AN: Yeah, poor Yero, huggles for him... it'll only get worse :P.
Elphaba'sGirl: I just counted my characters (the more important ones, that is - the ones that actually have names :P) in my original story. Exactly as many men/boys as women/girls . So that doesn't help much, either... and the thing is: no, it's not a Xavenna baby (don't you just love that ship name? Sorry, I had to do that ^_^). I'm not going to say whose baby it is, because I don't want to spoiler, but it's not Xav and Cenna's. I'm going to have to give this some more thought.
ThroppSister: You're welcome! I know that sometimes, small things can make a huge difference; and I'm glad I could do this for you. It's good to see that you'll be alright eventually. Good luck with everything!
Chapter 3. The boyfriend
"Fae!" His heartbeat sped up when he saw her walking on the other side of the courtyard, talking to and laughing with some other guy. In that moment, he truly did not see anything wrong with that picture – he just saw her having found herself another friend, which he was glad about. The more people could see the beautiful person she really was, the better. In that moment, as he ran towards them, he didn't see the way that they were holding hands; or the loving look on the boy's face; or the blush and the small smile on Elphaba's.
He saw it, however, when he came closer… and he did not like it.
"Elphaba?" he asked again, and she spun around. She looked as if she was a small child that had just been busted whilst trying to steal a cookie from the cookie jar.
"Fiyero!" She bit her lip and avoided his gaze. Quickly, she pushed the other boy forward. "Gaz, this is Fiyero. Fiyero, this is Gazilon. I met him last summer in Munchkinland."
Fiyero nodded politely at the other boy, though he felt a growing desire to punch him in the face. Gazilon returned the nod. "Fiyero…" he repeated. He glanced quickly at Elphaba. "I've heard so much about you."
"All bad things, I hope," he joked, but inwardly he was cheering. If she had been talking to this guy about him, maybe he was reading this all wrong. Maybe she just wasn't jumping into his arms and kissing his face off because they were in public.
Not that Elphaba would ever jump into his arms and kiss his face off. She was Elphaba, after all.
"And all true," Elphaba quipped in response to his earlier remark. He grinned at her, and she returned the grin; but then she caught Gazilon looking at her and she suddenly began acting awkward again.
"Look, Fiyero, I…" She took a deep breath. "We need to talk."
He nodded. "I agree. Let's go have coffee at the Primrose Café," he suggested. "Just the two of us," he added with a wink.
She shuffled back and forth. "I don't think that's such a good idea."
He frowned. "What do you mean?"
She looked up at Gazilon for a moment, who gave her a sympathetic look and Fiyero an apologetic one. Fiyero immediately bristled when he saw that. Since when was Elphaba sharing looks with this guy instead of with him? And why was this Gazilon looking at him as if he was saying sorry? Well, he would be sorry once Fiyero was done with him!
"Yero…" His heart leapt up when she used his nickname, but the look on her face unnerved him completely.
She sighed. "There's no good way to tell you this," she said softly, "so I'm just going to get it over with."
He nodded, not saying anything, but dreading what was to come.
Elphaba hugged Gazilon's arm, moving closer to his side. "Fiyero, Gaz and I are together," she said.
For the second time in two days, he felt like he had been punched. Hard. He could only gape at her, not a sound coming out of his mouth.
"Look," Elphaba said apologetically, looking up at Gazilon for a moment – which made Fiyero want to rip the other boy's head off and stuff it up his… He stopped himself before he could finish that thought.
"Fiyero, we just went on two dates," Elphaba reminded him. "We kissed only once. And I loved being around you, don't get me wrong. I really enjoyed the time we spent together. But we weren't together. They were just a couple of dates, and… and then we didn't see each other for three whole months." She looked up at Gazilon again. "I met Gaz about three weeks into summer vacation," she said. "His parents travel throughout all of Oz, and they spent this summer in Munchkinland. One thing led to another…" She shrugged. "We fell in love."
Deep breaths, Fiyero. He felt like he was going to faint. How was he supposed to breathe again? In, out. In, out.
"We've been together for two months this Friday," Gazilon announced proudly and Elphaba smiled at him.
