Chapter III: The Confession

"Kel, come on." Nahara tried to coax her best friend to leave his room. They were sitting on his bed. She was wearing an off-shouldered, blue blouse over a matching blue skirt. They emphasized her short, light blue hair.

"Nara, I don't know about this." Kelron shook his head. He was wearing a long-sleeved, green shirt, which complimented his emerald eyes, over light brown dress pants.

"Oh, come on, Kel. I know you'll enjoy the party. After all, it's our guild's victory party for beating the Savage Guardian guild. Besides, the guys want to hear you play that new composition you're writing." She coaxed, a smile on her face.

"Nara, I don't know if I should." Kel looked away from her.

"Kel, don't worry. No one's going to laugh. Everyone would love to hear you play, especially tonight. It's so special." Nara tried to persuade him.

'The composition's special, to me.' Kel thought.

"Kel, please."

Kel looked at her. "I…I can't." He shook his head.

"Why not?"

"I…I can't tell you."

"But…Why?"

'Because…Because I can't.' The thought crossed his mind.

"Kel?"

Kel plucked a string on his guitar, which lay behind him.

"Kel, if you don't want to go, I won't force you."

Kel turned around. Nara was looking down at the floor but he could tell that she was at the brink of shedding tears. "Nara?" He extended his hand, hoping to comfort her.

"Don't worry about me, Kel. I'm fine." She didn't move away from him. Her voice, on the other hand, didn't sound fine.

"Nara, I'm sorry…"

Nara did not say a word. She left the room, wiping her tears away as she left.

"Nara…What have I done!" Kel looked at his guitar; the precious guitar Nara gave him. "It's now…or never." He took a deep breath and let it out. He stood from his bed and left the room, guitar in hand.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"Hey Kel, glad you could join us." Renil, the paladin, patted Kelron's back, careful of the guitar that was slung there, as they stood near the bar of their HQ. Kel smiled. Even though Renil was one of the guys who once dated Nahara, Kel still considered him a friend.

"Hey Kel, we'd like to hear that new masterpiece sometime." A male high wizard, who had been mingling with the others, sat beside Kel.

"You will, Ahimsa…but maybe later." Kel smiled at his friend.

"I'll be around to hear it." Ahimsa Salem looked at the crowd, his dark brown eyes scanning the area keenly. Kel and Renil knew what he was scanning for, or rather who. A blonde high priestess spotted the three guys. She moved towards them. "Hey, what are you three up to here?"

"Hey, Caspia, nothing much. We're just talking about guy stuff." Ahimsa looked at her.

"Guy stuff?" Caspia Madre looked at Kel, who gave her a simple smile. "Oh, Kel, I can't wait to hear your new masterpiece."

"You will later."

"I'll be waiting." Caspia took a chair from the nearby table and sat gingerly in front of the guys.

"I hope it's not too soft." Renil teased.

"What's too soft?" The group looked at the newcomer, a male sniper.

"Oh hey Gryffin, we were just talking about Kel's new work of art." Caspia explained.

Gryffin turned to Kel. "Kel, you spread the word already?"

Kel shook his head. "It wasn't me."

"Well, whoever did must have heard it." Gryff gave him the thumbs up.

Kel felt confident. It was encouraging to know that some people wanted to hear him play but he wasn't going to perform for the whole guild, only for a chosen group of friends/guild mates, which included Nahara.

"I'm sure Nahara would dance to it." Ahimsa's statement broke through his thoughts.

Within a few moments, Nahara walked down the stairs. As she descended, everyone caught their breath. She was a breathtaking sight in a sleeveless, backless, blue evening gown. Even Kel was surprised.

"Nahara, it's good to see you." Kiren, a female professor, smiled as she hugged her friend.

"It's good to see you too, Kiren."

Some of the girls crowded around Nahara, complimenting her look.

"Attention, everyone." Everyone looked at the one who spoke, the guild's master, a stalker named Van Guard. "I would like to thank all of you for your excellent work in the war. I was very impressed with the outcome. It wasn't a Pyrrhic victory." Everyone laughed and clapped their hands. "Well, this party is for your great work." He added after everyone had quieted down.

"We couldn't have done it without you, Van." Vaness Windsoar, a female champion, said.

"Yeah." Everyone agreed.

"Thank you, you guys. Well, enjoy the festivities." Van went to speak with Vaness.

The great party went on until late into the night. When it ended, most of the guild members retired to bed. Kel and his male friends and companions, however, went to the garden. They sat down beneath a large cedar tree.

"So, are you sure she'll come?" Renil looked at Kel.

Kel scratched the back of his head; the guys knew he was unsure.

"I hope she does." Gryff said as his falcon perched itself on a low branch. "It would be a waste if she didn't." He added.

"She'll come." Ahimsa reassured.

"How are you sure?" The three looked at him curiously. "Caspia and I asked her to go, and Kiren and Vaness encouraged her to go." The three gave a sigh of relief.

A few moments later, three figures appeared in the distance. The guys were relieved when the three figures approached. One of them was Caspia, who was holding a blindfolded Nara, who Kel noticed had changed into a simple pink shirt and blue jeans. The other figure was Kiren.

"Nara, you can sit down now." Kiren spoke softly to her friend. With Caspia's help, Nara slowly sat down on the grass. The high priestess untied the blindfold. Nara opened her eyes, only to come face to face with Kel. The others left to give the two some space.

(Kel's P.O.V)

I watched as the others left Nara and I alone. "Nara?" Nara did not look at me. I could not blame her. I had hurt her. I looked down at the grassy ground. I did not know how to fix this...

"Kel, I'm sorry. I overreacted."

That brought my eyes to look at her. She was looking at me, her eyes showed how sorry she was. Something swelled in my heart, a warm feeling. "It is not your fault, Nara. It is mine."

(Nara's P.O.V)

I did not know what to say…I did not know how to start. Kel was my best friend…but was it possible that we could be more than friends? We were sitting side by side. "Kel, I…I want to tell you something." He looked at me. He silenced me with two of his fingers. In one swift move, he had his guitar in his hands.

A few moments later, the sweetest sound filled my ears. It was a romantic melody, a love song. I looked at Kel. He was playing expertly as he always did, but he seemed to enjoy playing it. I tried to hum to the tune but it was already harmoniously beautiful as it was.

I simply listened to the music. Kel, I realized, poured all his emotion into the music. It was sweet. I could not help blushing. I closed my eyes, enjoying the moment. Unfortunately, the music ended. I opened my eyes.

"Oh Kel. I don't know what to say? It was beautiful, simply breathtaking."

"…Thank you."

I leaned closer to him. Within moments, our lips touched. I felt his uncertainty at first, but he gradually relaxed. When we finally parted, we looked into each other's eyes.

"I love you, Kel."

"I love you, Nara." He gave me a peck on the cheek, a sweet gesture of his love.

Author's Note: Thank you for reading and reviewing. : )