"Wait, Apollo."

The owner of the name halts mid-step, just as he is about to go inside their house. He turns around to look at the person who called his name.

"Can you stop calling me Apollo," he grumbles with a frown.

"It's your name though," Eujae argues. He just finished putting the helmet in his top box, together with the products he'd shopped. It is a good thing he never removed Lia's helmet from his storage compartment so Poll had something to use earlier. Granted the drive from the supermarket to the Torres residence is only more than a minute, but it still is better to be safe.

He faces Poll once he's done organizing the stuff in his bike, pleased to realize that the guy has actually waited for him despite the look of impatience on his face, and then zips up the jacket that Poll returned—shoved back—to him.

Before any of them can say anything, a gentle voice calling Poll's name cuts in.

"Poll, sweetheart?"

The two men simultaneously look at the new person who is now giving Eujae a once-over. As her gaze settles on Eujae's face, she expresses her surprise, "Oh my, if it isn't Eujae. It's been a while since I last saw you." She tilts her head to the side as if to check the said man better, eyes twinkling, a soft smile on her slim lips. "You still look as handsome as ever, lad."

Smiling, Eujae returns the greeting, "Good evening, Ma'am. Yeah, it's been a while, and thank you."

"Aw, what is this boy acting formal for?" The woman walks to Eujae and reaches up to pat both sides of the man's face. "Aren't you my twins' friend, young man? Call me, Auntie Amy."

As if to remind the two that he's still there, Poll mutters, "He's Tem's friend, not mine."

Eujae angles his head to look at the owner of the displeased voice and notices that said owner is now glaring at him. Again.

"Oh, hush, Apollo."

"Mom, I told you so many times, don't call me by my real name. And I said that guy is not my friend," Poll whines at the same time as Eujae lets out an amused chuckle. The male Torres twin stops complaining to his mother just so he can give Eujae a surly look. "What's so funny, jerk?"

Poll doesn't receive any response as Amelia ignores her crabby son to keep on talking to the other lad while Eujae returns his attention to the older woman.

"So, aren't you going to come in? Are you here to do a group project with Tem again, Eujae?"

"I'd love to but I'm afraid I'll not be able to stay, Ma– Auntie," Eujae immediately corrects himself, grinning coyly when the woman raises her brows at him. She's very much like the twins, Eujae notes. Sophisticated like Tem, but easygoing like Poll. "I just dropped Apollo off and I'll have to go back immediately since there's something important I need to do at home. Not to mention..." he falters, looking skyward.

There are no visible stars tonight. No wonder the surroundings are darker compared to the other nights. Even the moon is hidden behind the clump of clouds. The sky is totally dim, except when lightning flashes every second.

"It looks like it's about to rain." Eujae looks back at Poll's mother with a smile. "So I really need to hurry up, Auntie. Maybe another time."

"Another time then." The older woman nods and gently pats Eujae's left cheek again, drawing another smile from the young man. "It would be great to see someone as attractive as you around. You're a sight for sore eyes, dear."

With a scoff, Poll butts in once more, "You're saying that to him as if you've never seen anyone who's handsome, Mom. Then what am I to you?"

Eujae watches as Poll's mother goes near her son and pinches the male twin's cheek. "Of course, you're still the most handsome for me, you big baby. Now make sure to properly see your friend off, Apollo. I need to prepare our dinner so I'll go in first." Turning to Eujae one last time, the older woman bids him goodbye before she goes inside their house.

"How many times do I have to say not to call me by my real name and that this jerk is not my friend," Poll mutters, rubbing his cheek, as soon as his mother is out of earshot, and then looks at Eujae. Again, he has that default expression he uses every time he's looking at the other man—a scowl on his face and pursed lips. "So is there something else you wanna say?"

"No, I just want to say I'm sorry again for, you know," Eujae answers hesitantly, rubbing the back of his neck and looking anywhere but in front of him. He chances a glance at Poll and clears his throat, before continuing, "For kissing you that time. Let's not make a big deal out of it anymore and let's just pretend it didn't happen. I mean, it's not like it was your first time, right?"

His question is met by silence.

Eujae stops cold, hand freezing on his nape, eyes widening, as he watches the color of blood creep on Poll's face and neck.

Oh.

Damn.

"Whoa," Eujae breathes unwittingly as he stares at Poll in awe. Under the street light, the man's furious blush is as plain as day. Eujae has never seen anyone turn as red as Poll does at the moment.