Then she looked back at Fiyero again. "Galinda told me she talked to you," she said. "Sorry I didn't come to see you yesterday; but I had promised I'd take Nessie to town for dinner, and before that, Galinda went all blonde-crazy on me about how 'amazifying' it was to see me again…" She laughed.
Fiyero didn't.
"…so I barely had the chance to spend any time alone with Gazilon," Elphaba continued. "That's why I got home so late last night – we went out."
"Out?" Fiyero, who finally found his voice again, managed to choke out. "Elphaba, you never go 'out'."
She shrugged. "I did now," she said. "I'm sorry, Fiyero… if I made you believe that this thing we had was more than it really was. But I've moved on from it, and I think you should, too." With that, she turned around, tugging on Gazilon's arm. "Come on, Gaz. Let's go have brunch."
Fiyero could only watch helplessly as they walked off.
He spotted Galinda across the courtyard, sitting on a bench under a tree, later that afternoon. There was a book in her hands, but he noticed she was peering over it and ogling a handsome boy on the other side of the courtyard, which would have made him roll his eyes, but he was too upset for that now. Instead, he immediately approached her and plopped down on the bench next to her.
"Okay," he said. "Spill. What do you know about this Gazilon guy?"
She eyed him up and down suspiciously. "What's in it for me?" she wanted to know.
He rolled his eyes and pointed at the boy she had been staring at. "He's in my Economics class. I could introduce you two."
"Deal." Galinda immediately put her book down and started counting it off on her fingers. "Gazilon Damaran. Twenty-three years old. Father stems from a wealthy and influential Glikkun family, mother grew up in the Emerald City. They're extremely rich – they own an apartment in the City and at least three mansions throughout Oz. They travel a lot and they were in Munchkinland this summer, where Elphaba met him. The boy already has two degrees in Politics and Literature – can you believe he was admitted to university in the Emerald City when he was only sixteen? – and here at Shiz he's doing a double major in Philosophy and Life Sciences with a minor in History. He's super-duper smart – dare I say it? He might even be smarter than Elphie herself – and for as far as I've seen it, he treats her like a princess." She shook her head. "Sorry, Fifi. You've been crushed like a bug. You know I love you, but you don't hold a candle to this guy. He's perfection in male form." She sighed dreamily. "And then I didn't even mention his body – did you see that golden hair? The dreamy brown eyes? The muscles? I know she would never admit it, but even Elphie can't be insensitive to those things. No girl is."
Fiyero chose to ignore the not-very-subtle insult towards him she'd thrown in and focused on the rest she had told him. "You've certainly paid this a lot of thought, haven't you?"
She nodded. "Ever since Elphie came back from her date very late last night and I started interrogating her," she said. "I mean, I'm her best friend. I should check her boyfriends over before things get too serious between them. And honestly, I can't find anything wrong with this guy." She wrinkled her nose. "Except maybe that he's too smart. But knowing Elphie, I don't think she will find that much of a problem."
"So how did she meet him?" Fiyero asked the blonde, desperate for anything that he could use against this guy.
"They rented a house in Munchkinland," said Galinda, "and his parents met up with Governor Thropp a few times – I don't know, to discuss political business-y stuff, I guess. Who cares. Anyway, one time Gazilon came with them and he wandered out into the garden, where Elphie was reading. From what she told me, I'm going to have to assume that it was love at first sight, though Elphie would kill me if I said that out loud to her – she doesn't believe in those things. But they started talking about smart-people-stuff I don't understand and there was a click. They became friends, went into town or for walks together a couple of times, and got officially together a few weeks later. He begged his parents if he could go to Shiz after the summer – he studied his first year in the Glikkus. His first year of Philosophy, Life Sciences and History, that is. He started taking those classes last year, right after he had gotten his degree in Politics and Literature. Elphie thinks that's totally admirable. I don't, really – but then again, I'm blonde, so what do I know?" She tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Anyway, his parents agreed that he could go to Shiz with Elphie, so now he's in her classes. Philosophy, Life Sciences and History."
Well, at least Fiyero still had Law and Literature alone with her, he reasoned.
"Only because they're so in love and stuff, he accompanies her to all her classes," Galinda added. "Isn't that sweet? He sits through her other subjects with her, even though he's not taking one of them and has already gotten his degree in the other one. He does it purely because he wants to spend all his time with her! I mean, honestly – that is so romantic."
