Xanther
Played by me and |Peyton|
Played by Mα∂иɛƨƨ.
Prologue
Xanther slowly walked up to the water as it swished around and came on and off of shore. He would glare at the water everytime it came very close to him, stepping back when it nearly touched him. A chill was sent down his spine as some of the water swished between his toes.
But then, in the corner of his eye, he spotted something approaching him. A teen, a girl his age. Xanther bit his lip and looked away slightly as the girl came closer. "Hey there, babe," she said in a charming voice. Xanther did not know this girl. He has never experienced love. He has never held hands with one or even kissed one. Xanther felt so...unsure around girls at most times and times like this. He would become a complete stick of butter when he had to do anything like this, especially if he didn't even know what to do.
Xanther looked over at the girl and blushed nervously. The girl came close and brought her face close to his, cupping his chin, the victim trembling with fear and nervousness and he slowly stepped back. He was not used to this. No way. Xanther couldn't say anything. He was too...what's the word?
"What's wrong?" the girl asked. "Don't want to be 'friend's'?" Every step she took closer to him, he would take one step back. Quickly, he shook his head no to the teen and he picked up his shoes and started running away, away from the water, away from the ocean, away from the girl. He suddenly taste blood in his mouth. He hadn't noticed how hard he was biting down on his bottom lip. Xanther licked off the blood as he ran, not stopping until he reached a building and hid behind it.
Xanther stood and leaned against the building, taking in a deep breath. But when he turned around, the same girl was there. Xanther gasped. She must be a ghost! he thought. "Hey, have any problems? Why'd you run away? I was just being...me," the girl said as she came closer to Xanther and he slowly stepped away, eyes widened in fear. He felt so nervous and unsure and so freaked out by this girl. Who was she? Why was she following him? Did she like him? Xanther's last question made him shake his head to get his unpleasant thoughts away. He decided to run again. He had to get away. She wouldn't always manage to catch up with him all the time, would she?
On the other side of the building, far from the building, was Peyton, who sat on the sand, looking out into the vast beautiful ocean. She smiled, for once she wasnt getting into any drama or trouble.. which was rare for Peyton.. concidering she was a Rebel. Peyton smiled to herself, while running her hand through her dark chocolate brown hair, with the tips dyed a caramel brown color. She took a breath of the ocean air. It was amazing, and a perfect day to. Peyton decided to take a walk. She got up and brushed the sand off her pants. She began to walk down the shore, the salty waves crashing onto her feet and ankles. Peyton smiled, and hummed a nice tune to herself. She hadn't been this happy and peaceful since.. like, 5th grade.
But Peyton's small, entertaining moments at the beach would end as we come back to the girl, The girl leaned in and asked in a sweet voice. "What's your name?"
Xanther bit his lip and stuttered," X-Xanther." He slowly backed away, but this time, he fell back. "Ah!" he gasped, after plopping down. "Oh, poor Xanther!" The girl said, coming towards him quickly. Xanther's eyes widened and he quickly stood up and dashed away, heading back towards the water, towards this one person who would change Xanther life in the rest of this story, straight towards...Peyton...
Chapter One
The Beginning
Peyton saw something move towards her in her perphial vison. She turned her head to see a guy running towards her. Greeaaaat,she thought to herself. Peyton took one giant step to the right, moving out of his running path. She sighed and wondered why he was so freaked out. It was like he had just seen a ghost.
But Xanther not bother simply passing Peyton. He dashed towards her. "Wait!" a voice called from behind. "I'm not finished yet!" Xanther skidded to a halt and came behind Peyton, putting his hands on her shoulders and look from one side to the next. "Help me!" he squeaked. "She's evil!" He slowly sat down and leaned against Peyton's legs, hoping he was out of sight from the girl, but of course, she has been seeing all of this, so obviously, he hadn't.
At this point Peyton was a little creeped out by this. Some random guy had just came up to her and started talking about some evil girl. Peyton let out a sigh. And here we go again...At least i got to have some peace for a little while, she thought. "Um.. okay, hold up a minute. 1. Who are you? 2. Who is this evil girl? and 3, why are you hiding from her?" she asked Xanther, more of a stranger to her.
Xanther remained leaning against Peyton's legs, as if he were to make them bend and make her fall, althought he wasnt. He wrapped his arms around him, looked left and right then answered with," She came out of nowhere and tries to kiss me or something! She keeps sweet talking to me, leaning in, grr, all that love stuff! Yuck! She keeps following me around and driving me nuts! I don't know her at all!" Xanther looked back and saw the girl only a few yards away, coming towards Peyton. "Yikes! She's coming! Quicky, hide me!" Xanther squeaked, hugging Peyton's left leg, biting down on his lip as he closed his eyes.
Peyton looked back at him. He looked terrified as he looked around while hugging her legs. "Okay, still doesn't tell me who you are... but what the hell! I'll help you anyway," she said, shrugging... I mean Peyton did have a soft side sometimes. And if a random guy came up out of nowhere and tried to kiss her...she'd be a bit freaked herself. Peyton crossed her arms and glared at the girl coming towards her. She had a plan on how to get this girl to go away.
The girl who's name was Joseline was coming towards Peyton. "Awww! Sweet honey bun! What are you doing embarrassing someone? Come out sweetie pie!"
Xanther shivered as Joseline called him lovely names. He felt a bit disgusted by them. He squeaked and hugged Peyton's leg tighter, his nails digging Into her pants very hardly. Peyton winced and kicked him slightly when his hands dug into her skin. "Please help Mr. Ciel Phantom Hive here!" he whispered frightenedly as he looked up at Peyton.
She sighed knowing what she had to do...time to do her best acting. Peyton looked at the girl "Honey Bun? Sweet Pie? Excuse me but why are you calling my.." Peyton paused choking on the next words "Boyfriend, these nicknames?" she said throwing her hands on her hips. He owes me big time! she told herself mentally.
Xanther's eyes widened as he heard Peyton call him her boyfriend. What?! She was saying that in order to get a crazy girl away from him?! Xanther's heart beat quickened. He loosened his grip as he dug his nails in Peyton's leg. He was still hugging it but bit his lip harder. He didn't notice the blood dripping down his bottom lip, not bothering to lick it off since he hadn't noticed it.
"You're, you're boyfriend?" Joseline said, glaring at Xanther as he looked over at her. She frowned at him. Xanther squeaked and hid behind Peyton again.
Peyton closed her eyes and bit her lip for a second, to keep from gaging. "Mmmhm, yup.. this guy.. right here is uh, my boyfriend." she said, not so convincingly. "So, um, I'd appreciate it if you stopped bothering him and trying to make kissy faces with him behind my back," she said to the girl. Peyton re-crossed her arms over her chest, hoping that this girl would believe that they were..."together."
Joseline glared at Xanther then looked at them both for a second. After a while, she said," Fine. I'll find my own boyfriend and by the way, your boyfriend in HOT." Xanther gulped as Joseline said that and it sent a shiver down his spine. Xanther watched as Joseline left. After she was many yards away, Xanther gave away a long, loud, and deep sigh. "Yes!" he cheered in a whispery voice. "Good job Xan!" He boogied around a bit as he still say behind Peyton, leaning on her legs.
Peyton let out a huge sigh of relief that she believed it.. glad she didnt have to prove it with a hug.. or worse. a kiss. But it was all good and everyone was happy. Well everyone except Peyton. Peyton turned around, making him fall back now that her legs moved "Okay. There.. you happy? You owe me Big time Mister.." she said crossing her arms.
"Oof!" Xanther said as he fell back. Xanther frowned and looked at Peyton curiously. He slowly stood and came face to face with Peyton. "Why would a girl like you tell another that I'm your boyfriend?" he asked, glaring at her nervously. "I mean,...thank you." He looked down at the ground in embarrassment. His eyes were glued to the ground and he bit his lip again, two drops of blood he hadn't felt of noticed slowly sliding down his chin. It was a blood red color, the color of a certain soul out there in the world.
Peyton scoffed at his earlier comment. "You know what, fine. Next time I'll let that freak stalk you and try to kiss you all the time," she said, her voice dripping in annoyance. She sighed and looked to her right, seeing a guy who had appeared to be watching them the whole time. She shook her head and focused her attention back to the guy, who she had yet to learn his name. She noticed two red liquid drops on his chin. "Uh you have a little.." she paused "Blood..? on your chin." she said pointing to his now blood red chin.
Xanther stared at Peyton for a moment then asked," Blood? On my chin?" He slowly slid his finger across his chin, getting one drop, the other still there. He looked at his finger and gasped. "oh! God, it happened again!" Xanther smeared his finger all over his jeans. He bit his lip and that when he taste more blood coming from his bottom lip. He lived his lip and felt lots of little scars on it.
Peyton looked at him, a little creeped and slightly disgusted. "What did you mean, "It happened again?" she said confused "Is that a regular thing?" she asked him, as he wiped the blood on his jeans. Peyton watched as his lip area continued to bleed. "Uh..." she said blankly. "Gross.." she whispered to herself. Peyton sighed and searched for something to help him with in her purse. "Here." she said giving him a napkin. "Oh one more thing." she said searching through her purse again "Here." she repeated, this time throwing breath mints and gum at him. "That way you dont taste/ smell the blood." she said.Peyton was tired from all this helping she was doing today.
"Uh..." Xanther looked at it all in his hands and handed back the gum. "You can keep the gum. I don't chew gum. The reason I said it happened again is because when ever I get really embarrassed or nervous, I bite down on my lip too hard and... Well, this happens. It rarely happens sometimes I don't like it when it does." Xanther looked down at the ground after Peyton gave some disgusted looks. "I'm sorry." He gently wiped his chin little bit.
Peyton took back the gum as he handed it to her and she stuffed it back in her bag. "Ah, I see..." Peyton said with a nod of her head. "Oh, and dont be sorry.. it doesn't bother me like it would bother the other girls. I'm not like them... all prissy and girly." Peyton shuddered slightly. "I dont worry about my make up all the time. I worry more about how I'm gonna get bailed out a jail." She laughed slightly. "So, yeah, its fine --" Peyton cut off her sentence, "Wait, whats your name?" she asked him.
"Oh, my name? Well, you might think it's a stupid name but... My name is Xanther Celestri. Y-You may call me Ciel or..Xan..." Xanther looked away with an embarrassed look. But then he suddenly looked up at Peyton's eyes, his head full of wonder as she looked at them. He seemed to star at them for a few seconds before looking away, shaking his head. "Sorry, I was just, I..."
Peyton laughed at him. Something about him was somewhat amusing to her. Was it the way he blushed? Or how shy he was? She couldn't point it out. "Xanther...hm, not bad of a name," she said with a smile. "I like it." Peyton looked out at the ocean for a moment, watching the white caps roll to shore. She turned her attention back to Xanther, she watched as he continued to bite his lip. "Oh dear, you gotta stop doing that," she said, putting a smirk on her face as Xanther bit his lip again.
Xanther looked up at her and then down at his lips. "Oh, yeah," he muttered as he stopped biting down his lip. "I...I can get very nervous or shy at times. Maybe even embarrassed." Xanther looked at her for a moment. He decided to ask her a question, a stupid-ish question that she would possibly think was stupidely stupid in a stupid way. But Xanther shook his head and wth his eyes glued to the ground, he asked. "Hey, um, I don't mean to be rude...or anything, but...are you....taken?" Peyton cleared her throat and turned her gaze to a distant building. "Uh...no...I'm.. I'm not in a relationship at the moment," she said kind of awkwardly. She looked back at him, seeing that he had a blush on his face. "Why do you ask?" she asked him.
"Oh, just to know...." Xanther muttered slilently, slowly taking a step back. "I...I'm sorry. I just...." His cheeks were now only a bright pink but he simply tried to smile and said,"Well, are you needing to go anywhere? I don't but just in case you've got a job or chores or somewhere special or..." He stopped and looked up at Peyton, hoping she wouldnt think he was crazy, althought was most of a chance that she would think so. But he had remembered that day that his mother said it was time for him to find a relationshipw ith someone who was somehow...special to him and Xanther was now close to finding one.
