A/N: Trust me, nobody hates my short-ass chapters more than me.
Nea D. Campbell, Link finds out, considers him a friend.
On the fourth day with Nea, Link decided to sit down and write a coherent report to Malcolm C. Lvellie. He felt uncomfortable, because while Lvellie had warned him that the Fourteenth might not be inclined to reveal his plans to them right away, Link had absolutely nothing to show for so far. Well, except for the random snippets of Nea's personality, which he decided to omit from the report. His superior wouldn't appreciate that.
In the end, the report consisted of three vague sentences and that was really messing with Link's, as Walker used to call it, obsessive tendencies. Truth was, he tried to get Nea to talk, he really did.
The day before, after their discussion about Adam and Cross, Link questioned his partner over and over again. He tried different techniques and approaches, but they all led to one of two things: Nea changing the subject clumsily, or stating that his only goal was to kill the current Earl and become one instead. Link didn't find out what that meant, he didn't find out about Mana, about Nea's past, or why he awakened as the 14th Noah.
He suspected that Lvellie knew all of these things from Cross, and why he kept them a secret was beyond him. He had faith in his superior though, and so he decided that if he wasn't meant to know these things, he didn't have to. Even that, however, did nothing to stop his growing curiosity at what Nea could possibly be hiding.
The lack of information bothered him, yes, and so did the fact that he let himself be bothered - Nea's hero complex bothered him, his swollen wrist bothered him, Sparkles not letting him sleep every night bothered him, but most of all, Allen Walker bothered him, which, he had to admit, was something he didn't quite understand.
Link was very well aware of his, why deny it, conflicted feelings about Walker. The previous few months of observing Allen made him certain he was nothing more than an innocent child who had been shoved in the midst of this war way too young. They all had. This particular soldier, however, had been far more unlucky than most, what with having a Noah inside him. What Link couldn't understand was why he cared so much about the boy. He was like a magnet, pulling everybody close. He gave people hope, and maybe that, Link realized, was why he cared. While following him, he gained something he never had before, and that was why it was so hard to let go. He wanted to help Allen, but he had to follow the orders. He wanted to help Allen, but he didn't want to kill Nea and he didn't know why and it bothered him. In the end, he opted for the easiest, most cowardly option.
He did nothing at all.
Just as Link cried out in a rare moment of frustration, Nea decided to come bursting in.
"Well," the intruder said, amused, "hello to you too."
Link didn't blush, mind you, but his eyes which were glued to the floor gave out his embarrassment well enough.
Nea looked at the small desk and a few papers covering it. He raised his eyebrow. "What are you doing?"
Link stared at him. He figured telling the truth wouldn't be the best idea. 'Oh, nothing, just spying on you.' That would have gone well.
"Are you spying on me, Howard?"
Oh, Link thought, this is a disaster.
Any excuses he was about to give were cut off by Nea. "Don't worry, I figured you would. I'm not actually dumb." Link sighed. Whether in frustration or relief, he didn't know. "Is it the Lvellie guy? Can you tell me what Cross told him about me?"
He shook his head. "I don't think I can, sorry. I don't actually know much either." He wondered how the Noah was able remember Lvellie's name.
Nea, to the other's amazement, just shrugged. "I'll leave you to it, then. Don't paint me in a bad light, will you?"
Link looked down on the tragedy that were his three sentences. "I don't think I will," he remarked. When Nea was about to leave, he realized something and called out: "What did you call me before?"
Nea blinked, confused. "Howard," he said after a moment. "That's your name, isn't it?"
I've never been called by my first name, Link wanted to say. It sounds strange. Instead; "Why?"
"Why what?" the other asked with an easy laugh. "Why I called you that? Because we're friends, I think. Is that okay?"
No, Link wanted to say, not okay. Because he couldn't quite shake off the feeling of dread that suddenly came creeping up on him. Because he wasn't supposed to make friends. He wasn't supposed to, but he did. Instead, he nodded and kept silent.
Nea left with a smile on his face.
Nea D. Campbell, Link finds out, considers him a friend, which kind of puts a damper on the whole ass-kissing thing he's supposed to be doing while remaining unattached.