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Remoras Full Chapter LXXXIV: Sunrise

Bit my hand.

Yep.

It’s hard as a rock. All blue and numb. There’s no other way around it: frostbite.

Ha. I’m going to die, aren’t I?

Yes, it was a morbid thought, but it was always important for one to remember their own mortality. Some people have this idea that when we die, we all die alone. I don’t think that’s true, though. There’s always something with us. Even in death, we’re given comfort by our surroundings. In life, we have friends, family, the people we meet along the way, both good and bad…

...but to hell with it. For all intents and purposes, I walked alone in the dead of night, a purple sky, illuminated by the northern lights. Not even that could light my path ahead, however, as all I saw in the distance were shadows of mountain ranges, little squares and rectangles that may have been buildings, and a yellow glow further out.

Wait. Wasn’t that significant?

Looks like I had a bit of luck left in me after all. Lady Luck, if you’re out there, I’ll blow a kiss your way.

Yes, even as I was left stranded in the middle of the night, my clothes soaked and clung to me, now turned to near-ice, and my hands frostbitten, I wouldn’t give up so easily. I felt the constant shiver, the kind Remora would often feel. But more than that, I was sure I should have reached the stage of ‘paradoxical stripping’ about an hour ago (not that I had a sense of time, but it sure felt like an hour) yet there I was, clothes still stuck to me. Wouldn’t someone call that fate?

So when I saw through the front window the silhouette of a man in a black suit and slacks with slick, black hair, and thin, delicate glasses, my frozen heart started to thaw just a little.

Is that...am I home? I thought, even though it went against what I had been told. No matter how hard it was to walk, I had to enter that diner. I had to go through those doors, even if I collapsed as soon as I entered.

In retrospect, some might have called it fate that I did exactly that: shoved my way through the front door, only to collapse at the entrance.

“Interesting. So you’re telling me that you came from another timeline – one where you and I are husband and wife?”

His hands were folded and rested on the edge of the table. He sat across from me, smiling slightly, but not giving much indication as to how he really felt or believed. In other words: it was Ray, all right.

I nodded. While I did manage to explain the situation to him, it was still hard to get words out, especially what with all the shivering and defrosting I was doing.

“Incredible,” he continued. “While I wouldn’t say this is the first time someone has crashed through my restaurant in critical condition, this is certainly the first time someone’s told me a story like that.”

I shook all the moisture off of me like a wet dog. Water flew all over the floor, the window (which was already foggy) and the table. Ray didn’t look concerned, even as some got on his sleeve, and he just sipped his tea like usual.

Someone, who had a split, pencil mustache, sure looked concerned, however.

He was in a blue and white striped suit, with a green bucket hat over his head, and matted, swamp-green hair poking out. In other words, he looked just like your typical waiter if the restaurant in question encouraged quirky dress codes.

“Excuse me. You just got water all over the floor,” he sounded rather annoyed.

“Please, Pierre. This is a guest. We can always clean the floor later,” Ray turned toward the waiter. When he turned back to face me, he waved his hands away. “Sorry, you’ll have to excuse my husband.”

A knot twisted in my stomach. Not that this man, Pierre, wasn’t handsome in any way, just that it was yet another reminder that this wasn’t my world. This wasn’t my Ray.

Oh, but he’s still Ray in any other way that matters. That much is clear.

“Heh,” I smirked, “I get it. Crazy lady shows up and says she’s your wife. It’d be enough to make anyone a little irritated. But don’t worry, I’m not trying to steal you from him. I’m also not expecting you to believe me. Like, what? I’m from an alternate version of here? Oh, but I’ve got more stories to tell. Maybe crazy enough stories to make what I already told you seem plausible.” By now, I was starting to return to my usual self. It helped that Ray had given me a blanket and orange and white fleece sweater. His generosity could be tricky, as he knew his way around people enough to make anyone feel special, even if he didn’t know those people at all. If I wasn’t careful, I’d breakdown and wish for him to be my Ray. But I couldn’t do that. I had another one back at home. It wasn’t right to be greedy.

“Go on. I won’t promise to believe you, but I’m always willing to listen to a guest. Say, would you like some tea? I’m currently drinking oolong.”

I waved my hand away as if I was fanning myself.

“No thank you. I would like some whiskey, though.”

“Whiskey?! Really?! You were stranded in the cold and THAT’S what you want?!” Pierre’s outbursts were rather amusing. I forgot that this wasn’t a world that didn’t know who I was.

“Eh? Why not?” I shrugged. “A drink’s a drink. I always find those drinks to warm me up and provide a kick. Especially good for colder climates.”

He continued to gawk until Ray snapped his fingers.

“Well? Are you going to bring this lady her drink?”

“Of course, my love!” Pierre saluted, then ran off to the back. I had a little snicker at the sight before I returned my focus to this Ray.

“Did he take your last name? Or did you his?” I pointed my thumb toward the back.

“Ha. Neither. We’re pretty independent like that. I’m Ray Sunshine, as you know, and he’s Pierre Oiseaux.”

“I can’t pronounce that.”

“Don’t worry about it. You can just call him Pierre. He calls me ‘hubby’ or ‘my love’, but that bit’s a little irrelevant.”

“It’s a little gaudy,” I agreed.

“Excuse me?” Pierre returned with a glass of bright, sun-kissed whiskey in hand. “Who are you to say I’m gaudy?”

“Sorry, no offense. Such pet names aren’t my thing. But it’s fine if it’s yours.”

He let out a deep sigh.

“Sorry. Sorry. I’m just a little on-edge right now,” he admitted.

“Oh, hun. High strung? What about?” I asked.

“Just marriage trouble,” Ray joked. I say ‘joked’ but his delivery was rather flat. Not deadpan, either. Just real jolly and matter-of-fact.

Which, if there was one thing that must have been consistent among Rays was this: when he says marriage trouble, he means something else. If he says something other than marriage trouble, than it might have been marriage trouble. That’s how Ray operated. He was honest in his dishonesty.

I want to pry...I want to pry...I want to pry…

“So, what other stories do you got for me?” Ray asked.

Damn it! I missed my chance to pry!

“Well, you got your hand shot by a former assassin named Remora. You later just got your whole arm amputated and got it replaced with a prosthetic, though you usually just find it easier to cook without that fake arm attached. You know Rhea Flection?”

He shook his head.

“Darn. She’s a well-known former assassin as well. Been to many timelines. So, Remora is another version of Rhea. Who died, by the way, except never mind, no she didn’t. Say, what about the time traveling gay mafia boss, Tony Falsetto? Are you still friends with him?”

“While I don’t like to make my connections known, no, I’ve never met someone by that name.”

Lame. Where’d all the cool people go?

“Man. I wonder what Demetria’s up to. Maybe since she never met Remora, she finished school and is studying them fishes. Oh, and Tigershark. Well, I guess since Cronus never showed up here, she’d still be with her parents and be going by Rotellina Littlewheel. Hmm...does that mean my timeline was the bad timeline and this is the good one?” I thought out loud.

“The Littlewheels? They were regular guests here. Cute kid, too. Their research was done, though, and they’re living in Italy now.”

Hearing that put a smile on my face. Sure, I would never meet the Tigershark that wasn’t Tigershark, but at least this version had her parents. She was probably happy, if nothing else.

“They were good people, yeah?” I asked.

“Yeah. They were.”

I couldn’t think of anything else to say. Nothing that would impress him, anyway. Sure, I could have mentioned Aion. Maybe those two had history here as well. But let’s be honest: I had bigger concerns.

“Hey. So. It’s a longshot, but have you seen a slender black woman named Ananke with cool armor over her limbs?”

“Can’t say I have.”

“Damn. She’s my ticket out of here. If anyone knows how I can get back home, it’s her.”

“Home? As in your timeline?” Ray pondered.

Matters such as this could be so delicate. There were many ways to approach such things. Yes, a simple ‘yes’ would have sufficed, but I was much more sophisticated. So I shook my head.

“No. Home as in my home. It may not be the best place, but it’s the one I love.”

“Well, for your sake, I hope you find it. I’ll be on the look out for this ‘Ananke.’ Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

Why, yes, dear Ray, there is something, I grinned.

So that’s how I ended up walking out the door of the restaurant with a fishing pole and bait in hand. This Ray also gave me a bundle of sticks for good measure. There was only one thing left to do: walk a fair distance away from the restaurant and light a fire. With any luck, I could cut a hole in the ground and do a bit of ice fishing.

Right when I thought I found a good spot to drop everything, I heard a neat little clicking sound behind me.

“Just what are you really after?” Growled a rather, if I was in the complimenting mood, handsome voice.

“I told ya already. I’m not interested in your husband. I have my own,” I smirked.

Moisture ran from my thick hair down to my neck. It wasn’t sweat, I knew that much. It was just proof that I wasn’t fully recovered from almost being a snow cone.

“That’s not what I mean! Who do you work for?”

“Huh? I work in the name of wanderlust. I’m after a way to get home.”

“I bet that was just a sob story you made up! You said yourself that you don’t expect Ray to believe you!”

“Yeah, because it’s pretty ridiculous, don’t you think? But it doesn’t matter how believable it is. It’s the truth, and as long as I know the truth, what else matters?” I was really starting to get exhausted with this guy. What stick was up his butt, seriously? “But tell me, what do you think my intentions are? What do you think I’m after?”

“You mentioned a time traveling mafia! That must be it! You’re in one of those groups! You’re probably here to get revenge on Ray after he stole from you guys!”

That’s my Ray! Cunning to the end. Ahem! I should probably be scared, huh? That Pierre guy’s got a gun on me. He’s already made up his mind and now he’s going to defend the man he loves.

“Look, buddy, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had a gun pointed at me. Worse, been shot at,” I had my wrist ready. Stella was going to come through. She’d deflect that bullet. Hopefully the bullet wouldn’t hit him in return, and if it did, hopefully it wouldn’t be fatal, but hey, it would still be better than me getting shot. “So believe me when I say that I won’t be the one shitting my pants.”

“RAAAAA!” He yelled and pulled the trigger. Luckily, I knew to turn just as soon as his yell started out as a growl, and with a flick of my wrist, Stella, the bracelet on my arm…

...did nothing.

She remained a bracelet. No whipping power, no baton, nothing.

Actually, something did happen, though. Something significant: my knuckles bled.

“AAAH!” I groaned and hissed as I held onto my knuckle. Luckily, the bullet missed, but it sure grazed me good.

“What?! Why would you try to aim your fist at the bullet?! Were you trying to punch it?!” Pierre freaked out. Given the situation, if anyone should’ve been freaking out, it’d be me.

“No? That would be dumb! I can punch many things, but a bullet isn’t one of them!” I shouted. I had to such in my breath in intervals just to make sure no tears would flow.

“Then what were you trying to do?!”

“It’d be pointless to explain now! Anyway, why did you shoot me?!”

“I was just trying to protect my husband!”

“Big whoop! All I wanted to do was fish and now I’m not even going to enjoy that properly!”

“I’m sorry!”

“You better be! Do you have any bandages?!”

Our shouting match was one for the century, but even if I took a physical hit, I was still coming out on top.

“Yeah...uh...hold on,” he lowered his voice while shuffling his feet. His head hung low in shame as he headed back in the restaurant.

I sat down next to the bundle of sticks and my fishing rod.

“Stupid...stupid…” I hissed and shook my head.

This whole trip to an alternate timeline has been stupid from the start. Who cares if the world was better off without Remora ever showing up here? Or if Demetria never had a reason to come to the arctic? Or if Tigershark never became Tigershark? Or if Ray and I weren’t a duo? This whole world could’ve been a fucking paradise, but it still wasn’t my home.

But no, I wasn’t going to cry. It wouldn’t do me much good. Not until I’ve made it back home to everyone. Then I could bawl my eyes out.

Pierre’s soft footsteps were like the sounds of someone chewing through spoonfuls of dry cereal. He crouched down beside me, legs spread, and held some bandages and tape in his hand.

“Lend me your arm,” he said in a sloppy, oily tone.

My gaze was downcast at the patch of icy ground that I’d like to dig into and try to catch some fish. While I did what I was told, I didn’t wish to look him in the eye. It’s not that I held anything against him, I was just exhausted.

“I’ve had a long day,” I said as he wrapped the bandage around my knuckles.

“Tell me about it. I’m sure I didn’t help.”

“Eh. It’s not the first, nor will it be the last time, some guy shot at me.”

“That’s concerning.”

“Is it? If this weren’t such a regular occurrence I’d be much angrier with you.”

“Ha. You sure ain’t normal. You sure you ain’t with some mafia?”

All I could do was shake my head.

“Negative. I’m not organized enough to be in organized crime.”

“Then how do you intend to make it home?!”

There he went again, shouting. God damn it, Pierre, couldn’t you just keep your voice at an even volume?

He tightened the bandage and tucked the end of it to the first layer.

“There,” he stood up like a flamingo and trotted back toward the restaurant. “I really hope you find your home, lady.”

“Thanks!” I grinned. “My name’s Sunny!”

After he went inside, I turned to see the curtains of the restaurant draw to a close. Teal curtains, which, regardless of whether or not the color mattered, it was still odd to see them close at all. In fact, I don’t think we ever put up curtains in my home’s diner. Guess that’s just another thing that’s different.

My left fist was still free. Sure, it would bleed soon, but not after I…

A light tap was made against the earth in front of me. I looked up, of course, and almost grinned at what (if I were more naive) could have been my salvation: Ananke. Yes, Dr. Paracelsus herself graced me with her presence donned in black striped sweats, a peach cream colored tank top, and adorned with a golden necklace which displayed little snakes eating each other’s tails. It wasn’t just a casual landing, however. No, she was decked out with her mechanical frame. That bulky, black exoskeleton which allowed her to fly around and pulverize whoever she damn well pleased (if she pleased to do so at all). It was a rather unflattering jacket which almost made me suspect that its real purpose was to distract from the beauty within.

“What brings you here?” I asked.

“I wanted to check up on you. Is that so wrong?” She returned my question with another.

“No,” I shook my head, “it’s not. As you can see, I’m getting by.”

There were more pressing matters to discuss, but I couldn’t bring myself to show any contempt toward her, even if my current position was less than ideal.

Her expression didn’t change – flat, monotone. Very little lip movements. I wanted to say she reminded me of a little frigid friend of mine, but even said frigidity tended to be on the soft, more breezy side. In contrast, Ananke was a dearth of emotion.

