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When Sun Shines Again⛅: Chapter 8 "Changing My Life:" Part 3

⛅Chapter 8 Description: Shivering and soaking wet, Hero drives Lorraine back to her sorority house, and as surprising as it is, what happens next might just have him thinking it was probably for the best he didn't skip out on this party after all...

The Party That Changed Hero's Life: Part 3 of 3

Chapter Word Count: 10,743. Link to Chapter 8 on AO3.

Description (for the entire work): When tragedy struck, Hero lost not only his dearest friend but also his dreams for the future. Even years later, Hero doesn't know what his "forever" looks like without Mari in it, but somehow he finds the strength to carry on and build a new life for himself. With his family and friends both old and new by his side, Hero struggles through life's ups and downs--the joys and sorrows he faces in a world without Mari. In the beginning, he's only looking to survive it all, but somewhere along the way, he might find a purpose, a reason he's still here. Maybe there really is a way he can learn to be happy again, and maybe, just maybe, when he's least expecting it, he might even find himself slowly opening his heart to love again--he might even find himself believing that even the darkest, stormiest of times will eventually pass and the sun will shine again.

A Hero-Centric story spanning 15 years of his life post-good end. Focuses on Hero finding healing & building a life for himself after the loss of Mari. Eventually includes him learning to love again after an extremely slow burn. All pairings are tagged upfront. Rated T for heavy themes & some language. Reading the prequel is recommended.

⛅Tags For The Story As A Whole (So A Lot Of These Are "Eventual" Tags):

Romantic Relationships: Main Ships: (Past) Hero/Mari and (Eventual) Hero/OC. Side Ships: Brandi/OC and a brief mention of Mikhael/Bebe are the only side ships involving canon characters.

Platonic Relationships: Hero & Brandi Friendship, Hero & Original Characters Friendship. Some Hero & Kel Siblings Relationship & Brotherly Friendship. Hero & Aubrey Friendship. Hero & Basil Friendship. Hero & Sunny Friendship. Hero & His Family.

Characters: Major Canon Characters: Hero (POV Character), Brandi [Intimidating Girl], Mari and Mari's Memory, & Kel. Major Original Characters (Hero's college friends): Kyle, C.J., Zoey, Tamra, and Lorraine. Other Included Canon Characters: Sunny, Basil, Aubrey, Sally, Hero's Parents, Bebe (Short Haired Girl/Fountain Girl) & Mikhael (The Maverick).

Genre: Hero-Centric Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Slice of Life, College Life, Lost Love, Finding Love Again, Finding Healing After Grief, Slow Burn, Developing Friendship, Developing Relationship, Greiving, Catharsis, Heart-To-Heart Chats, Hopeful/Happy Ending, Post-Good Ending, Hero Needs A Hug, Hero Deserves To Be Happy

Rating: T for some heavy themes and thematic elements (i.e. grief & healing from grief and trauma. Implied/Referenced Canonical Character Death & Implied/Referenced Mental Health Issues including depression & suicide. Mentions of Underage Drinking & Partying). Some language.

Warnings: Major Spoilers for OMORI! Heavy themes and thematic elements (i.e. grief & healing from grief and trauma. Implied/Referenced Canonical Character Death & Implied/Referenced Mental Health Issues including depression & suicide. Mentions of Underage Drinking & Partying). Some Language.

Link to Entire work on AO3.

⛅ Link to the "When Sun Shines Again" Masterlist. ⛅

Full chapter text below the cut. Thank you for reading! ⛅

The inside of the Triple E sorority house looked fairly similar to Hero’s fraternity—old, mismatched furniture arranged around a large area rug and coffee table—though it was much tidier and more decorative with colorful blankets and throw pillows scattered about. The dim light and pleasant floral scent of some candles definitely helped the place feel much more inviting, and there was faint music.

Hero froze—something aching in his chest. He recognized this song—that distant, wistful melody. In an instant, he felt like he was that kid playing in his side yard—stunned into silence by the sound of Mari’s piano practice. How many times had he quietly listened by the window to her tinkly melodies?

Hero’s insides twisted. How deafening had that silence been after she was gone?

Tilting his head curiously, his dark eyes narrowed at a nearby piano with chipped wood. Someone in this house must play…Tamra perhaps? Most music majors had to pass a piano proficiency test, didn’t they? Or maybe she was already a pianist? He could hear Brandi’s words in his head again, “This is exactly why I didn’t mention her” and his stomach felt sick.

Regardless, she wasn’t playing now. No one was, and Hero rubbed his forehead wondering if the music was all in his imagination, some memory triggered by the sight of that old piano.

“Do you hear that?” he asked Lorraine.

“It sounds like Tamra’s practicing…” she replied with a shrug, and something twisted in Hero’s chest. No wonder she reminded him of Mari.

Lorraine paused, glancing over at the empty piano with a thoughtfully furrowed brow. “Or maybe it’s a CD?”

As Lorraine stumbled forward towards a nearby bookcase, Hero was thankfully pulled out of his thoughts. He reached out to steady her, but she gripped onto one of the shelves and began messily rifling through a stack of CDs.

“That’s okay, Lorraine,” he tried to insist as she started pulling CDs off the shelf, but his brow furrowed curiously at some of the more unexpected albums in their music collection. Sure there were several Backstreet Boys, New Kids on the Block, and *NSYNC albums, a lot of Spice Girls, No Doubt, and Britney Spears, and even some Alanis Morissette, which Hero was fairly certain belonged to Brandi. At first glance, it was all music he probably would have expected from a sorority house, but then Lorraine started pulling out Fleetwood Mac, Guns N’ Roses, The Rolling Stones, Carole King, and The Doors.

Curiosity getting the best of him, he glanced at the shelf where he saw a lot of his own music collection: The Mamas and The Papas, The Pretenders, Harry Nilsson, and Billy Joel. He swallowed hard—his breath caught in his throat as Lorraine pulled another CD off the shelf, and Hero caught sight of the familiar album cover of The Beatles’ Revolver.

“Lorraine…uh…are these yours?” he asked before he could stop himself. Lorraine set The Beatles’ album on the table with a thoughtful hum.

“Um…not this one, but some of them. Like this—” With a bright smile she held out the Backstreet Boys’ “Millenium” to him. “This is mine.”

Nodding at her, he smiled slightly, trying his best not to appear too disappointed as he answered kindly, “That’s a good one.”

Lorraine giggled but before she could say anything to him in response, she, seemingly, lost her balance—tripping over her feet until she caught herself on the arm of the sofa. As Hero reached out to steady her, supporting her once again against his side, he asked, “Is someone here who can help you, Lorraine?”

“Maybe my sister…” She hummed before she called, “Zoey? Zoey, are you home?”

There were faint noises coming from a nearby doorway which if Hero had to guess, probably led to the kitchen. Lorraine called again, “Zoey, you’re never going to believe who’s here!”

“If it’s Connor again, I swear Lorraine…” a voice called back. “We talked about this.”

The nearby door swung open and a girl with short, red hair stomped through with a huff, crossing her arms. If Lorraine hadn’t said they were sisters, Hero probably wouldn’t have been able to guess—the only traits they had in common were their high cheekbones and the dusting of freckles across their pale noses which were much heavier and much darker in the case of Lorraine’s sister. Zoey—had she said her name was?

