already know that you secretly lust over my body," Demyx said playfully, shoving Zexion's shoulder.
Zexion flinched at the touch. "Are you kidding?" he asked, locking his hard stare onto Demyx.
Demyx shifted uncomfortably. "Well yeah, I know you're really asexual and about to bud off little Zexies when the time is right."
"Ah," Zexion intoned nodding slightly. "The truth of the matter is…" Zexion started as he adjusted his tie, "I have been… infatuated with you for the past three and three quarters years ever since the astronomy class we took together. It has been an obsession of mine; I think you might call it a crush."
Demyx's jaw dropped. This was the last thing he had expected from Zexion. The man was a brain and a bundle of neurological ticks. Emotion played no part in the way he functioned.
Zexion continued. " Whenever I am not working on my chemistry or reading I think about you. I spend all of my spare time obsessing over you. I lie awake at night trying to think up some witty remark or comment that would make you laugh and call me clever. I spend all of my time wanting to touch you and fearing that you will notice that I am too friendly or trying to take up all of your time. I follow you wherever you go and I always want to be at your side. I feel like a dog following his master faithfully wherever he goes."
Zexion stopped talking abruptly and took a large sip of his coffee. Demyx stared at him, feeling, shell-shocked. Apparently this issue had been boiling inside of Zexion for ages since he was so bothered by it. It must have taken over his life.
"I had no idea Zexy… err—Zexion," Demyx stumbled. He really didn't know what to say because Zexion was his best friend. He didn't have any feelings other than platonic ones toward his taciturn friend.
Zexion nodded and gave him a bitter smile. "I know you have no feelings for me other than brotherly. I have no idea why I feel this way about you. There is no logical or reasonable explanation for my attraction toward you. You are not particularly attractive or intelligent, nor do you possess any skills or resources that could further my self interests or those of any children I might beget."
"Umm, Zexy," Demyx laughed, "I'm not the biology wiz that you are, but even I know that two guys can't have kids."
Zexion grimaced at him and shook his head. "I was speaking from an economic viewpoint. Biologically, I should not even consider you to be a theoretical mate."
Demyx flushed at the word 'mate.' He was having trouble adjusting to the idea that Zexion considered him to be more than a constant annoyance.
"I do not want to like you. I despise the existence of these feelings for you. However they do exist and I have acknowledged these feelings about you for the last three years. During this time period I have feared that I would accidentally tell you at an inopportune moment. You seem to have an effect on me that causes me to say the first thing that comes to mind."
Zexion smiled again, but this time it actually looked like a smile. Demyx was certain that Zexion wasn't really paying attention to what he was saying. His normally sharp gaze was unfocused as he stared out one of the diner's dingy windows.
Demyx smiled slightly, unsure of what to say. His usually bubbly demeanor had taken a large hit when Zexion started his confession. Demyx gently stroked Zexion's hand.
That seemed to snap Zexion out of his trance, because he then glared at Demyx. "I had not originally planned on telling you this since it would place an unwanted burden upon your shoulders that you probably could not handle." Demyx smiled fondly; this cold and generally insulting Zexion was the one he was great friends with. "However, I will probably never see you again. My understanding is that people generally feel unhappy when they leave things unsaid and that these regrets eat away at their self-confidence, leaving them full of doubt. I do not wish to be left in that state, which is why I have told you my feelings. I… I refuse to have any regrets, Demyx."
Zexion stood up abruptly, which caused him to hit the table hard enough to knock over his half full coffee. He quickly righted the cup with his long thin fingers, but much of the plastic tabletop had been covered with the dark liquid. Zexion carefully wiped the liquid off the table with a napkin using short efficient motions. Leaving the coffee-saturated napkins in a ball, he dropped a few dollar bills on the table and left the diner.
Demyx quickly ran out after the silver haired man, feeling that things couldn't be left the way they were. He was still incredibly confused and Zexion was still unhappy.
