I Have a Booboo

By: Angelus Erreare

A/N: This is dedicated to a very upbeat and special friend and fellow writer, KuDu. Actually, this was a response to her CIELLA challenge. I hope you enjoy this. This is also an indirect reminder for HER TO REMEMBER MY REQUEST! Where's my Heat/Argilla fic?! LOL!

Disclaimer: All characters featured here (Heat, Cielo, Gale, Serph, Argilla and Sera) all belong to ATLUS. I own nothing.

WARNING: SEMI-AU, OOC, SUGGESTIVE LANGUAGE

Cielo yawned. Yup. It was another uninteresting day at Muladhara. The sky was a perpetual glaring yellow and the rain, the gentle drizzle of rain was endless. There was nothing new. Well, scratch that.

Everything had changed.

A few weeks prior, they had found the black-haired girl named Sera. And it was within that time that things within them, per se, had changed as well. Their eyes, once dull and lifeless, suddenly breathed in the air of life…and emotions. Their eyes had been reborn with color; no longer dead.

They felt things that they thought that they would never feel. They felt things like nervousness, apprehension, laughter, sadness…pleasure.

'Pleasure?'

Cielo raised his eyebrow; he didn't really know where that came from. Shaking his head vigorously, he resumed his walk.

Yes. He was headed to the Strategy Room. They probably had another mission.

'Mon, don't I get a break?' he thought, grumbling to himself. He really couldn't complain to Gale or to Serph, now can he?

The only thing that he could do was to duke it out.

They had just finished securing Anahata. And now, there were only the Brutes and the Wolves.

He groaned again, 'It's not gonna be easy…' he thought with disdain.

A moment later, without him even noticing it, he had reached the Strategy Room.

'I'm here already? Dat was fast ja?'

Taking another melancholy sigh, he reluctantly stepped within the aforesaid room. Cielo raised an eyebrow. He looked at his teammates closely. Gale wasn't around and it was just Heat, Serph and…Argilla.

He blinked and walked over to his teammates; his sapphire eyes darting from left to right; from Heat to Serph. Well, wasn't this a cozy welcome?

'No. Not really.' he thought, snorting.

None of his teammates actually regarded or acknowledged his presence. Heat and Serph looked…preoccupied. He stepped closer to the three of them, "Hey guys. Wat's up?"

They didn't even bother to greet him and Cielo had to content himself with a couple of simple "Hellos" and "What the hell do you want?" statements.

Oh well. He closed his eyes wearily; he was damned sleepy. The last mission really took out a lot in him. He began to feel impatient soon after, however, as Gale remained to be unseen.

Opening his eye a bit, he stole a glance at his other teammates. They were still in their current positions. Heat was to his left while Serph at his right and Argilla, right in front of him, sitting on a chair, with her arms and legs crossed.

It was then that he noticed it.

'Eh? Why didn't I notice it before?'

He looked at Heat again and then at Serph once more. He blinked; no wonder they didn't even pay attention to him!

Their eyes were glued somewhere else!

He sharply looked at Heat and saw that his ruby eyes burned with emotion…staring directly at…

Cielo blushed, 'Wat da heck is he looking at dat for?!' he mentally screamed.

Heat was looking below the low line of Argilla's corset; down her gaping and heaving chest…Cielo stiffened. Now, he saw what Heat was looking at. He also understood why it was interesting to look at.

The upper parts of Argilla's breasts were exposed because of the corset but it was even more exposed as she slumped forward, her head hanging quite low but not as low as her…frontal endowments. Shaking his head and looking away, Cielo turned his attention to Serph, who was also entranced.

Wanting to rid himself of the pestering voice of curiosity in his head, he followed his leader's eyes' trajectories and there…again, it rested on their female member. But, unlike Heat, Serph did not gaze upon Argilla's chest, but rather, on the exposed flesh of her long and creamy legs. Argilla's legs were crossed and were slightly turned to her right, letting Serph's curious silver eyes have better access to her flesh.

Cielo felt a lump in his throat. Before, when he used to look at her legs, as she walked, he paid it no heed. He didn't think any more of it than necessary. There was no malice in it. It was what it was; parts of the body that was exposed due to the unzipped apparel of the said person. They, as Argilla's teammates, agreed with it of course; it would be difficult to walk with tight skirts now, wouldn't it?

So, why not widen the gap a bit and leave the body some breathing space?

