Wet dreams, that is, erotic dreams that induced spontaneous orgasm in both males and females, was one of the first aspects of sexual activity that they learned about. This was because it generally started in girls at around 12 and boys at 13, though it could sometimes happen as early as 11, depending on a person’s genetics and hormonal balance. Alex had started having them when he was nine.
“So… you dream of yourself doing… erm, having sex with girls?” Kazekiri asked, not looking at him.
He nodded, also not looking at her. “I’m sorry. I know this is awkward.”
“N-no, it’s okay!” Kazekiri hurriedly replied, waving her arms back and forth. “T-these things are totally natural, you know? I get it. I mean, even I have… well, what I mean is, everyone has them, right? I don’t think this is, erm, unnormal or anything, so…”
“Thank you,” Alex said. “However, I think mine are abnormal.” He looked down at his hands. “The truth is, it isn’t just the dreams. It’s how I feel when I’m awake. I’m always finding myself getting… becoming, well, aroused around certain females that I find attractive, but I feel like… like I shouldn’t. It feels so much stronger than what other boys go through. No one else seems to have the same problem, the same lack of control that I have.”
“What do you mean?” asked Kazekiri.
Alex frowned as he tried to think of how he could explain what he was feeling. He had never once tried to put it into words. He didn’t even know if he could. Still, he had sought out Kazekiri’s help, so he was going to do the best to lay everything out on the table.
“I always feel like I’m struggling to control myself. There are times when I’ll catch myself looking at someone and thinking about how I’d like to do… things with her that are inappropriate for two people who aren’t dating to do. I never do, but the desire to, erm, like, touch them and stuff, is there.”
Alex didn’t think he’d ever felt more mortified in his life than he did right then. He was telling Kazekiri, the strict girl his own age who had been dubbed Rule Book at Atreyu Academy, that he was feeling sexual desires toward several girls. This was easily the most embarrassing thing he’d ever done in his life. More than that, it was also the most frightening thing he’d ever done.
“I… I’m not really sure what to tell you,” Kazekiri said after a moment. “I mean, I’m not a guy, so I don’t really know, but I think… maybe, what you are feeling is natural, so… um, I don’t think it’s something you should worry about.”
Alex snapped his head toward her. “But I—there’s no way these feelings can be natural! I mean, maybe if it was just one girl, but it’s not! Gabrielle, Jasmine, Selene, you—erm, Ryoko! I’m constantly thinking all these inappropriate thoughts about them! Constantly constantly constantly! But I don’t want to think this way! I don’t want to have these thoughts! I love them! I shouldn’t be having such impure thoughts about the people I love!”
He had no idea when he started crying, but tears were streaming down his face as he poured out all of his frustrations. It was just like that time with Nyx. After Gabrielle had accepted Prince Arthur’s offer for a date, Alex’s frustration had gotten the better of him. It had been left boiling inside of him until it came out in a violent spray of tears.
This was a thousand times worse.
The tears wouldn’t stop. They streamed from his eyes, poured down his face, dripped from his jawline, and soaked into his shirt. He had no idea his body had been holding so much water. Alex could have probably filled up a tub with his tears.
Strangely enough, the two voices inside of his mind, which he had expected to comment with either with sarcasm or compassion, were silent. He hadn’t heard them in a while. Part of him wondered what that meant. The rest didn’t care.
All the while, Kazekiri stared at him as he cried, her eyes wide, her mouth open, an expression of bafflement etched onto her face. She was probably even more shocked by his own outburst than he was.
“You really hate this, don’t you?” Kazekiri finally said.
Alex wiped at his eyes. It was a futile gesture. The tears weren’t stopping.
“Of course I hate this. Wouldn’t you?”
“W-well, I mean, it’s not like I haven’t felt… um, had… sexual thoughts about someone else.”
“You mean your boyfriend?”
