Two totally inconspicuous kids who are so not causing trouble { { C L O S E D } }

Taleis had no idea what Aidan had planned when he turned his head so he was looking at Aidan, but he definitely had hopes. He knew they were probably ridiculous and Aidan would probably end up doing something else at the last second, like splash water in his face or something. Taleis didn't really know.

But then Aidan asked Taleis to not hate him for it, and Taleis frowned slightly at that. Taleis didn't know why Aidan would ever think that he could hate him. People who had been friends for that long didn't just fall out all of a sudden and just stop liking eachother. Not in any case Taleis had examined before.

And then, oh gods, Aidan's face was just so close Taleis', and he was almost positive of what Aidan was going to do, but he just wanted to be completely sure. Besides, he doubted he'd be able to move if he tried. He didn't know how he could even possibly manage to do it, because it seemed like he was stuck in place from anticipation and nerves, and for the love of the gods he just wanted Aidan to do whatever it was he was going to do because it felt like forever to Taleis, although that could just have been his mind slowing everything down.

Then Aidan leaned in all the way and oh gods, Aidan was actually kissing him. It wasn't anything that 'bad', as Taleis would explain it. It was just their lips, but it was still the best thing Taleis had ever felt. One of his hands moved to cup Aidan's cheek when he realized Aidan wasn't pulling away. He wanted to tangle his other hand in Aidan's hair, he wanted to so badly, but he couldn't help but feel like that might be too much. For then, at least.

Aidan held Taleis' hand on his cheek for a moment, savoring it. He liked it -- no, he loved it. He loved it, he loved it. He wanted more, yes, he wanted all of it.

That scared him. A lot. He gripped Taleis' hand tightly and brought it down. He didn't want to. He pulled his lips away, and a sob escaped. He stared at Taleis' tragic eyes and tears welled up in his own. He shook his head violently.

"You, you k-kissed b-back..." he stammered. "I... Uh... I'm sorry," he choked out, scrambling out his seat, spilling popcorn everywhere. He ran down the steps and out the theater doors. He stood in the hall, trying to get his head around the fact that he liked kissing a boy. But he couldn't accept he was a homosexual. It was hard to believe.

Aidan shook his head again, and started walking. He probably ruined the movie for everyone in the room, and it absolutely was his fault. He began to run, feeling more guilty with every step. He knew he would ruin the day. He ruins everything, after all. If he hadn't been born, his mom would still be with his dad, if he had only tolerated piano, he never would have met Taleis. If he hadn't been so d*mn annoying about his sexuality, he wouldn't have kissed Taleis. They'd be watching the movie calmly and go on with their day.

Aidan was positive Taleis would hate him now. He'd call him a f*g now, too. He'd go tell everyone and he'd be left with no one. Why did Aidan think he needed to kiss Taleis? He could've kissed any guy he saw on the street, right? Why'd he have to screw things up by kissing his best friend?

It was beautiful. Everything felt good to Taleis, and it was the first time in years. And when Aidan's put his hand over Taleis', well, Taleis felt like he probably could die happily. He felt like such a girl, but he didn't care, because he was kissing Aidan, and it was even better than he imagined and he didn't have to hide anything anymore.

But then Aidan was pulling away, and Taleis could see he was crying. He could hear the sob escape his throat. Taleis wanted to pull Aidan into a hug, but he could barely move. It was all in Aidan's eyes. He didn't want it, he didn't want Taleis. At least, that's what Taleis saw.

Then Aidan was standing up, running away. Running away from Taleis. And Taleis could only feel like he had messed up, like he had ruined everything. He just wanted to curl up into a ball and sob, but he knew he couldn't do that. He was in a movie. He couldn't leave, either. Taleis was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to do much, not then.

He sat in the theatre for a few minutes, regaining his composure. Waiting until he felt like he could be trusted to do something like move without falling on his face or ending up curled up in a ball, completely melting down. He couldn't hear much, it was almost like he didn't want to. He was afraid Aidan might say something to hurt him, and then his hearing had just shut down.

Taleis ran out of the theatre, trying to see if he could see Aidan. He knew he probably had no chance of finding him, but, hey, he could dream, right? It's what he had been doing for the past couple of years, just dreaming that everything was okay. He was sure that nothing would really be okay, not anymore, not after what had just happened. He had probably just imagined Aidan leaning him, it was probably all him. Aidan probably only put his hand on Taleis' to pull it away.

Taleis actually spotted Aidan ahead of him, and he was shocked that Aidan hadn't already taken a taxi back to camp. "Aidan!" he called out as he ran towards him. "Hey, wait up!"

