The Redo of a Novel's Villain: Moira - Chapter 22: Chapter 22

"Nicholas..."
Huey clenched and unclenched his fist. He forced his breathing to stabilize as he focused on the back of the blonde's head, getting further and further away. Looking melancholically at him Huey found himself thinking.
'...Should I run?' But quickly ruled it out. After all they do share the same homeroom, it'd just be futile. He sighed, with how this path leads to the dormitories that means the two of them are going the same way. Huey dragged his hand across his face and covered his mouth.
'Calm down, this is a different timeline none of that's happened, calm down.' He rationalized and walked forwards with as much impassivity as he could muster.
It was really just a matter of time before Nicholas saw him. He'd expected it, but it still sent shocks of fraught nerves through his body. Still, he continued walking forwards while Nicholas moved towards him.
"Good evening Huey, I apologize for my absence." He greeted him with a small smile. Nothing big, nothing close. Just like how the exchanges always were between them.
Huey greeted him back, prompting a question as well. "Why were you absent?"
A sliver of a wry smirk appeared on the blonde's face. "You know how my father is."
Huey hummed in understanding. The baron was always a disappointing lout, more or less shunned by the rest of high society. Recklessly spending money, neglecting his familial duties, and flaunting with prostitutes wherever he went. It was a relief and miracle the barony hasn't fallen into debt yet. The Vergis Household had four children with Nicholas being the second youngest and only one with commoner blood. Because of that he was shunned by his family especially by those greedy opportunist relatives. Furthermore, his older siblings were cruel enough as is could not compare to their mother. Pure indifference and complete disregard for Nicholas. Darlyne Vergis is a woman with a stone heart. Huey wouldn't put it past her if she's been manipulating the baron the entire time, slowly absorbing the house.
"When'd you get here?" Huey asked, the answer already circling in his mind.
"Just today, I finished unpacking and was just coming back from the dean's office." He crossed his arms. "By the way, Huey, why did you not respond to any of my letters over the summer?" Nicholas' olive green eyes gazed into his curiously.
Huey lightly scrunched up his brows, confused. "I didn't receive any letters, my uncle must have interceded." He concluded.
"I see, and I know I'm asking more questions than normal but are the rumors true?"
He tilted his head. "Rumors?"
The blonde nodded, recounting what he heard with a weird expression. "I overheard a couple students say that you were seen with three of the watch dogs, and you're good friends with one of them? I thought you didn't like them." He looked down, eyes covered by half-lidded eyes. Speaking before Huey could, "They say you've changed, kinder, different."
Looking at the way Nicholas was subtly begging for answers, Huey couldn't bare to keep eye contact. Not when he knows how capricious his moods can be. He took in a deep breath before speaking, his voice shaking at the start as though the words were struggling to get out. Vowels not sounding, tone cracking.
"...I was foolish, blinded by my hate and spite. I've afflicted many with my petty need for revenge," He closed his eyes and looked back up. "I want to change, Nicholas. I no longer care for my family, and I no longer wish to bring fear to my peers. And, I think it'd be better for both you and I if we forget about our deal. You're your own person. I can't tie you to me and force you to do my bidding."
He waited for the blonde's response, something skeptical, or understanding, or casual, but it never came. The seconds ticked by, slow, burning, aganosing. Then he heard a scoff. His chest tightened seeing Nicholas' face. Something strange glinted in those eyes, the same glint then. One which soon melted into a distraught, and fearful emotion mixed with anger. Huey held his breath.
"...Forget the deal? Better for the both of us?" Nicholas sneered. "Huey Astaseul, did you forget that the deal is mutually beneficial? I will help you in exchange you promised you would raise my power and worth in the Vergis Barony. Me being a bastard child between the lord and a common maid already puts me at the lowest advantage in my family, and you know that. You offered me protection, and now you think it'd be better to simply forget?"
"I.. Nicholas, I didn't mean it that way."
