A/N: So much love for the reviewers! I hope you're all enjoying this story (otherwise known as: this excuse for Gilbert torture) as much as I am! With that said, enjoy chapter 3!


2:05 pm.

Gilbert was late.

As Kevin waited outside Pandora, he shuffled from foot to foot, more than a little impatient. Usually, a five minute delay wouldn't be much to fuss over, but Kevin was already nervous to begin with. It didn't show outwardly, not as he leaned against the old brick-styling of the book and coffee shop, not as the purple umbrella over his head was twirled 'round and 'round in a leisurely fashion, and especially not in that languid, almost creepy smile he had pasted upon his lips.

He had perfected that smile to such a degree, that his lips curled upward almost unnaturally so. But, so as not to scare dear Gilbert away, Kevin forced the edges of his lips to fall a bit lower, into what he assumed was a socially-acceptable expression.

"Kevin?"

A bit startled at the use of his name, Kevin turned his feet to the direction of the voice, and found Gilbert a few steps away. Both took in the attire of the other. Well, Kevin mostly admired the thigh-hugging jeans and pinstripe vest that was "pectoral-approved", and gave him the idea that maybe acting gay wouldn't be so hard.

Gilbert, on the other hand, was quite preoccupied with the purple umbrella.

"... You do realize it's sunny out, don't you?" Gilbert asked, "perturbed" written all across his forehead.

Kevin, just for amusement's sake, twirled the umbrella faster so the purple object became more of a purple blur, watching Gilbert blink a few times to focus his amber eyes.

"Oh, this?" Kevin began, his shoulders lifting into a slight shrug. "The sun and I aren't on very good terms. Being albino is cause for some intense sunburns."

Kevin literally watched something click in Gilbert's brain. "Oh... right. I guess that makes sense."

"Completely. Now... shall we?"

Kevin reached out to open the front door of Pandora, straightening his back and gesturing for Gilbert to go first.

It was, after all, a gentleman's duty.

On the other hand, Gilbert's skills in the politeness field were rusty, as he hesitated to take up Kevin's offer.

"Wait." Gilbert said, crossing his arms to further emphasize how very stubborn he was. "What about my wallet?"

Kevin's teeth peeked from underneath his grin, and he dug his hand into his pocket, pulling out a familiar worn-down leather wallet.

"This?" Kevin teased. "Nah, I think I'll hang onto it, just to ensure that you don't run away! Sounds good, hmm?"

"... Or creepy."

"That's subjective." Kevin said, before stuffing the wallet safely back into his pocket. "Now, as I suggested in the first place... shall we?"

Finally, but not before emitting an exasperated sigh, Gilbert walked into the book and coffee shop, Kevin falling into step behind him. He noted how Gilbert took a survey of the place, but not so much out of curiosity. Rather, he looked like a jittery mouse that was constantly looking out for any feline foes.

Kevin chose to keep this observation to himself, and led Gilbert to the counter, behind which a familiar head of auburn locks swept, the owner obviously keeping busy.

"Sharon dear~!" Kevin sang, catching the brunette's attention and giggling when she nearly dropped two cups of coffee.

"Kevi!" Sharon greeted, looking ready to pounce on the albino. "One sec!"

Sharon sped through her next few customers, splashing coffee into styrofoam cups and slapping the lids on so fast, Kevin was worried she might burn herself. Not that that would stop her, though, Kevin thought with a small smile. He and Sharon were actually close, sharing a bother and sister bond ever since he first became a regular at the small coffee shop.

Then again, and ironically enough, even if Sharon did work adjacent to a bookstore, she had no idea that Kevin was a famous author himself... .

"One caramel latte with extra sugar?" Sharon asked, once she had basically shooed the remaining customers out the door.

"Oh my," Kevin began in a teasing tone, placing a palm over his heart. "You remembered! I'm flattered, my dear."

"I always remember, Kevi." the girl said, rolling her eyes in an equally teasing manner.

Kevin just kept smiling in a way he deemed pleasant, before both he and Sharon were reminded of a certain wavy-haired male who had been utterly neglected.

Gilbert cleared his throat in the loudest, most obnoxious way possible, turning two expectant, amber eyes on Kevin.

