Stepping out into the crisp morning air, Viktor watched as his breath floated into the winter air. He was suddenly angry, but who it was towards was unclear. The gray cloudy sky seemed to cast a white blanket over his eyes, making everything monotone.

It was somewhat a perfect today to take his frustration out on his punching bag.

The backyard to their tiny two-story house was smaller than most, but the wooden fence surrounding it gave it an almost tranquil feeling when occupied by one person. A thick tree stood in the corner, his punching bag attached to a chain wrapped around one of the sturdy branches.

Since Viktor was reliant on his weapons instead of powers, he worked hard to keep his strength a number one priority.

He quickly started his workout routine with some stretches, bending his slightly toned arms back and, doing his least favorite, toe touches. Once he finished getting his body nice and loosened up, he grabbed his gloves off the bench Viktoria insisted on getting for outside.

Boom.

Snow flew off the leather bag, the chain rattling as it swung back and forth.

Boom.

Viktor's knuckles felt a familiar warmth as he landed another hit, the hardened leather showing resistance.

Pow.

This time, his foot connected with the punching bag. As his body twisted in order to swing his leg up high enough, the pain on his abdomen caused him to grunt. Stopping, he took in a deep breath.

Viktor pulled off his gloves, turning around to go sit down on the wooden bench when his eyes caught sight of his audience.

Ruby was standing on the stoop in front of the back door, staring in awe at Viktor. He had no idea the pale-eyed boy could hit so hard.

So when said pale-eyes narrowed at Ruby, he also felt like he had gotten knocked back.

"Go back inside," Viktor muttered, his fists clenching and unclenching. He hadn't moved from his spot near the tree.

"Are you not going to finish your breakfast?" Ruby asked, calming himself down. He wouldn't let Viktor scare him off. "I worked very hard on that."

"Ruby."

"What's wrong with you?" he retaliated, realizing that Viktor was seriously upset. "If it's about the couch thing, don't worry about it." He started walking towards the blonde slowly. "I really don't mind-"

"That's not why I'm upset," Viktor cut him off. Ruby stopped walking, staring at him confused.

"So you are upset."

"I'm not upset."

"You just said-"

"Ruby, just shut the fu-"

"Woah, hey now. No need for foul language." Ruby furrowed his eyebrows at Viktor, trying to decipher what made his attitude change. As his thoughts went to earlier this morning, something stuck out.

Viktor huffed, pushing back his blonde hair. He could feel his body heat skyrocketing, realizing that he needed to calm down.

"Is it because of your sister?" Ruby asked quietly.

"...what?"

"Are you jealous of your sister?"

"Why would I be jealous of my sister?"

"She seems to like me."

Viktor stared at him, wondering what that had to do with anything, when he realized...

"You think I'm mad because she likes you?" Viktor accused, a look of complete disbelief on his face. "What, as if I like you? I barely know you!" His voice was starting to raise, which was unusual in itself.

Ruby flinched at his words, a grimace on his face. "So I'm guessing you don't like me, huh?"

"What do you think, genius."

"It didn't seem like that last night."

Viktor felt his body grow warm, even in the cool winter air. Ruby continued towards him, stopping a few feet back.

"That was not my choice," Viktor responded, looking down. "If anything, I believe I was clear with my feelings toward you."

"Wasn't it familiar to you?" Ruby asked softly. Viktor froze as his words drifted into the air.

"Familiar?" he whispered.

"Why do you think I'm here, Viktor?" Ruby stuffed his hands in his pockets, stepping closer. "Why do you think I would show up at your door?"

"I'm guessing it wasn't coincidence," Viktor mumbled, keeping his eyes focused on the dead grass underneath him.

"Remember how I said I knew your sister? I knew you first. I knew you better."

Ruby's words echoed in Viktor's head, leaving them imprinted in his mind.

"You don't remember, do you?"

Glancing up, Viktor looked into Ruby's eyes.

His light eyes that seemed to take him back.

The blonde teenager pulled the young Vietnamese boy up the narrow stairs with one hand, a plastic bag swinging in the other. They barely heard the prior's grandmother call up to them, but the Asian boy shouted a response in a shaky voice before he was dragged into the first bedroom. The blue-eyed beauty closed the door gently, grinning at his guest.

"Let's get started," he said, excitement dancing in his eyes. "Do you want to go first?" The black-haired teenager nervously sat down on the edge of the bed, the room illuminated by the afternoon summer sun. He pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, glancing up at his friend.

"I don't know about this, Viktor", he said sheepishly. "What if we get caught?" The blonde smiled, pulling out items from the plastic bag.

"We have good reasoning," he replied, placing a bottle of beer on the bedside table. His slender fingers grasped an ear piercing kit, placing it on the bedspread. "The alcoholic beverage is to numb the pain, as well as disinfect our ears." His pink lips formed into a slight smirk as he pulled out a bottle opener from his drawer. "It'll be fun, trust me."

"Then-then I'll pierce your ear first," the other mumbled, pushing up his glasses again. Viktor  cracked open the beer, pressing the cool glass against his plump lips as he took a sip of the intoxicating drink. The younger of the two stared at him as he gulped down the drink, feeling his own skin tingle. Once it seemed like he had tasted enough, Viktor put down the bottle. His eyes had the same spark of excitement, as well as something else.