“Boyfriend?” Kazekiri stared at him quizzically, but then her eyes widened and she turned to present her back to him. “R-right! Like my boyfriend! That’s right! Just like that!”
“But that’s just one person. It’s not several people.”
“That doesn’t make what you’re feeling any less unusual,” Kazekiri assured him, turning back around. “I think what you’re experiencing is perfectly natural. Rather than that, I think the disgust you feel toward yourself is the unnatural part.”
“You think so?”
“Yes.” Kazekiri nodded. “In fact, I think you trying so hard to suppress your own feelings is what’s causing all of these problems.”
Her words made him pause. Could she really be right? Alex would admit that he wasn’t as well-versed in knowledge of sex as everyone else. He had taken the accelerated course at Atreyu Academy to graduate early, meaning some of his courses had been rushed. Sex education was one of them.
He would also admit, however reluctantly, that he had done his best to avoid the subject. After getting his feeling squashed by Selene, he had sworn off girls and anything to do with them, which happened to include this particular subject.
“Thank you, Kazekiri.” Alex still had tears in his eyes, but he smiled at her. “I feel a lot better.”
Kazekiri smiled. “I’m glad. I—wait. Isn’t this the first time you’ve called me Kazekiri?”
“Is it?”
“It is.”
“I’m pretty sure I called you by your name before.”
“I don’t think you did.”
“But I’m positive I did.”
“Do you have to contradict everything I say?”
“Erm… no?”
“Don’t make your answer sound like a question!”
Kazekiri and Alex stared at each other, one looking angry and the other confused, but soon, smiles broke out on their faces.
He didn’t think Kazekiri understood how much he valued her words. She was a girl who strictly followed the rules right down to the letter, who berated others when they didn’t follow the rules. If someone like her was telling him that his disgust, self-loathing, and suppression of his own desires was unnatural, then he could believe her.
Alex still felt awful, but he felt better now than he had for the past few days. It wasn’t like this huge weight had been lifted off his chest or anything. There were still some problems weighing him down, but perhaps, if he accepted himself, if he realized that maybe there really was nothing wrong with him, then he could tackle these other issues one at a time.
The next problem he needed to solve was…
“There you are!”
Before anything else could be said, Ariel stormed up to Alex, who wasn’t even given time to so much as open his mouth before she grabbed him by his shirt. Despite being nearly ten centimeters shorter than him, she easily lifted him off his feet. Her glare was a sight to behold.
“Um… w-what?”
“I said who. The fuck. Do you think. You are. Jackass?!” With every two or three words, Ariel shook him hard enough that his head rocked back and forth. “My sister was hoping you would stop her from going on a date with that prince, and instead you go on a date with some other girl?! What is your problem?! My big sis not good enough for you?! Huh?! HUH?!”
“T-that’s… not it… I was afraid…”
“I don’t care what you’re afraid of!” Ariel roared before pulling him in close. Now nose to nose, the littlest of Gabrielle’s sisters looked positively terrifying. Her eyes were blazing like a fire had been lit inside of them. “Listen up! You are going to crash that date, tell Gabrielle how you really feel,
and take her away from there! Do you understand? I’ll kick your ass if you don’t!”
“I… I understand,” Alex said. He was already planning to crash the party anyway.
“Good.” Ariel dropped Alex on his butt. It hurt, but there were more important things to worry about than his smarting asscheeks. Ariel was glaring down at him. “Get going.”
“Erm…”
Alex looked past Ariel to Kazekiri, who was staring at him with an unfathomable expression that he couldn’t quite figure out. It was not the kind of expression he’d really seen on someone before. Saying that, if he had to describe it, he would have said she looked… conflicted.
However, the look eventually left and Kazekiri smiled at him as she said, “Go rescue Gabrielle. I know that’s one of the issues that’s been weighing on your mind.”
“Right.” Alex nodded, stood up, and sent his own smile at Kazekiri. “Thank you. I won’t forget how much you’ve helped me.”
