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Kix rubbed his temples. He had been trying to study for this exam for days, and his buir and vod would not stop fighting. They weren’t screaming at each other, today at least, but they were so tense. Kix found himself spending more time worrying about them than focusing on his notes. This could mean the difference between becoming just a medic or being able to study to become an actual doctor. He would never fully give up being a medic, but he wanted to do more than just first aid. He wanted to actually be able to help people, outside of a battlefield. He sighed as he slammed his textbook and shell top closed. He couldn’t stay here.
He packed a few changes of clothes and all of the things he needed to study. He couldn’t do this here. In fact, he was so stressed out about them that he needed to get away from the house. He wanted to fix things, but he also knew his intervention wouldn’t help. He had stuff to do outside of his family’s karking problems too. He hated how guilty he felt for just wanting to be free of their awkward tension. He wasn’t even involved. The things they were fighting about happened when he was six months old. How was he supposed to be able to help anyways?
He groaned. Nobody was expecting him to help but himself. Buir and Ba’buir would be angry at him again for trying to take on loads that weren’t his to bear, but how was he supposed to not when things at home seemed to be just short of a boiling point? Sure, he was supposed to fix physical injuries, but he wanted to help with the emotional ones too. Onyx hadn’t been leaving his room, and Fox snapped at him any time he tried. Buir, the hypocrite, told him that he was okay and didn’t need help. Kix wasn’t blind. He saw the tear track and the stress wrinkles.
“Where are you going?” Ponds asked, and Kix looked up. Ponds was his oldest brother, the original ori’vod. The ori’vod that Kix didn’t know. He had seen pictures, and he knew the basics of what happened to their mother and Ponds and the weird way Boba came into existence. Everyone was happy to see him, except for Boba. Boba didn’t like the new brother, but Boba hated change. Ponds was new, so it would take time for Boba to warm up to him. He was disgruntled that Onyx and Indra were living with them now, but at least, he knew them. On a similar note, he didn’t like the fairies either. Kix wasn’t sure what to think of the fairies or Ponds, as both were unfamiliar to him. He was happy for his brothers though. He almost talked to Rex about his confusing emotions, but he was busy helping Indra, so he didn’t want to bother him.
“Oh, um, just to my friend’s house,” he said, “Do you mind telling buir when he gets home?”
“Sure, have fun,” Ponds said, before returning to the novel he was reading.
Kix swam out the door, waving. He shook his head, trying to remove the awkwardness from his mind. Ponds was an anomaly in his life that he wasn’t sure where to put. He wasn’t a friend, but it felt weird to categorize him as a stranger, despite that being what he was. He could fit in family, because he was his family, but where? He didn’t know him well enough to feel great about considering him a brother, but he could no longer fit in with the dead family members that Kix would never know, like their mother. He would have to make a new box just for Ponds, it seemed.
He should really talk to Rex.
Once he arrived at Jesse’s house, he knocked. The door was opened shortly after, and in the frame was his best friend. Jesse immediately tackled him into a hug. His bag floated to the sandy ground, while the two spun head over tails from the force of the tackle. Kix’s arms wrapped around Jesse’s back, as he laughed. Tension melted away from him as he heard his friend’s gleeful shouts. He couldn’t help it if his heart melted a little bit every time Jesse was excited to see him, especially since Jesse was significantly more popular than he was. He played for the university’s sport team, and Kix was just some random medic that hung around him. Actually, that was pretty much how they met. Jesse got injured during a game, and Kix had been assigned to make sure he didn’t practice until he was given the all clear from the doctors. They met, because Kix had to babysit him.
And after that, it was history. They were attached at the hip, despite Kix’s many insecurities and the fact that for the longest time Kix’s only friend was his cousin Echo. Jesse didn’t seem to mind his medic ramble or his moods or the fact that he could be quiet. They seemed to work best, because Jesse never shut up and Kix rarely talked. However, he could be quite funny, at least according to Jesse, when he did open his mouth.
“Kix!” Jesse shouted, after the two of them had settled into the sand. “I wasn’t expecting to see you until after the exams. Are they done? Did I forget the dates? Oh kark, the cake’s gonna be late!”
“No, you didn’t forget the dates,” Kix laughed, “I just need to get out of the house to study.”
“Too many people?” Jesse asked.
“Something like that,” Kix answered. “Cake?”
“Uhhhh, nothing,” Jesse said.
“I said I didn’t want anything,” Kix said, nudging Jesse.
“You said nothing big,” Jesse retorted. “So I got us a cake for when you pass.”
“I might not,” Kix said, chewing on his bottom lip, “I’m days behind schedule.”
“Well, come on then,” Jesse said, dragging him up, “We got some catching up to do.”
“We?” Kix asked, as he was dragged inside the house and up to Jesse’s room.
“Yes, we,” Jesse said. “I’m not going to leave you alone to drag yourself into a panic attack.”
“I don’t have panic attacks,” Kix said, and at Jesse’s raised eyebrow, he muttered, “Anymore.”
Jesse sat Kix down on his bed and was out of his room before Kix even had time to ask how he intended to help. He sighed, before leaning back into Jesse’s pillows, calmed by the ever present scent that reminded him of the merman. He could hear a bunch of clattering from the kitchen. He also heard Jesse’s mother yell something at him and Jesse yell in response. He just closed his eyes, letting himself get lost in peacefulness here.