But the blonde continued, voice cracking. "You promised me—" He stopped, pushing whatever words he was going to say back down and away. The blonde looked at the ground, averting Huey's gaze and apologized, any vigor leaving him. "...Sorry, that was unbecoming of me."
He shook his head. "No, it was partly my fault too. I was too selfish and hadn't taken your situation into mind."
"...You really have changed," Nicholas muttered and walked forwards, stopping next to him. He looked forward as he mumbled,  "I'll pretend this conversation never happened, and a word of advice, keep your word. I'll see you tomorrow Huey." And turned back, brushing past him.
Huey stood behind, a cacophony of emotions swirling inside him. Building labyrinth walls in his mind and the thin yarn of string lost in the dark. Slowly, he dropped down into a squatting position with his arm hung over his knees and face buried into it. His other arm slung on top of his head, his entire spirit sagging. Thinking of their first exchange since he came back, he couldn't help but think of their last exchange in the first timeline.
He gazed languidly at the brick ground under him feeling mental eyebags begin forming.
"...I'm tired."
—*:･ﾟ*✧ —
The bell rang, signaling the end of first block. Huey was cleaning up his desk preparing to go to gym when he noticed someone's presence next to him. He looked up, catching sight of Nicholas standing nearby casually flipping through a textbook to catch up on schoolwork. Just like before, everytime after class Nicholas would wait for him nearby or if he couldn't make it Huey'd go find him. It was their norm, but that's the past. Things can never go back to that normal no matter what.
Huey squeezed his eyes shut briefly and called out to the blonde, "Nicholas."
"Yes?" He snapped the book shut and tucked it under his arm.
"Do you have your PE strip?"
Nicholas thought for a bit and responded. "I do but I left it at my dorm."
"Go get it, I'll wait for you at the changerooms."
"Alright."
Watching Nicholas leave through the door, Huey mumbled near inaudibly under his breath, "He's really acting like nothing happened." Come to think of it, he and Kayson are in the same gym class, how will the two interact? He wonders.
✦ ✧
Huey slipped on his running shoes and stopped Kayson from going out to the gymnasium. The pink haired boy shook his hand off his arm and folded his, leaning on the wall with question marks floating above his head.
"Wait with me I'll be bored." Huey pleaded half mindedly, leaning on the wall next to Kayson and sliding down into a half-sit-half-squat position.
Kayson slid down also. "For what?"
"I told you about Nicholas right?"
"Ohh yeah, is he in our class too?"
"Mhm."
Kayson rubbed his head. "Well, sure but if we get in trouble you're taking the blame."
Huey held up an okay sign.
"So, what's he like? You only really told me briefly about what's between the two of you but never actually told me what he's like. So?"
"Well, he's pretty laid back in attitude most of the time but is very astute in tasks." Which was partly the reason why he even approached him then. "And he's pretty passive aggressive, funny, has a weird sense of humor, and likes to cook." Huey listed things out, counting them with his fingers when suddenly...
"What's this biography of me now?" Nicholas poked his head out from the corner, scaring the shit out of the two of them. Kayson and Huey jolted at the same time, and his clear blue eyes with hints of gold flashed between Huey and Nicholas as if asking: does he normally do that??
Huey ignored him.
"When did you get here??" The black haired male asked.
"Just now," Nicholas smiled and pushed himself away from the corner and towards them. He stretched out his arms, helping the two of them up. "You must be Kayson, nice to meet you." He greeted.
"Yo."
"Since you're here let's go, warm up time is almost over." Huey berated and dragged the other two towards the door hoping the professor wouldn't realize they were late. Of course lady luck wouldn't be on his side, the moment he opened the door he could see the professor's displeased face from across the gymnasium, aimed at them.
"Uh oh." Kayson pursed his lips.
The three of them moved towards the professor unwillingly, excuses brewing in their minds. The professor was a middle aged woman who seemed to be on the verge of retirement. Gray hair streaked across her dirt blonde hair tied back taught in a ponytail.
