Chapter Text
Wifies knew even from childhood that he was inherently…wrong.
It wasn't anything in particular; he just felt empty. He didn't get why other kids cried or smiled, nor the way they ran around in excitement. It would be simpler to say he didn't feel much at all. Something was wrong with him, and even his parents must have agreed with that sentiment.
Of course, it wasn't like he was exempt from all feelings; he just felt very little of it. For instance, when his mother broke down, crying about why he had to be born like this, there was a pang of pain in his heart. Was it sadness? Frustration? Wifies didn't know.
From then on, he changed the way he appeared to others. He began to act friendly and open, someone to trust. Even though he wasn't outgoing, the proud look on his parents' faces almost made it seem like it was enough.
It wasn't.
Until he went to high school.
Even though Wifies was on good terms with his acquaintances, it wasn't like he had any close friends or anything. He was nice enough for people to like, but distant enough for others to avoid. Yet, when he met Parrotx2 in the library during lunch, something changed.
Parrot was his first and only friend. Not only was he very interesting and good-hearted, but he was the only one able to match Wifies' intellect.
What Wifies lacked in emotional intelligence, he made up for it with smarts, and for someone to understand him made him feel some joy for once.
The empty feeling still wasn't gone.
Even though Parrot had been the closest person to him in the world, it was still there.
So, he began to hold even more tightly to Parrot.
Anytime Parrot talked to someone else, a pang of jealousy filled his heart. He tried to ignore it at first, but the jealousy was still there. Did Parrot really need to talk to others? He had Wifies, his best friend. When people tried to talk to Parrot when Wifies was around, they usually would be scared off by his glare.
Yes, Wifies was a naturally jealous person. Why wouldn't he be?
So it should have been a surprise when Theo and Reina came into the picture, and Wifies bitterness wasn't as severe as it would be.
Well, it was for a moment.
The minute he saw Parrot with the two, Wifies' bitterness clawed at his chest, even though his face showed otherwise.
He remembers walking up to Parrot, about to drag him away from the two, until they began talking to him. Apparently, Parrot had introduced him to them earlier, and they quickly got a good impression of them. Theo was loud and energetic, while Reina was quieter but thoughtful. He honestly enjoyed their company a bit. So, he let it slide.
Eventually, when student council elections came about, he even helped them campaign, and they won as well. Parrot became student president, and Reina and Theo became co-vice presidents.
Even then, the hollowness still persisted, following him everywhere, and Wifies was okay with that. He accepted the truth long ago and decided that he'd just act like this for the rest of his life.
Then one random day, at the start of senior year, a student with white, feather-like hair and an odd look in his red eyes joined his history class.
The moment they made eye contact, the hollowness that had trailed after him for the past eighteen years left in mere moments. He felt something never before, something that made him almost dizzy and his heart beat faster.
They had only stared for a few seconds, but in those few seconds, Wifies felt like he ascended.
Their history teacher, Minutetech, asked him to introduce himself, and so he did.
"I'm Saparata. Pleased to meet you." His smile and words were so obviously fake, but Wifies didn't care.
What a beautiful name.
When Saparata sat down, he felt a gaze dig into him. Weird…it must have been his imagination. Besides—
For once, in his entire life, he no longer felt empty.
Since that day onwards, whenever he felt the hollowness crawl back, he'd think about Saparata, and it would go away in a flash.
Saparata, with those dark red eyes that felt like staring into a deep pool of blood, and those twin moles under them, and that fake smile—
He was utterly transfixed.
There wasn't a moment he wasn't thinking about him. How could he not? He was perfect.
However, it seemed his friends disagreed.
Especially Parrot.
They were having lunch together that day, just the two of them. They were talking about some upcoming exams and when they would study together. Suddenly, the lunchroom doors opened, and Saparata, in all his glory, walked through. (Shoebilly and Arachnid were there as well, but he couldn't care less.) Wifies' eyes didn't miss the way Parrot scowled as he'd just been scratched.
And Saparata passed by them, and his eyes shifted to Parrot, and he paused. Anyone could see frustration creeping up on Parrot. Wifies eyed both of them, keeping his face perfectly neutral.
"Good afternoon, Mr.President." His voice was laced with sarcasm, and Parrot understood that as well. He furrowed his eyebrows before speaking. "Same to you, Saparata." He gritted the words out. As much as he wanted to, it's not like he could cuss him out in the middle of the cafeteria.