"W-wh-whether it was my f-f-first kiss or not is none of your business! Conceited prick!" Poll exclaims, stammering, face still flushed. Without giving the other man any chance to say more, he runs to their residence, stumbling, and slams their gate close.

The harsh sound of clanking metals wakes Eujae from his daze. He slowly turns to the now closed gate of the Torres residence and stares at it vacantly. It comes to his attention that he has not removed his hand from the back of his neck yet. He moves it to run on his hair as he whispers, asking himself, "What the hell have you done, Eujae?"

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Tough luck.

He thought he could arrive home before the rain would fall, but he had not gone too far from the Torres residence when it started to drizzle. He got caught in the downpour as he was halfway through the road. Even then, he didn't forget to drop in at the small store in front of his place to buy the eggs. The old vendor was so worried upon seeing his condition that she gave him a small pack of ginger tea and told him to drink it once he got home.

Immediately upon entering his single unit, Eujae places the items on his dining table before going straight to the small laundry area to throw his soaked clothes in the washing machine. He then goes into the bathroom and, without bothering with the heater, turns the shower on to have a quick bath.

He steps out after a while and it takes him another few seconds to have a change of clothes. Eujae sighs in relief as he feels the warmth of his dry sweatshirt against his skin. It's only been less than an hour since he arrived here in his place, cold and dripping wet, but he feels like it's been forever.

After putting on his eyeglasses, he walks to the dining table to get his phone and sees that he has one new message.

From: Ten2

HEEYYYYY ASDFGGHLFJKGJHH IGOTTA TELL YOUS SMTHIGN

His brows knit, seeing the nonsensical text. Opening the chatbox, Eujae checks if Poll is online before he types his reply.

Gaele: I'd appreciate it if you talk to me like a proper human being, Ten-Ten. And turn off your capslock while you're at it, please. So? What got you so excited again, huh, little child? Someone bought you some candies and chocolates or what?

Ten2: kk sir, so serious and why are you calling me little again? hah, how i wish someone would give me lots of chocolates though my friends buy me candies sometimes. would have preferred it if they give me cakes. my friends are nice but they can be really stingy sometimes except for the one who is also my classmate. she's really sweet, i like her. but let's not talk about it, that's not what i wanna tell you. what i wanna say is something really strange happened earlier today. remember when you asked me what I'd do if that guy I hate apologized to me?

Eujae frowns even deeper as he rereads the first half of the message. Poll is obviously talking about Lia. Let's not talk about it is what the guy said but Eujae can't help but be curious about his statement of liking her. What does he mean by like?

He can understand why people would like Lia; she is indeed lovely inside and out after all. Of course, it's not to say Eujae would not have the urge to overprotect his cousin but he would never blame those people who would fall for her.

He gets it. He does, but Poll liking Lia? Eujae isn't sure why, but it doesn't sit right with him.

Gaele: You like her. Do you mean you have a crush on her? "Like" as in romantically? Yeah, I remember, and you said you can't imagine it because you think a stuck-up guy like him doesn't have it in him to apologize.

Ten2: no as in she's my favorite friend hehe, coz she's the nicest. i like my friends too but maybe i'm partial to her and maybe i am not the only one. i think she's everyone's favorite in our group. too bad she's got a jerk for a cousin. she is that jerk's cousin you know. i dont understand how they can be related when one is like an angel and the other is like a demon. whoa it's scary how you remember my exact answer that time

Forget about Poll calling him names again, Eujae is just relieved to know that the guy's 'like' for his cousin is purely platonic. Noticing that he's been standing for a while, Eujae pulls out a dining chair and sits down.

Gaele: Who knows maybe that guy has a sweet side to him too, considering he's related to someone who is. Maybe you're just failing to see it, Ten-Ten. Aren't you just being too hard on him? Yeah, well I have a good memory. And I think we're already deviating from the original topic. So what about it? Did that DEMON STUCK-UP JERK do something?

Ten2: i'm not sure about him being sweet. i just can't imagine it but he did something, uhmm, let's just say... he did something nice? yeah that guy did something nice and that's what i've been meaning to say since earlier. so he may or may not have helped me earlier and his behavior weirded me out. why was he suddenly acting nice? it was so freaking weird. and get this, that guy apologized to me. that freaking proud guy apologized to me!!! and he didn't get mad at me when i called him names. he even said he was worried about me!!!! i was so shocked that i didn't know how to react, so i just kinda let him do what he wanted when he said he wanted to take me home. it was so scary how i got easily swayed by that guy now that i'm thinking about it. why did he even do that? anyway, is there a reason why that part is capitalized?