Hero swallowed hard as Zoey met his gaze with warm and inquisitive eyes, nearly as bright green as her emerald sweater. He wondered if he had ever seen eyes that green before. Had Lorraine’s been the same shade? He supposed he hadn’t noticed and thought it would be rude or perhaps uncomfortable if he turned to look at her now to double check.

With a discerning quirk of an eyebrow in his general direction, Zoey tilted her head at him. Hero fidgeted. Something in her green eyes seemed to snap at him—clever, perceptive, as if she could see right through him.

He turned away from her with a flush of pink in his cheeks but not before he caught sight of the slightest twitch of a dry smile in the corners of her mouth as she quipped, “You’re not Connor.”

“No,” Hero chuckled lightly, somewhat awkwardly rubbing his hand across the nape of his neck, but Lorraine cut him off—stumbling forward, clutching onto her sister’s hands and excitedly, drunkenly rambling.

“No. No,” she insisted. “It’s him. It’s the prince. He came for me. He saved me! Isn’t he handsome?”

Hero’s face burned. He knew Lorraine was very intoxicated, but her voice was still far more swoony than he felt he deserved especially when he heard Zoey’s breathy, stifled snort of a laugh.

“The prince, huh?” she repeated—her voice deadpan. Hero stared intently at his feet, too embarrassed to see her expression, but he did hear her add in what seemed to be genuine confusion, “Why is he soaking wet?”

“He jumped in the pool to save me after I fell in,” explained Lorraine in an enthusiastically bubbly voice, seemingly suddenly forgetting about how much she hadn’t wanted her sister to know about that a mere fifteen minutes before.

“You fell in the pool?”

Lorraine conveniently sidestepped the question or perhaps it just didn’t register in the mental fog of drunkenness. “He jumped right into the pool after me even though the water was freezing cold and then he drove me all the way home. He’s the taxi prince too, Zoey.”

“Really? I was starting to think that was just a rumor.” She paused, then shot him a crooked smile. “You have quite the reputation, Mr. Prince.”

Hero could feel the tips of his ears turn red. He wasn’t entirely sure how to respond to that. He was sure she wasn’t really making fun of him, but her delivery was so dry that he wasn’t sure how serious she was being either. Not to mention the fact that, before tonight, he hadn’t had the slightest idea that he had a reputation in the first place, and the very idea made him feel almost as uneasy as that knowing look Zoey was giving him now.

Before he could begin to explain himself, however, Zoey’s expression softened. A slight smile spread between her cheeks—warm and genuine. It reached her green eyes as she said, “Thank you for saving my sister. Can I get you anything? A warm cup of a tea?”—she quirked an eyebrow at him—“A towel maybe?”

Hero glanced down at his clothes—still dripping water all over the wood floors, and he buried his face in his hands. “I’m sorry, I—”

“He said he wanted sandwiches. He’s going to make me one,” Lorraine interrupted with a giggle.

Zoey sighed, rolling her eyes, though Hero could have sworn there was some affection in them. “He’s not going to make you a sandwich,”

There was a short lag in Lorraine’s reaction time. She blinked blankly at them before she pouted, “Why not?”

“Because I’m sure he has to go back to his castle,” quipped Zoey “Sign some royal proclamations, maybe slay a dragon later if he has time.” She paused, that sarcastic twitch of a smile curving in the corners of her mouth as she turned to him with a dry, “Or have you already done those things before you started saving damsels in distress?”

Hero laughed in spite of himself and his flushed cheeks. It was kind of impressive how quick witted she was, and, if he was being honest, he much preferred these ‘prince charming’ jokes when the punchline seemed to be that he wasn’t actually deserving of the title.

As he pursed his lips to stifle his laughter, Zoey met his eyes again and a smile tugged at her mouth, but before she could say anything, Lorraine sighed, “But couldn’t he add making sandwiches to his royal to-do list?”

Zoey’s eyes narrowed. “Are we sure he can even make a sandwich? Don’t you think he has a royal chef to do that?”

“Oh…” sighed Lorraine who, it seemed, was far too drunk to catch on to her sister’s sarcasm. “We don’t have a chef, Your Highness.”

“That’s—that’s okay,” Hero breathily reassured her, but his blush deepened as he turned towards Zoey. He looked away abruptly but gently began to insist, “I—I can make a sandwich…It’s really no trouble at all.”

“We’re good. Thanks,” answered Zoey curtly with a pointed stare, and Hero’s ears burned. Had he said the wrong thing?

“But—” Lorraine’s protest was promptly cut off by her sister patting her lightly on the head.

“Go change out of those wet clothes, then we’ll get you some water and a granola bar or something if you’re that hungry. I’m sure ‘prince charming’s’ royal carriage is waiting.”

Hero half-laughed, half-coughed in spite of himself. It was probably the only time his hunk of junk of a car, as Kel would probably call it, would ever be called a royal carriage.

Zoey tilted her head towards him—an expression he couldn’t quite place passing over her face until she dryly teased, “I’d offer you a change of clothes too, your majesty, but unless you want to wear a towel, I’m not sure we have anything that’ll fit you.”

“You can wear one of my towels,” swooned Lorraine before she hiccupped lightly and burst into inebriated giggling.

Hero choked—his face flushing scarlet. “Oh…uh—” His voice cracked, but luckily Zoey cut him off.

“Lorraine, he’s royalty—try to have some class.” Her delivery was so dry and snarky that Hero chuckled in spite of himself as he stared intently at the floor, his cheeks burning at the idea of waltzing around anywhere in a towel—let alone the sorority house of practical strangers. If Kyle was here, he’d likely say that was the college experience, but it wasn’t the experience Hero wanted.

“Right…I’m sorry, Your Highness,” Lorraine offered a slurred but sincere apology. “I’m sure you only wear royal towels.”

Snorting a laugh, Zoey rolled her eyes and playfully swatted at her sister. “Go on… Get out of those wet clothes before you embarrass yourself even more in front of the prince.”

As Lorraine nodded and stumbled her way down a hallway to the left of the entry way, Zoey shook her head and sighed. “Sorry about that. Lorraine gets aggressively flirty when she gets drunk. Just ignore her.”

“It’s…it’s okay…” choked Hero though his face was still bright red.

“I’m sure you’re used to getting flirted with all the time—seeing as you are royalty,” Zoey dryly teased.

As he rubbed the back of his neck, he somehow managed a quiet and breathy, “You’d be surprised…” He paused—twisting his hands as he quickly added, “Uh…what I mean is…I—I don’t think people really…I’m not very…uh—” He stopped abruptly realizing that his nervous fidgeting had been spraying water all over the ground. “Oh, I’m sorry. Let me help clean that up…”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll get it,” Zoey cut him off with a dismissive wave of her hand. “You should probably get out of those wet clothes too. Maybe head home or at least head back to whatever party you were at?”

Hero nodded. It didn’t sound like much of a question. “Yeah, sorry.”

“Thanks again for saving my sister,” said Zoey with a smile, and Hero could feel that warmth in his cheeks again.

