Be Mine

Chapter 15

Special Invites

"morning! How are you doing? :D -8:25a.m." Claus read his text messages.

"you awake yet? -8:30a.m."

"Clausss dont be late to school! -8:32a.m."

"have fun in class! -8:55a.m."

"Dude this guy hella spilled his water in class! It was soo finny xD 10:42a.m."

"funny* oops -10:45a.m."

Claus scratched the back of his head at how much Kumatora has been messaging regardless of him replying back. Guilt ate him, he hasn't yet put Ness' advice to good use of telling Kumatora that he doesn't want to talk as much as she does.

To be honest, he was procrastinating. It's been another week and finals are coming up. He predicted it wouldn't be worth the trouble right before finals, so as long as Kumatora doesn't ask why he hasn't been replying, Claus could get away with it by making excuses until then.

On the other hand, him and Ness were doing great. They've been sending each other memes and messaging more often like usual. Claus didn't hesitate to respond to those.

It was lunch again at Onett High and the usual boys changed it up and sat outside this time. Winter hit big time last week and it has been amazing. They dressed in thick clothes; layers on layers over their usual shirts, and they wore pants instead of shorts. They sat at a table chatting under a canopy and enjoyed the temperature and beauty that was this snow-filled wonderland.

"It's so nice today~!" Lucas said aloud, he stretched his arms out. He was clad in a thick maroon jacket that had beige fur on the hood with blue jeans.

"Yeah… this is my favorite time of the year!" Ninten smiled. He wore a hooded black puffer jacket that complimented the scarf he always wears. This season was his time to work that scarf. He also wore some blue jeans.

"Eh, I'm pretty much used to it from where I came from." Jeff shrugged. He wore a fancy looking brown trench coat over a simple white button down with his usual green pants.

Claus didn't leave a comment, he was too focused on concocting the perfect reply to his girlfriend. "sorry! I was busy this morning and didn't want to text in class today." The orange haired boy was dressed nicely in a dark orange turtle neck. It was a weird color to wear casually, but since it matched his hair it was perfect for Claus. At least, that was his mother's mindset before buying it for had a slim fit on the boy, but Claus didn't mind. It was warm and that's all he needed it to be.

"You think we'd get in trouble if we played in the snow?" Ninten asked. Almost no other student was trying to play in the snow, they were just talking and eating.

"I don't think anyone would care, but I personally wouldn't do it," said Jeff. "That stuffs dirty."

"I definitely would, but I didn't bring gloves today…" Lucas pouted, keeping his hands in his pockets when he wasn't using them to eat.

"That's okay :)" Kumatora replied back to Claus' phone.

Phew. Claus wiped his forehead from relief, even though there was no sweat present. Claus locked his phone screen and paid attention to the current conversation at hand. He bit a piece of his burger.

"Your hands are so cold, huh Lucas?" Ninten played off a worried look towards the meek blond, and took his hands into his. "I can help you with that." He smiled.

"Thanks…" Lucas made a shy smile at him as the warmth on Ninten's hands restored color to Lucas' palms.

Alright, Claus wasn't dumb. He noticed that Lucas and Ninten have been acting way more chummy than usual ever since that day he saw them in Lucas' room. His protective brotherly mode activated, but at the same time, it's Ninten. He felt like he already knew the scarfed boy and that he wasn't full of any bad intent; granted, Ninten wasn't all that great, but whatever. Claus let their relationship be. He trusted Lucas to be smart about who he chooses to like.

When the thought of Lucas and Ninten being together came into mind, the first thing Claus thought was, that's pretty gay. However, it was not with any hatred. It was just plain ol' gay to him.

How would their relationship even work out though? Claus wondered. He wasn't able to encompass the idea of two people of the same gender being together and doing the entire list of straight couple things (i.e. sex and loving each other), but gay and lesbian couples existed regardless.

Thinking about stuff like this just made him think about Ness. What if when Ness confessed, Claus agreed to date him? Would they still act the same towards each other, but with a little bit more love chemistry added in? Would Claus call Ness 'honey,' and would Ness call Claus 'cupcake' like his parents do? All these cliche concepts were coming to life in the neurons of Claus' brain.

Moreover, other thoughts bombarded him, too. Would they do dirty things as well, like what happened in the locker room and on the field? Claus' cheeks became a little rosy the more he thought about it. He kept a straight face, though. Now that he thought about it, aside from masturbation, that was the first time he ever came in front of someone else. When Ness had him pinned against the wall and…

AAA! Claus leaned his head on his hand. Just don't even think about it, we both have girlfriends anyway! That being thought, Claus tried to imagine Kumatora naked.

