The Next Age Chapter One Part Four
Xavier kept his eyes on the clock, only ten more seconds and……
"Yes! Time to go home!" He cheered as the one o'clock chime rang.
Xavier turned to Vyctori who was already packing up her supplies. Her blonde hair was draped over her shoulders just right. Xavier sighed longingly. At the sound, Vyctori cocked her head and glanced over. She was probably hoping to see Toshi or Blade or any one of the other male lab techs, any one except who was there because, while Xavier had a fondness for her, she hated him with a passion. Her curiosity at who was sighing at her quickly turned to disgust and she shot him a look that screamed "go away". Xavier was at least half her age and twice as immature as most boys his age. Young girls swooned for him, he was rather good looking, but he just wasn't her type. Of course, try telling Xavier that. He smiled at her. The more she rejected him, the more he thought she liked him and was just playing hard to get.
"Hey Vyc, shift's over. Wanna go out and get something to eat?" He asked.
She narrowed her eyes.
"No." she replied. "I would rather dissect a human."
"Well..I can't see you enjoying that more than going over to the Milkshake with me but to each his own. Are you sure you don't want to? I'll even pay. Zero and I are going to stop there on our way to the arcade anyways." Xavier said to her, smiling.
Ugh..Zero! If there was one person more immature than Xavier, it was Zero. All those two ever thought about was Video Games.
"I'm sure you and your little friend can go play by yourselves." She said and excused herself.
"Maybe next time?" He called after her.
"No." She replied and left the room.
Xavier shrugged his shoulders and began putting away his supplies.
"At least I tried…."
As he had everyday since he began working at the lab, Xavier packed up, checked out, and began walking home. He always took the long way, no sense in forcing himself to cross that awful glass bridge if he didn't have to. Zero always waited for him in the kitchen, usually munching on some sweets.
"Hey Zero, ready to……….Zero?" Xavier called as he entered the kitchen but, to his surprise, the room was empty with no sign that Zero had even been there recently.
That seemed very odd, today was the premier of DC Versus Squaresoft, they had anxiously awaited it for months. Zero was eager to play Sky Conflict and Xavier had sworn to beat him with Flurry Cheetaheart. They was no way Zero had found something better to do, not after they had planned all this out and saved up all their tokens for so long. This promised to be even better than Absolutely the Last Fantasy Versus DC. Why would Zero pull out of going to play it? Maybe he had gotten impatient and had gone by himself or maybe he was warming up by playing SF5. Xavier went to check his room but didn't find Zero there either, the game systems hadn't been touched. There was still a full 30 minutes left before the machine was up and ready to go, maybe Zero had gone down to watch them set it up. Xavier returned to the kitchen and grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading down to the arcade to check.
The place was pretty crowded by the time he got there but this was no surprise. Everyone was all psyched up about the new game coming in. Pushing through the crowds, Xavier looked everywhere for Zero but his friend was no where to be found.
"Hey Xavier!" A voice called out behind him.
"Kei-chan!" Xavier exclaimed.
He didn't even have to turn around, he knew it was her from her voice. Kei was his niece, the daughter of his oldest half-sister Crysta. She was a few years younger than he was, about Zero's age and he had grown up around her, visiting with her when Crysta came over from Kuro City. They had always gotten along well, she was the only girl Xavier knew that liked Street Fighter and who had a "thing" for Zero or at least the only one who would admit to it. She was in her usual tomboy attire, a loose fitting T-shirt and a pair of worn jeans. Her brown hair hung loosely around her shoulders and her hazel eyes sparkled with excitement. Xavier smiled at her, glad to see a familiar face.
"You're a bit early!" She said. "Did Zero drag you down here?"
"No, actually I came here looking for him. He wasn't at the tower when I got off my shift, have you seen him?" Xavier asked her.
"Xavier," Kei began with a little bit of a giggle. "If I had seen Zero-chan, why would I be here alone?"
"Because he ran off and ditched you?" Xavier replied with a smirk.
"Yeah…he's good at that, isn't he?" She said and laughed. "But I haven't seen him today, I was hoping he'd be with you. DC Versus Squaresoft premiers today."
"Yeah I know. We were going to go to the Milkshake and have lunch then spend the day playing it but I can't find him. I thought that maybe he was here. Guess I was wrong though. You're not keeping him tied up somewhere are you Kei?" Xavier asked.
"Oh I wish!" She replied. "The things I would do to him if he was….play with his hair, strip him naked, kiss him all ova-"
"Kei please, keep your fantasies to yourself, okay? I really don't want to think about Zero that way, it's not good for my sanity." Xavier said, disgusted.
Kei laughed at him.
"Suit yourself!" She said. "But Zero's so cute I wouldn't be surprised if you wanted him too!"
"UGH! Don't make me lose my appetite this early in the day!" Xavier groaned.
"Hey, I'm just kidding though I wouldn't mind watching that….." Kei remarked.
"Kei! Geesh, stop it! That's sick. Are you sure you don't need a psychiatrist? This can't be normal…"
"Oh I'm kidding Xavier, lighten up!" Kei said, laughing mischievously.