“It was really nothing,” he insisted with a shrug of his shoulders. “And it was probably overkill. I just spent the summer as a lifeguard so I think I just went into autopilot when I saw her fall in.” Just like he had with Sunny and Basil in Faraway Park…But he didn’t tell her that, just pushed the thought away swallowing hard.

“You’re a lifeguard too, and modest…?” Zoey tilted her head at him. “You certainly are a man of many talents, Mr. Prince.”

“You really don’t have to call me that,” Hero chuckled awkwardly. ”You can just call me ‘Hero.’”

Zoey quirked an eyebrow at him. “Smooth.”

Hero’s face burned. He realized how that sounded only after he had said it, and he somewhat frantically began to stumble over his words of explanation. “No…uh…um…that’s just my nickname.”

“Can’t imagine why that is…” she quipped with the twitch of a smile. Hero’s blush deepened, and he ran his hand through his damp hair before he scratched the back of his neck.

“I really liked hero sandwiches as a kid. I wanted to eat them for every meal so everyone started calling me ‘Hero’ and…” He swallowed hard, turning away from the pointed look she was giving him. “My actual name is Henry—you can call me that if you want, but nobody ever really calls me that.”

“So you want me to call you something nobody else calls you?” she teased dryly, and Hero tried his best to take a deep breath. Oh gosh, did she think he was hitting on her…? He wanted to sink into the living room rug.

“Uh…um…I’m not really sure I have any other nicknames. My Mamá Alma calls me ‘cocinerito’ sometimes, and my roommate calls me ‘Mama’ and he’s got the rest of our fraternity doing it now so I guess you could call me that if you want,” he added in a panic, staring pleadingly at the floor hoping it would swallow him up. A look of recognition passed over Zoey’s eyes, followed by surprise.

“Wait…you’re ‘Mama’?”

Despite his brow furrowing, Hero nodded, and Zoey laughed. “Kyle will not shut up about you. Not that that means anything since Kyle won’t shut up about anything, but…you’re just not what I pictured I guess.”

“You…know Kyle?”

Zoey laughed. “Yeah. And he’s told me almost everything about you, but I guess he never mentioned me, huh?”—she rolled her eyes somewhat affectionately—“Calls himself my best friend…what a moron.”

Ignoring that blush in his face, Hero tilted his head, finally realizing what he should have put together ages ago. “You’re Zuzu…?”

“Oh gosh, no one calls me that except Kyle, and I have no idea why he does, especially after everything I do for him.” She shook her head lightly, but she smiled—meeting his eyes again with her bright green ones. “I’m Zoey—Zoey Park.”

She held out her hand, and he reached to shake it with a smile as he said, “Hero…or uh…Henry Padilla. Whatever you want to call me. I don’t mind.”

“Hero’s fine. It suits you,” she replied with a shrug and a twist of her mouth. “But I also like ‘Mr. Prince’ and ‘Mama’ even though I’m pretty sure you stole that nickname from me, you know?” she teased, and Hero sheepishly chuckled.

“Sorry…” he mumbled. “I’ll talk to Kyle if—” Zoey’s laughter cut him off, and Hero shuffled his feet with an almost inaudible, “What?”

“Nothing. It’s just…you really are just as sincere as Kyle said, huh?” She paused, but her expression softened. “It’s fine—really. I’m only kidding around. Sorry if I’ve been acerbic. Kyle says I’m too dry—it’s hard to tell if I’m joking or not.”

She shrugged her shoulders with a slight smile. “But I’m actually really glad Kyle has someone to look out for him. I can’t keep up with all his partying, and I think he got sick of me telling him off for binge drinking all the time, so it’s nice to know he still has a good influence around. He has nothing but nice things to say about you—thinks you’re a literal saint.”

Hero’s face blushed red. He could feel the tips of his ears burning again. He really should learn how to take a compliment one of these days.

Before he could even think of something to say in response, however, Zoey continued, “Which of course means that I definitely can’t send you back to that party soaking wet. Kyle will never let me hear the end of it.” She paused, chuckling before she sighed. “Do you have something you can change into? You’re welcome to use our bathroom before you head out, and we do have towels to help you dry off—but please don’t wear them. Nobody wants to see that.” She was deadpan, but Hero knew she was teasing him. His face burned. Somehow, despite his embarrassment, however, he found himself laughing—though he tried his best to stifle it.

“I…uh…actually think I have a change of clothes in my trunk. I just bought some for my brother on a clearance rack at Other Mart but Kyle wouldn’t let me unload all my groceries before we left for the party so…” His voice trailed with uncertainty, but he supposed that Kel’s clothes were probably better than these sopping wet ones and were definitely better than a towel.

It wasn’t until he was out in the street, digging through his car in the rain which had once again begun to sprinkle, that he realized how ridiculous this all was. He could just change clothes back at the party, instead of imposing on practical strangers, but he couldn’t deny that he would feel so much better if he didn’t have to spend another minute in these chaffing wet jeans and the heaviness of this soaked sweater dripping water everywhere. Even getting to dry his hair with a towel would be a great comfort. He would run inside, change quickly, thank Zoey and Lorraine again for letting him use their bathroom, apologize for any inconvenience and head back to the party.

Once he found the clothes, Zoey let him back into the house, showed him to the bathroom and gave him a stack of towels before she disappeared to help Lorraine and Hero headed into the bathroom. With a sigh of relief, he dried off and finally changed out of those uncomfortably soaked clothes. As much as he felt guilty for imposing of these women he barely knew, he would be eternally grateful to them for allowing him the respite of not having to spend one more minute in those chaffing jeans.

When he walked back into the living room to thank Zoey profusely one more time before heading out, however, he found her talking on the phone. He shuffled awkwardly in place not wanting to interrupt but also not wanting to eavesdrop as he heard her say, “You’re worse than, Lorraine. I swear I’m hanging up on y—” She stopped abruptly, covering her hand with her mouth in her best attempt to stifle a snorted laugh that reached her eyes at the sight of him.

Hero flushed. He supposed Kel’s clothes did not fit him nearly as well as he would have hoped, and he reached up to pat his damp, messy mop of hair which he was sure was even more unruly than usual.

“No. No, not you Brandi,” she said hurriedly into the receiver. “He just walked out. Do you want to talk to him?” There was a pause before she nodded and continued, “Okay. I’ll see you later. Bye.”

As she hung up the phone, she couldn’t seem to hide the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. “That is quite the look, Mr. Prince,” she quipped.

“My brother plays basketball,” Hero explained, though even he could admit he probably looked a little ridiculous with his slim frame practically swimming in the long shorts and jersey. Even if he and Kel were roughly the same height, his brother had far more muscle than he did and likely wouldn’t be so drowned by the loose-fitting athletic clothes.

Still stifling a laugh behind her hand, Zoey nodded, and Hero cleared his throat—trying his best to change the subject.

“Was that Brandi?”

“Yeah, she just wanted to give me a head’s up that you and Lorraine were headed over. I didn’t realize you knew her.”

Hero nodded. “We grew up in the same town—graduated from the same high school. She was the only person I knew in the city for a while.”

“Well she’s a much better character reference than Kyle. I would’ve led with that,” bantered Zoey, but her expression softened. “She said you were pretty heroic—no pun intended.”

