Listen, And The Stars Shall Speak

Rumor Has It

Shore walked into the Prey Center and frowned as he made his way over to the fruit pile. The eyes of all the students, it seemed, were on him. Whispers shot up and the room buzzed with sound, in addition to glances sent his way. What was going on?

"Uh, Orange?" He asked cautiously. "Why is everyone staring at me?" Orange glowered next to him.

"Apparently a rumor has spread across the school." She replied vaguely. 

"A rumor? About what?" 

"A rumor stating that you were sent to JMA to find a suitable wife after rejecting all the Rainwings." Shore coughed, choking on the air he had breathed in.

"What?!" he said hoarsely. "Who would start that?"

"Not a clue, but it's either someone who likes you a lot, or not at all." Shore looked around the Center in awe. Sure enough, the female dragons giggled and blushed at the sight of him.

"So, what, do all the girls in the school think they have a chance at being my wife now or something?" Orange shrugged, popping a grape in her mouth.

"Every girl except the ones in our Winglet."

"Three moons. They're gonna kill me." Orange nodded.

"With your level of charm? Hell yea." Shore's face contorted in despair.

"What do I do?" 

"......I honestly have no idea."

*~*~*~*~*

Shore attempted to ignore the stares as he sunk into his seat in History class. Ember tapped him on the shoulder with wide eyes. 

"Shore, I swear, this was not my fault." He declared. He frowned.

"Why would it be your fault?" Ember hesitated.

"So, I might've snooped in your overstuffed folder of sheet music. So I might've seen the slightly psychotic papers covered in potential titles that are all related to a certain someone. But I swear I did not tell Permafrost or anyone else!" Shore stared at his friend. Then he grabbed him.

"You tell Orange and I may have to murder you." He announced. "Understood?"

"Clear as crystal." Ember agreed. Shore let him go and turned around, letting his face go red with embarrassment. His head dropped onto the desk as the tips of his wings started to go pink.

*~*~*~*~*

"Hi Shore," a smooth voice called out. Shore bit back a grimace and turned to see a group of girls standing near him. They waved and smiled, giggling at his confusion.

"Uh, hi," he replied, not knowing which girl had even spoken.

"We've decided on an easy way to figure out who gets you." A Nightwing girl piped up. Shore took a step back in sudden concern.

"And uh, what is that?"

"Whoever kisses you first." she replied.

"But, of course, we have to catch you first." another girl added. Shore paled as their faces went serious.

Run, he yelled at himself before taking off down the hall. 

"Get him!" One of the girls screeched and they raced after him, like some crazed monster pack of girls. 

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!" Shore screamed, running down hallways of the school, the girls chasing after him. He dove towards another hall and spotted Orange calmly walking down the other end. "ORANGE!" he yelled in panic. She stopped and raised her eyebrows at his terrified expression. He bolted over to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Help me." he begged. 

"Help you from what? What happened?" she questioned. 

"Girls. All the girls. They're chasing me. You've gotta get them away from me. Please!" As if on cue, the girls appeared at the other end of the hall.

"THERE HE IS!" one cried out. 

"Crap! Run!" Shore yelled, grabbing Orange's hand and pulling her down another hallway. 

"What do you expect me to do?!" she demanded. "There's like a hundred of them! Well, more like forty, but still!"

Shore stopped running, trying to think of a way out of this. An idea popped into his head.

"You trust me, right?"

"Of course I do. Why does that makes a difference?" Shore glanced at the pack of girls, than back at Orange. 

"I think I'd rather face your fury than all of theirs, so I need you to do something."

"What?"

"Just go with it!" he exclaimed. Before she could reply, Shore grabbed her by the waist and pulled her close to him, kissing her deeply. Orange's eyes widened until she gave into the kiss, unconsciously wrapping her arms around Shore's neck. 

The pack of girls stopped and started to grumble. They had lost by their own rules, and had no choice but to admit defeat. They wandered away, some staying a moment longer to gawk at the kiss. Finally, when they were all gone, Shore and Orange broke apart, their eyes wide. They stared at each other for a minute.

"T-that was......different." Orange stumbled, awed. Shore just stared. He hadn't meant for that to mean anything, and yet Orange was right; it was different. Much different than any other time they had kissed, although he wasn't quite sure why.

"....Woah." he whispered, trying to comprehend what had just happened. The gong echoes throughout the school, signaling that they had to go. Shore coughed awkwardly. "Um, I'll...I'll see you later....Odd-ang." he wandered away in a daze and Orange grinned after him. When he was gone, she let out a shriek and ran off, grinning wildly.