POST BLUE

(It's in the Water Baby)

Chapter One

Pins and Needles (Prologue)

When that first drop of rain slithered down the side of Zexion's cheek, the blue eyed male almost smiled. Almost. So, it was that time of year already? Winter seemed to want to take a longer vacation this year, a longer time to come and see Zexion. At least, that's how he felt about it. Electric blue eyes were closed off to the outside world as another raindrop splattered on him, then another and another. Zexion exhaled slowly in content and closed the book which was open in his lap, silently breathing in the new scent of freshness which the rain always seemed to carry with it.

With each passing second more rain fell onto the twenty year old and any thoughts in his mind became completely erased. Slate strands of slightly messy hair pressed into the brick wall behind him and before Zexion knew it his skin, his clothes and his book were drenched in water. A humorless chuckle which only he could hear was released from his lips, though why he chuckled was a mystery to even him. Zexion didn't find it odd though, it was empty, hollow and as aforementioned it was humorless. So, there was definitely no change and therefore nothing to worry about.

Everything was normal. It was rapidly approaching eight in the evening and Zexion was seated on the bench in the garden reading a new book, like he normally would at this time. The rain was pouring so heavily now that he was sure if he did open his eyes, it would be very difficult to see in front of him, like it normally was. And even though the rain used to make him depressed and miserable, it was easing and relaxing him in ways people have been desperate to achieve, like it normally did. Normal. Everything, including Zexion, was normal. The only thing that was preventing things from being completely normal was the silence, because when the rain got this bad, usually someone would say some-

"Come on, it's only going to get worse. You can read inside." Someone whose name he did not care to remember suggested. Well, really, it was an order; Zexion did not have a choice. If he did, he would rather that the disturbance left him alone so that he could appreciate the cold rain drops privately. But as it were, the choice was not his to make. However, when he felt her hand touch his clothed shoulder, his eyes snapped open faster than a click of a finger and in his mind he made a completely different choice. With the one visible eye, he looked into her warm brown before glancing at the encouraging smile she gave him.

So they decided that they were going to try and give him one of the optimistic and happy ones this time. It was actually quite pathetic, Zexion thought, and he pressed down to the urge to roll his eyes because it was apparent that whoever they gave him never learned. Zexion does not like to be touched. Not at all. So in the instant that her gloved hand made contact with his shoulder, his decision was made.

It was a shame really, he thought as he looked at the warmth in both her smile and eyes, that he was going to do what he always did to the people who touched him. But that was life, that was the way he was, that was… normal.

It took only a couple of seconds of staring before the girl sitting next to him started to drop her smile and look at him curiously. "I do apologize, but may I ask your name again?" Zexion asked politely, giving absolutely nothing away in his voice which suggested anything other than genuine curiosity.

The smile was back on her face as though it had never left. "This is the first time in nine weeks that you've spoken to me." She said with a slight hint of excitement. Zexion was surprised, this one had been with him for nine weeks? Well, she lasted a lot longer than some of the others. "It's Pearl. My name is Pearl Parker." If she was offended that Zexion did not remember her name, then she hid it extremely well. Zexion just continued to stare, not blinking, not showing any expression and when the girl, Pearl, couldn't handle it anymore she whispered, "okay," to herself before finally removing her hand from his shoulder to rummage through her pockets.

As soon as that brick was removed from his shoulder and Zexion felt like he could breathe properly, he closed his eyes once more and allowed his head to fall back, enjoying his last precious moments with the wet drops from above. He knew exactly that Pearl was going to record what he just did and said on a piece of paper so that she finally had something to give to her boss. In the back of his head he wondered if Ansem was ever going to see a pattern and remove the girl away from him before he got the chance to execute the plan he had so effectively thought of in his head. It didn't matter if he did though, Zexion would just do it on the next person who touched him. It was no issue.

Regrettably his eyes opened at the sound of that all too familiar click. He looked down to see that the handcuff one of his wrists were in, were no longer confining him to the arm of the bench and for one whole second he was free before the girl – Pearl – handcuffed them both together. She took the book from his lap and waited for him to stand. Again, Zexion just stared, watching her expressionless, memorizing the smile she gave that he knew no one would see again, before standing too and walking back into the Centre.

Authors Note

So there you have it, the prologue complete. I would just like to mention that this will be the only chapter through Zexion's point of view, the rest will be from our dearly beloved Demyx. Reviews are greatly appreciated and I hope you enjoyed! The next chapter will be posted in a few days, and after that hopefully every week. May the force be with you!

BehaviourSaviour