Archive of Our Own

Kaiser felt someone call his name, not one but by many, and still he didn’t stop as he walked out of the ring, pulling his jacket from the side walking out from the series of people’s eyes.

When he is passing by them, Kaiser can hear them booing his name but to him it like a white noise.

Doesn’t affect him much though, just like when they cheer for him, it’s felt the same.

According to Kaiser they are just to filled the empty sit.

As he push the back door, the chilly air
run through him, making a shiver run down on his body.

It’s clear that a skimpy thin jacket was never enough in this cold snowy weather like today’s. But he never care enough to bought another big woollen coat or muffler and stuff like all other people here. And it’s not like he has the luxury to afford it anyways. 

The wet road under his boot felt so slippery, as he walked across the road to that bridge.

 It is out of their college campus, just behind it. No one from college or from outside even go there. It’s empty place near an abandon cemetery that he found within weeks entering this collage when he was just wondering around from curious eyes on him. 

It’s the only place in this busy town that makes him feel so much calm after all this fighting in the ring every week. 

Yeah, it was on their campus. The fighting.

Teachers are aware of this semi-illegal club, or cult how some of those, who avoid the club’s shadow like it’s a satanic vault, like to call it. And they don’t interfere with it. There are some few rules that everyone knows not to cross even it is some kind of illegal.

This college filled with rich kids, and this club is under their wing, they kind of organise it for their entertainment.

No they doesn’t participate in it, few of them does, but it’s like they are trying to test some new water and after few beating they pull back to the empty seat to watch those who fight. Like himself. 

Those privileged bastard’ wouldn’t have the rage in them to fight with all, like those who always does. A single beat up until their nose bleeds doesn’t stop them. 

There’s only few of them, and Kaiser is one of them. Who does not come from a privilege family. He does not even have a family.

He was just arrested after some thief case. Which he wasn’t even involved anyway, they just framed him out of spite maybe? Who knows, Kaiser never care to figure it out.  

At the police station they some kind of figure out how he’s living with his ‘not- so- kind’ father, so they put him under some custody and some staff, and he ended up in orphanage.

From there, he found some man name Ray Dark. He was kind enough to enrolled him here.

Well not fully, but he made Kaiser study a little to get the scholarship, so he can get in. And he did.

And the fight, he doesn’t even enjoy too much, honestly he does it just because pays his bill. 

But some days he does look forward to be in that ring. It’s help him to purge his anger. And today is one of those days. But it was for a whole different reason, unlike any other days. 

He still gets curious eyes on him as he moves towards the forest area behind the college campus ends where like he mentioned ‘no one goes’. But he gives them a look that says — follow me and this’ll be you last day, on them, that make them turn their eyes away to mind their own business. 

And his today’s extra beat up state make him look more rough for them to look away even faster.

He pulled out a pack of cigarette as he exit their college campus, lighten it up between his finger as he taken the first drag off it. In this frizzing cold the smoke burn his throat extra, and that just what he needed. 

He can even smoke this cigarette because of that fighting. This also comes from that ring fight’ betting money.

Most of the audience there to put their money on the fighter. The match held in every week. And Kaiser is someone who held a record of winning every single of them. Hence, it’s natural, most of them like to bet on him.

So today, after him losing the booing on his name is kinda overrated and underrated at the same time. Those shitheads thinks of him only as a fighting machine. But Kaiser knew the end result before even the match started, he see that coming. 

How can he not? When he doesn’t even put up a performance to win. And the heavy crease on their forehead tells him his opponents also confused about his behaviour today’s weak attempt to defence. 

He almost can recognise every shadow of the large to small trees as he reached the bridge. That much time he came here. Just as always, it was empty, the wooden Bridge looks weak, unstable with the creaking noise, look like almost going to break, but Kaiser has been here enough time to know that this bridge is strong enough to hold even much much longer.

As he reach the usual spot where he usually sit down to calm himself, now it’s covered in thick snow gathered on top. And today felt extra cold with the snow covering all of the area.

But Kaiser was not bothered enough to clean it up to sit down, so he just nudged some of it with his foot as much as he can and sit on top of. He really does not care about that it is wetting his pants, he has other priorities.

He pulled his hand up to take another drug of the smoke.

He tilt his head back to rest on the wooden log behind, as he close his eyes and felt the snow falling softly on cheek his but the impact of it is completely different then how soft it is. It’s felt piercing on his skin with its coldness. But he does not flinched at it. It almost felt good.

The pain feels good.

He does not like to lose, that’s why he never did, until today.

Today he does not want to win, he want to get hit, want to feel the same pain , the same things to felt alive.

