Ivan had always been a bit of an outcast. He stood out like a sore thumb in numerous situations. Tall, with blond (near white) hair that fell in long curls, and a body almost twice the bulk of a normal boy his age. He wore bright, clashing colours, and had terrible taste in fashion. He was foreign, too. A real stick in the mud.
Little was known about him to the regular classmate. In fact, most people only recognized him by the way he would stare seemingly into one's soul. It was frightening, to say the least. He pierced fear heavily into the hearts of most around him. I say most, because there were three boys that didn't even falter in Ivan's presence. Two of them were spiteful and brought fist and foul language to Ivan. The third was not like that at all.
His name was Wang Yao. A short boy, with lovely copper hair that fell to his shoulderblades, and the most charming amber eyes imaginable. In the right light, they almost looked golden. He was quite average amongst the other students, blending in and drifting about from friend group to friend group. He always seemed to fit in. Lucky boy.
Ivan and Yao hadn't been dating very long. Ivan had indeed always thought Yao was a nice guy. He didn't quiver when Ivan went over to ask him for a pencil. He listened. And overall, he seemed to be quite a charming man. Ivan finally got the courage to ask him out one day. Yao said yes in a hushed tone. Ivan had always had some kind of intuition about this boy. He felt like they were truly soulmates.
Ivan always thought he was in love with Yao. No, he always knew. Yet, he didn't know quite why Yao didn't sit with him at lunch. He'd seen in movies that couples would sit together at lunch and hold hands under the table. He wanted to do that with Yao. He wanted a good, sweet, loving romance. He tried.
"Hey, Yao?" Ivan cooed into his house's phone, fingering the cord anxiously. "How've you been?" It was polite to smalltalk before addressing the point of the conversation. His mother had told him that when he asked for people advice.
"I've been okay," came the voice on the other end, and Ivan felt his heart leap just at the sound of Yao's cute inflection. "What's up?"
"Only okay?" Ivan huffed. "Not good, not great?"
"Ha ha." Laughed Yao, dryly. "What's up?"
"Are you free on Friday? It's a school holiday, so I was wondering-"
"Oh, Ivan," Yao seemed to pause, and Ivan could hear a very faint flicking of paper, as if Yao was pawing through a novel, or a calendar, perhaps. "I've got karate on Friday."
"All day?" Ivan frowned, pursing his lips. "That's okay," he huffed softly, playing with the phone cord a little more. "What about Saturday?"
"I've got to go and see my brother's piano recital." Yao returned quietly.
"Sunday?" Ivan murmured. "You good for Sunday?"
"Sunday should be fine. I'll be at your house at ten."
Just like that, Yao hung up. Ivan supposed he respected Yao's shortness of speech, and near-revered his ability to get straight to point. It was respectable, he reminded himself. Not rude.
Yao showed up late on Sunday, showing up at eleven instead of the time they'd planned. Ivan opened the door, exasperated, but happy to see his boyfriend. They headed upstairs, to Ivan's room, Yao not saying a word other than hello. Ivan sat down upon his bed, and Yao took his place upon Ivan's lap. His expression was little more than blank, yet he leant in and pressed his forehead against Ivan's. He stared.
"I have missed you this long weekend," Ivan smiled sweetly, running a hand through Yao's silky tresses. "You look beautiful today."
"I know," Yao scoffed, rolling his eyes. "As I do every other day."
"Of course," Ivan cooed softly. They then fell silent for a while. Ivan kissed Yao gently, not even minding that Yao did not kiss back with much force.
After a short amount of time, Yao leant back, pressing his forehead to Ivan's. His breath tickled at Ivan's lips, although that itself wasn't an unpleasant sensation. It reminded Ivan he had the love of his life sitting right in front of him.
"Ivan?" said Yao, closing his eyes.
"Yes, Yao?" Ivan chirped softly.
"I'm breaking up with you."
"Hah," Ivan laughed softly, taking Yao's chin in his thumb and index finger. "Aren't you a cute little joker."
"Ivan, I'm breaking up with you." Yao said again, and Ivan's face fell.
"What?.." he said blankly, dropping his hand and staring at the boy sitting in his lap. "Did I do something wrong?"
"You're a burden to me," Yao said, turning his head slightly. "And I'm breaking up with you."
"But I'm in love with you," Ivan whimpered. "But we belong together!"
"What gave you that idea?" murmured Yao with a slight frown. "We do not belong together, Ivan. Perhaps I thought dating you would be a good idea at first, but I liked that mystery in you more than I liked the truth." He scoffed, and went to stand up, but Ivan acted on impulse and pulled him closer. "Ivan, let me go."
"We belong together," Ivan repeated weakly, eyes brimming with tears. "You and I, we're meant to be!"
"No, we're not!" Yao grunted, trying to push himself out of Ivan's arms. "You're obsessed, Ivan!"
The words rung like church bells in his ears. "Am I?" he mumbled, more out of shock than anything else.
"You never shut up about me! You call me five times a day, at least. You have how many pictures of me on your phone? You fucking write about me in your diary. And then show it to me." Yao grunted, standing up and staring off at the other side of the room. "You never leave me any time to myself, and moreover, you're fucking embarrassing!"
Ivan flinched, but stood up as well, some kind of fury boiling and bubbling within him. "I am not!" he said, but he knew very well that Yao had to have been right. Of course he was. Yao turned to leave, and Ivan reached out to grab him. "Don't go!" he whimpered, yanking on Yao's arm. Yao was thrown downward, slamming his head against the corner of the nightstand. He was out like a light.
Yao avoided Ivan from then on. As he healed from the injury, Yao's wound was wrapped in a thick white bandage. It was a reminder, every time Ivan looked at Yao. It was a reminder that Ivan had been wrong. Well, he was on the fence about that. Had he been wrong? But he couldn't have been! He loved Yao so much! They belonged together! Didn't they?
Yao got a new boyfriend before too long. A smart-looking boy from England with a mop of jagged blond hair. Maybe they belonged together. Yao sat with him at lunchtimes. He laughed with him. Yao's wound had healed by then. He showed people the scar and said Ivan had struck him. Ivan was labeled a bully and an abusive boyfriend. He tried to ignore that. Maybe those labels truly belonged to him.
Ivan took to wandering through the school grounds, stopping when he saw Yao, and pausing just to observe him. Yao would walk away in the opposite direction, making sure to kiss Arthur chastely on the lips before heading off with him. It felt like he was mocking Ivan. Perhaps they were meant to be. Ivan always thought about how he and Yao were meant to be. Maybe Yao and who he thought Ivan to be were the true destined lovers. Yao had been entranced in a mirage, an image of blue amongst endless sand. And the image had faded away, leaving only the truth.
Ivan observed that he didn't belong anywhere.
idk man