“Tell me – aren’t you cold?” I asked.

“Freezing, burning. Such things mean little to me.”

Cryptic. I see. If that’s how she was going to be, there was little reason to keep beating around the bush.

“I want to return home.”

No question, not this time.

“You know that can’t happen,” she shook her head.

“And why is that?”

“I need that device to satisfy destiny. Besides, you may not see it yet, but it’s safer for you here.”

“I don’t care what’s safer. What I care about is being with the ones I love.”

“Compared to the magnitude of the world, your wish is mere dust. You can always rebuild. Find new love. New dreams. There is a whole world of adventure that awaits you.”

“So inspiring,” I crooned sarcastically. “But I’m nothing if not stubborn.”

Even if I lived for another fifty years, there was only one adventure that mattered to me right now.

“You seem to know a lot about this whole,” I made vague gestures. “Why doesn’t Stella work anymore? When I tried to use her, it was just a regular ol’ whip.”

“Stella?” She tilted her head.

“My ‘angel weapon’ as I’m sure you’d call it.”

“Ah. That must mean the angel is no more. Which means the world you came from will soon be no more.”

Just as the pulse on my wounded knuckle pounded, so too did my heart.

“That’s even more reason for me to go back! I can’t let this happen to my family!”

I stood up. Catching fish could wait. So too could starting a fire. There was already something blazing deep within me.

“Even if you were able to go back, there is nothing you can do. Now stop this foolishness. Your lifespan is but a speck. Don’t waste it.”

“I’ll waste my life however I damn well please.”

It was subtle, but her brows, as thin as they were, wriggled until they met a slight crease against her smoky eyes.

“Of course. I see now this is the kind of person you are. Just as you are dedicated to your foolishness, so too have I dedicated my life to my research.”

What will it take to convince you? I wondered. I knew I stood no chance in a fight. Not with my current equipment.

“I take it you and Aion were lovers? Or perhaps if not lovers, you had feelings for him?” I tried out an old trick of mine.

“Are you daft? We agreed to work with each other so long as our goals intersected. Once they parted, so did we. If there was anything I could say about him, it’s that he’s a fool masquerading as a genius.” Then, she smiled. “Then again, he might say the same about me.”

“So what? Any other lovers? What about friends?”

“Why the inquiry now?” “Well, it’s just that...aren’t you lonely? Maybe I could help you with your research. Be your colleague, your companion. And maybe...something else.”

She coughed out a laugh.

“You cannot hope to seduce me. Men and women alike have tried over the years, but none of them would satisfy. Their lives are so fleeting, and they would only serve as a distraction. Even if I felt anything past a kinship with you, it wouldn’t even put a dent into my life. Half of your lifespan is not even half of one percentage of how long I have lived. What good does a mortal love do me?”

“Wait. ‘Mortal’? Are you telling me…?”

“For thousands of years, I have lived. Tempered by the elements. Survived poisoning, stabbing, burns, starvation, dehydration. I am not invincible, but hardened to the point by a desperate need for survival.”

“Even if that were true, how could anyone live for, what, thousands of years?”

“Come on, Sunny. You said you believed in magic. How absurd could it be that I was blessed by a god to live on and carry out my fated goal?”

A shiver ran down my spine.

“Just what is your goal?”

“A simple, but more meaningful one than you could ever conjure: I have seen my original tribe assimilated, only to be made into several different cultures over the years, and having lost its original culture. My original people, displaced until forgotten. War and changing of values, the colonization of an already civilized people. Lands ravaged until inhospitable. Did you know that the Sahara was once a thriving landscape where crops grew?”

“So what? Your goal is to restore your former people? And why does a time travel device factor in? Are you planning to bring your community back into this time? What with the changing of landscape, I doubt they’d even survive this period.”

“No. You misunderstand, as most are want to do. I was an outcast in my own tribe. Assaulted, tortured, ostracized. I don’t hold resentment for them, as I was quite weak back then. I hold no resentment for the changing of times, either. I know that change is inevitable, and values clash constantly. I don’t need community, and I know that this planet won’t last forever. All I wish for is a land that will last. Unbothered by pollution. Unbothered by the clashes of the outside world.”

“You really don’t think you would be lonely at all, do you?” I asked, this time genuine.

“I am not alone for fate is always with me.”

“So how does the time travel device factor in?”

“It holds enough power to shield my land from attacks. I have spent countless years of research into creating an artificial landscape, unbothered by the environment which surrounds it. In certain places, tropical. Others, a desert. All of it, beautiful. A refuge of my own making.”

The idea sounded majestic, if not misguided. Or maybe I was the misguided one for still preferring my home over her potential home.

“I’m sorry to put you in this position, but it looks like I have to crush your dream in order to fulfill mine.”

I positioned into a fighting stance, my uninjured knuckle facing forward.

“Are you blind? Deaf, perhaps? Even if my body wasn’t tempered the way it was, my armor will surely protect me,” she sounded surprised. Turns out she didn’t know me as well as she thought.

I charged forward and readied my fist. As I swung forward, she blocked with the armor covering her arms, something which I already predicted she would. That was when I shot my leg forward and kicked her in the stomach. Despite that part of her being defenseless, she did not so much as budge or groan. My foot under my thick, leather boot, felt crushed as if a boulder landed upon it. I pulled back and hissed.

She really is hard as a rock, I thought.

My tactic changed: this time, I pulled out Stella. She may only be an ordinary whip now, but I was willing to bet I was strong enough to leave some kind of mark.

When I cracked it, she blocked it by lifting up her knee. Even if she wasn’t so durable, that armor was still in the way. So I switched hands, aimed for her face and to my astonishment, she didn’t even flinch or try to block as it hit her cheek. More so, there was nary a mark upon her.

She stepped back, undid her armor as she did so.

“I have no intention to fight you. I may not be capable of being harmed, but that doesn’t mean I am very strong, either. Still, I have to deter you from such foolish notions,” she declared.

I kept trying to hit her while she continued to take steps backward. Then, her armor shifted into that of a long, thick, black cleaver of a sword.

No way. Is she going to cut me down with that thing? But that’s not what she did – in fact, what she did was far worse. She held it against her own wrist.

“While others wouldn’t fare so well, I can allow myself to bleed,” she sounded less like she was about to harm herself, and more like she wanted to show me a magic trick. And indeed, she was, as she slid her blade against her wrist and a few drops of thick blood poured down and sunk into the frozen earth.

“It is time you met one of my daughters.”

What was just her fresh blood expanded and shot upward until it formed the shape of a person: brown skin, short, braided black hair, and emerald green eyes. Her pointed teeth poked out from her full lips and she opened her mouth and spoke in a firm, yet warm tone:

“You summoned me, mother?”

“Yes, Atropos. Go fight Sunny for me, but do not mortally wound her. She need not die, only deterred.”

“Mother, call me Aisa,” her summoned daughter pursed her lips and pleaded. Despite looking like a grown woman, this ‘child’ of Ananke’s expression reminded me of a toddler soon to burst into tears.

“But that name is too hard to pronounce,” Ananke rebuffed.

“I won’t do as you say until you call me Aisa.”

“Fine,” Ananke sighed, not nearly as stubborn as I. “Go fight Sunny, Aisa!”

Although Aisa was blocking the view, I managed to catch a striking detail from Ananke for just a split second – her wound on her wrist had already closed up and healed, without even so much as a scar.

Her sword transformed back into her outer armor and attached itself to her limbs. Before turning away, she addressed me.

“Don’t come looking for me,” she warned before flying off.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d think it was an invitation.

A faint trace of smoke was left by the fuel used to carry Ananke away. I let out a faint cough, and I would have been thankful for that brief warmth, were it not for the guest in front of me.

Aisa wore a long, flowing, white robe, with a V-neck which tastefully (in my opinion) showed off her small cleavage. That robe of hers extended down to the point that they covered the ground and blocked any view of possible footwear. Shame, too, as whether she was wearing sandals, boots, or barefoot could have made a huge difference in whether I stood a chance or not.

She reached her hands into her pockets and pulled hand spindles from one, and a wooden wheel from the other. Even if its diameter was smaller than my head, I still imagined it would have done some damage were it to strike me.

Jeez. How big are those pockets? I wondered, but not a moment sooner, she spun the wheel toward me, with many strings connected to it.

I dodged in time and she ran toward me, tossing spindles my way. One cut against my cheek. I tried to grab onto the needle, unbothered by the cut, even in the stinging cold, but she pulled the needle back.

I bet she’s a yo-yo expert, I observed and pulled out my whip. Stella may no longer be ‘Stella’ as I knew her, but she was still stellar in her own right.

With one crack, I wrapped Stella around the threads of her spindles and pulled her closer to me, then kicked her down.

“Ha,” she smirked, “I can see why mother would find you special.”

“Me? Special?” I asked, wide-eyed.

“Yes,” she closed her eyes. Her wheel, which still hung low, spun toward me and cracked against the icy ground. I watched as her hand flung the string forward and aimed the wheel up toward my stomach. I held onto my whip with both hands and blocked against the wheel. The wheel didn’t let up speed and spun higher, toward my face, forcing me to follow along with my whip.

I thought it would keep getting closer and shred my whole face apart, but just as I could feel a tickle of wind against my nose, it slowed down. Aisa pulled back, leaped up and spun in the air. She flew up high enough that for a moment I thought she was a fairy.

Instead, she dove down like a torpedo. I backed away, and in that moment, noticed that she wore stiletto heels with a dagger poking out. I gulped, grabbed onto her ankle, and tossed her away.

She landed on her feet, unfazed.

“Ha! I’m impressed as well! See, mother doesn’t care for people, but you? You caught her interest!” She as flattering as she was in ecstasy over the thrill of battle.

“I don’t see how!” I shouted back. “I don’t have any magic power! I’m not immortal!”

She spun the wheel and it missed my face, but cut against the sleeve of my shoulder and left a searing cut.

“Ack!” I winced.

“Don’t sell yourself short. Mother is never wrong.”

We’ll see about that, I huffed.

She tossed spindles once again. Each time, I swatted them away with my whip. It was my turn to advance on her, and this time I’d whip her senseless.

“Not bad,” she nodded. “Unfortunately, I’m going to wrap this up now.”

She didn’t try to dodge my whip. Instead, she set her wheel on the ground, then propelled herself up into the air once again, with wheel in hand.

I avoided this once, I can do it again.

She dove down, aiming her heels once again my way. I backed away and wrapped my whip around her ankle. She was caught, and would soon be slammed to the ground and I thrust down.

However, she had the same idea, and slammed her wheel right against my stomach. I was knocked back to the ground.

Aching, I tried to pick myself up. She didn’t pull back her wheel, and it kept me down, like a weighted blanket.

“For a mortal with an ordinary weapon, you put up a good fight. However, as I am the weakest of the fate sisters, you have no hope of reaching mother.”

She pulled her wheel back and placed it in her pocket. I watched her wrap threads around herself and she spun away like a spinning top. She leaped up in the distance and I watched her fade away into a crimson mist.

“Ugh,” I rubbed my head.

Dawn would be breaking in just a few hours.

I checked on Stella, my whip, and saw that the middle of her was threadbare, almost cut in half from the pressure of that accursed wheel. It made me lay my head back on the ground in defeat.

Only a few minutes later, I struggled my way to sitting up. My busted up belly ached to the point I felt like throwing up, but I held in whatever bile would have spewed out.

Tears flowed down my cheeks. It stung the cut on my cheek, even if the cold already did a good job of that.

Utter defeat. Time and time again.

No, I wasn’t going to give up, but when I counted up the different times I’ve lost, the idea was tempting.

Then there was the issue of succeeding. Was I really willing to destroy someone’s home in order to see myself back home?

I folded my knees and buried my head in them.

Where was my determination? It must have been buried as well.

My greatest treasure: my home. I’ll retrieve it at all costs. But how?

I must have been lost in my wallowing to the point that I didn’t hear anyone approaching. It was only when a hand was placed on my shoulder, the same one that was still wet with my blood.

I looked up to see Ray. Not my Ray, but it was still him all the same.

“What’s wrong, miss lady?” He asked in his soft, Ray voice.

“Ray…” I sounded hoarse, weary.

“Won’t you tell me another story? Someone as interesting as yourself shouldn’t be so sad.”

“I don’t know if I have it in me.”

“At least come inside where it’s warm.”

“But what about your husband?”

“I already gave him a few good spankings. Apologies for his rudeness.”

What other choice do I have? I thought while taking his hand.

Pierre looked down in shame next to the bar counter where Ray would usually serve drinks to passing customers.

Of course, most of the time, the diner lacked customers, and this time was no exception.

What other yarns could I spin for them? Either out of regret for his actions or genuine interest, Pierre sat next to Ray at the booth and leaned in. Both of them were awaiting some kind of tale.

After I took a sip of warm water, I figured it out.

“One time, there was a sculpture I learned about under an Egyptian tomb. Emeralds for eyes and in the shape of Anubis. But I wasn’t about to donate it to some museum or sell it to a black market – no, that’s not the way I roll…”

It was a fantastic tale, one from my old days. That tomb consisted of a maze and several traps, including moving giant statues with spears. Ah, I was a lot more agile then, as well.

“Wow so you were a regular treasure hunter?” Pierre’s eyes lit up.

“Ha. You like that?”

“Well, I always dreamed of doing stuff like that when I was a kid, but then I stubbed my toe on a thumbtack while exploring an abandoned building in my neighborhood.”

Ray wrapped his arm around Pierre’s shoulder.

“He’s such a baby,” Ray joked, “but I love him anyway.”

“Well, I’m a baby, too. I’m just a big one with lots of experience. Sometimes you just gotta...jump into that active volcano, wander into a toxic mine shaft, or search for the monster under your bed.”

“Yeah, but you make all that sound easy,” Pierre whined.

“It’s not that it’s easy, it’s that it’s…”

I didn’t know the word. I probably did at one point.

My sole weapon is nearly broken. In those examples, I usually had a parachute, a gas mask, or a torch.

“So here’s another story, from just a few minutes ago: Ananke, the woman that I’m searching for, turns out she’s immortal.”

“What? Oh, right, it’s a story,” Pierre was shocked until he scoffed.

“Just because it’s a story doesn’t mean it’s not astonishing, dear,” Ray closed his eyes and sipped his tea.

