and fate will always find you

Oh, Sabriel just loved the end of the school year. There were only a couple weeks left and then all of his friends would be packing to go home for the summer, or packing for the vacations that they’d take with other people. Sabe, on the other hand, would be stuck here for the entire duration of the summer, with all the other unlucky kids who had no where else to go. He had his aunt, of course, but they weren’t rich — she definitely didn’t have the money to get him on a plane or a boat back to the United States, and so he’d be stuck here.

Stuck here, in this room. Alone. For the rest of the year. And for the whole summer. His roommates were already gone, and there was no guarantee that he’d have anyone to replace them. He wasn’t sure yet if he wanted the loneliness or not.

Yeah, Sabriel definitely loved the end of the year. Loved it with every sarcastic bone in his body.

Falling back onto his bed, Sabriel let out a small ‘oof’ sound, closing his eyes as he bounced a bit on the mattress. When it had settled, he opened his eyes, golden irises staring at the cracked, bumpy paint of the ceiling, and sighed. His arms were spread out above him and his legs were hanging over the bottom of his bed, and his hair was a halo around his head.

“I don’t think I’m looking forward to this,” he mumbled to himself, having finally reached the decision that being alone wasn’t a wise option for his poor heart.

This was how his days were usually spent — and Sabriel imagined that this was how his summer would be. He had few friends as it was, and with summer coming, even fewer would be on campus. Hell, was he going to have anyone these months? Well, if not, it would give him some time to do what he enjoyed in peace... even if he hated solitude, maybe he could work on his photography! And maybe drawing, too. But... the fact was, he’d still be alone.

And no matter how optimistic he tried to be, he failed. Sabriel had never been too good at forcing himself to be happy. Letting out another sigh, he rolled over onto his side, trying to imagine three months of being completely out of contact with other people. This was going to be difficult. Just when he thought his life couldn’t get any more miserable than it already was, God threw a curve ball.

“Hello.”

At the sound of a voice, Sabriel jumped, sitting to attention in mere moments. It was as if he’d just woken from a terrifying nightmare, and he stared at the intruder with wide, confused eyes. Who was this guy? And how did he get in the dorm? “Uhm, h-hi,” he replied shyly, grasping fistfuls of the covers in his hands. “Can I, um, can I help you?” His brows knit. What was this man doing here? "I’m the only one left, if you’re looking for someone. Everyone else is gone for the summer... I hope you didn’t miss anyone.” He rubbed his left arm with his right hand awkwardly, shifting his weight somewhat on the bed, clearly uncomfortable.

... Staying here? Here? In this dorm room? Sabriel’s eyes widened. He looked so much older... he looked like he should have been teaching here, not attending school as a student! The thought of sharing this living space with someone so much older than him made his heart beat quickly, anxiety settling in. Sabriel didn’t know how to act around older people. How was he going to talk to him? Would he even want to talk? Would he want to be friends? How would he feel about having to share this place with someone so young and wimpy? What would he think--

Oh, God, Sabriel was panicking. Forcing himself to swallow, for his throat had suddenly become unbearably tight, he nodded in understanding. “R-Really?” he asked, almost choking on the single word. A pit was growing in his stomach, and it wasn’t pleasant. At all.

Standing, Sabriel smoothed down his clothes and did the polite thing — he took the extended hand. Giving it a light, weak shake, for not only was he scrawny and much more petite than the older man, but his mind was swimming and he almost felt dizzy from the nervous energy. “O-Oh? I’ll, uhm, I’ll be here this summer too. Y-Yeah. And school. ‘Cause I’ve still got a few years. Uhm...” What else was he supposed to say?

Oh yeah. His name. “I’m Sabriel,” he said, pulling his hand back, realizing he had held onto it for far too long. “O-Or Sabe. Sabe works. Everyone — well mostly everyone calls me Sabe.”

Sabriel’s eyes darted from the older man’s face to his hand, which was now holding his own once again. The anxiety he had felt before seemed to ease, replaced by a creeping wariness and a sort of cool, hesitant fear brought about by confusion. The words only spurred on Sabriel’s reaction — liked him? They had known each other for mere minutes. He couldn’t have meant like--

There was no way he could have--

But there was also no way to know what he really meant, now was there? The panic set in again, for it was rarely gone for very long, this time along with the silent fear and puzzlement. “W-What?” Sabriel stuttered, looking up to January’s face again. “I-I’m, I’m glad you like me, b-but...” But this feels awkward and I don’t like it.

Sadly, Sabriel wasn’t so vocal a person to say just what was on his mind — so he just pulled his hand away and kept it at his side, giving the benefit of the doubt that it wouldn’t be grabbed again. Just a misunderstanding. “... But I, I don’t understand what you mean, I’m not going to stop you from liking me. Or anything. If that’s what you meant. I’m-- I’m sorry, I’m just... very confused. You, um, you really shouldn’t like me though. Bad things happen to people who like me, January.”

It was the first time Sabriel had actually said his name, and for some strange reason, that name coming off of his lips felt right.

But that was just a strange feeling, and Sabriel decided to ignore it.

Take a chance? Take a chance on what, exactly? Sabriel lifted a single brow, staring up at the much taller stranger with an expression of wariness and distrust. His gold eyes darted from side to side, trying to read into his words. What did this man want from him? Sabriel had never met anyone so curious in his life, and the way January was looking at him, it almost made him feel like... like... like January was some sort of predator and Sabriel was his prey. Except it wasn’t even that violent, so that wasn’t even a correct comparison!

