Friends


There was a fly on her cheek but every time Hilary tried to swat it, her arm refused to budge. She couldn't see it, could only hear it buzzing before it would drop its weight upon her cheek. She groaned and slowly became aware that she was sleeping. If she could force herself awake, the fly would be gone. She just had to wake up.

It landed again and she snapped her eyes open.

For a moment, her brain sluggishly moved between dream and reality as she blinked against the light beaming against the white wall in front of her. White wall? She'd painted her walls shades of blue, bright, intense and yet tranquil.

Something hit her cheek but now she knew it wasn't a fly — it felt like a finger poking her cheek. She tried to lift her arm only to realise it was weighed down by a tangle of blankets.

"Ah, sleeping beauty awakens."

Max? She rolled over and blinked up at the blond boy sitting on… Right, she was in Tyson's room… in Tyson's bed and Max was there. "Oh. This is not what it looks like." She squeezed her eyes shut against the cliched phrase and tossed an arm over her eyes.

Now she remembered. She came over to wake Tyson but he'd wanted to sleep on and so they'd both taken a nap. Tyson didn't set an alarm. Oh god. "Where's Tyson? What time is it?" Her voice was groggy with disuse.

Max chuckled. "Relax Hilary, Tyson's taking his grandfather's kendo class. I just came over to return that DVD I borrowed from him."

"But I was supposed to make breakfast and… " She sat up, throwing off the blankets, and rolled her neck, expecting it to crick because she'd been sleeping in an unfamiliar bed, but her neck felt fine and Tyson's bed had been very comfortable, no wonder he was so reluctant to leave it. And yet, he had without her prodding. "He's really taking the class?"

"Yep," Max told her cheerfully as he rolled off the bed and stood up, stretching. "He told me not to wake you but I know you hate sleeping the day away. How're classes going?"

"Good." Following his lead, Hilary got out of bed and carefully remade the bedding before frowning down at herself. Her skirt was wrinkled and she really needed a mirror to check her hair. A quick pat told her that at least one section was flat when it should be flicked and another was flicked where it should be flat. This was all Tyson's fault.

"So," Max said, as she pulled a comb from her handbag, "you were sleeping in Tyson's bed."

"Max," she warned, putting the comb away. She folded her arms and braced her legs— her no nonsense pose.

She was not going to be led into this conversation. She'd done nothing wrong. She had simply napped in her friend's bed and yes, he happened to be a boy and no, napping beside Max or Kenny in their beds would never happen — definitely not with Rei because Mariah would skin her, and not Kai either because, Kai.

So what was it about Tyson that did this to her? She needed to move past this thing with him. Of course, if he stopped being so Tyson all the time, she could move on. Why couldn't he go back to that obnoxious boy who wasn't serious about anything and drove her nuts? Now he was this confident, sometimes bordering on arrogant, young man with this intensity that drove him towards victory and a belief in everyone that drove her nuts (and appealed to her so completely). Except he was still the Tyson she knew from back when, she just knew the different facets of him now.

Max hummed under his breath and sent her a sly smile but she refused to rise to his bait. There were times that Hilary found herself wondering if Max's cheerful demeanour was a mask for a demonic soul. He sure seemed to take pleasure out of her embarrassment.

She stalked past him, intent on making sure the dojo was intact, and then she'd go home to examine her reactions to Tyson Granger. Again.

"Aw Hils, don't worry so much," Max said, draping his arm around her shoulder and giving her a comforting squeeze. "I won't tell the others. What you and Tyson do in his bed shall remain between the three of us."

"We had a nap. It was just sleeping."

"Sure." He nodded. "And if it ever comes up, that's what I'll tell the others."

"Max." She ground her teeth and sucked in a deep breath, releasing it slowly.

He chuckled and held the door for her just as Tyson came along the porch, hands linked behind his head as he whistled a jaunty tune. Her heart stuttered in her chest and she rubbed the spot, irritated with herself. He actually looked like a trainer, dressed in his navy kendogi rather than the casual wear he sported when he was teaching the local kids how to blade.

His face brightened at the sight of them.

"Hey guys! You're not gone yet Maxie? I thought you had a shift at the hobby shop."

