Being confused

(Warning: slash! If you do not like the idea of slashyness within this fandom, please do not read this.)

Diddy realises that he is drawn more to Donkey than Dixie, and becomes jealous of Candy.

Another day went by on Donkey Kong Island, where the residents were enjoying their day off, or if they had to work, enjoying their work. Diddy kept lying awake in his bed one afternoon, staring out the window. He wanted to play at the beach, but Donkey was out with Candy for the day. It was true that Dixie asked him to play at the beach with her today, but he managed to mumble an excuse that let him stay home in the treehouse. He wondered if that made her suspicious about anything, but she was an understanding girl, so he simply ignored that possibility.

Diddy still thought Dixie was an enjoyable girl to be with, but he still could never figure out why he felt so empty even when he was with her. As much as he took Dixie along with him when he went to save Donkey from the evil Kremlins, his motives were not that he wanted to be with Dixie, but that he wanted to save Donkey. Of course, he was genuinely grateful for her for saving his life when he and Donkey both got kidnapped, but he was also feeling confused about himself.

'Candy always seems to want to be with Donkey, and I do too, so I can understand her. But why would Donkey pick her? Aren't there any better women on this island for a handsome guy like Donkey to choose from?' he pondered, as he put his hands behind his head. He felt himself blush about his thoughts; he had just described Donkey as handsome. He had seen Donkey being a hero on the island since he was little, and he'd described him as 'cool' or 'great', but never 'handsome' before.

'Well, I think it's OK to think another guy is handsome--I mean, girls say they think other girls are pretty in the fashion magazines!' he thought to himself.

Then, he heard someone barge in the treehouse, but he knew instinctively that it was not Donkey. It was indeed, Cranky. 'Is Donkey here?' he asked, in his gravelly voice. Diddy managed to reluctantly get himself of the bed, and went to the door of the treehouse. 'No, he's on a date with Candy, but if you want me to tell him something, I can tell him when he gets home,' Diddy replied.

'On a date, you say? Back in my day, men and women didn't casually date as they do today! By the way, when I was younger, young ones like you were playing outside, not inside their houses!' he grumbled impatiently.

'I just feel like I need time to myself,' Diddy tried to explain, hoping that Cranky would leave as soon as possible.

'Hmm…well, if ya need any advice, I'd like it if you'd rely on me more than Donkey,' he replied, as he left the treehouse.

Diddy sighed after Cranky left, knowing that he would not be following Cranky's advice; Diddy felt more comfortable confiding to Donkey than anyone else.

He let out another sigh as he saw Candy's picture on the wall as he went back to his room.

'I don't even think she's that pretty! She's older than Dixie, but Dixie is much prettier than Candy. But I wouldn't want Donkey dating Dixie,' he mumbled to himself, as he went back to his room.

After their date, Donkey came back to the treehouse later that afternoon. 'Diddy?' he called out. 'I'm back!' he hollered.

'I'm in here,' Diddy managed to weakly reply, as he tried to act as normal as possible.

Donkey then opened the door to his room, and smiled at the younger Kong.

'I thought you were going to be with Dixie at the beach today,' he asked innocuously.

'Well, I just felt I needed time to myself, so I turned her offer down,' Diddy replied to Donkey.

'Everyone needs time to themselves once in a while,' Donkey said, while flashing him a warm smile.

Diddy felt his heart nearly skip a beat, as he felt an intense surge of emotions within him--it was more intense than when he fell in love with Dixie.

But it also made him feel sentimental inside, because no matter how much he wanted to be with Donkey, he would be with Candy at times, and would envy her for that.

'Donkey, why did you fall in love with Candy?' he asked.

'Pretty much the same reason why you fell in love with Dixie, kiddo,' Donkey replied, as he sat down on Diddy's bed, and patted his head.

'She's one lucky gal, because she's got a handsome boyfriend like you,' Diddy said to his best friend.

'Dixie's lucky too, 'cause she's got a cool and cute kiddo like you,' Donkey told him.

'Do you think I'm cool and cute?' Diddy asked.

'Yeah, of course.'

Diddy felt ambivalent about that statement; because while he was flattered, he also knew that probably Donkey's words to describe Candy would be more worthwhile than just 'cool and cute'.

'So you're not going to play outside, even though the weather is fine today?' asked Donkey, while rubbing Diddy's head. Diddy nodded, and replied, 'I'm thinking of just staying in today.'

'That's OK, little buddy. Want a banana?' Donkey asked him.

Diddy nodded, and let Donkey to fetch a banana for him. 'Sooner or later, Donkey's gonna think I'm acting strange…' he muttered to himself as he scratched his head a few times.

Donkey came back with a banana in his hand, as he went back to where Diddy was, and gave him the banana. 'Thanks, Donkey,' Diddy replied, as he started nibbling at the banana. It was moments like these that he cherished, because he could be with him without being interrupted by Candy or Dixie.

Behind Diddy's back, Dixie was noticing something strange about his behaviour, and she decided to consult Donkey about it. After all, he was Diddy's best friend, so he might have some insight, and Cranky just wasn't going to give her decent advice about anything. The next day after Diddy refused to go with her to the beach, she went to Donkey's treehouse while Diddy was out shopping.

'Donkey,' she called out to him at the entrance, chewing on the last piece of bubblegum that she had. If she had consulted Cranky, he would have told her to quit chewing "that stupid piece of gum", but she knew Donkey wouldn't do that. 'Hey, Dixie. What's up?' he asked, as he straightened his tie.

'Can I come in? I've got something to talk to you about,' she asked anxiously.

