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Damian wanted to take a certain childhood friend (or rival? Enemy? Crush?) to their senior prom, the problem was, how could he casually ask his very-top-secret childhood sweetheart to a very public school event without causing a scene or triggering any new rumours.
But nonetheless he was Damian Desmond the esteemed second son of the illustrious Donovan Desmond, he was capable of anything and everything, okay almost everything..
For this young adolescent can’t even begin to gather up enough confidence to ask out a certain girl who may or may not go by the name Anya Forger, pink hair dazzling green eyes about 5’3 and- and Damian was now sounding like a stalker, just great. It’s normal for friends to know a lot about each other right? And the way he observed her, taking mental notes on anything and everything about her was definitely NOT creepy in the slightest right?
He figured they would come in handy one day, that day being today, Damian gathered up all his information he knew about Anya and carefully sorted through each and every one of her likes and dislikes to come up with the most perfect way to ask her to prom, Damian was dedicated to say the least.
But after a bit of thinking and a bit of writing down a list of all her likes he was stumped, All he had down was peanuts, her family and Spy Wars. Is this really all he knew about his life-long acquaintance? It was as if he had known this girl for a week instead of 12 years, did he really not even know her favourite colour? Had he spent all that time observing her for nothing? How could he have come up with 3 things? 3 FUCKING THINGS??
So swallowing his already tarnished pride he asked her closest friend, Becky Blackbell for.. Assistance.. In his knowledge, surely she’d know what the esper likes, right?
“Bla- Ahem, Becky..” He grumbled, in any other situation he’d rather keep pretending the brunette didn’t exist but right now he needed her to help him, even if it meant using proper manners.. For now..
“What do you want Desmond?” She turned around and shot him an ugly side eye and a groan. Anya was running late this morning and he took his chance to ask Becky about her.
“Look, uhm, I wanna ask Anya to.. To prom.. And I need.. andIneedyourhelpbecauseIhavenoideawhatshelikes.” He started speaking as fast as he could while burning a bright crimson, his pride not letting him fully admit to the fact he knew nothing about her.
“And you thought I’d help you? Look Desmond I was okay with your childhood crush on her because I could tease you with it, but Anya’s my best friend and I love her more than anything, if you’re really going to take her to prom I wanna know just how much she really means to you.” Becky was never this serious, but as much of a hopeless romantic she was she really cared for her best friend’s feelings, and if it was under her control she’d never let someone as impure as Damian Desmond even breathe the same air as her amazing bestie, but alas, anyone with eyes and a brain could see the way he stares at her longingly in the middle of class.
“I- What? You’ve known me for 12 years and think I could even begin to think of breaking her heart? I’m honestly a little offended you’d think I’d stoop so low.” He dramatically placed his hand over his heart in offence to her ludicrous claims.
“Ugh, fine, but I’m just doing this because I want Anya to have a date to the prom! But break her heart I break your spleen!” She reluctantly agreed to his request, if it were any other guy she’d have turned them down immediately, but this was Damian Desmond, the boy who her best friend was very.. Infatuated with.., since their first few days at Eden Academy, Becky could not for the life of her figure out what was so alluring about the brat but who was she to judge her bestie’s crushes truly?
“Alright tell me how to ask her to prom before she comes!” He was now talking in a hushed whisper, trying not to start any unnecessary rumours from spreading.
“Uhm, well let me think..” And that she did, but to no avail as Becky came out dry, how did Anya want to get asked to prom? Did she even wanna get asked to prom? What was her favourite colour!? “I-I.. I don’t know..?” Becky sat there dumbfounded, did she not know a thing about her bestie of 12 years!? Could she truly even call herself her best friend at this point? But no, surely it’s just Anya’s never brought it up before and neither has Becky, so it was a mutual thing, right?
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON’T KNOW?? AREN’T YOU HER BEST FRIEND??” He whisper-shouted at the brunette, who was only slightly spiralling into her own pit of guilt at the thought that she truly didn’t know her bestie.