Yup. That was how he thought before; that was how his brain worked. Silently growling at the confusion, he focused instead on the floor. He stared at it for a minute or two when he suddenly found his head turning upwards ever so slightly within every two seconds. It was as if it was being pulled by an unseen hand; an unexplainable force.

He suddenly found himself looking at her face. Her eyes were closed; she was probably exhausted as well. He found himself smiling as he looked at her; she was…cute.

His eyes meandered to the other parts of her face before settling down on her full lips. His body suddenly heated up. Her lips were full and luscious…

And suddenly…he wanted to…

'I wonder wat dey feel like…?' he thought, entranced within his own fantasy. What fantasy?

'Of seeing her…without all dem clothes…'

His eyes widened as he understood his own thoughts. 'Ack! Wat am I saying?! Dis is Argilla! Argilla!' he screamed at himself.

Fighting the strange feeling at was emerging from within, he forced himself to think of Argilla the way he previously did.

'Argilla. Embryon's Master Sniper. Five foot and six inches high. Distinguishing marks-the Prithivi Atma Mark on her left breast…'

He stopped as he said the word 'breast'.

He groaned as he found himself at square one.

Sure, he had been having these sorts of funny thoughts about her, but he always managed to shake them off. He also had enumerable opportunities in which he could see her, er, "gifts" and although he found himself almost gaping at curiosity, he always kept it at a minimum. It didn't bother him and it didn't get in the way of his duties…Until now that is.

Cielo suddenly felt something strange within his gut.

'Wat…wat is dis?'

He was beginning to feel warm all over his body; it was as if his suit suddenly felt tighter and he couldn't breathe.

He suddenly began to see visions within his head that resulted in him having electrical jolts traveling throughout his nerves…

He suddenly felt like he wanted to throw up. He immediately clutched his side, as if he were in pain. And in that moment, his teammates finally took notice of him.

"Cielo!" Serph's concerned voice said, as he walked towards him.

"What the hell are you doing you idiot?!" Heat thundered.

"Cielo…!"

Cielo froze as he heard the melodic sound pass through his ears. It was Argilla; she had woken up from her small nap and had stood up.

He didn't know why, after all, he had heard her voice calling out to him enumerable of times and yet, today, at that moment, her voice suddenly sounded different in his ears.

Her voice sounded…pleasant.

He didn't want to admit it but…He wanted to hear it again.

It was then that Gale had suddenly entered. All eyes were suddenly on him and again, they had forgotten all about poor little Cielo. Cielo didn't complain though; granted, the unpleasant feeling was still present, but what could he do?

He tried to focus on Gale and whatever it was he was saying, but he couldn't do it. He was deaf to the world. Then suddenly, Gale, Heat and Serph left.

Cielo's eyes widened.

'Okay…Rewind. Wat de heck just happened?!' he frantically asked himself.

He suddenly felt arms around his shoulders and around his waist. His hair stood up on one end as a warm body pressed itself against him.

He slightly turned his head and saw that it was Argilla who had her body against his. Blood that had been thus far restrained by Cielo's relentless willpower now surged without reserve throughout his whole body. He felt his entire body rise in temperature.

She seemed to have noticed as well as she frowned, "Hm…let's get you to the infirmary. You're burning up. Maybe a fever…"

He wanted to scream at her face and tell her that it was alright, and that he was fine, but he couldn't; he was frozen. He tried to speak but his voice came out as a squeak.

Suddenly, he found himself being dragged out of the room and towards the aforesaid infirmary. And no sooner than they arrived there, did the nurses suddenly grab him from his teammate's hold and into another room.

"Hey!! Watch where you're grabbing ja?!" he half-yelled.

It was true. Their hands were touching him everywhere and nowhere. He couldn't keep up with their hands and it was getting very annoying. He looked back at Argilla who had an apologetic expression on her face, "I'll visit you soon Cielo! Get well!"

"I'm…I'm not sick…!!" he yelled frantically, "I'm fine; see?!" he said, shaking the nurses off, snatching his arms away from them.

"This one is clearly in delirium. We should run a full series of tests…ECGs and everything." the head nurse said.

"No…!!"

xxxxx

A few hours later, there, he sat on his hospital bed, grumbling. He shouldn't be there. He wasn't ill damn it! Heck, he didn't even know what he was in there still for! Hadn't they done their damn tests yet? Didn't they already see that he was perfectly fine?

He was beginning to feel impatient, "I wanna get outta here…" he whined.

