The Character within My Heart

All kids hold an egg in their soul. The egg of our

Hearts, our would-be selves…

Yet…

Unseen…

Ch. 4

"KYAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!" Beth rolled across the floor of her bedroom, cheeks burning. She was tired, shocked, and embarrassed. She had tried to convince herself that she had fallen asleep in the bath and had an overly-realistic dream. But she had still tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep because of the knot in her stomach and the burn of her red cheeks.

"P-please calm down, Beth," Roxanne pleaded. "It's really not that big of a deal,"

"Yes it is!!!" Beth cried out, sitting up to glare at her Heart's Character. "This is a VERY big deal!!!" she crumpled back onto the floor, holding her head in her hands. "That guy stole my innocence…!"

Roxanne snickered, "Stole your innocence…" she smirked.

"You know I'm not talking about virginity, Roxanne!!" she yelled. She pointed at her lips. "I'm talking about my first kiss!!!" she slumped down again, shaking her head wildly. "I really can't believe this!! That guy~!!" she stopped shaking her head back and forth, a worried look on her face. "Who was he anyways? Just when I was getting used to things," her eyebrows pulled together, and tears trembled in the corners of her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut to prevent the tears from falling. "things just get even more confusing!!"

"Shhh," Roxanne floated down from her perch on the desk to comfort Beth, "Don't worry. It's going to be okay,"

Beth trembled for a minute longer, and then looked up at her Heart's Character. "Are Heart's Characters really that common?"

"Not really," her character replied, "Usually, people's eggs remain dormant. But if someone's wish is strong enough," Roxanne smiled at the brunette, "their egg hatches, and a Heart's Character comes out of it,"

"Hm," Beth looked away, deep in thought. Someone's wish….So does that mean…That Yuma guy has a wish too? And everyone else with Heart's Characters? But then…. Beth looked off, not meeting eyes with Roxanne. What was Yuma's wish?

xXx

"I'm off!" Beth called over her shoulder, one foot out the door.

"Text me when you get there, 'kay?" her father's voice echoed from the kitchen.

"Yeah, yeah," Beth closed the door behind her, squinting in the sunlight. Smiling broadly, she inhaled deeply, enjoying the sun warming her skin.

"Ready to go?" Roxanne floated up behind her.

"Yup!" Beth responded cheerily. The two of them set off, a newfound spring in Beth's step.

"You're awfully peppy this morning," Roxanne remarked, "given the fact that five minutes ago you were close to tears."

"I like the sun, okay?" Beth said, not faltering a bit. It was true; whenever the sun peeked out from the clouds, she felt twenty times better. It was almost like she was solar-powered, gathering more charge when the sun was out.

Grinning ear to ear, Beth skipped down the sidewalk, on her way to Yvette's house. She had resolved to check on her, since she hadn't responded to any of her texts or answered any of her calls. Roxanne hesitated at the door when the two of them reached her house

"Hm?" Beth turned to face her. "What's wrong?"

Roxanne shook her head. "It's nothing."

"If you say so…" Beth turned back to Yvette's door. She knocked with the back of her hand, calling, "Hellloooo~! Guess who's here!" she opened the door, not bothering to wait for someone to answer. Stepping inside, she called out again. "Hello? Yvette? You home??" No response. Frowning, Beth put her hands on her hips and huffed. "Where is she?" Off she went, exploring the house in search of her friend, not even bothering to notice that Roxanne was still floating at the door, looking a bit uneasy.

What's this feeling? Roxanne wondered. Something was stirring inside her, responding to the house, or something inside it. She chewed her bottom lip, trying to figure it out.

"Yveeeette!!" Beth called up the stairs. She trotted up them, still calling. "Come out, come out where ever you are!!" she rounded the corner into a hall and walked down to the last door, a determined look on her face. She grabbed a hold of the door handle, not hesitating. "Hey! Why don't you answer–" Beth choked on her words.

It was Yuma.

Beth's jaw dropped. "Y-YOU!!" her face was aflame. Her heart pounded and her brain was working overtime. Her eyes raked across the room, her eyes going even wider when she saw a small fairy-like creature floating near Yvette's shoulder. "B-bah! He-! You-! What-?!" she pointed wildly, switching from Yuma, Yvette, and the character at her shoulder. She babbled on and on, while the two of them sat watching calmly. Finally, she shook her head and managed to blurt, "What the hell are YOU doing here?!"