“Maybe she’s not invincible, but immortal and ageless? Yeah. And for what it’s worth, she practically seems invincible. I tried to fight her and not so much as a dent. Someone like her is beyond belief.”

“It sounds like you’ve got a thing for her,” Pierre suggested.

“I have a thing for Ray,” I waved my hand away, “err...not your husband. Mine.”

“Yes, but she’s your ticket out of here, no?” Ray said. “I must say, even if you make it back home, you’re not someone I’m likely to forget any time soon.”

“That is true. But I don’t even know where she resides.”

Ananke mentioned somewhere tropical. In the Southern hemisphere, perhaps? But didn’t she say it was an artificial environment? So the region probably doesn’t matter so much. Now that I think of it, she found me pretty fast, didn’t she? It’s almost as if…

“I think I do, actually!” I shouted and grinned.

“Oh? That’s great,” Ray clapped his hands together.

“Yeah! I gotta go there now! Like, pronto! ASAP!”

“But...your injuries…” Pierre pointed to my knuckles, then my shoulder.

“Eh. Wounds build character,” I flexed my arms.

“Yeah, if you give them time to heal! Be sensible!”

“Pierre Oiseaux, you bird brain! You’ve known me to be a fool since I got here! Why would I be sensible now?”

“It’s not pronounced ��Wee-saw,’ and you should be sensible because what good is going home dead? If Ray died doing something stupid, I’d never forgive myself. Think about what your Ray must feel if you died doing something stupid!”

“If Ray dies doing something stupid, just kick him until he wakes up!”

Ray chuckled.

“I should agree with my husband – but I won’t say this isn’t amusing,” he said.

I paced around the dining area. It wasn’t good enough to think it would be close. And just saying I wanted to be there now wouldn’t get me there.

“Quick question: do you know an Aurora B?” I asked the two gentlemen.

“What?! Are you associated with her? Her and her gang are awful!”

“In a manner of speaking, yes. But I’m not looking to rob you guys. In fact, if I wanted to do that, she’d already be nearby and of course things aren’t that easy.”

“Why would you want to meet her?”

“Because she could take me there. I have a feeling that Ananke’s close.”

“I’ve got a motor sled. Why don’t you just borrow that?”

“Pierre, I could kiss you if you were Ray and not Pierre. But even if I used your sled, I’d still have to swim across freezing water.”

“I’m with my love on this one,” Ray held out his hand and waved it about. “She’s tried to rob us before a couple of times. Even though she wasn’t successful the second time, she still made a mess of the place. I don’t even think she meant to leave it a mess, she was just shitfaced drunk and kept knocking into things.”

“Ha ha! I’ve done that before!”

Actually, now that I thought about it, I did have a way to contact her. That is, if my hunch was correct.

“Ray, can I borrow your phone?”

“Whatever for, miss?” He asked, smiling coyly.

“I want to know just how alternate this timeline is,” I explained.

Pierre gave a confused look with a side of disgust.

Ray tossed his phone and I caught it in my palm. Just a simple black flip phone. Rather outdated, but y’know, it was cute.

I entered in the digits and dialed.

Back in my own time, Ray had (reluctantly) added Aurora’s number to his contacts back when he decided to have her babysit the diner. I pretty much had her number memorized. Not that I called her often or anything.

The phone rang a few times before I finally heard a familiar, gruff voice.

“Who is this?” She grunted.

“Hey pretty lady,” I cooed. “Why don’t you come over to my place. I’ve got something for you.”

It was Ray’s turn to give a confused look. From the other end of the line, I’m sure Aurora looked just as confused. In hindsight, there was a better way to get her attention.

“I think you have the wrong number. I don’t do booty calls. I got a crew to satisfy me.”

Fuck this.

“I’m not talking about sex! I’m talking about food! I heard from a friend that you and your crew was starving, so I thought I could help, but you know what? Screw this! Some ingrate you are!”

“Hey! Nobody talks to me like that! Where are you? I’ll show you a thing or two!”

“Ray’s place. Look for a yellow building. Can’t miss it.”

“Gah! Just you wait! I’ll satisfy my hunger and then make you eat those words!”

“Bring it.” I hung up and tossed the phone back to Ray.

“What did you do that for?! Are you trying to endanger us all?!” Pierre panicked.

“Yeah, that was...wow,” Ray gave a nervous smile.

“Trust me. Just as much as I know how to deal with Ray, I also know how to deal with her.”

“I hope you’re right,” both Pierre and Ray said.

Now we just had to wait.

We didn’t have to wait long. For all Aurora’s faults, she was at least good at keeping her word. The train parked right in front of the diner. I stepped outside just as she stepped out of the front train car.

There she was, the big redhead with the big, bushy strawberry hair. She had on a thick yellow wool sweater, a gray scarf, and fuzzy black pants.

Oh, and a heavy scowl.

She rolled up her sleeve and clenched her fist.

“Who are you? I wanna know the name of the person I’m about to beat to a pulp!”

Good luck. I’ve already been beaten pretty bad. What’s a little more?

“Sunny Reyes, at your service,” I took a bow.

She grunted.

“I’ve never heard of you!”

“Well, I’ve heard of you.”

“Of course! Who hasn’t heard of the great Aurora B? Now are you ready to pay for what you called me?”

“What? Pretty?”

Aurora stroked her chin.

“Now that I get a good look, you’re rather pretty, yourself. What say you? Wanna join my crew after I finish giving you the beating of a lifetime?”

“That’s only if you can beat me.”

“Oh, I sure can!” She began to run toward me, but I held my palm out.

“Hold it! I didn’t say how we would battle, did I?”

“What? You can’t just order me around!”

“Leg wrestling. You and me.”

Aurora’s face turned red.

“Well...I...my legs are so strong that I could probably crush yours like a grape…”

“What? Scared?”

“No way! You’re on! Right here and now!”

“You can’t be serious, Sunny! Leg wrestling? Unprotected?” Pierre asked, the fear in his voice palpable.

“What? We’re both wearing pants.”

“That’s not the point! People have died leg wrestling! It’s no joke!”

“That’s silly talk! Leg wrestling is perfectly safe as long as you know what you’re doing,” I waved my hand away.

Jeez. Pierre really was a baby.

We both laid flat on the ground, opposite of each other, but our legs against one another. Just as we raised our knees, Aurora yelled, “wait!”

“What now?”

“We should at least roll up the sleeves of our pants. Who’s ever heard of arm wrestling with mittens on?”

“Oh, right. Good point.”

We rolled up our pant sleeves to our knees and folded our bare knees into each other, with her foot between my legs, and mine between hers.

“Hey hey!” Waved what looked to be a cheerful redhead with freckles. “I’m Allison Daughters! I’ll be your referee!”

She jumped up outside the train and looked real giddy, with a whistle tied around her neck.

“All right! Whoever can pin the other’s knee down first, wins!” She explained, then blew her whistle.

We pushed against each other. I had to admit, she was doing a pretty good job of keeping her knee in place, but only time would tell if she would last.

“Remember: if I win, you gotta join my crew,” she sneered.

“Let’s make this interesting: if I win, you gotta take me somewhere,” I said back.

“What?”

“I have somewhere in mind.”

I began pushing harder and her leg began to fold inward.

“Gah!” She grunted.

“I can’t bear to look! It’s too scary!” Pierre gasped.

Oh please. Even though you tried to shoot me? I thought, though my eyes were concentrated on Aurora’s leg. I pushed harder and saw as her knee began to go down, even just a little.

“I can’t lose yet! My pride as a captain is on the line!”

She pushed herself up and sat up. I didn’t know whether or not that could be considered cheating, but I didn’t really care. It wasn’t going to give her the advantage she thought it would.

I sat up and inched closer to her.

“Now we’re even,” I declared and began to push harder. She let out a gasp as she tried to push my leg away.

“Nng…” She winced. “If we get any closer to each other, this might get bad.”

“Agreed,” I held my own, but I wasn’t getting her knee down any lower. I was still in the advantage, but damn if she wasn’t trying.

“I’ll allow it! Get as close as you want!” Called out Allison, the referee.

Aurora pushed harder and our knees were both up once again, evenly matched.

“You’ve got a lot of stamina,” I said.

“I practice with my crew.”

“Sorry to sully your pride in front of your crew, but,” I pushed my leg with as much force as I could muster. Aurora tried to hold on, but it was clear she wouldn’t hold much longer.

“Haa...haa...heh, if you beat me, forget about pride, you’ll earn my respect.”

I grinned, even though I was straining to finish this.

And finish it I did – with one slam of my knee against hers, I pushed her knee down on her other leg and held it down.

“Ha! Victory!” I raised my hands in the air.

We released our grips on each other and huffed in short breaths.

“Haa...aa…that felt really good,” Aurora sighed.

“You’re telling me. Been a while since I’ve had a good workout like that.”

“Um. Sunny. I think you drained our boss!” Allison declared.

“Hey! I’m just fine!” Aurora yelled and pushed herself up off the ground.

“Amazing,” Ray had his hand on his chin as if it were some game of chess.

“So where is it you’re looking to go?”

“I believe there’s an island off the coast of here. I want to get on that island.”

Aurora nodded.

“I see. You’re one of those people.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing bad. I am too. See, there is an island, or rather, three islands. It’s an archipelago surrounded by a wall of fire. There’s a bridge to get across the water to each island, but the problem is that it’s gated. There’s some powerful lady with a wheel who stands guard to the first island. She seems to let most people in as refugees, but it’s like she’s some kind of mind reader.”

“What do you mean?”

“Like, you probably want in for the same reason I did: to steal the food and take it back for yourself, no? Or get this: there’s probably a vast wealth of treasure on those islands. When I walked up, she said she knew what I was after and chased me off with her wheel. Like, excuse me? She wasn’t even that hot.”

I snorted. Sounds like Aurora all right.

“Well, nobody tells me what I can and can’t have...is what I would like to say, if I could get in. That fire wall stretches high. Unless you drop in from the sky, I don’t see you walking in the normal way.”

“Nah. And I don’t want to.”

“So if that’s your goal, I don’t know how I can help you, sorry.”

I placed my hand on Aurora’s shoulder. It wasn’t like her to get discouraged. And I was already reeling back from remembering when I was discouraged.

“It’s okay. We can do this. You just gotta send me flying. Got a cannon?”

Her jaw dropped.

“What?”

The train sped through the icy terrain. I stood atop the front car, wind in my face.

Needless to say, this was going to happen. Just not in the way that I hoped.

No, I wasn’t going to be launched from a cannon. Yes, she did have some, but none in working condition. Instead, one of her crewmates, Russel, said he’d take care of it and to wait in the front car. Allison brought Ray, Pierre, and Aurora a can of ginger ale in the meantime.

“It ain’t much, but it hits the spot. Dawn’s going to be breaking soon,” Allison looked out the window.

“Mm,” Pierre hummed as he chugged down his can of soda. He let out a belch, then said, “you know, I brew the best ginger beer. It’s at Ray and I’s place.”

“Oh yeah? We might have to rob that from you guys sometime,” Allison said. She was far too cheerful about such a prospect.

Ugh. That reminds me…

“Hey. Aurora. I’ve got another deal for you.”

“Yes, dear?” Aurora’s eyes fluttered. Something about being bested at leg wrestling really changed her demeanor.

“I want you to stop robbing Ray and his husband’s establishment.”

“Nu-uh. What’s in it for me?” Aurora crossed her fingers.

“I’m not telling you to quit your lifestyle – how about this? You avoid robbing their place, and they’ll give you and your crew free food for life.”

“What?! What’s in it for us?!” Pierre balked.

“An interesting proposal, but one that we would have to agree to as well, no?” Ray said while stroking his chin.

“Simple: Aurora, you refer anyone you rob to eat at Ray’s diner. He’ll get customers. You’ll get free food. Sound good?”

Aurora shrugged.

“Eh. Yeah. Sure. Maybe I’m just getting on with age, but that sounds fine.”

She didn’t sound too enthusiastic, but better than nothing.

“And if they go back on the deal,” she added, “I could just have my crew shoot ‘em.”

“There’s no need to go that far. I’d be happy to have you as a business partner,” Ray held out his hand. Aurora shook it while looking away and whistling.

The door to the train car opened. Out popped Russell with his thick brown facial hair and his thick, gray sweater and gray flappy hat.

“It’s ready,” he announced. “Got a big slingshot on the roof.”

Along with the announcement, he reached behind and tossed me a parachute.

“Thanks, RJ!”

“Uh-huh,” he growled. It sounded like a happy growl.

“I forgot that guy’s a construction expert,” Aurora said.

“Oh? You mean to tell me he’s --”

“Yeah. Into model trains.”

Thank goodness there was someone on a train who was into model trains. Always an essential crewmate to have.

“Now, here’s the plan: I want you to accelerate until we get close to the side of the first island. Once we’re close, hit the brakes. I’ll be on the roof, preparing the sling.”

“Are you insane? That’s going to send you --” Pierre was about to protest, but I cut him off.

“Yeah. I want Aurora to send me flying.”

Ray chuckled.

“I think I see now why my other self fell for you.”

“Damn right. I wanna get in her pants,” Aurora agreed.

“Well, I’ll have to give the other Ray and Aurora plenty of love when I get back home,” I gave them a thumbs up and climbed onto the roof.

Before I reached the top, Ray stopped me.

“Hey. You had better live to tell the tale.”

I winked.

The train accelerated and the brisk air caught up with me. I felt icicles form on my nostrils. The wind and icy air caused my air to set backward. I didn’t care. My racing heartbeat told me all I needed to know.

The sky grew brighter. What was deep purple turned into a light, frosty view. It was enough to make me reflect on some things. But not for long, as the island, with billowing flames blocking the way, came into view.

“NOW!” I shouted. “HIT THE BRAKES!”

I pulled the sling back and readied the parachute. I was going to do this.

Just as the train slammed to a halt, near the edge of the shore, there were a few bumps from the train cars in the back and I let go of the sling, soaring into the air in the process.

My parachute opened up midway through the air. I spread my arms out and grinned the whole way, the wind propelling me forward. It still didn’t look like I was high enough...but…

Whether I would become a shooting star or go down in flames, I knew I was going to make it.