They were in the middle of arguing back and forth when a certain cheeky girl walked into class, probably day dreaming about Spy Wars like she always was when she was bored, she took notice of her two closest friends bickering like little kids and laughed a bit at the sight, Damian’s cheeks were flushed red at a remark Becky made, and then he retorted back at her and whatever he said was enough for Becky to cross her arms across her chest and pout.
The two were in the middle of fighting when they both heard a familiar laugh, and just for a second Damian’s gaze went up to the door and stared in awe at the esper standing there, eyes closed but laughing at what he assumed was the image of him and Blackbell arguing first thing in the morning, it was only a second, but Becky happened to catch it, “Oi! Stop it lover-boy we're trying to talk here, you can gawk at her like a creep later!” He flushed red at her remark and the warmth that filled his face was starting to get aggravating. “Shut it Blackbell, you had a crush on her dad until 7th grade!” Becky looked offended and crossed her arms pouting as well.
“What are you two fighting about so intently?” She asked so innocently, and Becky only smirked at the way Damian burned crimson and looked away from her face, not wanting to admit he had been asking about how to ask her out.
“Nothing of importance! Anyways random question Anya, what’s my favourite colour?” Becky needed to know if they both just didn’t share that much intel about each other, or if she truly was a terrible friend.
“Uhm, in 1st grade it was pink but after meeting my dad you said it was blue! But currently I think it’s pink again?” She answered honestly and clearly, not taking much time to consider her options, Becky stood there the guilt slowly plumping onto her shoulders.
“Y-yeah.. I didn’t think you’d remember it so vividly..” She looked down almost sheepishly but quickly regained her composure, it’s just a colour right? Anya just happened to never outwardly say what her favourite colour was.
“U-uhm, when's my birthday!?” Becky blurted out, Anya just thought they were playing a little game of trivia before class, nothing too out of the ordinary.
“July 15th, are you okay Becky? You look a little pale..”
“I’M FINE! Uhm- What did I wanna be when I was younger?”
“At first a princess, but then you were told that’s not a career choice so you chose being the president!”
“WHO’S MY FAVOURITE COUPLE ON ‘BERLINT IN LOVE’?”
“I believe Carlos and Maria as you talk about them a lot, you like their interesting dynamic!” Anya was quite proud of how well she knew her bestie, and she wasn’t even using her powers!
“Aughh.. How do I wanna be asked out?” An almost defeated Becky tried one more question, the guilt on her shoulders now heavily weighing her down into a slump on her desk.
“Hmm.. I think you said something once that you want a giant bouquet of pink roses, for him to personally play and sing a love song he wrote just for you, and then confess his undying love for you!” Anya excitedly reenacted Becky’s whims, and how she’d quote, “Fall head over heels for him.” If he did just that.
“YOU ONLY GOT THEM ALL RIGHT CAUSE YOUR MY BESTIE, WHAT ABOUT DESMOND- WHAT’S HIS FAVOURITE COLOUR!?” A panicked Becky was trying to shake even a sliver of guilt off her shoulders, surely she wouldn’t know everything about him right?
“When we were younger it was olive green like his hair, but now it’s emerald green!” Anya wouldn’t say it’s because that's her eye colour, because she wasn’t supposed to know that part.
Becky looked backwards to see a shocked and slightly red Damian, which only proved Anya had once again gotten it right.
“Anya.. I’m so sorry for being such a bad friend~!” Becky whined and hugged the other girl tight, all the guilt making her feel like actual garbage.
“Becky what? You’re Anya’s bestest friend in the whole wide world! Why are you crying?” Anya showing genuine concern for her trembling life-long friend.
“U-Uhm what’s my birthday!?” Damian chimed in, determined he’d wreck Anya’s win streak and prove he wasn’t all that terrible of a listener.
“August 23rd!”
“What’s my dog's name and breed!?”
“Max and he’s a German Shepherd!”
“WHAT HAPPENED AT MY 9TH BIRTHDAY PARTY!?”
“WHY ARE YOU YELLING AT ME?? But you drank too much grape punch and then threw up all over the bounce castle your family rented!”
“AUAGAHAG- WHAT- I- '' He choked out in surprise, he had managed to make everyone else present forget all about the ‘punch incident’ so he naturally assumed she had as well.