As Hero chuckled lightly, Zoey reached out to take his wet clothes from him asking, “Do you want me to throw these in the dryer for you?”

Flushing, Hero held up his hands and insisted, “Oh you don’t have to do that.”

Zoey shrugged. “It doesn’t have to be a whole cycle just enough so they’re not dripping water anymore.”

“I’ve imposed enough already,” sighed Hero. “I don’t want to cause you any more trouble.”

“It’s no trouble—in fact you’d be kind of helping me out. Brandi said if I don’t at least offer, she’s never going to talk to me again, and Kyle will probably be mad too.” Hero couldn’t tell if she was completely joking or not, though the upturned corners of her mouth seemed to suggest she was teasing just a little. Still, he apologized, “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she waved her hand dismissively, but the expression in her eyes was kind. “They kind of have a point, I guess. You did save my sister…The least I can do is throw your clothes in the dryer.” She paused. “Unless you’re heading home.”

“I’m the designated driver so I’m stuck out for a while,” he sheepishly admitted. “But…I really don’t want to intrude…”

Zoey waved her hand at him. “The dryer it is. And you’re not intruding.” Her mouth twitched into a lopsided smile. “Believe me, if I didn’t want you here, you wouldn’t be, no matter what Kyle or Brandi had to say about it.”

As she shot him a half-smile, Hero somewhat awkwardly followed her through the doorway into a kitchen, dining, and laundry room combination where she quickly threw his wet clothes into the dryer which was loud and clanging—shaking and humming until Zoey gave it a good smack with her hand. It quieted a little after that but didn’t completely stop.

“You learn to ignore that,” she quipped before she made her way over to the kitchen counter. “Can I get you anything? Some water—a cup of coffee or tea?”

“Uh…” Hero stumbled unsurely—trying to decide whether it would be more rude to refuse her offer or to take her up on it, but Zoey met his eyes—giving him a reassuring smile and he said, “A cup of tea would be great, please. Thank you.”

“You’re so polite,” she chuckled as she turned to pick up the tea kettle and began to fill it with water. “Guess the royals really do take those manners seriously.”

As Zoey turned around, she caught him chuckling under his breath and her mouth twitched to one side in a lopsided smile. She didn’t say anything, however, just motioned to the barstools at the counter. “Please feel free to sit down. It’ll take a minute for the water to heat up. I’d let you sit at the table, but it’s kind of a mess right now.” Hero glanced over at the books and papers spread out over the kitchen table. Zoey or someone must have been studying. “I wasn’t expecting company.”

Before Hero could begin to apologize for intruding and offer to leave, he paused—growing suddenly aware of that faint piano music again. He rubbed his hand wearily across his forehead. It was much louder in this room and he was beginning to wonder if he was just hearing things when he realized there was a cd player on the hutch of a china cabinet.

“Is that Chopin?” he asked, and Zoey nodded. “Do you play?”

Chuckling, Zoey shook her head. “No. I probably couldn’t even pick out ‘Mary Had A Little Lamb to save my life,’ but my roommate Tamra is a double major: Music and Education and has a ton of these CDs. I got hooked on listening to them while I study.”

Hero sighed. So she was Tamra’s roommate Brandi had mentioned to him earlier. It really was a small world.

“What about you?” she asked. “Do you play?”

“I used to, a little. I was never good enough for Chopin though.” He chuckled. “But I knew somehow who was. He was her favorite composer. She loved his waltzes especially this one. It’s called ‘The Farewell.’”

“That’s beautiful. I didn’t know that. On the back of the CD, it just says ‘Waltz in Whatever’…” Her voice trailed, before she smiled. “I think Tamra loves this song too, but she says she has a love-hate relationship with Chopin right now. Apparently the chair of the music department keeps making her play his stuff, and she’s getting sick of it.”

Something coiled in the pit of Hero’s stomach, and he swallowed hard. Suddenly thinking of Mari. If she was still with them, would she be a music major now too? Spreading her love of classical music to her roommate? Growing frustrated with having to play Chopin over and over?

His chest ached, and he mentally kicked herself for bringing her up in the first place. It was his own fault, and he shouldn’t have done it—probably wouldn’t have in any other situation, but Zoey was so easy to talk to. He couldn’t explain why, but there was something comfortable about her that made him feel at ease, made him forget to think before he talked.

He swallowed hard. He'd have to be more careful before he ended up dumping on her or making himself miserable or both.

“Tamra’s great,” Zoey’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts. “You really should meet her sometime—especially if you’re a Chopin fan.”

“I think we actually met earlier at the party,” Hero replied, but he swallowed hard—suddenly thinking about Tamra’s earrings again. The way that her laughter had reminded him so much of Mari’s. And she was pianist now too… His chest ached, and he pushed the thought away. “We uh…didn’t talk about music though.”

“Well you should,” said Zoey with a smile. “Nobody around here knows anything about music, so I’m sure she’d love to talk to someone who really appreciated it.”

“Somebody here has good music taste,” Hero gently insisted, thankful for the opportunity to change the subject. “Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones, Billy Joel, The Beatles…”

“Do you usually make a habit of snooping through other people’s stuff when you visit them?” Zoey interrupted crossing her arms though there was something bantering in her eyes.

Hero’s face flushed. “Sorry,” he quickly apologized even though he knew she was only teasing him. “Lorraine was taking some of the CDs off the shelf in the living room, and I just…noticed, I guess. I wasn’t trying to pry.”

Zoey chuckled lightly. “I’m just teasing. It’s fine, especially since you have good taste.”

“Are those CDs yours?” he asked with the slightest twitch of a hopeful smile, and Zoey shrugged.

“A lot of them. I got sick of listening to bubblegum pop and boy bands all the time, so I thought maybe I’d get my sorority sisters to expand their horizons a little. But I keep most of my favorite CDs in my room.”

“What’s your favorite?”

Zoey tilted her head thoughtfully. “Right now or of all time?”

Hero’s brow furrowed, and he hummed, eventually deciding on, “All time?”

“Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? by The Cranberries.” Her answer was immediate, confident as if she didn’t even need to think about it, and as she continued, it was clear to Hero why. “It was the first album I ever bought myself. I couldn’t get enough of the song ‘Linger.’ I used to obsessively sit by the radio hoping they’d play it, and finally decided I should just buy the whole album so I could listen to it whenever I wanted. I loved the whole thing—fell in love with the band too. I even cut my hair in high school—had a pixie cut to look like Dolores O'Riordan. It’s grown out now.”

She chuckled ruffling her hand through her bobbed red hair. Hero tried to picture her with even shorter hair. He wondered how different she’d look.

“I have every Cranberries album now,” she continued. “but that one’s still my favorite. There’s just something special about that first album you ever buy, you know? But it’s funny— ‘Linger’ isn’t even my favorite song on it anymore.”

Hero smiled, somewhat sheepishly. He honestly wasn’t sure he had ever heard of that song or that album before—maybe he’d recognize it if he listened to it, but still he was curious. “What’s your favorite song now?”

“It’s called ‘Sunday.’ Very underrated.” She paused—her mouth curving into a lopsided smile. “Don’t tell me you’re a Cranberries fan too, Mr. Prince.”

