Lars POV:
The average teenager has the tack of an elephant in a glass shop. Many adults would say that, but until I saw Nate's expression, as he stared at the banana, on which I had put a condom mere seconds ago, I finally realized that the adults didn't say it just to feel smart.
"That... Lars, this is a banana," he reached out, took the fruit, and then turned it in his hands. "Do you want to... I don't know... help it ripen or something?"
I had neighbors, relatives, and so on. Nate had no one. No one who would care enough to show him a condom. Much less to show him how to put one on. Well, not on himself, on a banana.
The devil was in the details.
In my mind, everything was crystal clear. I would tell Nate about condoms, crabs, and yellow fever. He would get spooked, then stop with the cuddling and kisses at night.
The problem was, that this was his first time seeing a condom. He also thought, much like me before I went to the library to do some research, that crabs were just animals, which could be boiled. And yellow fever was something he had seen, surely, but never asked about.
So, as one could imagine, my work was cut out for me.
"Granny Agatha said that you might be sick," I was like a knife which had been used for 30 years straight without a single sharpening session. But could one blame me? I was not prepared to be romanced. My brain couldn't explain to itself why Nate would ever want me.
"I am a demon, well, half-demon, Lars. I can't get sick," which was good to hear, but I knew so little about demons back then, that my eyes narrowed.
"Everyone can get sick," I said stubbornly. He blinked at me, with a gaze which spoke of rejection and regret. Still, I didn't put my foot completely in my mouth. Innocence could be a saving grace sometimes. "And we should really go to the hospital, Nate. We should all get health checks! I don't want to lose you!"
Nate's stance relaxed slightly. A smile graced his lips, even when it looked strained.
"Will you show Mike and Jean how one puts a... how did you call it?"
My cheeks started to warm up. My impression, that the condom was a toy to be filled with water, was destroyed, after I read a couple of paragraphs in a book about the yellow fever. No, I didn't want to get sick from something like that.
I was at the stage where the mere word condom made me think about cooties. The question which didn't give me any rest, though, was if Nate had cooties. He was not a girl, but he wanted to do things with me, that I had been told one only did with girls.
Lergo was not a homophobic land, no. Still, there were so few of us left, that everyone who refused to lay eggs was looked upon with disdain.
"A condom, Nate. It is produced in Arkano," his expression darkened like the sky on a bright summer day. The banana flew towards a trash bin, hit the bin, and then landed on the carpet. Nate clenched and unclenched his fists, his nostrils flaring.
"I will never take anything produced there!" He yelled. I wanted to run away. If he was muscular a couple of seconds ago, now he was a mountain of muscle. I could imagine that he was ready to tear me in half.
Or beat me up with the couch. His arms were so big, that I was sure he would not only be able to lift the soft and white antique, but also bring it down on my head.
Until I stopped twitching, that is.
"Nate, they are the only country, in which..." I started, but Nate turned his back to me. For a couple of moments, I let him fume. My entire body shook. How could it not? We were in my house, not on the streets, where I could call for help.
I was asking myself what I was thinking as I invited him to my home. It was not like I knew him. No, I just wanted to help. My decisions were now questioned, as I silently got up, and tried to creep towards the front door.
"Lars?" I heard Nate's voice, as I laid a hand on the door handle. "Lars, where are you going?"
I had no answer to that. How could I explain to Nate that I was running away from him?
"I... forgot my cookie in the mailbox," it was the only thing I could think of. Of course, it was the wrong answer.
"You fear me," I didn't know Nate good enough to be able to tell with certainty, but heartbreak looked similar on everyone. "You are running away."
I heard a thunder from outside, bit my lower lip. No, it couldn't rain now. It was not fair. What, was I now starring in a cheap theater performance?
"No, no, it is not that, it is just..." Nate's muscles returned to normal, he marched pass me, opened the door, and went outside.
The rain started precisely at that moment. Not a slight drizzle, but a downpour. I stared at Nate, who was marching ever forward. Then at my feet. As it was my habit, I bit my lower lip. The poor thing was so chewed up by now, that I could taste blood.
I was before a crossroad. I could let Nate go back to his old life. Try to forget the skin and bones boy from the test. Or, I could run after Nate, try to calm him down, and maybe get a couple of punches to the nose for my trouble.
To this day, I am proud to admit that I didn't even take the time to take an umbrella. No, I sprinted after Nate. The problem was, that he was now healthy, could run with the speed that only a demon could run with, and I still had my fat rolls, which juggled like mad.
My calls to him went unanswered. He was soon out of my line of sight.