something about gabe or whatever.

A moment of silence.

The spring breeze fluttered around Isabelle’s legs and chilled her peachy skin. Her tears ceased their flood in an instant, a decade, of shock. She could not help but stare, gaping at the eyes she had but a second ago looked upon in blissful, nervous joy, that she had longed to gaze upon, she thought, for many days to come. They had haunted her ever since she had caught a glimpse of those steely-blue orbs; such a stark color was unforgettable. She longed for those jewels and the shining ring in which they were set. A masterpiece.
Those eyes spoke to her of an intense personality, at first. Such was not the case. It had been a month since she had first talked to Gabriel, but she had gotten to know him well enough to understand his real nature. He seemed to be one of those people who trods slowly on the path of life, sometimes stopping to pick up an interesting rock, or observe a landed bird, or perhaps mark his name on a stone for someone someday to find. The grays and blues, then, weren’t the hue of a stoic warrior’s metal blade, as she had first assumed. They were the tones of the shifting skies to which he so often looked.
So he was a strange boy. Her dreams of a passionate lover had been dashed at their first conversation, in which he professed his inclination for gorging his stomach at breakfast, skipping lunch altogether, and dining minimally. That certainly didn’t make for a good candle-lit dinner date. The boy was very friendly though. While he wasn’t what she expected, he was a gentleman in his own way. He displayed a propensity for beneficent acts and an appreciation for those close to him- which wasn’t many people at all. The aloof boy didn’t talk much and generally never invited someone to converse with him. Isabelle had been forced to approach him every day for a week before he would timidly draw near her.

The words sunk in.

How could he? He couldn’t reject her like that- not in this way. It wasn’t just a statement of preference. He had exiled her love for eternity. Gabriel couldn’t be- he couldn’t- but why hadn’t she known? She knew there was something a bit different about him. The way he looked at her wasn’t the way boys his age usually stare at girls. There was a certain distance in the way other boys viewed her. As if she was a person, but also an object of desire. She looked upon boys that way, too- a remoteness. Gabriel made eye contact with her. He didn’t seem so nervous, so far away as other boys had. As if he didn’t care about how a girl viewed him. As if he saw a person, not a body. He had never been attracted to her curves, she realized. Her efforts to make herself tantalizing to the object of her desires were in vain. He hadn’t been friendly because he considered a romantic relationship with her. He did not try to start a strong, friendly bond with her to later gain her love.
How could she have been so stupid to assume that they were already dating- not in name, but in action? Had he been one of her girl friends, she would think nothing of their daily chats, the lives they shared with each other. It was his looks that had thrown her off. Her naivety stung.

His voice echoed once more in her head.

“Isabelle,” he said, with a tinge of helplessness, a tone of despair and reluctance.
She nodded anxiously. “Y-yes, Gabe?” A small smile. His shaky tone brought her hope that he would reciprocate her confession.
“I’m sorry,” he said finally, in that voice just pin drops above a whisper.
Her throat went dry, and a little cold.
“I-“ he sniffled, unable to finish his sentence without bringing his sleeve up to wipe the corner of his eye.
“I’m gay.”