SGE His Darkened Heart (A Japaric Fanfiction)

CHAPTER 8 Confessions

~JAPETH'S POV~

The audacity Rhian had when continuing to boldly go about with Kei, telling everybody in Arbed about his claim on Camelot's throne, was beyond Japeth's understanding. It was as if Aric and Japeth had gone through all the work of insulting the two friends for absolutely nothing. It was infuriating, but Japeth would have to make due with that.

But this morning, Japeth awoke perfectly content. He'd slept like a baby and he figured his sleepless dreams were the result of his growing friendship with Aric.

Japeth couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so happy...so ecstatic before. But the feeling was euphoric. He swore he wouldn't trade that for anything. It seemed nothing could ruin the day!

With the sun as bright as it ever had been and the clear sky a consistent shade of rich blue, Japeth had plopped himself upon the steps of the school, eagerly awaiting Aric's arrival for their daily lunch time rituals.

Soon enough, Aric strolled around the corner of the building to meet Japeth on the stairs where he settled down beside him. Aric frowned at the lively look upon Japeth's face, but before he could make a comment, Japeth had thrust a fistful of blueberries into Aric's unready hands.

"What's your problem today?" Aric asked, picking up some of his fallen blueberries off the ground. "You're never this...happy. What changed?"

Japeth couldn't help the swell of eagerness that washed over him as he shimmied closer to Aric. Japeth was so excited he could feel his scims squirming anxiously beneath his clothes.

"Tonight is the perfect night to sneak out," Japeth said, tone soft so no lingering students nearby would hear his words. "Remember the day of the dance when I proposed we sneak out to the roof? We never got to do it, and since we haven't snuck out together in a while I was hoping we could do it tonight. What do you say?"

Aric nudged Japeth with his elbow in response as if he were fed up with him. But there was a familiar smirk on Aric's face that Japeth recognized as saying 'yes.'

It was in that moment that Japeth's heart fluttered in his chest. It was a foreign feeling that he'd gotten used to after a while, a feeling of belonging he'd yearned for since Rhian neglected him in Arbed. It made Japeth realize that maybe things were gonna turn out okay as long as he had Aric by his side.

And the sensation of contentment Japeth felt when he was with Aric was something he knew Rhian would never be able to take away from him.

While Japeth did share a bond with Rhian since they were twins and their relationship was more complicated than just brotherhood, what Japeth and Aric shared was something else entirely.

Honestly, Japeth barely understood half of what him and Aric shared. He was confused about some of the feelings he felt when he was around Aric, but their friendship was something he wouldn't trade for anything else in the whole world.

Before he met Aric, Japeth hadn't realized that he was alone. Sure, he'd had Rhian and was surrounded by the other boys in Arbed, but Japeth had been isolated. Rhian stopped hanging around with him after befriending Kei, and the other boys thought he was evil no thanks to his cold appearance and intimidating Scims.

It wasn't until Japeth met Aric that he found himself feeling...more human again, less monstrous. He'd hated his brother for leaving him just like Evelyn left the two of them behind when they were younglings.

It wasn't until Japeth and Aric had become friends that Japeth finally saw that he'd been blinded for too long. He could no longer pretend to be okay with Rhian's hurtful attitude and had to embrace his anger over his brother.