Crona felt a tad guilty as he got under the covers with Kid.

The party, after the whole spectacle from before, went off quite well. Everyone enjoyed the cake, which was delicious. Crona was able to catch up on what he had missed those two months he had gone. Fortunately, if a suicide attempt can have a fortunate side, he had attempted right on the cusp of summer vacation, so he did not need to repeat any of his classes.

Maka and Tsubaki took volunteering jobs at the local library. Soul and BlackStar battled everyday for training right outside the city. Kid and the sisters had been going on missions for Lord Death all summer. Crona couldn't help but be glad that Kid had a distraction through those months. He was happy they weren't too mopey and sad without him around. By the way Maka exploded, they had apparently really cared about him and were very upset to see him try to off himself.

Guilt had clenched at his throat the whole night. He didn't realize that they cared about him so much; even Kid, as much as Crona loved him. He thought Kid was only with him for pity. He could have sworn that those wonderful few months where Kid took him out for ice cream, taught him to play basketball, sat next to him in class, and talked all about his hopes, dreams, and fears...he honestly thought Kid was doing it only out of pity. And that thought tore him up, because he really, truly cared about Kid. He cared about what Kid cared about, even if it did mean folding the toilet paper into a triangle or not moving anything out of place. He didn't know how much pain he had caused them. So he promised himself that he would never attempt again. If he felt so desperate he would seek support; even check himself back into the hospital if he needed to.

When they had left Maka's place, Kid asked Crona to spend the night with him. Crona, at first, tried to protest, saying that he didn't want to impose. But Kid said that it would make him feel better. "I really don't want to spend all night wondering what you're going to do once you're alone back in that apartment."

So, here Crona was in Kid's bed. Kid, to make Crona more comfortable, offered to sleep on a nearby recliner. Crona denied him that. "N-N-No...I don't w-w-want..."

"Crona, it's okay. I don't mind," Kid said with a small smile.

Crona's face flushed, but he shook his head. He scooted over onto and gulped.

"T-T-There's room...here..."

Kid blushed and his eyes traveled down to the mattress. Crona had never, ever, let them sleep in the same bed together. Kid had offered several times but Crona was always too embarrassed to even sleep in the same room, much less on the same bed. Crona was very shy and was very inexperienced, sexually. He never went past a kiss, and every time Kid tried Crona flushed and found and excuse to leave. Kid was getting sexually frustrated. He WANTED to take Crona and make Crona pant and moan and scream his name, but Kid knew that it would be a long time coming.

Kid slowly lifted the covers and snuggled next to Crona. "Can we cuddle?" He asked. Crona nodded. Kid wrapped his arms around Crona's waist and nipped at his neck. Crona hissed and Kid apologized. "No...I, uh," Crona began, gripping the pillow. "I like it. I've always liked it."

"Then why did you always try to leave whenever I did something like that," Kid asked him.

"I was...embarrassed. I was afraid I would ruin things," Crona mumbled. "And I didn't want to be stared at. Being a same-sex couple is still taboo around here. I didn't know if I could deal with it."

"So then why do you want me to continue now?" Kid asked him, propping his head up.

"I need to deal with things," Crona said. "Like Soul said, I can't be afraid of everything for forever. And so...I w-w-w-want to do this."

"Let me know if you want to stop," Kid said as he returned to kissing Crona's neck. Crona nodded, his face bright red, his hands shaking. A small grunt escaped his mouth as Kid rubbed his hands over Crona's legs. "Do you like this?" Crona slowly nodded.

"Is it okay if I undress you?" Crona quickly shook his head. Kid bit back a sigh. He was horny, but it looks like he'd be taking care of that by himself.

'Now that I think about it,' Kid thought to himself. 'I've never seen Crona in anything but long clothes. Always this robe or always pants and a long-sleeved shirt. I've never actually seen anything but his head and hands. Even at the beach, Crona wears a sweat suit."

"Crona, I've noticed that you never wear anything that exposes any skin. Is there any reason why?" Kid asked him. Crona didn't answer. "Are you awake?" Crona slowly nodded.

"Scars," Crona finally croaked out. "I-I-I don't w-w-want anyone to see..."

"Scars from what?" Kid asked. He had an idea, but he wanted to be sure.

"Lady Medusa. Ragnarock," Crona quietly replied, tightening his grip on the pillow. "They're asymmetrical," he added, as if to deter Kid's curiosity.

"And so is your hair. But I haven't run away screaming from that," Kid stated, snaking his arms back around Crona's waist. "Is that what your nightmares were about?"

"Sometimes," Crona said. "Sometimes the missions I had to do for Lady Medusa, where I had to hurt people," he added. "Sometimes about what would have happened if we didn't win against the kishin."