"Oh yeah." Max checked his watch. "Oh crud, I gotta run. I wanted to sneak in a quick call to Mom and remind her that I have holidays coming up and I want to either book Dad and I a flight to America or get her to come here." He wrinkled his nose. "Probably better to convince her to come here. Dad will take time off from work, but Mom's a workaholic, if she's anywhere near her office, her people will constantly be calling her to verify things for them. If she's out of the country, she can't do that and she'll not answer her phone. Hey, thanks Tyson!"

As he ran off, Hilary tilted her head at Tyson, trying to ignore how adult he looked in the kendogi, with the sleeves rolled up showing toned forearms peppered with dark hairs. "Why did he thank you?"

"Well," Tyson counted out on his fingers, "I reminded him he has to go to work and two, I helped him make a decision on how to spend his holidays. I'm a really good friend in that way."

Yes, still arrogant. "I think Max sorted that out on his own."

Tyson rubbed his thumb over his upper lip and shook his head. "But I still prompted him to think about it. Face it, Hilary, I'm an awesome friend."

Oh, she knew that. The boy befriended everyone and everything he came across. Which was why it bothered her that he had seemed so reluctant to befriend her. It was as if she'd been some kind of contagious disease that he had been terrified of contracting. Except, she reminded herself, she was not going to analyse what Tyson may or may not feel about her. They were friends now and that's what mattered. Friends who now apparently sle — napped together.

"So why didn't you wake me this morning?"

Tyson reached up to massage the back of his neck as he gave a jerky shrug. "Well you were in a deep sleep and you must have been up early to trek the whole way over here, so I thought I'd let you sleep on. Besides, what were you going to do while I practiced?"

"I guess I would have gone home and worked on that assignment for next Friday." Since she'd gone to an archery tournament with her after-school club, she had fallen two days behind in her academic schedule.

A groan spilled from his lips as his head fell back against the wall. "Ugh, Hilary! It's the weekend. You're not supposed to do work during the weekend. It's time for fun."

"I do fun things during the holidays. I travel the world and I watch sports." Basically she followed the Bladebreakers.

"You babysit Daichi and exhaust yourself taking care of me, Kenny and the others. That's not fun Hilary, that's a job. You're our manager so it's not a holiday when you're with us." With an exasperated sigh, he grabbed her wrist and she stumbled forward. "Come on."

She slipped out of his grasp, fingers buzzing with the phantom warmth and callouses of his hand. "Hold on. Tyson, I have to put my shoes on."

"Well go do that and then we're going to go eat."

Eat? He was taking her for food? Was Tyson really this much of a blind idiot? If anyone saw them eating lunch together they'd call it a date!

She blew her hair out of her face and tugged on her shoes because even knowing that, she couldn't help the fluttering in her stomach at the idea of spending some time with Tyson without the others around. It was rare; it was golden.

Still… "Don't you think it'll be weird the two of us going to eat together?"

Tyson rolled his eyes. "We're friends Hilary. It's no different that when we share your bento at school."

"It is different. You steal food from my bento, Max is often there and Kenny is usually there as well." Half the time Daichi showed up too despite being in a different school.

"Well we'll go to Kenny's place and eat. You haven't eaten since this morning. You need food and I don't have anything in the house. So let's go."

When he held out his hand, Hilary carefully took it. There was definitely something else going on with Tyson, but he'd either tell her later or the weirdness would fade. Maybe their friendship was just changing, deepening, or maybe…

No, Hilary, no. Just no.

She wasn't going to get her hopes up. Not yet anyway. Not without some more evidence. She'd email Mariah after she got home, just for a second opinion.


A.N. So I started posting these on my Tumblr, which is where I tend to post drabbles and outtakes from my fanfiction and people seemed to really like them, so I'm posting them here too. And then Umayorokobi did a LiveStream on Sunday and she did a beautiful fancomic of the 'Stay' moment from chapter one and it's beautiful and you should all go look, the link is in my profile. Seriously, I don't think I've ever been so honoured. I've never had a fanart of a scene before. So yeah, it was seriously awesome. I hope to write some more for these two this weekend when I have some free time and don't have to do course work.

Anyway I hope you enjoy!