Claus had the most zoned out face ever. It was hard to imagine it, or more like, he didn't want to. It was embarrassing and felt wrong to do it. He returned to thinking of Ness.

Speaking of Ness, the boy messaged him earlier this morning. Claus checked the message, but has yet to reply because he didn't know what to say at the time. He decided to do it now, even though it might be pretty late. He opened up their chat and looked at the past messages he sent him.

"IT'S WINTER BB! How do I look?! C: *3 fire emojis* -8:45a.m."

Ness sent a photo.

Claus looked over it again. It was a picture of Ness taking a selfie in front of his bathroom mirror. The phone was held out in front of him while his other hand was making a peace sign. He made an attractive smile. For attire, the boy wore a navy blue double layered coat with black jeans. The coat was unzipped, which revealed a white tee underneath it. To Claus, it looked super good; he couldn't help but smile at it. He saved the picture to his phone.

Before he could actually type a reply, Ninten was already looking over Claus' shoulder.

"OOOoooOOO," Ninten said teasingly, "Who's that on your phone~?"

"Wha— HEY!" Claus wasn't paying attention until Ninten spoke up. He immediately buried the screen of the phone in his chest. He scowled at Ninten for looking.

"He sure is cute don't ya think?" Ninten kept on provoking, "10/10"

"Who?" Jeff was lost in the conversation. Lucas suspected it was who he thought it was, and giggled at Ninten's teases. Lucas whispered in Jeff's ear. That was when the kid genius smirked a little bit.

"Ninten SHUT UP," Claus angrily said, "mind your own business!"

"Hehe!" Ninten patted Claus on the back before leaving him alone to go back and sit down. He changed the conversation. "So how are you and Kumatora by the way?"

Claus didn't spare the effort to look at the boy while working on a reply to Ness. He paused his typing to answer. "We've been okay."

"Just okay? Give us some deets bro," Ninten kept pestering.

"Well what if I don't want to?" Claus threw in his attitude.

"You haaave to!" Ninten pleaded. "C'mon, we're all just concerned for you."

Claus raised a brow then looked at Jeff and Lucas.

"He's not wrong," said Jeff. Lucas nodded.

Claus sighed. "Okay fiiine. We've been doing okay as in, the same as usual."

"You guys kissed yet, though?" Ninten went straight to the point.

"Yeah, on the cheek. Not on the lips or anything yet," Claus answered simply.

"Woah already?" Jeff asked, surprised. "Is it nice? Like in the movies?"

"It's not as great as you think," Claus informed, "it's just a simple kiss. It happens once for the first time and then that's it."

"Wow," Lucas began, "you don't seem that excited over Kumatora to be honest."

Claus felt kind of attacked when his twin mentioned that. "What? Of course I am…! She's cool, alright?!"

"Well you never talk to her around us and you keep her on the down-low most of the time. I think that's what Lucas meant to say," Jeff clarified. "I was expecting you to be obsessing over her like everyone else who gets into relationships, but you kind of act like nothing in your life has changed even though getting a girlfriend is a pretty big deal."

"Hey, I'm just not the type to put myself out there, okay?" Claus tried defending his actions. "You guys shouldn't assume anything."

"Lighten up a little, Claus!" Ninten encouraged. "Be proud of her. Even Ness and his girl are doing well."

Claus got a little bit triggered by that, but hid it. "Oh really? Why would you say that, huh?" Claus said it with annoyance, but he was genuinely curious.

This made Ninten smirk. The scarfed boy is a little bit aware of Claus and Ness' awkward relationship. "I mean, everyone knows they're a thing without them even saying they're together. They don't mess with them. Ness holds her hand wherever he goes and they're always so close. They're like cute little love bugs!"

Claus scoffed. "What does this have to do about me? You don't have to go comparing me and Kuma to him and that blond girl." He rolled his eyes.

"Well, you asked." Ninten shrugged.

"You mentioned, Ness, first." Claus glared.

"You got a problem with me talking about him?" Ninten stuck his lips out playfully. Boy did he love messing with Claus. "Ness, Ness, Ness—"

Claus slammed a hand on the table. "NO I don't!" he said that louder than intended. Some other students turned their heads for a moment, then went back to their own lives.

Claus shrunk down in his seat. He did mind when Ninten talked about Ness. It made him sad whenever he mentioned him and Paula doing so well. For some reason it wasn't the usual kind of sad Claus would feel. It felt like the type where your heart would just… hurt.

"Heeeey guys!" a shrill voice was heard a distance away. Speak of the devil.

The group of boys turned their heads to see Paula and Ness heading over. The blonde girl was wearing a long pink colored coat that reached down just below her knees; past that were brown Ugg boots. She was smiling as she held Ness' hand. The capped boy was also smiling along with her, calmly walking with Paula who was clearly leading the way. She held a stack of papers in her arm.

