The bluenette's heart felt like it was going to leap out of his throat at any moment. His face was crimson at what the blonde was saying. Alois had basically confessed that he had feelings for him. Now one could argue that the boy hadn't exactly said this, but judging by the boy's peculiar behaviour, it was apparent that that was the direction he was leaning in.

The blonde's face was flushed, and his shoulders were defensively stiff, bracing himself for Ciel's answer. He fidgeted with the end of his T-shirt nervously, and his eyes darted around the room, not daring to remain on his friend's face for too long. He was terrified.

His heart was now exposed, and was at the mercy of the bluenette. He could crush it, cut it out, ignore it, or even embrace it. All of these possibilities were very real, and each and every one had their disadvantages.

Even if Ciel were to return his feelings, there would be a whole new mess of obstacles to face. How would Sebastian react? What would the kids at school think? Their own limitations were also a factor, with both boys being so heavily emotionally scarred, it would even be difficult for they themselves to accept this. In addition to this, they were both from the Victorian era, were homosexuality wasn't really an acceptable thing. Sure, it existed, it always has, but not to the public eye. Times have changed, but their own social values have hardly. The more they looked at it, the more unlikely it seemed.

But in spite of all of this, Ciel spoke. "W-well, I..." He had difficulty finding the words. Clearing his throat, he straightened himself and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves. "I might... maybe... f-fancy you... a bit?" He couldn't look the other boy in the eye. The floor suddenly became very interesting to him and he looked down. Ciel was not the type to wear his heart on his sleeve. He did not like this. Not one bit. But it was now, or never, and like the "man" he was, he chose now. It took every once of courage he had, but he did it.

His companion was at a loss for words. Only in his wildest dreams would this ever happen, yet here they were, sharing their most intimate of feelings. The blonde, for once, simply couldn't think of anything to say. The usually talkative boy couldn't bring himself to speak. He didn't trust his mouth to not completely mess this up. However, he could tell by looking at the bluenette that his silence was not helping his growing anxiety.

Since he couldn't use his voice, he forced his legs to move himself forward, and surprised the bluenette by putting his arms around the boy's neck and hiding his face in his shoulder. In response, Ciel put his own arms around the boy's waist. They stayed that way for what felt like much longer than it really was, listening to and feeling each other's unstable heart-beat.

"Alois, you're such a girl..."


A/N: DAMN, that's the shortest chapter I've ever posted!

I hope that's not too disappointing. The only real reason I split these into two chapters, is that last night, I was literally about to pass out face-first on my keyboard. I might edit them and combine them later. Who knows...

Still, I hope I was able to portray them correctly in such a vital moment. As a theater geek, I tried my best to put myself in their situation to better understand them, and be able to write. I'm not sure if it worked.

Please don't come to my house with torches and pitchforks...

Don't you dare think that this is over! Oh no, they still have a lot of challenges left to face!

Also, just a heads-up: if you want smut after this, you're going to have to write it yourself. I'm not doing it. K thx. (A fanfic about a fanfic? FANFICEPTION.)

(There should totally be a .)

(Maybe something about what Sebastian has been doing the entire time. That wold be hilarious.)

Until number 57, my duckies!