I DO NOT OWN ZATCH BELL

"Good Morning Zatch!" Kiyo woke Zatch up by gently shaking him. Zatch groaned, then turned his body, annoyed that he was waken up so early on a sunday morning. "Hmm Zatch, you're normally up before I am." Zatch groggily turned back over to Kiyo.

"I couldn't sleep. I had a nightmare. I wanted to come to you, but I was afraid you would yell at me." Kiyo felt a pang of guilt. Zatch was too scared I would be angry with him to help him when he needed me.

"Well what was your nightmare about?" Kiyo asked, still feeling slightly face had worry written all over it.

"Well, Tia and I were walking in the forest. We were talking. Suddenly, she stops. I ask her whats wrong, then Zeno walks up to us. They kiss each other, then she tells me that she and Zeno love each other, and from now on, she's gonna help him become king." A few tears leaked out of his eyes and onto his pained expression. "Then Zeno blasted me, and I woke up." He clutched his blanket tighter and squinted his eyes, as if he was eliminating the possiblity simply by closing them. "Strangely, I don't know what hurt me more. The thought of Tia betraying me, or the thought of Tia kissing him." Zatch looked up at Kiyo. "Why would the thought of Tia kissing Zeno hurt me?" Kiyo paused for a few seconds.

"Do you have a crush on Tia?" Kiyo asked, a small smirk on his face.

Zatch looked confused. "What's a crush."

"A crush is when you like that person romantically." Zatch still looked perplexed. "You know, give her flowers, hold her hand, kiss her."

"Oh." Zatch looked down on the ground, and he blushed, which caught Kiyo by surprise.

"OH. MY GOSH. ZATCH, YOUR BLUSHING!" Kiyo hooted and whooped with laughter, which caused Zatch to blush more.

"K-k-ki-y-o-o?"Zatched asked, trembling. Kiyo found it in his heart to give the child pity. His roaring laughter was quieted down to chuckles.

"Yes Zatch?"

"I-I like Tia." Kiyo smiled.

"I thought you did." Zatch jumped on him though, terrified.

" But what if my dream comes true? What if she betrays me? What if she doesn't like me?" Zatch fell to the ground, tears soaking his cheeks. Kiyo stared at Zatch, seeing a little bit of himself in the poor boy. Zatch was so scared about the girl he liked betraying him.

"Zatch?"

"Kiyo," Zatch began to quiet down. "Were you ever afraid to like someone?" Kiyo looked perplexed.

"Zatch, I thought you were worried about Tia betraying you."

"I am, but I've never felt this before, and it scares me." Kiyo had to hold back a few tears as bad memories he suppressed began to climb back into his mind.

"Every day. Zatch. Everyday I'm expecting to get hurt. Everyday I wait for the day when my friends will abandon me like my others did. When the girl I have a crush on-" Or love to be more accurate he thought. "-will reject me. And when you stop loving me like an older brother." Zatch looked at him in shock. "I was abandoned so many times. By friends, by schoolgirls I liked who rejected me-" His voice broke. "-even my father had to go to England instead of stay here. Zatch, I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Believe me, you are not alone." Kiyo put his arm around Zatch. Zatch was astonished. He had no idea his bookkeeper, his best friend, his brother, felt like that. He hugged Kiyo.

"Kiyo, I promise. I will never stop loving you. Even when I go back to the mamodo world, I will always consider you my brother." They embraced, and, for the moment, weren't quite so afraid anymore.

"Kiyo, do you think Tia will betray me?" Kiyo smiled down at him.

"Tia was betrayed by Maruss. She knows how much it hurts. She wouldn't do that to you." Zatch smiled up at him, and closed his eyes in satisfaction.

WOW, OK. Didn't exactly go as planned, but you get to see a side of Kiyo you normally wouldn't think about. REVIEW PLEASE. Also, my other story, "Lurking Behind the Facade" has no reviews yet, and it has been up for quite sometime. REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! What's that Tia? Oh yeah, she says to review too.