He knew it probably wouldn't work, that Aidan would end up running away from him, but he didn't care. Calling out to his friend was the best thing he could think to do. Was Aidan still his friend? He wasn't sure, not after what happened. He doubted he could call Aidan his boyfriend (as much as he wanted to), but he doubted that Aidan would even bother trying to talk to him anymore.

Aidan heard his name be called by that familiar voice, and it only broke his heart. He didn't dare glance back, afraid of what he would see. If he stopped, Taleis could catch up, and he couldn't allow that. He would only be ridiculed more. He ran through the lobby and heard several "WALK, DON'T RUN!" Maybe he should've.

He crashed into the door, pulling on it, harder and harder, until he realised, it said "push." He pushed on the heavy door, and ran outside into the cold. It was snowing hard, but he didn't seem to notice. His skin was burning red anyway. He knew he had to get away from that place as fast as possible. With his adrenaline, he ran down the street, and turned the corner, and threw his hand up for a taxi. Thankfully, it stopped for him, and he climbed in, telling the cabbie to just "DRIVE, DRIVE, DRIVE!" It didn't work. But the car accelerated anyhow.

Aidan had his head in his hands, cursing himself over and over. Why, why, WHY did he do that? He knew Taleis would follow him back to camp, that's what he did. He didn't have anywhere else but camp. Aidan didn't want to talk to anyone, or even look at anyone. If anyone tried to talk to him, he thought he would yell at them to shut their f*cking mouths.

Aidan didn't know what to do. If he stopped the cab and went looking for Taleis, he would get yelled at, perhaps punched in the face. If he kept going to camp, he'd be followed, and get yelled at, and perhaps punched in the face. Either way, Taleis was going to punch him in the face. But Aidan loved the kiss so much...

It wasn't even that much, yet thinking of it made Aidan's face burn red with pleasure and embarrassment. He wanted it again, to do it properly, but he knew he couldn't. He could probably never face Taleis again, after that. Taleis was straight, and Aidan was happy. He finally admitted it to himself. He was a flaming homosexual and didn't like it.

Maybe he could fix himself. Trick himself into thinking he was straight. After all, it was just Taleis that made him feel that way, right? Maybe if he found a girl he really liked, it would blow Taleis out of his mind and remind him that he is completely, and absolutely straight.

((Warning: this post may be triggering.))

When Aidan started running away from Taleis, Taleis swore his heart broke. If someone had to pinpoint the exact second his heart shattered into a million pieces, it would be then, that very second, because he was positive that Aidan was disgusted by him. He was sure he had just ruined everything, he was positive he had just messed stuff up with his only friend.

He stopped chasing Aidan by the point he had ran out of the theatre, because Taleis knew it was useless. Aidan would never want to see him again. He'd be disgusted. Repulsed, even. Basically, Taleis was sure that Aidan would never want to see him again, would never want to look at him again, or even think about him again. And Taleis could totally understand why Aidan wouldn't want to have anything to do with him anymore.

He never understood why Aidan put up with him anyways. Taleis was just some punk who decided he was too cool to trust anyone so he broke peoples' hearts and stabbed people in the back and just all around betrayed everyone's trust and expectations. All his grandparents ever were of him was disappointed, and the first time he was actually sincere about someone, she killed herself.

All in all, Taleis was a screw up, and Aidan, well, he was Aidan. People naturally liked him, and Taleis had to try. Aidan didn't have to hurt people to feel okay about himself, but Taleis did. He didn't understand why Aidan even bothered, because he could obviously do better, so much better.

And that was the problem, Taleis guessed. Even if Aidan somehow did believe that Taleis was the best he could get, Taleis would never believe him. He'd always be stuck in this state of denial, saying that Aidan could to better than him, that he deserved so much better. Aidan did, Taleis knew that. Aidan deserved better from a friend, and whatever it is that someone who should be friends with Aidan, well, Taleis just didn't have it.

With a sigh, Taleis walked out of the movie theatre. There was no point in staying to watch the movie if he wasn't with Aidan; especially if he wasn't with Aidan, because now he was in a bad mood. One of the moods, specifically, and he was sure it was his worst one yet. The only thing he really had left to do was go back to camp, apologize to Aidan and promise to leave him alone forever, and then, well, he'd figure out what he'd do later. He had ideas, yeah, but he had no idea how he'd carry them out.

Taleis flagged down a taxi cab and gave the driver the directions to camp, although his mind was miles away from where he was. His mind was in a gutter, at the bottom of a tall building, in a bathtub full of water mixed with his own blood. It was in the darkest corners of Taleis' head, where he found himself spending more and more time, thinking about how he'd spend his last day, what he'd write in his note, how he'd do it. And it was comforting, somehow, to now that he at least had some control over his life.