Gaele: Can't imagine him being sweet, you say. Last time, you said you can't imagine him apologizing to you, but look what happened now. He did apologize, which reminds me, you also said you'd only know if you could forgive him if he actually apologized to you, so now that he did, how was it? Did you forgive him? Hm? Oh, that part? No, I might have mistakenly turned my capslock on and didn't notice it.

Ten2: yeah, still, it's really hard for me to believe it, and i can't help but be suspicious of the sudden change of attitude to me. he must be up to something right? did i forgive him? I don't know. like i said i was too shocked by what happened that i didn't know how to react. was he even serious? i think the guy just hit his head on something hard so he started acting weird. wouldn't be surprised if he returned to being a jerk tomorrow. just a mistake, eh? it's scary how precise that mistake is :| and i noticed that i already said it's scary thrice in this conversation. a lot of scary things have been happening today

Gaele: You seem to really believe that the guy is a jerk. I wonder, is that what other people say about him too? I hope you don't mind me asking about these things. I'm just really curious, Ten-Ten, is that guy too much of an asshole that it's hard for you to believe he can be nice too?

Ten2: hey what are you suddenly sounding serious for? oh that thing you said was bothering you last time, is it still not settled? Is it not a good time to talk after all? And uhm... it is not like other people believe he's a bad guy. in fact all our friends say he's a nice and patient guy. it's just that, he's never been like that to me so maybe that's why i'm skeptical about him acting nice. he's always hated me so him suddenly being concerned about me, of course I'd find it surprising

Gaele: Nah, it's good. It feels nice that I can talk to you today. I can't say it's settled but it's going better, I think. Well, I guess you have a point. How sure are you that he hates you though?

Ten2: that's good to know. i'm just surprised that you're being defensive of him. does he hate me? now that you asked about it, my sister said that guy told her that he doesn't hate me. hey do you know what the opposite of love is?

Gaele: Oh, am I? Maybe I'm just empathizing with him. Uh-huh, it's indifference.

Ten2: oh yeah, there's a guy who hates you too right? and you said you wanna apologize to them but you're not sure how it'd turn out. did you do it? apologize? anyway even if you say you're just empathizing with him, you and that jerk are too different from each other. oh you know about it? a lot of people think it's hate. even i only learned about it from our philosophy class.

Too different from each other, huh? Just a couple of days ago, Eujae also thought Poll and Ten-Ten were too different from each other. But now that he's known that they are the same person, he's starting to note the tiniest similarities they have whether it's online or in real life. The way he would rave and whine when he doesn't like something, the way he would stumble over words when he's being in denial, and the way he would type in all capitals when he's getting carried away are the same whether he's Poll or Ten-Ten. Those are things that Eujae should have noticed before, but didn't because he was too blinded by how different his relationships with Poll and Ten-Ten are.

Gaele: Did I apologize? Who knows? Heh, how sure are you that we're too different from each other? Of course I know about it. Who do you think I am, Ten-Ten?

Ten2: fine, i wont push you if you dont wanna tell me. of course im sure you're different. for one thing, i dont hate you. you're the smartass, casanova, someone who'll sweet talk people to have his way, the one and only, master gaele?

Gaele: That's only because you don't know me personally. I wonder if you can still say the same thing once you get to know the real me. Didn't you call me a jerk before too? Now to address your whole description of me, first off, I'm just smart but not an ass. Second, it's not my fault I am too handsome that a lot of people have a crush on me, but before you call me egoistic again (I know you will, don't even deny it), I'll let you know I am just kidding. Third, I only sweet talk people I like, Ten-Ten.

Ten2: no coz i'm pretty sure there's no way i can hate you whether online or offline or whatever world it is. i told you you're a different kind of a jerk. you're a good jerk, gaele. see? even now that you're being annoying again, i still enjoy talking to you. but to be honest i like it better when you're being annoying like this. it's kinda worrying when you're suddenly getting serious on me y'know

Gaele: You can't hate me in any world, huh? I wonder about that. There you go with the good jerk again and I still don't know if I'm supposed to be flattered or insulted by that. And, wow, is my li'l Ten-Ten worried about me?

Ten2: it's the truth though i'll never hate you. i told you before it's a compliment. yep, of course i am worried about you like how a big brother is worried about his younger brother. now call me big bro, brat

"Yet here you are ranting about how much you hate me," Eujae mutters, rolling his eyes. He is surprised to realize that he's no more as upset about it as he was the first time he learned about Ten-Ten's identity. It's like he went through the stages of grief within a few days and now he's arrived at the last stage, that is, acceptance.