As Wifies watched both of them intently, Saparata's gaze shifted from Parrot to Wifies, cold, menacing eyes suddenly becoming…different? Wifies couldn't describe it entirely, but his gaze became both softer and more focused. His heart beat sped up, but he merely tilted his head.
"Ah, so you must be our future valedictorian! I've heard much about you, Wifies."
Saparata knows about him, and he's such a gentleman too. What a pleasant surprise.
If Wifies had the ability to blush, his face would be as red as Reddoons , and he'd be stuttering like an idiot. Thankfully, he had some basic decency and nodded simply, careful not to let his smile show in front of Parrot.
"I appreciate the compliment." He eyed Saparata up and down, taking in his details. After all, he had very little time to do so. Perfectly fluffy white hair, dark crimson eyes, with matching twin moles, and a polite smile. He was rather tall as well. Wifies accidentally spilled a small, yet noticeable smile and watched as Saparata seemed to freeze just for a moment.
Parrot watched the exchange, visibly irritated. "Wifies." He grabbed his wrist, interrupting his line of thought. "Let's go. Theo and Reina need us."
Wifies just blinked and allowed himself to be dragged away, aware of the sharp gaze digging into his back.
—
Wifies unlocked the door to his drab apartment and walked in, adjusting his shoe among the ends of the hallway.
Despite the fact that he's still in high school, Wifies decided to move into an apartment of his own. To his parents, he told them it was because he wanted to move away and practice being independent before college. They were concerned at first, but with enough convincing, they persisted. In truth, being alone made it so Wifies didn't have to keep up the act at home.
He changed into more comfortable pajamas and checked his phone. Earlier that day, he asked Parrot if there were any dinners with minimal ingredients that were easy to cook (because in honesty, Parrot was far better at cooking than he. He would have cup noodles for the rest of his meals if it weren't for his friend's insistence to take better care of himself. Another reason why Parrot was his best friend.)
Parrot had sent a couple of recipes; the one that had caught his eye was Yakisoba. For a few minutes, he cooked and ate his dinner, and washed the dishes. Thankfully, he didn't have any homework that day, so he could focus on more important matters.
Matters that involved Saparata.
Walking to his room, an uncontrollable smile formed on his face as he entered.
His room was both neat and decorated, with posters along the walls and shelves filled with books, but that wasn't what he was here for.
He pulled out a drawer under his desk, opened it, and pulled out a cardboard box. He smiled as he pulled off the lid.
It was filled with pictures of Saparata and his belongings.
Saparata's school photo, a sheet of paper with his handwriting, his overstretched hairband, an old keychain that fell off-
He knew it was wrong to do this.
He knew that any sane person would trash everything out and reconsider their life choices—
But Wifies didn't care about what was right.
He cared about Saparata.
The one person who made the hollowness go away.
And today, the box had a new collection: Saparata's Instagram handle.
He saw a classmate of his on Saparata's Instagram page for merely seconds, but Wifies memorized it and wrote it down.
Excitement filled his veins; he felt like a young kid with a new piece of candy.
He grabbed his phone and entered Saparata's username into Instagram while settling himself into bed. Lo and behold, there he was.
It was like he'd won the jackpot, as hundreds of Saparata's photos lay there, in front of him. He felt giddy again, let out a small chuckle, and then scrolled.
He fell asleep like that. The last thing he saw was Saparata smiling at the camera before exhaustion overtook him.
It was a good way to sleep.
He had always had one motto in life: Once he found someone he cared for, he wouldn't let go.
It wouldn't be any different for Saparata. Even if his dove doesn't love him, Wifies will make him.
He doesn't have a choice.
❤︎
Saparata knew he was a bad person.
It didn't take a genius to know that, with the amount of blood on his hands.
Even as a kid, he'd always been…violent, even when he didn't mean to. He didn't understand why; he just felt an overwhelming urge to hurt when something didn't go his way, and maybe that's why everyone avoided him. 'He's crazy, psychotic even.' His classmates used to say. After all, he was the delinquent type.
So when he met Fluixon, he thought everything would change.
Flux didn't lean away when Saparata was close to him, nor was he dissuaded by his presence.
Fluixon was the first person who didn't treat him like a monster, someone to be fixed. So naturally, the two would warm up to each other.