"Why are the three of you coming out of the changerooms now?" She demanded.
Huey opened his mouth to speak, but Kayson beat him to it. All he hoped was for his friend to not spout some weird bullshit again.
Kayson pointed towards him (oh great). "He forgot his locker passcode so we ended up spending a while just randomly guessing."
'Idiot!!' Sobbing, Huey had no choice but to play with the excuse with many holes.
"Yeah somehow the last digit just completely slipped my mind." He forced out, fully knowing how stupid he just made himself sound.
The professor looked at the three of them with exasperation. "You know you could've just come to me and asked for the passcode, right?" She asked, making Kayson's palm sweat.
"""..."""
"Next time don't waste time randomly guessing." She sighed and shooed them away to do warm ups in the little time they had left. They opted for just stretching, not in the mood for anything else.
"Kayson." Huey said, stretching his arm.
"Yeah?" He replied while bending forward from his waist, legs straight.
"That was stupid."
"But it worked."
He switched arms. "Yeah but the teacher definitely thinks we're suspicious now."
Kayson pulled one of his legs back and continued. "That just means we shouldn't wait that long again, hey Nicholas."
The person in question was doing a lunge, stretching his calf muscles. He peered at them from over his shoulder. "Hm?"
"Be quicker next time." Kayson ordered jokingly.
"Alright." The blonde huffed, wearing a light hearted smile. Soon the warm up session was over and the professor gathered everyone to huddle around her. Her commanding voice echoed across the gymnasium, gathering everyone's attention whether they wanted to or not.
"Team, the fitness room is finally free so let's go up there and do some fitness." She said, the news earning multiple groans from the class. "I would like more enthusiasm please, ok let's go." She clapped and set off, a trail of unwilling students trailing behind her.
Everybody knows despite her appearance their PE professor's attitude when it comes to fitness is second to none. Although maybe not as inhumane as Mr. Joseph, it was still bad for the others.
"Seperate into groups of three and go to one of the stations and workout for ten minutes then rotate counterclockwise. No breaks and I better not see any slackers or else I'll be deducting points. Understood?" She demanded with her arms linked behind her back.
"Yes ma'am." Everybody spoke unanimously, fatigue already seeping into their bodies. The groups were pretty much already set before coming up, friends finding each other and what not. Huey and Kayson looked at each other knowingly before dragging Nicholas to the bikes, much to his dismay.
Thirty minutes in and the blonde was already on the verge of collapse.
"Quickly get up before she notices!" Kayson chided in a yelling whisper.
Supporting himself on his knees, Nicholas looked up at the two other members of his group who were still going strong at skipping ropes. "H, how much longer until class ends?"
Huey hummed, "Roughly thirty minutes left."
"What?!" He shrieked, the sound partially covered by the class tumult.
Kayson choked back a laugh, purposely fanning flames to the fire. "Are you okay, you look kind of red."
Nicholas squinted his eyes in disbelief. The burning sensation on his cheeks felt even more clammy now that they were pointed out. He groaned, "We've been biking, running, and jumping consecutively without breaks for the past thirty minutes how am I fine?"
"Hang in there Nicholas, you'll get used to it," Huey laughed. "Oh we're rotating, come on, endurance is next."
The word endurance sent a shock of unease through Nicholas. What does that mean in this context? "What??"
Huey blinked at him owlishly. "Oh you know, push ups, sit ups, planks, wall sits, those kinds of stuff."
That's it, his soul's officially vacuumed. "...End me now."
"Mood." Kayson commented from the side and dragged Nicholas to the next station much to his dismay.
—*:･ﾟ*✧ —
By the time class was over the most accurate visual description of Nicholas' state was a deflated balloon left in the backseat of a car manhandled too much by a little kid. Huey prodded at him which earned a grunt, indicating the youth was still conscious.
