Summary–AU There are those moments in life where a few words or one sentence changes your entire view on everything you thought you knew. Most often for me they came from my best friend.LinkZelda friendship/romance
Disclaimer–I do not own Legend of Zelda, which belongs to its respective owner(s) and is only being used in a fan-made, fictional story.
xoxo
Title–Schooled
By–Moon Prynces
xoxo
Age 22 (One Month Later) – Epiphanies are like being hit by a train or a slap to the face
I glanced up unsurely as Zelda sat at the workshop table looking at something with disinterest. She picked up a screw that had been on the table and stared at it.
"You really didn't need to come by and help me with this," Alfonzo said as he walked into the room.
I shook my head. "It was no problem. I've got nothing going on this week." I looked back at my best friend. "Thanks for letting Zelda tag along. She wanted to hang out and I felt really bad about not having the time."
My mentor cut me off. "You scratch my back, I scratch yours."
I gave a weird look at his choice of words. Even though I knew Zelda heard it, she didn't burst into laughter like I thought she would. I sighed at this but didn't bother looking her way.
"Yeah... Let's get to work."
We were currently in the workshop of my favorite professor and mentor. He had asked a few days earlier if I could help with a project he had going on – knowing I had pretty deft and steady hands, and also being his favorite student.
Apparently he was trying to make an armoire for his wife because lately she had been complaining to herself about there not being enough closet space. He wanted to keep the project a secret until it was finished as a surprise for her.
It almost made me laugh to see my older and wiser teacher seem so dedicated to something other than his work. I thought the entire thing was simple enough but then he showed me the detailed carving he wanted me to try my hand at.
I only finished some simple designs on the small leg pieces when I heard Zelda sigh heavily.
"Is there something wrong with your friend?" Alfonzo whispered from behind me.
I looked back as he was measuring a slab of wood. I shrugged.
He paused and looked up at me blankly. "Zelda, are you okay?" he then asked her directly.
I wanted to slap my head at his approach.
"No," she responded miserably. "I am a loser with nothing to live for." She put her head down on the table.
Alfonzo continued his work, but still concentrated on the conversation he was trying to strike up. "Why?"
There was a pause and I could hear the gears in her head working. Slowly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Zelda lift her head back up and look at him.
"My boyfriend of six months broke up with me a few weeks ago," she said frankly.
I almost dropped something. Why was it so easy for him to talk to her? Why was I, her best friend, such a chicken sometimes? My brows came together as I thought this over while continuing my task on autopilot.
"Any reason why or...?" Alfonzo questioned.
"We weren't–" She stopped abruptly, almost making me stop as well. "He didn't think we were compatible," Zelda sighed into her palm.
"And you did?"
"I thought so... Now I don't know." And she laid her head down again, this time sideways so she could stare at us.
There was an interlude where nothing was spoken as Alfonzo began using the electric saw to finally cut those pieces up. I waited a bit before asking about the doors. I wanted to grumble like a four year old when he showed me a sheet. Why he couldn't choose a simple, box-like shape for his wife was beyond me.
"Were you in love with him?"
The question startled Zelda and I, and also caused us both to look up at Alfonzo as he kept on working.
"Um, no," Zelda mumbled. "But I think given time I would have. He didn't feel the same way though, obviously," she rolled her eyes.
"So then it's a good thing you guys broke up," he said as he paused to look at his craftsmanship. Then he looked up at her. "Right?"
I glanced over to find she was taken-aback by his words.
"Um..."
Alfonzo stared at her and put his hands on his hips. "Well, because it would be a waste of your time and energy to be strung along. And at least he didn't go behind your back and cheat on you." He was thoughtful. "Actually he was pretty honorable about how he ended things then."
"But I thought–" she started up, ready to argue something. "I...don't know what I thought," she deflated easily.
"So why would you want to be with someone who doesn't want you?"
Her eyes widened at the words and I was afraid she would start crying any second.
"Doesn't want me...?" she whispered to herself as she picked her head off the table. And though her eyes were getting teary she smiled for him. "That makes sense."
Alfonzo didn't pretend to be oblivious to her reaction – he smiled sadly and shook his head. "You shouldn't want someone just because you want them. You should want them because they want you too," he said softly and quickly averted his eyes.
Zelda nodded and got off the stool. She grabbed the only thing within the perimeter to use, the roll of paper towels, and ripped off a sheet to cover her face for a moment while soaking up any stray tears.
I had completely stopped my task and watched her in worry the whole time. After a few seconds I felt someone turn my head back to my hands. I quickly looked up to find Alfonzo walking back to his spot.
"Link, do you mind heading in the house and getting us something to drink?" he asked suddenly, just as I was getting back to work.
I sighed and put everything down on the table. "Sure." I glanced at Zelda as she walked back to her stool without looking up.
"And there's this cake in the fridge...cut a few slices, would ya?"
I nodded without groaning aloud and left the room, headed out into the backyard and then into his house through the unlocked back door. His wife was a teacher herself, though not a college professor, and was at work.