Because this morning, he suddenly got an unexpected call, that informed him that his father has died. Due to some over consumption of alcohol. It kind of choke him or something like that. Kaiser doesn’t care or tried not to care that’s why never ask second time. His ear started ringing as the women over the other side mentioned about the death. 

He never thought he would care about that person. He thought he was so over just as he gets out of that house.

Now he is in a good college, his life is almost secure and only a week he gets to fight, what pays for his additional expense.

Life is sorted, everything going perfectly, peacefully, then why did he felt like what he did today? 

He should’ve feel free! But, Why did he want to fill one more time that choke around his neck?

No, he was not even angry with that man. He does not care enough about it to get angry.

But what Kaiser felt that certainly tell him that he might have think of him more of a family than he ever let himself admit.

That’s the only person he as has his family, and now he is gone.

Truth to be told, he has thought about this same scenario, one time. And at that time, he thought he would be celebrating it, he’ll he happy at that man has finally gone for real, and his old man deserves it.

But then why he is here in a completely different situation? 

Miles of miles of things are running around his head when he suddenly realise that the piercing cold on his cheeks of the snow falling on him has stopped. The piercing cold has stopped for a few second.

He blinked his eyes open to find a pair of magenta big doe eyes shining down on him, holding a transparent umbrella with many small stars on it.

Ness knows he shouldn’t follow him up close. He should maintain the distance like always. Like how he had been doing, seeing him from far away.

But today he felt some kind of pull in him after looking at the other.

Kaiser does not look like his normal self. His fight was off, far off. When he saw him walked out of the back door Ness knows already where he is going.

Because, after every fight, he always goes there. 

Ness has exactly no idea why he always come here and sit at that broken bridge, but he stay there for hours, and then leave after smoking two or three cigarettes.

It’s the same routine, never anything new to it. But Ness still watches with the same interest as the first day he saw him there. For some reason he can’t bring his eyes off this person or even move. With how many times he watched him , Ness can draw him with his eyes closed, without missing a single detail.

There’s something this magnetic about this man he believes. 

Everything about him draws Ness in. His piercing cold blue eyes , his blond hair, his slightly crooked nose, sharp jawline, his broad shoulders, the veins on his hand, everything…

This obsession of his with this man came suddenly one day.And there’s something so strange about this whole thing because not a single time he has talked to this person ever.

No, not a single damn time. And he does not think Kaiser even knows about his existence.

But he watch him from the far and suddenly he get addicted on seeing him doing his daily stuff. It’s like a fire he caught unintentionally and now it won’t flame down, spread far too big to gone down.

Ness without a single miss follows this man , but there is a catch, Kaiser doesn’t even come college regularly. He came just when the fight would be or sometimes other important events, that’s that.

So Ness attempted every single fight to watch more. Even though Kaiser is not regular, Ness still wait for Kaiser to come, it’s just the other doesn’t know it. 

But with how long he has been doing this, now he is familiar with Kaiser’s patterns. Ness knows when to wait and how much time to wait when Kaiser would be arrive, and if the time passes, he automatically knows that the blond is not going to come.

And when he does come to college, Ness follows Kaiser roaming around in this college— all alone. Because has no friend like Ness. But both of theirs reason for being friendless is completely different. 

Ness gets approached by people to be their friend at first but after a few times later they realise that something is wrong with him. It’s either he is too much or a weirdo and they don’t want to talk to him after this realisation hit them. 

On the other side Kaiser, for him people almost avoid him.

It was one day when the blond was walking on the hallway when almost everyone around him stopped talking as he was passing by, and that caught Ness’s interest. That’s the day he has first saw him.

When he asked on of his ‘friend’ they only tell that, ‘Kaiser was not the kind of people you want to get involved with’.

And Ness was never the type of person to stop and listen what the other says, and that made him more curious.

He didn’t know, when someone forbid him from something it just automatically makes him want to do the exact opposite.

And in the process he got so curious about knowing more of ‘what it could be he does to make everyone react this way’, that without realising he started following Kaiser around. It ended up become a routine for him, but always remembered to maintain that distance, so he does not get caught.

And all this time, he discovered one thing that all this rumours about Kaiser was false. All of those are straight up lies. He has never seen Kaiser doing a single thing to keep avoid him like what has been happening. 

The only bad boy traits he saw in him that the cigarette and the fight, but it was consensual— the fight, so Ness does not even count on it.

But he guess people believe in the rumour more more than what is fact. On the other side, Kaiser also never look like care about what people think. He seems someone who knows what everyone thinks of him, but he does choose to not care enough to clear it up.

Like he has to deal with much bigger problems than fixing things with this childish take. 