Peyton raised an eyebrow at him and smiled "Ah okay then. Well, I don't need to go anywhere or do anything. And I definately don't have someone special. And about a job, pfft please. Like I could actually keep a job." Peyton muttered with a smirk. "Anyways...Why? Do have something in mind? Earlier I was planning to make this just a day to myself and some time for peace and quiet...but those plans have been cancelled and now your here Xanther.. So, I guess I could just hang out with you if that's cool." Peyton said with a slight shrugged. She laughed at him again. Ah how cute, she thought to herself.
Xanther smiled at Peyton. "We can hang out for a bit if that's fine with you. I mean, you said it's fine for now, right?" Xanther kept his eyes on Peyton's, feeling something inside that he's never felt before? But what? Was it "like?" Regret? What was the word? He didn't know and couldn't figure it out. But he knew it was close to like...Peyton smiled "Alright! Well, c'mon, we can take a walk down the beach and stuff. Maybe take a swim." Xanther gave a small squeak as she grabbed his wrist and lead hiim towards the water. Once she got close to the shore, she let go of his wrist and looked back at Xanther.. She smiled feeling the waves hitting against her ankles, and the sand squishing beneath her toes. "Soooo..." she said quietly, rocking back and forth on her heels slightly.
Xanther stood five feet away, staring at the water as it came farther and closer, farther and closer. He glared at the water them looked up at Peyton. Hopefully, she wouldnt think he was much afraid of water. He stood away from it and gave Peyton a strange look, his arms wrapping around him. "Well are you coming?" she asked. Peyton walked towards him and smirked "What.. you afraid of the water?..."Peyton sighed as she clasped her hands together and begged him to coming into the water "Pleeeaaassseee come into the water! Its not gonna hurt you." she took a couple more steps towards him "I got you.." she said it a quiet voice.. she grabbed both of his wrists and pulled him towards the water with a smile.
Peyton was stronger than him, which was probably wierd because he was a boy, but sometimes girls can be stronger than boys right? And he wasn't that much of a guy. Xanther tried to pull away but all he did was slide more towards the water. He gave out a squeak and tried to run away again, frantic to get as far away as possible from the water from reaching him.
Peyton sighed. "Xanther..." she said sadly with her "puppy dog face". She let go of his arms, walking behind him. "Alright boy, get in the freacking water!" she exclaimed, now pushing him towards the water with all her might. She felt kinda bad because she was pushing him into doing something he didnt want to do. But eh, Peyton wasn't always the nice girl. As she was pushing her, her feet made foot prints in the sand. Every step taking them closer to the salty ocean.
Xanther gasped as he was being pushed towards the water. On the second push, he tripped frontwards and landed face first into the water, his jeans and shirt getting soaked. His hands didn't have time to reach out and hold himself up. He fell face first, straight into the water. The water splashed, only few drops landing on Peyton. The waves pushed Xanther back but Xanther frantically pushed himself up, gasping for air. He looked down at himself, a worried look on his face. He looked up at Peyton but looked back down at himself again, weakly pushing himself up this time.
Oh sh*t! Peyton thought frantically. She threw her bag onto the sand and quickly ran into the water to help him. She reached Xanther and started to help pull him up. Which was a struggle, not gonna lie. He was a guy and already weighed more, plus his wet clothes were weighing him down even more. "Oh Xanther! I-im.. so so s-sorry!.." Peyton said stumbling on her words.
Xanther gasped for breath as Peyton pulled him away and out of the water. He started kicking his legs and pushing himself away. As he landed in the sand, his heart was pounding wildly. His arms were pushing him away, far from the water frantically, Xanther breathing hard wildly. He finally was about seven yards away from the water. Xanther pulled his knees up, hugging them tightly. Xanther dug his face into his knees, his hair covering his forehead and whole face. Xanther was still breathing loudly, his breathing almost sounding as if he were crying...even though he wasn't...
Peyton 'washed up' on shore as well.. She stood up and looked at Xanther. Peyton took a moment to close her eyes and thought, What the hell did I do to this kid?...with a sigh. She slowly made her way over to Xanther, bending down next to him. Peyton cleared her throat and began to speak."I can't tell you how sorry I am.." she said quietly. Guilt settling in... She wrapped her arms around him in a hug without thinking. "Im sorry."
Xanther flinched as Peyton hugged her. He wasnt very touchy. He pulled away from her as he faced away, his back towards Peyton. Xanther gave a long gasp since he was really crying. Crying. He has done it before but he did it rarely. Scared of water? He'd have to explain that to you in order to know. Xanther gave a loud cry then turned back to silence...
Peyton, you fail at every aspect of life, she told herself mentally. She closed her eyes and bit her lip when he heard him cry. I just made some guy I barely know cry. greeaaaattt. Peyton sighed. Why was he so freaked out of water anyway? She wanted to ask but she didn't want to make him feel umcomfrotable and any worse than he did now. She decided that it was best to leave him alone. I mean she already caused him enough damage. She shakily stood up and slowly started to walk away, wanting to punch herself in the gut.
Xanther took a deep breath before falling into silence again. He stood wuiet and listened as he heard footsteps walking away. He knew that Peyton was walking away, probably heartbroken at what she had done. It wasnt her fault, Xanther thought to himself. He remained quiet but then cried," Wait. Please." His voice was shaky, a hint of sadness in it, but he ignored it and repeated," Please, Wait." His last words were very raspy and whispery.Peyton stopped, her heart shattered when she heard his raspy voice. She slowly turned around to see Xanther.. his face looked drained of color and his were cheeks stained with tears. It was hard for Peyton to look at him knowing she had done that to him. She slowly walked back to Xanther. "Im sorry.. so so sorry. I shouldnt have pushed you in. Gah, I'm an idiot." peyton said, her voice drained with guilt and sadness.
"No," Xanther gasped in a raspy voice, trying to keep his head low. "I...I should have told you...I don't like water sometimes..." he said, his voice also wobbling. He remained still on the ground, shaking very violently on the ground. He was like a small fragile thing just sitting their, alone, and cold. The water was freezing and now he was shaking with fear and was nearly freezing to death. It was almost as if he was going to be that small thing, that little thing being trapped into an ice cube. Xanther felt so alone, even though Peyton was right in front of him.
She sighed looking at him, seeing that he was freezing. "Come here." She said grabbing his arm and pulling him upward. "Before you say anything else, we need to get you somewhere you won't freeze to death." Peyton grabbed her bag. "Alright, I'm taking you to my apartment." she muttered, "Oh and here."She threw him her not soaked sweatshirt. "It may be snug but it will keep you warm."
As he heard Peyton say that she was taking him to her apartment, Xanther freaked out and opened his mouth to say something while she was looking in her bag. But when he tried to say something, all that came out was air. Air. His throat felt fry and he fel so helpless. He tried again but nothing came out. He caught the object that came flying towards him and stared at her sweater. He gave an unsure look but did nothing with it exept keep it in his arms. He stared at Peyton as she looked through her bag. Xanther looked at her nervously, his face turning a bright pink.
Peyton quickly searched through her bag and grabbed her car keys. She looked over at Xanther and bit her lip to keep from telling him how heart broken she was... and secretly she was holding back some tears.. This whole situation made Peyton feel terrible. "O-okay.. um well lets go." she said, and instinctivly grabbed his hand tightly. She didnt want to let go of his hand. it was so cold and shaky, but Peyton didnt care. She continued to look forward as she began to head out to the parking lot to her car. Xanther tried to her that he couldn't go but his voice was somehow broken and he couldn't get a word out. He was shivering very badly as Peyton held on to his hand and began to walk him towards her car. Xanther looked around, keeping his head low from other people or else he's embarrass himself by giving off his red face, showing that a guy like him was crying.
Peyton kept a tight grip on their interlocking fingers. She contiued to walk until she finally saw here car come into view. She pushed a button on her keys to unlock the door."Here.."she said opening the passenger door for him. Peyton walked around the hood to the drivers side. She open the door and hopped in, pushing her keys into the 'lock..?' starting the car up. "And we are off to Casa De La Peyton," she muttered quietly.
Xanther fell into the seat squarely. "Oof!" he grunted as he plopped in. As the door closed, Xanther looked around in the car. It seemed so alone so far and yet now gong to start as if it were brand new. He looked up at Peyton as she got in and muttered something in another language. Spanish? French? Italian? He knew all three but mostly French. He looked at Peyton carefully before putting the shirt on the seat and sitting on it so he wouldn't get the car seat wet. He knew it would probably be disrespectful. At least, to some people it was.
Peyton grabbed her seatbelt, putting it across her body and clicking it in the lock. She looked over at Xanther to make sure he was managing. She then carefully turned up the heat, trying to warm up the car..making sure that Xanther wouldnt freeze to death. Peyton let her hand fall as she sighed..Im an idiot.... Grabbing the control stick, she shifted it to reverse and started to slowly pull out of the parking space with precision. Once peyton was out she then shifted it to drive and headed to her apartment. Every now and so often she would glance over at Xanther to make sure he was still doing ok. Peyton opened her mouth to say something.. but there was nothing to be said. She re-closed her mouth and looked back on the road.
Chapter Two
Common Sense
Xanther remained sitting and his eyes widened as the car began to move. He's been in a car of course and he was afraid of cars is one thing, but he was surprised that Peyton was actually going to take him to her apartment. Xanther looked down sadly and felt like saying that he didn't need a ride or help and that his cautious little mother could care for him but his voice wouldnt work, his throat hurt a lot and it was very dry, and plus, he didn't want to hurt Peyton's feelings. Xanther tried to clear his throat but he rubbed his throat as a great flash of pain went through it and down to his chest. A pitiful whine came from Xan's throat making him glance up at Peyton then down at himself with shame.
Peyton stopped at a stop light and looked over at him. She had winced as he let out what seemed to be a painful croak. His voice seemed dry and achy. Peyton took a cup of water from her cup holder and handed it to him. "Here.." she said handing him the cup. "Um when we get to my apartment.. which is just down the road.. we can get some medicine in you and then you can rest. And after that we can get you a ride home i guess." She watched as the red light turned green and she pushed the gas. Peyton turned left and in view came her apartment complex. Peyton turned into a parking space and parked the car. She grabbed her keys and looked back at Xanther. "So."
Xanther stared at her nervously, looking down. He slowly scooted towards the door and pushed himself oout, dragging the towel in his hand, which was completely soaked. Xanther handed her the shirt after coming out, looking down at the ground. Peyton rolled her eyes and sighed. She was trying her best to help, but it wasnt working very well. Peyton opened her door and got out. Locking her car. "Okay so follow me." Peyton said walking into the building. She walked up the stairs to the second level and walked to door '84'. She jammed her keys into the lock and opened the door to the apartment. "Okay here we are." she said opening the door for Xanther.
Xanther peeked into the room, looking around cautiously. He looked at Peyton then back into the room. He took a step back and gave Peyton an unsure look.
Peyton raised and eyebrow at him. "Its fine, go ahead." she said watching him walk into the room. She smiled and followed in after him, setting her keys and bag on the side table. "Okay um, i guess you can sit or lay or whatever on the couch. I'll get you some medicine." She said walking over to the medicine cabinet.
Xanther looked around carefully, wondering what was inside. He stepped in and looked around carefully. It was small but good enough for one and a bit of company. He slowly looked over he shelves, looking at her sculptures and small paintings by different artists. Xanther sat down on a wooden chair, not daring to sit on the couch.Peyton rummaged throught the medicine cabinet searching for something to help him. She grabbed 2 Tylenol and a cup of water. She gave them to him,"Okay here you go." But Xanther simply glared at the water and medicine and looked away, not wanting to take it.
Peyton sighed and slammed her hands onto her head. "Xanther you're being so difficult." she muttered quietly, flopping herself onto the couch. It had been one hell of a day for Peyton and right now Xanther wasnt making anything easier for her. "Maybe we should just take you home now.." she said slightly annoyed.
