[ youngest son ; maple & shades & losers ]

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    Trying not to seem too disappointed, Belle sat up while supporting herself with her elbows and watched James with a frown. "James, I'm sorry," she said it a bit too quickly, having already prepared herself for this kind of reaction. Her hand fumbled to find his, trying to get his attention. Her green-blue eyes were wide with worry, tilting her head. "I'm sorry, I went too fast," she told him, moving so she could sit on the couch and pull him into place beside her after he'd put on his shirt. Her fingers trailed over his knuckles lovingly, her breathing finally going back to normal though her heat beat like a speeding train. "I'm sorry," she whispered it again, looking into his eyes through some strands of her hair, honestly sorry that she'd upset him. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

Looking down shyly, “not ready.” He whispered softly, shuffling his feet. Honestly, his body felt ready and heated, and prepared; but James mind was out of sync in the moment the jangling of a belt disturbed his soft music. Bringing up ugly memories of the past.

James looked up, not ready to leave Belle; trying to look at her face while his own clothing was once again hiding his features. The ruffles of his hair stuck up slightly, then a few fell into his face. “I’m sorry.” He once again spoke, diverting his gaze.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree

    Belle shook her head, scooting closer to him. "Don't be sorry. It was my fault," she took the blame, leaning into him and resting her head on his shoulder lovingly. "We can go slow, I promise. I don't want to push you," she told him honestly and ran her thumb pad over his hand. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

“But you’re ready and I’m not.” James protested earnestly, guilty he had to do that to his poor Belle and think of himself. Head leaned to rest against hers, hands gripping the fabrics of his jeans as his belt was loosely hanging. The pair looked like they had done something, but nothing had happened; not in the slightest. James blue eyes closed slightly, watching the dying sun. Because if Belle asked, he would do whatever she wanted him to do, because with Belle he felt like he was in the arms of an angel. But this was different, and it was frustrating to think about how scared the jangle of his belt made him feel…unsafe. Violated. And everything in between even though it was Belle who was doing it, and not the doctor who would make him better.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    She let out a long breath, squeezing his hand comfortingly. "I'm only ready if you are. I can wait, I promise," she assured him, bending over slightly to place a kiss in the corner of his mouth softly. 

    Just as she was doing this, the front door of her house creaked open, and none other than Madison Petison came waltzing in both uninvited, and without warning. Her hands both carried a different tub of Ben and Jerry's and she said as she walked through the door, "So I have chocolate and chocolate brownie-" Before stopping dead and seeing her best friend kissing James ever so slightly, but enough to make the girl seemed shocked. 

    Belle jumped, startled by her friend just emerging, and pulled away from James a bit too quickly. "M-Madison? What are you doing here?"

    Madison's mouth was open slightly, and after a few seconds she closed it and cleared her throat, dropping her hands to her sides. 'Well, I um, thought you'd be lonely. So I came over...but I guess you're busy..." she was grateful to turn on her heel towards the exit she'd advanced from. 

    "Madison, wait, hold on," Belle got up from her couch, realizing oops she was still half naked, and scooped her sweatshirt up off of the ground. She was pulling it on over her arms as she caught up to Madison, out of the house now and on the front patio. "Maddy, wait."

    Maddy jerked around. "So the first day you come out of rehab, you're smooching up with the special ed kid?" She hissed in Belle's face, making her mouth drop open and lean back. Madison growled and shoved the ice cream into her best friends hands. "I'd rather not wait to see that."

    Belle was too shocked to speak at Madison threw the other tub of ice cream onto the front lawn and stormed back to her car, slamming the door, and driving rapidly down the road until her tail lights disappeared into the dark. Belle stared down at the ice cream in her hand, mouth still open slightly, trying to process what had just happened so quickly. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

James had watched it all quietly, not knowing how he should react; the girl had hurt Belle, he knew it, but wasn’t sure what to think of it. Instead he stood up slowly, wandering towards where Belle was left forgotten by who she thought as a friend. Watching the car pull away, he blinked a few time. The gears turning, because that wasn’t supposed to happen. He was sure of it. James blue eyes were curious as he once again looked towards Belle, sad, and slightly frustrated that she was treated that way.

But it was also his fault, he was the special education kid. Though he had come to terms with it and was able to seem normal, there were many abnormal things he did besides sitting and eating with those kids and often times having the privilege to sit on the floor and roll with one other severely autistic kid name Jeremy who just enjoyed James presence (they both had ‘J’ names he was told) and just rolling on the carpeted floors of school.

Yet James was mental enough to walk around without aid, or ill enough to be pitied, which made him a target.

He didn’t know if that was good or bad; and if being with his wonderful Belle just made it worst for both of them.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    Belle's mouth yo-yoed, her eyes flicking to look up from the ice cream at James with wide eyes. "I..." her mouth closed tightly and she swallowed, hurt flashing over her features. Her voice was low, "I can't believe she just did that."