Kevin had to fight the desire to laugh at his dates' misfortune. "Ah, yes, sorry Gilbert. Gilbert this is Sharon, Sharon this is Gilbert, and Gilbert wants a Cinnamon Crème Frappucino, if you don't mind."

The look on Gilbert's face expressed nothing but shock. "How did you-"

"Trust me, I can tell."

For a moment, the interaction between Gilbert and Kevin was just a silent mixture of open, baffled jaws and damnable grins, until the most high-pitched squeal known to man created little tremors inside Kevin's ears.

"So. Adorable!" Sharon gushed, and even with her feet hidden behind the counter, Kevin knew she was bounding upon her toes. "Kevi, you have a boyfriend! Nya~!"

If it were possible, Gilbert's jaw would have dropped lower. "W-wait! No, we're not-!"

"Aw, is my Gil-bear blushing?!" Kevin teased, putting extra effect into the rosy hues when he pinched Gilbert's cheeks. "Such a cute brat, yes you are!"

"Cut it out!" Gilbert cried, slapping at Kevin's prodding fingers before putting himself out of arm's reach. "We're most definitely not dating."

At this news, Sharon pushed her lower lip out in a pout, and Kevin just clicked his tongue.

"Goodness, you're no fun at all." he murmured.

"Yes, it's too bad." Sharon stepped in. "But, I know a cute couple when I see one, and you two are going to get together. Mark my words!"

Gilbert spluttered for a moment, trying to help his mouth get a grip on some actual words, but Kevin just pushed him back and patted his head as if to say, "nice try".

Once Gilbert folded his arms and looked to be sulking a bit, Kevin turned back to Sharon. "No worries, Sharon, I'll let you know immediately when that happens."

"I'll hold you to that." Sharon giggled, and reached over the counter to hand Kevin two drinks. "Here you go! I'll see you around, Kevi!"

Kevin grinned his own goodbye, before nudging a still fuming Gilbert, who eventually followed him to the nearest booth. He didn't look too happy about it though.

"You know, I'd really rather you not spread false information about 'us'." Gilbert said, his lips twisted into a frown.

"Hmm?" Kevin hummed, scooting Gilbert's drink across the table. "Oh, you shouldn't worry about that. It was all in good fun! Besides, Sharon knows I like my privacy, so if it's rumors you're worried about... don't be."

Gilbert, with his arms still folded tight against his chest, looked skeptical. "... Fine."

Kevin beamed, which did nothing to ease Gilbert's frustrations. "All this trouble for a stupid wallet... ."

"A stupid wallet containing all your information, credit cards, gym memberships, and some adorable photos!"

"You did look through it!" Gilbert fumed, ready to dive across the table and pummel the albino himself, which actually would have ended badly for him.

Kevin was far stronger than his looks credited him for.

"Are they friends, or brothers?" Kevin inquired, ignoring the angry spark in Gilbert's eyes. "You know, the man with the mismatched eyes and the peculiar boy with hair that sticks up in all directions?"

Gilbert began his next words with a sigh; "Brothers... ."

Kevin tilted his head to the right, causing even more hair to fall into his face. "You don't sound to happy about that... ."

"Wha- no! No, I love my brothers!" Gilbert protested, waving his hands back and forth. "It just that... well, the three of us have had problems for a while."

"Is it because you're gay?"

The frappucino Gilbert had been sipping on suddenly spewed from his lips in intense sprays. Kevin found himself once again indebted to his quick reflexes, that enabled him to splay his body, stomach-down, onto the bench before the stream could hit him. Even before he pushed himself back up, Gilbert's enraged voice boomed;

"What the hell is your problem?!"

Kevin peeked over the table. "My problem?"

"You don't just say stuff like that out loud, dammit!" Gilbert said, sounding utterly furious, although the blush burning across his nose and cheeks told a different story.

"Oh, right." Kevin mumbled, finally deeming it safe to sit up again. "Really, I tend to not have much of a filter. Please excuse my mouth."

Gilbert huffed and turned his head away. "Besides, for your information, that's not the problem. Far as I know, Elliot- the on with messy hair- has a thing for this guy named Leo, and Vincent... well, I think he'd bang anything with nice legs."

Kevin didn't say anything, but he did start to snort over his caramel latte.

