Sneaky stared calmly at the girl in bed. She clung to one side weakly, her eyes shut in peace. Her snore was soft and her breath was smooth. When he made sure she was sound asleep, the boy left the room.

He plodded downstairs and met his friend.

"How's she?" Flippy smiled brightly and asked.

"Asleep now." Sneaky replied, sitting down beside the other greenette.

"It must have been too much shock for her." Flippy sighed.

"Dude, have you any idea how long we have waited?" Sneaky said, irritated. "You barely called twice after you left! And then…and then…there came this news that you died! She almost committed suicide! You have had her waiting for so damn long. You know that, right? She never stopped worrying in the day and crying in the night. It's…It's all for you to come home."

Flippy gasped with an expression twisted in pure bitterness. At once, he felt tears drenching his eyes again. It wasn't the first time he had made Flaky worry so much that she nearly took her own life. He had always realized his place in her heart but he never did know how to cherish her properly. Everything he did only kept bringing more sorrow into her already wrecked life. She had dedicated far too much into loving him and all he had done in return was to make her cry.

"She missed you…" Sneaky muttered with the very same soreness, wagging his fingers painfully. "She missed you so much that she could hardly sleep. When she thought you had died, she could hardly eat either. We all thought there was hope. There was a miracle. But it all took too long. Too long for you to come back!"

"I know…" Flippy sighed, blinking solidly at the ground. "I…I'm sorry…"

The two males stayed in silence for a while, both still unprepared for further speech. Flippy was pretty much guilty of having left behind his two best friends and plunging them into so much despair. Sneaky, though, was completely caught by another devastating truth. Now that his best buddy was alive, there would be a lot more to confront than he had previously anticipated. And we all know why.

"I…I'm going to make it up to her." Flippy piped up. "I've decided it…I am going to propose to her."

Flippy bit his lips nervously. He had said it with much determination. Poor boy, completely oblivious as he was, he peeped slightly at Sneaky to check on his response. He hoped he would gain some support from his friend. Sneaky only glanced ahead, hollow-eyed. Only after a few minutes did he turn around and face Flippy.

"W-What…do you say?" Flippy asked with a faint smile, itching for an answer. It would only sound reasonable that he was behaving this way. His ignorance was simply a result of the fact that he still didn't realize his letters concerning his last wills had been delivered to his two friends during the period when the army mistook his death. He thought nothing had changed since he left. But wrong was he. So wrong.

"Good…" Sneaky merely stuttered.

"Good?"

"I guess…"

He wondered why he could even blurt out such a lie. Of course Flippy was going to take Flaky as his bride because he knew nothing at all. If he had learnt the truth that his best friend had deflowered his lover, Sneaky doubted if Flippy would still smile that way. But no, hell no, there was no way he was going to confess to him. He wouldn't dare. He couldn't allow himself to do that.

Even if it was basically tearing him apart, the gentle male would still give his blessings with his whole heart. A dream or not. A delusion or not. Everything that had happened between him and Flaky had been both heaven and hell. The mind of his could never withstand the betrayal he had committed. He could never be able to tell Flippy he had fallen in love with Flaky. Everything simply went out of control. Form the very beginning, Flippy should never have entrusted Flaky to him, of which Sneaky was sure. He could never suppress his own desires and counteract the evilness of double-crossing his best friend. In the end, all that remained was a mingled, corrupted bond between the three of them. Everything went out of track. Things were so much twisted, rotten and irreversible.

To redeem his faults, he had to think of something fast. And stupid was he- Sneaky actually thought it would be the best to step out of this sophisticated relationship. Even when his heart was practically screaming the moment Flippy announced that he loved Flaky and even when he had a tendency to yell mercilessly at his best friend for having abandoned such a sweet, delicate girl, he swallowed back all his words and stayed mute. He watched Flippy grin merrily at his approval.

A loyal friend he would be. He had been a traitor who bedded his best friend's crush. And now this best friend had returned hunting for the girl he had missed. Sneaky couldn't tell how ironic and distorted things were. He wished someone could answer to him why the reality was tormenting his broken soul.

He was beyond grateful and pleased that Flippy had lived. A part of him though, couldn't deny that he had wished Flippy had never shown up again. It was such a selfish and nasty thought that he could never go along with. He could never imagine himself deliberately ruining Flippy's life in exchange for his own happiness.

He loved Flaky, all right, but the primary person she loved was Flippy. He had always regarded himself as a substitute. Now that her previous lover had returned, Sneaky would, as he deemed, slowly and soundlessly, drift away. He would leave his friends alone and for the rest of his life, repented the mistakes he had ever made. For instance, having robbed Flaky of her innocence.

"I'm going to cook something for her before she wakes up." Flippy giggled and stood up.

"She likes eggs and toasts." Sneaky said. "Scrambled eggs, not boiled ones."

Flippy lifted one of his brows and smiled in amazement. "Wow, you surely know well what she likes to eat."

Sneaky didn't respond. How could he not know what she liked after having lived with her for almost a year? They might as well go for a married couple.

There was just too much Flippy didn't know or didn't care to know. Sneaky must admit Flippy was careless at times. The way he was unaware of Flaky's genuine affections and longing for recognition was the best evidence of all.

"Wait, you can't give her that tea." Sneaky said, snatching the tea bag from Flippy's hands. "She always has nightmares after drinking it."

"Really? How about coffee?"

"No, she'll have insomnia."

"Ah, silly of me. Thanks, Sneaky." Flippy chuckled. "A cup of milk will do then?"

"Yes." Sneaky nodded.