Xanther quickly shook his head no and stood up, walking through the hall without permission just as an "excuse" to why he couldnt go home. Peyton got up and followed after him, relizing he probably couldnt go home...or didnt want to. Either way, it was clear he wasnt leaving just yet. "Okay." she said grabbing his shoulder stopping him. "Um, can you say anything? Anything at all. Like tell me how you feel." she asked, checking to see just how bad he was feeling. "Or if not on a scale of 1 to 10 how bad do you feel. 1 being the worst, 10 being Peachy keen. Hold up your fingers and tell me." Peyton said, feeling terrible that she had done all this to him.
Xanther looked at Peyton strangely before holding up five fingers, which was only one hand. He smirked at Peyton and pulled away from her, walking over to a painting hanging on the wall.
Peyton looked out the window "Five, eh not to good, but not on your death bed." she said shrugging with a smile. She walked over and followed him "Um what are you doing?" she asked. Looking around her own apartment Peyton eyed the piano in the corner of a room, wishing to play because she was terrible bored since the guy next to her couldn't speak. But then again she didn't like playing in front of people...Peyton turned her gaze back to Xanther. "En attente d'une réponse," she said, even though she knew he couldn't speak and probably didn't know what that meant.
But still, Xanther did understand Peyton. Peyton had said "En attente d'une réponse", which meant "waiting for a response and Xanther answered in a strange way but somehow understandable to him in the way he was thinking.
Xanther studied the painting carefully, running his finger on the edges of the paint that was sicking out slightly. Xanther smiled and still looking at the painting, in response to Peyton's french words, he said," j'essaie." With a small smile, he continued looking around. That's when he saw the piano and slowly walked into the room...
Peyton looked confused at him I try?... she thought to herself, ranclstaing his words in her head. She shrugged "Okay then, apparently you know french." She said as he started to walk towards... the piano?! "Woah, woah, woah...no." she said stepping in front of him, blocking him off from the piano "No." she said one last time. "You cannot go in there, lets just go back." she said moving him backwards.
Xanther gave Peyton a strange look but then a mischievious smile. So, let us give this a small "summary. Both Peyton and Xanther are in Peytin's apartment but Xanther is a very timid and sometimes cautious guy. But does that mean that he can't be an devilish little boy? Very quickly, Xanther slipped around Peyton and plopped himself on the piano's chair. He smiled at her, giving a devilish but proud smile. There you go, giving his sly self. He studied the keyboared carefully and put his fingers on specific keys, with the feeling of playing but he was afraid that Peyton would blow his head off for entering without having Peyton's permission.
It all happened so fast, the way he moved past her so fast. She spun around and saw him sitting at the piano bench. She threw one hand over her mouth and gasped. She slowly moved her hand away from her mouth and began to speak "Please please pleasseeeee be careful. That piano belonged to my father...who, um...well he's not...here," she said, her face showed pain at remembrance of her father.
Xanther gave Peyton a wierd look but ignored what she said and placed his fingers on the board again. He looked up at Peyton as if asking if he could play in "sign lauguage", seeming more like "facial language." He looked down at the keys again then up at Peyton, giving her a hopeful and a may-I-PLEASE play look.
Peyton sighed and thought about it for a moment. "Fine..." she said walking over to Xanther and sitting next to him. "You can play." Peyton muttered quietly, watching him as he placed his hands on the keys. "But your lucky mister...I very rarely let any one play," she said with a small smile.
Xanther gave a very cheerful smile and took a deep breath before playing the keys to make sure they were tuned correctly. As he played one by one to check, he thought of a song to play. He knew just the right one. After checking the key tunes, he slowly placed his fingers on the board and took a deep breath before playing a small solo. His fingers went along the board, closing his eyes as he tried to play the song right, enjoying the peaceful but cheerful notes and sound in the song.
Peyton watched his fingers move across the keys. She smiled and closed her eyes listening to him play. She wasnt gonna lie, it was beautiful...and he was freaking talented. She would have never exspected him to play so darn good. Peyton continued to listen to him play.
Was nearly done with the song and he opened his eyes, looking down at the keyboard. The last notes were quiet as he tapped the keys gently. Xanther smiled as he slid his fingers of the keyboard, his hands landing gently on his wet pants. He looked down at himself, his cheeks turning a bright pink. He had just noticed that he played in front of someone and somehow he didnt notice that he has before. Usually, he'd become very nervous playing in front of others that he didn't know very much.
Peyton smiled over at Xanther "D*mn.. you're good." she said laughing slightly. "In all serious though.. you are very talented." Peyton paused and looked down at the computer. "So if you dont mind me asking.. Where did you learn to play?" she asked "Wait..,you cant speak...nevermind." Peyton said looking at the ground embarressingly.
But Xanther didn't mind and simply answered her question without hesitation. Xanther opened his mouth to speak and luckily, he was able to whisper loud enough for Peyton to hear him. "My father," he whispered. "My father played piano and taught me and my mother played violin. Ive got a violin at home, too. I play everyday but I mostly like my two Austrailian Shepards named Damien and Demious. We always do...they call it 'Canine Freestyle.'" Peyton smiled and laughed slightly "Nice, and I'll have to hear all of you play sometime.." Peyton said. "And it appears we have something in common. My father taught me how to play to...And uh, yeah, I remember the first time i played a 'piano'... granted it was a toddler piano that just had a bunch of buttons you pushed that sounded like a piano, so not a real one. But still. I continue playing and my good playing may be as good as yours some day."
Xanther smiled and nodded. "Interesting," he whispered. "I also have two rats named Pepsi and J.R (Just Rat). They are both hooded rats." Xanther gave a big grin and looked down at the piano again. "May I...keep playing?" His fingers accidently pushed one note. His fingers were shaking with excitement all over, wanting to play more. His head seemed like it was teeling Xanther to impress Peyton but Xanther for some reason wouldn't notice somehow. Peyton thought about it for a moment and then shrugged "i dont see why not.." she said smiling. Actually she really wanted him to play more. Peyton thought she could learn from him and she really enjoyed listening to him play. Plus he looked to be super excited about it so...
Xanther smiled with glee then looked up at the cieling, thinking of what song he should play next. He knew about three but didnt know which one to play. He decided to play all of them. And so, he did. First he played a well-known song he knew, then the second a not-very-known song, then a song he was still to practice.
Peyton watched his hands carefully, taking in some pointers for the future. She smiled as she listen to him play, song after song. She was truely amazed at how easy he made playing the piano look. The way his fingers delicately moved was truely mind blowing to Peyton.. He would have to teach her that some time.
Xanther quickly fisnished the last song keeping his eyes closed for a moment before taking a deep breath. He decided to play something special for Peyton, maybe as a thank you for letting him use something others hardly ever used from her. "This," Xanther whispered," is for you...." He placed his fingers on two keys then began to play the most peaceful but also cheerful song he could think of...
Chapter Three
Miserable Memories
That whole time, since Xanther started playing his last song, Peyton has felt some sort of feeling in her when he dedicated the song he was playing to her...and it kinda made her heart melt...Which was rare for Peyton. She never really did have any "warm or fuzzy feelings". But some how Xanther brought those feelings to her. Peyton blushed slightly and watched him play. The song brought some feelings to Pwyton and the song was truely peaceful, calm, some sort of...love song?
Xanther smiled as he played along, the soft but cheerful, also sad notes floating in the air, repeating notes in his head. He looked over at Peyton as she blushed. Xanther smiled and finished up the song. His cheeks turning a bright pink. At this moment, he was really nervous and hi arms were trembling, hands anf fingers twitching.
Peyton, however, smiled as he finnished. "Thanks.. that was beautiful." She looked up at him, seeing that he had a blush as well...Peyton quickly and some what awkwardly looked back down at the black and white keys.
Xanther looked up at Peyton with a bright smile. Then he asked," Would you...like to...play?" Xanther gave her a hopeful smile, hoping that she was interested in playing to him. Since he had done so without noticing since he was too excited. He gave a weak smile, giving her a hopeful look.
Peyton stood up and rubbed her neck. "Oh I-I dont know..." she said. Truth is Peyton hadnt played since her dad had died a couple of months ago...she always eyed the piano wanting to play.. But every time she did she would end up crying, thinking about her father and how they use to play together.
"Please?" Xanther begged in a whispery voice. He gave a hopeful smile again, clasping his hands together. He looked down at the keyboard and thought about how he had played for her. Was there something in him that was telling him something about him and Peyton? Did he have...a crush on her? Was he...in love with her?
Peyton sighed and looked at him beg..just like she had begged for him to go in the water... She shook the "water incident" memory from her head. "Okay, fine. But only for you.." she said quietly sitting back down and grabbing a hair tie from her wrist, putting her hair into a ponytail. She closed her eyes and arranging her hands on the keys.Getting a feel for it, remembering the fingering. She took a deep breath and began to play like this.
Xather watched as Peyton started playing, her fingers fiddling along the piano, several fingers pushing down at once for a nice, strong feeling. Xanther closed his eyes and imagined himself with his little sister. Yes, his little, dead, five year old sister. His sister had died only 8 months ago but Xanther tried to forget it. As he thought of it, he shook his head. He opened his eyes and smiled at Peyton, showing he wasnt thinking wrong about her song. He smiled thoughtfully as well. That's when he heard her start to sing. Xanther heart felt like melting as he heard her voice follow along.
Peyton tried to hold her tears back as best as she could, because Peyton hated crying exspecially in front of people. But it was no use, the memories of her father pushed her so much she began to cry. Almost at the ending of the song Peyton stopped because she was crying so much. "I'm... sorry.." she managed to say between tears."I-I cant.." And with that she hopped up and ran to her room.
Xanther had a worried look on his face as she dashed to her room. Xanther quickly stood and pushed the chair away, following after her. He slowly walked down the hall, peeking into her room.
Peyton ran and sat in the far corner of her room. She brought her knees to her chest in a "hugging" position. Peyton put her head down and closed her eyes, taking deep shaky breaths.. trying to control her breathing. She wiped the tears off her face and sighed.. sniffling and crying like a fool. She felt so weak and,innocent, and vulnerabe. And she hated it.
Xanther had a frown on his face as he watched Peyton cry innocently in a corner of her room. He felt so downhearted. He didnt like to watch people cry and when he did, he felt like crying too. He would feel a deep cut in his heart, as if he had something he really missed too, even though he really did. His sister. Xanther didnt want to disturb her but still came in. He stuck his arm out to place on his shoulder but pulled his arm back, hesitantly, thinking he would make her even more upset. He tried again, this time his hand landing softly on her shoulders. He sat down beside her and whispered,"It's okay. Don't cry. Please don't cry...." Xanther rubbed his hand on her back and did something he hasn't done in five years. He leane din and hugged Peyton tightly, hoping that she would stop crying.
Xanther for only a couple of hours,she knew he wasnt a very 'touchy-touchy' person. So when he hugged her her heart had stopped. Slowly, a smile came across her face and she shifted into a position to hug him back. Xanther was shocked as Peyton positioned herself to hug Xanther back. After she hugged him, Xanther brought his arms up, looking down at Peyton hysterically. "I will be by your side until you remain non-hysterical," he whispered, a small smile on his face. He hugged her tightly, putting his chin on her head.
Peyton smiled slightly back and nodded, burring her face in his chest.His already soaked shirt, getting re-soaked with Peytons tears. She bit her bottom lip to stop herself from crying more. Peyton calmly took deep, her tears slowly going away. "Thanks Xanther...it means the world to me," she said very quietly.
Xanther smiled at Peyton but said nothing. He didn't want to loose his voice next. He already was sick and he already had a dry, and raspy voice. Why have more bad things that incapacitate you? Xanther loosened his hug and slowly pulled away, giving a nervous look at Peyton. "That was my very first hug since five years ago by my sister," Xanther whispered silently, looking away.
Peyton also moved back slightly, while wiping some tears that were still on her face. She sighed while watching him. His body language said something was bothering him, but Peyton couldnt tell what.Peyton looked at him with blood-shot, stained with tears eyes. 'You-your sister?...Where is she now?" she asked him, not really thinking before speaking.