"Honestly, I don't know what their problem is with me." Gilbert continued, pulling the straw out of his drink and nibbling on the end. "Sure, Vincent says he's all devoted to me and such, but he's never done much stepping in when I really need him. Elliot, on the other hand, pretty much just flat out hates me! Whenever I try to talk to him about it he always shoves me off, saying stuff like 'well, you didn't used to care about my problems, so why start caring now?'. It's damn infuriating! I don't know what I did!"

Kevin's one red eye blinked a few times, surprised at the sudden- and very personal- outburst. To Kevin's mind, he could imagine Gilbert's personality was something like a dam. A few cracks in the solid cement, and soon the whole wall breaks, allowing the floods to escape... .

If Kevin played his cards right, he imagined gaining Gilbert's affections wouldn't be terribly difficult... .

"Hmm, and I imagine you've continued to approach this issue with you brothers... right?"

If the look on Gilbert's face counted for anything, then that assumption was most certainly not right.

"Um... ." came his pathetic reply. "No. I gave up on that battle a long time ago."

"How long is 'a long time ago'?"

"... About a year."

Kevin raised two strikingly white eyebrows. "You haven't talked to your brothers for an entire year?"

"What am I supposed to do?!" Gilbert cried, his arms flying high with exasperated flare. "Trying only makes it worse!"

Leaning forward to rest his chin against his palm, Kevin grinned. "Oh, I beg to differ!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes. In my experiences, I found that, with enough poking and prodding, people usually give in after a while. It might make them angry, but it usually works. Anyway, the only person who can fix your problems is you, so at least put some effort into it, yeah?"

That's when, for the second time that day, Kevin shocked Gilbert. It only took a few seconds for Kevin to recognize the slack-jawed expression from earlier, so something more interesting ended up catching his attention... .

Gilbert had, subconsciously, leaned into the table, his elbows resting upon the smooth surface to give his upper body some leverage.

… Yes, it was almost too easy.

"... I guess you're right." Gilbert said. "Weird, I never would have considered you the type to say anything useful."

"Hey now, who's really the useless one, hmm?"

"Useless-?!"

The pleasant chime of the bell hung over the front door cut Gilbert off mid-insult, and, as most humans do, his curious eyes glanced over to the stranger, without any real intent of finding out who it was.

Who he discovered, though, was not a stranger at all.

"Oh God-" Gilbert croaked, his fight-or-flight instincts kicking in to tell him that he'd better get the hell out.

Or, at least, find a place to hide.

As bruising as it would be to his pride, Gilbert ducked-and-dove underneath the table, choosing to cling to one of Kevin's legs as if the gates of hell were trying to suck him in. All the while, Kevin found himself sitting on a stump between amusement, and utter confusion.

He curved his waist to the side, low enough so he could barely see Gilbert's wide eyes, although his main attention was upon the arms wrapped around his leg. "Ah, Gilbert, don't you think we're moving too fast now?"

"Shut up, you idiot! Just pretend I'm not here, please!"

Kevin paused to stare at Gilbert's panicked expression, before realizing that he was actually taking pity on the poor guy. "... Fine, I'll play along. But only if you give me an explanation later. Deal?"

"Fine, deal, whatever, I don't care, just stop freaking talking to me!"

Kevin shrugged in response, before straightening his back and allowing his red eye to go on a hunt for this intruder who had inadvertently caused Gilbert to hide under a table.

Kevin wasn't unfamiliar with hiding under objects, but he did it for the sport of scaring people shitless. To actually do it out of fear meant that Gilbert must be desperate.

Still sipping on his latte, Kevin finally found the source of all the trouble, a bundle of trouble packed up in a young man with shaggy blonde hair and a striking set of emerald eyes. He looked to be about 22 or 23, and had a girl's arm linked with his, the girl sporting a half-pout, half-frown that was clearly outshone by the boy's too-happy grin.

"Eh, Gilbert, are you afraid of blondie, or his angry girlfriend?"

"I thought I told you not to talk to me!"

Kevin just snickered, before bringing his leg into a little bounce, the same leg that Gilbert still clung to. As he suspected, Gilbert was tossed around a bit, but ended up just tightening his grip like the stubborn arse he was.

Kevin watched the couple order and exchange pleasantries with Sharon- by the boy's doing, mostly- before grabbing their stuff and heading out the door. It was nothing more than that, no awkward encounters or seemingly mischievous intentions.