The boys got pretty silent at her presence; they wondered why they were heading towards them.

"Oh hey, Paula!" Ninten greeted, then looked to Ness. "'Sup?"

"Hey guys!" Ness greeted back.

Ness got to the point and explained why they came over. "Paula wanted to invite you guys to something to celebrate the first semester of high school." He gestured toward his girlfriend.

Paula began, "Yup! My parents will be out of town and they said I could do anything I wanted over the weekend."

So spoiled… Claus thought negatively, then dismissed it. He then looked towards Ness, who was focusing on Paula at the moment. He looked exactly the same in his selfie, maybe even better in person.

For a moment, the two boys made eye-contact, but as soon as they did, Claus immediately switched his stare to Paula.

"I wanted to invite you guys to a party. It'll be after finals so you guys won't be able to worry about anything!" She tried her best to be convincing. Afterwards, she handed out a single sheet to each boy.

All the boys at the table took one, then started to stare down at the fancy printed calligraphy that was on the paper. The edges of the papers had thin gold lines; it looked so decorated, the boys felt wrong about throwing it away.

It read:
Hello! If you got this paper that means you're obviously invited to my...

Underneath it was in bigger and bolder font.

FIRST SEMESTER PARTY!

After that followed the details of the party. It gave Paula's address, date, and time it starts. After the boys looked up after reading, Paula was just staring at them with an expression that begged the question, 'Do you like my invite?'

Lucas, Ninten, and Jeff thought it looked pretty nice, but so old style. She could've just made an event page on Facebook instead, or any other social media. Claus didn't care, really.

None of the boys said anything in particular at first because they didn't really know what to say.

Paula continued, "You guys should come! A lot of people are going. Maybe even some seniors."

"I'll think about it, I'll most likely make it, though." Ninten was the first to speak. The scarfed boy then looked to Lucas. "You should come with meee."

"H-Huh? Oh…" Lucas thought about it worriedly as everyone's attention went on him, pressuring him to talk. "I don't think I could go… me and Claus' parents might not allow it…"

Yes, bro! Claus cheered internally for his brother to deny the invite. Tell her what's up.

"Oh, it'll be fine. C'mon, just ask still~" Paula said it like it was easy.

"Yeah," Ninten agreed, then stared at Lucas with pleading eyes.

"...Alright…" Lucas spoke hesitantly. "I guess I can try, then."

What, Lucas nooo! Claus shouted in his mind.

"If Lucas goes, then I'll go," Jeff said straightforward.

"Yaay!" Paula cheered for them. Then she turned to Claus. "How about you~? You have to go! Kumatora will be going and you guys will have so much fun together!"

Goddammit… Claus cursed. He really didn't feel it. The first reason was that he hated parties, at least, ones that involved a lot of strangers. Second off, it's Paula's party. Why should he go?

Claus found his superficial hate for Paula, bothersome. He wondered why now his feelings for her started to change, and it turned for the worst? He didn't even know her to have something to dislike about her; but the way she just holds Ness' hand all time made Claus resentful.

"...I'll go." It took Claus' all to get those words out. The boy didn't even have time to internally sigh before Paula started cheering again.

"Yes! Then I'll see you guys there!" she said positively.

After she concluded, the bell to end lunch rang. The boys said their goodbyes to each other and Paula before heading out in their own ways. Paula stuffed the rest of the invites into her bag real quick.

"Bye, babe!" Paula wrapped her arms around Ness and gave him a kiss on the cheek, and he returned the same.

"See you." Ness gave her a pat on the head lovingly. She blushed with a grin before going her own way.

The entire time, Claus just stood there, witnessing every part of their love for each other. He couldn't help but grimace and look away; it felt like his emotions broke through the barrier that was his mask he wore whenever Ness and Paula were near each other.

After Paula left completely, Ness looked over to the orange haired boy, who then looked back at him. Ness noticed the slight dismay in Claus' eyes, but didn't understand the reason.

"Hey!" Ness greeted when he got up close to his friend. "...You alright? You seem a little down."

Claus straightened out his expression when Ness asked that. "O-Oh! Yeah I'm good. Just a little stressed out by finals…!" He faked a smile.

Now that they've thought about it, it's been a while since they've walked to class together. The feeling felt nostalgic.

Their steps crunched through the light snow on the concrete until they reached the school building again. When they got inside, they turned right and started down a long hallway with classrooms left and right of them. Their shoes squeaked against the ground due to the wetness.

"Sooo… that text message though, I didn't reply to it," Claus said very blatantly. He looked at Ness as they walked. The hatted boy made eye contact, as well. "My bad."