Xanther felt like crying after her question but he couldn't cry now, not in front of Peyton. Tears gathered in his eyes, making his vision blurry. Xanther's arms trembled, becoming weak and slowly slipping off of Peyton...
Peyton immediatly wanted to take back what she had just said. Something told her that his sister was probably in the same place as her Dad. "Oh no.." she wispered quietly "Xanther I-I...I didnt know." she said pulling him close back into another hug. She saw the tears in his eyes, "Xanther its okay to cry you know.. I dont care. Like I said before, I'm not like the other girls...you can let it out..." she said quietly craddling Xanther in her arms.
And so Xanther did.
Xanther mumbled quietly, his eyes becoming very watery. He didn't want to let it out even though Peyton didn't mind but the tears started a river down his cheeks, flowing down as he he brought his head down, gasping for air and finally crying. He was covering his face with his hands, gasping with breath and taking deep breaths many times, trying to stop himself but he couldn't, he just couldn't. His eyes turned red and thw tears kept flooding down, making his cheeks and hands all wet. Xanther felt so lonely and bad. He has never cried so much except of when his sister died. This was the only time he had cried that mch besides the time he cried for his sister. He felt so miserable, so weak, that small thing again lock in a grey world, in the middle of no where...
Peyton frowned seeing him like this. "Shhh, Shh, its okay. Peytons gotcha.." she said in a motherly tone of voice. Lately Peyton had felt different with Xanther, Like she could be herself and... she actually kind of L-like him? Peyton shook her head, now was not the time to be thinking about her mushy feelings.Peyton turned her attention back to Xanther. She bit her lips to keep from re-crying. Seeing him cry made Peyton want to cry more. But she had to stay strong for Xanther. She closed her eyes and held Xanther close.
Xanther cried a little more, sniffing and letting Peyton hug him somehow. He had his face still covered but it didn't matter. Peyton had seen him already. He sniffed again, another gasp of air before he fell into complete silence...
After a long moment of silence, Peyton pulled away slightly, and looked at him."Are you okay Xanther.." she asked quietly, not wanting to make him feel any worse or uncomfortable. She moved her hand up to his cheek and wiped some of his tears away, ever so gently. Xanther said nothing to Peyton except looked away after she slid a tear away from his cheek. He looked down at the ground, staring about it and thinking very carefully, more tears sliding down his cheek. he simply stared at the floor and started rocking back and forth, back and forth, as if something were controlling him.
Peyton watched Xanther rock back and forth, "Uh Xanther, y-you okay?.." she repeated herself. She watched him carefully, as more tears slid down his cheeks and how he stared blankly at the floor. "X-xanther, please answer me.." she said worried now.
But no answer came from the young teen. Was something truly control.ling him? Or was it he who was trying to act strange himself? No, like you had read before, he had said he had "Skitsafraenia," also know as "Skitzoid", maybe even having Skitzoid personality. But again, we'll see what he has now...
Xanther continued rocking back and forth, soon to show that his mind was ready to take over. hugging his legs tightly, the tears rushing down. Such disease could lead to strange words, and those strange words cam eout of Xanther's mouth. ""Tikki's going lazy, the daisies going crazy, let the moon get Maisy for I Will fall and perish...." Xanther repeated these words quietly, over and over again, for it ricocheted through his head, eyes wide open, staring at the ground blankly. A smile grew on his face, but a very evilish-looking one. He kept rocking back and forth, not paying any attention at Peyton.
Peyton kept a close watch on him while she slowly stood up and backed away from Xanther. She kept replaying what Xanther was singing in her mind, trying to figure out what it meant. Tikki's going lazy, the daisies going crazy, let the moon get Maisy for I Will fall and perish...What the hell does this even mean?! she thought to herself. Peyton saw how a devilish looking smile grew on his face. This was going no where good. She took 3 steps away from him slowly and carefully. How could this guy who had been so strong just a minuete ago, then have a 'creepy' breakdown?
That's when Xanther stopped and was silent, staring straight forward blankly. Then he slowly began to rock again, saying something different," Let the mouse go crazy, da da, nu nu, life is full of mazes. Let the ground go shaken, is house in now on fire, stab her, stab her, and then your dead..."
At this point, Peyton was getting very scared and concerned. Something about this didnt seem right. Exspecially what he was saying. "St-stab her?.." she said quietly. Okay she was done. After that she ran out of the room grabbing her keys and running out of the apartment. She felt so.. frightened when she was with Xanther back there. Peyton just couldnt take it. She wanted to punch herself in the gut for leaving him back there but something told her to go. Just keep running, she thought sprinting down the hall.
Xanther arms started twitching as he heard thunping down the hall, which was Peyton running. "Run, run with your heart, for Mary and I seek you, forever with love..." Xanther kept singing," Guns and oses, hate the posies, let them float around you, let the stars all guide you, let them guide you to me, for you shall reach your death..." At this time, Xanther was still, for he stopped rocking and something flashed in his eyes. Instead of his left eye navy blue, it was green now, and instead of the right eye green, it turned a bright "orange", mainly a light brown, almost seeming like a blood red. Xanther gave out a sudden evil laugh.
Peyton sprinted down the hall and into the lobby. She bursted through the front doors of her apartment.. But peyton wasn't looking around her very well and she accidentally ran into a man, who was walking into the building. Peyton fell back landing on the hard concrete, instantly blacking out...
Silence filled the lonely place as only two hearts remain in it, one nearly falling out...no, escaping...that's when the light of one heart appears and then changes the moment, brining a little more fear...[/color]
Chapter Four
{Unnamed Chapter}
Peyton woke up. Well kind of. She woke up in a dream. Peyton shuffled to her feet and looked around. Everything around her was blinding white except for.."D-dad?" peyton said looking at a man straight in front of her. She reconized those features, not matter what "Dad!" she screamed happily running over to the her father giving her a hug. But Her father didnt move. he just stood there blankly.. like a staute. "Dad?" peyton repeated. But no response. "Dad?! Dad.. DAD SAY SOMETHING! you cant just stand there! Say something! Please!!" she said tearing streaming down her face as she screamed at her father. Nothing. And suddenly it all happened so fast...
Peyton re-awoke, taking in a sharp deep breath as her eyes opened. In the real world now. Her head throbbed as she looked around her. She was on the ground, right outside of her apartment. "What the?..." she said confused sitting up and looking around. She clutched her head in her hands, not remembering very much of what happened.
Xanther reained on the ground for the next hour, just sitting there and doing nothing. Nothing. Blank, Nada, not a single move....
Xanther remained sitting until his eye scam eback to normal, but he was not normal yet. He slowly sat on Peyton's bed, his eyes concentrating on nothing. His arms were trembling violently, a few tear going down Xanther's face. That's when Xanther gasped and shook his head, holding his chest as he breathed heavily for air. "Wuh..." Xanther looked down at himself, finding himself in Peyton's room. "Oh no," Xanther said. "No...Peyton!" he cried, rushing to the doorway of her room.
Peyton heard Xanther scream. "Oh no!" she said hopping up and trying to run away as fast as she could. Her conciouse was telling her Go run. Get away from him... but her heart was telling her Go back talk to him.and then her body was telling her You need to get rest. Peyton was so confused she didnt know what to do. So she just kept running, and running.. and running. Trying to get as far away from him, as fast as she could.Xanther started running down the hall, sliding as he turned and falling as he hit the wall. He ignored the pain on the back of his head and ran to the entrance of the apartment. "Peyton!" he called. "Peyton!" He dashed down the starirs, looking around. That's when he saw Peyton, rushing away from him. "Peyton!" he gasped. He quickly started running after her.
Peyton turned around to see Xanther chasing at her...tears had somehow started to stream down her face. She was taking short quick breaths.. 1) because she was running alot ..and 2) she was crying. Peyton started to slow down, her legs burning on fire. She turned around looking at Xanther running fast at her. Peyton's face showed pain and sadness as she spoke "Just go away. Please, just... just go." Peyton tried blinking back tears, but to no use.
Xanther was still from Peyton, his pacing slowly. Thats when he stopped and fell to his knees, his legs aching, taking deep breaths, his chest feeling like if it were on fire. He put one arm down to hold himself up then another put he clenched his chest with one arm again, gritting his teeth as he felt pain run through his lungs and chest.
Peyton started to back away, getting into a position to start sprinting again until she realized what she was doing. Leaving a guy that is in pain on the ground? No. not an option. Peyton took a deep breath and walked over to Xanther, slowly and carefully bending down next to him. 'X-xanther.. Wh-hats wrong?" she asked quietly her voice shaky and she was out of breath. Peyton was still not touching him, afraid that scaring chanting was gonna happen to him again. Xanther stayed on the ground then suddenly shouted," No!" He pushed Peyton away. "Stay away from me!" Tears went down his eyes. "I'm...I'm a monster...you saw me..." Xanther stared at the ground, scooting a little away from Peyton.
Peyton bit her lips and looking around for a moment. She then turned her gaze back to Xanther "No...No, no, no, no, no..." she said shaking her head, scooting closer to Xanther. "You are not a monster," Peyton said in a whisper. She observed as tears went down his face. She was so over it...all the tears and emotions? She wanted them to all go away. She wanted this day to just end. "Please Xanther, don't cry." Peyton blinked back tears. "You'll make me cry..."
"No!" Xanther screamed. "Stay away from me! I am a monster! I'm haunted! Evil! Argh! I hate this place, I hate ME!" Xanther slammed his fists to the cement, only leaving cuts on his hands as he scarped them and slammed himself to a wall, hitting his head very hard on the cold wall. He dazed around a moment then slowly fell to the ground. "Kill me! I wanna die! I have to die..." His eyes gently closed, his head full of pain.
Peyton was scared not knowing what to do. She had never been in this situation before. She slowly walked up to him. "Okay you know what. I may have only met you a couple of hours ago and all, but if you think I'm gonna let you give up on me now, you're f***ing wrong!" she said grabbing his shirt collar and pulling him up onto his feet. Peyton looked him in the eyes. "Xanther, I need you.. you can't just give up on me now...please" she said, her voice breaking. Xanther was in shock when Peyton had pulled him up. He stumbled to his feet, looking into Peyton's eyes, his full of tears and sorrow. "No," Xanther said. "No...I can't...I just can't..." he whispered, his hands trembling as he gently tried to pull Peyton's arm away.
"But you can! You have to trust me," she said looking at the ground embarrassingly. "Look I'd never thought I'd say this.. but, I-I.." she paused swallowing the lump in her throat. "I love you. And you can't leave me.." she said her eyes wide at what she just said. It had come out so randomly and so unexpected. What did you just say Peyton!? she thought to herself. peyton knew that he thought she was a psychopath. She hadn't even known this guy for a full day...and now she was blabbering words like 'I love you' ?! Truth is though../she did. She really did. Peyton couldnt stop the feeling she'd get when she'd look at his face. The way her heart fluttered looking at the blush that would come to his cheeks...they way her heart broke for him whenever he cried. She really did love him.
{resources for the paragraph elow and other paragraphs: translation for unknown languages(google translate)}
Xanther eyes widened slightly as Peyton said that she loved him. He looked through her eyes before responding with a whisper," "Vous ... m'aimes?" He looked at her carefully, small tear going down his cheek. ""Cela ne peut pas être vrai ..." Xanther looked down at the ground, feeling a deep cut in his heart right now. His chest hurt, and he knees and hands were all scraped and bleeding since he had slid on his knees and hurt himself.
Peyton sighed and cupped his cheek with her hand, forcing him to look at her. Slowly she quietly said "Mais il est .. J'ai vraiment faire comme vous." She paused, hoping he got the message. Then Peyton spoke again this time in English. "I can prove it." she said simply. Then without any other futher comments, she propped herself onto her tip toes and lightly pressed her lips onto his lips... hoping and praying she had won him over. Peyton had never EVER kissed anyone before. So she hoped he got the message that she really did love him.
