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A Closed Fist to An Open Palm

Chapter 18: Soothing Rejection

"Wait...So you can't hear anything?" Blair asked as she curiously poked at Brier's hearing aid, causing the boy to hear a jolt of static each time she pressed the device against his ear.

"I can't hear, but I can still feel!" Brier protested as he pushed shooed Blair's hand away. His resistance was easily rebuked as Blair's hand would bring themselves back to his hearing aid, curiously pecking and poking at it

"Mhm, at least for now, Nurse told me I'd need to wear this until it completely heals," Brier continued with a winch, annoyed by his crush's lack of tact as she went back to poking and prodding his hearing aide as soon as he pushed her hand away.

He looked to his left to see Alexis, soundly asleep as she was surrounded by in a bouquet of balloons, caring hallmark cards, and chocolates, all given to her by her many supporters as she gave herself some well-needed rest after her encounter with a horde of blood-letting leeches; utterly oblivious to the parade of flattering gifts.

Brier's gaze continued to loom on the sleeping Alexis, how he envied her attention, he craved such acknowledgment, and to see Alexis get it without a hint of effort, only frustrated Brier further.

Blair poked the hearing aid several more times before she was pulled away by a sighing Mindy.

"Well, I'M glad you're okay, Brier...The Makai did this to you, right?" Mindy asked the boy. Brier replied with a stiff nod.

"Yeah...The thing kidnapped Alexis. I dueled it. But I got my ears damaged in the process," Brier explained, slowly processing Mindy's question, still trying to get used to the mechanical filter he had to strap around his ear.

Just then, Mindy wrapped her arms around Brier in a tight hug, bringing a bright red blush to the boy's cheeks from the unexpected embrace.

"It was brave of you to rescue Alexis Brier...But Never do that alone! I hate seeing my friends get hurt like this!" Mindy scolded, her unnaturally firm grip squeezing the air out of the boy's stomach, turning, despite the girl apparent anger in her voice, it anchored immense worry.

"W-Will do Mindy," Brier responded in a desperate gasp for air. As soon as Brier gave his word, Mindy broke off of him and smiled, her hands sheepishly behind her waist as she may have realized her great hugs were doing more harm than good.

"Good, we're a team, we should look after each other." Mindy reminded. Brier smiled in return.

While he didn't wake up to any hallmark cards or chocolates, He was happy to wake up to see his friends visiting him, with more coming during his time of...Blair especially.

Perhaps she did care about him enough to put her Jaden obsession aside to see him. Maybe he had a chance with her.

"I mean, It's not like I didn't want to duel that thing alone, I got sucked into some kind of mirror world! Give me a break!" Brier asked in jest, trying to lighten up the situation.

"No excuses! Next time if you duel without us cheering you on, we're gonna make you dress up as a cheerleader! Just like Jasmine did!" Mindy warned with a little giggle.

"Yeah! It'll be hilarious!" Blair agreed, slugging Brier with a playful punch on his shoulder.

"Speaking of Jasmine..." Mindy said as she heard the door open. The three turned their heads to see Zenn, with Jasmine beside him. The two teen's napes were covered in a thin layer of sweat, gained through a sprint to get here as soon as possible.

"We've made it, Brier, are you alright?" Zenn asked as the two joined up with the rest of their friends.

"I'm as alright as I can be, thank you, Zenn," Brier replied gratefully.

"That's good to hear Brier...Now," Jasmine would turn to Mindy, her eyes wavering in a cloak of welled-up tears.

"I'm so sorry for pushing you, Mindy!" Jasmine exclaimed She clasped her hands together to the brunette, her head tilted down in shame and regret.

"Can you ever forgive me!?" She asked desperately, hoping that her friend will give her a second chase. Mindy placed a finger to her chin in faux contemplation, clearly already making up her mind to Jasmine's pleas.

"Of course! If you bake a pie!" Mindy said, hoping to garner another baked goodie from her friend.

"A pie? Sure, I'll bake one for you!" Jasmine immediately agreed. With a newfound determination to better herself, Jasmine would turn around and make her way to the nearest kitchen she could find.

"Not for me! For all of us! Today was pretty stressful for all of us, so how about we call it a day, and eat something yummy tomorrow? You need some rest after beating that Nasty Mosquito!" Mindy insisted as she grabbed Jasmine's wrist, putting her to a halt.