"Nah it's cool. I don't really care." Ness waved it off. "It's just a message; you don't usually care this much about it, either."

Claus chuckled. "I know. I just wanted to give you my irl answer instead." He spelled out loud the 'irl' part, making Ness feel humorous now.

"Okay, rate me on a scale of 1 to 10, then." Ness straightened out his back and smirked at Claus.

"11/10," Claus told him with a wink. "You look like a young male model, congratulations."

Claus said it so simply and smoothly, but on the inside, he felt so nervous and embarrassed. He didn't know why he wanted to tell his friend that, and even give him such nice compliment.

The compliment flattered Ness. He responded casually, "Thanks." He paused, and then his cheeks became red. He looked away and pretended he was trying to watch out for oncoming students walking through the hallway. "You look nice, too. That turtleneck looks new."

"Oh this?" Claus looked downwards and used a finger to tug at his collar. "My mom got it for me a few days ago. I'm wearing it just because." He shrugged and remained modest.

"Well, she really knows what looks good on you."

"Mhmm… thank you…" Claus thanked him shyly.

Both of the boys felt the same butterflies in their stomachs for each other, but neither of them were aware of it at all. Ness' feelings for Claus were a bit obvious to the other, but Claus thought he moved on since he and Paula were together. On the other note, Ness wasn't realizing at all how nervous Claus has been. The hatted boy couldn't even imagine Claus having any desires from him that asked for more than just being best friends. Ness was just more content ever since Claus told him he was sorry, and cried over it.

Even though both boys misread the other, they continued to act as their normal selves, and it felt good.

"So, you coming to Paula's party?" Ness asked, interested.

Claus' eye twitched, and Ness noticed.

"I know you're not one for parties, so I don't really expect you to go. You can just chill at home. Don't let her pressure you into it or anything! She's been doing that to everyone we know all day, dude." Ness laughed.

"Yeah I really don't…" Claus admitted.

Ness felt disappointed, but masked it. "I'm just surprised that Lucas considered it."

Claus sighed. "It's cuz Ninten's going. Simple as that."

"Are they dating or something?" Ness threw the possibility into the air.

"No," Claus answered. "At least, I'm sure they're not… but they act so comfy around each other."

"I see…" Ness then mentioned something else. "What about Kumatora? You're not even gonna show up for her? I'm going because Paula is hosting, but I don't care either way. It sounds fun."

"Am I supposed to be obligated to go because she's there?" Claus asked on the real note.

"Well, no but…" Ness didn't know what to say. "She's your girl, dude. You do what you want."

"I already know that the right choice is to go, okay?"

"I know I know! I don't doubt it. But there's also another reason Paula wanted us especially to go…" Ness said it a bit suspiciously. He made sure they weren't around too many kids, and said quietly to Claus, "There's going to be alcohol."

"What." Claus made an expression of disgust. "Why…? That's illegal!" he said the obvious, "SO illegal dude! Everyone would get screwed if they were caught!"

Ness nodded. "But Paula said we don't need to worry about that. She has a really big mansion, you know? It's gated and everything, cops wouldn't even be able to be around us if everyone's being loud."

"... No, I didn't know! And I'm not surprised!" Claus said angrily. "Ness!"

"...What?" The capped boy sweatdropped with a nervous smile on his face.

"Were you planning to drink, too?!" Claus asked, concerned for him like a mother hen.

"Weeeell…"

"..." Claus glared.

"Yes…?" Ness' nervous smile got wider. Claus still held his glare. "C'mon dude! I just wanna try it. Drinking won't be that bad if done responsibly. And it'll be fine! You're just being paranoid. Why not drink and see what it's like?"

"Drinking is bad in general, though." Claus shook his head. Ness frowned a bit. He knew Claus wasn't wrong and couldn't argue against it; his disapproval just made him feel bad.

"Well, okay then." Ness didn't want to argue. "If you don't want to go, then don't go. Simple." He didn't say anything else.

Claus picked up on the fact that he upset Ness. Maybe he went too far with his opinion on alcohol?

The boys made it to class, but before entering, Claus pulled at Ness' arm and took him to the side.

"No…" Claus bit his lip. "I didn't mean it like that. I'll go, okay?" This made Ness' eyes widen. "...Otherwise, who's going to watch your drunk ass if things get wild?"

This brought a small grin to Ness' face. "I won't get that drunk. Haha!"

"Yeah, sure you won't." Claus said sarcastically. He lightly nudged Ness on the side. They both chuckled at the action.

With that, they both separated into their seats and got out their notebooks for the day. Claus stared at the board while tapping his pencil on his desk.

Ness drunk, though? I wonder what that'll be like. The idea intrigued Claus.