"If you stay like this we're leaving and going to lunch." Huey stated, already changed. Fortunately today's menu wasn't one of Kayson's favorites or else the boy would have dashed out those doors long ago.
Said male grumbled, "Revive already, I'm starving."
Nicholas turned his head to the side to look up at them, all his energy sapped. "How are you two not tired??"
Huey and Kayson looked at each other before looking back down at Nicholas, a pained smile on each of their faces. Huey gave a half-suppressed and forceful laugh. "You could say we had experience. And I think working out with friends is fun, don't you?"
Kayson pipied in. "I know I do, it's a lot more enjoyable when you know someone else is also feeling the pain. We either rise up or go down together there ain't no inbetween."
Huey nodded and high-fived Kayson. "Glad to know the feeling's mutual."
Nicholas watched the exchange in confusion. He's noticed this for a while but Huey really has changed. Not just in views and goals but his entire temperament and attitude--even his humor! If not for the fact that Huey retained all of the small habits as the Huey he knows he might have thought the youth had been possessed by something.
He huffed, "This is really strange."
"What is?"
Nicholas pushed himself up into a seated position, that act alone draining the little accumulated energy he had left. "Just, this. You are nothing like the Huey I know yet just like him in all the subtle ways. You wouldn't have participated in gym class, nor would you have associated with anyone aside from me and occasionally others. It's strange, you're doing things you never would've done in the past."
Huey felt his chest tighten again, finding it difficult to find the right words to say. Alas, the seriousness of the situation was completely broken by a restrained laugh. He glared at Kayson who was looking at him in pure hysteria.
"He, he just!" The grin the pink haired youth had made Huey want to punch him. "He just called you friendless HAH!" Immediately Kayson wound up bent over laughing hysterically.
Huey blushed, his pale skin fading into red. "Shut up! I did have a friend!"
Kayson pffted, "Who?"
"Who?" Nicholas also asked simultaneously as Kayson.
Somehow, Huey felt his face heat up even more. Shakily, he raised his arm and pointed in a direction.
"...Him.."
The direction was Nicholas.
"Me??"
"Him??" Kayson gaped. "Wasn't he more like a henchman though??"
Huey folded his arms. "Yeah, but, to me he was also the closest thing to a friend I had so..." He averted his gaze from Nicholas' piercing ones burning holes into his head. "S, stop looking at me like that!"
Kayson hummed, eyes closed and a hand on his chin. "Well, a friend of a friend is also my friend. You're in!"
"I'm in what?" Nicholas knit his eyebrows together, finally freeing Huey from his stare.
"Our friend group! With you, our duo can finally upgrade! You'll be the trio to our duo!"
"I'm your what to your what?" His nose scrunched up as well.
Huey's head appeared behind Kayson's shoulder. "He means you're our friend, Nicholas." Kayson nodded in confirmation.
The blonde blinked. "Oh."
Kayson beamed, "So? Are you willing?"
"I... am?" Nicholas stood up, unsure if this would be the right choice.
Kayson held up his fists in a victory pose, he then whined. "Great! Now let's go, I'm about to starve to death." Before promptly rushing out the door forgetting Huey was still kind of clinging onto him. Said youth yelped from the sudden loss of support and almost fell but quickly gained balance. His eyes swept between the direction where Kayson vanished and to Nicholas.
"Let's go, when Kayson's in that state he's like a whole other person." With that said he also rushed out the door, chasing down his friend. Nicholas stood up, wondering if he needed to run too. Preferably not, his body would certainly protest but if he were to delay any longer he'd be left behind wouldn't he? Sighing, he supposed future him would regret it but for now..
"Wait for me." Unconsciously a small smile began to form on his lips. His heart beats in sync to his steps.
'This'll be interesting.' He figured, another thought lingered at the back of his mind, But Nicholas didn't bother pursuing it. He'll figure it out in time after all, whether or not the reason for Huey's drastic change was because of this concept called friends.