Hero shook his head, though his face felt a little warm. “I’m sorry. I can’t say I’ve ever really listened to them before.”

“Well, it’s nice to know you have some flaws,” she teased dryly. “But this one’s fixable. Especially since I know Kyle has that album, believe it or not. I think he got curious about my hair so he bought it to see what all the fuss was about. I’m not sure if it was really for him though. He tends to stick to his Top 40 hits, and The Cranberries have had a couple, but they’re a little too alt-rock for Kyle’s taste, I think.”

The kettle whistled, and Zoey turned back to the stove, turning off the burner. “What kind of tea would you like? I’ve got black, green, herbal…”

“Anything is fine. Thank you,” he said as she started rifling through one of the cabinets.

“How about Earl Grey?” asked Zoey with a hum as she pulled out a box.

Hero’s smile widened. “That’s my favorite.”

“Mine too. Small world, huh?” As she pulled out two coffee mugs and began to prepare their tea, Zoey asked, “So uh…what was the first album you ever bought—if you don’t mind me asking?”

Hero swallowed hard. He was grateful she had her back to him so she wouldn’t see his face as he quietly answered, “The Beatles Revolver. I bought it on vinyl.”

“Ooh, fancy,” she teased with a laugh as she handed him his cup. “And good choice. Just don’t tell me you bought it for ‘Yellow Submarine.’”

Fidgeting, Hero turned away from her, staring down at his hands as he managed a breathy laugh and a shake of his head. “Uh…no, um…I mean it’s a good song but…there was a different one…”

There was a long pause, and Hero shifted in his seat. He could feel Zoey staring at him inquisitively, perceptively. He suddenly felt exposed—though he knew it was irrational. He hadn’t said anything all that personal, but…everything that was related to Mari felt so intimate now. He didn’t want to talk about any of it. He was almost afraid to.

Hero sighed—trying to push the thought away. Surely, she wouldn’t…

“Let me guess: ‘Here There and Everywhere?’”

Hero’s breath caught in his throat, and his chest twisted. “How did you know?” The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them.

Zoey shrugged, seemingly unphased as she took a sip of her tea. “Eh, you just seem like the type. If you had said it was ‘Abbey Road’ I would’ve guessed it was ‘Something.’”

Rubbing his hand across the nape of his neck, Hero chuckled lightly, awkwardly. He supposed he was pretty predictable. Still, he hadn’t realized he was so transparent. He certainly didn’t try to be. Quite the opposite usually.

“It’s a good song,” he admitted quietly. “But I don’t really listen to it anymore. It…brings up—” He stopped abruptly, hoping that had been enough explanation.

After a short pause, he finally looked up at Zoey again. Her expression had softened, and she tilted her head towards him—something sympathetic in her eyes. “It’s always a shame when good songs get tangled up with bad memories, isn’t it?”

With a sigh, she shrugged her shoulders, and Hero nodded. In the pause that followed, he pursed his lips together trying to push it all out of his mind by focusing on something else—anything else. It just so happened that that “something else” was the refrigerator which was covered in colorful magnets, notes in glitter pens and flowery handwriting, and pictures, including several of Lorraine.

Hero shook his head somewhat guiltily. He couldn’t believe he had forgotten. “Is…um…Lorraine, okay?”

“Oh yeah. Sorry, I forgot to tell you. She’s safe in bed now and wanted me to say goodbye to you for her,” Zoey replied with a smile. “She tried to stay awake for you, but she completely tuckered out—was practically falling asleep standing up so I helped her into bed while you were out at your car. Don’t worry I gave her something to eat and plenty of water too, but she was pretty tired.”

Zoey paused, chuckling. “She says thank you again for everything. Believe me, this is probably all she’ll talk about for the next month or so, and I’m sure she’d love to see you again if you wanted to actually take her out. You are her ‘prince charming’ after all.”

Hero blushed but bit his lip. “Oh uh…it’s…it’s not like that. I mean…Lorraine seems like a very sweet girl, but I—I’m not really looking for a relationship…I’m too busy with school. I was really only trying to help. I have a little sister myself, and I guess I was just kind of hoping that if she ever fell in a pool one day at a party that somebody would jump in after her.” Hero twisted his hands. He hadn’t meant to say all of that—especially not in such rambling panic, but Zoey just smiled.

“That’s sweet. How old’s your sister?”

“She’s one,” said Hero with a smile and a light chuckle. “Was born at the end of my senior year of high school. It was a big surprise and kind of a big age gap, but I always wanted a sister. I feel bad that I haven’t been able to be home that much with her, but she has Kel—that’s our brother. He’s 16.”

“And more athletic than you?” teased Zoey, her brow furrowing at the basketball clothes.

Hero chuckled. “Yeah, but that’s a low bar. I mean—besides being able to swim and my morning runs, I’m really not that athletic.”

“I ran track in high school so I’m a little insulted you don’t count running as a sport.” She clicked her tongue, but she chuckled banteringly.

“Believe me, it’s not a sport the way that I do it. It’s kind of pathetic actually,” quipped Hero with a somewhat self-deprecating laugh. “But I really just run to clear my head and for some exercise—not to be an Olympic sprinter. I’m honestly not very fast, but my brother Kel is super speedy—can run circles around me, around anybody really. And he’s a really talented athlete. His basketball team’s won all kinds of tournaments. He’s supposed to have one in the city later this year. I’ve been hoping he’ll get to stop by for a visit when he’s in town.”

“You miss him.” It wasn’t a question, and there was something warm in her expression that made Hero nod and answer her.

“Yeah. He was my best friend.” He paused. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud, and he hoped Zoey wouldn’t catch the hidden meaning in those words. Her brow furrowed, and the knowing look that passed over her face made Hero fidget.

Thankfully, she didn’t pry; instead, she said, “I miss my little brother too, but I don’t think he misses me all that much. Jared’s 15 and has been going through a misanthrope phase, but I guess he’s kinda been going through that forever. He tolerates me, I think, and talks to me sometimes, but he has very little patience for Lorraine. She says he’s been dodging her calls.”

“How…uh…” Hero paused, unsure of how exactly to word his question without it seeming rude. “How much of an age gap do you and Lorraine have?”

“3 minutes. I’m older,” laughed Zoey. “It was kind of a surprise for our parents, I think. Twins don’t run in our family. But apparently they do now. I keep telling Lorraine we need to be extra careful out there—the chances of a fraternal twin having twins herself is pretty high. I don’t know if she ever listens to me though”—she rolled her eyes—“siblings, right? You’re the oldest too, aren’t you? So you get it.”

Chuckling, Hero nodded. “Yeah. I’m the oldest—everywhere actually. Even with all my cousins on both sides of my family. At home, though, it’s just the three of us: me, Kel, and Sally. What about you?”

“We have a couple cousins on my dad’s side, but we were never very close. My mom’s an only child so no cousins there. She always wanted siblings so I think that’s why there’s three of us, but yeah, it’s just me, Lorraine, and Jared.” She paused, humming thoughtfully. “We sometimes throw William in there as an extra little brother. He’s Jared best friend and practically lives at our house so he’s always felt like one of the family.”