Played by me and |Peyton|
Played by Mα∂иɛƨƨ.
Prologue
Xanther slowly walked up to the water as it swished around and came on and off of shore. He would glare at the water everytime it came very close to him, stepping back when it nearly touched him. A chill was sent down his spine as some of the water swished between his toes.
But then, in the corner of his eye, he spotted something approaching him. A teen, a girl his age. Xanther bit his lip and looked away slightly as the girl came closer. "Hey there, babe," she said in a charming voice. Xanther did not know this girl. He has never experienced love. He has never held hands with one or even kissed one. Xanther felt so...unsure around girls at most times and times like this. He would become a complete stick of butter when he had to do anything like this, especially if he didn't even know what to do.
Xanther looked over at the girl and blushed nervously. The girl came close and brought her face close to his, cupping his chin, the victim trembling with fear and nervousness and he slowly stepped back. He was not used to this. No way. Xanther couldn't say anything. He was too...what's the word?
"What's wrong?" the girl asked. "Don't want to be 'friend's'?" Every step she took closer to him, he would take one step back. Quickly, he shook his head no to the teen and he picked up his shoes and started running away, away from the water, away from the ocean, away from the girl. He suddenly taste blood in his mouth. He hadn't noticed how hard he was biting down on his bottom lip. Xanther licked off the blood as he ran, not stopping until he reached a building and hid behind it.
Xanther stood and leaned against the building, taking in a deep breath. But when he turned around, the same girl was there. Xanther gasped. She must be a ghost! he thought. "Hey, have any problems? Why'd you run away? I was just being...me," the girl said as she came closer to Xanther and he slowly stepped away, eyes widened in fear. He felt so nervous and unsure and so freaked out by this girl. Who was she? Why was she following him? Did she like him? Xanther's last question made him shake his head to get his unpleasant thoughts away. He decided to run again. He had to get away. She wouldn't always manage to catch up with him all the time, would she?
On the other side of the building, far from the building, was Peyton, who sat on the sand, looking out into the vast beautiful ocean. She smiled, for once she wasnt getting into any drama or trouble.. which was rare for Peyton.. concidering she was a Rebel. Peyton smiled to herself, while running her hand through her dark chocolate brown hair, with the tips dyed a caramel brown color. She took a breath of the ocean air. It was amazing, and a perfect day to. Peyton decided to take a walk. She got up and brushed the sand off her pants. She began to walk down the shore, the salty waves crashing onto her feet and ankles. Peyton smiled, and hummed a nice tune to herself. She hadn't been this happy and peaceful since.. like, 5th grade.
But Peyton's small, entertaining moments at the beach would end as we come back to the girl, The girl leaned in and asked in a sweet voice. "What's your name?"
Xanther bit his lip and stuttered," X-Xanther." He slowly backed away, but this time, he fell back. "Ah!" he gasped, after plopping down. "Oh, poor Xanther!" The girl said, coming towards him quickly. Xanther's eyes widened and he quickly stood up and dashed away, heading back towards the water, towards this one person who would change Xanther life in the rest of this story, straight towards...Peyton...
Chapter One
The Beginning
Peyton saw something move towards her in her perphial vison. She turned her head to see a guy running towards her. Greeaaaat,she thought to herself. Peyton took one giant step to the right, moving out of his running path. She sighed and wondered why he was so freaked out. It was like he had just seen a ghost.
But Xanther not bother simply passing Peyton. He dashed towards her. "Wait!" a voice called from behind. "I'm not finished yet!" Xanther skidded to a halt and came behind Peyton, putting his hands on her shoulders and look from one side to the next. "Help me!" he squeaked. "She's evil!" He slowly sat down and leaned against Peyton's legs, hoping he was out of sight from the girl, but of course, she has been seeing all of this, so obviously, he hadn't.
At this point Peyton was a little creeped out by this. Some random guy had just came up to her and started talking about some evil girl. Peyton let out a sigh. And here we go again...At least i got to have some peace for a little while, she thought. "Um.. okay, hold up a minute. 1. Who are you? 2. Who is this evil girl? and 3, why are you hiding from her?" she asked Xanther, more of a stranger to her.
Xanther remained leaning against Peyton's legs, as if he were to make them bend and make her fall, althought he wasnt. He wrapped his arms around him, looked left and right then answered with," She came out of nowhere and tries to kiss me or something! She keeps sweet talking to me, leaning in, grr, all that love stuff! Yuck! She keeps following me around and driving me nuts! I don't know her at all!" Xanther looked back and saw the girl only a few yards away, coming towards Peyton. "Yikes! She's coming! Quicky, hide me!" Xanther squeaked, hugging Peyton's left leg, biting down on his lip as he closed his eyes.
Peyton looked back at him. He looked terrified as he looked around while hugging her legs. "Okay, still doesn't tell me who you are... but what the hell! I'll help you anyway," she said, shrugging... I mean Peyton did have a soft side sometimes. And if a random guy came up out of nowhere and tried to kiss her...she'd be a bit freaked herself. Peyton crossed her arms and glared at the girl coming towards her. She had a plan on how to get this girl to go away.
The girl who's name was Joseline was coming towards Peyton. "Awww! Sweet honey bun! What are you doing embarrassing someone? Come out sweetie pie!"
Xanther shivered as Joseline called him lovely names. He felt a bit disgusted by them. He squeaked and hugged Peyton's leg tighter, his nails digging Into her pants very hardly. Peyton winced and kicked him slightly when his hands dug into her skin. "Please help Mr. Ciel Phantom Hive here!" he whispered frightenedly as he looked up at Peyton.
She sighed knowing what she had to do...time to do her best acting. Peyton looked at the girl "Honey Bun? Sweet Pie? Excuse me but why are you calling my.." Peyton paused choking on the next words "Boyfriend, these nicknames?" she said throwing her hands on her hips. He owes me big time! she told herself mentally.
Xanther's eyes widened as he heard Peyton call him her boyfriend. What?! She was saying that in order to get a crazy girl away from him?! Xanther's heart beat quickened. He loosened his grip as he dug his nails in Peyton's leg. He was still hugging it but bit his lip harder. He didn't notice the blood dripping down his bottom lip, not bothering to lick it off since he hadn't noticed it.
"You're, you're boyfriend?" Joseline said, glaring at Xanther as he looked over at her. She frowned at him. Xanther squeaked and hid behind Peyton again.
Peyton closed her eyes and bit her lip for a second, to keep from gaging. "Mmmhm, yup.. this guy.. right here is uh, my boyfriend." she said, not so convincingly. "So, um, I'd appreciate it if you stopped bothering him and trying to make kissy faces with him behind my back," she said to the girl. Peyton re-crossed her arms over her chest, hoping that this girl would believe that they were..."together."
Joseline glared at Xanther then looked at them both for a second. After a while, she said," Fine. I'll find my own boyfriend and by the way, your boyfriend in HOT." Xanther gulped as Joseline said that and it sent a shiver down his spine. Xanther watched as Joseline left. After she was many yards away, Xanther gave away a long, loud, and deep sigh. "Yes!" he cheered in a whispery voice. "Good job Xan!" He boogied around a bit as he still say behind Peyton, leaning on her legs.
Peyton let out a huge sigh of relief that she believed it.. glad she didnt have to prove it with a hug.. or worse. a kiss. But it was all good and everyone was happy. Well everyone except Peyton. Peyton turned around, making him fall back now that her legs moved "Okay. There.. you happy? You owe me Big time Mister.." she said crossing her arms.
"Oof!" Xanther said as he fell back. Xanther frowned and looked at Peyton curiously. He slowly stood and came face to face with Peyton. "Why would a girl like you tell another that I'm your boyfriend?" he asked, glaring at her nervously. "I mean,...thank you." He looked down at the ground in embarrassment. His eyes were glued to the ground and he bit his lip again, two drops of blood he hadn't felt of noticed slowly sliding down his chin. It was a blood red color, the color of a certain soul out there in the world.
Peyton scoffed at his earlier comment. "You know what, fine. Next time I'll let that freak stalk you and try to kiss you all the time," she said, her voice dripping in annoyance. She sighed and looked to her right, seeing a guy who had appeared to be watching them the whole time. She shook her head and focused her attention back to the guy, who she had yet to learn his name. She noticed two red liquid drops on his chin. "Uh you have a little.." she paused "Blood..? on your chin." she said pointing to his now blood red chin.
Xanther stared at Peyton for a moment then asked," Blood? On my chin?" He slowly slid his finger across his chin, getting one drop, the other still there. He looked at his finger and gasped. "oh! God, it happened again!" Xanther smeared his finger all over his jeans. He bit his lip and that when he taste more blood coming from his bottom lip. He lived his lip and felt lots of little scars on it.
Peyton looked at him, a little creeped and slightly disgusted. "What did you mean, "It happened again?" she said confused "Is that a regular thing?" she asked him, as he wiped the blood on his jeans. Peyton watched as his lip area continued to bleed. "Uh..." she said blankly. "Gross.." she whispered to herself. Peyton sighed and searched for something to help him with in her purse. "Here." she said giving him a napkin. "Oh one more thing." she said searching through her purse again "Here." she repeated, this time throwing breath mints and gum at him. "That way you dont taste/ smell the blood." she said.Peyton was tired from all this helping she was doing today.
"Uh..." Xanther looked at it all in his hands and handed back the gum. "You can keep the gum. I don't chew gum. The reason I said it happened again is because when ever I get really embarrassed or nervous, I bite down on my lip too hard and... Well, this happens. It rarely happens sometimes I don't like it when it does." Xanther looked down at the ground after Peyton gave some disgusted looks. "I'm sorry." He gently wiped his chin little bit.
Peyton took back the gum as he handed it to her and she stuffed it back in her bag. "Ah, I see..." Peyton said with a nod of her head. "Oh, and dont be sorry.. it doesn't bother me like it would bother the other girls. I'm not like them... all prissy and girly." Peyton shuddered slightly. "I dont worry about my make up all the time. I worry more about how I'm gonna get bailed out a jail." She laughed slightly. "So, yeah, its fine --" Peyton cut off her sentence, "Wait, whats your name?" she asked him.
"Oh, my name? Well, you might think it's a stupid name but... My name is Xanther Celestri. Y-You may call me Ciel or..Xan..." Xanther looked away with an embarrassed look. But then he suddenly looked up at Peyton's eyes, his head full of wonder as she looked at them. He seemed to star at them for a few seconds before looking away, shaking his head. "Sorry, I was just, I..."
Peyton laughed at him. Something about him was somewhat amusing to her. Was it the way he blushed? Or how shy he was? She couldn't point it out. "Xanther...hm, not bad of a name," she said with a smile. "I like it." Peyton looked out at the ocean for a moment, watching the white caps roll to shore. She turned her attention back to Xanther, she watched as he continued to bite his lip. "Oh dear, you gotta stop doing that," she said, putting a smirk on her face as Xanther bit his lip again.
Xanther looked up at her and then down at his lips. "Oh, yeah," he muttered as he stopped biting down his lip. "I...I can get very nervous or shy at times. Maybe even embarrassed." Xanther looked at her for a moment. He decided to ask her a question, a stupid-ish question that she would possibly think was stupidely stupid in a stupid way. But Xanther shook his head and wth his eyes glued to the ground, he asked. "Hey, um, I don't mean to be rude...or anything, but...are you....taken?" Peyton cleared her throat and turned her gaze to a distant building. "Uh...no...I'm.. I'm not in a relationship at the moment," she said kind of awkwardly. She looked back at him, seeing that he had a blush on his face. "Why do you ask?" she asked him.
"Oh, just to know...." Xanther muttered slilently, slowly taking a step back. "I...I'm sorry. I just...." His cheeks were now only a bright pink but he simply tried to smile and said,"Well, are you needing to go anywhere? I don't but just in case you've got a job or chores or somewhere special or..." He stopped and looked up at Peyton, hoping she wouldnt think he was crazy, althought was most of a chance that she would think so. But he had remembered that day that his mother said it was time for him to find a relationshipw ith someone who was somehow...special to him and Xanther was now close to finding one.