Suddenly a soft chuckle engulfed the room, "Well, let's just wait and see what the tests say hm?"

He turned his head to see his teammate Argilla, walking steadily towards him. Cielo's body began to heat up once more and again, he felt his side beginning to stir. What the hell was going on? Was she radiating of some sort of disease?

Well, this was the reason why he was brought there! He shouldn't let them be right about him being sick! So, mustering all of the willpower that he could generate from his mind, he calmed the raging surge of blood and pressure within his system.

'Dat's better.'

"Argilla hehehe," he laughed nervously, "wat are you doing here?"

Argilla smiled heartily, "What do you think? I just want to make sure that they didn't butcher you or anything. That, and I want to make sure that you're not suffering from some contagious disease." she laughed as she finished her sentence.

Cielo looked at her, bored, "Yah, yah. Forget about dat. Wat about Gale and de others? Where did dey go?"

Argilla blinked, "Oh! Yes. I almost forgot. Well, right after you started getting sick Gale came and said that Lupa of the Wolves were asking for a treaty. So, our three macho guys left to speak to Lupa."

Cielo cast his face down, mumbling a regretful "Oh."

"Cheer up!" she said as bubbly as ever, draping a hand on his left shoulder, "I'll bet that their meeting is even more boring than being here."

"Thanks for trying ja?" he said, drawling at her, "I'm sure dat it's more boring dan staying here in dis small and dull room. Right."

He wasn't enjoying himself; not at all. His words were imbedded with deep seethed sarcasm.

"Oh come on," she said with feigned disappointment, "don't be like that."

"Hmph!" he huffed defiantly.

Their moment was broken as a doctor entered the room. The two's eyes were glued on him.

"Well, what's the verdict?" Argilla asked.

Cielo wasn't interested though. He was sure that there was nothing wrong with him. Why bother asking him then?

"Well, your comrade is fine."

See? So, what was the problem then? Why was he still here?

"We ran some tests on him and everything seems to be normal…except that he is suffering from ulcers."

Ulcers?

Cielo's eyes widened and he snapped his attention to the doctor.

"U-ulcers?! How?!" Cielo bolted upright and asked; his voice and facial expression reeking of pure astonishment.

The doctor arranged his glasses, "Your ulcers aren't because of your poor or mediocre eating habits. I've checked. Your ulcers are caused by, none other than stress."

"Stress?!" came from two simultaneous voices.

"Yes. Stress. Tell me, Cielo, are you feeling a bit more hyper or depressive the last few weeks? Any changes in the way you feel or think?"

Cielo thought for a moment. Of course there had been major changes! But still, he wouldn't let them know that it was because of…that. No; it wasn't that…or should he say, it wasn't just that.

Sera's arrival had changed all of them, not just him. He'd just have to convince the doctor that it was just that and not his curiosity about the female anatomy; most especially his teammate's body. He suddenly felt cold sweat.

"Of course dere have been changes! Our atmas for one!" Cielo yelled, feigning outrage.

The doctor sweat-dropped. But unbeknownst to Cielo, the doctor had another trump card, "Yes, I understand completely. Hm…how old are you now? Sixteen? Seventeen?"

"I'm sixteen." Cielo drawled, crossing his arms defiantly. He heard a chuckle; he turned his gaze slightly and saw Argilla looking him, her pink eyes dancing playfully.

He blushed.

The doctor raised an eyebrow. He had an idea what the cause of his ulcer was. But he wouldn't really tell him straight to his face. That would be tactless and would embarrass the young man severely.

He'd just put it in a more…professional way.

"Well, within our tests, we have seen the amount of hormones that your body is producing. Testosterone, or the male sex hormone that is being produced by your body is almost at its peak. It means that your body is producing the said hormone at an accelerated rate that bodily and mental changes are in order. Do not be concerned though. It is very common for young men your age."

"Wat?!"

"I meant, that aside from the ulcers, you're having a lot of pressure from your hormones. That is what is driving you to change physically and mentally."

"Is dere any cure for dis?"

"Er…no." the doctor pointed out clearly.

The air was tense and uncomfortable; so uncomfortable that it began to bother Argilla. She really shouldn't be present anyway…This was Cielo's personal issue.

She then took several steps back and cleared her throat just as she was about to leave, "Hey guys…I'll be right back, okay?"

The doctor nodded and Cielo just smiled weakly, "Okay."

