Characters: Stella and Brandon

Rating: T

Type: Romance/Hurt/Comfort/Humor

Prompt: Brandon gets jealous when he sees Stella hanging out with some other guy (who happens to be Stella's close friend from her childhood, but Brandon doesn't know about that) and the guy acts flirty around her, which triggers Brandon even further. Both guys then get in a physical fight and later Stella takes Brandon with her to tend his wounds and the couple make up.

Submitter: Tara

The Visitor

Brandon and Stella were walking along the gardens of Red Fountain, telling each other sweet nothings that for sure would have made Riven gag if he had been near.

"Oh Brandy-bear, I love you so much." Stella cooed as she rubbed her nose on Brandon's.

"I love you too, Sunshine." Brandon smiled at Stella as he stroked her golden blonde locks.

"I-Caleb?" Stella squinted her eyes at something behind Brandon's shoulder. Brandon turned his head and saw from the corner of his eye a figure walking closer to them. "CALEB!"

Stella pushed aside Brandon and ran up to the figure. Brandon turned around and saw Stella jump into the arms of a tall, tan, and blonde man roughly the same age as him.

"What are you doing here?" Stella asked with an excited smile on her face as she hung onto his neck.

"I came to visit you!" Caleb smiled down at Stella.

"You are nothing like I remembered. I could barely tell that it was you." Stella said.

"Yeah, I hit the gym and finally did something with my hair." Caleb chuckled.

There was a sound behind Stella of someone clearing their throat and Stella turned around and looked at Brandon.

"Oh, sorry Brandon. This is Caleb. Caleb, this is Brandon." Stella introduced the two. It was not lost on Brandon that Stella did not introduce him as his boyfriend but it was Stella and she could sometimes get lost in the moment. Caleb extended a hand and Brandon did the same, meeting in an awkward and tense handshake.

"Come on, Caleb! I want to hear about everything that has happened in Solaria since I have been gone." Stella turned towards Brandon, "I'll see you later, Brandon."

Stella turned and walked away with her arm latched onto Caleb's. Brandon sighed as he watched his girlfriend so easily walk away from him, the same woman who would spend five minutes saying goodbye to him. Who never left without kissing him goodbye.

The day continued on and Brandon spent it in his room working on his assignments for class. The door opened and Sky walked in.

"Oh, hey Brandon. I thought that you were hanging out with Stella today." Sky remarked as he saw Brandon at his desk.

"Yeah, but a friend from home came and she wanted to catch up with him." Brandon answered looking up from his paper.

"Him?" Sky lifted an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but I have nothing to be worried about." Brandon rolled his eyes while throwing an eraser at Sky.

"So you have nothing to be afraid of the man who hasn't kept his hands off of Stella?" Sky asked as he looked out the window. Brandon shot up from his chair and ran to the window to see Stella sitting in Caleb's lap and giggling to whatever Caleb was saying. Brandon also saw the way that his hands moved up and down Stella's back, moving lower and lower with each stroke, Stella oblivious to it all as she kept talking. Caleb looked at Stella up and down, tracing the curves of her body with his eyes.

Brandon's blood was starting to boil.

Brandon pulled himself away from the window and stormed out of the room, Sky following behind.

"Hey, don't do anything stupid. I am sure that it is nothing." Sky placed a hand on Brandon's shoulder.

"Nothing? Did you not see the way that he was looking at her? The way he touched her?" Brandon exclaimed in the hallway.

"Brandon, you need to calm down. Calm down and then confront him. Plus, it's Aisha's birthday party tonight, I'm sure Stella will have caught up with him and then you two can enjoy the party together." Sky advised.

Brandon breathed deeply and heavily, trying to return his breathing to a normal pace. He felt calmer and comforted. This was only for an afternoon and then Stella would be back in his arms.

But he was wrong.

At the party, Brandon stood in the corner of the room as he watched Stella giggle with Caleb, his arm around her waist. Brandon slowly sipped some punch that Riven had so lovingly spiked with some of his homemade moonshine. His head started to feel heavier but he was not sure if that was due to the alcohol or seeing Stella in the arms of another man.