Yuma stood from his seat in the green chair that took up one corner of Yvette's room. He crossed his arms, looking her up and down. Beth's cheeks burned when she noticed his eyes pause at her chest.

"You perv!" she balled up her fists at her sides, anger rushing through her, even without Roxanne's help. "You're the one who kissed me!!" she walked right up to him, fuming. She raised her hand, ready to slap him, but his hand caught hers before she even had a chance to swing.

"I don't think that's necessary," he said calmly, voice low.

"So you two have already met?" Yvette stood and walked towards them, oblivious to the current situation.

"H-hhow can you be so calm?! This asshole jumps through my window, pins me down and kisses me AND YOU ACT LIKE NOTHING HAPPENED?!?!?!" Beth cried, tearing her arm away from Yuma.

Yvette looked stunned. Beth only swore when she was extremely upset; Yvette knew that. Her eyes glimmered, and she closed them, holding back the tears. The unnamed Heart's Character floated next to her and, almost immediately, a broken heart charm on a thin silver chain appeared on her neck. Her eyes snapped open, and she shouted, "I'M NOT ACTING LIKE NOTHING HAPPENED!! I WAS JUST ASKING!!"

Beth took a step back, the anger rushing out of her, replaced by worry. Yvette never acted like this before…

Yuma sighed. "Get a hold of yourself, Yvette." Just that small murmur caused the fair-haired girl to shut up. The necklace disappeared, and the Heart's Character by her shoulder crossed her arms, looking annoyed.

Yvette's thin eyebrows knitted together. "I'm so sorry, Beth! Please forgive me!" she buried her face in her hands guiltily.

"Uh," Beth wasn't entirely sure what had just happened. "I-It's okay."

"Oh!" Yvette let out a gasp when the fairy-like creature tugged a strand of her hair irritatedly. "I'm sorry!" She held out her hands, the character cradled in her hands. The character looked a lot like her; shiny blond hair and big blue eyes. But while Yvette wore things like cutesie polka-dot skirts and short-sleeved with white sweaters with very light makeup, Sam wore a black, gothic Lolita dress, all black lace and black ribbons. Dark eyeliner rimmed her eyes, and her lips were shiny pink. "This is Sam, my Guardian Character."

"Who?"

"My Guardian Character," Yvette tilted her head to one side, looking over at Yuma expectantly. "I thought you said…"

"No, no! I can see her!" Beth waved her hands. "I just…I didn't know that you had one."

"Of course you didn't!" she smiled brightly, her tone of voice like she was talking to a child. "People who don't have Guardian Characters can't see them. They're practically invisible!" then her smile dimmed to a confused frown. "Where's yours?"

"Uh, good question," Beth glanced around nervously. "I was sure she followed me in." As if on cue, Roxanne flew into the room, eyes wide with curiosity. "There you are!"

"Huh?" Roxanne looked up at her owner, then at the others in the room. She jumped when she saw the character floating at Yuma's shoulder. "YOU!!" she lunged at the studious-looking character, who dodged her calmly, not lifting his eyes from the notepad in his hands.

Yvette giggled. "She's yours?"

"Y-yeah," Beth mumbled, while she tried to catch Roxanne to prevent her from harassing Yuma's character any further.

"Her name?" Yvette asked. It was a sort of habit of hers; she always wanted to know a person's name when she met them.

"Roxanne," Beth said, after she had managed to contain her coffee-haired friend. "Don't bully him, okay?!" she scolded.

"Get back here, you ass!" Roxanne struggled against Beth's hands, though it was clear that she would never be able to pry apart her fingers, given the immense size difference. "Get back here and fight me!!" she shouted. Yuma's character simply turned his back on her, enraging her even more. She wriggled furiously.

"Quite the handful, is she?" Yvette remarked, a small smile playing on her lips.

"You have NO idea."

xXx

Well, that's it for now. I'm sorry to leave it hanging like this, but I'm leaving for spring break soon (California, here I come!), so I can't work on this for a while. On top of it, I came to a bit of a writer's block on this chapter, so I'm not sure on how to continue. I mean, I know what I want to happen next, I just don't know how to put it into words. You know what I mean?

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, cuz it might be all you see from me for a while. Review please!