"What do ya want me to do about this, Zexion?" demanded Demyx as he grabbed the younger boy's arm.
"Do?" questioned Zexion quietly. "Nothing. You always say that I should tell you what I am currently thinking to unburden myself. Well, I have unburdened myself."
"Zexy…" Demyx trailed off. He didn't know what to do or say to his best friend that would make him feel better. Everything that had already been complicated with the impending start of college had just increased it's strangeness tenfold.
"May I kiss you?"
Demyx's attention snapped to Zexion. Zexion was chewing on his lower lip and looking up uncertainly at Demyx. The blonde had never realized before that Zexion was shorter than him. Zexion's aloofness always made him seem larger than life. After a moment of consideration, Demyx asked, "Would it make you feel better?"
Zexion ran his hands through his hair and turned away from Demyx. "I don't know," he finally said. Demyx's eyes widened at the contraction; he had never heard Zexion use one before. "I'm not certain about anything anymore, except that I can't be gay."
Zexion laughed bitterly and started to walk away. Demyx hurried to keep up. When they had made it to the edge of the parking lot, Demyx said, "It's okay to be gay, Zexy; it just means you like dicks instead of chicks."
Zexion shook his head. "Riku's gay."
Demyx pondered this statement wondering how Zexion's little brother would affect his sexuality. "And this matters why?" he finally asked.
"My parents could not handle having two gay children; it would devastate them." he rubbed his shoulder and laughed, "God, Demyx, you have turned me into a fucking fag."
"That isn't very nice," Demyx huffed indignantly. When Zexion stopped laughing bitterly, Demyx asked softly, "What are you gonna do, Zexy? I mean, you can't deny yourself forever."
"Move to Massachusetts, get my doctorate in chemistry, torture undergraduate students, discover an element, die alone in my bed." Zexion shrugged and gave Demyx a cynical smile. "I expect my life to be the same as any academic."
Demyx shuddered slightly at Zexion's bleak view of his future. "Could you name the element after me?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood.
"No," Zexion replied.
"Why not?" Demyx whined. "I can see it now, you'd call it 'the element Demyxium.' You'll win the Nobel Prize for it and everyone'll ask you where you got the name from and you'll say 'I named it after my best buddy Demyx' and they'll all be amaze at the wonderfulness of our friendship."
"Scientists are no longer allowed to name the elements they discover. There is a committee that names all new elements after famous scientists," Zexion explained, destroying Demyx's fantasy. "So even if I wanted to name my discovery after you, I would not be able to do so."
" So how did ya find out that Riku's gay?" Demyx asked, trying to change the subject.
"I found him moaning about his football coach in the shower," Zexion said nonchalantly.
"Coach Rude?!" Demyx shrieked, wrinkling up his nose. "But he's old. And bald."
"Rude is twenty-nine, Demyx," Zexion specified, "and he shaves his head, so that he appears bald."
"Oh," Demyx laughed sheepishly. "My bad."
"It was a pleasure to know you, Demyx," Zexion said, offering his hand to the blonde.
Demyx shook his head and pulled the other into a tight hug. "This isn't the end, Zexion," he said fiercely. "You're only seventeen. I'm certain we'll see each other again. Even if that means I'll have to track you down in thirty years while I'm on my sabbatical."
Zexion laughed. "Cellists do not have sabbaticals. Good luck with Marluxia, Demyx. I hope you have a good life."
They stood there in amenable silence before Zexion kissed him. It was a dry and cold kiss, just like Zexion, but it had enough force behind it to push the blonde's head back.
The kiss ended before Demyx expected it to. The scientist brushed himself off and walked briskly away, leaving him at the edge of their hometown. Demyx watched quietly as Zexion walked out of his life. In the end, Demyx was wrong, they never saw each other again.
So, reviews would be nice. I always love hearing what people think of my work. I simply ask that for this story, reviews try to extend the same curtsy that I try to give to all of you.