He never looked bothered by the fact that he is always alone, he looks always relaxed like he enjoyed being like that— a solitary creature. 

So, today Ness following Kaiser here is almost like a clockwork for Ness. He knows Kaiser will be there, but in the state  he found him was not something he was expecting.

On the other days, he found always Kaiser looking at the scenery, enjoying it. But today he found him with his eyes closed, as the snow falling down on him.

He does not only look lost he almost look like he is drowning— in thought maybe?Ness doesn’t know. But from his perspective it looks like Kaiser is struggling with something. 

Ness knows the scrunched on his eye brow, the uncomfortable clenched on his jaw, and how his shoulders looked anything but relaxed— Ness just knows something is not right, something is bothering him.

It looks so heart wrenching. 

And there’s this coldness around them. Ness doesn’t know how Kaiser can tolerate this heavy snow with that thin jacket of his.

While Ness is wearing this woollen coat layered with one thick pullover, with a muffler, boot, and cap, he can still fill the chilled atmosphere in his bone, all of that with added to the umbrella, but still he can feel his nose is getting numb from the cold.

And on the other side Kaiser look like warrior, who does not even felt any of this.

He knows he should turn around and walk back, mind his own business. He knows he shouldn’t interrupt someone who doesn’t even know him. But for some reason, he can’t leave him there. He just can’t. 

Any human with tiniest brain would just do that, mind their own business then walking to a person who is not only underdressed but also quite beat up in the face. 

But Ness was never normal— was he? He always does things that don’t make sense to any other.

So he just does what he shouldn’t. 

Without realising his foot started walking, taking small steps to bring himself closer. An alarm goes off, started ringing of in his head with his heart drumming like crazy.

But he just can’t let him go. He just can’t turn around. 

He reached without making a single noise as he leaned slightly down and held his umbrella to shield both of them. And finally—finally the other person opens his eyes to meet him in the eyes directly. 

Those blue eyes don’t move around to find his magenta one, meet him like he knows exactly where his eyes would be. 

A little bit of silence only to be broken by him, “You’ll catch a cold if you sit on there..”

The blond man blinked, his gaze changing into something as if he still is not sure if the other was even really here or he’s just imagining it. 

Maybe because except for Kaiser no one comes here. But Ness does, it’s just Kaiser doesn’t know that. 

“Are those… “ his magenta eyes travel on Kaiser’s face where the freshly brushes and cut are placed, “…aren’t that painful..”

“Who are you?”

Ness almost flinched from his stern tone, but it didn’t drive him away.

He answered his name shortly “Ness..” as he held his umbrella tightly— an attempt to gather his courage and he crouched down shading both of them more properly from the heavy snow.

His eyes dropped where Kaiser is sitting on his butt without anything between like the cold wet floor doesn’t affecting him.

His nose wrinkles from the smell of the the cigarette up close, but he has no right to complain since he is one came to Kaiser.

He pull his other hand in his pocket to grab an object then stretched it out for the other to the grab it.

A banded. 

Kaiser’s eyes travel between his eyes to his hand to look at it, but he doesn’t make any move to take it . Only after what feels like a minute he pulls his hand up, and Ness’s eyes shine thinking Kaiser is going to accept it, but he just pulls the cigarette up to pull another puff from it and then he exhale it.

Because he was now just in front of him, the smoke runs over him and he immediately turns to cough.

A sound came out from Kaiser , when he turn to find him looking all amused by his distress like he’s not the reason for him to be a coughing mess. 

Ness finally pulls himself together. 

“You shouldn’t left those unattended.”he trying to address the bruises again.

But Kaiser completely ignores his concerns and ask his something completely different, “It was you, right?”

“Me, what?” Ness looks at him confusingly. genuinely trying to figure out what he is talking about.

“Who attended all my fights and even betting money in every match.” Kaiser’s eyes focused on his face. His tone sound to confident about his conjecture.

Ness in the other side, his eyes instantly widened as his cheeks gains colour even in the cold weather his face heated up. He left speechless. 

Like what he is going to say? He doesn’t have anything excuses. But for one thing he is relieved that Kaiser doesn’t know it all. 

He only says about the good part, the legal part. But it still makes him embarrassed. and honestly, he does not want to know if Kaiser know all the other thing does, like following him around part. 

But still, was not supposed to be a stranger? He thought Kaiser was never aware of his existence, but looks like it’s not the case.

Kaiser very much aware of him, just never knew the face behind it. 

“So you are my stalker.” Kaiser break him out of his thoughts only to give him a worse name. 

“I’m not!” Ness defences himself like a reflection. His heartbeat speeds up in a fear? 

