Synopsis: After Jade granted Nathaniel a present for his 18th birthday for the first time ever, he suddenly disappeared from his life for some mysterious reason Nathaniel couldn't figure out. Four years later, with Nathaniel in his senior year of college and Jade making it on his own, they run into each other again by coincidence.

Nathaniel, having thought they could finally be friends, isn't giving up getting an answer for Jade's disappearance. Jade, however, is just as determined not to let his unrequited crush for the blonde become known―ever, to anyone. Jade fears rejection and heartbreak more than anything else, but he never knew the secrets he keeps from Nathaniel to preserve his innocence would hurt either of them so much more.

Of all the places to run into each other, though, why did it have to be at Jade's second home: the gay bar he frequented, The Plan? From the beginning, his secrets were already being unraveled, and he wasn't sure Nathaniel would ever be ready for them.

Author's note: There will be adult subjects and strong language, but probably nothing past the T rating. This prologue is originally a short story called "There's a Reason They're Everywhere, You Know" I wrote for a MCL short story contest.

Nathaniel didn't know how Jade could do it. He watched from the kitchen window, waiting for the time when the green-haired boy would finish his work on Nathaniel's mother's garden and put his tools away in the shed before coming inside to leave.

Not only did Jade help with the garden at Sweet Amoris High School, which he wasn't even a student of, but he always found the free time to work on other peoples' yards. Did he really like gardening that much? Nathaniel preferred schoolwork to gardening work much more. That was why the student body room in the school was his refuge, though it was really unfortunate that the place was pretty close to the school garden. Just thinking about it being so near made him feel uncomfortable, so he tried to immerse himself in his work all the more.

Nathaniel was just tossing his empty tea bag into the trash bin under the kitchen sink when he saw Jade beginning to make his way to the back porch of Nathaniel's house. Taking that as his cue, as usual, he turned and left the kitchen with his warm tea cup in hand.

Jade was a nice guy and all, but Nathaniel didn't like being in his presence. He smelled strongly of wet mud, flowers, and not to mention, pollen. But it wasn't just Nathaniel's allergies to pollen that he disliked gardens so much; it was also because of the existence of bees. They were everywhere. Literally. And they were his number one fear, next to his allergies of pollen.

Once he made it back to his well-polished bedroom, Nathaniel scanned it for signs of said bees before entering. It was an unconscious habit he picked up whenever Jade came to his house to work on the garden. Thinking about the guy being out there, working, always had him imagine him magically bringing bees into the house. That was the second thing Nathaniel didn't like about Jade. Too much of him on his mind.

After peeking back out of his room into the hallway and then shutting his door, Nathaniel sighed as he set down the cup on his desk strewn with paper all over the top. I can't wait until he leaves, he thought as he sat down heavily in his wooden chair and leaned back. Then I can really start concentrating on this work.

Shutting his eyes, Nathaniel waited for the tell-tale sounds of dragging footsteps and doors creaking shut. For a while, he heard absolutely nothing. He only noticed the strong scent of grass and mud. Blinking his eyes open in bewilderment, Nathaniel lifted a hand to pull his blond bangs to the side of his face and sat straight up. He half-turned to look over his shoulder.

What the? "Jade?" Nathaniel squeaked out, staring wide-eyed at the taller guy, who was smirking while leaning against the doorjamb of Nathaniel's room. "What're you doing? Do you know you're in my room?"

"Yeah, I know. Of course," Jade said as he straightened up, his smile widening as he approached, "since I've been here before. Remember?"

Of course Nathaniel remembered. When Jade had come over for the first time on the job, they had talked about a few things in Nathaniel's room. It was the first time he had a real conversation with the guy, and throughout the whole thing it was an ordeal he had tried his best to put up with while trying not to smell too much.

Now that same smell was permeating Nathaniel's senses, and his head was reeling with it. Jade was getting even closer, too! He could now see the smudge of dirt on Jade's left cheek. Hitting the chair up against his desk, Nathaniel tried his best to stifle the smell invading the room with a hand over his nose.

"Stop. Don't get any closer," he said as he held a hand up, as if that would ward the other guy off. "You should've knocked first. What do you need? As you know, my mom is working right now. So is my dad."

"Hmm? Can't we just talk?" Jade asked with a curious tilt of his head, having stopped approaching in the middle of the room like he was told. "You're doing it again. Why are you treating me like I smell?" Bringing his right arm up, he sniffed at his sleeve. "I don't reek, do I?"

"To me you do," Nathaniel answered in a serious voice, though he never meant to be so honest about it. Why was he saying such things to Jade anyway? "You didn't even wash your face when you came in here, and I smell flowers all over you."