"Yeah..well….anyhow, I'm going to go see if I can find Zero." Xavier spoke, sighing
"You're not going to stay to play DC Versus Squaresoft?" Kei asked.
"I've gotta find Zero, I've just got a bad feeling about him. I don't think I could enjoy myself with out him here anyhow." Xavier replied.
"Okay but you're gonna be sorry you missed this." Kei said. "Catch you later, Xavier!"
"Later." Xavier said and gave a short wave before going towards the exit.
After leaving, Xavier checked all the places he and Zero hung out but he came up empty, Zero wasn't to be found in any of them. This wasn't the first time his best friend had disappeared, far from it. He usually vanished for the whole day when Rhythm took him to see his father. That's where he had to be right now, in Konranken. Why he would want to spent the whole day there was a mystery to Xavier, Zero didn't like his father and Blues returned the favor, what could they possible be doing together? He remembered that when Zero was younger, he'd come home from Konranken in tears and bearing bruises. Xavier had always asked what was wrong but never got an answer. Something inside of him told him someone was hurting Zero but it was only recently that he began to wonder if it was Blues. Whoever it had been, they had quit because Zero stopped coming back bruised and sobbing and took off to spend the whole day there now.
Xavier decided there was nothing left for him to do now but go back to his room and wait for Zero to come back, assuming he was in Konranken.
Time passed, minutes, hours, and still, no Zero. It was too late now to play DC Versus Squaresoft, the arcade was probably closing up. Xavier sighed. How could Zero bail on him today or all days? Earlier at dinner, both Rhythm and Zero had been missing and even Roll had no idea where they were. Xavier stayed up late, waiting and worrying about his friend until he knew he couldn't keep awake much longer. The clock read 12:30am, he had to get to bed.
"Zero, where are you?" Xavier asked himself as he looked out his window over the city.
Ten minutes later, he was asleep in his bed.
Xavier's window was unlocked, it always was.. Zero slid it open gently and slipped inside, trying to be as quiet as he could as he rested on the windowsill. He had spent most of the day on the rooftop, hiding from the world. Xavier was sound asleep, he had probably waited all day. Zero reached to his side and pulled out a slender reed flute, his reed flute. He put it to his lips and began to softly play a lullaby. He still didn't feel quite like himself, if he had, he would've woken Xavier up with in a loud and rude manner. Instead, he chose to play his flute and hope Xavier heard it. Xavier always liked it when Zero played or so he said. It was only because of Rhythm that Zero had even learned how to play at all. He only did so occasionally and usually when he had some emotion he wanted to express.
Xavier stirred in his sleep a little, still too lost in dreams to awaken. Before going on, it should be noted that while Zero can play beautifully most of the time, he has a bad habit of hitting notes off key unintentionally. This was to be one of those times. Xavier winced as it reached his ears and groaned sleepily. Was it his alarm clock already? His eyelids fluttered open reluctantly as he sat up. It was still dark. He gazed over to the window, still hearing the sound of soft music coming from somewhere. In the moonlight, he could just make out Zero's form sitting on the windowsill, his reed flute pressed to his lips.
"Zero?" He mumbled sleepily.
The music stopped suddenly and Zero turned to look in Xavier's direction, half of his face was shadowed by the darkness.
"Where have you (yawn) been?" Xavier asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Thinking…………" Zero answered solemnly, turning his head away.
Xavier glanced over to the clock, 3:17Am.
"You keep odd hours, Z." Xavier groaned, yawning once more.
He stretched a few times then got up, stumbling to his feet. He was expecting to hear a tall tale about how Zero had spent the day but he was strangely quiet. No stories, no nothing.
"What's wrong Zero? You're silent." Xavier asked with a touch of seriousness in his voice.
There was no reply.
"You must've woken me up for a reason." Xavier added, making his way over to the lamp on his dresser. "It's too dark in here, let me turn this on."
He reached over and switched on the lamp. The resulting bright light just about blinded him.
"Ugh..I forgot about that. This hurt your eyes too Zero?"
Xavier looked up at Zero, squinting his eyes as they adjusted to the light. He raised his hand to shield them so that he could see better. Slowly, Zero turned towards Xavier, his head lowered in shame. On the right side of his face was a huge black and blue bruise. Xavier's mouth fell open with shock as he noticed it. Zero, feeling his gaze, quickly turned away.
"What happened to you?" Xavier asked.
He reached out, gently placing his hand under Zero's chin and lifting his face so that he could get a better look. He used his other hand to brush the hair out of Zero's eyes, gazing at him with concern but Zero refused to make eye contact with him, preferring to stare at the floor.
"Are you okay? Does it hurt?" Xavier asked.
"I'm fine…I guess." Zero replied softly.
"Who did this to you? Tell me and I'll make sure they never do it again! Was it that gang in Konranken? I'll break their faces if they laid a hand on you!" Xavier spoke as he looked over the bruise, checking for any swelling.
It always upset him to see Zero hurt. He supposed it was because he felt protective towards his friend and knew Zero couldn't stand up for himself.
