Another Sunday morning, waking up to a piercing light causing my head to feel as if it were going to explode. "Ugh . . . what happened last night?" Yep, that's the first thing I tend to say in mornings like this. Usually followed by "Who the hell are you?" Another drunken night, taking home a random woman I met at ChupaCabra's. It's been like this for . . . two years? I can't even remember. The days have seemed to blend together together lately. Where I've been, what I've done it's sort of a blur.
I stood, not exactly caring that I was naked, and walked to the living room of my small apartment. Father kicked me out of the manor a year ago. Soul hooked me up with his old place when he moved in with Maka.
I opened the door to the fridge, shivering as the cold air hit my naked body. "Empty. As usual."
The blonde I had spent the night with came out into the living room, smiling as she leaned in the door way just as naked as I was. "Morning, sugar"
"Put some clothes on." I tossed her a jacket and made my way to the bathroom. "I'm taking a shower. Be gone by the time I get out."
Another Sunday morning, yep. That's all it was supposed to be. Shower, eat, work, home, bed. Might stop by the bar relax, look for . . . something . . .I'm not even sure.
That is until . . . he came along.
On the way home, caring a pile of records to sort through, I happened to cross a boy that looked terribly lost.
"Oh my, the city has gotten so big." He mulled, looking at a map he held in his hands. "I don't think I can deal with all these alleys."
Kid you should really help him I sighed and turned around. "You look lost. Can I help?"
"O-oh thank you." He paused and looked at me puzzled. "Lord Death The Kid? Is that you?"
"Just Kid." He didn't look familiar. How did he know me?
"You haven't changed at all!" the pale, pink haired boy hugged me tightly causing my reports to fall. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry. Let me pick them up." He bent over, causing his bangs to fall into his eyes. That's when it clicked.
"Crona?"
"Mhmm." He stood and smiled at me.
"What are you doing back in Death City?"
"Maka is getting married, so I decided to come visit. But things have changed so much; it looks like I've gotten lost."
"Where are you staying? Maybe I can walk you there."
"Soul's old place. He said he has someone crashing there, but that I could use the guest room."
"He did huh?" I grimaced. The apartment hasn't been cleaned in months! Liz stopped coming over, so I haven't really seen the point. I sighed. "That's where I've been staying."
"You don't live at the manor?"
"Father and I had a disagreement, so I moved out." I gathered the last of my reports. "Come on, it's not that far."
We got to the apartment and I opened the door. Inside it was a mess. Food containers everywhere, and there was a not so pleasant smell in the air.
"The life of a bachelor." I chuckled. "Not so glamorous."
"I can see that." He cringed, bring his suitcase inside. "So I take it you live here alone?"
"Yep, just me. The solitude is nice." I cleared a space on the table, moving the sea of empty beer bottles in a clanging orchestra.
"You certainly like Death-Lite."
"I should probably get stock in the company." I laughed nervously.
"How long has it been since you cleaned?"
"Um. . . three weeks or so."
"O-h." He stood beside the couch, looking at me with worried eyes.
"Your room is over here. Don't worry, it's not nearly as bad."
In fact it was immaculate. I hadn't been in there so it was just as pristine as it was when I first moved in. Crona sat on the bed and smiled, looking up at me with sad eyes. "Well . . . good night Lord Kid."
"It's just Kid."
The following morning I went to work as usual, sluggishly making my way through the day. Maka was out on a mission and wouldn't be back for a few days so Crona stayed at the apartment. He didn't want to venture out into the city yet.
When I got home later that night I was surprised to see the house was completely cleaned!
"I got bored. . . I hope you don't mind." He beamed, setting the table for dinner.
"N-no not at all." I hung my jacket on the door, still in shock. "But you didn't have to do all this."
"I don't mind. Back home I do this all the time for Lady Eurika."
We sat down to a wonderfully cooked dinner. I couldn't remember the last time I had eaten something home made. It was delicious! Nothing has ever tasted so spectacular before!
"Oh, Lord Kid. A girl called while you were at. Remmie I think was her name."