    Not only was Belle hurt, but she was also angry. Damn Madison for being a fake bitch like the rest of them, for not understanding. Damn her for waltzing into Belle's home like she owned the place, walking in on a great moment. Damn her for calling James exactly what he didn't need to hear. 

    Cheeks tinged red, Belle turned sharply and grabbed James' forearm softly, but sternly. The ice cream flew to the ground, unwanted. "James, she's not a good person anyways," though she said it, she didn't want to believe it. Madison had been her best friend since freshman year, and it hurt that she had just given up on her so quickly. "She's just like everyone else, all those mean, conniving jerks who you shouldn't listen to," her hands shook as she gripped his face between her palms shakily, eyes flicking over his face. "Okay?" she almost whispered. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

Bobbing his head quietly, of course he believed Belle but he also didn’t believe her either. The people which have seared into his mind what he was. Special, in a bad way. But to others, in a good way. It was the opinion of a person, and the melody they imprinted onto others. Some like Belle were slow and soothing, and kind and gentle; but those like Madison and Casey were harsh and squeaking, hurt his ears and burned into his brain the tune he didn’t want to hear. James was used to it, which was why he knew not to believe what Belle said. Because he was exactly what people called him, but to them. To others, he was different, and grateful for that.

James smiled slightly. Just because he smiles doesn’t mean he is happy, or okay, but James is facing his difficulties mentally. For Belle, he will smile. Because he knows she likes that.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    Belle studied his face some more before dropping her hands and glaring down at the ice cream near her feet. It hadn't spilt like the one Madison had thrown onto her front lawn, but it was standing upright. So she picked it back up and pressed her lips together, smiling tightly. "Ice cream?" she croaked a bit, still hurt and her mind spinning, but trying to change the subject and get them both back inside. 

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    The next day, Belle's Dad surprised her with a new car. It wasn't a ferrari by any means, but Mr. Dupree got some bank, and it was definitely a bran spanky new car. It had four wheel drive and was red.

    School that day was probably the worst one Belle had been through since her mother died. Every look was on her. Every stare, glance, vision. All to her. She was the center of everyone's conversation as she passed and the meal discussion at lunch. That was the worst time though, lunch. Madison kept her back permanently turned from Belle as she walked, the seats all filled around her by girls she'd replaced Belle with. But Belle was never one to deal with her problems anyways, she hadn't even cried when her mom had died. The whole incident with Tj, that had been the first time Belle had cried in over four years. Any problems in her life just got shoved beneath the covers of her brain; her mom's death, her dad's lack of attention, and Tj's beating/relationship. All pushed from her mind now that she was back into her routine.

    And yet the audition for Julliard was two weeks away and she was no practiced. But that's a different story than what's happening right now. 

    Taking her packed lunch, because ew school food, Belle slipped out of the viewing of hundreds of eyes in the cafeteria, not having anyone to sit with anyways, and walked to the only place she thought James would be; the practice room. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

Sitting on the piano bench, his peanut butter and jelly sandwich cut into four pieces and stacked which he would take the top piece and munch it to the crust. James was picky, but he ate at least. His ever precarious fingers would rub on his jeans after each slice and they would slide over the black and white keys of the piano in a simple melody, then reach to a pencil and write it down. After doing that for a minute, James would take another piece of his PB&J, blue eyes wandering the practice room. Oblivious to the treatment Belle was getting, because he knew she had friends and sat with them when she could.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree:

    Belle slipped through the semi-closing door after someone came out and tapped down the hall in her cheetah print flats. The footsteps echoed in the dimly lit hall until she reached the second door, leading into the U practice room, and pulled that open too. When she saw James, she instantly felt better, not stressed, not sad. Her step slowed down as she came up behind him, planting a kiss on his cheek. "Hi," she said walking to sit down next to him on the bench and get out her own lunch while humming a little tune. 

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

Even though he was used to Belle’s presence, and her loving him; James still blushed every time he felt her pink lips brushing his skin. His fingers paused over the piano keys, blue eyes drifting to her kindly and shyly. James smiled slightly, looking at his Belle lovingly.

[Maple ♥]

Belle Dupree

"How are you?" She asked, using small talk as her way to get her mind off of things as she took out a salad and uncapped the Tupperware top. After a few seconds of fumbling with her fork she finally took a bite and glanced at James through the corner of her eye, using her fork to point at the keys infront of them. "What are you playing?"

[shades]

James Skyes ; ;

James, he wasn’t playing anything; he was just pressing keys into a melody and writing them down. He wasn’t honestly sure what it would turn out like in the end only that it was music. And making music was what James liked to do. He nodded his head to the paper, “writing music,” was James short reply, looking over Belle quietly and lovingly. Blue eyes blinking once, twice, as they traveled back to the keys to play. A, B, G, F flat, James wrote it down.