Kid squeezed him. "Lady Medusa is gone. You will never have to do evil for her, again. And we won. Try to remember that when you go to sleep at night." Crona nodded.

Kid was about to turn over when he heard Crona's voice. "K-K-Kid.."

"Yes?" Kid asked

Crona didn't respond, but in the dark Kid could see Crona's trembling hands undo the first few buttons of his robe and shed it.

His skin was pale- almost translucent. His shoulders and upper back where covered in cuts; sometimes looking like scratches made by fingernails, others from what looked like knives. There was one area where Kid could tell that Crona had been hit by a blunt object. On one shoulder, there was a burn mark. Down his back, there were welts. This is just his upper back. What would the rest of his body look like?

Kid felt his blood boil. He wanted to resurrect Medusa and kill her again. He wanted to make her feel every scratch, knick, stab, and burn ten fold. He wanted to beat her senseless.

But feeling this way wouldn't make Crona heal. Crona was trusting him more than he had probably ever trusted anyone. He never let anyone see what he looked like, ever.

So, Kid kissed his marks. He could feel Crona gasp in shock and tense his body, but there was no protest, so he continued.

He found the end of the undone cloth, so he slowly pulled it down. There was still no protest. "Are you awake?" Kid asked. Crona nodded. Kid took that as consent and continued down.

The rest of his back looked about the same. Burn marks, long-closed wounds...Crona remained silent the whole time, not moving a muscle.

Kid felt Crona's leg under the robe. Nothing. "Are you okay with me doing this?" There was a long pause before Crona nodded once more. So Kid continued.

He felt the uneven skin and the scabs. He felt very sensitive areas, places that had been bruised badly and haven't quite healed just yet. His heart ached for poor Crona. No wonder the boy had nightmares. No wonder he was still under Medusa's thumb.

Crona turned over and buried his head in Kid's chest. Kid was expecting tears, given that he had just exposed the worst parts of his life for the world to see, but his eyes were dry. "Are you okay with this?" Kid asked. "Do you want me to stop?" Crona shook his head.

Kid made his way to Crona's boxers and dipped his index finger underneath. Crona gasped. Kid went further down and squeezed Crona's butt. "K-K-Kid?"

Kid pulled his hand out. "What is it?"

Crona gulped, his face bright red, before he slowly and gently reached down to Kid's pants and squeezed the crotch area. Kid gasped. Crona yanked his hand away like he had been burned. "I-I-I'm sorry, d-d-did I do..."

"It was fine," Kid said. "It felt good."

Burying his head in the pillow, Crona used his hand to rock the bulge back and forth. Kid gripped the sheets. "Crona..." he moaned. "W-W-Why?"

Crona took his glowing face out of the pillow. "Because you want to," he said. "And because I want to, too."

Kid shuddered. "As you wish."

Crona took his hand, licked it, and gently snaked his hand into Kid's boxers. Kid grunted as Crona stroked him. Crona closed his eyes and put his hand back under the pillow.

"Faster," Kid grunted as Crona gently stroke him. Crona nodded and obeyed. Kid gripped the pillow and gasped. Crona's hand was soft and limber.

The room was silent beside the occasional gasp or moan. Neither boy said anything to the other, Crona too embarrassed, Kid too distracted. It wasn't perfect by any means. Crona's hand was tense and the spit was drying, making the experience a little painful, but Kid never said anything. This was Crona's first time and Kid knew the first time was never the ideal time, not to mention Crona didn't need anymore help in lowering his self-esteem.

"Just a little more," Kid muttered. "That's it. That's-aaaahh..." He moaned, finally ejaculating.

He sat up. "Now it's your turn," he said with a small smirk. Crona quickly shook his head and turned around, curling up under the blanket. Kid sighed. "Well, I guess we should clean the sheets."

Kid looked under the blanket before he yelped. "It's not symmetrical! It can't be cleaned like this!"

Crona, his nose scrunched in disgust, smeared the sticky liquid all over the sheets. "H-H-How about now?"

Kid paused for a moment. That was so sweet of Crona to do...tend to his needs, no matter how strange they may be. The smearing was far from symmetrical but Kid would have to try to handle it. He kissed Crona's cheek. "It's perfect. Just get up really quickly so I can take it off."

Crona nodded and slowly put his feet on the ground, lifting his delicate frame off the bed. Kid grabbed the ends of the sheets and stripped them off. He pulled on some pants and gathered up the sheets. "I'll be back." He left the room.

Crona put his head back down on the pillow and wrapped the blanket around him. He closed his eyes and smiled.

Kid came back into the room. "Crona, I have to put other sheets on," he said.

"I'm comfortable l-l-l-like this," Crona replied.

Kid smiled and got under the covered beside Crona. He kissed Crona's head. "As you wish."