#remoras full #writiing #stories #scifi #drama #comedy #action #fate #ananke #aisa #sunny #this was a long time coming #started back in late september #but then lots of stuff happened #got depressed #didnt write for a while #and took a while more to get back into it #but here it is

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cherrygorilla · 1 year

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The Mixtape Mysteries: Chapter 1 (Part 2)

Crazy Train - Ozzy Osbourne - 4:53

Yes, it is a ridiculous amount of time since I last posted anything to do with this (or anything at all really), but I've been dying to write for this story again, so I thought it would be a good way to help me get my groove back. Plus, I wanted to wait until Camp Wanamaker was done before I went back to working on Acting School Drop Out (because I feel like I might be able to use some stuff that's been mentioned in the next part lol). So, after months and months of uni stress that's kept me away from my google doc, here's the next installment of the story that's kept me going through it all.

Listen along with the gang here. Enjoy!

Heavy eyelids dropped over a pair of umber eyes trying, and failing, to focus on the computer screen in front of them. Whilst the radio often felt like Butchy's only co-worker, today it just seemed to be functioning as a lullaby machine - and the smooth, fade-out ending of Electric Light Orchestra's 'Evil Woman' just proved the point further. One second he was staring blankly at a page of pixelated text on a fuzzy screen, and then the next thing he knew he was drooling into the palm of his hand and almost falling off his chair at the sound of a car racing past his window.

It's not even that he was tired - it was barely even 11am for Christ's sake - he was just so bored his brain was shutting down from lack of stimulation. And considering the latest turn of events, his body wasn't far behind. The roaring engine disappeared as quickly as it had arrived, leaving the incessant ticking of the plastic wall clock in its place. It didn't matter what kind of car it was, or where the hell it was going; all Butchy knew was that he wanted to be in it. Hopefully travelling far, far away from this crappy, dead-end town, and this shoe box of an office, that was more dust than desk, and smelled like a wet rat.

Begrudgingly, he gathered himself together and finished typing out the latest file he'd been working on - something about trespassing in the old steel mill, he didn't care enough to look into the details. Tipping his head back, he rubbed his palms across his eyes, trying to press as hard as he could to draw some sort of alertness to the forefront of his mind. If anything, it just made him more tired.

One glance across his desk let his gaze settle on the dorky Star Wars mug Royce and Bentley had gifted him on his last birthday, and for the first time since he'd slumped in the splitting leather swivel-chair that morning, a ghost of a smile graced his features. He took a swig and drained the mug of the last of its contents: bitter, room-temperature coffee. Wincing at the taste, he picked up the next file to work on, but swiftly dropped it in favour of refilling his mug. After all, the walk to the coffee pot in the main office was the only change of scenery he got all day. Sometimes he watered the dying yucca plant beside him with the rancid liquid just so that he had an excuse to get away from his desk.

The tapping of keyboards and mumblings of the same, tedious phone calls he overheard every day met Butchy's ears as he lumbered down the hall and pushed open the office door. Lurking behind the frosted panel, caked in as much dust as the rest of the building, was the rag-tag reception team, consisting of three women Butchy had absolutely no intention of even looking at, let alone speaking to. He'd given up trying to make conversation with his co-workers pretty quickly after every meagre attempt on his end had been ignored. Most shifts passed without him uttering a single word. However, Lela ditching his ride that morning must have thrown him off more than he realised, because this shift was about to become an anomaly.

"So I said to him: If you know so much about the damn sausages, why don't you cook 'em yourself?"

"I bet he knows a lot about one kind of sausage."

"Oh Jen, pull your mind out of the gutter, you sound like a teenager."

"She practically still is one."

"I'm right though, aren't I?"

A strained sigh slipped past Butchy's lips before he could stop it. The nasal drones from the women behind him were enough to make his eye twitch at the best of times, but the added scraping of Jennifer's nail file made it inevitable. Before he could short-circuit altogether though, one of the adjoining doors to the main office was pushed open, and the conversation unfolding behind it immediately caught his attention.

Heaving a sigh that put the young trainee's to shame, the fourth, and final receptionist, led the charge into the room - two officers hot on her heels. "Well, you'll just have to go alone then, won't you, gentlemen?"

"We can't just 'go alone', the chief's the only one that goes on solo investigations. What if it's dangerous? What if we need back-up?"

"And what, pray tell, Officer Reynolds, is so 'dangerous' about a broken store window?"

"Well from the sounds of things it's a pretty clear-cut robbery. What if the culprit's still on the scene? What if he's armed?"

"Why are you assumin' it's a 'he'?" Jennifer piped up with a smirk, punctuating her question by blowing the acrylic dust from the tip of her nail.

As expected, neither officer batted an eyelid at her interruption.

"We got the call last night. You've got a higher chance of him sticking the damn window back together."

"But what if it's like that time when Old Man McRoberts'-"

"Enough, boys. I don't want to hear it," she finally snapped, slamming the stack of paperwork down on her desk so hard it even made her glasses chain quiver. Turning to the pair with her hands planted firmly on her hips, she continued. "Callahan, you're on patrol with Officer Powell; Reynolds, you're investigating that store window. Alone."

"But Fran, that never-"

"No, I don't want to hear another word. You're going solo, Reynolds, and that's that."

"...Uh, I could go with you."

The whole office fell silent. Even Jennifer's nail file seemed to pause for thought. But all too soon, six pairs of eyes fell on Butchy, whose grip on his mug instinctively tightened under their bemused glares. He couldn't exactly blame them; even he couldn't believe that he'd dared to speak - let alone suggest such a thing. But then again, this was a perfect opportunity - perhaps the only opportunity he'd get (at least for the foreseeable future) to prove himself a worthy member of the team. Being stuck behind a computer screen all day was getting him nowhere - in fact, he was pretty sure he had even less respect now than when he'd first set foot through the door over a month ago. But working on a case, a real case, meant he could put all the skills he'd learnt in his training to the test - show everyone that potential he'd promised in his interview. This could be the making of Officer Bandoni. This could be his ticket out of that godawful, stuffy office. This could be-

"Oh my god, look at his face; he's serious."

God, he hated Jennifer. But he hated that cackling laugh of hers even more.

"Jennifer," Linda, the crotchety receptionist to her left, scolded. If Butchy hadn't known better, with her brusque, hushed tone and sharp glare from over the top of her tortoise shell glasses, he'd have thought the woman was her mother.

"Yeah right," Officer Callahan snorted. But a pause, followed by a brief glance in the new recruit's direction soon had his confidence faltering. "I- Oh…"

"Hey, cut him some slack, Jen; the kid's still learning the ropes," Officer Reynolds piped up, ignoring Officer Callahan's attempts to hide his smirk by smoothing out his moustache, and instead sending the smarmy receptionist a blasé, yet stern frown. "Of course he wasn't being serious."

"Actually, I was," Butchy corrected. He set his mug down and stood his ground opposite the two officers, gently nudging his chin up and puffing out his chest in an attempt to outwardly show some of the confidence he was so desperately trying to scrounge together. At least that would help to mask the stubborn rage bubbling away in the pit of his stomach. The staff's dismissiveness was frustrating enough on its own, but being reduced to a 'kid' was downright infuriating. 'Kids' did not single-handedly raise their little sister. 'Kids' did not give up their weekends to go and work in a shitty garage for two bucks an hour all throughout high school just so they could have food on the table. 'Kids' did not shoulder the responsibility of four adults after stepping up to parent, not only his own sister, but the three boys next door too. Butchy hadn't felt like a 'kid' in years. He had always been the oldest - the most mature, the most dependable, the most capable… So for these six adults, who had barely given him the time of day in the month he'd been working with them, to stand there and tell him he was nothing more than a 'kid'...it was insulting. And he was determined to prove them wrong. "If you need another officer for back-up, and no one else is free, then why can't I go with you?"

"Well, for one, you're not an officer-"

All Reynolds had to do was hold up a hand for Callahan to snuff out his snickers. "Because you haven't finished your training yet, son," he plainly explained. At least his withering look was softened by a bored tone.

"But I've aced every part of the course I've completed so far," Butchy argued. "And this could be a chance for me to learn on the job, out in the field-"

"Son, let it go."

"You said, yourself, that I've got potential. Why can't I just show you-?"

"Look, kid, you're not ready - you won't be for a long time. I admire the optimism but we've gotta look at the facts here. And truth is: the dirt on Callahan's shoe's got more experience walkin' 'round a crime scene than you do. I know you want to get out of the office and get a taste of the action, but I can't work the case and babysit you at the same time. It's just not realistic."

'Babysit'? Butchy could feel the word in the palm of his hand as he clenched his fingers into a fist around it, crushing it, along with all its juvenile connotations. "I'm not a 'kid', I'm eighteen years old," he insisted, choosing his words and tone very carefully as he fought not to lose his cool.

"Yeah, and I'm not a chainsmoker neither," Jennifer sniggered, appearing to have swapped her nail file for a cigarette during the confrontation. She took a long drag as her, deep, carob eyes latched onto his, lashes sprawling across a rough sea of streaky kohl, before letting the smoke leak out through her crimson-painted smirk.

Butchy didn't know what was more nauseating: her attitude or the stench of tobacco hanging in the air.

Officer Reynolds let out an exasperated sigh that soon stole back the trainee's glare though. "That's all well and good, but it's not gonna change my mind. You need more experience before you go out in the field, Bandoni," he explained, with an expression that told Butchy he was well-weary of the conversation now. "You can't learn to run before you learn to walk. It's just not realistic - if anything, it's naïve."

"But how am I supposed to get more experience when I'm stuck behind a desk all day?"

Butchy's question was shot down though as the pair of officers crossed the room to the office's main door, back to their usual routine of barely acknowledging his existence. "If I'm not back by two for your CPR training, Officer Powell will handle it, okay?" Reynolds said as he plucked his hat from the coat stand in the corner and secured it atop his head of thinning, taupe hair. Knowing the new recruit wouldn't be satisfied with any answer he could give him, he'd just decided to brush the question aside altogether.

And knowing that defiance, and further provoking, would get him nowhere, Butchy finally relaxed his hand, and gave a stiff nod. He silently watched the officers announce their departure to the room and felt his shoulders slump in defeat, his chest aching with betrayal. Officer Reynolds was supposed to be his mentor, the one who would take him under his wing as he learned the ropes - and yet he'd kicked him to the curb and spat in his face the one time he'd tried to do the right thing. At least that's how it felt to him anyway.

"Bye boys," Jennifer trilled with a flirty giggle as the office door closed behind them. Tapping the ash from the end of her cigarette, she turned her vampish smirk to Butchy. "Nice little show there, Bandoni. And there I was thinking today was gonna be boring."

Butchy's frown deepened as her scornful laughter battered his ears. The thick-headed she-devil wasn't worth his breath though - even the sickened huff that escaped his throat felt like a waste. His fingers once again closed, although this time they at least found the warm ceramic of his mug beneath them. Letting the heat seep into his skin, he took a deep breath in through his nose and tried to focus on anything else other than the anger boiling in his chest. At least the Star Wars mug, and the memory of receiving it, gave him something to anchor himself to: a way to discharge all the bitter resentment that had been steadily building for weeks, but had finally come to an ugly head. One more snarky comment from Jennifer and he'd have hurled the coffee at her sloppy up-do, he knew it - he could feel himself teetering on the brink.

And yet, a friendly hand in the centre of his back was all it took to draw him back from the edge. "I should be thanking you," Fran said with a sympathetic chuckle, and roll of her eyes at the officers' expense. "I thought they'd never leave."

Managing a weak, but grateful smile to the receptionist, Butchy finally picked his mug up from the drink station and took his leave before he could draw any more unwanted attention to himself. Jennifer's squawking voice still rang in his ears as his footsteps pounded down the hall, desperate (for once) to shut himself away in his office. At least in there he knew he was safe from further embarrassment, even if the only thing waiting for him was a stack of files on petty traffic crimes. Apparently reading about speeding fines and parking tickets was all the excitement his life could afford him for the time being. But, for once, he actually found some comfort in that.

"Well, Wuthering Heights, you were fun while you lasted, but I am not going to miss you," Vivien snorted, holding the worn paperback out in front of her, as if to address it like an old friend.

The gentle chuckles that bounced the soft, chocolate brown curls beside her set her innocent little middle-school heart aflutter, and she caught herself clamping her lips shut in case it tried to escape. Craving the thrill of that sensation again, she snatched a shy glance in his direction before plastering the jovial grin back on her face. "Thank you for the 'A' though, Emily."

"What are you thanking her for? We did all the hard work," Royce scoffed. "I wrote so many notes on the moors I'm pretty sure I almost gave myself Carpal Tunnel."

A snicker crinkled the brunette's nose. "Well you do have the neater handwriting."

"And you have all the good ideas," Royce chuckled, praying desperately that the prickling he felt across his cheeks wasn't what he thought it was.

Stopping in front of a set of painted metal doors, Vivien turned to him with a disapproving frown. "Not all the good ideas."

"Fine… most then."

Whilst Royce may have been able to keep his blush at bay, Vivien felt hers raging like a wildfire as she downplayed his compliment with an affectionate eye-roll and pushed her way out into the crisp autumn air of the Hawkins Middle parking lot. Hopefully a bracing breeze like the one that smacked her across the face the second she set foot onto the asphalt would help her systems stop running on overdrive, because right now she felt like a live wire about to catch light. One wrong move from Royce and he'd be fried to a crisp.

Wrapping her free hand around the forearm that flanked him, protecting his arm from being barbecued should he decide to fondly bump her as they fell into stride once more, Vivien, composure regained, offered him a smile. "I guess that makes us a pretty good team then, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess it does," he agreed, holding her gaze for a beat and letting the sincerity of the moment swell alongside the tingly, warm feeling spreading through his chest. "...And we've got the A to prove it." Terrified by the sensation, he snorted out a laugh that shattered the tenderness of the moment just as awkwardly as how he almost tripped over his own feet because he was spending more time looking at Vivien and her freaking dimples than where he was walking. Damn his stupid hand-me-down sneakers from Miles and their stupidly long laces.

More awkward, cheerful chuckles tumbled from the middle schoolers' lips as Royce steadied himself again and they made their way over to the cluster of trees by the soccer field. It didn't take Vivien long to break the comfortable silence that had fallen over them though. "I don't know what we're going to do with ourselves now that project's finished; it completely took over our lives for like two whole weeks there."

"I'm sure we'll find something."

