When it rains, it pours!

<div align=center>For just a few seconds, Jericho had unreasonably felt like an idiot. Not from his confession but how he went about portraying it. He was confident with who he was, on most levels anyway. So why couldn't he even dress his insecurities in a false suit of armor? At this point the Nephilim felt it would be better if he just made his leave now and face the storm once more than brew within his own mind. It was wearing at his insides and he didn't know if Ettein should see him so conflicted.

But then Ettein had not only quelled his fears of disproval but assured that the feeling was something he was sympathetic towards. He knew what confusion felt like, in a way not very different from him. Ettein had a point- biologically an orientation like that didn't seem all that possible. But not only had this served as a source of trouble, but practically everything about his physical nature as well. Including just who he exactly was.

Guilt welled up inside of Jericho as he realized that his relatively minute problem had nothing on his entire life. He listened with both carefulness and curiosity, pondering just how the life of the naga had been impacted by the sex he'd been assigned at birth and the gender he felt he truly was. The lifetime struggle that he outlined no doubt signified a sort of unhappiness and dissatisfaction. Poor guy... If only he had been there back then to do something. And no more did this apply for than that incident with the bullies.

At that point something clicked to make his blood boil. Driven to the point of possibly harming himself, just for being what he was? He nodded in comprehension but his mind was far off trying to grasp this. If he'd been there he'd try to scare them off. If he'd been there he'd assure that it was alright for him to explore what made him most comfortable and not afraid of expression. Even today if he had alternated between the two genders for his own comfort he'd still find him a good person. And it was just sad others brought him down to not do that.

On any case Ettein seemed to be impartial to his past, though Jericho had cared about it very much. He just hated seeing people do that to one another, no matter if it was teasing or physical violence. When he finished his story, Jericho flicked his soft green eyes towards him and wore a small smile. "No, it's cool. Thanks for telling me... Really." It must have been a secret for him that was hard to share. But he trusted Jericho, and as stated by him he never broke a secret or promise. "And it really is a relief that you know how I feel... I still don't know myself for the most part... But I'm beginning to understand..." Besides, at least he had someone to trust with the truth.

He chuckled a bit and brought himself close once again with less tensity in his shoulders when it was clear they were on good terms. He looked at his dryer gray wings, ruffling the silky feathers as they reminded him of an incident long past. "Yeah... Almost made that decision before." The only thing that stopped him was the fact that he chickened out just thinking about it. He looked back to Ettein, glad they had the closure about that sort of thing that they needed. He almost laughed the entire situation off, as the warm feeling associated with good vibes encompassed him. But something else coursed through his system, something that only came with the touch of his hand.

When he did place his upon Jericho's, of course an empathetic transfer occurred between the two of them. But this time it wasn't just a regular sort of content, but a variant of. It was warmer than before, and something strong enough to spread over his chest, almost creating a sensation of pleasantly heated blood going through his own heart. It had to be a euphoria of some sort. But he didn't know what it was. The indescribable sensation warranted him almost to return the favor of reassurance by curling his own fingers around his. But to save him from potential embarrassment he let go before he even could. Jericho brought his hand back to his untouched cup of coffee as he swallowed a breath. He played it off, curious as to whether or not Ettein felt the same thing. "Uhh... Right." He muttered afterwards, straightening himself out. To take attention off of this scenario he looked out of the window, the rain beginning to let up a bit. Hell, even the sun was starting to make a return. He'd almost forgotten that it was mid afternoon. "Well, it's starting to look a bit better out there. Still can't trust that damned lightning though." He swore it was going to one day zap him in the smallest way just so it could piss him off. Though if it wasn't severe the way he'd react would probably be more temper tantrum-y, if anything. </div>

<div align=center>Now on comfortable terms once more Jericho leaned back to support his weight with his hands as he looked to the fire that was getting a bit too warm now. Still he didn't want to leave Ettein quite yet, even if the world outside was clearing up. He made for a good companion, and perhaps they'd get more opportunities to talk like this, especially now that Jericho knew Ettein was open minded.

However with the admitting of himself Jericho meant not to imply anything. He wasn't in a relationship but merely was opening his mind to other possibilities. Jericho raised a brow, not quite sure what he was talking about. Maybe he wasn't clear enough. He chuckled a bit with his misconception and shook his head. "I just got here, I haven't been a relationship yet." He knew he was a flirt and all, but picking up a boyfriend in such a short amount of time seemed impossible. "I'm not in a rush, don't worry... As lame as it sounds I'm just waiting for the right person to come along... I haven't been in a real relationship yet for obvious reasons. At least at my old school I had them." He shrugged his shoulders. "But now that I can be who I want to be I want to try to get a meaningful relationship here. I mean, flirting and kissing cute girls at parties is fine and all. It's just that for once I want someone to really get to know and like. And now I have that opportunity." The young man realized how sappy he sounded. Still he spoke a sort of truth that resulted from years of denial. Would he still pop up at almost every dorm party? Oh absolutely. But he didn't want anything superficial anymore. He was done with that.

He then sneered a bit, though out of his own displeasure. "But at this age I doubt that's ever going to happen." His wings then folded back now fully dry, leaning gently across his muscle shirt. "Anyway, I appreciate your openness. If you ever just want to talk, I'll be willing to listen. I owe you that much. You're a good friend Ettein, hell you're-" He was cut off by the approaching waitress from before. The one Ettein didn't like. She smiled at the two, now realizing that she hadn't addressed not one but two boys, at least now that she could see both of them properly. But the past was the past.