Saparata once choked a classmate with his bare hands in middle school when he lost his temper. Immediately after his breathing stopped, Saps began to panic, and it got worse when Fluixon walked in.
However, Flux didn't scream or run away. He just started at the sight blankly, their classmate dead still and Saparata with blood on his hands and tears in his eyes, hyperventilating in worry, eyes widening in terror. He merely walked over to the panicked Saps and handed him a towel to wipe himself with.
"Get rid of the blood. I'll take care of this."
While struggling to get the blood of, he watched through teary eyes as if Fluixon cleaned the body as if it were a water spill, not a single trace of worry on his face. Mopping the floor, throwing the body in a trash bag, and removing any trace of red. Flux wasn't exactly athletic, but he easily carried the body like he'd done this a thousand times before, refusing Saparata's offer to help.
When Flux returned, he took Saparata to the guy's bathroom, wiped the blood off, and gave him some spare clothes until he looked just as he did before he killed the classmate.
They didn't say a word as they left the school, nor on the pavement outside the convenience store.
The chill autumn wind passed by them, causing slight shivers.
Flux didn't interrogate him about what he did and allowed Saparata to speak for himself, about how he lost control, and before he knew it, their classmate was dead. He didn't know how to feel because, in truth, the guilt was nonexistent, even though it should have been consuming him.
He cried a lot that day, and Flux merely listened and nodded, like it was just another conversation.
Once Saps finished speaking, Fluixon took his hand and…smiled. He assured him that he'd be alright, that he didn't change in his eyes, and that he didn't blame him.
Saps watched him with widened eyes, a thousand questions running through his mind.
"How…how did you know how to-?"
"My family is familiar with this type of…activity. I knew it would happen sooner or later."
Teary Crimson met calming violet eyes. "You're still my Saps."
Maybe that was the day he fell in love with Fluixon. Or maybe he liked him all along and just realized it now. Whatever it was, the two stuck together for the rest of their years, uncaring of what was just, only looking for thrill.
But things changed.
Fluixon began to see things in a better light. He began to focus on his morals and how wrong their actions had been. Saps knew that Fluixon's family was shady, and though Flux would be as well.
But before he knew it, Flux had changed into a better person, and Saparata was still the crying student whose loss of control led him to kill a classmate.
Their final conversation had been more of an argument, with lots of shouting, crying, and bruised skin.
And then Flux moved away.
Saparata was alone again.
—
Saparata enrolled in a new high school for senior year. He expected to be by himself for the next few months, but he found others who didn't see the world in a good light, just like him, namely Arachnid and Shoebilly.
But even then…Fluixon was always on the back of his mind. He thought he'd never get over him.
Until he walked into history and saw him, and the heartache that followed him like a ghost left in an instant.
Their eyes met for a mere moment before his eyes flickered away. He couldn't look for too long; he might go crazy. He took his time taking in each individual detail.
Messy brown hair that still looked soft, a bright purple bandana (why was it always the guys who were purple?), casual yin-yang grey hoodie over white button-up, and—
Those eyes.
It was pitch black, void even, with a soft touch of gray. It should have been creepy, but Saparata felt drawn to them, like a dark, black sea he wouldn't mind drowning in. Anytime Wifies glanced at him, he could almost see cogs moving in his mind, dissecting him, inspecting him even.
He had never seen such beautiful eyes before.
When he sat down, he chose a seat where he could look at Wifies as much as he wanted.
Minutetech, their teacher, wrote something down on the whiteboard, and while he wrote the notes, he also made sure to look at Wifies.
His void eyes slightly squinted in focus as he wrote down the notes, pursing his lips just a bit when he had to write long paragraphs with those soft hands.
How would it feel to hold them? Saparata's hands are pretty hot, so if Wifies's hands were cold, they would match. His other hand brushed across his cheek, moving back a strand of brown hair. His skin looked just as soft.
Looking at Wifies felt like looking at a delicate porcelain doll. That was honestly the simplest way to describe it.
They didn't really talk much, though. Most of his knowledge of him came from others. He asked Shoebilly about him later that day.
"Wifies?" Shoebilly raised an eyebrow before chugging the last drop of water. They currently stood in front of his locker. "Why do you wanna know about Wifies?"
Saparata smiled. "Should I not?"