I was staring into the refrigerator and wondering how I was going to carry three full glasses and three plates out there by myself. It seemed that I would have to either get creative and end up making a mess, or just make multiple trips. Neither was appealing.
I finally just cut three slices of cake and put them on one plate with two others stacked underneath it, and held the jug of iced tea in the other hand. Then it was only one more trip back for forks and cups.
As I came walking up to the workshop door that was only slightly ajar I could hear Zelda and Alfonzo talking. For some reason I stopped and felt like I was interrupting so I waited and listened.
"...how?" she asked. I hadn't heard what they were talking about but then she went on to clarify. "How do you find that person? What are you supposed to look for?"
There was a pause and I could hear the scratch of a pencil across wood before he responded.
"You should just stop looking."
Through the inch crack of space I could see Zelda's jaw drop.
"What? But–"
There was a heavy sigh. "Look Zelda, I don't know you really well. I'm not sure what's going on with you right now or what's happened to you in the past. And I don't want to go about spouting advice that you won't listen to or even worse, is completely wrong for you..." Another pause, and I guessed he was thinking carefully.
"No one wants me," she said abruptly before he could continue. "I'm afraid that in the end no one is going to want me."
"You don't know that. In fact someone probably does right now and you just don't know. Maybe you aren't looking as hard as you think, or looking too hard anyway." I could feel his shrug without having to see. "In any case, for the time being you really don't need a boyfriend, you just need a really good friend."
Zelda still didn't say anything back. She was too busy tracing a finger in random circles on the table while listening.
"And who knows, maybe that friend will turn into your best friend. Then one day you'll find that best friend is exactly who you needed – not wanted."
Nothing was said for a few moments so I decided to make my entrance before they started up again. My arm was aching a little from holding the jug of iced tea.
Just as I was pushing open the door with my side Alfonzo spoke up one last time.
"Sometimes best friends are exactly what you need." And I saw him smile wistfully down into his work.
xoxo
The rest of the day got better from there. Maybe it was the cake, or maybe the heart to heart I had witnessed, but Zelda stopped moping around (something that Malon and Saria had been trying to help her with for weeks now).
She had tried to help out and ended up nearly cutting off all our fingers. Then she smiled sheepishly and was confined to using a pencil – a very dull pencil.
I dropped Zelda off at home later in the day and headed back to my apartment. Even after things got better my mind kept wandering back to Alfonzo's words.
I mean, I must be thinking about it so much for no reason but...I'm her best friend.
I fell asleep in the midst of trying to imagine what it would be like if Zelda and I started dating.
No one else could possibly know how amazing of a person she was but me. I'd known her since we were five, completely innocent and ignorant. I had been with her throughout the whole time until now, getting into trouble and sharing all the inside jokes that came with it.
I always acknowledged that she was a very good looking example of a female and I had accepted that girls in high school and college were trying to flirt with me for more than my intellect. I just never really put us together as some kind of couple, though I had heard a whole lot of gossip and rumors throughout the years.
But here's the thing: I could never be what Zelda needed. I was hardly a good best friend. Usually I felt like I was failing her.
xoxo
I forgot about all those things for two days until Zelda came by my apartment while I was writing the first draft of a paper and trying to make myself dinner at the same time.
"Honey, I'm home!" I heard a voice calling from my apartment door.
I tried to glance up and carefully pour the sauce over my pasta at the same time. "Zelda?" I asked.
She laughed while walking to my kitchenette area. "Who else would it be? Are you giving out keys to other girls?" she joked while setting her bag on the table and walking up next to me. "Started on dinner already, huh?"
I turned down the stove and moved things around a bit before putting down the spoon and turning to her. "What're you doing here? I thought you had a midterm to study for."
Zelda grinned. "You're confusing me with Malon." She turned and grabbed two plates from a shelf.
"Hmm, maybe," I mumbled thoughtfully and turned back to my dinner.
"And, guess what I brought us!"
She didn't say anything else so I had to look up. Zelda was standing next to her bag where she had pulled out a bottle of wine. I raised a brow. She presented it like a prize on a game show.
"Where'd you get that?" I asked with my brows coming together. I went about turning off the stove and emptying the pan into both plates.
"Dad got it as a gift and shoved it to the back of a cabinet. I figured he didn't want it. Especially since he really doesn't drink wine," she smiled and set it down.
"Zel' we can't get drunk. I've still gotta finish this paper and we've both got class tomorrow," I complained childishly while we set up the table.
I witnessed her roll her eyes. "It's just a sophisticated drink with dinner. You can just take one glass full! Or half!" she said persuasively and went for the wine glasses she had gotten me.
I sighed in resignation as I sat down and she opened the bottle. I had pretty good tolerance so one glass wouldn't hurt, right?
Within the hour I had somehow been coerced into finishing the entire bottle with her. But Zelda was obviously not ready to end the fun so she went and grabbed the bottle of whiskey in one of my cabinets left behind from a poker game we had with the others over a month ago. She challenged me to do shots while playing video games.