Oh, God, he was so confused.

Trapped with him. Alone in the room. This wasn’t going to end well, was it? For either of them! No, it wasn’t good — the more time January spent around him, the more likely it was that something might happen to him. Sabriel would never forgive himself if that happened. “Uhm, no, I’d, um, I’d rather not test it out, um, I know it’ll end badly and I’d rather you not get hurt!” Sabriel’s voice squeaked and he looked away, shifting his weight from side to side. “I-I don’t know why you’d want to be in this room with me anyway, I mean it’ll be nice outside during the summer, and I usually just stay locked inside my room here drawing or... or stuff... so-so I won’t get in your way and nothing bad will happen to you.”

He nodded firmly, trying to convince himself that it would be the case. It wasn’t any different from any other day. He’d just completely stay away from January so as to not tempt fate. It sounded like a good idea to Sabriel, but he was sixteen and he was naive, and there was no way he could have known better.

January leaned down to his height, then, and Sabriel looked clear into his eyes. They were an odd color, somewhere between brown and purple, a place where the colors mixed much like clouds did as the sun set. Somehow, looking into his eyes and seeing the way his hair fell so gently around his face, Sabriel couldn’t help but think it was magical —

And what the hell, he had never thought that about anything or anyone in his life!

“What?! Your-- your Master?! N... No!” Sabriel yelled, eyes widening in alarm. “That’s wrong! I can’t make you obey everything I say! You have a will of your own, and I refuse to take that from you!” He was frantic now, confused and frightened and filled with energy from his constant panicking and rushes of adrenaline.

Then, as if this situation couldn’t have become any odder, January leaned in and kissed his lips and his forehead. It was, at those actions, that Sabriel darted back from him and fell back onto his bed, a hand flying up to cover his mouth. That was... that was the first time anyone had ever kissed him... and it had been so weird, the feeling and the way it had happened. So abrupt. But he kind of wanted to do it again. Oh dear Lord. What was happening ot him?

“I think I feel sick,” he mumbled weakly, looking at the floor. “I think I... yeah... yeah, I feel sick. Um. Um. You should go. I... I think I need to take my medicine. Or more of it...” Sabriel whimpered, his kitty ears pressing flat against his head.

What? Get it for him?! Sabriel sat up straightly in an instant, as if awakening from a horrible nightmare. “No-- January--” But before Sabriel had the opportunity to finish his thoughts, the older male had already left the room, apparently in search of his medicine. The cat-eared youth stood for a moment and was tempted to run after him, to stop him, but decided against it. Weakly, he sat down on his bed again, sighing so deeply that his shoulders heaved inward. It wasn’t a secret that he was medicated, but he didn’t want his new roommate to see just what he took. What was the point, though? He was going to figure it out sooner or later... at least if it was sooner, he could decide whether or not he really did want to know Sabriel better.

He shifted uncomfortable as January returned, only turning his eyes to look at the bottle in his hands. “... Yes,” he mumbled warily, somewhat ashamed to have the other male retrieving his medicine for him. He heard the pills being tapped into the other’s hand and flinched, turning to take them from slowly from his hand. “Thanks,” he muttered, golden eyes lifting somewhat to meet January’s. “Um. You-- you can think I’m crazy, if you want. Almost everyone else does, too.”

He painted? Even though January had stolen his first kiss from him, just saying that had redeemed him in Sabriel’s eyes. Even after he had discovered the medicine and that Sabriel needed it, he was still interested in spending time with him...? The boy’s eyes lit up somewhat and he smiled — he actually smiled — and nodded his head enthusiastically. “That sounds like it would be fun.”

Ignore him?! No, not now that they seemed to have something in common! “I’d like to see,” Sabriel started, beginning to stand. “I mean. If it’s okay...” January had offered, but maybe that was because he was just being nice. “What do you paint the most? Is there anything in particular that interests you?”


[IT'S OKAY SORRY MINE WAS AWFUL. D8]

Sabriel stared at January, completely perplexed and yet somehow touched. He was saying that Sabriel’s craziness was permissible, he was accepting the many flaws that came along with knowing him. “... Thank you,” he breathed, looking at January with nothing more than admiration and profound gratitude. It was almost enough to make him cry, and Sabriel found himself moving before he could even stop himself to hug the other man tightly. He wrapped his arms around him and squeezed, inhaling a deep breath. Once he realized what he was doing, Sabriel dropped his arms and stepped back, muttering a soft “Sorry.” But he couldn’t help himself, not when he was so unaccustomed to people really understanding.

When January began to pull the canvases out of his bag, Sabriel’s ears stood up straightly and he tried to be patient to see some of his newfound friend’s works. He was eager to see these paintings! “I’m sure you’re wonderful. It doesn’t matter if you’re good or bad at something... if you love it then you’re a real artist.” Sabriel smiled.

As he pulled out the two paintings, Sabriel gasped softly and just gazed at them, clearly speechless until he shook himself from his daze. “What do you mean, it’s not your forte?! You’re very good, January!” he encouraged, grinning widely. “You should... hang them up. Since it’s just us here. I wouldn’t mind. You should hang all of your paintings up...”


[another bad one. xD]