But Royce's laidback grin was the complete antithesis of Vivien's tense shoulders and skittish gaze. Then again, he had no idea what she was planning, or what her skating friends had been begging her to do for weeks.

It couldn't be that hard, right? It was just one little question. She asked him questions all the time, this one didn't need to be any different. And besides, there wasn't really anything Vivien felt as though she couldn't talk to Royce about; he was her best friend, he was always her first port of call for anything that was bothering her - well, unless it was about something like her period; that was strictly for her mom…

But this was just a question: one that could very well have been asked without another thought had she not attached all the extra weight to it in her mind. And yet here she was, fighting her own tongue, trying to persuade it to recite the script she'd meticulously planned out in her head the night before, because for some reason it wasn't convinced by her promised ability to brush the sentiment off as 'just a friend thing' should Royce take it badly. And neither was her mind, really.

Realistically though, what was the worst thing that could happen if he had a weird reaction? It's not like a meteor would crash out of the sky and strike them both down or anything, no matter how much she may want it to in the moment - she knew; she'd checked and it wasn't the right time of year for it. The worst that could happen is things might be a little awkward between them for a couple days, right? He wouldn't-

-Actually, scratch that. Vivien didn't want to think about it.

"Well, actually…" she began, before she could talk herself out of it any further.

Vivien felt Royce's gaze land on her the second she stopped to clear her throat, which had become inexplicably scratchy ever since those last words had left it, clearly so reluctant to be said they'd dug their heels in the entire journey out into the cool, October air. And as soon as it did, it felt as though all her sweat glands released at once, adding a glistening sheen to her already crimson skin. Horrified, Vivien kept her gaze on the ground a few paces ahead of her to avoid having to find out if Royce had realised, and pushed her round, silver-rimmed glasses further up the bridge of her nose in an attempt to shield herself from further embarrassment as a result of her thirteen-year-old hormones wreaking havoc in her own body.

Fearing that the longer she dragged this on, the more her subconscious would betray her, she swallowed her nerves and ploughed ahead. "Do you remember how you missed out on going to watch The NeverEnding Story this summer because you had to spend your ticket money on a new wheel for your bike?"

In her periphery, Vivien saw Royce's hand shift up to play with the fraying fabric of his backpack strap. He only ever did that when he felt uncomfortable. She didn't even have to look at him to confirm it either, the pause before he responded told her almost as much as his tone of voice did.

"...Yeah, but what does that-?"

"Hey nerds!"

Despite their disdain for the term, both Vivien and Royce's heads whipped around to try to locate the source of the voice, mentally cursing themselves for even acknowledging that the phrase could have been used to refer to them, let alone responding to it. But as green and brown eyes scanned a sparse sea of middle schoolers, searching for signs of anyone with ill-intent, they came up short.

"Over here!"

The voice, carried on the wind, drew the pair's gazes to a figure, practically standing on the bench of a rotting, wooden picnic table to try to grab their attention and their disgruntled grumblings fell from their lips within seconds of one another, replaced by fond sighs.

Bentley waved the duo towards him so spectacularly that, for all they knew, he could have been directing a plane to land. And whilst Vivien couldn't help but smile at the blond's boundless energy, she also couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment with how easily Royce shelved their conversation by letting out an almost relieved: "Duty calls."

"Yeah," Vivien agreed with a forced smile and a breathy, awkward laugh to match his. Although it dropped from her face the second he turned his back to head over to the shaded seating area.

Once he was a good few paces ahead of her, and she was sure he was out of earshot, Vivien let out a frustrated huff, so hot she was surprised it didn't steam up her glasses. "Goddammit, Bentley," she muttered, shoving her library copy of Wuthering Heights into her backpack as she started trudging along behind Royce. "I almost got through it all that time."

But Bentley was none the wiser to Vivien's grand plans; too excited by his own news to consider that the pair may have been busy. And besides, the easygoing grin his older brother shot him as he approached made him none the wiser.

"You've gotta come up with something better to call us, Benny," Royce said, fondly shaking his head as he climbed the last few steps of the hill leading up to the picnic table, adorned by Bentley's friends, the contents of at least three up-turned pencil cases, and enough sheets of paper to paper mache a small child. Thankfully, the table was sheltered from the worst of the breeze, so the most that a stray gust could do was flutter the edges beneath the various, makeshift paperweights (dog-eared textbooks and unopened juice boxes) strewn across the splintering surface.

"Why? You are 'nerds'," the boy laughed as he bounced back down into his spot on the bench seat beside August.

"We are not," Royce protested.

"It got you to come over here, didn't it?" Bentley replied with a cheesy smirk.

Royce let out a slightly bitter sigh as he fumbled through a response. "Well- yeah, but it's… demeaning."

"Then why'd you respond to it?" Kona snorted, apparently more focused on selecting the right shade of crayon than bothering to look Royce in the eye as she insulted him.

The bluntness of the eleven-year-old's comment drew a snort of laughter from him before he could stop it, whether it was in amusement or incredulity though he'd never know. But the smile that threatened to envelop his disapproving frown stayed firmly in place as he said, "Because I'm so used to everyone else calling us it, that's why. And you shouldn't be contributing to the problem anyway; I thought we were all on the same side here."

"You calling us nerds, RJ?" Zack piped up with a challenging quirk of his eyebrow.

"Pot calls the kettle black," Royce smirked.

"White boy says what now?" Zack retorted with a confused frown that soon gave way to a mischievous grin the second that Royce rolled his eyes and playfully ruffled his hair, insisting through shared laughter that the boy knew what he meant.

"What are you guys doing up here?" Vivien asked with a breathy laugh of her own as she arrived at the picnic table and caught the end of the boys' friendly roughhousing.

"Having fun until you nerds showed up," Zack scoffed as he shoved Royce's chest in an attempt to get the older boy away from him. But the bubbling giggles that tumbled from his lips as Royce expressed his disdain for the name once more told everyone all they needed to know about how much he enjoyed the brunet's company - proved even further when he resorted to wrapping his arms around his torso and tackling him into a hug from his spot on the bench.

"Looks like it," Vivien noted with a bemused chuckle. "What's all this then? You writing out your own comic book or something?" she continued, gesturing to the vast collection of paper spread out before the quartet.

"We're designing our characters for this cool new game Gus brought in," Bentley raved, holding up his sheet of paper for Vivien to see. "Look at my guy, he's got a wand that's disguised as a paintbrush and this magic flute that lets him talk to animals."

"Damn, Benny, that's so cool," she grinned, marvelling at the artwork with almost as much care as the blond put into creating it.

"And look, here's the one I'm doing for Gus," Bentley continued, shuffling the papers around until he selected the right one.

"You didn't want to draw out your own?" Vivien asked the boy, whose sandy blond eyebrows were furrowed in concentration.

"Nah; Ben's better at art," August admitted, only glancing up from his work to shoot his oblivious friend a shy smile. "And I enjoy the planning part of it more anyway," he went on to explain. "So he's doing the drawing, and I'm filling out his character sheet for him."

"Yeah, 'cause there was no way I was gonna be able to deal with all that," Bentley snorted.

"This looks like a lot of work for just one game," Vivien noted, inching another piece of paper towards her and finding it covered from top to bottom in meticulously written words, numbers, and the occasional, scribbled doodle.

"Tell me about it," Kona scoffed. "I feel like we got extra math homework with this stupid number system we've got to work off of," she added with a huff that blew a straw strand of hair away from her eyes. Begrudgingly tapping the open, yellowing pages of an intricately illustrated book with the end of a pencil, she brought the thirteen-year-old's gaze to the table she was drawing from.

"You guys are willingly doing math over lunch and you're calling us nerds?" Royce asked with a teasing incredulity that earned him further, playful bickering from Zack.

"So what do you do with all this when you've created your characters then?" Vivien continued, feeling a fond smile tugging at her lips as Royce's unbridled laughter tickled her ears. Fighting the urge to swat the imagined sensation away, she focused her attention on the other children at the table. "What's this dorky wizard math game called?"

"Dungeons and Dragons," Bentley explained.

Vivien’s ears perked up. “Dungeons and Dragons? That weird roleplaying game Riven plays with his sweaty high school friends?”

“Who’s Riven?” Kona asked.

“My skating partner,” Vivien said, throwing the explanation away like a used napkin so that she could get back to the main point at hand.

“Ew, so is he like your boyfriend then?” Kona teased with a devilish wiggle of her eyebrows.

“No!” Vivien blurted, maybe a little too quickly if everyone turning to look at her was anything to go by. "No, not like… It's just- He's like my brother, ok?" she hurriedly tried to explain, trying to ignore the bile now creeping at the back of her throat the very thought alone had placed there.

"Ok," Kona snorted, smirking to herself as she caught Royce's shoulders slump in relief in her periphery. Making the ninth-graders squirm was a favourite pastime of hers, and lately, all this girlfriend-boyfriend talk around them, despite making her want to hurl, had been a homerun every time.

"I didn’t know Riven played DnD,” Bentley piped up, earning himself a grateful smile from Vivien for taking some of the heat off her.

“Neither did I until he made us switch our practice days so that he could go play pretend with a bunch of dorks out the back of Eddie 'the freak' Munson's trailer."

"Riven's in that weird Hellraiser club?" Royce asked, bushy eyebrow raised in disbelief.

"My sister says they're all devil worshippers," Zack mumbled.

"It's Hellfire," Vivien corrected. "And they're not devil worshippers - well, Riven's not anyway. As far as I know they're just losers in matching shirts who play make believe like they're still in first grade."

"It's more than just playing make believe," August dared to pipe up with a somewhat defensive frown, immediately toying with the corner of Bentley's character sheet the second the group's attention landed on him. A sideways glance in the blond's direction earned him a reassuring smile that breathed some much needed confidence into his lungs, and as he released it, he said, "There's this whole world you can build your own stories around with all these super detailed characters and a bunch of lore you can discover. I spent my whole weekend reading through the books my cousin gave me and that doesn't even cover half of it. It's like one big choose-your-own adventure story, but everyone gets a say in what happens, and gets to feel like they're a part of it."

A beaming grin and steel blue eyes, sparkling with excitement, found Royce with startling ease. "Doesn't that sound cool?!" Bentley enthused.

"...It actually does," Royce admitted, even surprising himself with his answer.

"Hear that, Auggie? You didn't even have to mention dragons to convince someone that time," Kona snickered, firing the curly haired boy beside her a smirk.

"Whatever," Zack scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You thought they sounded cool too," he added with an accusatory nudge of the blonde's elbow that had her cursing him under her breath for making her pencil skim across the page.

Ignoring his friends' sibling-like arguing, so used to it by now that it honestly would have been stranger to acknowledge it, Bentley kept his attention, and his toothy grin, focused on his older brother. "I knew you'd like it! You're always borrowing those old fantasy books from the library and writing your own versions of them."

"Well- yeah, ok, but what does that have to do with this?" Royce stuttered, cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment despite Vivien's small, amused smile.

"Well this is just like that! Gus wrote out our first campaign all by himself," Bentley gushed before leaning into the shying blond beside him. "That's like the story, right?" he checked in a hushed tone. And after receiving a confirmatory nod, he turned back to Royce with renewed enthusiasm. "The plot, the monsters, the bonus quests - he came up with it all!"

Bentley pushed a stack of papers towards his brother, bound by treasury tags and bearing enough ink to have drained an entire pack of ballpoint pens. "Holy shit," Royce breathed as he picked it up and began flipping through the makeshift book, becoming more and more stunned with every turn of a page. "You wrote this whole thing by yourself?" he asked August, who timidly nodded. "In one weekend?" Again, the boy nodded, this time a little more eagerly. And Royce could see why. "...Wow," he marvelled, smiling as he watched the younger boy swell with pride. "This is really impressive, August."

"You put some serious work into this, huh?" Vivien noted.

"Yeah, I guess," August admitted as his steadily reddening cheeks were pulled aside by an appreciative grin. "It's not like I minded though," he went on to hurriedly explain. "It all came together pretty quickly once I got into it. Plus it gave me an excuse to shut myself up in my room away from my stuffy aunt and that stupid dog she carries around in her purse," he added, earning himself a bright laugh from Bentley that completely stalled his train of thought. Luckily, it was nothing that clearing his throat and refocusing his gaze on the blond's character sheet couldn't fix though. "I guess I just thought it would be something fun for us all to do together, you know?"

"Yeah, it sure sounds like it," Vivien said with a warm smile. But there was still a little, nagging thought hammering away at the back of her head, and she feared that if she didn't use this opportunity of an out as her last-ditch attempt at getting Royce alone before the end of the school day then that nagging thought would break right through her skull and puncture her brain with its pesky little pickaxe. And she needed all the brainpower she could muster to get through this, so she did not want to take any risks. "Anyway," she continued, snagging the attention of the table of eleven-year-olds as she clapped her hands together. "We'd better let you guys get back to planning. We wouldn't want to be the reason for you guys delaying your first adventure now, would we?" she asked rhetorically, firing a knowing look across at Royce that was not-so-subtly hidden behind a theatrical grin.

If Royce picked up on the intensity behind Vivien's gaze though, he didn't show it, instead remaining as blissfully oblivious as he always seemed to be when it came to her intentions as he took his turn to offer a fond smile to the table of his brother's friends. "You'll have to let us know how it goes," he said, before adding with a chuckle: "I'm invested now; it sounds awesome."

Breathing out a sigh of relief between her teeth as Royce rounded the picnic table to join her, Vivien kept her almost clown-like smile plastered to her face as she thanked whatever great powers were at work for making Royce ever so slightly more perceptive than the other, gormless teenage boys in their class. But just as she was inching her way back down the hill, and readying her opening line for the brunet once they were out of earshot of the eager little gremlins, one of them piped up with a perfectly pointed pin to burst her bubble.

"Why don't you just play with us then?"

Bentley's wide-eyed, hopeful grin was the only thing keeping Vivien from snatching up Kona's muddy jump rope and strangling him with it. Besides the years upon years of sibling-like friendship, obviously.

Forcing out a strained laugh, she managed a tight, "It's alright, Benny, we don't want to crash your fun."

"You're not crashing anything; we want you to join in. Right, guys?"

Ok, so Bentley can't read social cues… Good to know.

It would have made things a hell of a lot easier if Vivien could have known about that before she set the wheels of her master plan into motion though, because right now she felt like they were so out of sync they were about to derail the handcar she'd strapped this grand idea of hers to. But even if she could have brought herself to get mad at Bentley, Zack jumped to the blond's defence before she even had the chance.