Hero’s face softened, and his lips curved into a bright, kind smile. “My brothers’ best friends—well, uh, they’re my friends too but um—I feel the same way about them. It’s like having a second family—all these other siblings.”

“Exactly.” Chuckling in agreement, Zoey took a sip of her tea. “I suppose I’d throw Kyle in there too. He’s always been like a brother to me, but that’s different.”

Hero tilted his head. He was curious about Zoey and Kyle’s friendship and about how they had become friends in the first place, but he didn’t think he knew her well enough to ask and he didn’t want to pry into her private business. Still, it seemed she gave him a half-answer to the question without him even needing to ask it.

“Kyle has this way of kind of adopting people—especially when they help him study. But that’s how you guys became friends too, right? Kyle says you guys met in chemistry.” She paused, and Hero nodded. “You’re a pre-med major, right?”

“Yeah. And you’re…engineering?”

“Civil Engineering.” Zoey stopped, and her face positively lit up when she said, “I want build bridges.”

“Have you always wanted to do that?” asked Hero though from the bright smile on her face when she talked about it, he could already guess the answer.

She nodded. “Yeah. Even when I was little and my sister was playing dolls or dress up, I was building bridges out of blocks and tinker toys. I even built one out of a gingerbread house kit one year.”

“How did you do that?”

Zoey shrugged. “Well, it was a while ago, but I think I used toothpicks and candies for the trusses. I was only 11 when I made it so, honestly, I’m not sure how well it would’ve held up if Jared started sending his toy cars across it.”

As she laughed, her smile reached her green eyes. There was so much passion in the way she talked about bridges. It was infectious. Hero didn’t want her to stop, but since he honestly didn’t know the first thing about bridges, he didn’t know what to ask as a follow up question so he stumbled his way through, “What’s your favorite kind of bridge?”

Zoey burst into laughter—though, for her credit, she tried to cover her mouth. “Did you just ask me my favorite kind of bridge?”

Hero’s face flushed, but he shrugged his shoulders. “There…are…multiple different kinds, right? I…uh…think I saw a Magic School Bus episode about that over the summer with Sally. My mom tries to put on educational shows for her.”

“Well you must be an expert then,” Zoey bantered, but her expression softened. “But yes, there are multiple different kinds of bridges, and I’ve never actually been asked this question before, so I don’t know…”

With a light laugh and a hum, she clicked her tongue. “I guess, suspension bridges are pretty cool, but they’re kind of overrated. I think I prefer truss bridges—especially a good bowstring truss. That’s probably my favorite.” She smiled at him, but her grin widened—teasing and cheeky like she knew he didn’t understand anything she had just said. “What about you, Mr. Prince?” she bantered dryly. “What’s your favorite kind of bridge?”

“Well, uh…I like the Stanley Wilbertson Bridge.”

Zoey hummed, clearly trying her best not to laugh. “Good choice. That is actually a bowstring truss so one of my favorites too. Though I’m guessing you picked it because it’s one of the only bridges you know.”

Hero blushed, but he nodded conceding, “Yeah. We didn’t have a lot of bridges in Faraway Town where I grew up. I know the big ones like Golden Gate Bridge or Brooklyn Bridge or London Bridge. Kyle sent me a post card from the Bridge of Sighs this summer.”

“Yeah, he sent me that one too,” chuckled Zoey. “He’s always sending me postcards of bridges. I think he’s teasing me—thinks it’s a strange interest, but I love them. I’ve never wanted to do anything else besides build one. It’s my dream.” Her expression softened. Something wistful passed over her eyes before she asked, “What about you? You always wanted to be a doctor?”

Hero shifted in his seat, staring down at his hands twisting around the handle of his cup. After listening to how passionate Zoey was about her career path, he honestly felt a little self-conscious about how unsure and somewhat apathetic he felt about his. Ever since his conversation with Sunny, he had started to consider the possibility of it becoming a real passion for him someday, but he wasn’t there yet. Right now the honest answer was, “No. I uh…well…I actually wanted to be a chef when I was a kid.”

“A chef, huh? Well that explains why Kyle thinks you’re Bobby Flay. I thought he was just impressed because he can’t make a pop tart, but hey, you’re probably making gourmet meals over there.”

Sheepishly scratching the back of his neck, Hero shrugged. “I dunno. I don’t really cook much anymore. I’m too busy with school, but…I still enjoy it when I can. I think I prefer it as a hobby though—having to cook as a job might take the fun out of it.” He chuckled lightly—running a hand through his unruly hair. “But I’m—I’m really out of practice.”

“I’m sure you’re better at it than most guys I know.” She twisted her mouth to one side. “Sorry, I teased you earlier about not being able to cook. I bet you make a mean sandwich.”

“Would you like me to make you one?” he asked with a slight smile. “It’s the least I can do to thank you for letting me borrow your dryer.” And for overstaying my welcome… Hero thought, but he didn’t add that part.

“Lorraine would never forgive me,” laughed Zoey. “Better take a raincheck on that.”

Hero nodded, and Zoey tilted her head curiously as she leaned on the kitchen counter. “Where did you learn to cook?”

“My grandma, Mamá Alma—she taught me when I was really young. She’s an amazing chef. Her family used to run a restaurant, and she worked there most of her life until she moved with my Papá Miguel to Faraway Town and settled down to raise a family. Cooking was always one of her passions though.” A gentle, affectionate smile spread across his face. “None of my cousins ever really took an interest, but I used to go over to visit her on Sunday afternoons and help her cook a big family dinner for everybody. She said I had a gift.”

“Is that why she calls you ‘Little Chef’?”

“Yeah. She always calls me her ‘cocinerito,’” chuckled Hero, impressed she had remembered. “You speak Spanish?”

With a modest chuckle, Zoey sighed. “Not very well, I’m afraid. I lived in Spain for three years, but it was from the time I was 6 to the time I was 9 so it’s all kind of rusty and I definitely wouldn’t consider myself fluent.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Most of what I remember is related to food, honestly.”

“Why did your family move to Spain?” Hero asked curiously.

“My dad’s in the navy. He’s an admiral now and has been stationed at the base in Seaport since I was about 13, but we used to move around a lot.” Zoey reached for her cup and took another drink of her tea. “By the time I was 12, I had lived in 5 different countries.”

“Wow, I uh…that’s amazing. I think the farthest I’ve ever really traveled is a family trip to Florida once. I’ve barely ever left Faraway Town which is where I’ve lived my whole life. It’s just this tiny suburban town in the middle of nowhere—about 3 hours from here, maybe 2 and a half if you don’t hit too much traffic. It’s about 2 hours from Seaport too, I think. It’s been a while since I’ve made the drive. My friends and I used to go on day trips to the beach there when we were younger.” He paused, chuckling lightly as he ran his hand through his hair. “But I’m sure that sounds pretty boring to a jetsetter like you.”

With a sigh, Zoey shook her head. “It’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I always kind of wished I grew up in a small town—put down some roots close to family and friends without having to pick up and leave again.” She sighed again. “I’m sure it has its downsides too, though.”

Hero nodded, and the words slipped out without thinking. “There’s nowhere to run…”

Zoey tilted her head at him—her eyes narrowing inquisitively as she leaned her elbows on the counter, resting her chin against her hand. “Are you running from something?”

