Chapter Fifteen

Hayden's POV

Lexus' mouth dropped open, and he rubbed his eyes. While he rubbed them, I quickly slipped into the laptop and went into Minecraft. I quickly hid in one of the castles I built. I looked over in the distance and saw the screen that let me see outside of the laptop.

"Hayden?" I heard Lexus call. "Where are you?"

I remained silent.

"I guess I should just shutdown this computer then," Lexus said. "I wouldn't want it to waste battery..."

NO! Anything but that!

I found myself exiting the laptop, only to find a dumbfounded Lexus staring at me.

"Y-you- wha- but you were-"

I held my hand up to silence him. "What did you see me do?"

He took a deep breath. "Your body was half in the laptop, and then you were gone, so I thought I was seeing things, and then it came flying out of the laptop. Do you think I'm ill?"

Should I say yes and forget it ever happened? Or tell him everything?

"Don't make me regret this," I said to him. "Promise me you won't tell anybody?"

He slowly nodded, and I stuck my arm through the computer.

••••••••••••••••••••

Krystal's POV

As always, the BSM was fun today. Walking to the HQ, I sighed.

"I can't believe we only have four weeks of this left," I said to Luna. "Feels like I just got here!"

"That's what I hate about time," Luna said. "Good things go by quickly."

"Yeah," I said.

I stole a glance at Hayden. Vivian talking to him. Jealously pulsed through me. He shouldn't be with that jerk... he's too good for her!

I mentally slapped myself. What was I saying? I thought I made it clear with myself that I didn't like him that way!

Oh really now, Krystal? Then why do you even care?

Sometimes I hate my inner voice.

••••••••••••••••

Throughout the day, I found myself jealously eyeing Hayden hanging out with Vivian. They talked and even laughed. That's how it used to be... until I got selfish with my feelings.

If he really did have a crush on me, I could only imagine how much it broke his heart to have for me to be ignoring him, just because he felt something towards me.

Man, I screwed up. Maybe I should apologize. I perked up at that thought. If he did want anything to do with me, which at this point I'm not sure if he did (don't blame him), he would eventually forgive me.

Yeah! I could just do it right now to get it over with. Plus, Vivian wasn't around. That would make it much easier. I took a deep breath, and walked over to him.

When Hayden saw me approaching, I swear he looked slightly happy to see me for a second, but then straightened up and cleared his throat.

There's no turning back now.

I took a deep breath.

"Uh... hi Hayden," I said awkwardly.

"Hi Krystal," he replied.

"So I um... I... um...," My face was so red right now, and I swear I was sweating. "I-I just wanted to say..."

"Say what?" A too familiar voice said. I turned around and my face hardened. Vivian.

"What are you doing, talking to her?" she demanded.

"Oh, I was just having a conversation with Krystal," Hayden said casually. "Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Yes, there is, actually," Vivian said. "You're talking to a mangy, trashy girl."

I balled up my fists and bit back a mean remark.

"Tell me Hayden," she continued. "What is your honest opinion of Krystal?"

"Well," Hayden said smoothly. "I think she's a sweet, funny and cute girl."

He shot her a challenging look. "What is your opinion of her?"

Glaring, Vivian didn't reply, and turned on her heel and stormed off.

Hayden turned to me. "You were saying?"

"Um... well..." I glanced around the room. "I just wanted to say..." I chickened out. "That your phone is on the ground! Wouldn't want you to lose it!"

I nervously laughed.

"Oh," Hayden said, a hint of disappointment in his voice. "Well, thanks for letting me know." And he reached down to pick it up.

As he reached down I quickly fled. It didn't go the way I wanted it to. I was so embarrassed. He stood up for me, and all I did was say some lame excuse about his phone being on the ground.

And he thought I was cute! I couldn't tell if I blushed from that, or when I was talking to him. My face was too red to tell the difference.

Wait a second... since when did I get all nervous around him? Normally talking to him was as easy as talking to a wall.

Shannon's words echoed in my mind: "I think you're just too afraid to admit your true feelings."

Was I? I mean, I've never liked anyone like that. Ever. So I tuned everyone out, and just let everything I felt come to me. And it was a whole bunch of weird emotions. Just by the thought of Hayden, I felt all tingly inside. I wasn't sure if that was a good feeling, a bad feeling, or what.

A voice snapped me out of my deep thinking. It was Notch, telling us it was time to leave. I sighed in relief. Now I could go back and think some more.

••••••••••••••••••••

I sat on my bed, deep in thought, until I heard the door open. It was Shannon.

"Deep in thought again?" Shannon asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Need help with your boy troubles?"

I nodded.

"Okay. So how are you feeling about him now?"

"Whenever I think about him, I feel all tingly inside. I'm not sure what and why I feel that."

"It's because you like him, of course!"

"Um, maybe, but-"

"Krystal. You either like him or you don't. Are you afraid of your emotions?"

I'm not.

"No," I said. "I'm not afraid."

"What is it, then?"

"I like him," I whispered.

Right after I admitted that, a one hundred pound weight was lifted off my shoulders.

Shannon squealed in excitement. "I knew it!"