He kind of wanted to text Maria, tell her that he actually only talked to her on a dare and he thought she was disgusting. He wanted to hurt someone, because that was how he dealt with his own pain. By causing others pain. It had almost become second nature to him, he did it so much. He had it down to a science by now, and he could probably do it while he was asleep. And for the love of the gods, he was hurting so badly and he wanted someone else to feel how he felt, feel like they weren't worth it. Because that was the only way he knew to get it off of his shoulders.

As the taxi slowed to a stop at the hill, he paid the cabbie with his last twenty and thanked him. He exited the yellow car and turned to the hill. His stomach was all in knots, and he felt like sleeping forever under a rock. He hiked up the hill, resisting the urge to upchuck breakfast and popcorn.

He wasn't even thinking anymore. It was just a vague feeling of dread. He hated it, but he kind of just shut down. In the taxi ride, he was fighting with himself the entire time, and now he was just tired. He reached the top of the hill, and sighed. He stood there by Thalia's tree and rubbed his face, ran his fingers through his hair, wrung his hands and shook his hair out before continuing down the hill.

He had basically lost all hope of ever talking to Taleis again. He had screwed everything up, and nothing would ever be the same between them. Not that he thought that Taleis would ever talk to him again, but he could hope. But even if they did start talking again, there would always be that tension between them. Aidan groaned aloud.

Aidan heard his name be called again and was about to explode before he saw where it came from and his face lit up. "'Demona! Hi!" he gave her a little one armed hug. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in ages! You're a demigod? Wow, I never knew that! This is so cool, this is awesome, I've missed you, kid!" he laughed a bit, mood significantly better. Taleis was pushed to the back of his head for now.

Aidan's smile faded for a moment, but his careless smile fell back into place. He waved his hand as if he were waving away an annoying bug near his ear. "Oh, it's nothing, just something with a friend," he said.

He sighed, "I sort of found out I was happy today, and lost a friend. That's all. But if you tell a single soul about it, I swear to the gods that I will tear your throat out, okay?" he said, the light lost from his face. But he smiled again, and said, "But how are you? You're like as tall as me, now."

"Me neither! I'm so glad you're here!" he hugged her back, grinning like an idiot. Desdemona was Aidan's best friend, until she moved away. And now that she was at camp, it was great! He could talk to her for hours, and hours, and all night, about nothing at all. "And it's not a boy crush! It's just there. I'm not even sure I am. It's weird, okay?" He hugged her again, "Gods, I've missed you."

For all of Taleis' ride in the cab back to camp, he just stared out the window and thought. He thought about how things would be if they were different, if he had never hurt Kassidy and he never had to go to camp and nothing happened to his dad and his dad's first wife had never died. He wondered what it would be like if he could go back, just to start over and find a way to change things. So he could warn his dad never to say his mother was more beautiful than Aphrodite herself, because then he never would have caused this whole mess.

Taleis was shocked to find that he was smiling, but they were nice thoughts; Tales would grow up normally and Aidan would grow up normally and they would never have to know of eachother. Taleis never would have messed anything up for Aidan, they'd both be okay in their blissfully unaware worlds, completely unknowing of the others' problems.

Taleis was almost disappointed when the cab finally arrived at camp, but he still payed the driver and got out of the cab. He didn't climb the hill though, not just yet. He just stared up at the top of it for a while. he could see two people, although he couldn't tell exactly who they were; the sun glared in his eye too much for that. He could tell it was a boy and a girl, though, that much was clear.

After standing at the bottom of the hill for at least three minutes, Taleis finally decided he was ready to go into camp. He fully intended to apologize before doing...it was hard for him to admit what he was doing. He just referred to it as 'that thing that ominously loomed in the horizon,' because, hey, why not? He could be dramatic about it if he wanted.

Aidan rolled his eyes at Desdemona."Fine! Whatever! It's a boy crush! But not really! He probably never wants to see me again. I screwed things up, and probably still will." He sighed, but smiled. He was happy-ish. She could always bring his mood back up.

He heard footsteps, and looked towards the sound. It was a either a camper or a pizza delivery guy. It was... Oh, gods. Oh, gods. Okay, calm down, Aidan told himself, if he doesn't see you, you're okay. You're okay, he won't see you. He probably saw you. He saw you. Okay, okay, um.

He smiled at Desdemona, "Do me a solid?" he chuckled nervously, and pressed their lips together. It wasn't a kiss, it was just a favour. Now he wasn't a flaming homosexual. He was straight. He was kissing a girl.