Hero blinked at her—swallowing hard and fidgeting under the weight of her gaze. He took a deep, shaky breath, but thankfully before he had to say anything the buzzer of the dryer interrupted them.

With a shrug of her shoulders, Zoey walked over to check the dryer then called, “Your clothes are still damp. Do you want me to run them again?”

“You don’t have to do that,” Hero insisted, but Zoey waved her hand.

“It’s no problem, and honestly, just between us, you probably don’t want to go back to the party dressed like this.”

Hero chuckled lightly but nodded, conceding that she was probably right.

After starting the dryer again, she pulled one of barstools around to other side of the counter so she could sit down and still face him. When he commented on how nice the furniture was, especially when compared to the barstools at his fraternity, Zoey went into a story about how Tamra and the president of their sorority, Karey, had stumbled on them at a flea market about a week ago and haggled over the price eventually purchasing them for next to nothing. Hero thought this was the perfect segue into his own story about how some of his fraternity brothers had recently dragged home a beanbag chair they had found thrown out on the curb in front of some apartment buildings near campus. It made Zoey laugh, and Hero smiled watching the way her laughter reached her eyes.

He wasn’t entirely sure what they talked about after that. It felt like a little bit of anything and everything: their favorite foods and movies, their laments about Kyle’s reckless antics, their stresses about professors and homework, even their favorite spots to visit in the city and favorite places to study. He was happy to hear that she was also a fan of Layla’s coffee shop.

Hero was halfway through a story about Hector when the phone rang. Zoey held up a hand to him with the twitch of a smile and a kind, “Hold that thought.” She clicked the receiver and held it to her ear. “Hello? Oh hey, Kyle.”

Hero’s eyes widened. Kyle. He had completely forgotten about him.

“Yeah, Lorraine’s okay. I put her to bed. You sound drunker than she is.” Zoey stopped and snorted a laugh before she rolled her eyes, “Hey, it’s your liver.”

She paused again then glanced at Hero with a slight twitch of a smile. “Yeah, he’s still here.” Pause. “No, I’ve definitely been playing nice. I gave him a cup of tea and threw his wet clothes in the dryer.” She listened, then scoffed followed by a bitingly sarcastic, “Oh yeah, you’re definitely interrupting something very heated. He asked me my favorite kind of bridge and everything.”

Hero’s face burned—flushing red to the tips of his ears, but Zoey just chuckled and shook her head as if reassuring him it was fine and not to worry about it. Still, he looked away from her, embarrassed, and his embarrassment only grew as he looked at the clock and realized how late it was now. How had he possibly been here for three hours? His blush deepened realizing he had completely lost track of time and had had no idea.

“Tell Kyle I’m so sorry and that I’ll come get him right away,” he quietly interrupted, and Zoey nodded.

“He’s heading out now. Should be back there in a few minutes to pick you up.” She paused, laughed with a roll of her eyes. “Yeah…that’s not happening. Goodbye Kyle.”

Hero’s cheeks burned, and he buried his face in his hands guiltily mumbling, “I am so sorry.”

“Don’t be,” chuckled Zoey as she pulled his now dry and toasty warm clothes out of the dryer for him.

“I had no idea how late it was. I completely overstayed my welcome.” He tripped over his words, but Zoey just shook her head at him as they made their way back to the entryway.

“It’s okay really. I would’ve kicked you out if I got sick of you.” She teased but offered him a kind, reassuring smile, and Hero fumbled with his folded clothes in his hands as she added, “But it was actually really nice talking to you, Mr. Prince.”

“It was really nice talking to you too.” He met her eyes just briefly before he looked away again. “Thank you so much again for letting me use your bathroom and your dryer and uh…also for the tea.”

“No problem.” Zoey chuckled as Hero ran a hand through his hair which was still a little bit damp.

“I feel terrible I stayed so late. And I completely forgot Kyle…” he sighed, rubbing his forehead. “I hope he hasn’t been waiting on me.”

“He’s fine,” Zoey insisted with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Knowing him, he only just called when he was ready to leave. He can wait a few minutes—it won’t kill him.”

Hero bit his lip. He hoped she was right, especially since he felt overwhelmingly guilty about it. He quickly but politely said his goodbyes to her, but when he opened the front door he stopped—staring despondently at the torrential downpour that awaited him outside.

“And after you just got dry,” sighed Zoey with a sympathetic shake her head. “You really can’t catch a break, huh?”

Hero sighed. She had no idea.

“It’s okay,” he gently reassured her with a conceding tilt of his head. “I’m used to the rain.”

“Sounds like you could use an umbrella,” she quipped, but her smile was kind. Hero shrugged his shoulders.

“I’ve got one. It’s in the back of my car.”

“Well that’s not going to do you any good is it?” Playfully rolling her eyes, Zoey chuckled, but she turned around and picked up a red umbrella from a coat rack by the door. “Why don’t you take mine?”

Hero shook his head insisting, “Oh no. I couldn’t.”

“I don’t need it. I’m not going out in this weather,” answered Zoey matter-of-factly. “And I trust you to give it back to me. If you don’t, I know where you live so I’ll just steal it back the next time I visit Kyle.” She teased with a snarky half-smile that made Hero chuckle in spite of himself. “Or the next time I see you. I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other around.”

“I’d like that.” The words slipped out of his mouth without him even needing to think about them which made him feel suddenly self-conscious again, but Zoey just smiled as he finally took the red umbrella she had been holding out to him. “Thank you for letting me borrow this.”

“You’re welcome.”

They stood there for a moment—comfortable silence only made awkward by the thought that this might be an appropriate time to ask for her phone number and by Hero realizing he wanted to but didn’t think he could without her taking it the wrong way. The truth was he really only wanted to be her friend, and he hoped he had made that obvious enough, but the fact she had already mistakenly thought he was hitting on her once tonight made him feel hesitant and unsure. He didn’t want to repeat that so instead he cleared his throat—shaking his head slightly as if he could somehow shake away his thoughts, and said, “Thank you again for a wonderful evening. I had a really nice time tonight.” He somewhat playfully held up the umbrella she had lent him. “And I promise I’ll return this.”

“You’d better,” she bantered, but she smiled at him—her green eyes meeting his brown ones one last time before they said goodbye and he opened the umbrella as he stepped onto the front porch and walked out into the rain.

*-*-*

Luckily Zoey was right and Kyle didn’t seem all that put out that Hero had completely abandoned him at that party—though that could have been because he was too drunk to care. Still, Hero apologized profusely as he helped Kyle stagger out into the passenger seat of the car as C.J. who was not nearly as wasted but was clearly more exhausted, sprawled out in the backseat where he promptly fell asleep.

“Nah,” Kyle cut him off as Hero tried to apologize for the umpteenth time while starting the car and pulling out of his parking space. “I’m sorry I interrupted you, but after I threw up in that Ficus, I just thought I should probably get home.”

Hero stomach sunk—coiling guiltily. “I am so sorry, Kyle. I completely lost track of the time.”

“It’s okay. It happens,” Kyle insisted dismissively before a wide, smug smile spread across his face. “I’m glad you actually had a good time tonight.” His voice trailed, slurred and breathy but wistful as he mumbled, “She really is something isn’t she.”