”What’s your first name?” Kaiser smoke another puff out his almost finished cigarette, with his other hand he started tapping something on the ground. It’s probably the lighter. 

This time Ness was ready, close his eyes to get attacked by the puff of smoke again only it never came this time. 

He opened his eyes to find Kaiser looking at him with his one brow raised, waiting for him to answer.

”Alexis..”

Something goes through his brushed up face, like he’s is calculating something, and then it’s settles, ”Yeah. I’m hundreds percent sure now.”

Ness asks, ”Sure of what?” 

Ness has never talked to this person. And he doubts if even more than two people from college has ever talked to him. But was he always talk like this? Talking in a haze. 

Kaiser gives him a look. Ness has no idea what that implies. 

The blond man flick the cigarettes buds somewhere behind , then take a shallow breath, like he’s exhausted dealing with him, “You came to all of my fight. Even though by looking at you I can confirm you have never been in a ring before, and I hear your name that you bet on me big money every time, so you could say you’re special and your name keeps circling around at the back all the time.”

Ness opens his mouth but Kaiser put his hands up to stop him from saying anything.

“And that’s not it, is it?” His blue eyes narrowed on him knowingly. 

And Ness thinks he’s going to die. This has to be his last day. There’s no way he’s surviving this. 

Did Kaiser know? He knows right? Otherwise, why would he stop dramatically like that. 

Their eyes, hold each other gaze. 

oh god. He knows. 

He’s dying of embarrassment. And even if you survive that there is no way, Kaiser will lift him after knowing that he has been stalking him. 

Yeah. Earlier, this year has denied it, but that’s the truth is not it?  

He was following Kaiser to know if he was connected with any crime, but It ended up with him being doing the crime and not the other.

What if Kaiser decided to do something crazy like, talking to the principal? Or even worst going to the police? 

His life is over! 

“You always sneaked small pouches of energy drinks and this..” Kaiser takes his hand and pulls it up to show the bandages he has been keeping all this time, “together with this kind of banded on my locker. So now you tell me, shouldn’t I call me my stalker?”

Uhh.. oh. This. so he does not know the other part? Just only this? 

But still, he should deny it right? And he for the first time today, listen to his gut feelings, and deny it, Because he thinks only denying it is the only option to get away from this. 

Ness shakes his head, “no.. i..I’m not.” Shit he stuttered.

Actually, he was a little scared after the away Kaiser put it all.

 Okay, he agree that what he did was wrong. that’s talking. Stalking someone was never a good thing. But his intention was never wrong.

He was just a curious soul, but how Kaiser is saying it, it’s makes him felt like a weirdo. 

Yes, people who stalk others are weirdo, but he is not.  He is. But not that way. 

Because who gets attracted to someone without even talking to them.

“So.. what’s your main deal?”Kaiser asked him after seeing him only fighting in his head. 

Ness was looking everywhere but the man in front, but his question made him look back, “Huh?” But what he didn’t knew that asking again for elaborate it farther was his biggest mistake. 

“Come on, now don’t act anymore.” He swiped the few hair strands of his forehead, “ Don’t tell me you’re in love with me or something?” his voice drops and gets all serious.

Ness gulps on nothing at his tone. And the intense way his blue eyes are staring at him, it makes him feel as if Kaiser can read his mind like an open book. 

His heartbeat quickens even more with each passing second. His hand on the umbrella tightened, its becoming more pale  with who much tighter his grip is, cutting his blood flow completely. 

And suddenly Kaiser’s serious face turns and he laughs. Laughs so loudly it making Ness feels confused as the sound echos around them.

“Come on, you should’ve seen yourself.” His voice filled with laughter, “I was just joking, chill.”

Ness’s eyes dropped on the ground, as his heartbeat quickened. He’s anything but chill. Its only make me go over the edge even more. 

Kaiser tilts his head slightly, “But given our situation, I can’t think about anything. You look like filled with money, and you are looking by your appearance you even look like you’re good at studying.. and me on the other hand, who has nothing… who can only fight. ”

Ness remains quiet a few after it, and then, for the first time, his big eyes of admiration had changed into something sharp, like Kaiser has accused him with something terrible..

Abruptly he stands up, “I don’t want anything. I’ll go..”

But Kaiser hasn’t done with him as he cut him in. Before he can even stand up , Kaiser hit him with something, that in fact is really offensive .

“You wanna sleep with mr or something?” 

His grip on his umbrella was lost, as it slipped out. Ness doesn’t  think he has ever been accused by something like this, Ever. And he don’t think anyone could accuse him with anything worse than this!