Taleis wasn't sure if it was possible, but he was pretty sure he felt his heart breaking even more when he saw that it was Aidan at the top of the hill, and that he was kissing someone, a girl to be specific. And all Taleis could think was, 'Damn, that kid moves on fast.'

Taleis could have sworn that Aidan had kissed him first, that he could feel Aidan kissing him. He was positive it was sincere. And if he could somehow summon the energy, he would have run away as fast as he could without ever stopping and ever looking back, until he fell down to the ground in a heap to never rise up again, because that was all he really wanted by that point. Yet he couldn't do anything but stand there and try not to let a sob tear through him, and it was probably the most difficult thing he had ever done.

Eventually, Taleis heard some weird choking noise, and it didn't sound human at all. He thought it was him, he didn't know. If it was something else, he would have no idea because his vision was blurred with tears by that point, and he just wanted everything to go away. He wanted the pain in his chest to go away, the stinging in his eyes, all of it. So he finally started running, as fast as he could, feet kicking up dirt and rocks and sh**. He ran to the beach, and he knew it was cold out, he knew it was freezing, but that's what he wanted. He figured he'd jump in and keep his head under for as long as it took, or maybe he'd just jump in and then lay out in the cold. He figured either would work well enough.

Aidan finally pulled away when he heard the footsteps grow fainter and fainter. He watched as Taleis ran from the hill. He watched those curls dance as he sprinted, and all he felt was guilt.

He had never thought about what Taleis would be thinking, besides that Taleis would hate him. Aidan hated himself, too. All he had thought about was himself, and how he was happy, and how he was not to blame for anything ever. He was a bad person, all in all. He constantly felt sorry for himself, and he hated that about himself. Oh, he had too many friends, oh, he was too noticed, all he wanted was some time to himself.

Aidan was selfish, and never blamed himself for anything. But at the same time, he blamed himself for everything. He hated himself for not being able to face Taleis and say sorry. He hated not being able to just tell him why he did what he did. He hated that he couldn't just face his problems instead of feeling sorry for himself. His step-mum always told him how amazing he was, EVERYONE told him how amazing he was, and he never understood why. He wasn't special, he wasn't smart, he wasn't talented at anything. He only hurt people by around them. If he hadn't have been born, would any of this have happened? Taleis would probably not be feeling whatever he's feeling.

He smiled at bit at her. "Thanks, love. Owe you a ton, alright?" he laughed. He rubbed his eyes a little bit. "I.. Uh. I have to do something. Talk to you later, okay? Dinner!" He waved at her before running down the hill after Taleis.

He was standing right at the edge of the water, he knew he could do it. Taleis didn't know why it was taking him so long but it was, and it kept getting harder and harder for him to see.

He finally manged to step into the water. He could feel it seeping through his shoes, and every single nerve in his body told him screamed at him to jolt backwards, but Taleis made himself stand there, then take another step and he wasn't that far in, but for the love of the gods it was freezing. He wondered what Aidan would think if he heard that Taleis had either drowned or died of hypothermia all alone on the beach, and he had to let out a bitter laugh at that. It was so ironic. Taleis was the boy who was friends with everyone, yet there he was for some reason.

The weird choking noises weren't stopping, too. They were half way between a choke and a sob and it sounded absolutely heartbreaking, and Taleis knew it had to be him because he was positive that there was nobody else there. He just wanted the noises to stop, he wanted the heaving in his chest to stop, he wanted the pain to stop, he just wanted the breathing to stop by that point because there was really no reason for Taleis to go on with it, not in the state he was in. Because Aidan hated him and he had someone else, and he probably had her all along and just never told Taleis because, well, why would he?

"I'm sorry," he whispered, although he could hardly recognize the words as they came out of his mouth. The weird choking/sobbing noise distorted them beyond recognition. He wasn't sure to whom he was apologizing, because there were just so many people to apologize to. Kassidy, his dad, his grandparents, his mum, Aidan, anyone who he ever hung out with, and anyone he had ever hurt. There were just too many people for him to choose just one, so he guessed it was just to everyone. Everyone who he had ever impacted in any way.

All Aidan wanted to do was say sorry. He could live with Taleis never talking to him again, never looking at him again, never thinking about him again, he just wanted to say sorry. Because he was. He was so, so sorry.

He was sprinting as fast as he could after Taleis, though he couldn't even see him anymore. He was panting, as he wasn't a runner. Or a jogger. Or a real big walker at that. He was tired, yeah, but couldn't get himself to stop. He wouldn't. He wasn't sure, exactly, he was running, but he had nothing to go on.