Alex turned around and began to run out of the park. He stopped seconds later, however, spun around, took a deep breath, and cupped his hands to his mouth.
“I LOVE YOU, KIRI-KIRI!” he shouted at the top of his lungs.
He didn’t quite catch Kazekiri’s return shout—well, he heard it fine, but he couldn’t tell what she was screaming because it was pretty incoherent. He imagined it was something about how he shouldn’t act so shameless. The thought made him laugh.
5
Gabrielle didn’t know what to think or how to feel. The plan that Michelle had come up with was in shambles, Alex had not done as either of them had expected, and now she was in Arty’s private shuttle, being driven to their “date” by the boy’s personal assistant.
Gwenn was a stern older woman who, to this point, had barely said two whole sentences in the entire time they’d known each other. She piloted the shuttle, a sleek cruiser with a more organic design than human shuttles, with the enviable talent of a professional. Gabrielle looked out the window as the shuttle swerved around traffic with ease.
“I am so glad that you chose to attend this date with me,” Arty continued to gush, which he had been doing ever since they hopped in the shuttle. “I promise you, Princess Gabrielle, that once you experience this date, you’ll have so much fun that you’ll never want to return to that barbarian’s side.”
She assumed “that barbarian” was Alex, in which case, Arty really didn’t know anything. She thought about saying something. However, she didn’t really know what to say. Even though she didn’t want to be there, she had agreed to go on this date. It might have been on the pretense of convincing Alex to confess his feelings, but she had agreed, nonetheless.
Gabrielle did not like to do what others asked of her. She often disregarded anything people said when they were trying to make her do something that she didn’t want to do, but it was different when she actually agreed to do something. Promises were meant to be kept. Gabrielle didn’t want to be the kind of woman who said one thing and did another.
“Where are we going?” asked Gabrielle.
“We are going to a high-class venue here on Mars,” Arty said. “It took me awhile to find this place. I had to scour the city for the entire week to search for a suitable restaurant for us to eat at. Even now, our destination is not one that I would normally consider dining at, but it was the best place I could find.”
Gabrielle didn’t really understand what Arty was talking about. It sounded almost like he didn’t like any of the places here on Mars, that he thought they were not worth his time, but she loved the shops and places to eat. Did that mean her taste in food was bad, or was Arty just a picky eater?
She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting after Arty mentioned finding a “high-class venue” for them to have dinner at, but somehow, Metronomes’ Bakery was not it.
Arty swept into the bakery, the door chiming. His loud, booming voice, rang out for everyone to hear. “Hello! I have returned for my date with Princess Gabrielle! I would like some service now!”
Gabrielle, standing more or less right next to him, winced as her ears began ringing. An Angelisian’s long ears weren’t just for show. Angelisians had sensitive hearing, and Arty’s shouts were like a klaxon blaring in them. Standing on Arty’s other side, Gwenn merely readjusted her glasses.
“Erm… excuse me,” Selene said. “I don’t know what you are shouting for, but could you please not yell so much? My parents are trying to get some work done and… Gabrielle? What are you and Prince Arthur doing here?”
“Selene!” Gabrielle lunged at her friend, hugging her for all she was worth. “Selene, you have to help me!”
“Erm…” Selene looked down at her, and Gabrielle tried her best to give the girl a pleading look. Her friend looked back at Arty. “Excuse me, Prince Arthur. Please sit anywhere you like. I’ll get to you both after I speak with my friend.”
“Of course!” Arty boomed. “Far be it for me to keep Princess Gabrielle’s friend from talking to her! Take your time!”
Arty wandered further into the store, Gwenn close behind him, and chose a booth near the wall. He sat down. Leaning back, crossing his arms, Arty entered into a staring contest with the table.
Selene grabbed Gabrielle’s hand and pulled her past the counter and into the backroom. The dark-skinned girl’s parents were there. They both greeted her with friendly smiles, to which she waved and smiled back. As she continued getting pulled along, Gabrielle was eventually led into what appeared to be a very small living room.
