Author's Note: Oh my God it's almost Christmas. hot damn.
HIYAH BOYS AND GIRLS, HOW YA BEEN? well as you can see, i survived the semester - granted with a few new battle scars, even from my spanish class (which is my mother tongue)- and have now managed toooooo *drumroll* WRITE THE FINAL CHAPTER TO L.O.F.
That's right folks, you heard it here and you heard it first, this lovely little fanfic, my first ever fanfic, is now finished :)
Thank you so so so much to everyone who read it and followed and liked not only the fanfic but me as well, and thank you so so so much for all the great reviews! They really helped to keep me motivated to finish this properly.
I know it's the last chapter now, but you are still more than welcomed to leave comments with any suggestions and feedback for me - really, you'd be helping! since this won't be my last multichapter fic.
Once again, Nat belongs to the talented C2ndy2d1d on tumblr
And a certain new character belongs to the also talented eyugho
(I wasn't going to just leave Nat hanging like that~)
Look at all this fluff I'm giving you. Here, take my fluff and enjoy it.
Ch. 15: A Leap of Faith
The cold wind nipped at Kevin's face, making his nose and cheeks turn a rosey pink which helped mask his own blushing as Double D looked at him expectantly, almost analyzing him.
Kevin gulped, and looked down at his snow-dusted boots, listening intently to the crunching they made under him. It was quiet, really quiet, all around them, as the snow fell softly, blanketing the old playground in a white fluffy mantle, and as the warm yellow-orange glow of the street lamps illuminated them. Kevin was grateful for the privacy, but now, there was really nowhere left to run, nowhere to hide, and no one to help him.
"Dou-"
"Kev-"
Both boys began and shut up simultaneously. Kevin rubbed the back of his neck and Double D fixed his beanie.
'This is getting painfully awkward…' thought the redhead, "Y-you start."
"No, no, that's quite alright, you go first."
"Uhm…Yeah, ok." Kevin let out a slow shaky breath and spoke as clearly as he could. "Well, first of all, I just want to make it super clear that whatever you think might've happened back there," he pointed in the general direction back to Nazz's house, "it isn't true. Nothing happened. I swear to you, Edd, I never did anything."
Edd bit his lower lip in consideration for a moment, but then gave a small nod; Kevin nodded too, glad that Edd seemed to have believed him, not that he shouldn't, since Kevin really was telling the truth.
"I…I've never been too good for all this feelings stuff so I don't know…how to go about this…uhmm…heh, actually, I guess this is the problem to begin with."
Double D quirked an eyebrow and looked at him curiously, "What do you mean?"
"I mean… it means… it means you got to me dude…you slowly but surely managed to get imprinted in my mind." Both boys began to blush furiously as Kevin's words slipped out of his mouth – cautiously, but honestly.
"At first I thought there was no way, y'know? Like… I thought that all I felt for you was something between friends, between brothers even…like… like an older brother looking out for his younger brother…"
'Brothers?...That's it then? I'm his little brother?" Thought the sockhead, "Kevin, while I appreciate the 'brotherly' sentiment, I do not need you to care for me like a child, I'm pe-"
"Please let me finish."
"Right. Excuse me, Kevin."
"Anyway… I was so sure that was it, my friend, my brother, nothing less and nothing more…but I was wrong…boy, was I ever wrong…" Kevin let out a breathy chuckle and continued, "I began to feel jealous, of Nat mostly…to be honest… the two of you just seemed so close, so comfortable with each other, and I'm thinking like 'wait, aren't I supposed to be the one closest to him? I've known him longer. Aren't I supposed to be the brother? Shouldn't he be comfortable with me?' and then I realized, that no, you shouldn't have… I treated you and your friends like shit since I can remember, and it was all mostly Eddy, but you and Ed always got in the crossfire between us… but I was just a kid… a hotheaded kid at that… I never hated you Edd. I'd get mad, sure, but, I never hated you; hell, I never even truly hated Eddy…after the whole fiasco with his older brother – you remember, back at that lame-ass amusement park? With the whale trailer? Yeah – I realized that yeah I can't stand this kid 90% of the time, and I may have hit him once or twice to teach him a lesson, but I'd never want any real harm on him, or Ed, and definitely none on you."
