Achluophobia

That night was the start of something incredible. It all started on a regular day with my best friend, Kyrin.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

"Dylan! Fucking come back here and face your doom, you faggot!" my partner in crime screams after me as I flee the scene, cackling the whole way.

"Never, loser!" I scream back, smirking at him as I run. Which, admittedly, was not a very good idea. And that's proved as I run headfirst into tree only seconds later, which sends Kyrin into a fit of laughter. I pout deeply at him and run back to jump onto his back, sending him flying to the ground from the unexpected weight.

"Goddamn, Dylan, get your bitch ass off me," he wheezes. "Uh uh uh, Kyrin. Not until you say the magic word," I tease with a deep smirk.

"Come onnnnnn," he whines, "Every time I try to guess the magic word, you always change it." I scoff at him in return, making his back into my personal butt-rest. "That's the whole point of the game, ya dingus. Now guess or I'll just have to go through your phone and text each contact with a text of my personal choice. Or I'll fart on your face," I threaten, reminding him of the last time I did it. His face instantly pales and I know that I have reached my goal.

"Fine, fine. Uh, potato? Horn? Fortnight? Swayze? Fuck, man, I don't know. Gimme a hint or something. Or better yet, let me up so I can beat your skinny ass." But I just shake my head at him, tsking the whole time and reaching in his pocket for his phone. "Oh, dear, dear Kyrin, are you even trying? I think not. But because I'm so generous, I will give you one hint. And that is..." However, before I can say anything else, my mom calls from the background.

"Dylan! It's time for dinner! Is Kyrin eating, too?" she asks. "Yes, I am, Mrs. Wilson!" Kyrin shouts in reply. I sigh in disappointment and climb off of my best friend's back. "The word was slaughter. But I guess you can have your phone back. For a price, of course." Kyrin breathes a sigh of relief, just to groan again seconds later. "And what is said price?" he inquires.

I let a complacent smirk come over my face. "Hmm, I'll tell you later. But in the meantime, we have a dinner to eat," I explain, holding out a hand to let Kyrin grab in order to help him up. But being me, as soon as he grabs it, I let go and just let him fall again with a thump.

"Oops, sorry," I laugh with a fake innocent smile. Kyrin just growls at me and gets up himself, pushing me over first before walking the short distance to my house.

"Hey, wait for me!" I call after him, but still grinning the whole way.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Yeah, that was the beginning of the whole thing, but the real things didn't happen until later that night, a few hours later when Kyrin agreed to spend the night. Probably mostly because I still had his phone, but whatever. So, anyway...

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

"Dylan! Come back here and give me my phone back!" Kyrin screams at me from across the house. "Nope!" I shout back happily. But again, I don't see the wall right in front of me before it's too late and I run straight into it, nearly breaking my nose in the process. "Aahhhhhh, shit," I groan, holding my face.

"That's what you get, you little bitch! Now give me my phone back!" Kyrin shouts in triumph. "No no no, silly Kyrin. I still haven't figured out what you're gonna do. And you're not even fucking worried about me and my possible broken nose? Some friend you are," I mutter, wincing at the pain. He sighs in response, helping me up from my sitting position.

"Fine, you baby, let's get you cleaned up."

He's finished cleaning up the blood within minutes and after a few tests, he determines that it's in fact not broken, which is a great relief on my part. But anyway, after he finishes cleaning it, that's when everything goes to shit. It'd been storming for a few hours, but I never guessed that it was as bad as it really was. So when the power went out in the entire house, leaving Kyrin and I in the dark, I flipped shit, grabbing onto my best friend.

"Oh god, oh god no," I whimper, burying my face into Kyrin's shoulder. "Kyrin, Kyrin, help. Find a light. I need it!" My usual arrogant, confident facade is in the toilet the first second that I'm in the dark, as it usually is. But the weather outside gives me the idea that we won't be getting any power or light for a long time.

"Shh, Dylan, it'll be okay. I'll just go get a candle real quick, okay?" But I shake my head, grabbing on tighter. "No. Don't leave me. Please," I plead. He nods and a second later, surprises me by picking me up and putting me on his back. "Okay, we're just going to your room to light a candle. Are you alright with that?" he asks gently, and I nod in response, burying my head in the middle of his shoulder blades.

A few steps later, Kyrin finally sits on my bed, letting me lay down on the comfortable mattress. As I look around, some of my fear goes away at the sight of about 5 lit candle placed in different spots, lighting up the majority of my room.

"Thanks, Kyrin," I whisper, hugging my best friend. "It's no problem, Dylan. You're my best friend, even if you do things to piss me off sometimes."

I sigh in reply, breathing in the scent that's just so Kyrin. My heart starts to thump in my chest a little. No, no, not this again. Stop it. This is Kyrin, my best friend. Stop.

But it doesn't stop. I just push away the familiar feelings in my chest to clear my throat and talk again. "Yeah, but still. I mean, most people's friends are normal, and then you have me, the one who turns into a major pussy at even the thought of the dark. I mean, I'm just surprised that you've put up with my shit, ya know? Not that I'm not thankful or anything."

"Hey, hey, don't think like that, man. We all have things we're afraid of, and just because you're a little more scared of it than others doesn't mean you're a pussy. Plus, you're my best friend, Dylan. I'd do anything for you. Really," he counters.

"Really? Anything?" I ask, taking a glimpse into his sapphire eyes. "Yeah, of course. Just ask and I'd do it. I mean, unless it was something really really really bad like jump in front of old ladies naked or something. But yeah."

My heart starts to thump so hard that I'm almost sure that he can hear it. Come on, come on, this is your chance. Just take it. I mean, he can't say no, right? Plus if it goes wrong, just say that I just really needed someone or some shit. Or that I was curious. Yeah. That'll work.

"Um, then could you do something for me. Promise not to laugh at me or get mad or anything?" I mutter nervously. "I told you, man, I'd do anything," he confirms, "I promise I won't laugh or get mad or anything."

So I take a deep, shaky breath, looking him straight in the eyes. "Uh... k-kiss me." His eyes widen considerably, but after a pause, he nods slightly, starting to lean forward. Dear god, it's actually happening. Oh my god, what do I do now. Well, apart from the obvious. O-Oh god why did I ask this, this will probably ruin everything. I'm such an i--

But then it happens and I'm torn out of my thoughts as his slightly chapped, yet still soft, lips make contact. A few seconds later, he pulls away slowly, staring me in the eyes with a look I haven't really seen before. "U-Um, s-so yeah," I mutter, looking down nervously. Oh god I can't even look at him. What if he hates me now? "S-Sorry," I stutter. Expecting some sort of hateful remark, I close my eyes and wait. But what I don't expect is for him to chuckle in that perfect Kyrin way.

"What do you have to be sorry about, Dylan? If I didn't want to do it, I wouldn't have," he smirks, picking my chin up with his fingers so that we're looking at each other again. My eyes widen at his words. "Really? Y-You wanted to?" He nods, laughing a bit. "I've wanted to for years, Dylan. I just didn't know if you, you know, liked me back or anything."

"Oh god, I was the same way. Well, at least we know now," I reply, starting to feel a little more like myself. Kyrin nods at me and without a second thought, brings me close to kiss me again. Not that I'm complaining. But about halfway through the kiss, the room gets noticeably brighter and I pull away to see the lights on again. Oh lord, this sounds so fucking cliché and girly, but it's like Kyrin's the light that breaks through the dark and makes things alright again. But as Kyrin takes me in his arms closely, I decide that I'm okay with being cliché and girly as long as I'm with him.