Jade's emerald-green eyes sparked with realization at the response. He arched a brow and asked, "I see, but are your allergies really that strong? And there's no need to avoid me like that. You look like you're about to make a run for it any minute."

While they had been talking, Nathaniel had been leaning away so that he faced his bed, which was just beside his desk, more than he was facing Jade. He made no effort to hide it either.

"If you take another step, I will." Jade dared to take a step closer. Nathaniel widened his eyes at the sight, then stammered, "H-Hey! I mean it!"

Jade was seriously not listening. He actually took another step forward! Nathaniel held back his urge to sneeze as he stood up and turned away from the disobedient gardener. "W-W-Wh―"

Crap! I can't even speak like this! Nathaniel thought while covering his mouth and nose with a hand, and shut his watering eyes. "Stay away! Why are you doing this? Really, what is wrong with you?"

"Really, I wonder what's wrong with me," Jade murmured as he stroked a lock of Nathaniel's hair from behind, then drop away. "So, I heard it's your birthday soon? And that you're really, really scared of bees?"

Nathaniel couldn't stop himself from whipping around and staring in surprise even if he wanted to. He almost knocked the cup of tea off his desk as he did so. The words threw him off guard for a moment. "Huh? Who told you that?"

Oh, my mom, huh? She's so chatty, Nathaniel thought with both amusement and embarrassment.

Jade said, "Your mom and Amber did. How old are you turning?"

Amber talking about him to others was a surprising idea, especially the fact that she would talk to Jade.

"It's my la―" Nathaniel suppressed another sneeze before continuing, "―my last year at Sweet Amoris. I'll be 18. Ca-Can you back off now?"

Completely ignoring the request, Jade replied, an obvious struggle not to laugh in his voice, "Well, I got you a present. I think it'll make you really happy."

"What would make me happy?" Nathaniel said, flustered as he turned back again to blink at Jade, surprised to realize that the other guy was only smiling, looking a little melanholic and not actually laughing at all. Funny. He thought he heard laughter in Jade's voice, as he had judged he was being laughed at. "You didn't have to get me anything. We're not that close, if you haven't noticed."

"I think you're a great guy, Nathaniel. You do stuff for others that make you deserve so much more. Plus, Castiel makes your duty as president all the harder, too."

"That's true," he admitted in a low voice, though he felt rather embarrassed Jade had realized so much about him, while he knew only of Jade's passion for gardening. "So? What about it?"

"I got rid of all the bee hives gathered around in your backyard. There were dozens of them, you know," Jade said as he jerked a thumb toward the window, which looked out into the yard, above Nathaniel's bed. Then he winked. "It took me a lot of work. So yeah, they're all gone. Too bad the flowers have to stay, since they're your mom's."

The last comment went unheard as a loud buzzing filled Nathaniel's head, which went blank at the same time. He could do no more than stare at Jade in shocked silence for a long moment. Wait! He's been coming here the past few weeks just for a birthday present? For me? There must've been something in it for him!

"O-Oh, my mom paid you to do that? But―"

"No, she didn't pay anything. She didn't have to."

Going on as if he hadn't been interrupted, Nathaniel said, "But you love plants. Aren't the bees necessary for them?"

"Actually they're for the flowers, but it's fine," Jade answered. "Because they're needed, some bees will come flying back. Anyway, now you can go out to the back and keep your kittens in the garage when you feel like it. I just wanted to let you know. See ya."

Nathaniel stared off, dazed, at the closed door after Jade left. Before he could think about it, he dashed after him and called out for him to wait. Now what should he say? Jade was expecting him to say something, probably for a word of protest or gratitude.

"Um, why didn't you wait to tell me on my birthday?" he suddenly heard himself asking. "Why now?" The smile aimed his way slowly turned down so he was now frowning. On the optimistic guy, it looked very uncharacteristic. Nathaniel wondered what he said wrong. "Jade?"

"It's your last year at Sweet Amoris, right? Today's my last day working in your home," Jade finally said. "We won't see each other anymore."

The buzzing in his head abruptly returned to Nathaniel full force. He didn't know why, and Jade was starting to turn away again, to leave him forever, and he didn't know why he didn't want that either. Why am I grabbing his hand? What should I say?

"Thank you, Jade," Nathaniel mumbled. "Thanks for getting rid of the bees. I've been trying to do that for years, both here and at school."

"I know," Jade replied, giving him one last warm smile. "Happy birthday, Nathaniel!"

Not knowing why he had been trying to stop Jade from leaving, nor why he was letting go of the hand in his and allowing him to leave now, Nathaniel did his best to compose himself.

While feeling uncertain about everything else, he only knew that the next time they saw each other again, he would have faced his fears and could look at a bee right in the face. Only then would Nathaniel have repaid his gratitude, right?