Peyton raised an eyebrow at him and smiled "Ah okay then. Well, I don't need to go anywhere or do anything. And I definately don't have someone special. And about a job, pfft please. Like I could actually keep a job." Peyton muttered with a smirk. "Anyways...Why? Do have something in mind? Earlier I was planning to make this just a day to myself and some time for peace and quiet...but those plans have been cancelled and now your here Xanther.. So, I guess I could just hang out with you if that's cool." Peyton said with a slight shrugged. She laughed at him again. Ah how cute, she thought to herself.
Xanther smiled at Peyton. "We can hang out for a bit if that's fine with you. I mean, you said it's fine for now, right?" Xanther kept his eyes on Peyton's, feeling something inside that he's never felt before? But what? Was it "like?" Regret? What was the word? He didn't know and couldn't figure it out. But he knew it was close to like...Peyton smiled "Alright! Well, c'mon, we can take a walk down the beach and stuff. Maybe take a swim." Xanther gave a small squeak as she grabbed his wrist and lead hiim towards the water. Once she got close to the shore, she let go of his wrist and looked back at Xanther.. She smiled feeling the waves hitting against her ankles, and the sand squishing beneath her toes. "Soooo..." she said quietly, rocking back and forth on her heels slightly.
Xanther stood five feet away, staring at the water as it came farther and closer, farther and closer. He glared at the water them looked up at Peyton. Hopefully, she wouldnt think he was much afraid of water. He stood away from it and gave Peyton a strange look, his arms wrapping around him. "Well are you coming?" she asked. Peyton walked towards him and smirked "What.. you afraid of the water?..."Peyton sighed as she clasped her hands together and begged him to coming into the water "Pleeeaaassseee come into the water! Its not gonna hurt you." she took a couple more steps towards him "I got you.." she said it a quiet voice.. she grabbed both of his wrists and pulled him towards the water with a smile.
Peyton was stronger than him, which was probably wierd because he was a boy, but sometimes girls can be stronger than boys right? And he wasn't that much of a guy. Xanther tried to pull away but all he did was slide more towards the water. He gave out a squeak and tried to run away again, frantic to get as far away as possible from the water from reaching him.
Peyton sighed. "Xanther..." she said sadly with her "puppy dog face". She let go of his arms, walking behind him. "Alright boy, get in the freacking water!" she exclaimed, now pushing him towards the water with all her might. She felt kinda bad because she was pushing him into doing something he didnt want to do. But eh, Peyton wasn't always the nice girl. As she was pushing her, her feet made foot prints in the sand. Every step taking them closer to the salty ocean.
Xanther gasped as he was being pushed towards the water. On the second push, he tripped frontwards and landed face first into the water, his jeans and shirt getting soaked. His hands didn't have time to reach out and hold himself up. He fell face first, straight into the water. The water splashed, only few drops landing on Peyton. The waves pushed Xanther back but Xanther frantically pushed himself up, gasping for air. He looked down at himself, a worried look on his face. He looked up at Peyton but looked back down at himself again, weakly pushing himself up this time.
Oh sh*t! Peyton thought frantically. She threw her bag onto the sand and quickly ran into the water to help him. She reached Xanther and started to help pull him up. Which was a struggle, not gonna lie. He was a guy and already weighed more, plus his wet clothes were weighing him down even more. "Oh Xanther! I-im.. so so s-sorry!.." Peyton said stumbling on her words.
Xanther gasped for breath as Peyton pulled him away and out of the water. He started kicking his legs and pushing himself away. As he landed in the sand, his heart was pounding wildly. His arms were pushing him away, far from the water frantically, Xanther breathing hard wildly. He finally was about seven yards away from the water. Xanther pulled his knees up, hugging them tightly. Xanther dug his face into his knees, his hair covering his forehead and whole face. Xanther was still breathing loudly, his breathing almost sounding as if he were crying...even though he wasn't...
Peyton 'washed up' on shore as well.. She stood up and looked at Xanther. Peyton took a moment to close her eyes and thought, What the hell did I do to this kid?...with a sigh. She slowly made her way over to Xanther, bending down next to him. Peyton cleared her throat and began to speak."I can't tell you how sorry I am.." she said quietly. Guilt settling in... She wrapped her arms around him in a hug without thinking. "Im sorry."
Xanther flinched as Peyton hugged her. He wasnt very touchy. He pulled away from her as he faced away, his back towards Peyton. Xanther gave a long gasp since he was really crying. Crying. He has done it before but he did it rarely. Scared of water? He'd have to explain that to you in order to know. Xanther gave a loud cry then turned back to silence...
Peyton, you fail at every aspect of life, she told herself mentally. She closed her eyes and bit her lip when he heard him cry. I just made some guy I barely know cry. greeaaaattt. Peyton sighed. Why was he so freaked out of water anyway? She wanted to ask but she didn't want to make him feel umcomfrotable and any worse than he did now. She decided that it was best to leave him alone. I mean she already caused him enough damage. She shakily stood up and slowly started to walk away, wanting to punch herself in the gut.
Xanther took a deep breath before falling into silence again. He stood wuiet and listened as he heard footsteps walking away. He knew that Peyton was walking away, probably heartbroken at what she had done. It wasnt her fault, Xanther thought to himself. He remained quiet but then cried," Wait. Please." His voice was shaky, a hint of sadness in it, but he ignored it and repeated," Please, Wait." His last words were very raspy and whispery.Peyton stopped, her heart shattered when she heard his raspy voice. She slowly turned around to see Xanther.. his face looked drained of color and his were cheeks stained with tears. It was hard for Peyton to look at him knowing she had done that to him. She slowly walked back to Xanther. "Im sorry.. so so sorry. I shouldnt have pushed you in. Gah, I'm an idiot." peyton said, her voice drained with guilt and sadness.
"No," Xanther gasped in a raspy voice, trying to keep his head low. "I...I should have told you...I don't like water sometimes..." he said, his voice also wobbling. He remained still on the ground, shaking very violently on the ground. He was like a small fragile thing just sitting their, alone, and cold. The water was freezing and now he was shaking with fear and was nearly freezing to death. It was almost as if he was going to be that small thing, that little thing being trapped into an ice cube. Xanther felt so alone, even though Peyton was right in front of him.
She sighed looking at him, seeing that he was freezing. "Come here." She said grabbing his arm and pulling him upward. "Before you say anything else, we need to get you somewhere you won't freeze to death." Peyton grabbed her bag. "Alright, I'm taking you to my apartment." she muttered, "Oh and here."She threw him her not soaked sweatshirt. "It may be snug but it will keep you warm."
As he heard Peyton say that she was taking him to her apartment, Xanther freaked out and opened his mouth to say something while she was looking in her bag. But when he tried to say something, all that came out was air. Air. His throat felt fry and he fel so helpless. He tried again but nothing came out. He caught the object that came flying towards him and stared at her sweater. He gave an unsure look but did nothing with it exept keep it in his arms. He stared at Peyton as she looked through her bag. Xanther looked at her nervously, his face turning a bright pink.
Peyton quickly searched through her bag and grabbed her car keys. She looked over at Xanther and bit her lip to keep from telling him how heart broken she was... and secretly she was holding back some tears.. This whole situation made Peyton feel terrible. "O-okay.. um well lets go." she said, and instinctivly grabbed his hand tightly. She didnt want to let go of his hand. it was so cold and shaky, but Peyton didnt care. She continued to look forward as she began to head out to the parking lot to her car. Xanther tried to her that he couldn't go but his voice was somehow broken and he couldn't get a word out. He was shivering very badly as Peyton held on to his hand and began to walk him towards her car. Xanther looked around, keeping his head low from other people or else he's embarrass himself by giving off his red face, showing that a guy like him was crying.
Peyton kept a tight grip on their interlocking fingers. She contiued to walk until she finally saw here car come into view. She pushed a button on her keys to unlock the door."Here.."she said opening the passenger door for him. Peyton walked around the hood to the drivers side. She open the door and hopped in, pushing her keys into the 'lock..?' starting the car up. "And we are off to Casa De La Peyton," she muttered quietly.
Xanther fell into the seat squarely. "Oof!" he grunted as he plopped in. As the door closed, Xanther looked around in the car. It seemed so alone so far and yet now gong to start as if it were brand new. He looked up at Peyton as she got in and muttered something in another language. Spanish? French? Italian? He knew all three but mostly French. He looked at Peyton carefully before putting the shirt on the seat and sitting on it so he wouldn't get the car seat wet. He knew it would probably be disrespectful. At least, to some people it was.
Peyton grabbed her seatbelt, putting it across her body and clicking it in the lock. She looked over at Xanther to make sure he was managing. She then carefully turned up the heat, trying to warm up the car..making sure that Xanther wouldnt freeze to death. Peyton let her hand fall as she sighed..Im an idiot.... Grabbing the control stick, she shifted it to reverse and started to slowly pull out of the parking space with precision. Once peyton was out she then shifted it to drive and headed to her apartment. Every now and so often she would glance over at Xanther to make sure he was still doing ok. Peyton opened her mouth to say something.. but there was nothing to be said. She re-closed her mouth and looked back on the road.
Chapter Two
Common Sense
Xanther remained sitting and his eyes widened as the car began to move. He's been in a car of course and he was afraid of cars is one thing, but he was surprised that Peyton was actually going to take him to her apartment. Xanther looked down sadly and felt like saying that he didn't need a ride or help and that his cautious little mother could care for him but his voice wouldnt work, his throat hurt a lot and it was very dry, and plus, he didn't want to hurt Peyton's feelings. Xanther tried to clear his throat but he rubbed his throat as a great flash of pain went through it and down to his chest. A pitiful whine came from Xan's throat making him glance up at Peyton then down at himself with shame.
Peyton stopped at a stop light and looked over at him. She had winced as he let out what seemed to be a painful croak. His voice seemed dry and achy. Peyton took a cup of water from her cup holder and handed it to him. "Here.." she said handing him the cup. "Um when we get to my apartment.. which is just down the road.. we can get some medicine in you and then you can rest. And after that we can get you a ride home i guess." She watched as the red light turned green and she pushed the gas. Peyton turned left and in view came her apartment complex. Peyton turned into a parking space and parked the car. She grabbed her keys and looked back at Xanther. "So."
Xanther stared at her nervously, looking down. He slowly scooted towards the door and pushed himself oout, dragging the towel in his hand, which was completely soaked. Xanther handed her the shirt after coming out, looking down at the ground. Peyton rolled her eyes and sighed. She was trying her best to help, but it wasnt working very well. Peyton opened her door and got out. Locking her car. "Okay so follow me." Peyton said walking into the building. She walked up the stairs to the second level and walked to door '84'. She jammed her keys into the lock and opened the door to the apartment. "Okay here we are." she said opening the door for Xanther.
Xanther peeked into the room, looking around cautiously. He looked at Peyton then back into the room. He took a step back and gave Peyton an unsure look.
Peyton raised and eyebrow at him. "Its fine, go ahead." she said watching him walk into the room. She smiled and followed in after him, setting her keys and bag on the side table. "Okay um, i guess you can sit or lay or whatever on the couch. I'll get you some medicine." She said walking over to the medicine cabinet.
Xanther looked around carefully, wondering what was inside. He stepped in and looked around carefully. It was small but good enough for one and a bit of company. He slowly looked over he shelves, looking at her sculptures and small paintings by different artists. Xanther sat down on a wooden chair, not daring to sit on the couch.Peyton rummaged throught the medicine cabinet searching for something to help him. She grabbed 2 Tylenol and a cup of water. She gave them to him,"Okay here you go." But Xanther simply glared at the water and medicine and looked away, not wanting to take it.
Peyton sighed and slammed her hands onto her head. "Xanther you're being so difficult." she muttered quietly, flopping herself onto the couch. It had been one hell of a day for Peyton and right now Xanther wasnt making anything easier for her. "Maybe we should just take you home now.." she said slightly annoyed.