"Caleb, I am sad that you are leaving tomorrow." Stella pouted. "Is there no way that you can't stay a little longer?"

"I'm sorry, Stell-Bell but I have to go." Caleb sighed.

"I had such a wonderful day with you." Stella smiled up at Caleb.

"I did too." Caleb lowered his head and his lips met Stella's. Stella stood in shock as she felt Caleb's lips come to hers.

Brandon crushed his cup in his hands, punch spilling to the floor seeing Stella and Caleb sharing a kiss. Enough was enough.

Stella pulled away, "I...I have..." Stella was interrupted when Brandon flew across her and tackled Caleb to the floor.

Caleb crashed with Brandon on top of him, and getting a swift punch to the face. Caleb managed to push Brandon off of him and give Brandon his own punch to the face. Brandon's nose started to bleed, but all Brandon could see was red.

A crowd started to form around the two fighting men. Caleb and Brandon exchanged punches until a voice rang throughout the crowd.

"Brandon, STOP!" Stella shouted, tears forming in her eyes.

"Stella..." Stella looked down at Brandon and seeing the blood run from his nose. Stella kneeled down to Brandon and threw her arms around him.

"What is wrong with you?" Stella shouted as she looked at Brandon and gave him a slap across the face. "Krystal, can you heal Caleb? I would like to talk to Brandon in private." Stella stood up and pulled Brandon with her.

Stella and Brandon left the room to the bathroom where Stella sat Brandon on the toilette while she dug through th medicine cabinet for the first aid kit.

"I can't believe what you did out there." Stella grumbled as she pulled out the first aid kit and made her way to sit on the edge of the tub.

"What I did? I am not the one kissing other people's girlfriends." Brandon replied defensively.

"He didn't know."

"Yeah, I noticed you left out that detail when you introduced us." Brandon snapped.

"I was excited to see him."

"And you didn't think to bring it up later?"

"The subject never came up." Stella shot back as she pulled out gauze and rolled it up before sticking it up Brandon's nose. "Keep your head back." Stella instructed.

"Really? Not when he was looking at you like you were naked or when he was rubbing his hands all over you?" Brandon quipped.

"He wasn't doing that."

"You may not have noticed it but I did." Brandon said as he held his head back and the gauze in his nose while Stella stood up to wet a washcloth with warm water for his eye and nose.

"Brandon," Stella sighed as she walked back over to Brandon, "I love you and nothing or nobody is going to change that. Caleb is just an old friend from my childhood. I just wish that you trusted me."

"I guess I let jealousy get the best of me." Brandon said.

"You think?" Stella giggled as she motioned towards Brandon's overall state.

"I will try to let it not happen again." Brandon chuckled.

"You better not. Next time, just come to me about the problem. Don't tackle them in the middle of a crowded room." Stella closed the first aid kit and walked back to the cabinet to place it back.

"Who would have ever thought that I would be the irrational one?" Brandon laughed.

"Hey, I am rational." Stella replied through feigned offense.

"I love you, Stella." Brandon stood up and walked towards Stella.

"I love you too, Brandon." Stella responded before placing a kiss on Brandon's cheek, causing Brandon to wince. Stella giggled, "Come on, let's get back to the party and maybe you can apologize to Caleb."

Stella and Brandon walked out of the bathroom back to the party where all eyes were on them. Brandon walked up to Caleb who looked like he had not just been in a fight, unlike Brandon.

"Hey, I just wanted to apologize for what I did." Brandon rubbed the back of his neck.

"Hey man, I should apologize, I had no idea that Stella had a boyfriend." Caleb shrugged.

"Yeah, she seemed to have forgotten to mention that." Brandon let out a soft chuckle.

"Forgive me?" Caleb asked.

"Only if you can forgive me." Brandon smiled.

"Deal." Caleb extended his hand once again and this time, Brandon gladly accepted his handshake.

"Hey, is there anyway you could teach me to get better power on that right hook? That hit really did a number on me." Brandon asked as he walked to the punch table with Caleb.

"Sure thing, buddy."