"So…I'm not just a brother then?" Edd stood up from the swing and was now right in front of the flustered redhead.
"No…you're not." Kevin took a step closer to Edd, and his skin tingled and he could feel the faint hair on his arms and the back of his neck stand as if electricity surrounded them; but, it was a nice little spark. He bit his lower lip and mustered all the courage he could, and slowly grabbed onto Edd's hand lightly. Edd looked down to their now joined hands, eyes wide and skin pink in surprise. "I like you… a lot actually…I told you back the halloween party, and I meant it, I still do. The thing with Nat… well, it completely threw me off…I was pissed, I was hurt…but I was wrong…in the sense that I should've listened to what you had to say…and maybe things wouldn't have been as bad."
"No… truly, Kevin, forgive me for what happened. It was my fault."
"Don't say that, dork. Nat and I were at fault too."
It was strange, but the moment Kevin called Edd his usual nickname, the sockhead felt a sense of familiar warmth around him as if the snow around them had completely melted away, and all that was left was the two of them.
But he couldn't do this.
He squeezed Kevin's hand but his eyes turned sad, and Kevin noticed, and he worried.
"Kevin… I do not know what to say…That is, I am happy that you were and still are honest about your feelings towards me, and I must admit…that I also have these feelings towards you…"
A part of Kevin still felt like not everything had been said yet, but he couldn't help but perk up at the confession; Edd liked him, Edd returned his feelings, and that was all he wanted to hear right now. He smirked and lowered his head so that his forehead was now touching Edd's, "Really?"
Edd smiled, but it was still strained with worry and doubt. "Really…but I am not sure on what to do from here."
"What do you mean? This could obviously mean we get to go out now! You'll be mine and…and I'd be yours."
"As nice as that sounds… I'm not sure if that would really be the best idea for either of us."
"Wh…what?" 'No…'
"I did some thinking..."
'No, don't think…'
"Would this really be a good idea? Would this really be logical? Make sense? I've always been the nerd, the 'prodigy', the safe one, the bookworm…not to say that I am not ok with this, I mean, I do not reject who I am. I am proud of my scholastic accomplishments and even without being anywhere near popular, I managed to make great friends…but you Kevin… you're strong, you're athletic, you're handsome, you're popular…you're someone many people looked up to, like your teammates… it's almost like we are from two different worlds."
"Edd we just happen to be two different people in the same world."
"But we wouldn't make sens-"
"We don't have to make sense!"
"But Kevin what would the oth-"
"What would they say? Is that what you were gonna ask? They'd say 'Damn! Look at those two being all cute and in love and shit. Wow.'"
"Kevin I just d-"
"Don't!" Kevin cupped Edd's face with both his hands and kissed him, gently but firmly. At first he could feel Edd tense and frozen in time, but slowly he began to relax and melt into the kiss. The corners of Kevin's lips twitched up when he felt Edd was ok, and even returning some of the pressure in the kiss, and then he separated, looking Edd straight in the eye.
"It doesn't have to make sense. It doesn't have to be logical. Not everything in this world has to be logical and make sense or be obvious or whatever. Some things you shouldn't think about…not with your head at least…some things you just do. You go by what you feel, not what you think. And yeah you might make mistakes, or the wrong judgment, and you might think 'God, that was stupid!'…But that's learning too isn't it? And you can make mistakes in logic and reason too, or else many wonders of the universe and science would've been resolved ages ago, but that's not the case now is it?...No… Some lessons can't be taught, they need to be learned on your own; and one way to learn is through your experiences and mistakes."
Kevin stopped talking, still holding onto Edd's cheeks, and he felt his hole body go hot underneath his clothes as Edd's eyes burned into his own. Wide and bright and full of what seemed to be amazement.
"Kevin, that was…vey insightful…and mature of you…"
And now babbling, flustered Kevin was back; he couldn't help but lose his composure when Edd acknowledged him or praised him like that. What with Edd being Edd, and him being him, it felt like a great achievement. "Ya think?"
"Yes." Edd sighed and lifted a hand, gently covering one of Kevin's own and leaning into the touch, "All my life I've been all about logic and reasoning, what's right and wrong, and why it's right or wrong… and I hate to admit that sometimes I do lose track of the emotional component of certain problems or situations…and become wrapped in my own anxieties, real or not."