“Yeah,” Hero agreed with a smile as he started off towards their fraternity house.

“And just gorgeous,” sighed Kyle. “The prettiest girl in our whole high school.”

Hero hummed. He was used to Kyle saying things like this especially when he was intoxicated, and he generally went into an autopilot of hums and nods of agreement—never really having much to add. But this time, to the shock of even himself he said, “She has beautiful eyes.”

He stopped abruptly. His cheeks burning as the words registered. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud and was honestly surprised at himself for even having thought it—for even having noticed. His swallowed hard and quickly added, “I mean, uh…I just…I’m not sure I’ve seen eyes that green before.”

Biting his lip, he secretly hoped that C.J. was still asleep and that Kyle was too drunk to have caught what he just said—or at the very least that neither of them would remember this in the morning. But just as Hero was beginning to feel relieved by the lack of response, Kyle sighed, “Yeah…” before adding confusedly “But…I always thought they were hazel...”

Hero’s face flushed. He didn’t really want to have this conversation, but he twisted his hands nervously around the steering wheel and conceded, “Oh yeah. Uh…maybe…I mean, she was wearing green so maybe they just looked more—”

“I thought she was wearing pink,” interrupted Kyle. “But I guess she got all wet so maybe she changed her clothes…?”

Hero tilted his head in confusion, and his brow furrowed. “Wait…are you talking about Lorraine?”

“Yeah,” answered Kyle as if it was obvious, and Hero’s blush deepened. Of course he was talking about Lorraine. Hero curled his toes in his shoes. He was so stupid…and now so mortified. And unfortunately, Kyle somehow put this all together despite his drunken haze, laughing smugly and teasingly, “But you’re not…” His voice was sing-songy like a juvenile taunt, and he playfully poked at him in the arm. “You’re talking about Zuzu…who does have the greenest eyes I’ve ever seen. I’m just surprised you noticed.”

Hero cleared his throat. Honestly he was surprised he had noticed too, but he didn’t want to have to explain that to Kyle and honestly felt too embarrassed to make it through much more of this conversation so instead of saying anything semi-intelligent he decided to ramble, “Well…uh…I don’t know. Like I said, she was wearing green and she has this beauty mark under her left eye so I guess I noticed that and—”

“Woah you noticed that too?”

Stop talking. Stop talking. He mentally begged himself.

“C.J.! Wake up!” yelled Kyle. “Hero actually thinks somebody’s hot stuff.”

C.J. groaned in half-asleep exhaustion, but he quipped under his breath, “So much for that lifelong vow of celibacy…”

Hero’s ears burned, and he gripped his hands around the steering wheel. “It’s—” his voice cracked in embarrassment “It’s not like that! I mean…I think she’s really great, but I just want us to be friends.”

“Please tell me you got her number,” said Kyle, and Hero bit his lip.

“Well…no,” he sheepishly admitted.

“Why the hell not?” Kyle scoffed—his voice shrill and cracking probably due to too much alcohol. “I know Zuzu. She would’ve totally given it to you if you asked.”

“Hopeless…” C.J. drowsily mumbled.

“I just didn’t want her to get the wrong idea,” Hero insisted. “She already thought I was hitting on her when I wasn’t so I thought if I asked for her number she’d take it the wrong way and…”

“Woah…why’d she think you were hitting on her? Were you?”

“No!” Hero insisted far more forcefully than he had intended as Kyle just laughed. His throat felt suddenly dry, and he swallowed hard. “Of course not. I…there was just a little misunderstanding when I tried to introduce myself. She was…kind of teasing me—calling me Mr. Prince and I told her she didn’t have to call me that she could just call me ‘Hero.’”

“Smooth!” declared Kyle followed by raucous, drunk laughter and applause and C.J. groaning about the noise. “That’s a great line, dude. I’m gonna have to try that.”

“It’s—it’s not a line. It’s just my name,” choked Hero. “But she didn’t know that and so…” His voice trailed, and he sighed. He had totally messed this up, hadn’t he?

“I don’t even really know if she likes me that much. I totally overstayed my welcome and dripped water all over her floor and”—he sighed again—“she gave me her umbrella.”

“Please tell me that means something steamy,” joked Kyle in a low voice before clearly cracking himself up. Hero couldn’t imagine how red his face was right now.

“No, she literally lent me her umbrella. It’s right there in the back seat of the car.” He motioned with his hand though he knew no one could see him in the dark. “I need you to return to it the next time you see her.”

“We’re supposed to meet up for coffee at Layla’s tomorrow, if I’m not too hungover.” Kyle laughed, but he gasped with an excited, “Hey why don’t you just tag along and give it back to her yourself.” He hummed in that low teasing voice again as if he still thought this umbrella thing was some sort of euphemism.

“It’s not—” Hero stopped. With a heavy sigh, he wearily rubbed his forehead. There was no use in trying to explain this. “Look, I really appreciate you inviting me, but I wouldn’t want to intrude. Honestly…I’m not really sure if she likes me that much. She probably doesn’t even want to be friends.”

“Listen man,” interjected Kyle. “I’ve known Zuzu forever. If she didn’t like you, she’d have kicked you out.”

“Yeah…you talked to this girl for hours,” agreed a sleepy C.J. “There’s no way you guys aren’t friends.”

Hero shrugged. He wasn’t sure about that, and he certainly didn’t want to be presumptuous and show up unannounced again. So the next day, when Kyle headed out for Riverfront Center, Hero merely sent him with Zoey’s red umbrella and with a post-it note stuck to its handle that read, “Thank you again for everything” just in case Kyle forgot his directions to thank her again for him. Hero tried his best to just push it out of his mind and forget about it—turning his attention instead to his Organic Chemistry homework which, he could now somewhat shyly admit to himself, he was glad he had put off until today instead of staying home and working on it last night.

It had certainly been eventful, but he liked to think it was worth it, especially when Kyle returned home with a ‘hero’ sandwich for him from one of the sandwich shops near Layla’s. He handed it to him with a wink and a smile as he said, “It’s from Zoey.”

Hero’s eyes widened in surprise, and he felt the slightest flush in his cheeks which deepened as he saw the bright blue of his post-it note in the takeout bag with the sandwich.

It read in thoughtful script, small enough to fit on the tiny paper:

No, thank you for everything, Mr. Prince. And for returning my umbrella.

Given the circumstances and your, dare I say, ‘heroic’ actions saving my sister, I thought a hero sandwich was in order.

(At least, I hope that’s what this is… To be honest, I have absolutely no idea what is in a hero sandwich.)

-Zoey

Hero laughed, but his brow furrowed as he tilted his head at the post-script which read, “P.S. Kyle said you were really upset you didn’t get this” followed by the drawing of an arrow. Curiously, Hero flipped the post-it note over to the other side where he had written his own short message of gratitude. Only this time there were also the circled 10 digits of Zoey’s phone number. Hero’s cheeks flushed, but he couldn’t hold back the smile the tugged at his lips at the words scribbled underneath, “Call me sometime.”

#omori hero #hero omori #omori ocs #omori oc: zoey #hero friendships #when sun shines again⛅#hero fic #our content #thanks for reading #omori spoilers

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