A small smile grew on my face. "So what now?"

"Tell him! Watching you two awkwardly talk to each other is like nails on a chalkboard. Extremely. Painful. Just get it over with so you can be comfortable around him again!"

"Okay," I said. "But where is he?"

"I think he went to the park," Shannon said. "He goes there every evening."

"I'll have to let him know I'm coming," I said as I got out my phone to text him. "Don't want to get there and not see him."

I typed him a brief message and sent it. It said, "Don't go anywhere. I have something to tell you."

I then walked out of the room, threw on my coat and rushed to the park.

••••••••••••••••••••••

Hayden's POV

I was relaxing at the park, thinking, when I suddenly heard my ringtone go off.

Probably Lexus. I thought.

But just to be sure, I checked it. And it was the last person I would expect to text me. Krystal.

Surprised and curious, I looked at the message. It said, "Don't go anywhere. I have something to tell you."

Silently overjoyed, I stayed put. A few minutes later, I heard someone sit down next to me.

"Hey Krystal," I greeted her, smiling.

"Hi," she said, slightly blushing.

"So, there was something you wanted to tell me?"

She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry for the way I acted the past week. I just... felt uncomfortable, you know? And I'm sorry if I hurt you, and I honestly don't deserve the treatment you give me, compared to the way I acted towards you. And-"

I stopped her. "I forgive you."

She looked at me with wide eyes. "You do? Even after how I acted?"

"Yes," I said solemnly. "I do."

She paused, and then said, "You're like the nicest guy I've ever met."

I blushed. "Thank you."

"So we're-" she hesitated, and forced out, "Friends... again?"

I nodded, and repeated the way she said it back in my mind. She forced out the word friend. Could it be...?

She sighed in relief. "Good. I like hanging out with you."

We sat in silence for the next few minutes, and I just thought about how perfect it would be if Krystal knew my secret. But of course, there's a chance she would think I'm a freak. I looked longingly at her, thinking how much better it would be with someone that I really cared about knowing.

Krystal looked like she wanted to tell me something too.

"I know you want to tell me something," I told her.

"Yeah," she admitted. "You first."

Wow, she was good at reading people as well.

"Okay," I said nervously.

Then I opened my mouth to tell her, and nothing came out.

Krystal smiled reassuringly. "You can tell me. I'll tell you my secret right after you tell me yours."

"Okay," I said, feeling better.

And then I gathered all of my courage and told her everything. I told her in the order everything happened last summer: moving in, being possessed, becoming half-Minecraftian, being thrown into Minecraft, getting locked up in a cell and tortured, fighting in the Nether and The End, and saving the world from Herobrine.

When I was done telling her, she looked at me in awe.

"I bet you don't believe me," I said to her, smiling because her face was so ridiculous.

"I-it's kind of hard to believe," she said shakily. "I mean, I really want to believe it, I really, really do, but..."

And then she saw me getting out my laptop. I opened it up, and started up Minecraft.

"This might change your mind," I said to her as I plunged my body into the laptop.

I waited a few seconds for Krystal to see me physically in the laptop, and then I imagined myself quitting and I was thrown out of the laptop into Krystal's arms. She started staring at me, wonder in her icy blue eyes. Then her emotions in her eyes turned to sympathy, and she wrapped me in a hug.

"I'm so sorry," she said, voice thick with emotion. "That explains all of your nightmares. I'm sorry it had to be this way for you. I really am."

"Thank you," I murmured. "Thank you for understanding."

She held me, I held her, and together we embraced, and I never, ever, wanted her to let go. But sadly, Krystal did let go, and I felt a pang of sadness.

She shook herself out of the daze she was in, and took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Now it's your turn," I said.

She nodded. Her face was already red, so it had to be something personal. I was curious. Really curious.

But I let her take her time, it must've took lots of courage for her to come down here to tell me.

"Okay," she sucked in a breath.

"Ever since I've met you, I've always thought you were a nice guy. Quiet, nice and a good friend. But then weird stuff started happening between us, and I wasn't sure about my feelings. And I got selfish. And I'm sorry for that."

I nodded in acknowledgement to forgive her, and she continued.

"But just today, I realized what I was missing out on. A good-looking guy that's so much like me it's crazy."

Happiness grew inside of me, and I was grinning so widely.

"And I learned that I wasn't afraid of my emotions, and I figured out what was trapped inside me the whole time I knew you."

I smiled. I think I knew what Krystal was going to say next.

"I think I'm in love with you, Hayden."

This was probably the happiest moment of my life. My heart was springing with joy, and I was smiling so much that it hurt. Hurt so good.

"And I have something more to say to you," I whispered to Krystal. "I'm in love with you too."

And then my eyes darted down to her lips.

She smiled as if to say, Go ahead.

And then our lips crushed together. Her warm, beautiful, lips. In my head, fireworks were exploding, and I felt the most powerful emotion stir inside of me. Love. And I wrapped my arms around her body, her perfect body, and gently kept it there. And she did the same.

I knew then, that I was on fire for Krystal.

And Krystal felt the same way.

And the huge burden of worry, fear, and secrecy I have been carrying for a while was finally lifted.

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