" 'Not' in this case. Edd I really like you and that's not something that's going to change any time soon, at all. Yeah we're different, very different, but in my opinion, that's what lets us bring out the best in each other."
Double D smiled, "Indeed; a sort of symbiosis if you must. Like a clownfish and an anemone or perhaps even ying and yang."
Kevin chuckled, "Sure, sure. See? We work just fine."
Edd laughed softly now too.
"So…Edd…whaddaya say? Are you willing to take a leap of faith and go out with me?"
Edd smiled up at Kevin and happily nodded, "I'm willing to take that chance."
Kevin smiled from ear to ear and hugged the smaller boy tightly; it felt like his heart would burst with happiness. He nuzzled against Edd's neck before separating enough to touch their noses and kissed.
A sweet, joyful, long-awaited-for kiss.
Kevin an Edd had returned to the party when everyone was now leaving – after being somewhat kicked out by Nazz – except for the other 2 Eds, and Nat. The four of them waited for the redhead and sockhead, discussing about what might've happened and how it might've turned out, and of course, hoping for the best.
When they saw the two boys walk into the house, hand in hand, a weight was simultaneously lifted off of everyone's shoulders and they rushed towards the new happy couple, flooding them with congratulatory hugs and pats on the back.
"I knew you had it in you Pebbles!"
Kevin laughed and lightly elbowed his friend's arm, "Hey uhm…we…we're ok right? I mean…I…"
"Oh hush, Kev! You're my best friend, and so is Double Cutie. Don't let me get in the way of true happiness or else I'll feel like a total asshole!"
"Oh don't worry about that, I'm not letting go of this dork anytime soon."
"Yeah you better not."
Everything turned out a lot better than expected, and the holidays went by without a hitch. Edd was terrified of what his parents' reaction to his new boyfriend would be like, but despite the initial shock, both of them were very understanding people, who only cared about their son's happiness. Even though they might not have said it as often as they should've, both felt guilty over leaving their son alone for such long periods or time from such a young age, but what they did they did for Edd and Edd alone; it made them happy to know that now Edd would have one more person to look out for him, and be with him, and love him.
Kevin was incredibly nervous as well when they went over to tell his parents. He was a nervous wreck in the living room and his parents would give him strange, worried looks, and sometimes look to Edd as if his face held all the answers; but Kevin told him not to help him, because Edd was able to tell his parents himself, so he should be able to as well. Finally the truth came out and he felt immensely blessed that like Edd's parents, once they got over the initial shock, his parents understood, and even liked the idea of Edd being such a good, close influence on their son, especially for school.
They were able to spend new years together too, watching the fireworks show the cul-de-sac had every new year and enjoying themselves, cuddled close to each other for warmth, and just for the sake of cuddling.
Kevin turned to look at Edd subtly, admiring how the fireworks sparkled in Edd's eyes and the different colors played across his skin.
Double D felt someone staring, and turned to Kevin curiously when he saw the redhead fixated on him, "I-is something wrong? Are you ok? If it's too cold then we can go back inside! The last thing I want is you catching a cold when we are so close to having to go back to school! You cannot possibly miss the first class; if you get started with the wrong foot it will be very difficult to pull yourself back up!"
"I'm fine, I'm fine! I was just looking at you, and as your boyfriend, I think that means I'm allowed to look at you any time I want and however much I want." Kevin said with a warm smile. He leaned in and kissed Edd softly, losing himself in the way Edd's lips felt against his and how he tasted to him; so inviting and addicting. "And, there are many ways I would enjoy seeing you." He said softly and seductively.
Edd blushed furiously and hid his red face against Kevin's chest, feeling the jock's strong chest rise and fall as he laughed at his reaction. "K-Kevin please!"
"Well it's true. I am attracted to you, you know?"
"Y-yes well…as am I…" 'A lot actually…' "But I'm not…I don't…Uh."
"Don't worry dork," Kevin nuzzled the top of Edd's beanie and held him close, "I understand. We'll wait."
"Mhm." Edd said contently. He was happy, and he was glad Kevin talked some sense into him, or else he felt he would've made a terrible mistake and lost something very precious. This leap of faith with the redhead was 100% worth it.
The two lovers continued to enjoy the fireworks, smiling, and hopeful.