Jesse came tumbling into the room with piles of snacks falling everywhere. His arms clutched several more, and Kix couldn’t help laugh as he swam over to help his friend. Jesse looked up at him with a shy grin on his face. Kix shook his head at him, while he started picking up the fallen snacks. He organized everything, while Jesse just dropped them on the bed before he plopped down on it.
“Where’s your bag?” Jesse asked.
Kix stopped and glanced around the room. “Outside.”
The two of them raced out the door, pushing each other, trying to get to the bag first. Kix hit the wall a little harder than Jesse intended, and they heard his mother shout for them to knock it off. They continued on out of the house, laughing. Jesse won, of course, as he was the jock of the two. He slung Kix’s bag over one shoulder, grinning. Kix stuck his tongue out at Jesse, which led to another short round of the two roughhousing.
Kix was breathing heavily after they finished, and Jesse was too. Happiness had filled Kix up, and he felt like he should be floating on the surface and not here down on the floor. He bobbed as he swam back into the house, relieved that coming here was already making him feel better. Jesse followed behind him, whistling as he went.
The next three weeks were filled with laughter and studying. Jesse helped him a lot, by asking him questions to answer, as well as creating games and songs to help him learn. They did flash cards and mock exams. Jesse’s mother kept them supplied with snacks and drinks, shaking her head as the chaos in Jesse’s room. Kix adored them both, and he couldn’t have wished for a better friend. He talked to his buir every now and then, but Jango left him alone most of the time, knowing he was busy preparing.
Way too quickly, the day of his exam arrived. He knew that he was as prepared as he could be. Maybe even better if he had followed his own plan. He took a deep breathe as he and Jesse arrived outside the building where the test would be proctored. His tail ranged from a deep blue to a sickly green blue to a bright hue. His own mind was a mess of emotions, so he wasn’t surprised his tail was too.
His clam shell beeped, and he pulled it out. “Hey, buir,” he said, answering the call.
“Hey, ad’ika,” Jango said, “Just wanted to wish you luck.”
“Thanks,” Kix said, “Jesse has been helping me study.”
“I’m glad,” Jango said, and then a loud crash came from the other end. “I got to go. I think Boba just tried to pick up something heavy again.”
“Buir!” Boba’s voice came from the other end, slightly muffled.
Jango sighed. “Good luck. I’m proud of you.”
The call ended, and Kix smiled. “I’ll be out here waiting for you, and we can go get ice treats and have cake when we get home,” Jesse said, and he seemed more antsy than Kix felt.
“Alright, I’ll see you when I’m done,” Kix said, and he swam inside the building.
Several hours later, he came out of the testing room, tired but confident. Jesse had waited for him, just like he said, and he was immediately at his side, waiting for him to open the envelope that would have his test results. “Did you get in?”
“I haven’t looked yet,” Kix asked, “I wanted to open it with you.”
“Well, come on! Don’t keep me in suspense,” Jesse said, tail twitching impatiently.
Kix grinned, and he slid his fingernail under the sticky part of the envelope. He was both excited and nervous, wanting to know now and never wanting to finish opening it. Finally, he had to pull free and read the contents. His heart pounded, as he unfolded the sheet. Jesse was practically vibrating.
“I got in!” Kix shouted, and Jesse let out the loudest whoop yet. His friend’s arms wrapped around him, crushing his own to his sides, and then they were spinning. Relieved laughter spilled from his lips, and Jesse excitedly shot towards the surface with Kix in tow. The two of them breached out of the water, startling a few seagulls, before crashing back into the water.
The two of them headed back to Jesse’s house, where his mother was sure to have Kix’s favorite food already set on the table. They did make a pit stop at their favorite ice treat place, but what Jesse’s mother pretended not to know didn’t hurt her. Kix basked in the happiness, while Jesse chattered on and on about anything that came to his mind, mostly about how good of a doctor Kix would be and that he better not leave him for his new doctor friends. Jesse didn’t need to know that Kix could never leave him behind.
Kix had been studying for this for years. He knew all the symptoms. Shortness of breath. Flushed cheeks. Increased heartrate. Yeah, he knew what he was afflicted with. Love… He loved Jesse, more than he could ever say. He certainly couldn’t let Jesse now. But… Kix glanced at Jesse, as he talked animatedly, waving his ice treat around. How could he not tell him? Kix ate his own, and with this newfound confidence, he decided he would kiss Jesse tomorrow.
That night was a flurry of phone calls and ice treats and laughter. Kix found himself exhausted after a few hours, because there was so much activity. Jesse shepherded him into his bedroom, pushing him onto the bed before plopping down next to him. Kix’s body shook with laughter, as joy overwhelmed him. All of that stress, and he had passed. It was worth it. He curled into Jesse’s side as his friend’s arm wrapped around his shoulders.
“Proud of you, Kixy,” Jesse whispered.
“Kark tomorrow,” Kix thought, and he surged up, kissing Jesse. The merman froze for a second, just long enough for Kix to rethink his decision, before melting into it. Jesse’s hands wandered down to Kix’s waist, and the two lingered in that moment. When they parted, they were both breathing heavily, cheeks flushed. Kix settled down, head on Jesse’s chest, listening to his fast heartrate. He was sure his was just the same.
“When did you get so brave?” Jesse asked.
“I don’t know,” Kix answered, “Like it?”
Jesse pulled him into another kiss before responding, “Love it.”