“YAY I WIN! Now it’s my turn, both of you can answer if you know it!” Anya excitedly exclaimed, not seeing the beads of sweat starting to form on the other two.
“Okay, you both asked me this, so what’s my favourite colour?”
..Silence..
“Pink..?” Damian said after a little while, he really had no idea.
“Wrong!” She giggled a little and made an ‘X’ with her arms.
“Teal?” Becky tried remembering colours she often wore when they were not in uniform, but It wasn’t much help.
“Nope! Currently it’s yellow! But I guess when we first met it was pink! So I guess Damian get’s half a point.”
Becky gulped down a bit and bit her tongue, a snarky Damian smirked at her evilly, it was only half a damn point!? She could easily beat that..
“Alright, next question.. When’s my birthday?” This was an easy question they could both answer. They were bad friends, but they weren’t invited to her birthday party every year for the past 12 years to not know it by heart.
“April 1st!” They both chanted out, and Technically speaking Anya didn’t know when her actual birthday was, how they got to the conclusion of her birthday being on April 1st was when Anya pranked them saying it was as an April fools joke.. Turns out they didn’t know it was a joke and she kind of just accepted that she was now apparently born on April 1st.
“Yes! 1 point to you both! Now, uhm what can I ask you guys, that's not too easy..” she sat there and thought for a while before it almost looked like a lightbulb had turned on in her head.
“I know! How do I wanna be asked out!” Truth is Anya didn’t have an answer herself, she just thought of the questions Becky had asked her.
Damian and Becky sat there inexplicably flabbergasted at Anya’s strange question, had Anya ever once even considered her romantic life outside of her fascination with Damian?
“I-I Don’t know.. How do you wanna be asked out?” Damian said after a bit, as embarrassing a question it was what could be better than figuring out how she’d want it to go than from her herself.
Anya wasn’t expecting that, and now had to actually consider and weigh her options. That was a great question, how did she want to be asked out?
“Uhm, I guess just with a bag of peanuts?” She shrugged her shoulders and pleasantly smiled at herself, everyone knew she was simple-minded, this wasn’t a fact that she tried to hide, but was she really okay with just a bag of peanuts??
“WHAT?? No like, flowers or songs or anything!?” Damian was now more confused than he was before if that was possible.
“I’m not much for big theatrics, I guess just a quiet intimate moment and a bag of deliciously sweet and salty peanuts is nice.” Again she said it like it was no big deal, and he guessed it really wasn’t THAT big of a deal to her, but to him this was a matter he was putting his pride and honour on the line for, couldn’t she be a little more considerate??
“A-are you sure that’s all you want..?” He weakly replied.
“Hmm.. Yep!” She beamed so happily not knowing just how much Damian’s self-esteem was crumbling at her hands. She was truly evil.
The bell rang signalling 1st period had started, the 3 had instinctively sat straight and forward, giving their full attention to the lesson like good Eden students should, well.. At Least 1 of them was, the other 2 were each in their own mental dilemas, both thinking of just how little they knew about the girl beside them that they had presumably known for the better half of their lives, they were ashamed to say the least. They both looked equally as distraught but over time Becky leaned more into the lesson, while Damian’s look of distress only got more intense, Anya being eerily aware of the way his eyes were boring a hole into the back of her head.
The teacher was writing a math problem on the board that the students were supposed to copy onto their own papers and then solve, ‘The triangle bounded by the lines y = 0, y = 2x and y = -0.5x + k, with k positive, is equal to 80 square units. Find k.’ Damian knew this, he most definitely did, so why the hell was his brain too confused to think of the answer he thought he knew? Why wouldn’t his brain think about it for more than a fleeting second, he knew he should be paying attention to the lesson, he was an imperial scholar and had an example to set after all, but his mind was empty aside from thoughts of the pinkette and his paper was even emptier.
“Mr.Desmond? Do you have the answer?” The teachers voice woke him from his internal monologue of what could only be described as a mild panic attack, he sat there stunned and although he knew what was being asked of him he couldn’t properly form a sentence or excuse for his lack of knowledge, he couldn’t think properly at the time, for the second time in Damian’s life, he didn’t know what to do.