'Sure, Dixie. Diddy's out at the moment, but I'd gladly help you if I can,' Donkey amiably smiled at her, and offered her a seat on the sofa.

'I'd rather not see Diddy at the moment, because I wanted to talk to you about him. He's been acting strange lately, and he refused to go to the beach with me yesterday. But he's been moody recently, and I want to help him, yet he still refuses to let me interfere. Is there anything that's bothering him? I seriously hope he's not in love with another girl.'

Donkey thought for a few moments, and then replied, 'I've been noticing that he's acting strange, too. But he seemed to be happy when he saw me. I mean maybe he's pretending to be happy around me; I don't really know though. Is he acting visibly unhappy around you?'

Dixie blew a bubble with her gum, and then replied to the question.

'He's not exactly unhappy, but rather moody and worried about something. I wonder if he's got a secret, or something that's on his mind.'

Donkey lightly joked, 'If he's acting moody around you, and happy around me, then he sure is moody!'

'Donkey, do you think he's in love with another girl? Maybe Candy? Because if he's around you so much, maybe he secretly likes Candy,' Dixie asked in a worried manner.

Donkey gently patted Dixie's shoulders to assure her.

'I doubt that, kiddo. You and Candy are two different types, and I doubt he would ever have a crush on Candy.'

'Then what do you think is on his mind? Could it be that he's in love with a guy?'

Donkey shrugged his shoulders, and replied, 'I've never thought of that possibility. But he did tell me that he thought Candy was lucky because she was dating a "handsome" guy like me. I don't think that necessarily would mean he's in love with me, though.'

Dixie pondered for a moment, and started swinging her legs, with her legs hitting the sofa.

'Guys seem to be a bit slow on these things--the more I think about it, the more I think that he likes you more than me,' Dixie pouted.

Donkey waved a finger at her, and told her, 'Now, don't pout, Dixie. I think we all want to remain friends, and I don't want to get into a fight with you.'

'But haven't you noticed how he looks at you? How he wants to be with you so much? How he idolises you and looks up to you?' Dixie asked Donkey.

'I just thought that was a form of hero worship,' Donkey replied.

'Hero worship? I think Diddy's beyond that stage,' she told Donkey in a stern voice.

'What do you want me to do then? Reject him as a friend? Tell him to start going out on more dates with you?'

Dixie shook her head. She was confused about how to deal with both Diddy and Donkey, and while she had a feeling her speculations were true, she still wanted to remain at least friends with both of them. How could they try to resolve the situation without all three of them falling out with each other?

'Donkey, try to observe Diddy's behaviour, and see for yourself. I'll let you judge for yourself--I just offered my insight. But honestly, I'd rather see him fall in love with you than some girl,' Dixie told him.

'Are you feeling better, Dixie? I hope this conversation didn't make you angry,' Donkey coaxed Dixie.

'Yeah, I think I'm feeling better. It feels better just to sort out my own thoughts and opinions,' she replied, as she got off the sofa, and shook hands with Donkey.

'Thanks for being my friend, Donkey,' she told him.

'Let me ask you one question before you leave, Dixie. Do you think the three of us can remain friends if your speculation turns out to be true?' he asked her.

'Sure, I think we can. He's not going to desert me as a friend, even if he doesn't look at me as a love interest anymore,' she confidently replied, and left the treehouse.

'Donkey, I got the whipped cream for you!' Diddy beamed as he came back to the treehouse after he was done shopping. It was about a half an hour after Dixie had left; however, Donkey wasn't going to tell him that Dixie had stopped by. 'Put them in the fridge, Diddy,' he ordered, as he took a moment to observe his younger friend. Diddy was smiling radiantly, and he seemed genuinely delighted to be in Donkey's company. 'What, Donkey?' Diddy asked, and felt his face redden in embarrassment since Donkey was staring into his eyes. 'Here, I should put them in the fridge myself, since I was the one who sent you out to get some,' he offered to take the bag from Diddy.

He then took the bag, and stuffed it in the fridge.

Diddy smiled at him again, and said, 'You're always so nice to me, you know.'

'I'm your friend! Of course I'm nice!' Donkey replied playfully.

Diddy frowned, and pouted, 'But you're probably nicer to Candy because she's your girlfriend.'

Donkey stooped down to Diddy, took his hand, and led him to the sofa. Diddy's heart raced at the fact that they were holding hands, and looked up to Donkey to see if he was angry or not. He was not angry--rather, he had a warm and reassuring smile.

'It's not the amount of niceness, but the type of niceness, you see. I guess it's a bit difficult for a kid like you to understand yet,' Donkey tried to explain delicately, as he didn't want to anger Diddy.

'So the niceness you show to me is different from the niceness you show to Candy, even though you like us both?' Diddy asked innocuously.

'Well, you could say it like that,' Donkey told him, as he put his arm round Diddy's shoulders.

'But…I want to be shown the same niceness as Candy,' Diddy started to cry, as he realised that he had just confessed his love to Donkey.

It was then that Donkey had understood Dixie's suspicions. Diddy wasn't jealous of Candy because he simply spent a lot of time with her. He was jealous of Candy because he had a crush on him instead of Dixie.

Donkey reached out to hug his little friend, and he gently told him, 'There's nothing wrong with feeling how you feel. In fact, little buddy Diddy, I'm flattered, because I feel loved. And I want you to feel loved too; I don't want you to feel betrayed or lonely.'

Diddy had stopped crying, but wondered if Donkey would ever feel the same about him. But for now, he felt safe, warm, and loved with Donkey.