A moment later, the door clicked closed.

xxxxx

Cielo frowned; the doctor had said that he was suffering from mild stomach ulcers. Oh well. At least it wasn't serious right? He didn't need to take medication…yet. All he had to do was get plenty of rest, maintain his diet and eliminate the source of stress.

That was when he started to feel lightheaded.

Yup. The source of his stress eh?

Well, aside from his atma, there was the other reason.

He blinked and looked around. He was still alone within his room. Seeing that Argilla was no longer present, he now freely let his blood course through all of his body's veins. He did so as he recalled the doctor's words.

He had told him that there really wasn't any cure for his condition. It wasn't even a condition. It was just a normal turn of events as he was maturing physically.

The doctor just told him of one cure though; to grow up.

"Great…Grow up he says…As if dat is easy to do! I'm already having enough troubles as it is!" he grumbled to himself. But as soon as he felt that unpleasant feeling within his chest, another unpleasant feeling wallowed within the pit of his stomach.

He slumped forward and grabbed his abdomen, "Oooh…mon…dis ulcer is nasty…" he said agonizingly, cringing.

Cielo broke from his reverie as the door slowly opened, to reveal a smiling Argilla.

"Hey Cielo…I brought you something!" she said cheerfully as she walked up to his bedside, dangling a small brown bag at his face.

Cielo bit his bottom lip and cringed in an attempt to conceal his growing smile and to quell the feeling of mortification, "Er…thanks sista. Wat is it anyway?"

Argilla smiled and sat down. She then rummaged through the bag and took out a juicy-looking bright red apple, "Apples! Fruits are nice you know? You should eat them more; most especially that you have ulcers. I brought you milk too…Milk will help to alleviate the pain in your stomach and reduce the acidity in your body…"

Cielo sweat-dropped. Argilla was sweet; she was a generous person. She was concerned about him enough to bring him something.

But…

Apples and milk?

He sighed sadly, 'She thinks of me as a kid…!'

Wait a minute. What was a kid anyway?

'Well…ugh…a kid is…a kid! It's smaller dan a normal man or woman ja?' he asked himself, highly in doubt.

Of course he knew what a kid was.

Even if he had never seen one before.

'But I'm a kid!' he suddenly realized. Why not? The doctor said that he would continue to change physically because of that testos testis testi, okay, he didn't want to even go there. Well, whatever it was, it would drive him to change physically.

Besides, he was shorter than Gale, Heat and Serph! He was the shortest amongst them! So, by his definition and the doctor's inference, it was safe to assume that he was a "kid".

Right?

Well, he was getting sidetracked again. He really didn't want to think about it anymore. This whole kid thing was beginning to give him headaches!

What was he thinking of before the kid thing? Oh yeah. The fruits.

Food.

Before Sera came, food was food for them. They didn't taste pleasurable to their taste buds. No. Food was something that they ingested to sustain their existence. They were colorless, tasteless and shapeless. But now…it was all different. Food came with their respective colors, tastes and shapes.

Now, they could distinguish between meat, fruits and vegetables and different types of beverages such as milk, juice or plain water.

Argilla poured the milk in a small glass that she too had brought with her and gave it to Cielo, "Here you go Cielo. This will perk you up in no time! Bottoms up!" she piped in cheerfully, eagerly waiting for him to do as she instructed.

Feeling heat burn his cheeks as she gazed expectantly at him, he immediately grabbed the glass from her and drank the glass' entire content without a moment's hesitation.

He then set the glass on the bedside table, "Thanks Argilla."

He blinked and squirmed uncomfortably within his bed as he noticed her looking at him strangely, "Wat's wrong?" he boldly asked her, greatly risking the possibility of his voice coming out as a squeak. Luckily, it didn't happen.

A moment after uncomfortable silence, Argilla suddenly leaned in, pulling herself closer to his bed. Cielo's eyes widened and his soul screamed for him to take action; for him to pull her away or for him to lean back and put space in between them.

He knew that he shouldn't feel uncomfortable with her; after all, they had both been in life and death situations together. Why should this be uncomfortable?

His heart rate quickened as he saw her raise her hand and saw her bringing it closer to his face. What was she doing? His bewildered yet entranced eyes looked at hers and he saw that she was transfixed on something else.

She wasn't even looking at him!

He raised an eyebrow in confusion. What was she doing?