Xanther quickly shook his head no and stood up, walking through the hall without permission just as an "excuse" to why he couldnt go home. Peyton got up and followed after him, relizing he probably couldnt go home...or didnt want to. Either way, it was clear he wasnt leaving just yet. "Okay." she said grabbing his shoulder stopping him. "Um, can you say anything? Anything at all. Like tell me how you feel." she asked, checking to see just how bad he was feeling. "Or if not on a scale of 1 to 10 how bad do you feel. 1 being the worst, 10 being Peachy keen. Hold up your fingers and tell me." Peyton said, feeling terrible that she had done all this to him.
Xanther looked at Peyton strangely before holding up five fingers, which was only one hand. He smirked at Peyton and pulled away from her, walking over to a painting hanging on the wall.
Peyton looked out the window "Five, eh not to good, but not on your death bed." she said shrugging with a smile. She walked over and followed him "Um what are you doing?" she asked. Looking around her own apartment Peyton eyed the piano in the corner of a room, wishing to play because she was terrible bored since the guy next to her couldn't speak. But then again she didn't like playing in front of people...Peyton turned her gaze back to Xanther. "En attente d'une réponse," she said, even though she knew he couldn't speak and probably didn't know what that meant.
But still, Xanther did understand Peyton. Peyton had said "En attente d'une réponse", which meant "waiting for a response and Xanther answered in a strange way but somehow understandable to him in the way he was thinking.
Xanther studied the painting carefully, running his finger on the edges of the paint that was sicking out slightly. Xanther smiled and still looking at the painting, in response to Peyton's french words, he said," j'essaie." With a small smile, he continued looking around. That's when he saw the piano and slowly walked into the room...
Peyton looked confused at him I try?... she thought to herself, ranclstaing his words in her head. She shrugged "Okay then, apparently you know french." She said as he started to walk towards... the piano?! "Woah, woah, woah...no." she said stepping in front of him, blocking him off from the piano "No." she said one last time. "You cannot go in there, lets just go back." she said moving him backwards.
Xanther gave Peyton a strange look but then a mischievious smile. So, let us give this a small "summary. Both Peyton and Xanther are in Peytin's apartment but Xanther is a very timid and sometimes cautious guy. But does that mean that he can't be an devilish little boy? Very quickly, Xanther slipped around Peyton and plopped himself on the piano's chair. He smiled at her, giving a devilish but proud smile. There you go, giving his sly self. He studied the keyboared carefully and put his fingers on specific keys, with the feeling of playing but he was afraid that Peyton would blow his head off for entering without having Peyton's permission.
It all happened so fast, the way he moved past her so fast. She spun around and saw him sitting at the piano bench. She threw one hand over her mouth and gasped. She slowly moved her hand away from her mouth and began to speak "Please please pleasseeeee be careful. That piano belonged to my father...who, um...well he's not...here," she said, her face showed pain at remembrance of her father.
Xanther gave Peyton a wierd look but ignored what she said and placed his fingers on the board again. He looked up at Peyton as if asking if he could play in "sign lauguage", seeming more like "facial language." He looked down at the keys again then up at Peyton, giving her a hopeful and a may-I-PLEASE play look.
Peyton sighed and thought about it for a moment. "Fine..." she said walking over to Xanther and sitting next to him. "You can play." Peyton muttered quietly, watching him as he placed his hands on the keys. "But your lucky mister...I very rarely let any one play," she said with a small smile.
Xanther gave a very cheerful smile and took a deep breath before playing the keys to make sure they were tuned correctly. As he played one by one to check, he thought of a song to play. He knew just the right one. After checking the key tunes, he slowly placed his fingers on the board and took a deep breath before playing a small solo. His fingers went along the board, closing his eyes as he tried to play the song right, enjoying the peaceful but cheerful notes and sound in the song.
Peyton watched his fingers move across the keys. She smiled and closed her eyes listening to him play. She wasnt gonna lie, it was beautiful...and he was freaking talented. She would have never exspected him to play so darn good. Peyton continued to listen to him play.
Was nearly done with the song and he opened his eyes, looking down at the keyboard. The last notes were quiet as he tapped the keys gently. Xanther smiled as he slid his fingers of the keyboard, his hands landing gently on his wet pants. He looked down at himself, his cheeks turning a bright pink. He had just noticed that he played in front of someone and somehow he didnt notice that he has before. Usually, he'd become very nervous playing in front of others that he didn't know very much.
Peyton smiled over at Xanther "D*mn.. you're good." she said laughing slightly. "In all serious though.. you are very talented." Peyton paused and looked down at the computer. "So if you dont mind me asking.. Where did you learn to play?" she asked "Wait..,you cant speak...nevermind." Peyton said looking at the ground embarressingly.
But Xanther didn't mind and simply answered her question without hesitation. Xanther opened his mouth to speak and luckily, he was able to whisper loud enough for Peyton to hear him. "My father," he whispered. "My father played piano and taught me and my mother played violin. Ive got a violin at home, too. I play everyday but I mostly like my two Austrailian Shepards named Damien and Demious. We always do...they call it 'Canine Freestyle.'" Peyton smiled and laughed slightly "Nice, and I'll have to hear all of you play sometime.." Peyton said. "And it appears we have something in common. My father taught me how to play to...And uh, yeah, I remember the first time i played a 'piano'... granted it was a toddler piano that just had a bunch of buttons you pushed that sounded like a piano, so not a real one. But still. I continue playing and my good playing may be as good as yours some day."
Xanther smiled and nodded. "Interesting," he whispered. "I also have two rats named Pepsi and J.R (Just Rat). They are both hooded rats." Xanther gave a big grin and looked down at the piano again. "May I...keep playing?" His fingers accidently pushed one note. His fingers were shaking with excitement all over, wanting to play more. His head seemed like it was teeling Xanther to impress Peyton but Xanther for some reason wouldn't notice somehow. Peyton thought about it for a moment and then shrugged "i dont see why not.." she said smiling. Actually she really wanted him to play more. Peyton thought she could learn from him and she really enjoyed listening to him play. Plus he looked to be super excited about it so...
Xanther smiled with glee then looked up at the cieling, thinking of what song he should play next. He knew about three but didnt know which one to play. He decided to play all of them. And so, he did. First he played a well-known song he knew, then the second a not-very-known song, then a song he was still to practice.
Peyton watched his hands carefully, taking in some pointers for the future. She smiled as she listen to him play, song after song. She was truely amazed at how easy he made playing the piano look. The way his fingers delicately moved was truely mind blowing to Peyton.. He would have to teach her that some time.
Xanther quickly fisnished the last song keeping his eyes closed for a moment before taking a deep breath. He decided to play something special for Peyton, maybe as a thank you for letting him use something others hardly ever used from her. "This," Xanther whispered," is for you...." He placed his fingers on two keys then began to play the most peaceful but also cheerful song he could think of...
Chapter Three
Miserable Memories
That whole time, since Xanther started playing his last song, Peyton has felt some sort of feeling in her when he dedicated the song he was playing to her...and it kinda made her heart melt...Which was rare for Peyton. She never really did have any "warm or fuzzy feelings". But some how Xanther brought those feelings to her. Peyton blushed slightly and watched him play. The song brought some feelings to Pwyton and the song was truely peaceful, calm, some sort of...love song?
Xanther smiled as he played along, the soft but cheerful, also sad notes floating in the air, repeating notes in his head. He looked over at Peyton as she blushed. Xanther smiled and finished up the song. His cheeks turning a bright pink. At this moment, he was really nervous and hi arms were trembling, hands anf fingers twitching.
Peyton, however, smiled as he finnished. "Thanks.. that was beautiful." She looked up at him, seeing that he had a blush as well...Peyton quickly and some what awkwardly looked back down at the black and white keys.
Xanther looked up at Peyton with a bright smile. Then he asked," Would you...like to...play?" Xanther gave her a hopeful smile, hoping that she was interested in playing to him. Since he had done so without noticing since he was too excited. He gave a weak smile, giving her a hopeful look.
Peyton stood up and rubbed her neck. "Oh I-I dont know..." she said. Truth is Peyton hadnt played since her dad had died a couple of months ago...she always eyed the piano wanting to play.. But every time she did she would end up crying, thinking about her father and how they use to play together.
"Please?" Xanther begged in a whispery voice. He gave a hopeful smile again, clasping his hands together. He looked down at the keyboard and thought about how he had played for her. Was there something in him that was telling him something about him and Peyton? Did he have...a crush on her? Was he...in love with her?
Peyton sighed and looked at him beg..just like she had begged for him to go in the water... She shook the "water incident" memory from her head. "Okay, fine. But only for you.." she said quietly sitting back down and grabbing a hair tie from her wrist, putting her hair into a ponytail. She closed her eyes and arranging her hands on the keys.Getting a feel for it, remembering the fingering. She took a deep breath and began to play like this.
Xather watched as Peyton started playing, her fingers fiddling along the piano, several fingers pushing down at once for a nice, strong feeling. Xanther closed his eyes and imagined himself with his little sister. Yes, his little, dead, five year old sister. His sister had died only 8 months ago but Xanther tried to forget it. As he thought of it, he shook his head. He opened his eyes and smiled at Peyton, showing he wasnt thinking wrong about her song. He smiled thoughtfully as well. That's when he heard her start to sing. Xanther heart felt like melting as he heard her voice follow along.
Peyton tried to hold her tears back as best as she could, because Peyton hated crying exspecially in front of people. But it was no use, the memories of her father pushed her so much she began to cry. Almost at the ending of the song Peyton stopped because she was crying so much. "I'm... sorry.." she managed to say between tears."I-I cant.." And with that she hopped up and ran to her room.
Xanther had a worried look on his face as she dashed to her room. Xanther quickly stood and pushed the chair away, following after her. He slowly walked down the hall, peeking into her room.
Peyton ran and sat in the far corner of her room. She brought her knees to her chest in a "hugging" position. Peyton put her head down and closed her eyes, taking deep shaky breaths.. trying to control her breathing. She wiped the tears off her face and sighed.. sniffling and crying like a fool. She felt so weak and,innocent, and vulnerabe. And she hated it.
Xanther had a frown on his face as he watched Peyton cry innocently in a corner of her room. He felt so downhearted. He didnt like to watch people cry and when he did, he felt like crying too. He would feel a deep cut in his heart, as if he had something he really missed too, even though he really did. His sister. Xanther didnt want to disturb her but still came in. He stuck his arm out to place on his shoulder but pulled his arm back, hesitantly, thinking he would make her even more upset. He tried again, this time his hand landing softly on her shoulders. He sat down beside her and whispered,"It's okay. Don't cry. Please don't cry...." Xanther rubbed his hand on her back and did something he hasn't done in five years. He leane din and hugged Peyton tightly, hoping that she would stop crying.
Xanther for only a couple of hours,she knew he wasnt a very 'touchy-touchy' person. So when he hugged her her heart had stopped. Slowly, a smile came across her face and she shifted into a position to hug him back. Xanther was shocked as Peyton positioned herself to hug Xanther back. After she hugged him, Xanther brought his arms up, looking down at Peyton hysterically. "I will be by your side until you remain non-hysterical," he whispered, a small smile on his face. He hugged her tightly, putting his chin on her head.
Peyton smiled slightly back and nodded, burring her face in his chest.His already soaked shirt, getting re-soaked with Peytons tears. She bit her bottom lip to stop herself from crying more. Peyton calmly took deep, her tears slowly going away. "Thanks Xanther...it means the world to me," she said very quietly.
Xanther smiled at Peyton but said nothing. He didn't want to loose his voice next. He already was sick and he already had a dry, and raspy voice. Why have more bad things that incapacitate you? Xanther loosened his hug and slowly pulled away, giving a nervous look at Peyton. "That was my very first hug since five years ago by my sister," Xanther whispered silently, looking away.
Peyton also moved back slightly, while wiping some tears that were still on her face. She sighed while watching him. His body language said something was bothering him, but Peyton couldnt tell what.Peyton looked at him with blood-shot, stained with tears eyes. 'You-your sister?...Where is she now?" she asked him, not really thinking before speaking.