“Okay.” Selene placed her hands on her hips and penetrated Gabrielle with a stare. “Why don’t you tell me what’s going on here? I can already guess that this is the date you promised Prince Arthur, but I’m really surprised to see that you’re actually going on it. I thought you loved Alex.”
“I do love Alex,” Gabrielle said before launching into an explanation about everything that had happened so far. She told Selene about Michelle’s plan to make Alex confess, how that plan had backfired, and how she was now stuck going on a date with Arty despite the fact that she didn’t want to go on a date.
Selene rubbed her forehead as Gabrielle finished explaining the situation. “So… I’m still confused… why can’t you just tell Arty—I mean, Prince Arthur—that you can’t go on a date because you don’t love him?”
“I already promised,” Gabrielle said. “I may not look it, but I am a princess of Angelisia. We always honor our agreements, and I agreed to go on a date with him.”
“But if you agreed to go on a date with him, then wouldn’t you still have to go on this date even if Alex confessed to you.”
Gabrielle needed a moment to compute those words, but once she did, her eyes widened. Selene was… she was right? Regardless of what Alex said or did, she would have still had to go on this date. She couldn’t get out of something she had agreed to do.
“Oh… you’re right.”
Selene sighed. “You didn’t think about that at all, did you?”
Gabrielle felt her cheeks becoming warm. “No… I didn’t.”
“Thought so.”
“What should I do?”
“Given that you apparently are the type of person to keep your word, you don’t have much of a choice but to go on this date. However, rather than let Prince Arthur set the pace, you should set it by telling him that you love Alex and have no intention of marrying anyone else.”
“That’s a really good idea!” Gabrielle hugged Selene again, rubbing their cheeks together. “Thank you, Selene! You always come up with the best ideas!”
“You’re welcome,” Selene said, though her voice sounded a little squished, and Gabrielle belatedly realized it was because she was smashing their cheeks together. She backed off and gave her friend a sheepish smile. It was returned with an amused one by Selene.
They went back into the bakery. Arty was still sitting in the booth, still staring at the table. When Gabrielle and Selene walked up to him, he turned his head, smiled, and then spoke
in a loud voice.
“Ah! Princess Gabrielle! Did you and your friend have a good conversation?”
“Erm… yeah, you could say that,” Gabrielle said.
“I am pleased to hear that!” Arty snapped his fingers together. “Now, then, Princess Gabrielle’s friend, attend us!”
Selene smiled, though it looked a little fixed, as Gabrielle sat down on the opposite side Arty. As she did, a loud beeping echoed through the bakery. Everyone turned to Gwenn, who had raised her left hand and was looking at something.
“It seems there is something happening on Camelot,” she said at last. “Please excuse me, Prince Arthur, while I take this communication.”
“Of course,” Arty said with a wave of his hand. “Let me know the details once you finish.”
“You have my word.”
Gwenn left the bakery, moving away from the door and standing just outside, where Gabrielle could see her by the window. It looked like she was talking into a communicator of some kind.
“Being the aide to the Crown Prince sure seems tiring,” Gabrielle commented as she watched Gwenn.
“I’m sure it is, but Gwenn does an excellent job, and she personally offered herself to be my assistant and bodyguard,” Arty said.
“Hmm…”
Metronomes’ Sweetshop did not have any actual meals. It was a bakery that specialized in sweets: pastries, danishes, parfaits, and the like. That was what they sold. Gabrielle had no idea what Arty was thinking in taking them to eat dinner here, of all places, though she wasn’t going to complain. She wouldn’t have gotten Selene’s great advice if they had gone anywhere else, after all.
“Listen, Arty,” Gabrielle began.
“Arty?” Arty blinked.
“I—”
“Hold it right there!” a loud voice suddenly shouted as the entrance door was slammed open.
A Most Unlikely Hero, Vol 6 Page 15