His feelings of embarrassment suddenly faded as he felt her hand on his face…caressing his cheek and then running her thumb on his lips…He slowly closed his eyes at the contact…

Wait a second…

Caressing his cheek? Her thumb on his lips?

There had to be some sort of mistake!

He immediately opened his eyes and in a flash, the hand was gone and he found her sitting on her chair once more. She grinned at him, "Sorry. You just had a cute little milk-moustache!"

Blood traveled to his face once more. He had milk on his face?! Well, this day just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?

'Could dis day get any worse?' he asked himself pathetically. He suddenly felt the need to relieve himself. His blue eyes darted for the door in front of his bed. It was a lavatory. If he could just get to it…

"Wanna go to the bathroom?" Argilla suddenly asked, rousing him from his silent contemplation.

"Er…ya…I…er…I have to go." he told her; ashamed, not meeting her eyes. Well, it was embarrassing for someone to know that you want to go and make potty.

Cielo straightened up quickly as he wanted to not just relieve himself but to relieve himself of Argilla's presence. Her presence was driving him to the point of impossible embarrassment and mortification that he no longer believed that he could handle.

Any more of that would most probably break him in more ways than one, he wagered.

"Well, do you think that you could walk?" she asked him, concerned.

"Wat? Of course I can!" he told her, his eyes piercing hers with determination.

"Hm. Didn't your stomach hurt a while ago? Maybe you shouldn't walk yet…" she said, putting a petite and yet firm hand on Cielo's arm, preventing him from fully sitting up.

Cielo could once more feel the onset of a furious blush and fought with all of his might to conceal it, "No! I'm fine! It doesn't hurt anymore ja?"

"No. Stay here. I'll get you a bedpan." she told him honestly, "I don't want to risk it."

A bedpan?

Cielo swallowed the big lump in his throat. Well, wouldn't that be something? To see your teammate answer the call of nature on his bed…

'No thanks ja?' he thought to himself disgustedly. There was no way that he was going to do what he wanted to do in the bathroom on his bed.

No way.

'Over my dead body ja?!'

His hand suddenly grabbed the hand that restrained him and squeezed it, "I'm fine. Really."

Argilla, taken aback by his sudden seriousness in both his facial expression and his deep voice, relinquished her hold on him and took a step back. Never did she think that he had such a voice, "Oh, sorry Cielo…I just thought that…"

Whatever thoughts or looks of surprise and admiration that she harbored for her blue-haired friend for his maturation suddenly dissipated in the air as he returned a cheeky grin at her mellowed down facial expression, "No problem! It's okay ja? Well, I'd better get going!"

He wasn't kidding either! He really needed to go!

Argilla suddenly made a face; and there she thought that he actually grew up. Oh well, some things would never change she supposed.

Cielo then stood, clad in his hospital gown, letting his feet stand on the cold tiled floor of his room, "Man it's cold ja?!"

The cold floor wasn't helping; no! It was making it worse! He needed to go and he needed to go now!

Argilla immediately came to his side, "Are you okay? Do you need me to accompany you to the bathroom?" she asked; her arm around his shoulder as support.

Cielo's heart skipped a beat; she was doing it again! He suddenly walked a bit faster and shook her off of him, "I'm fine!" His walk then broke to a jog and he finally reached the lavatory, slamming the door louder than he intended and locking it securely to make sure that she didn't enter after him.

He rested his back against the door and let out a breath of relief, "Finally…"

He allowed himself a moment's rest and closed his eyes as he relieved himself. He was slightly startled when he heard a soft knock on the door, "Cielo?", came a muffled voice from the other side, "Are you okay in there…?"

Cielo blushed, "I'm fine…really! I'll be out in a minute!"

"Okay!" she called back and retreated from the door.

A moment later, he braved what lay ahead outside the door. Yup. It was time to face her; again.

He walked out of the bathroom with a smile on his face. Gone was the tight feeling within his nether regions; he felt refreshed. He looked at her and saw the tinge of pink in her cheeks.

That, and he saw the look of pure amusement within her pink eyes.

'Okay.' he thought in suspicion, 'Wat's going on here?'

Argilla giggled and pointed to his hospital gown, "Er…I think that…"

He followed her gaze and her finger's direction and there he saw what she was looking at. There, on his gown, just below the abdomen, was a spot that was…wet and not just on one spot. The wet spots looked more like the "liquid" had been sprayed on the fabric. He blushed furiously; he told her that he needed to go didn't he?

So, the way he saw it, it wasn't his fault.