Xanther felt like crying after her question but he couldn't cry now, not in front of Peyton. Tears gathered in his eyes, making his vision blurry. Xanther's arms trembled, becoming weak and slowly slipping off of Peyton...
Peyton immediatly wanted to take back what she had just said. Something told her that his sister was probably in the same place as her Dad. "Oh no.." she wispered quietly "Xanther I-I...I didnt know." she said pulling him close back into another hug. She saw the tears in his eyes, "Xanther its okay to cry you know.. I dont care. Like I said before, I'm not like the other girls...you can let it out..." she said quietly craddling Xanther in her arms.
And so Xanther did.
Xanther mumbled quietly, his eyes becoming very watery. He didn't want to let it out even though Peyton didn't mind but the tears started a river down his cheeks, flowing down as he he brought his head down, gasping for air and finally crying. He was covering his face with his hands, gasping with breath and taking deep breaths many times, trying to stop himself but he couldn't, he just couldn't. His eyes turned red and thw tears kept flooding down, making his cheeks and hands all wet. Xanther felt so lonely and bad. He has never cried so much except of when his sister died. This was the only time he had cried that mch besides the time he cried for his sister. He felt so miserable, so weak, that small thing again lock in a grey world, in the middle of no where...
Peyton frowned seeing him like this. "Shhh, Shh, its okay. Peytons gotcha.." she said in a motherly tone of voice. Lately Peyton had felt different with Xanther, Like she could be herself and... she actually kind of L-like him? Peyton shook her head, now was not the time to be thinking about her mushy feelings.Peyton turned her attention back to Xanther. She bit her lips to keep from re-crying. Seeing him cry made Peyton want to cry more. But she had to stay strong for Xanther. She closed her eyes and held Xanther close.
Xanther cried a little more, sniffing and letting Peyton hug him somehow. He had his face still covered but it didn't matter. Peyton had seen him already. He sniffed again, another gasp of air before he fell into complete silence...
After a long moment of silence, Peyton pulled away slightly, and looked at him."Are you okay Xanther.." she asked quietly, not wanting to make him feel any worse or uncomfortable. She moved her hand up to his cheek and wiped some of his tears away, ever so gently. Xanther said nothing to Peyton except looked away after she slid a tear away from his cheek. He looked down at the ground, staring about it and thinking very carefully, more tears sliding down his cheek. he simply stared at the floor and started rocking back and forth, back and forth, as if something were controlling him.
Peyton watched Xanther rock back and forth, "Uh Xanther, y-you okay?.." she repeated herself. She watched him carefully, as more tears slid down his cheeks and how he stared blankly at the floor. "X-xanther, please answer me.." she said worried now.
But no answer came from the young teen. Was something truly control.ling him? Or was it he who was trying to act strange himself? No, like you had read before, he had said he had "Skitsafraenia," also know as "Skitzoid", maybe even having Skitzoid personality. But again, we'll see what he has now...
Xanther continued rocking back and forth, soon to show that his mind was ready to take over. hugging his legs tightly, the tears rushing down. Such disease could lead to strange words, and those strange words cam eout of Xanther's mouth. ""Tikki's going lazy, the daisies going crazy, let the moon get Maisy for I Will fall and perish...." Xanther repeated these words quietly, over and over again, for it ricocheted through his head, eyes wide open, staring at the ground blankly. A smile grew on his face, but a very evilish-looking one. He kept rocking back and forth, not paying any attention at Peyton.
Peyton kept a close watch on him while she slowly stood up and backed away from Xanther. She kept replaying what Xanther was singing in her mind, trying to figure out what it meant. Tikki's going lazy, the daisies going crazy, let the moon get Maisy for I Will fall and perish...What the hell does this even mean?! she thought to herself. Peyton saw how a devilish looking smile grew on his face. This was going no where good. She took 3 steps away from him slowly and carefully. How could this guy who had been so strong just a minuete ago, then have a 'creepy' breakdown?
That's when Xanther stopped and was silent, staring straight forward blankly. Then he slowly began to rock again, saying something different," Let the mouse go crazy, da da, nu nu, life is full of mazes. Let the ground go shaken, is house in now on fire, stab her, stab her, and then your dead..."
At this point, Peyton was getting very scared and concerned. Something about this didnt seem right. Exspecially what he was saying. "St-stab her?.." she said quietly. Okay she was done. After that she ran out of the room grabbing her keys and running out of the apartment. She felt so.. frightened when she was with Xanther back there. Peyton just couldnt take it. She wanted to punch herself in the gut for leaving him back there but something told her to go. Just keep running, she thought sprinting down the hall.
Xanther arms started twitching as he heard thunping down the hall, which was Peyton running. "Run, run with your heart, for Mary and I seek you, forever with love..." Xanther kept singing," Guns and oses, hate the posies, let them float around you, let the stars all guide you, let them guide you to me, for you shall reach your death..." At this time, Xanther was still, for he stopped rocking and something flashed in his eyes. Instead of his left eye navy blue, it was green now, and instead of the right eye green, it turned a bright "orange", mainly a light brown, almost seeming like a blood red. Xanther gave out a sudden evil laugh.
Peyton sprinted down the hall and into the lobby. She bursted through the front doors of her apartment.. But peyton wasn't looking around her very well and she accidentally ran into a man, who was walking into the building. Peyton fell back landing on the hard concrete, instantly blacking out...
Silence filled the lonely place as only two hearts remain in it, one nearly falling out...no, escaping...that's when the light of one heart appears and then changes the moment, brining a little more fear...[/color]
Chapter Four
{Unnamed Chapter}
Peyton woke up. Well kind of. She woke up in a dream. Peyton shuffled to her feet and looked around. Everything around her was blinding white except for.."D-dad?" peyton said looking at a man straight in front of her. She reconized those features, not matter what "Dad!" she screamed happily running over to the her father giving her a hug. But Her father didnt move. he just stood there blankly.. like a staute. "Dad?" peyton repeated. But no response. "Dad?! Dad.. DAD SAY SOMETHING! you cant just stand there! Say something! Please!!" she said tearing streaming down her face as she screamed at her father. Nothing. And suddenly it all happened so fast...
Peyton re-awoke, taking in a sharp deep breath as her eyes opened. In the real world now. Her head throbbed as she looked around her. She was on the ground, right outside of her apartment. "What the?..." she said confused sitting up and looking around. She clutched her head in her hands, not remembering very much of what happened.
Xanther reained on the ground for the next hour, just sitting there and doing nothing. Nothing. Blank, Nada, not a single move....
Xanther remained sitting until his eye scam eback to normal, but he was not normal yet. He slowly sat on Peyton's bed, his eyes concentrating on nothing. His arms were trembling violently, a few tear going down Xanther's face. That's when Xanther gasped and shook his head, holding his chest as he breathed heavily for air. "Wuh..." Xanther looked down at himself, finding himself in Peyton's room. "Oh no," Xanther said. "No...Peyton!" he cried, rushing to the doorway of her room.
Peyton heard Xanther scream. "Oh no!" she said hopping up and trying to run away as fast as she could. Her conciouse was telling her Go run. Get away from him... but her heart was telling her Go back talk to him.and then her body was telling her You need to get rest. Peyton was so confused she didnt know what to do. So she just kept running, and running.. and running. Trying to get as far away from him, as fast as she could.Xanther started running down the hall, sliding as he turned and falling as he hit the wall. He ignored the pain on the back of his head and ran to the entrance of the apartment. "Peyton!" he called. "Peyton!" He dashed down the starirs, looking around. That's when he saw Peyton, rushing away from him. "Peyton!" he gasped. He quickly started running after her.
Peyton turned around to see Xanther chasing at her...tears had somehow started to stream down her face. She was taking short quick breaths.. 1) because she was running alot ..and 2) she was crying. Peyton started to slow down, her legs burning on fire. She turned around looking at Xanther running fast at her. Peyton's face showed pain and sadness as she spoke "Just go away. Please, just... just go." Peyton tried blinking back tears, but to no use.
Xanther was still from Peyton, his pacing slowly. Thats when he stopped and fell to his knees, his legs aching, taking deep breaths, his chest feeling like if it were on fire. He put one arm down to hold himself up then another put he clenched his chest with one arm again, gritting his teeth as he felt pain run through his lungs and chest.
Peyton started to back away, getting into a position to start sprinting again until she realized what she was doing. Leaving a guy that is in pain on the ground? No. not an option. Peyton took a deep breath and walked over to Xanther, slowly and carefully bending down next to him. 'X-xanther.. Wh-hats wrong?" she asked quietly her voice shaky and she was out of breath. Peyton was still not touching him, afraid that scaring chanting was gonna happen to him again. Xanther stayed on the ground then suddenly shouted," No!" He pushed Peyton away. "Stay away from me!" Tears went down his eyes. "I'm...I'm a monster...you saw me..." Xanther stared at the ground, scooting a little away from Peyton.
Peyton bit her lips and looking around for a moment. She then turned her gaze back to Xanther "No...No, no, no, no, no..." she said shaking her head, scooting closer to Xanther. "You are not a monster," Peyton said in a whisper. She observed as tears went down his face. She was so over it...all the tears and emotions? She wanted them to all go away. She wanted this day to just end. "Please Xanther, don't cry." Peyton blinked back tears. "You'll make me cry..."
"No!" Xanther screamed. "Stay away from me! I am a monster! I'm haunted! Evil! Argh! I hate this place, I hate ME!" Xanther slammed his fists to the cement, only leaving cuts on his hands as he scarped them and slammed himself to a wall, hitting his head very hard on the cold wall. He dazed around a moment then slowly fell to the ground. "Kill me! I wanna die! I have to die..." His eyes gently closed, his head full of pain.
Peyton was scared not knowing what to do. She had never been in this situation before. She slowly walked up to him. "Okay you know what. I may have only met you a couple of hours ago and all, but if you think I'm gonna let you give up on me now, you're f***ing wrong!" she said grabbing his shirt collar and pulling him up onto his feet. Peyton looked him in the eyes. "Xanther, I need you.. you can't just give up on me now...please" she said, her voice breaking. Xanther was in shock when Peyton had pulled him up. He stumbled to his feet, looking into Peyton's eyes, his full of tears and sorrow. "No," Xanther said. "No...I can't...I just can't..." he whispered, his hands trembling as he gently tried to pull Peyton's arm away.
"But you can! You have to trust me," she said looking at the ground embarrassingly. "Look I'd never thought I'd say this.. but, I-I.." she paused swallowing the lump in her throat. "I love you. And you can't leave me.." she said her eyes wide at what she just said. It had come out so randomly and so unexpected. What did you just say Peyton!? she thought to herself. peyton knew that he thought she was a psychopath. She hadn't even known this guy for a full day...and now she was blabbering words like 'I love you' ?! Truth is though../she did. She really did. Peyton couldnt stop the feeling she'd get when she'd look at his face. The way her heart fluttered looking at the blush that would come to his cheeks...they way her heart broke for him whenever he cried. She really did love him.
{resources for the paragraph elow and other paragraphs: translation for unknown languages(google translate)}
Xanther eyes widened slightly as Peyton said that she loved him. He looked through her eyes before responding with a whisper," "Vous ... m'aimes?" He looked at her carefully, small tear going down his cheek. ""Cela ne peut pas être vrai ..." Xanther looked down at the ground, feeling a deep cut in his heart right now. His chest hurt, and he knees and hands were all scraped and bleeding since he had slid on his knees and hurt himself.
Peyton sighed and cupped his cheek with her hand, forcing him to look at her. Slowly she quietly said "Mais il est .. J'ai vraiment faire comme vous." She paused, hoping he got the message. Then Peyton spoke again this time in English. "I can prove it." she said simply. Then without any other futher comments, she propped herself onto her tip toes and lightly pressed her lips onto his lips... hoping and praying she had won him over. Peyton had never EVER kissed anyone before. So she hoped he got the message that she really did love him.
