[Love Triangle]
[Ven X Aqua X Terra X Ven]
It stings when you discover that the person you love is in love with someone else. And it wounds when you know that the love that lasts the longest is the love that is never returned. And even further, it scars when you realize that this love is a perfect triangle, one leading into the other, never-ending, like a circle with sharp edges. It cuts deep, it burns fiercely, it hurts like nothing else.
Ventus finds out the hard way. The unassuming blond is on his way to give Aqua a small token of gratitude for her gift to him. His emerald wayfinder is beautiful and had been made with heart, and he wants to give the blunette something nice in return. Admittedly, he holds feelings for her that go beyond friendship; he can't help blushing around her at times, nor help how he occasionally is at a loss for words when she speaks to him. He cares a lot about her, and takes every ounce of care she hands back to him.
Aqua is Ven's everything.
But as he finds her in one of the halls of Master Eraqus's castle, she's already chasing after Terra, calling out to him as she skitters to a halt beside him when he stops for her. Ven pauses, stills. They can't see him where he stands, but he can hear them just fine.
"Terra!" Aqua pleads, sounding desperate. "Please, don't go… I know what you're planning, and it can only end in sorrow."
"I need to leave," the brunet replies stiffly, his tone tenser than usual. "There are things that I must do."
"But…" Aqua begins softly, her head bowing. She clasps her hands together and wrings her fingers near her chest. "We'd all miss you. Something bad could happen to you, and we'd never see you again." She sucks in a shaky breath, her teeth nibbling on her lower lip. Her lip slips and forms a frown. "No, that's not what I meant." She stares up at Terra suddenly, her blue eyes piercing. "I would miss you. I might never see you again. You can't go, Terra, because I love you," she says firmly, her hands tightening their grip on one another.
Terra stares at her for a lasting moment. Then, coldly, he brushes her gaze off and turns the opposite way, returning to his brisk pace in the direction he initially intended. He mutters something, but Aqua and eavesdropping Ven both don't catch it.
"What did you say?" The young woman calls, and jogs to try to catch up. "Terra, wait!"
"No!" he retorts, and his voice unusually distant, cold. He sighs heavily, regrettably. He spins on his heel to face her again. "It's not… fair, Aqua," he mutters, and Ven almost doesn't catch it. Terra visibly grinds his teeth for a second, followed by a run over his scalp with his nails. His fists clench at his sides. "I… I don't love you like that. I care about you a lot, but… to me, you're just a friend or surrogate sister. I'm sorry, Aqua. I really, really am. I don't like hurting you, but I dislike lying to you even more."
Aqua is in shock, but she slowly recovers and ducks her head. She murmurs softly, "I… understand, Terra. I'm sorry, too." She looks up again, and while tears start to overflow, she smiles warmly at him. "I can't stop you from leaving, if you're truly determined. I guess… I just wanted an excuse to tell you how I felt. I don't like lying, either, and keeping the truth from someone is the same as lying." She sends one last smile before turning and running back down the hall, a choked sob escaping her lips, only heard as a rebounding echo.
Ven scowls and decides to show himself, turning around the corner and startling Terra. "Ven," the brunet says, his brooding expression giving way to mild surprise. "Where did you come from?"
"I heard everything," the blond says firmly, and he watches as Terra blinks at him, the words taking a second to process in the older boy's mind.
Terra's expression flickers from comprehension to repentance. "It's not what you think."
"How so?" Ventus ventures. He moves one foot forward, glaring. "I can never forgive you for hurting Aqua like that! She doesn't deserve cold rejection! You could have now answered her, or lied, or something!" He bursts out, unfamiliar rage burning in the pit of his gut.
"Ven, you don't understand," Terra sighs, not at all in the mood for an argument.
"Then explain it to me," Ventus snaps, stepping as close as he dares. He keeps Terra's direct gaze, despite the fact that he has to crane his neck upwards to hold it.
"It's… complicated," Terra breathes, and he seems to grow calm and still. "I love someone else. I didn't want to hurt Aqua worse later on."
"Who could be better than Aqua?" Ven asks, puzzled and still furious. "She's all anyone could want! She's strong-willed and caring, and intelligent and talented –"
"So is the person I'm in love with. But they have other qualities that Aqua can't duplicate," Terra explains quietly. Ven briefly wonders why the brunet is acting this way, but he's too angry to think about it for long.
"Like what?" Ven poses without delay. He makes a small growling noise. "Anybody would kill to have someone like Aqua love them, because she's perfect, but you're telling me that someone else has better qualities than she does? I don't get it, Terra, I really don't. I can't see how –"
"Then let me show you," Terra remarks sternly, his expression dead serious. Ven blinks, momentarily stunned at the shift in attitude. But he suddenly grasps the reason for the change once Terra grips Ven's chin in his hand and steals a kiss from Ven's lips.
Ven breaks away and retreats a few steps, his hand covering his mouth. He doesn't know what to say. But the message is clear: Terra doesn't want Aqua because she isn't him. And Ven can't take this knowledge. He turns and runs like Aqua had, but this time, no tears are present.
How did things get so messed up?