"No, no, nothing like that. You never really asked me about anyone here before, so yeah." He tugged his gray hair out of his face before speaking. "Wifies is kind of odd. I mean, most people are put off by him, even though he doesn't do anything." He pointed to his yellow eyes. "I think it's the eyes. "
His eyes? He internally scoffed. People at this school are somehow scared by the most beautiful eyes he has ever seen.
"What I do know is that he's really smart. Like, genius."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. He had the best grades in the entire school. Parrot just barely rivals him. Personality-wise: He's decent. I haven't really talked to him; I mostly just see him talking to Parrot or his lackeys." He spat out that last sentence with contempt. Saparata mentally noted that.
The fact that Wifies was such a genius made him smile, but something else pressed on his mind.
"Who's Parrot?"
"Oh, you don't know? He's the student body president, an annoying one at that. 'Oh, you can't do this' or 'Oh, that's wrong.' " He pitched up his voice when he mocked the parrot. "He looks balanced, but he's pretty much a train wreck. Last year, he won the election against LettuceK, with Reina and—" He paused, his face scrunching up in discontent, and wings twitching. "Theo."
"You don't seem to like Theo."
He sighed. "Ex-friend. Anyways, even though he's there with those three, Wifies mostly just hangs out with Parrot."
Before Saparata could ask anything else, the bell rang. "Damn." Shoebilly muttered. "I'll see ya later." He left, leaving Saparata to his thoughts.
Later that day, he saw Parrot and Wifies together, and Shoebilly wasn't wrong. The two really seemed like the best of friends, talking and laughing. His heart burned with jealousy when he was the two
The student president, the star pupil, the super-smart guy — ugh.
Wifies looked happy talking to Parrot, and that pissed him off.
He could be so much more for him.
—
Saparata walked down the empty hall, then he saw him: Parrot.
The same hot jealousy seemed to burn him at every thought.
As they were about to pass each other, he put on his best smile. "Parrot, right?"
Parrot turned around, his eyebrows furrowing and wings puffing up. "Uh, yeah, That's me." He took a step forward. "Did you need anything?"
"It's nothing, you're the student president, right?" Parrot wearily nodded, and he continued. "You don't mind if I ask you something, right?"
"Sure."
"Do you really think you deserve to be president?"
Silence echoed in the empty hallway.
"Excuse me?"
"You know what I said."
Parrot blinked and glared at him.
"Don't think I'm stupid. I know who you are, Saparata, and I know what you've done in your past schools. I'm not sure if I'm the best fit, but it's definitely not you."
He smiled. "You better watch your words, Mr. President." He took a step forward, and Parrot took a step back. He smiled, but he wasn't being kind.
He gave one last grin and passed by him. "Don't be so sure, Parrot. You should start worrying about the upcoming elections." He left, leaving a dumbstruck Parrot in the middle of the hallways.
He saw Parrot with Wifes again the next day during lunch, and he decided that he'd give his first introduction. He spoke some sarcastic words to Parrot, who was five seconds from crashing out, before turning his attention to his Wifies.
His previously sharp tone softened. "Ah, so you must be our future valedictorian! I've heard much about you, Wifies."
Wifies hadn't said anything right away, merely taking a moment to speak. Calculating.
"I appreciate the compliment." He eyed Saparata, who felt like he was being dissected alive, and he enjoyed every second of it. He realized that one of his favorite moods of Wifies was when he analyzed something, fully focused.
He hadn't realized it back then, but Wifies was a bit shorter than him. Perfect for forehead kisses.
He was lost in his wishful thinking until Wifies tilted his head and smiled slightly, and Saparata felt his world crash. His breath hitched.
God, nothing could have prepared him for his smile.
His heartbeat (somehow) picked up like he was running a marathon.
"Wifies."
Saparata internally scowled when Parrot had interrupted them, his hand on Wife's wrist. He wanted to slice his hand off just for that. And they were already having a moment, Wifies even smiled at him, for god's sake!
"Let's go. Theo and Reina need us." He took Wifies out of the room, and Saparata stared at him intensely the entire time.
He clenched his fists.
"Saparata." Arachnid had called out to him.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." He gave a small smile and walked alongside them, too lost in his thoughts to contribute to the conversation at hand.
If…if Saparata were to actually become president…would that make Wifies pay attention to him more?
He'd have to, wouldn't he?
Saparata smiled darkly.
His doll will be his.
No matter what anyone says.