"Yeah, we're gonna need all the help we can get because Kona can't add up for shit and I'm not about to let my guy Omar Scale Crusher die after I've spent all this time working out his stats."

"I can't add up for shit?! What the hell are you talking about? You're the one who got put in Math 2!"

"Only for a week! And I totally got a better grade than you on that test last week."

"No you didn't!"

"Did too!"

"Bite me!"

As the pair energetically bickered about Zack's accusations, which Kona steadfastly claimed were built on entirely false foundations, Vivien found her frustration with the picnic table occupants crumbling away. After all, they weren't to know that she'd been practising for this lunchtime conversation with Royce for weeks. How could they? The only others she'd confided in were her three skating friends and the balding Big Bird stuffed animal from the end of her bed that had taken on the role of Royce during her many rehearsals. And she couldn't blame them for their excitement over the game either; even she had to admit that it sounded pretty cool. Plus, after hearing Riven rhapsodise about Hellfire's epic campaigns for weeks now, she was starting to get a little curious about the game and how it was played.

"Omar Scale Crusher, huh?" she eventually chuckled, raising a quizzical eyebrow at Zack that soon ground his and Kona's squabbling to a halt. "How'd you come up with that?"

"Isn't it sick? Auggie had this big list of names with cool meanings to help us decide."

After shuffling through the endless sheets of paper around him, August found the right one and went on to explain for a very enthusiastic Zack: "Omar means 'one who has a long life'."

"Yeah, so he'd better live up to his damn name! I'm not planning this whole thing out to have him die in the first round," he declared with a hearty laugh, before tagging on: "Plus my uncle's called Omar and he's awesome."

Vivien couldn't help her snort of laughter at the blunt innocence. "Very creative," she noted. "What is he then? Like a viking or something?"

"No, he's a wizard," Zack stated matter-of-factly. "'Cause why would I bother using a sword when I could just kill an enemy with magic?"

"How come your guy's holding a sword then?"

Royce's frank delivery, from over the younger boy's shoulder, had a laugh spurting from between Vivien's lips before she could stop it. And Bentley, August, and Kona were all quick to follow suit.

However, as to be expected, the brash brunet soon scrambled a retaliation. "Well I'd still want one for backup."

"No duh," Kona chuckled as she finished shading in the metallic sheath of the dagger her character clutched in a leather clad fist. "Magic or not, you still need a weapon."

"Is your character a wizard too then?" Vivien asked Kona, but the incredulous snort the blonde let out could have told her all she needed to know on its own.

"No, Andromeda doesn't need to rely on magic to keep herself out of danger; her dexterity's off the charts."

Before another argument could break out between Zack and Kona as a result of her roundabout dig at him, August decided to speak for the table. "Zack’s our mage, Kona's our thief, Ben's our Bard and my guy's a ranger."

"But you're the dungeon master too, right?" Bentley checked, mischievous blue eyes peeking out from beneath furrowed bows.

August's own eyes were drawn to Bentley's the second that he'd opened his mouth, but the smirk tugging at his friend's lips was what captured his attention. "What's so funny?" he challenged through a chuckle that coaxed one out of Bentley too. "You don't think I could be a dungeon master?"

"I never said that," Bentley laughed. But the look the boys shared meant they both knew that's what his tone had implied.

"You didn't have to."

"Well can you blame me? It just sounds so menacing and scary. I know you read all those horror books and stuff, but come on, you're about as intimidating as Winnie the Pooh - who, last time I checked, was still tucked under your comforter next to your pillow and your old baby blanket."

Jaw dropped in incredulity, August lightly elbowed Bentley in the ribs. "I can so be intimidating," he retorted. But if he was pretending to be mad at the boy, his true feelings were soon revealed by the smile he couldn't seem to keep off his face.

"Yeah, well, we've yet to see it," Kona bluntly noted, which once again set Royce and Vivien off giggling at the sixth graders.

"You sound like you've got a pretty well-rounded group then," Royce carried on, drawing the conversation back to August's point from earlier. "Are there even any roles left for us? Or are we going to have to start doubling up?"

"You can double up if you want, but there's still a bunch of classes that haven't been picked yet," August explained, flipping through the large book spread out before him until he got to the right page. "We've not got a druid, a cleric, or a fighter."

"What does a fighter do?" Royce asked.

"Fighters are weapons-oriented warriors, who fight using skill, strategy, and tactics," August recited from his handbook, bringing the group's attention to the detailed illustration of an armoured swordsman, wielding what looked to be an incredibly heavy shield with almost no effort at all.

The second Vivien's eyes met the page she knew it was game over; her imagination kicked into overdrive and tossed all other thoughts about how she could have been spending this lunchtime to the curb. Racing at a million miles an hour, her brain plucked ideas from seemingly thin air and began piecing together a muscular young woman, strong enough to knock an ox clean off its feet in one quick shove, although you'd never know it since her frame was cleverly disguised in roughened leather padding, tarnished silver armour, and rich, violet robes fashioned into a sort of cape. Her face was weathered, but kind, and her vibrant, emerald eyes sparkled with determination, and the promise of adventure. Like the picture in August's book, the woman carried a large, battle-scarred sword by its ornate handle, and kept a hefty shield vigilantly by her side, painted in, again, deep shades of indigo, violet, and the blood of her enemies, naturally. She also had a quiver of arrows slung over her shoulder though, nestled beside a crossbow, just peeking out from behind a head of flowing, chestnut locks. The heroine had no time for preening, so her hair was tousled with grease and grime from combatting the elements on her journeys, but as it fluttered in the wind, it was kept away from her face by intricate braids, weighed down by silver rings and stolen jewels of amethyst and topaz. She smiled at Vivien from the forefront of her mind, as if marking her territory there, and Vivien felt her heart skip a beat as she breathed out a quiet, and hopefully nonchalant: "Hmm…cool."

"That sounds like a good one for you, Viv. Strategy and tactics? You're great with planning stuff out," Royce noted. But one glance in her direction and his face broke into a knowing smile the second he clocked her eyes, glazed over in thought, and lips, parted in awe.

"Yeah, and look, you'd make a great cleric," Bentley continued, pulling Royce's gaze away from Vivien, albeit reluctantly. Flipping the page of August's handbook, he excitedly tapped at a drawing of a tall man, draped in heavy, fur pelts and bronzed chainmail. A glowing staff was held in one hand, and a massive axe was thrown over his shoulder as though it weighed no more than a sack of flour.

"Clerics are versatile figures, both capable in combat and skilled in the use of divine magic," August recited from the page after a light, nudge from Bentley. "They're also powerful healers."

"See? That's perfect for you! You're always helping patch us up if we fall off our bikes," Bentley enthused, undeterred by the amused chuckles that his brother unleashed as a result of what he thought was an adorably innocent explanation.

"Yeah, and we could use a healer on our team, especially with those two and their lack of impulse control," August snorted as he gestured to Kona and Zack, who jumped at the chance to express their indignation.

As the group of friends returned to jovially bickering amongst themselves, Royce and Vivien's minds were quietly whirring with ideas. Ideas which, upon glancing at one another, they soon realised were all too perfectly aligned.

"What do you say then, losers?" Kona finally asked once she'd finished fighting her ground against the boys, snapping the eighth-graders out of their heads and bringing them back to reality with a knowing smirk. "Are you playing with us or not?"

Royce, as always, left the decision to Vivien. But the hopeful glimmer in his caramel eyes, paired with her own, itching curiosity made that decision all too easy. And besides, even if she wasn't spending time alone with Royce, she was still spending time with him. And that was good enough for her.

…For now.

"Well… I guess one game couldn't hurt, right?" she said with a smirk that soon broke out into a grin as Bentley's face lit up like a firework display. And it only grew when she glanced across at Royce for one last confirmation that she'd made the right decision, only to find him beaming with almost as much enthusiasm as his brother.

If this nerdy little game brought Royce this much joy, and was even half as much fun as it sounded, then Vivien knew it would be worth another few hours of crippling anxiety. Besides, she hoped that she could immerse herself in the story so much that she'd forget all about her predicament with the brunet anyway. But as they took their places at the picnic table, and Royce's sneaker brushing against her shin shot a jolt of adrenaline up her leg with such a force that she almost jumped straight back out of her seat, she knew that that was just wishful thinking. Covering up the brief waver in her cool, confident exterior with a quiet cough, she tried to refocus her mind on the endless streams of information August was unleashing on the pair of them.

"-and so the group our characters all belong to is called The Circle of the Emerald Torches, but part of the first campaign is about how we get our name, so I'll explain more about that later. Before you start, and before I give you your character sheets though, if you want to be in our party then you'll need to recite the Oath of Noble Heroes so that we know you're serious about this."

"Don't worry, we had to do it too. But it's so cool, you'll love it! And then there's a declaration of loyalty for you to sign somewhere too," Bentley tagged on before the boys started animatedly babbling amongst themselves about the ins and outs of their party's rules again.

Shaking his head at the pair, Royce took the opportunity of them being distracted to lean over to Vivien and teasingly chuckle, "What the hell have you just gotten us into?"

Fighting the urge to roll her eyes at the boy, knowing that his enthusiasm for the game was a major driving factor in her decision to play, and that he was also well-aware of that fact, she looked him square in the face and hid her smirk behind a deadly serious, blank expression, "I'm pretty sure we just joined a cult."

American History, Volume 2, lay open on page 38. And it had laid there like that for the past 45 minutes, having been abandoned by its current owner almost as soon as it had been removed from their backpack. Because instead of completing the assigned history homework, the desk's occupant was using their study hall period much more wisely: by shredding a solo, courtesy of Ozzy Osbourne, on possibly the most prestigious instrument of all: the air guitar.

Ethan's eyes slid shut, and a blissful smile curled his lips as he mashed the volume button on his Walkman with practised ease. Bar after bar of 'Crazy Train' pounded through his skull at a staggering volume, rattling what little of his brain was left in the mostly vacant space between his ears, helped along by the bopping of his head in time with the song's beat. When his fingers weren't plucking out riffs on imaginary strings, they were banging out the drumline on a drum kit that was just as real as his Gibson SG. And all the while, he was passionately miming the lyrics for his audience of the pencil shavings and dust mites that hugged the wall beside his desk.

He felt the music in his bones. The bass line pumped through his veins. Every note that was played resonated through the chambers of his heart until it felt like the song was as much a part of him as his left arm. And the deeper he let himself sink into the music, the less aware of his surroundings he became - or the less he cared to remember them anyway. Until a sharp elbow to the ribs shattered his rockstar illusions, that is.

Bleary brown eyes met earnest, steel blue, and held nothing but confusion for the several seconds it took him to realise that Miles’ mouth was moving without making a sound.

“What?” Ethan bellowed, prying a wailing headphone speaker away from his ears as he leaned closer to the exasperated brunet.

“Jesus, man!” Miles exclaimed under his breath as he reached across to his friend’s Walkman to frantically turn the volume down. “Are you trying to blow your eardrums out or something?”

“That would be pretty metal, so maybe,” Ethan chuckled, entirely unphased. But Miles’ disapproving frown soon had him rolling out an explanation. “You’ve got a front row seat for my biggest show yet and you’re choosing to lecture me about volume control? I can care about my hearing when I’m in the retirement home.”

“You’ll be lucky if you make it to a retirement home," Miles snorted. "You've got the survival skills of a two dollar house plant."

Instead of arguing back, or even rolling his eyes at his best friend's dig, Ethan just continued chuckling along in agreement as he slid his headphones down to rest around his neck - still blaring out Ozzy Osbourne's vocals, although they were only just audible over the hubbub of chatter and laughter that filled the rest of the classroom. "What were you saying before anyway?" he went on to ask. "Did you want something?"

"Yeah, the answer to number four."

"Pfft, you think I've even made it past one?" Ethan guffawed, astonished and highly amused that Miles thought highly enough of him to assume he hadn't been shirking his responsibilities all afternoon. "I've got no fucking clue. What chapter are we on again? Abraham Lincoln?"

The mix of despair and disbelief Ethan was faced with when he glanced back across at Miles told him his guess might not have been as accurate as he'd pitched it to be. "...Are we not on Abraham Lincoln?"

"We haven't done Abraham Lincoln since freshman year," Miles deadpanned before letting out a chuckle of his own. "When was the last time you actually paid attention in one of Mr Bishop's classes?"

"Probably freshman year," Ethan noted with a laugh, slumping back in his seat and starting to rock on the back two legs of the flimsy, plastic chair. "I think the only chance I've got at retaining any of the information in that textbook for this month's pop quiz is if I eat it."

The look of reproach Miles shot the carefree stoner could have fooled any passerby into thinking that he was the boy's father, but he blamed that on the past however many years of having to act as a sole parental figure for two young boys - who, on several occasions, had actually proved to be far more mature than the lank-haired brunet before him. More often than not, Ethan felt like a third child he had to keep alive. And somehow, his lack of height was not one of the driving factors behind that reasoning.

"Oh come on, don't give me that look," Ethan groaned, ever the resentful teenager in their relationship. "You've not exactly been Mr Studious yourself today."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well you've been stuck on that same question for the last twenty minutes 'cause you keep making goo-goo eyes at you know who," Ethan smirked as Miles' eyes widened in horror and his forehead started to prickle with sweat.

"No I don't," he indignantly tried.

"I thought you said you were over her," Ethan teased.

"I am! It's not like that anyway," Miles muttered, then added. "And it's not been twenty minutes."

"It totally has."

"How the hell would you know? You've been listening to Motorhead since we sat down."

"Yeah but my fuckin' eyes still work," Ethan snorted, hitting Miles with a loving grin that had him rolling his eyes before Ethan had even finished his sentence. And yet, the boy's frustration did nothing to deter him from probing further. "What's the stalking for this time then? You know, if you're not trying to get in her pants anymore."

Miles was at as much of a loss as Ethan. His eyes found the head of bouncing, blonde curls with almost no effort at all (likely a result of an entire study hall period of practice), searching for some sort of answer. But all he found was a dull, fluttering in his chest.

Even the giddy, lovestruck butterfly that had been trapped in there for months seemed to have admitted defeat.