Aidan finally fell on the cold shore of the beach, shivering, and breathing ragged. He never wanted to run that much again. Ever. Taking deep breaths, or at least, trying to, he stood back up. He looked over at the water, expecting for his brain to be flooded with those, "and I swear, that in the moment, we were infinite," or whatever it was, but he saw someone standing in the water. That water had to be on the verge of freezing over. Why would someone be standing in it?

And then, oh. It was Taleis. Aidan couldn't see his face, but he didn't think there was someone else in camp who was wearing exactly what Taleis was earlier.

"What the f*ck are you doing?!" Aidan yelled. Or tried to. It came out rather hoarsely. But it was still pretty loud. At least to him.

The water was up to just above Taleis' knee when he thought he heard someone. At first it was just footsteps , but then he heard someone say something, and that someone sounded an awful lot like Aidan.

Taleis grit his teeth together and closed his eyes tightly, not letting himself look over his shoulder, not letting himself respond. The only sounds he made were those stupid, heartbreaking choking/sobbing noises, and all Taleis could this was that he deserved it, he deserved to be standing out there in the middle of winter, practically frozen. He deserved it because he had hurt way too many people, and, well, doesn't the bad guy always die in the movie? Because in any girls' story, Taleis would be the bad guy. He'd always be the bad guy.

Everyone had always told Taleis otherwise, but he knew he was the bad guy. How could he hurt so many people just because and not feel a single thing if he was the good guy? It just didn't work that way, not in Taleis' head. So, therefore, he was the bad guy of the story, and everyone else was just another character whom he was supposed to sweep off of their feet, but he kept messing up and pushing them off of their feet instead.

The only person in his life who he assumed wasn't there for that purpose was Aidan, and he was the only person who swept Taleis off of his feet. And in a way, Taleis guessed that Aidan would be the good guy. Nice to everyone, always friendly, never hurting anyone. Except for Taleis, but Taleis was the bad guy.

So Taleis kept wading further and further into the water, until it was about two inches from his knees. He was shaking all over, and his teeth were clattering together, but he kept urging himself on. 'They'll be better off once you're gone, so just go. Just get it over with.'

"Hey, f*****. Get out of the water!" Aidan blurted out. He sort of regret the words as soon as they left his mouth, but couldn't take them back. He also figured maybe then Taleis would listen to him.

He didn't know how else to get his attention. He just wasn't himself at the moment. It was freezing cold, for one. "You need to get out of the water, mate," he said, softer than before. "Can I just talk to you? You're also going to get hypothermia." He almost pleaded. But not quite.

Taleis closed his eyes tightly and tried not to pay any attention to Aidan's voice. He knew that Aidan would hate him for doing what he was doing, but he knew he just had to do it. As much as he wanted to go back to Aidan, he knew he'd probably never get it over with, because all Aidan had to do was look at him with those sad eyes and Aidan just couldn't help himself from doing whatever Aidan wanted him to do.

All Taleis could think of was how the last time he saw Aidan would have been seeing him kissing that girl, and this weird feeling washed over him. It wasn't anger, not quite. It was more sad. Yes, there was some anger in there. For a second, Taleis felt it flood through his system, but then it was flushed out by sadness and despair.

So, tentatively, he took yet another step, and another, until the water was just a few centimeters below his knees. He thought he would feel good to finally be doing it, but he couldn't help but think of what he might do to Aidan. But then he reminded himself that Aidan had a girlfriend now, he'd be fine. She'd help him move on, just like Aidan had helped Taleis move on after Kassidy.

For a fleeting moment, Taleis wondered if he'd get to see Kassidy, but he quickly dismissed the idea. Kassidy was probably in Elysium, and there was no way Taleis would ever get there. He was positive he'd go to the Fields of Punishment, because, well, it was what he deserved, was it not? He had hurt so many people already, and now he was going to hurt Aidan so he wouldn't have to live with his pain. Taleis was selfish, and the only thing he deserved was the Fields of Punishment.

Taleis wished he could stop crying. He didn't want to die like that, shaking and sobbing and being such a...such an idiot. Because that's what Taleis was, an idiot. But his tears and his shaking wasn't going anywhere, so he guessed he'd just have to deal with it.

At Taleis' silence (sort of) Aidan decided to go right up to him. He let out a small sigh and jogged over, until he stopped when his feet hit the water. Holy sh*t, he thought. It was cold. Like, really, really, REALLY cold. He grit his teeth and continued on, albeit slower than before.

"Tal, will you please just listen to me?" he whispered, "But, like, somewhere not freezing? Please?" His throat closed up and his eyes stung. It must've been the cold, as his teeth were starting to chatter.

He couldn't think of much else to say but that.