And he was thinking Kaiser was rude with his smoking on him! Because there is no way, he just said that to him. There’s no way anyone can say this to a person you just met for the first time. 

It’s so offensive… it’s sooo…

His face for a second gain some colour that it turned into a grimaced with something that is anything but pleasantry. And he think this whole thing was just a mistake. 

He doesn’t even want to respond but still he does, because he has to defend himself, “Eww.. no..” he stopped and sighed. It was never even crossed his mind. 

He opened his mouth to say something more but then finally decided not to, so he just shake his head, “ This whole thing… I shouldn’t have come..” he huffed out, “It’s better I just go.”

He looks at Kaiser for one last time, to find the blond look a little offended, his blue eyes are not happy at his decision.

He honestly doesn’t understand why though. It’s not like Ness say something rude. On the other hand, Kaiser was being all rude and he should be the one getting offended. 

He didn’t wait any longer, stand up and started walking back to where he came from. 

And after taking ten steps he realised he had left his umbrella behind. Of course he’s not going back there. His speed up with every seps. Trying as fast as he can get in the locality. 

With how much fast he is walking his foot almost slipped two times, but caught himself from falling on his face, at the last moment.

Why did Ness think that it was a good idea? Why did he even go there anyway? He shouldn’t have. 

First, Kaiser think him as a stalker (kinda true but still!) and now he think he want something like that  from him? 

That could have been the worst acquisition he could get.

The whole point of this mess just because Ness was fascinated by him and wanted to see him a little closely, and in this moment, he suddenly started to care about him without even talking to him once.

And that’s his very first mistake.

He should’ve listened his friend and stay away from Kaiser. Because that man just treated him like a plaything. 

Ness couldn’t even say at some point if Kaiser was being a tease or he was really accusing him. He was talking and looking at him as  if he is his comedic relief. 

Ahhhhhgghhh….

Ness wants to scream, really scream loudly to spend his frustration. 

He was about to cross the road, when suddenly something or someone pulled him back by the hood of his jacket.

“You forget about your umbrella..”

The voice come before he felt the looming presence behind him and just like before he felt the umbrella pulled over his head but in a reverse now who’s holding it.

Ness tilt his head up to find Kaiser is looking at him.

He can’t help but to think, how Kaiser still looks beautiful with his busted lips and black eyes.

Ah.. no. Ness pull yourself together. Don’t get all mushy by his looks. It’s only deceiving. Like a devil who wears a face of an angel to draw his prey closer. 

“You..”

“Was it also for me?” Kaiser flick his eyes to indicate the umbrella.

Ness’s lips parted, don’t know what came out because he notices Kaiser’s eyes move down, check it out the small movement. And like that, the speech on his voice get lost its sound.

Oh god. From this angle he looks even more beautiful. More beautiful than Weber before. 

No, seriously Ness is sick. There’s no other way explanation to this. Because otherwise how could he still feel this way towards the blond after that! 

But.. but, there’s something different. And no, he’s not imagining it. It’s like the person he was at that bridge was a different person, that man was filled with mockery, hatred, looked at him like Ness was below his shoes. 

But this man, he felt different. There’s no trace of the mockery in him, not the rudeness in his eyes. His voice also sounds change. Little warm, little more genuine. More human. 

Kaiser finally let go of his hood, as he walks properly in front of him, still holding the umbrella.

And Ness still didn’t say anything, just standing there, looking up at him. And Kaiser probably also get that he was not going to say anything anymore.

The blond man hold his hand and bring it up. He flinched on the cold finger, but didn’t try to take it away. For some reason he just can’t.

Kaiser easily put his umbrella back on his hand.

“Are you staying in the dorms?” Kaiser suddenly asks.

Even if it’s make Ness wonder why he still nods his head.

“Good..” Kaiser smirked, “Then, at seven meet me at the front gate. I’ll be waiting.” He stop for a moment and runs his eyes over his attire to add, “Wear something nice.”

“Why?” This time he ask without wasting any signal breath. And this time he didn’t ask him all cluelessly, but trying to confirm something. 

His heart starts drumming up at the implication of his words, but he just want to be sure that he isn’t being paranoid. 

“What do you mean why?” He stands up straight, as he takes a step closer to whisper, “ I just want to hang out, you know?”

His whisper sounds like anything but what he’s saying. 

”Hang out  with me?” 

”Don’t ask stupid questions. Some people follow the basic. Starting with only hanging out, talking, eating etc. And not following the other around like what you did. So stay ready, I’ll meet you there.”

Kaiser doesn’t wait for him to get his confusion melted back in realisation, he is already walking back on the opposite.

And it took quite a time for him to understand what just happened.

He’s going on a date with Kaiser!