He immediately covered the spots with his palms as he heard her giggle uncontrollably, "I…I'll get you a…hahaha…a new gown…hahahahaha."

"Ugh…would you? Th-thanks…" he replied stammering, his voice cracking here and there as he fought his embarrassed state.

'Crap!' he screamed at himself. How could he have been that indiscrete?! The funny thing was, he didn't even feel it! Well, she'd never think of him as a man now…or ever!

To her, he would forever be known as the little boy who didn't know how to properly go pee-pee; the little boy who wasn't properly toilet trained.

'I want to die right now…' he told himself, praying silently to any deity or divine being to put him out of his misery.

His self loathing was interrupted as he felt her within the room again. He turned his head sideways and saw her from the corner of his eyes, holding another gown, "Here you go Cielo. Put this on."

He hastily walked up to her and grabbed it. Having secured the gown, he dashed for the lavatory, yelling a "thanks" along the way.

She smiled playfully as she saw his back, "You're welcome."

Cielo folded the soiled gown carefully and unlocked the door. He took a deep breath, 'Well, dere's nothing wrong. Dere are no stains, no dirt…Wait! Is my underwear showing?!' he suddenly thought frantically, turning his head and torso to look at his rear. Nope. All was well.

'Well, here goes.' he thought to himself, marching out of the bathroom with mixed feelings. He felt as if he were a soldier marching to fight a war; a war that he would gladly lay his life for in order to win…A war that he feared dying at, at the same time.

Yup. His feelings were just like that.

It was as if he were confronting a monster; his inner demon.

'No…dis demon came within de form of a beautiful and seductive woman wid pink hair and pink eyes…' he told himself.

A moment later, he met her gaze again. He felt his cold sweat travel from his temple to his chin; her stare was making him squirm in the spot in which he stood.

'Bah! Who cares!?' his inner self raged.

He nodded in concurrence; that was right. Who cares? He couldn't take this feeling anymore. So, whatever was wrong, he didn't care. He just wanted to get to his bed again.

So, he walked over to his bed again, ignoring her piercing stare and climbed in. She seemed to have noticed nothing wrong with him this time and followed suit, "Well, you're all clear Cielo." she said; chuckling, "No stains this time."

Cielo groaned, "Can we please move on?"

She giggled, "Yeah. Right. Sorry about that."

She sat down and went for the brown bag that she brought with her. Cielo arched an eyebrow; what else had she brought him? Oh yeah… Apples…

"Okay. Come on Cielo. Here are your apples." she said brightly as she began to slowly peel the skin off the fruit.

Cielo couldn't help but admire her as she did so. 'She…she does look pretty…' he told himself dreamily.

Her voice though, snapped him back to reality, "Cielo, would you like for me to give it to you in one go?"

Give it to him? In one go?

Alarm bells went off in Cielo's head as he felt hot blood travel to his nether regions as he heard her innocent yet unwittingly seductive question.

"Or would you like for me to give it to you in small pieces?"

Ignoring the weird and albeit, perverted thoughts that he was getting in his head, he answered her the best he could, "It's okay…I can give it to myself just fine…"

Wait. That didn't sound right!

He cursed himself as he saw her confused look. Wanting to dispel the confusion, his eyes darted at the apple and the small knife. He dove for the two aforesaid items, "I meant I can do it by myself Argilla…Thanks."

She blinked, "Are you sure…? No…I'll do that…" she said finally as she made to grab the knife and the apple from Cielo.

"No…!" he protested, "It's fine…really…"

"No…I could do it much faster. You'd only-"

"Owww!!!" Cielo suddenly yelled; recoiling his hand with inhuman speed.

"-injure yourself." Argilla finished. She sighed as she assessed the damage, "Give me your hand." she told him, momentarily forgetting the knife and apple.

He reluctantly moved his hand towards her when she suddenly grabbed it, taking him by surprise, "Ow…!"

She inspected his fingers and there, on his left index finger was a cut that was bleeding proudly. She frowned slightly, "See? This is what you get when you have a game of tug of war with me."

Cielo grumbled but said nothing, still uneasy as she held his hand in hers. His hair stood on one end as he felt something wet on his finger; something wet…and warm. He turned his head and met directly at her pink eyes. Her pink eyes were no longer cheerful and bright, but were playful and seductive.

His face blushed beet red as he saw that she had taken his finger within her mouth; letting her tongue massage the wound…He groaned as he felt her lips suckle on his finger…

"A-a…A-argilla…W-wat are you…wat are you doing?" he asked, his voice cracking.

