Time For School Ch. 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Ciel sat on the edge of his way-too-large mattress clutching his bow. He was close to snapping it in half out of frustration.

“Gaah!!” he screamed as he almost flung the bow across his room. He slumped back onto the bed and stared blankly at the ceiling.

Ever since that first orchestra rehearsal, he had been practicing all he could. Not like he was trying to impress a certain upperclassman or anything like that.

Pfft.

‘Violas are fucking annoying.’ he thought. ‘Keeps getting out of tune and shit…’

He rolled his eyes and sighed. He yanked at his grey-blue locks as he considered his situation. Six years. It had been six years since he started learning. By now, he should have been an experienced musician.

It wasn’t that he lacked experience though… it was more as if he lacked the skill.

No matter how hard he practiced (or not), he really could not get in touch with his musical abilities that were supposed to exist. Why did he even start learning anyway?

He rolled over to his side and rested his head on his outstretched arm.

Ah. It was because his parents had hounded him for months to learn some kind of “artistic skill” so he could be some fucking side show circus act at their esteemed soirees.

They never knew about his drawings, but that didn’t matter.

He loved his parents too much to deny them, so he agreed to take lessons when he was eight. He remembered they were never around to see him improve. They still weren’t around.

Perhaps he hasn’t improved at all since he was eleven.

It didn’t matter until now. Until he joined the school orchestra. He had already embarrassed himself at the first rehearsal, and didn’t believe it would continue to get better.

Speaking of embarrassing situations, Ciel’s cheeks grew hot. He couldn’t deny Sebastian’s husky undertone from that day.

He could feel the ghost of the hand on his shoulder. He imagined the same, broad hand that helped him in the hallways on his shoulder, making him feel warmer and warmer.

And that it would slide to the back of his neck, and down his back… calming him, ensuring him that he was per-

He muffled his screams in his blankets. What the hell was he even thinking? He tried to relax his tense body and heavy breathing.

He felt Sebastian’s breath on his neck, making him feel chill from the tip of his toes to his fuzzy mind.

“Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck! I need to stop My mind needs to shut the fuck up. He needs to get the fuck out.”

‘Because he keeps me awake at night…’ his mind teased.

“No. No he doesn’t. He’s only my section leader. He does what section leaders do. He helps the newcomers get adjusted and tune their instruments and give them tips…It’s not personal. He just… helps me. Yeah. Nothing else. My viola buddy or some shit.  Like hell he’s going to invade my thoughts any longer.” he spoke aloud, arguing with himself.

Ciel swallowed, trying to reassure himself. He was right, wasn’t he? He didn’t answer that.

“I need food.” he concluded.

The teen gathered the bow, rosin, and viola from his bed and placed it back into its case carefully. He zipped it up and moved it to the corner of his room.

He could deal with it later.

He glanced at the clock. 11:34pm. It wasn’t that late. There were countless nights that he stayed up past 3am to complete his drawings.

Ciel moved stealthily through the house, careful not to wake the servants. The marble was cold on his bare feet. The home was dark, save for a few wall lamps. He felt his way to the kitchen and flicked on the light switch.

“Aagh. So bright.” He squinted his eyes at the bright lights. It took him a few seconds to focus.

“Ugh… Okay, food. What to eat…” he mumbled to himself. The boy rummaged through the spice drawers and then the refrigerator

“Hmm… there are eggs, and oh, leftover batter….?” He dipped a finder into the bowl and tasted the thick mixture.

Leftover chocolate batter.

His eyes widened. There must be cake if there was extra batter! Ciel shifted the contents of the fridge aside until he found what he was looking for.

“Fuck yes, cake!” he exclaimed giddily. His eyes lit up as he took the lone slice out.

The smooth cream was spread on top of the fluffy layers of chocolate cake. It was embedded with dark chocolate bits and sprinkled with chocolate shavings. A lacey floral design in white vanilla frosting decorated the edges. A maraschino cherry topped the whole delicacy.  

Ciel salivated as he stared at the treat. ‘It’s mine now~’ he sang in his head.

He stole a fork from the nearby drawer. There was no more waiting.

He moaned in delight when he tasted the first bite.

“Oh, god…”

The chocolate flavor caressed his tasted buds, drawing him in to taste more.

It was heaven.

He licked every dollop of cream off the fork and ate every single crumb on the plate.

Ciel stared into space, dreaming about the delicious cake as he twirled the fork in his hand.

“Mmm…” he hummed aloud.

But the dream was soon shattered.

The caked was completely devoured. There was no trace of it remaining.

He solemnly placed the fork down on the plate, and carried it to the sink to wash the next day. Before he left the kitchen, he turned back longingly.

“Thank you for the cake.” he softly said to no one.

He switched the kitchen light off and returned to his room. The boy sighed contently as he lay in the bed.

12:07am.

The savory cake had calmed him. With the sweetness on his tongue, he fell asleep.