Fiyero's face fell.
"Thanks, Glin," he muttered and he made to stand up, but the blonde stopped him, her face softening.
"Yero," she said softly. "I know you really are in love with her."
He bit his lip and nodded.
"But if you love her," Galinda continued, "then you should want what's best for her… and I really think this Gazilon is making her happy."
Fiyero sighed and nodded again.
"So do me a favour," Galinda said, "and don't do anything stupid for once."
"You sound like my sister," Fiyero grumbled.
Galinda giggled softly. "Maybe your sister has a point."
He sighed again. "Fine, Glin. I'll try not to do anything stupid."
She giggled once more and patted his arm. "That's a good Fifi."
He grunted and pulled away from her, stomping off towards his dorm room.
"You."
Nessa looked up from her History book and immediately looked back down again. "No."
Fiyero blinked at her. "What do you mean, no?"
Nessa calmly sipped her tea and gingerly put her book on the table, smoothing out the pages. "I mean no. No, I'm not going to tell you anything, anything at all, about Fabala and her new boyfriend. It's her business, not mine. Just because Galinda is willing to tell you everything she knows in exchange for a date with some handsome boy, doesn't mean I am, too."
Fiyero sat down in the chair across from her, narrowing his eyes at the wheelchair-bound girl. "And in exchange for a date with Boq?"
She sighed deeply. "Fiyero, you can't bribe me," she said. "My lips are sealed."
He pouted.
She pressed her lips together.
He made googly eyes at her.
She glared at him.
He begged, "Pretty please, Nessa?"
She crossed her arms and shook her head.
"Why not?"
"Because," she said, picking up her tea cup and delicately taking a sip, "she is my sister and I don't want to tell people things about her behind her back. Not even you. If you want to know things, you're going to have to talk to Fabala." She looked at him. "All I'm going to say is that you better not meddle with affairs that are none of your business, Fiyero. I like seeing my sister happy."
"So do I," he interrupted her. "And I know she could be happy with me."
"She is happy with Gazilon," Nessa stressed. "You're not breaking them up, Fiyero. I won't allow it. She is my sister and I love her, and I will not sit idly by and watch as you and Gazilon fight over Fabala like she is a piece of meat. She's not. She's a person. She has feelings."
"I know that –"
"Then look at those feelings, Fiyero, and see them for what they are. There is no hidden motive here. She just didn't see you for three months and she fell in love with someone else. It happens all the time. I understand that's hard for you, but you're just going to have to accept it."
"We didn't see each other, but we wrote letters," Fiyero argues weakly.
Nessa looked at him with what looked an awful lot like pity. "That's not the same, Fiyero." She sighed. "I really am sorry. I liked you two together, I really did. But not everything lasts, and as long as Fabala is happy – and not doing anything inappropriate, of course, but she would never; Gazilon is too much of a gentleman for that – that's all that matters to me."
Fiyero put his arms on the table and rested his head on them, suddenly feeling tired.
"I'm also sorry I didn't tell you yesterday," Nessarose apologised. "I know Boq and I were acting rather strange, but we both agreed you needed to talk to Fabala first before we could tell you anything… and it was hard to act normal around you when you were so obviously eager to see Fabala." She touched his arm lightly. "This does not mean you can't see her anymore, Fiyero. You can still be friends, the way you were before."
"Friends?" Fiyero let out a hollow laugh. "Nessa… we've been friends for months," he said. "And every single day that we were friends, I have loved her. I fell in love with her the day Dr. Dillamond was fired, all those months ago. I thought she could never love me. That's why I was content with being her friend. And then she told me she did like me in that way, and I just…" He rubbed his face, fighting back tears he didn't want to spill in front of Nessa. "I love her. I really do. You have no idea how happy I was when I finally started believing that I might have a chance with her. I've been looking forward to seeing her again all summer long, waiting, counting the days, and… and she didn't even think about me. She just… fell in love with someone else."
Nessa looked at him sympathetically. "Those things happen, Fiyero."
"I know." He sighed and pushed his chair back. "Thanks for telling me, Nessa. If she really is happy…"
"She is," Nessa replied immediately.
Fiyero nodded. "Then I won't stand in her way."
With that, he left Nessa at her table and all but fled the café.