"Remmie?" The name didn't ring a bell.
"S-she said you met last week at ChupaCabra's."
"Aw yea the red head." I took a bite of my food. "What she want?"
"She didn't say. But was very angry with me."
"Don't worry about it. She's not important."
A few weeks passed, and things seemed to go pretty good. Crona decided to stay in the city and got a job working with Lady Marie in the hospital. He really took to it, and enjoyed his time there. I hadn't gone out since he moved in, there didn't really seem to be a reason to go anymore. The drinking had stopped altogether. The first few days were hard I must admit. But the disappointed look on Crona's face when he found the empty bottles were more the I could take. For a while there I thought he would be the death of me. But I didn't want him to leave either.
Every night when I got home from work he'd have a meal waiting for me. Even if he weren't here there would be left overs in the fridge. So I decided to leave work early and make him dinner for a change. It's been ages since I last cooked so I enlisted Maka for help.
"The apartment looks great Kid!" She exclaimed, walking into the room for the first time in months.
"All thanks to Crona. He's really turned my life around." I smiled, carefully slicing some carrots for the stew. "He's so energetic, and lively! I don't know how but he breathed some of that into me."
"I haven't seen you like this for a long time Kid. You've been with many people, but none of them have made you smile like this. Do you have a thing for my Crona?" She giggled.
"No." I scoffed. There was no way I like Crona. Me? I could have any woman I wanted, two if I felt so inclined. Falling for a man? For Crona?
That night when Crona came home he was over joyed to see that I had made him dinner. He changed out of his scrub uniform and sat across from me at the table. The food was mediocre at best, but I had tried. After eating we decided to watch a movie on the couch. My cell phone rang a few times, some of my past 'guests' trying to get me to visit the bar. It was Saturday night afterall, but I had no desire to drink tonight. I wanted to stay here with Crona.
But why? That as so odd. For years I wanted nothing more then to drink myself into a stupor, until I couldn't feel anything. Now . . . now I want to sit here listening to the sound of Crona's laughter and finding myself entranced by his smile. This is so odd. Could it be that I have fallen in love with Crona?
Nonsense. You're just grateful for everything he has done for you.
But still. When he looked at me, the way he is right now, I couldn't help but be drawn to him. I inched closer to him on the couch, looking into his beautiful blue eyes. Somehow I couldn't stop myself. All I wanted was to know how it felt to kiss him, to hold him close to me, to embrace him the way I had embrace all those women. They had meant nothing to me, Crona was different.
This feeling, I can't stop it. I leaned close to him and kissed his lips lightly, my body trembling in fear. But the desire was to strong, I couldn't hold on anymore. He gasped in surprise, and I pulled away. "I-I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me." I looked away, blushing deeply. "Please forgive me."
"Forgive you?" He laughed, leaning against me. "For kissing me?"
"M-mhmm." I nodded, trying not to make eye contact.
"Kid, you are such a silly man." A soft hand took my chin and turned my head so I was looking at him and those blue eyes once again. "That would mean you did something wrong." He leaned forward and kissed me. "Only thing I should forgive is you stopping."
We spent that night together, the first of many. It's been three years since he came to live with me. And he hasn't left my side since. The ladies at the bar have come to forget my name and the nights on end I would spend there.
I lay in bed, Crona beside me breathing softly. A clock chimes midnight somewhere out in the city, and I smile. How did I get here? How did this transformation happen? I was perfectly content wasting away until Crona came into my life. I rolled to my side, sliding an arm around the sleeping boy and laying my head against his back. I'm trying to make some sense out of this. But there doesn't seem to be any. How and why did this happen? Sheer luck, or something more then that. I kissed his shoulder lightly, causing a smile to appear on his sleeping face. Where are we heading, where do we go from here? I don't know. But . . .those eyes will always haunt me, they are burned into me. Crona you saved me. You gave me everything I need, and more. I sighed, slowly falling asleep beside the man I had come to love. Our lives crashed into each other, andd the old 'Kid' went up in flames. Crona . . . you breathed life into me, made me a better man. You've consumed me, but I can't walk away.