"Seriously, I…I can never thank you enough for this." Flippy said. "You've been taking care of her in my place and it's almost been a year. It must have been hard. I'm sorry I couldn't return much sooner. And I've taken away a year of your life just to… just to wait foolishly for me."

"That's okay." Sneaky said, faking a smile. "I would never say I have wasted a year waiting for you. There have been both hard and happy times. At least, you're back now. That's all that matters."

"Yes, you're right." Flippy grinned. "You're my best friend, Sneaky. Please tell me if there's anything I can do for you."

Sneaky frowned but managed to force himself to reply. "Well…look after Flaky…"

"I will. I swear I will take good care of her. I love her so much."

The fact that he could no longer take care of Flaky was simply heartbreaking for Sneaky but he wouldn't let anyone hear his heart shatter into scattered pieces. He would let his tears out uncontrollably on the day he officially handed her back to Flippy. He would turn away from the couple and quietly weep on his own.

That would be his fate. Their fate.


Flaky fluttered her eyes to gawp at the greenette beside her. Flippy had her hands firmly in his grip. His lips parted to reveal a relieved smile. The redhead could still barely believe that her lover had returned from death. Or more precisely, he had never died. How could the world be so cruel, to toy with her heart, ripping it into pieces and out of the blue, trying to stick them back together with glue? There was something that could never recover though. Her broken wills and bleeding love would always stay with her. As she slowly turned her head to ogle the boy standing next to Flippy, her heart shivered. It was as though she could see through Sneaky's feigned smile. Beyond those seemingly reassuring facial remarks, it was a mixture of apprehension, sullenness and melancholy. He would wish he was the one embracing her small palm; the one kissing her cheek and licking off her tears and the one whispering into her ears to tell her 'I love you.'

Nonetheless, reality was ever so merciless. It was Flippy who was now stroking her hair and caressing her face. He was now the one nuzzling her neck and murmuring sweet promises to her. Sneaky had no idea why he was still standing there, witnessing everything. He exhorted himself not to interfere with the couple because he should have seen it coming when Flippy returned. Even if it surprised him just as much as it surprised Flaky, he should have prepared for it. Flaky was never his. She had always belonged to Flippy. He was literally just a replacement, could as well go for a back-up choice. He had admitted it so himself. And he had claimed that he was fine with it.

Now, why was his heart aching so much?

His dearest friend was back but he wasn't happy at all.

At all.

The redhead, indeed, realized what was going on. She winced gingerly at Flippy's kiss and kept her eyes focused on Sneaky. The boy she had made love with could only look as another male touched her, not to mention this male was his very best friend. The dilemma was killing both of them. Either of them could muster the courage to unravel what had gone wrong between them. They could only glance plainly at each other.

"Sneaky, I have something to tell Flaky. Do you mind…" Flippy said, brushing his arm against the girl's wasit.

"Of course not." Sneaky smiled. "I'll be going now."

Flaky wanted to mouth 'stop' but as usual, Sneaky's action preceded her speech. As requested by his best friend, the boy walked out of the room and closed the door behind him, leaving Flaky and Flippy alone in silence.

"Oh Flaky, you can't imagine how much I missed you!" Flippy said, hugging the girl tightly. "I kept thinking of you. Every day and night, all I could do was to pray to return to you! I'm sorry to have you made you wait. Oh, I'm so sorry, Flakes."

"It's…okay…" The redhead stammered. "I…I missed you too."

"You must be mad at me, right? You must have thought I've broken my promise! Please, if you're angry, shout at me and do whatever you please. I deserve it. Sneaky told me how sad you were when you heard the false news. I can never forgive myself for leaving you behind. I swear, Flaky, from now on, I'll always stay with you. I'll never leave you again."

"I…I…" The redhead pondered for a long moment. Normally, she would be beyond ecstatic to hear such beautiful phrases from Flippy. And yet, this time, she couldn't feel anything. Why, she wondered. Her hope had drained away long ago. Her faith in him had long been disrupted by trauma and lies. She would still choose to believe him if she wanted to. At this moment though, her mind was engulfed in bleakness. She couldn't find the light out. She could only think of Sneaky when it was Flippy who was conversing with her.

"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to." Flippy said. "I'll be here with you no matter what. I've promised Sneaky I will take good care of you. I love you, Flaky. I'm sorry I have never said it right. I truly love you and would like to be with you forever."

Flaky sighed. Why couldn't he have confessed earlier? Why?

Why must he torture her this way? Filling her with love and then snatching the hope away from her and now coming back for forgiveness and reconciliation? How was she to cope?

"Thank you, Flippy…" In the end, the girl replied. "I'm glad you're back."

The soldier looked a bit staggered as in some way he had expected her to say she loved him too. Still, he couldn't care less. He was simply contented to be able to enfold her with his arms once more.

"Please, Flaky, will you marry me?" Flippy proposed. "I'll love and cherish you until I die."

The redhead looked at the young sergeant in horror. In all her life, she had never thought a marriage proposal could appear so frightening. It wasn't Flippy that terrified her. It was her own feeling that was pushing her over the edge. She could never possibly respond to his proposal, could she? Not when her mind was constantly drifting off to think of another boy.

"Flippy, I-"

"It's okay." Flippy shushed her, grinning. "You don't have to answer me right away. I'm just letting you know it would be my utmost pleasure to take you as my bride. I would want to marry you and live with you forever. I will wait until you're ready. Just tell me when you are, love."

The greenette kissed her hand gently, proud that he had finally confessed to her.

The girl, however, wasn't at all delighted. What Flippy couldn't see was her awfully disconcerted expression. Beyond that, her mind was immersed in chaos and agony. Remorse and sorrow washed over her as she struggled to remain sane in this nerve-wracking love predicament.