"That tasted like shit, but I feel a little buzzed already," he said, sitting close to his friend. Pushing back his blonde locks, he smirked at the dark-haired boy. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Alright," he said quietly, feeling Viktor's eyes on him as he opened the kit. Due to the extra attention he was getting, he nervously took the plastic ear pierce out of the packaging. Placing the small stud earring in the front and the back in the rear, he looked up to see Viktor staring at him intently. He smiled at him softly, causing the boy with glasses to almost melt.

"You got this, no pressure," Viktor reassured. However, he quickly took another swig of the beer to help calm him down. The dark-haired boy leaned in closer, trying to keep an acceptable distance as he lined up the plastic machine to the blonde's ear.

"You might want to hold onto something?" he asked, making eye contact with him again. He jumped slightly as Viktor's hand quickly reached down to grasp his thigh, the skin under his jeans feeling as if it was burning just by his touch. The black-haired boy took a deep breath before clicking the plastic hard, punching a hole into his skin. Viktor hissed in pain, squeezing the other's thigh. He yelped in surprise at feeling, but quickly assessed the damage.

The earring was in, but he was bleeding slightly. Grabbing the washcloth on the bedside, the black-haired boy poured some alcohol on it, pressing it to Viktor's ear.

"Did it hurt?" he asked, holding the cloth to his ear. Viktor slowly blinked away the fleeting pain before smiling at him, shaking his head.

"It actually wasn't that bad," he responded, his eyes focused on his friend in a certain way. "C'mon, I'll do you next."

The bed squeaked as Viktor got even closer to him, seeming to cross the line of acceptable space between two friends. He placed the earring in place, glancing up to see his friend hadn't sipped any of the beer yet.

"Aren't you gonna drink some?" Viktor asked, tilting his head. The other boy shrugged, unsure himself.

"You said it tastes gross, right?" he questioned, pushing up his glasses again. Viktor smirked at him, licking his plump lips.

"You get used to it," he answered, pink lips glistening. The black-haired boy gulped, his heart staring to beat fast. Reluctantly, he reached out towards the bottle, which Viktor grabbed for him. Putting the bottle to his lips, he tasted Viktor before the alcoholic drink. As it went down, he bust into a coughing fit, his lips turned into a frown.

"You're right, it does taste like shit," he managed to say before coughing again. Viktor simply laughed at his reaction, taking the bottle from him and taking another swig.

"I can't believe you just swore," Viktor said, leaning closer to the other male. "Don't forget to hold onto something." Unlike the blonde, the dark-haired boy decided on holding his hand instead another body part that was not usually touched.

The pain was quick, and he squeezed Viktor's hand as well. The blonde pressed the cool cloth to his ear, tilting his chin with the other hand to make sure the bleeding stopped.

"That wasn't too bad," the Vietnamese boy said, smiling. His hand was still grasping the blonde's, making him feel excited and nervous all over again.

"Yeah...," the blonde responded, placing the cloth down. He stared at the other boy for a moment. It seemed an idea was formulating in his head.

"Viktor?" he asked, watching as the blonde took another sip of the beer. He then turned and leaned towards the other slowly. Their eyes were focused on each other until the black-haired boy made the mistake of glancing down at his lips.

His pink, plump, glistening lips.

Those lips brushed against his.

With their hands still clasped together, Viktor leaned into him more, the feeling like fire. The black-haired boy's body was pressed against the bed as the blonde found his way atop him, his lips moving against the other's. Completely shocked, the Vietnamese boy submitted to his actions, finding his heart practically beating out of his chest.

The heat suddenly left his lips, in which he opened his eyes to see Viktor staring down at him. His pale eyes were searching the other's for any sign of disgust, although they were hazy nonetheless.

All he found were tears.

"Viktor," Ruby whispered. His voice caused the blonde to blink away the memories, his heart beating fast and his body burning up in the cold winter air. Viktor licked his lips, noticing Ruby's dark eyes following the movement of his tongue dragging against his plush lips.

"Ruby...that was you?" he asked uncertainly, finding it hard to believe the young boy he once knew was standing a mere inch on front of him.

Even when they were teenagers, Viktor would find himself fall apart at the thought of the Vietnamese boy even noticing him. But now, they were older, and he only got more beautiful as the years went on.

"How else would you explain this horrible piercing?" Ruby countered, touching his earlobe. He wasn't wrong; the hole was not where most piercings were. "Of course, yours is perfect." Ruby then reached up to Viktor's ear, where a faint hole was still visible.

Viktor felt himself grow even warmer at his touch, his mind still reeling. The first boy he'd ever liked, the first boy he'd ever kissed, was standing right in front of him.

If Viktor didn't do something soon, he would die from a heart attack.

"Ru-Ruby," Viktor accidentally stuttered, causing both of them to widen their eyes in shock. "I— we should go inside. It's cold and I'm not feeling so well—"

"You're burning up," Ruby replied, his cool hand feeling Viktor's forehead. "C'mon, I'll run you a bath."

Viktor would most definitely die of a heart attack.