"Your check sir. Cash, right?" Jericho shook his head as he took the piece of paper, fumbling in his pocket for cash. "Hehe... Good. Well, you two have a nice day now. And please stop by again." Jericho waved goodbye as he looked at the sheet of paper, snickering a bit. "Well, looks like we scored a discount. Dunno why." Well, it worked. He stood up to place the crumbled up bills and paper on the table he had claimed yet not used. By now, the storm was almost but a memory. </div>

<div align=center>Like most everything Jericho encountered the question before was brushed off without so much a scuffle. He was happy for now anyway and would take life in stride. What would happen would happen, and he'd just roll with it. As long as one day he'd find that there was someone out there that would take him in and accept him for who he was... Just as he wanted to do for someone else.

"I hope so. Probably gonna stick around here for awhile." Which of course meant he wanted someone to make his stay even more enjoyable than it already was. But being a teenager set boundaries to this. Cheating, dishonesty, synthetic feelings... That was bound to happen. Ettein however addressed the issue of immaturity in relationships and how it was limited to the individual, not the stereotype. But whatever he was about to say had been cut off, and Jericho seemed to be destined not to here the rest.

But bygones were bygones. "I guess so." He retorted simply in response to Ettein's light question, a similar feeling of perkiness shared between them. "Oh, and don't sweat it. My pleasure. After all I pretty much took your room. I gotta owe you something." The small cup of hot chocolate probably didn't fit the bill exactly. Perhaps he'd find something in the future to make the relationship mutual in terms of giving. Jericho didn't want to be some free loader, after all. He noticed that the sun outside was getting increasingly intense, though a gentle drizzle still fell. Now that was a weather pattern he quite enjoyed. He noticed however that the competitively pale kid avoided the sun, and looked away whenever it shined in his direction. There had to be something he could do.... Of course! In another pocket of his pants he pulled the pair of aviator sunglasses he had on before coming in here. Y'know, when it was once sunny. They were expensive looking too, hell they might have even been Ray Ban's. "You can have these... I don't know if you brought any or not with you today, but I guess if you need a spare at least you have something that'll make due." He offered, "I have a couple of these actually... Just years of saving up money my mom kept giving me for school lunch. After I got bad food poisoning one day I just kept it." He shrugged. Probably not the most morally upright sort of thing to do, but who could blame him? They probably put cyanide in that crap.

"Are you heading somewhere? I'd hate to hold you up now that it's safe to go outside. Didn't expect it to clear up so fast..." And it wouldn't have if the island wasn't funky about patterns and consistency. "Or if you want to be alone again I'll take my leave. Don't wanna be a burden or anything." He hadn't much to do besides spend his money on clothes and material things. Or just fly around aimlessly. That too. </div>

<div align=center> With the affirmation that Ettein loyally stuck by him as a friend, Jericho felt a sense of deep gratitude. Having such reliability in someone this early on in a school was a rarity, but Jericho didn't doubt it's genuine nature. Though his own abilities at the moment were limited to emotional sensations, his gut instinct told him usually what was best. And only good vibes seemed to come from him. And this was a fact that had reiterated in proof of itself multiple times. No wonder why the two were talking with each other as if they'd known each other for a decade rather than a week. "Couldn't be more appreciative... And hey, it really does mean something for me that I'm one of your first ones. Glad we get along." Though he naturally had a cocky tone about him, he genuinely appreciated the fact that he was a first for him. It was an aspiration of sorts for him to at least touch someone's life. He was no guardian angel or such, but it didn't mean he couldn't try. He had the wings and the empathy. All he needed was a client to deliver his loyalty to. Funny how such a typical teenage guy believed in the concept of duty to emotional obligations.

The gift of sorts as much of an afterthought it was it truly showed some of Jericho's willingness to prove to himself that he's not as bad as heaven above makes him out to be. He didn't have to be nice. When he died he was going to hell no matter what, so really he could live by his own laws. But he was raised and wanted to personally believe that being a decent human being would help deter the inevitable. A material gift wouldn't fully support that, but it was a start. The sunglasses however were not needed outside of this exact moment. Still, if something like this happened again hopefully he had those at a backup. "Don't worry, I do that too. I mean those aren't special or whatever, but they're good for blocking out light and durability. But these are yours for as long as you want them." even if that was forever, he was alright. Whatever made him feel most comfortable.

With no plans official and the confirmation that they'd enjoy each other's company further, Jericho smiled at the idea of hanging out even more. "Great. In that case, what say you we hit the town?" He asked, grinning in hope. "There's a couple of places I've been wanting to explore... If you want to join, that is." Besides mundane stores and such, he wanted to explore rumors he had heard of abandoned buildings and construction sites. He lived on the edge occasionally, but only if he had others to join him on his exploits. But if not there were other pretty places to go. After all, it was the end of the school week and they didn't necessarily have to be back at campus... So time was on their side. </div>

<div align=center>Secured in the mutuality of their relationship Jericho nodded to him briefly. If he had a roommate he hated, then how could he do cool stuff with them? He couldn't. Well, not yet had he tried to do a little bit of something like he did back at home with anybody. Nothing bad or against the law (kinda) but Jericho was the kind to take risks and do something stupid. Granted he had his limits, but harmless fun wouldn't equate to anything major would it?

"Wellll..." He began to think, hoping to find ideas for inspiration. "There's a whole bunch of stores and stuff around here, not to mention the park isn't too far away..." He then looked devilishly at him. Oh, he had an idea. "But then I've heard some rumors about abandoned buildings and stuff around here... Not sure if urban exploration's your sort of thing, but I sure think it's fun." Illegal? Maybe. But eh, he didn't ever hurt anybody. Besides, maybe they'd find something cool together. Or if they were too scared/alone, perhaps they could find a posse to go with. Whatever the case however he left the ultimate decision to Ettein. "Your pick though. I just thought it would be fun taking a look at all the old stuff around here. Who knows what we'll find." The island was pretty old in terms of civilization. Perhaps they'd come back with something awesome. Or, at the very least, have some cool stories to tell.

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