Still, his gaze never wavered. He watched airy laughter spill from her glossy lips, and her nose crinkle beneath brilliantly blue eyes, framed by thick, black lashes and copious amounts of mascara. Whilst before, Miles could have eaten through a movie theatre's entire popcorn supply and still want to look just a little longer, in that moment he just felt empty. And that’s when he realised it wasn't actually Carrie herself that was occupying his mind, it was everyone else around her, and how she was treating them. Plucking a proudly presented flyer for a house party from one, impishly teasing another, waving at Sharon Frye on her way out the door, firing a flirty wink in jest at Steve Harrington after giggling at one of his jokes…

Miles was certain she'd looked at every other person in that room at least once since their study hall period had begun, and yet the closest her eyes had ventured over to him was when she glanced at the clock on the wall. Every thought in his head was plagued by her smile, or her voice, or her laugh… Had he ever even crossed her mind?

"Do you think she actually cares about us?"

Miles hadn't been able to bring himself to tear his forlorn gaze from the blonde in question, but that didn't stop Ethan from snorting out an answer. "Well yeah, I'd hope so; we spend enough time with her."

"Not by choice," Miles huffed.

“Well she talks to us now, and that’s more than we could have said before we worked with her, so that’s got to count for something,” Ethan chuckled. “But if this is about what I think it’s about, then she absolutely cares about you, dude. Like way more than the rest of us.”

“You really think so?”

“Dude, it’s like you two are glued at the hip. I can’t get you away from each other for shit once we close every night,” Ethan replied. And when Miles still looked unsure, he added, “Why else do you think I always get stuck cleaning the kitchen with Mick? She hates my guts!”

“No she does not,” Miles softly chuckled.

“Well I definitely don’t think she likes me, not like Carrie likes you anyway,” he retorted with a smirk and a wiggle of his eyebrows. “I’m telling you, man. There’s something there. There’s no way she’d laugh at your crappy jokes like she does if she didn’t at least have a little interest in you - I don’t care if Mick thinks it’s bullshit, I know I’m right.”

Miles just rolled his eyes, but a hopeful smile desperately pulled at his lips, no matter how many times he tried to dismiss it. “I don’t know, I think she probably just does it to be nice,” he mused, watching as Carrie animatedly responded to Rachel Price before turning back to resume her conversation with the girl sat beside her - the very girl that Miles still had an irrepressible urge to swap lives with: Juliet Harmon. Now faced with nothing but the back of her head, he quickly lost interest in the view. “…She seems to act like that with most people.”

“She definitely does not, man. Why do you think the entire marching band is scared to look her in the eye? She’s like one of the biggest bitches in school,” Ethan scoffed. But he paused when he realised Miles wasn’t laughing along with him. “Why does it matter how she acts around other people anyway?”

“It doesn’t,” Miles huffed. “…Not really.”

But the second he dared to make eye contact with his oldest friend, the floodgates opened and the truth came tumbling out.

“I just…feel stupid for letting her get in my head, and for actually thinking that we had something special - that I was somehow different to all the other idiots who throw themselves at her to get a second of her attention. But here I am, thinking about her constantly, hanging onto every interaction we have like my fucking life depends on it, only for her to… Ugh, I don't know. I just…don't want it all to not mean anything to her, when it means so much to me - no matter how much I try to convince myself it doesn't. I mean, yeah, she's nice to me at work - really nice - but she barely even acknowledges me outside of All Skate… It's like I don't even exist, like she doesn't even realise I'm there. And it makes me feel like shit."

"She barely acknowledges anyone," Ethan absentmindedly mused. "I wouldn't take it personally."

"That's a lot easier said than done," Miles huffed dejectedly. There was something freeing about Ethan's nonchalance over Miles' feelings though; it made them feel less suffocating. And whilst he still felt entirely hopeless about the situation, he did feel a little bit of the pressure ease off as he rested his chin on his hand and let his mind start to wander. "...You think she actually considers us friends?"

"Sure; she calls us her work friends all the time."

"No but like her actual friends," Miles clarified.

"Dude, I don't fucking know; the female mind is a mystery to me at the best of times, but hers is on a whole other level," Ethan scoffed in incredulity. "Do you not remember that like thirty minute debate I had with her about diet sodas? Actual insanity.”

Miles' quiet chuckling as he reminisced about what had started as an innocent question, yet progressed to a full-blown screaming match, with each participant equally as confused and frustrated as the other, was soon silenced by Ethan's next prompt though. "I know a way you can find out though…"

"...No!"

"Oh come on, man. Don't be a sissy. It'll be so easy. And then you can stop getting hung up on all these bogus hypotheticals."

Miles' initial horror slowly dissipated as Ethan's reasoning started to lure out a far greater force from its hiding place in the corner of his brain: his curiosity. "...You really think I can just go up and talk to her? In class?" he asked, as his eyes once again found that jumble of golden curls.

"Sure, why not? It's only study hall."

Again, Ethan's nonchalance, which was only heightened by the fact that he was trying to balance a pen on his curled upper lip as he responded, did far more for Miles' confidence than any pep talk of his own could have. And besides, maybe he was onto something - maybe it really was that simple; it always was in his world.

"It wouldn't be weird?" Miles double-checked.

"Why would it be weird? All you're gonna do is talk to her. And we already established you two are friends, so what could go wrong?"

Miles shuddered at the very thought. "So much."

Ethan glanced across at him, ready to fire out further encouragement like a sixth grader with a penchant for making spitballs, but when he clocked his friend's nervous fidgeting, he reconsidered his situation and gained a little clarity. "Ok…yeah, fine, stuff could go wrong. But are you gonna die?" he proposed.

"No," Miles begrudgingly mumbled.

"Are you gonna break something?"

"No, but-"

"Then how bad can it be?" Ethan cut in with a lopsided, optimistic grin before Miles could tie himself up in any more self-conscious knots. "Just get over there and scratch that itch that's been bugging you for weeks; it's not gonna stop until you do. And you'll feel so much better after."

It took Miles by surprise every time it happened, but yet again, it seemed as though Ethan might actually be…right. This question of Carrie's loyalty had been eating away at him for weeks now. And, as he'd stressed earlier, it was making him feel shittier and shittier with every day he let it drag on. Asking her outright was a definite way to get his answer… It was just going to require him growing some balls, as anything to do with All Skate's resident disc jockey apparently made his own shrink to the size of peas.

"...Just walk over and talk to her?" Miles checked. Although, between us, he was just stalling to give himself more time to muster some courage.

"Yeah, as a friend," Ethan confirmed.

"You really think I can pull that off?" Miles asked with a dubious, but hopeful quirk of his eyebrow that had Ethan melting like a bomb pop that had been left out in the 4th of July sun.

"Absolutely," he grinned, totally enamoured by his friend's giddy trepidation, and the promise of a relationship he so steadfastly defended. "She's got a major soft spot for you, man. I see it like every night," he went on to reassure. "There's no way she's gonna blow you off. You'll be fine."

And as a result of that dopey grin, complemented by the ratty, chestnut locks, and vacant, dark chocolate eyes… Miles believed him.

"...Ok, I'm going in," he breathed through a determined smile.

"Atta boy," Ethan chuckled, fist-bumping Miles before tipping his chair back onto all four of its legs again, as though to signal the resolution of their predicament. "Go scratch that itch," he added, finishing their little handshake with a bolstering point before lifting his headphones back over his ears and disappearing back into his wildest rock star fantasies - totally oblivious to the disaster about to unfold right behind him as Miles took a deep breath and waded into the wild, uncharted waters of the female mindset.

"So now that we know that y=7, we plug that into this side of the function, that we've already simplified, to give us this…which then means that we can carry this over here, giving us x=3."

…Silence.

"Right?" Juliet checked, although the satisfied smile that had settled on her carnation pink lips as soon as she finished the sum was beginning to falter into one of desperation as she turned to her tutee. "Did you follow along ok that time?"

But all Juliet was met with was a glassy stare and an infatuated grin, smushed between two fists as its owner rested their chin on their palms. "You're so smart, Julie," Carrie breathed.

Juliet just rolled her eyes, although she did little to hide the bashful blush tickling her cheeks. “Never mind that, did you understand how I worked it out that time?”

"...Kind of?" Carrie tried, offering a lopsided, hopeful grin to try to lessen the blow.

If Juliet's exasperated huff was anything to go by though: it didn't work. But her frustration dissolved the second that she met Carrie's gaze. "Where did I lose you?" she asked with a gentle, patient sigh.

"The whole reversing the function bit," Carrie admitted as she bit her lip and braced herself for Juliet's reaction. Although the blonde's expression never wavered, the dismay that flashed in her eyes soon had Carrie barrelling through an explanation. "I swear I was getting it before that this time, but then it all started to sound like you were talking in another language, and then I got distracted by that pretty way you write out the 'x' again, and then I just…"

"...Stopped listening all together?" Juliet teasingly offered with a fond smirk.

Carrie scoffed in mock-defence. "No, I listened the whole time, I just stopped taking it in," she went on to clarify. But as soon as she drew a giggle from Juliet's lips she melted into that same infatuated grin from earlier as she admitted, "I'd never stop listening to you. You know I could listen to you talk for hours."

"Even about algebra?" Juliet teasingly tested with an affectionate smile of her own.

"Of course about algebra," Carrie gushed with a glittering honesty that soon had Juliet giggling again. "Believe it or not, this is the most I've ever understood a math module," she carried on, straightening up in her seat to help give her point a little more credibility, before tagging on a jovial, "And it's all thanks to you, smarty pants."

"Would you stop calling me that? It's so lame," Juliet protested, hiding her smile behind a frank eye roll. "And besides, I'm not that smart."

"You so are; you're like the smartest person I know," Carrie gushed, never one to let her friends downplay their successes, much to Juliet's disgruntlement. The blonde's frown didn't deter Carrie from continuing to lovingly babble straight through her stream of consciousness though. "That brain of yours has to be huge - no wonder you get headaches all the time, it's because it doesn't have enough space in there."

Carrie's knack for making herself giggle never failed to make Juliet smile, but yet again she found herself trying to cover it up with a bashful roll of her hazel irises as she let out a sigh and attempted to get their conversation back on track. "You wanna try another question then?"

"Don't try to change the subject," Carrie fired back with a mischievous grin.

"I'm not, you are!" Juliet retorted, biting back an incredulous laugh. "We're supposed to be doing algebra, not Juliet 101."

Carrie's mischievous grin only broadened. "Now that's a class I might actually get an A in."

Rolling her eyes for the third time at her best friend's antics, Juliet teasingly tried, "What? Not an A+?"

"Maybe," Carrie smirked. "But then again, I might get distracted by my teacher." Her wiggling eyebrows soon had Juliet reprimanding her and attempting to draw her focus back to her school work, but Carrie's mind was already wandering off too far down a different path altogether. "...Do you think you'd ever wanna be a doctor, Julie?"

The comment, that fell slap-bang in the middle of Juliet's offer to rewrite the steps of the previous algebra equation, baffled her into silence - so taken aback by the suggestion that she almost thought she'd misheard the golden-haired girl. "What? No," she spluttered, looking at Carrie as though she'd just sprouted a third nose. "Where did that come from?"

Juliet's confusion didn't seem to faze Carrie though, because her dreamy smile stuck it out through her whole, rambling explanation. "I don't know, I just figured you should use your big brain for a job one day. You know, like one that actually actually makes you think instead of just like a working a cash register, or stacking books or something. And you need to be super smart to be a doctor, so…"

Juliet was quick to shoot down Carrie's optimistic grin. "I do not have what it takes to be a doctor, trust me."

"Sure you do," Carrie defended. "I'd let you be my doctor."

"Oh well then hand me my diploma," Juliet sarcastically replied, once more fondly rolling her eyes and chuckling at her best friend's enamoured stare and incessant bolstering.

"I'm serious," Carrie pressed on though, determined to get through to Juliet despite her doubtful smirk. "I'd trust you with my life, you know I would. I'd let you save my life any day of the week," she grinned. But, after giggling to herself and absentmindedly twirling her pencil between her fingers, when she finally latched onto Juliet's hazel gaze again, only to find it significantly less jovial, it was her turn to express her confusion. "What? You don't believe me?" she teasingly challenged, with a quirk of an eyebrow.

But Juliet still didn't seem to be in the mood to joke back, as her lips fell in line with the horizon and her gaze darted to Carrie's right before finding her again.

Ok, now Carrie was really confused.

"Huh?" she murmured, clearly not as in tune with her best friend's thoughts as she assumed she was.

However, this time, Juliet flicked her eyes to Carrie's right with a touch more resolve, and paired it with a slight, but very purposeful nod of her head in the same direction. And finally, Carrie seemed to get the message.

Following Juliet's line of sight, Carrie turned to look over her shoulder, only to find herself face to face with a person that almost caught her off guard as much as Juliet's sudden shift in dynamic had. "Oh," was the first word to jump from her lips, startling her back into what Juliet lovingly dubbed as 'show-mode' as she rolled her shoulders back and fixed a brilliant smile to her face. "Hey, Miles."

The second that Carrie acknowledged Miles, any confidence he'd managed to trick himself into conjuring fled. And whilst he had a Herculean urge to do the same, he too plastered what he hoped was a convincing smile to his face as he finished his approach to the blondes' shared desk. "Hey, Carrie," he said, breathing a sigh of relief for even managing to get the words out. And yet, he still pushed a little further to add, with a nod of acknowledgement too, "Juliet."

The entertained smirk that started pulling at the corner of Juliet's lips in response caught him off guard, and he felt his stomach gently clench in defence. But he chose to ignore it, returning his gaze to Carrie's bright smile - its familiarity putting him back at ease and igniting that usual fire in his chest that sent warmth spreading throughout his-

Wait, why was she turning back around?

"Right, where were we?" Carrie said, dazzling Juliet with a grin as she readied her pencil on the page. "I've got a good feeling about this next one; I think if you just take it slow-."

"Ahem," Juliet interrupted. Her gaze caught Carrie's once again and held onto it for a beat before she tilted her head forwards, signalling with her eyes that there was still something - or rather, someone - behind her. The confusion, almost disbelief, swimming in Carrie's eyes made Juliet have to bite the inside of her cheek to stop herself from laughing, and locking onto Miles' look of bewildered dismay just made it even harder. But luckily, Carrie was quickly able to decipher her visual message once again, with little prompting this time.