That is why he can act like the usual Gaele again.

Gaele: If you say so. Eh, call you what now? No can do, li'l Ten-Ten.

Ten2: annoying brat

Gaele: That you're worried about. Anyway, I think we've drifted off-topic again.

Ten2: yeah what were we talking about again?

Gaele: Love, Hate and Indifference. And you said that guy doesn't hate you.

Ten2: oh yes so i've always thought that guy hated me but he told my sister he never did. so that means he is indifferent right? he just simply doesn't give a damn right?

Eujae raises his brow, staring at Poll's reply. So Tem told him that thing. And of course, Poll being a little slow on the uptake, had misunderstood it.

"What a troublesome kid."

He can't believe he has to explain himself using his online identity. This feels like cheating but it's the best way he knows to get Poll to listen to him. Eujae can only imagine what it would be like if he tries it in person.

Gaele: Is that what you think? Do you know what the opposite of hate is, Ten-Ten?

Ten2: what else could it be? i dont know. i used to think it's love but my professor and even you said the opposite of love is indifference and not hate.

Gaele: The opposite of hate is also indifference. Love and hate are the same in a way that they're both a combination of emotions. And once you take all of those emotions, that's when indifference happens. Simply put, indifference is the opposite of every single feeling. Emotion is the antithesis of apathy. That guy might have said he never hated you, but it doesn't mean he never felt anything. How long have you been arguing with each other again? Has he never got mad at you? Never got annoyed? Frustrated? I don't know what's the exact word to describe what he feels about you, some people may call it hate and some may disagree, but the sure thing is it's not apathy.

Ten2: whoa, okay, romeo, that's... wow, i'm speechless. never thought you were into this kinda thing. well he's been mad at me plenty of times, especially recently that at some point i thought he was gonna hit me. but i mean, he also told me he's done giving a fuck about me

Gaele: Heh, not that I'm into these stuff, but my parents are pretty romantic and profound people so let's just say I got these things from them. See? People feel because they care. Whether it's anger or frustration, any kind of feeling is just a sign that one still gives a damn. Oh? So he told you that, but was he able to do it? Based on your latest story about him, it's highly unlikely that he's become indifferent about you. And it sounds to me that you felt disappointed when he told you that. Why, li'l Ten-Ten, do you actually want him to give a fuck about you?

Ten2: of course not!!!!!!!!!! and why does that question sound so dirty coming from you????!!!!!!!!

Gaele: Bull's eye, huh? Wow, I am not sure if you're just too pure or the opposite. That question was completely chaste so I shouldn't be held responsible for how you interpreted it, you little perv.

Ten2: i said it's not true!!! and don't call me perv!!! i hate you gaele -_-

Gaele: Eh? You just said there's no way you can hate me, why are you suddenly dumping me now?

Ten2: you're annoying

Gaele: Oh, are you seriously mad at me now? Okay, okay, I'll stop annoying you. I guess I just find it fun to tease you because your reactions are too cute.

As soon as he clicks 'send', Eujae rereads his own message and remembers when he admitted to Ten-Ten that he did take in the pleasure of seeing Poll so worked up and that he might have provoked him at times because of it.

He wonders if that's all there is to it. Could it be that he'd enjoyed getting a rise out of Poll because even then, he'd subconsciously found his reactions adorable?

Eujae notices the time on his phone and thinks that now is not the time to be wondering about stuff. Poll has already taken much of his time while an important task is waiting for him. He seriously needs to get started.

Seeing as Poll has yet to reply, Eujae sends another message.

Gaele: I have to log out, okay? I have to do something important. Stop sulking, alright? Cute li'l Ten-Ten, sweet li'l Ten-Ten. Good night. Sweet dreams.

Ten2: sweet talking me won't get you anywhere, overbearing brat

Gaele: It works though, doesn't it?

Ten2: whatever, good night, sweet dreams

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

AN: 'got sick a while ago so this came out a little later than I'd expected. Another thing is the online conversation in this chapter had gone too long. Why? I don't know either. In the first place, that long-ass conversation wasn't even supposed to be there. >.< I mean it wasn't included in my original outline, haha. Blame Eujae/Gaele and Poll/Ten-Ten coz they're just doing what they wanna do now. They're not listening to me anymore at this point, I'm afraid. 😅

Thank you for reading! ^^