To Kevin's chagrin, they didn't even pass by his table.

"Alright, looks like you're safe." Kevin said, and the immediate response was noted when he was able to regain circulation in his calf.

As if he was unsure whether to trust Kevin or not, Gilbert peeked over the table, doing a low sweep of the café before he could be satisfied. Nothing, not one thing, was going to remedy that cute little blush of his though.

"Thank God." Gilbert gasped, regaining his spot on the bench and leaning heavily against the cushions. "That was a close call... ."

"Well, that much is obvious." Kevin pointed. "What I don't understand yet is just why that boy puts the fear of God in you."

Kevin clasped his hands together and stared with unblinking eye at Gilbert, the same way a child would stare at a parent, expecting a bed-time story. Just to confirm his hesitation further, Gilbert shrunk back a bit, and tried to focus his eyes anywhere else.

"That was... my old friend... Oz... ."

"Your 'old' friend? As in ex-friends?"

Gilbert's jaw tensed. "Yeah... I kind of... screwed up."

"How?"

"I-" Gilbert's voice choked, and he folded his arms across the table, bringing his head down to rest against the appendages. "We've been best friends since junior high, around the same time when I started realizing that I was... different. That I didn't like girls the way I was supposed to... . Really, I tried ignoring it for a while, but when I started seeing my best friend the way I shouldn't have, I knew I was screwed. That began the 10 year struggle of me trying to hide my feelings from him... ."

Gilbert paused, as if giving Kevin the opportunity to say something, but the albino kept his mouth shut, waiting for the rest of the story...

even if he knew how it was going to end.

Suddenly, Gilbert jerked up to rest his elbows against the table, and bury his face into his hands. "I don't know why I told him! I kept it quiet for 10 years, 10 years, so why couldn't I go for at least 11, or 12? I screwed the hell out of everything and now...! I've lost him... my best friend... ."

As he continued to mentally berate himself, Gilbert felt the tiniest, briefest brush of someone's fingers against his forehead. His eyelids popped open to stare between the gaps in his fingers, and found that Kevin had taken a stray piece of his hair, rubbing the wavy lock between two fingers, before nestling the strand back where it belonged-

only to flick Gilbert in his now bare forehead.

Gilbert yelped, more out of surprise than pain, and stared an incredulous stare at the albino. "What was that for?!"

"You dumb brat."

"Huh?!"

Kevin's droopy red eye looked even lazier than usual. "Are you really willing to allow a decade-long friendship to drift away just because you embarrassed yourself a bit? A dumb and foolish brat, I see."

He flicked Gilbert's forehead again, enjoying the outraged reaction he received, and the immature cry of "stop flicking me!".

"Flicks are for foolish people. Foolish people get flicks. Stop being foolish, and I'll stop flicking you."

Gilbert's arms were folded and pulled into his chest again, and he began to mutter, but Kevin could tell by the far-off look in his golden irises that he was putting some thought into the realization... .

See? A few flicks in the forehead, and everyone gets smarter.

"With that said," Kevin began, his grin returning full-fledged. "I think I can give you your wallet back in good conscience."

The leather object was passed from Kevin's side of the table, to Gilbert's, and the action finally caused Gilbert's mumblings to cease. "So... we're done?"

"Yup."

Kevin grabbed his now empty cup of latte and chucked it over his shoulder, making the shot into the trash bin and receiving a score of 10-fingers-up from Sharon. Gilbert followed him as he waltzed out the door, watching the purple umbrella spread wide once the sun grinned a hateful reminder.

"It was nice meeting a sober Gilbert." Kevin said, sticking a hand out and grinning when Gilbert shook it.

"Yeah... ."

Kevin turned, about to take the trek to his apartment, but he was adhered by Gilbert-

Gilbert, who wasn't setting his hand free anytime soon.

"Wait." The wavy-haired man said, lightly tugging Kevin back. "Did you... did you walk here?"

"Yes,"

Gilbert twisted his lips into an odd display, before turning his eyes to the street. "I can't believe I'm going to say this, but... do you want a ride home?"

Suddenly, Gilbert the Protagonist wasn't such a fictional idea after all.


A/N: As always (and you're going to get tired of me saying this) R&R! Thank you!