"That sounds like a great idea Mindy, I'm not too enthused about sweets... but if Jasmine makes it, I would love to try some!" Zenn remarked. Like clockwork, as soon as this humble compliment crept into Jasmine's ears, her cheeks began to flare in a shade of deep red.

"Quiet dork! You have to wait until tomorrow for a taste of my amazing baking skills!" Jasmine reminded, shushing Zenn's comment with an arrogant boast.

The gang began their leave, ready to rest for a delicious dessert tomorrow.

All except for Brier, he was left alone...With Blair, who decided to stay with the boy for a bit longer. Brier immediately felt his face flush as he realized that he was now alone with the girl of his dreams.

But, he felt frustrated too, did it really had to take him being hospitalized for Blair to give him some attention f? As soon as the two young students caught each other's glance, they both shied their faces away, feeling a rising unknown tension that neither of them had the courage to break.

"I'm sorry..." Blair finally chimed in a polite tone, breaking the silence with an apology that Brier couldn't foresee.

"W-What for?" Brier replied, confused.

"Because I know that you like me more than as a friend," Blair dropped suddenly. Brier's eyes widened more than an unveiling curtain. He began to shake in fear as his whole body turned red in a burning sensation. A million questions flooded his mind, did he not hide his jealousy well enough? How long did Blair know? Does he still have a chance with her!?

"I may not look like it, but I'm a lot more observant than you think I am," Blair claimed as she glided a hand through her navy blue hair.

"You take care of me, help me out a lot, you raise me up even if it means pushing yourself down." Brier's eyes fell to the floor as she spoke, feeling ashamed to his jealousy and envy be unveiled by Blair's unknown investigation.

"But, I love Jaden..." Blair admitted in a deep sigh as she glanced down to the ground, her hands clasped together as she struggled to admit it. Brier rolled his eyes in return, she was professing this as if its the most well-kept secret in history, even though she's been pretty quick to announce her attraction towards Jaden many times ever since they've met.

"And while I appreciate all that you've done for me, I can't say that I love you without lying to you." Blair bluntly said. Brier's heart sank. He can't believe it, after all, he has done, he was the one that was had to face the chilling pain of rejection.

"And I can't just drop him for you. It's unfair for both of you, it'll make our bond...Kind of fake. And it'll make my bond with Jaden fake too." Blair tried to explain, not showing much confidence as she muddled through her words.

"So I'm sorry Brier, but I have to go with my heart this time," Blair finished somberly, knowing that her words were striking daggers into Brier's frail heart.

"But you're still my bestie, right?" Blair then turned to Brier, bearing a hopeful smile on her face, hoping that he can forgive her. Brier was too shocked to react, taken aback by Blair's maturity of their relationship. Perhaps he thought too little of her, despite her crassness, and her vocalness, Blair was a lot deeper than Brier realized. A feeling of guilt loomed over Brier. He saw his friend as nothing more than a looney fangirl who only yearned for Jaden because of his looks and skill, surface-level kind of infatuation that can be easily be swayed into something deeper by Brier.

But he realized that his friend's affection for Jaden wasn't just a list of desirable traits of an ideal boyfriend, it was something more, and it was his own condescending ego that made him think that.

Brier thought Blair was shallow, only to realize that he was the shallow one all along. He will bury his hope, at least for now. For Blair's sake, for her happiness, even if she'll be happy with someone else rather than him.

Brier let out a deep, forlorn sigh as he picked his next words carefully, confronting Blair head-on in a solemn tone. "I'm sorry to Blair...And of course, you're still my best friend. Nothing will ever change that," Brier said with a forceful smile. This was the right thing to do, even if his heart said otherwise.

Without warning, Blair leaned in, Brier froze completely, unaware of what Blair was doing. He flinched as he felt a little hesitant breath brush over the side of his face. Before Brier could interject, he felt a small, wet, sensation brush upon his cheek.

Brier's jaw dropped. Brier is temporarily deaf, but it took no words to know what Blair had done.

"I'll see you tomorrow, go get some sleep, dude," Blair said before she left in a hurry. Brier sputtered in a mess of shock and confusion. his sore throat drying up whatever words that tried to escape from his stammering mouth.