Needless to say I didn't get to finish that paper and Zelda didn't bother going home.
It was almost nine, which was really early for a bedtime (also meaning we had started drinking pretty early too). I sat on the floor chewing on some left over garlic bread while Zelda was lying on my sofa staring at the ceiling.
"I can't believe you," I mumbled while the TV showed characters replaying their actions.
"Two to tango, Link," she replied sleepily.
I saw the whiskey bottle out of the corner of my eye. It still had more than a few drops left so I grabbed it and chugged what remained.
"Link, carry me to my bed," Zelda said into the couch when she turned over.
"No," I said back. "I won't make it to class tomorrow," I moaned and bowed my head.
She moaned too. "C'mon Link. You love me, don'tcha?"
I paused in my self-pity and glanced over my shoulder at her.
After a few minutes I managed to open my mouth and say, "Don't puke on my couch."
I heard her start laughing into the cushions. I grinned to myself.
"Hey Zel', you think Alfonzo was right?" I asked.
She lifted up her head to stare at me with a confused, and slightly dazed, expression. "With what?"
"Where he said you need to stop looking for a b-f and just look for a best friend," I stated.
Zelda still looked confused. "I thought you were my best friend. I need another one?"
I laughed outright. Then I stopped and thought about this. "Was that what he said?" I questioned.
"That's what you just said!" she replied and propped her head up with her hand.
I shook my head. "Did I?" A fragment of my thoughts was trying to tell me we were making no sense because of the alcohol but I didn't quite hear it at the time.
"Didn't you?" she asked back.
"So I'm your only best friend?" I asked worriedly.
"Ya."
We sat in silence and I looked back at the TV. Suddenly my train of thought came back to me and I turned around to look at her again.
"I meant, he said a best friend could be a good boyfr..." I realized what I was saying before I could finish.
But she figured it out anyway. Maybe she wasn't as drunk as I thought?
"Hm...oh yeah! He did say that," Zelda said with a smile. "I don't know. I didn't think about it too much," she said cheerfully.
Because I was intoxicated I couldn't help the obviously disappointed feeling. "So you don't want to go out?" I asked dejectedly.
"Go out where?"
"Go out with me!" I rolled my eyes.
Zelda stared and then moved to sit up. "Go out...with you?"
"Isn't that what I–" I stopped my joking tone and understood the gravity of our conversation.
"Link?" she asked, making me look at her. "You want to go out?"
"Uh...I...don't know?" I said. "I mean, I was just wondering about what he said!" I tried to recover the situation in vain.
"But Link, you don't like me," she stated.
It brought out annoyance. "Who said? You're, like, assuming things, Zel'!" I chided.
She looked up in thought. "So Link likes me?"
"Hey, I didn't say that!" I complained again. "I was just saying that Alfonzo said that–" And then I started to lose focus on what the hell I was saying. "That-that best friends make good boyfriends or something..." Was that what I meant? "You think he's right?"
Zelda glanced at me. "I don't know. I've never done it. Have you?"
"Well seeing as you've been my only best friend, no."
"But I guess he could be right."
"Maybe."
We were quiet and I was getting tired.
"We should try that," Zelda said suddenly, "To see if he's right!" She smiled down at me.
I jerked awake at her voice. "Oh. Yeah, we should."
I stood up and stretched. Zelda stumbled to her feet and walked down the hall.
"I'm going to sleep," she called over her shoulder.
"'Kay. Me too," I said back.
xoxo
I woke up to witness the clock go from 9:59 to 10:00, which was exactly when my first class of the day started. It was torture knowing the lecture was beginning and I couldn't even get out of bed.
I rolled over and remembered parts of last night's conversation and hoped Zelda wouldn't remember at all.
When I got out of bed and headed to the bathroom I saw Zelda come out.
"Long night," I commented.
"Yeah," she said as she moved aside. "We party too hard, Link," she smiled.
As I closed the bathroom door behind me I was pretty sure she didn't even know we had had a potentially awkward talk about dating while drunk.
Good for me, I guess.
Now if I could figure out why seeing her made me have a mild heart attack it would be great.
xoxo
Here is chapter six. Great of me to have actually have a fic almost done when I start posting it right? Then I can update on a regular schedule, with just enough time in between to hopefully keep you in suspense. Next chapter is already complete and will be out in about a week. Which means I have about two weeks to get started on chapter eight, which will hopefully be the end.
To LadyZayriah: I understand your hopes for the couple here but Link can't tell Zelda he loves her yet because...well he doesn't love her yet. He's barely just starting to like her as more than a platonic friend. Sorry if things are moving too slow for you.
Thank you for reading, any responses you give to the fanfic and your support.
7-8-10
12:26pm
EDIT:
Sorry, but something I'd like you all to check out if you can is an AMV (anime music video) I finished about a month ago. It's uploaded on youtube and I'm crazy happy about it. Just have a look and maybe tell me what you think. Take out the parentheses and it should work.
Link: /watch?v=M5ThUPFmFLY
7-8-10
6:10pm