Unfortunately though, all good things must come to an end, and as such, the holidays and winter break were over, much to the dismay of everyone. Bags were packed, hugs were given, and goodbyes were said as each one took their separate ways once again. The PCU trio – Nat, Kevin, and Edd – got back to their dorms as quickly as they could so they could unpack, relax, and enjoy what little they had left of their freedom.
2 months later.
"He's late." Huffed Kevin as he sunk onto the bench next to him.
"Calm down Kev, his class didn't even end till 2:30 and it's only 2:33; he can't just magically appear right in front of you, you know? He kinda has to walk." Said Nazz with a giggle and a pat to her friend's shoulder.
"Hey there he is now!...ooh, with a boy, how scandalous!" Nat put a hand to his mouth in mock shock but laughed when he saw Kevin immediately straighten up and strain his look so he could try and decipher who this mystery guy was and why he was walking so close to his boyfriend.
As they approached Kevin could now hear their voices more clearly, 'man, this kid swears like a sailor…' He wore a thin, purple, stripped turtleneck with light gray jeans, and his hair was some kind of mahogany color with turquoise streaks at the front, and now that he was closer, he could tell the guy wore glasses too.
"There you are Double Cutie! Poor wittlu Kevy was getting wowied you didn't wuv him anymore and ditched his sorry ass."
"GOLDBERG!"
"So that's the famous Kevin?"
Kevin's gaze turned to the mystery boy and quirked an eyebrow, "famous?..."
"Yeah I remember now. You're the whole reason my damn partner over here became a fucking zombie the last few days of school, WHILE we had a final English presentation, so I had to even help him do HIS part."
"HEY!" Edd blushed and tugged at the boy's arm so he would stop talking.
"Oh calm down! He's your boyfriend now anyway, he might as well know the exten of his emotional impact on you even BEFORE you started going out."
Kevin had a sly smirk plastered on his face, highly interested to hear more; he stood up and walked closer to the two boys, "Really now, I have time for more stories."
"NO WE DO NOT. GOODBYE FRIENDS." And with that, Double D got a hold of Kevin's hand and dragged him away from the rest, who were left laughing at the whole situation while the turtle-necked boy simply sighed and shook his head, but his lips tugged at a small smile as well.
"Aww don't get so shy babe." Said Kevin with a giggle, squeezing his lover's hand.
"Eugh!"
Kevin laughed louder, looked back, and once he saw they were far enough away from their friends, he stopped, yanking Edd towards him and making him crash against his strong chest with an 'oomf!'. "You're too cute."
And with that, they kissed, something that by now, they were very much getting used to, and would be for days and days to come.
"I love you dork."
Edd giggled against the redhead's lips – which Kevin had to admit, drove him crazy for the boy – and answered, "I love you too Kevin."
"Anyway," the spectacled boy started, fixing his glasses, "I have important stuff to do. Bye."
"Well he just seemed like a ray of sunshine."
Nazz giggled an patted her friend's shoulder, "I think I've seen him before…around the theater…"
"Oh God…a drama queen?... heh, how fun.
"Naaatt…" Said Nazz cautiously.
"Not a bad butt either…I'd give that a 9, easy."
"Nathan!"
"Sorry blondie, gotta go!"
And with that her friend jogged after the turtlenecked boy and she simply giggled and walked her own way to her next class.
"Wanna go get a quick lunch?"
He jumped a bit when he heard a voice suddenly sound next to him and seeing Nathan so close to him. "What? No."
"C'mooonnn."
"Fuck off, whatever your name is."
"Goldber, Nathan Goldberg." He said with a suave, proud smile.
"Charmed…" Said the spectacled boy, dripping with sarcasm, but simply continued walking.
"Pleaasseee? I'll buy ya coffee?" pleaded Nat with his best puppy-dog eyes.
He stopped in his tracks, and thought about it for a moment… well, he was thirsty and tired.
"Alright Goldberg. You win." Rave nodded and continued to walk once again, but this time, in the direction of the nearest campus coffee shop. Nat smiled and quickly followed.
"So, does this mean I get a name to go along with your pretty face?"
The other boy scowled – although couldn't deny the slightest of blushes trying to color his cheeks – but answered anyway,
"Rave. My name's Rave."
"Rave huh? That's a name I could get used to."