Anya of course being Anya noticed his internal screaming and also noticed how all his thoughts were scrambled and loud, aside from being a mind reader she was abnormally observant, she could tell he was panicking a little by the way his lip quivered ever so slightly, and how his hands were sweaty and shaking just a little.
Anya locked eyes with Damian and showed him 10 fingers making sure the teacher couldn’t see what she was doing, hoping he’d get the hint.
He sat there stumped for a second before speaking out loud unconsciously, “10?” He said it not because he thought it was the answer but because he was confused on why she was showing him 10 fingers out of nowhere.
“Correct Mr.Desmond! As expected of someone from your calibre.” The teacher hummed with contentment and turned back around to the board starting to write the next question.
Damian sat there stunned a bit, had she just helped him get the answer? How could she have known he didn’t know? But then again that was so Anya, to know exactly how he was feeling and what he needed when he needed it, it was something he found scary at first but soon fell in love with. As weird as it was, the thought that someone could see through his elegant and put together farce was comforting in a way, as if proving he was still a human with emotions and not just his father’s dog on a very tight leash.
The class ended without any more casualties but Damian was stuck in deep thought, he knew she deserved a lot more than a bag of peanuts, she may not be the best when it came to academics but she was still kind, oh so very kind to everyone, no matter their social class or their appearances, Anya was someone people looked up to and sought after when they needed help, which has awarded her about 6/8 of her stella stars. Nobody flinches or awkwardly fumbles around in her presence like they did with him, he had to admit he was a bit jealous how they could be so happy and comfortable with her people could be, she could make anyone open up and talk whether they wanted to or not, people found her warmth unimaginably comforting.
And he had to admit that he also found peace in her warmth, he enjoyed the ways her sunny personality made every bad situation seem so much better, and her metaphorical rays of sunshine are most likely the reason he hasn’t succumbed to the cold ways of the Desmond's completely, he thinks it’s probably because she’d be sad if he changed and was rude to everyone, and to make Anya Forger sad was like covering the sun with nothing but stormy clouds.
So how could he possibly ever ask her out with nothing more than a mere bag of peanuts? She deserved so much more, her own castle hell even a country isn’t enough, she deserves more, so what could Damian possibly get her that’d satisfy them both?
“Sy-on boy?” Anya broke him out of his trance and he noticed how her cheeks were red, as if she had just heard everything he just thought of and how he’d buy her the world if she really asked him too. The thing is she did hear him, and only wanted to stop him from going overboard, not that she’d tell him that though.
“Oh, uhm yes? What do you need-” He started fumbling his words like an idiot in front of her and he has never wanted to slap himself more than he did now.
“Wanna go to prom with me? Sorry I don’t have any gifts or anything right now but-” She had asked as if it was nothing, like he hasn’t been pondering the very thought for about the past week and has been mentally killing himself in the process, had she no concern for his well-being?
After collecting his shock he came to the conclusion he’d say yes right now when she asked him out, after all if he didn’t it’d end up in a lot more misunderstandings and embarrassment, and it’s not like he had any idea on how to ask her himself, as much of his pride he was laying down right now he figured it was fine, because it was for her, and he thinks that just maybe, he might be willing to do anything she asks of him, just to have her warm rays of light cast out his own cold dark shadows, so she could read his emotions so scarily accurate and he could cry in her arms, and let her warm, warm touch, calm him in every way he needs her too.
“Yeah sure, dummy..”
“You’re such a tsundere Sy-on!”
“Am not..”
“Yeah right.” She let out an airy chuckle, so perfectly in her element, and although other people may be stiff and awkward in his presence, he figures he’ll be fine as long as she stays the same, as long as she’s shining warmly onto him he’s fine.
And the warm smile he gives her as he laughs along creating a beautiful harmony of their voices mixing makes her blush, just a bit.
Sure he doesn’t know a lot about her now, but he’d have plenty time to learn and remember all her favourites, all her dislikes and everything that makes her eyes shine brighter than he thought possible, for Damian planned on latching himself to her, and never letting go, as he needed her as much as he needed the sun, if not more.
She was his favourite person, she always has and she always will be, his sun, his stars and his moon, the love of his life, his Anya.