"N-no..I..just dashed into something. You were right, maybe I should cut the jets once in a while.." Zero said, lying, he just couldn't bring himself to tell Xavier the truth.
Now it was Xavier's turn to fall silent. From his training, he knew that dashing into something didn't cause marks like that. The imprint of a hand was very clear by the positions of colors of the bruises. Someone had hit Zero, it was obvious, but Xavier wasn't about to confront him with it. Maybe later, after Zero had calmed down and would feel like talking about it.
"Let me take care of it for you. It can't feel very good." Xavier said and Zero nodded.
Carefully, Xavier placed his hand over the bruise and concentrated, shutting his eyes. He turned his thoughts to the energy of the world, in the air, in his own body and let it flow into him, down his arm and into his fingertips with a soft purple glow, tingling Zero's skin as it touched him. In a moment, it was over. When Xavier opened his eyes and pulled back his hand, the mark was gone. Zero sighed and slid off the windowsill onto his feet.
"Thanks." He told Xavier.
"It was nothing." Xavier replied. "So, I guess you went to Konranken for the day. I waited for you."
"Sorry….it was kind of a last minute thing." Zero apologized.
"Are you sure you're okay? Did something bad happen between you and Uncle Blues? You're usually not this serious." Xavier asked, concerned. "If something's wrong, you can tell me."
Zero felt the urge to tell him everything for a brief moment. The look in Xavier's eyes made Zero want to confess his shame so he could seek solace in his friend, the one who had always defended him in the past and protected him but…he couldn't. What would Xavier think of him? He didn't need his pity.
"How was DC Versus Squaresoft?" Zero asked, changing the subject.
"I wouldn't know, I didn't play it." Xavier replied with a shrug. "I was waiting for you."
"Sorry…" Zero said meekly and turned away.
"Yeah well just leave me a note next time, okay?" Xavier said.
Zero nodded slowly.
Something was defiantly was bothering Zero, he was just too withdrawn and quiet to be himself. Had Xavier been more awake, he would have sat Zero down and tried to get out of him what exactly was wrong but he was tired and eager to lie back down. His head was foggy and his eyes hurt from the need to sleep.
"Sorry for waking you…." Zero apologized, noticing his friends' exhaustion. "I suppose you wanna go back to sleep now."
"Yeah.." Xavier said with a yawn and smiled at Zero. "That would be nice"
"Okay." Zero sighed, turning to leave to go to his own room.
I can't let him leave like this… Xavier thought to himself. He seems really upset..
Xavier glanced over to his bed. When he was a child, Zero had a problem sleeping alone in his own room. He was always having nightmares and waking up crying. Xavier was forever comforting him because, odd as it was, he was one of the only ones who could. Rhythm and Roll agreed it would be best for the to stay in the same room some nights. That lead to Roll buying Xavier a bunk bed. It wasn't a normal one though, it was in the shape of an upside down "L". One bed was horizontal while the other was vertical. Granted it was strange but it meant that they could see each other from their beds and that Xavier could keep an eye on Zero.
"Hey Zero…why don't you sleep here tonight?" Xavier spoke, he wasn't comfortable with letting Zero leave in the state he was in. "The top bunk's always yours."
For the first time that night, Zero smiled, even if it was only a small one. He really didn't want to be alone and he was hoping Xavier would let him stay.
"Thanks…"
Xavier shut off the light and crawled back into his bed as Zero climbed the small ladder and settled into the top bunk. He moved around a few times, trying to get cozy. Xavier sighed, he was still worried.
"Are you going to be okay Zero?" He asked.
"I'll be spiffy." Zero replied.
Xavier chuckled softly. "Spiffy", that was definitely a Zero word. He couldn't feel too bad if he was using it…still..Xavier wished Zero would tell him what happened, it would put his mind at ease. As it was now, he could just guess. Xavier was more than sure someone had hit Zero but who and why? If he ever found out, he'd kill them. Maybe Rhythm would know something about it, he could speak with her in the morning.
"You sure you're okay up there Z?"
Xavier glanced upwards and saw the Zero had turned on his side and was breathing softly. He was asleep. He hadn't even tied back his hair or braided it the way he usually did, wisps of it hung down over the edge. He must have been just waiting to find a comfortable spot to sleep. Xavier sighed. He didn't mind sharing the room with him, secretly, it made him feel better to know Zero was safe in his bunk. Xavier had protected Zero for almost his entire life. He had never stood up for himself, it was always Xavier who had to fight for him and if he wasn't there, Zero ended up getting hurt. He was getting a little too old to have all of his battles fought for him and Xavier secretly wished Zero would learn to fight for himself now. He sighed tiredly, drawing the covers close and falling into a deep sleep.
End Chapter One
Zero, RockMan, Roll and Blues are copyright of Capcom of Japan, they own em, I borrow them.
Rhythm, Xavier and others are copyright Roll-Chan productions, I own em, you don't borrow em.
I make no money off of this story except what people pay me to stop writing it.
Notes: Yes! Chapter 1 is OVER! A nice not so typical day in the lives of two young boys….
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