"What?" she asked suddenly.

Cielo blinked and looked at her confused face. She wasn't doing anything! She was just there, applying her white handkerchief on his wound!

He blinked several times. Was he seeing things? Was he feeling things?

'I must be hallucinatin' mon…' he said to himself helplessly.

She didn't do anything; it was just his imagination after all. But hell, it was one hell of a hallucination by his terms.

He looked at her again and saw her smiling, "You're acting strange today Cielo. Well, I have to go now. The macho guys might come back soon. The doctor said that you have to stay here tonight for observation. Your fainting spell today scared me!"

Fainting?

Well, Cielo could just feel his manly points drop. He wouldn't really call it fainting…The word 'fainting' was such a strong word. He preferred to call it a "seizure"; a sudden and violent attack.

"Okay then," she said, standing up, "just keep the hanky with you. And don't forget to eat your apples! I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay…" he said sadly, "I'll see you ja?"

She nodded and walked away from him. She stopped after taking a few steps and ran back to him, surprising him.

"Oh! I almost forgot!"

She suddenly grabbed his wounded hand and placed a gentle kiss on the cut. Cielo could only gape at her; wide-eyed as she did so.

"There. I hope that feels better." she said honestly, pulling away from him slowly, a gentle smile on her lips.

Cielo blushed; feel good? Oh, it felt good all right. He didn't even feel the stinging pain anymore!

Before he could react any further and speak, Argilla then raised her head and grabbed Cielo's face, giving him a chaste kiss on his lips.

Cielo stiffened; his entire body was frozen at that moment. He was stupefied as he felt her lips against his own. He had never felt this way before though…It was all new to him; another unexplored part of his life; an uncharted territory within his persona.

'Okay…Now I know I'm crazy…' he told himself with disbelief, thinking this to be another hallucination.

But still, his chest beat erratically as he felt the feeling of pleasure and the awkward feeling of giddiness spread throughout his body.

A moment later, it was over. She pulled away from him and smiled, "Your doctor told me that your ulcers are caused by stress; stress that is caused by your hormonal change. I figured that you needed that. Take care Cielo."

Cielo tilted his head to the side; what did she mean? His eyes widened as he put two and two together. Hormones. Maturation. Argilla most probably knew what he was going through…

She probably sensed his attraction towards her as well.

He blushed deeper at that thought.

'She knew…?'

At that moment, he remembered his humiliating and degrading moments and he slowly spoke, worried, "Argilla…I would appreciate it if…"

She grinned at him and kissed his forehead, her hands cupping his face, "Don't worry about it Cielo. I won't tell anyone. It's our little secret." He felt himself leaning further into her touch as she pressed her soft and moist lips on his forehead, repressing a low pleasurable growl within his throat.

Argilla pulled away soon after and with a smile turned around and started to walk away from his bed. She walked towards the door and suddenly stopped. She looked up at him playfully, her lips tugged upwards for a naughty grin.

Cielo's heart beat wildly; he didn't like that look that she had at that moment. What was she planning?

"Oh and Cielo, I can't wait for you to grow up." she said playfully, winking at him before resuming her walk.

Cielo bit his bottom lip as he felt his face about to melt at the naughty thoughts that he was getting at that moment. Did she say what she just said? And if she did, did he understand it the way it was supposed to be understood?

Her words were so enigmatic, so suggestive that he found it impossible to not think perverted thoughts about.

She reached the door and walked out, leaving him alone in his room.

He smiled a bit though; he trusted her. She wouldn't tell. He could just imagine what the others would say if she did. Heat would never let up and would probably insult him until he died or until he killed Heat.

Cielo winced; the former was more likely to happen than the latter.

Blood rushed to his face as he remembered the issue with the bedpan and his wet gown. He shook his head, 'Dis is not my day…'

But then, again, as he thought and remembered her kiss on his cut and the kiss on his lips, he figured that a "fainting" spell because of ulcers was definitely worth it. The embarrassing moments that he had suffered at her hands were definitely worth it.

And her last words to him only gave him the impetus to hasten his "physical evolution".

'Yeah…I can't wait to grow up too…' he thought as he lay back down on his bed, his arms folded behind his head.

He could just picture himself and her…

'Wait…Maybe it is my day after all…' he suddenly thought with a grin.

xxxxx

FIN