Turning around to find that, to her surprise, Miles hadn't just been greeting her as he passed by her desk, he was, in fact, standing there - well, expectantly shuffling from foot to foot anyway - Carrie remounted her smile. Although now, Miles realised, it wasn't so welcoming. It felt almost…uncomfortable.

"Oh, sorry. Did you want something?" she offered.

He did - desperately so. And yet, he felt as though the sudden shift in tone had already started to write out his answer.

The hairs on the back of his neck started to twitch as the walls of his stomach steadily closed in tighter. But, determined to stand by his heart, and prove to himself (and Mick) that his feelings weren't all built on fantasies he'd created in his head, he brushed the unease away and stood his ground. "No, not really. I just thought I'd…stop by…see how it's going."

Carrie's smile faltered again, giving way to further confusion. "...See how what's going?"

"...Study hall?" Miles said. But the response came out as more of a question than an answer, which he supposed was down to the fact that he wasn't even sure of it himself. And despite his hopeful grin, which he feared was now looking more like a grimace, he couldn't seem to stop trying to rub the growing discomfort from the back of his neck.

God, he hoped that he didn't have any sweat stains.

"Oh, uh, it's going fine," Carrie politely replied. Although her awkward fidgeting with her pencil's eraser told a different story. "We're just going through the algebra homework."

It was weird; it wasn't as though the conversation was making her seem 'off', it was like…the very fact he was talking to her was so distracting she couldn't settle. She was the centre of Miles' universe. And apparently he was just an asteroid in hers: a misshapen hunk of space rock, hurtling past in the blink of an eye, and completely blindsiding her with his very insignificant existence.

A fellow asteroid must have collided with him at some point, because he could feel this weird twinge in his chest, by his heart, almost as though the impact had chipped a corner off. He swallowed thickly, pushing the creeping discomfort away. "The one for Mr Moreno's class?"

"Mhm," Carrie confirmed with a nod.

"Oh, nice…" Miles trailed off with an awkward chuckle and what he feared was now looking like a rather desperate smile. And he was sure his expression only got worse when his gaze was pulled off-course by Juliet, who gave him a look that made him want to give up altogether. How her hazel irises had managed to harness the ability to hiss 'you are totally blowing this' in his ear, he had no idea. And yet, the urge to prove her (and everyone else) wrong gave him the motivation to plough on. "Well, if you still need any help with it later, I don't mind going through some of the answers with you at wo-"

"It's alright," Carrie bluntly cut in, slicing out a chunk of Miles' self-esteem as she did so. "Julie's got it covered," she added, turning to dazzle the blonde with a brilliant grin.

By the time that grin made its way around to Miles though, it felt cold. And it seemed suppressed, like she hadn't really wanted him to see it. What he feared was the beginnings of a smirk were tugging at the corners of her lips too. And whilst he wanted to believe that it wasn't at his expense - some cruel inside joke the pair of blondes had whispered with their oh-so talkative eyes in the second that Carrie's back was turned - something in the pit of his stomach told him otherwise.

"Thanks though," Carrie lazily tacked on, with a brightness in her tone that just felt hollow to Miles now.

"No problem," he breathed. But there was a problem, and he was staring right at her.

Miles tried to find it in him to mean the smile he sent her, but he just couldn't. Somehow, what was supposed to have been a simple conversation between 'friends' had left him feeling more insecure than ever. Why was she so difficult to talk to? And was she making it so difficult? If they'd been at All Skate, cleaning the rink after their shift, he'd have had no trouble talking to her - their conversations flowed like the Mississippi River when it was just the two of them. And yet here, he felt like he was trying to coax water out of a rusty garden tap in the peak of a summer drought.

He couldn't find the words to piece together what he wanted to ask - he didn't think such a sentence existed, not one that he could construct anyway. Carrie seemed hellbent on getting rid of him, which did nothing for his creeping fear that she was only nice to him at work because she had no other option for company. And the damn heat radiating from Juliet's pitying smirk had so much sweat running down his back he contemplated running to the nearest bathroom to wring out his underwear.

And somehow, those glittering, sky blue eyes of hers still threw him a line - a glimmer of hope to cling to. After all, she'd surprised him before - countless times - maybe she'd be able to do it again.

Just as Miles was moving to open his mouth to try one last time though, he was beaten to it.

"Was there anything else you wanted? Or was that it?"

Any hopes of a redemption for the blonde were snatched from Miles' grasp, and the reality of it felt like a punch to the gut. Thoroughly deflated, he accepted his fate with a heavy sigh. It may not have been the outcome he wanted, but at least he had an answer now, and there was a silver lining to that, he supposed.

"...No," he breathed through a forlorn, but relieved smile. "That was…that was all."

Miles felt he must have imagined the concern that flickered in Carrie's gaze - wishful thinking, he supposed - because the airy giggle and laidback grin she flashed him certainly didn't marry up with it. "Oh, alright then. See you later!" she chirped with a wave as he started the walk of shame back to his desk. Again, just as he was turning back to offer a farewell of his own though, she managed to get her words in first. "Don't forget your thick socks."

Miles stopped in his tracks. Now he was more confused than ever. The cheeky glint in her eyes, the knowing smile, the reference to a throwaway joke from their closing shift last night… Everything he'd just come to terms with about her vehement disinterest in him had been called into question with those five, simple words, and a wink that just about made his heart stop.

…Maybe she did really care after all.

With his heart leaping up from its dejected slumber, Miles shot her a grateful smile and chuckled an earnest, "I won't." Breathing out a contented sigh, mind already racing with ways to talk to her about this more that evening, Miles finally felt his shoulders relax as he raised the hand that had been rubbing the back of his neck his whole time. "See you la-"

Nevermind, she'd already turned around to talk to Juliet again.

Again the brunet was flummoxed. The only thing he felt truly confident about as he slunk back to his desk was the very thing he'd been warned of before wading into that mess: the female mind was a mystery. And he had never felt further from figuring it out.

Turning back to Juliet, Carrie couldn't help but shake her head and chuckle under her breath. "That was weird," she noted, tilting her head in the direction of her retreating co-worker.

But Juliet's eyes had never left the bumbling brunet. "Mmm… He's kind of cute," she mused. Although her prompting smirk was lost on her tutee, since her sapphire gaze was immediately pulled to the back of Miles' head.

"Yeah." Carrie's breathed response fell from her lips with startling ease, so much so that it even surprised herself. Hoping to catch it before it slipped into Juliet's ears though, she shook the starry-eyed gaze from her head and scrambled together a cover-up. "Uh, yeah? I can try to set the two of you up if you want. You know, put in a good word at work and stuff."

If she expected Juliet to accept her optimistic offer with open arms though, she was soon proved wrong.

"Yeah something tells me he's not interested in me," she snorted.

Carrie looked at her, perplexed. "What are you talking about? Why wouldn't he be? You're like a total babe."

"Oh come on, Carrie. Please tell me you know that he's got a major crush on you," Juliet said with an almost disapproving frown. "Like major major."

Carrie scoffed at the accusation. "It's not major," she tried, rolling her eyes in a further attempt to downplay the gravity of what Juliet was implying.

"Carrie," Juliet pressed as she knitted her brows. "The guy could barely speak."

Caving under the blonde's hardened gaze, Carrie let out a resentful huff. "Ok fine, so he's got a little crush," she finally conceded. "What's so bad about that? It's not like anything's gonna happen; he knows I've got a boyfriend."

"Mhm… And what does Eric have to say about Miles?"

Carrie rolled her eyes so hard Juliet thought for a second that they might never come back down again. "Why does it matter?" she groaned, her skin prickling with irritation.

"Well he's not exactly got the best track record when it comes to being understanding about you hanging out with other guys," Juliet sighed, with a sneaking suspicion that her tutee's frustration had been triggered by the mention of her boyfriend's name alone: a welcome sign that their relationship was as healthy as ever. Not.

Carrie scoffed as a bitter scowl settled into place. "It's not like I'm 'hanging out with him', we just work together. I barely talk to him during my shift anyway, only when we're clearing stuff up at the end."

"Oh yeah?" Juliet started, curiosity piqued. "And what happens then?"

"Nothing!" Carrie insisted. "We just talk - you know me, I can't keep my mouth shut even when I want to, so of course I'm gonna talk to the guy." Letting out a sigh to try to blow off some steam, she softened under Juliet's gaze and allowed the blonde to lead her through her haze of thoughts. And if Juliet's gentle nudge in the right direction wasn't already enough to do the trick, one glance at Miles' retreating form completely burst the dam. "We've been talking for like the whole last hour of every shift since I started - about school, movies, whatever really - it's like the only thing in that dump that's worth sticking around for. I kind of just did it because I was bored out of my mind at the start, but turns out he's actually really fun, and sweet too - you wouldn't believe some of the stuff he does for his little brothers, Julie; I've literally gone and cried in the break room before after he was telling me about it. It's that cute."

"You cry at everything," Juliet countered with a fond, teasing chuckle.

"Oh come on, not everything," Carrie retorted. Naively hoping that their conversation on the matter had ended there, she let her eyes settle on Juliet's again, only for them to inch open the floodgates once more with a simple bat of her lashes and a tilt of her head. "We just talk and…goof around," she tentatively began - defensive, despite her nonchalance. "You know, make each other laugh about weird things customers have said, or stupid things we did. It's not like we're fooling around or anything. And before you say it, because I know that face: no, I am not leading him on. It's all totally platonic, I swear."

"Ok…" Juliet softly trailed off, taking a moment to choose her words before raising her next point. "Does Miles know it's all 'totally platonic'?"

Carrie let out a groan of despair, as she always did when her best friend lovingly lectured her. "I don't know, Jules. I'm not a mindreader. He's not grabbed my ass or spiked my water bottle, if that's what you're getting at," she grumbled, before promising, "I've got it all under control, I swear."

Somehow, Juliet didn't seem to be buying it; as impervious to Carrie's confident charm as ever.

"So Eric's totally chill about this whole thing with Miles?" she tested, arching a perfectly plucked eyebrow.

"He knows I work with him…" Carrie mumbled.

Juliet nodded understandingly - almost too understandingly - in Carrie's periphery.

"...And does he know how he makes you feel?"

Daring to challenge Juliet's calculated point with ignorant defiance, Carrie whirled around to meet the blonde's smug expression with a gasp of indignation, and an argument that fell away the second she realised that she didn't have a single word in her head to back it up with. Admitting defeat, she sighed and let her body slump, along with her hopes of her vindication in her best friend's hazel eyes. "Ok, yeah, fine. I know Miles has a crush on me," she confessed. Although the guilt laced into her words steadily morphed into hurt the more she tried to defend herself. "And yeah, I do lean into it sometimes because it makes me feel good about myself. Is that really so bad? Is it such a bad thing to want someone to be extra nice to you for once? Or to give you some positive attention?"

"No, of course not," Juliet assured, assuming a fierce determination of her own. "I just think your boyfriend should be able to do all those things and more, and clearly he's not."

Carrie sighed, exhausted by the very thought of him. "This isn't about Eric."

Juliet sighed back, exasperated by her best friend's submissiveness, especially when she was usually so domineering. "How can you still want to defend him, Carrie?"

"Because, I love him, Julie," Carrie replied, finally finding the contented smile the thought of him should have immediately slapped on her face. "And because he's a good guy."

"Really? Because he's been nothing but a dick to you lately," Juliet flatly countered, hoping that with a little pushing her friend would see sense.

"We've just had a couple of arguments, it's not a big deal," Carrie casually defended. "And they're all resolved now, so I don't know what you still have to complain about."

"Just because you had make-up sex does not mean that the problems were resolved," Juliet rolled her eyes before fixing the golden-haired girl with a more earnest look. "Did he actually apologise this time?"

"We talked it out first-"

"Did he apologise?"

Carrie squirmed under Juliet's gaze before muttering a reluctant, "No."

"Ugh," Juliet groaned, rolling her eyes again as she wound up to unleash a rant she'd been working up to for weeks. But, to her dismay, Carrie's defences beat her to it.

"Neither of us did, really. We just agreed to forget it and move on."

"How is that resolving anything?" Juliet asked with an annoyed frown that Carrie was starting to take personally.

"Well I hadn't thought about it until now, so it must have at least kind of worked," she attempted to justify.

But Juliet's nettled scoff told her that her stance on the matter wasn't budging. "You and Eric might as well speak two different languages; I've seen a pig and a fly communicate better than you two."

The comment drew a giggle from Carrie's lips before she could stop it. "Don't try to distract me with your cute, Southern lingo," she said as the amused smile settled on her face and she affectionately bumped her friend's arm - the act bringing both their tempers back down to Earth. Before Juliet could launch into another lecture though, Carrie hoped to diffuse the situation once and for all. "Anyway, we worked it all out and everything's back to normal," she said. Although Juliet's questioning glance made her correct herself, "Better than normal. In fact, we're going to go look for Halloween costumes together this weekend," she finished with an optimistic grin.

Now that was an improvement. For the first time since they'd sat down, Juliet found herself pleasantly surprised. "The Barbie and Ken costume's back on? I'm impressed. You two really must be getting along." Knowing how excited Carrie had been about the idea, she couldn't help but smile at the prospect of it finally coming into fruition.

"Oh no, the Ken idea's long gone. I think he's going as a firefighter or something now."

Juliet's optimism shattered in a split second, and yet she stayed frozen in place, mouth hanging open in disbelief. "...You're kidding, right?"

"No, but I don't really mind. I'll just find something else to go as," Carrie sighed through a small, indifferent smile. If she'd spotted the disgust hidden in Juliet's eyes after her last revelation, she chose to ignore it. "It'll be fun getting to plan out my own costume anyway; I've got so many more options now. And plus, the Barbie one was only gonna be a pain in the ass to-"

"You're not even doing a couples one?" Juliet asked, far too concerned with what she was learning to care about hearing out Carrie's excuses.

"He thinks couples costumes are lame," she explained with a huff. "Or at least that's what Adam told him anyway. He said he wanted to just do his own thing."

"But Carrie, you've been excited about doing a joint costume with him for like a whole year."

"So?" Carrie asked, with an eyebrow quirk of her own, shoving the accusation aside as though she was kicking an ice cube under the refrigerator. "It's just a dumb Halloween party, it doesn't matter what we wear; everyone will probably be too drunk to even pay attention anyway."

"Yeah, but it matters that he doesn't care about stuff that's important to you. He never has, and it's selfish, Carrie - super selfish…" Juliet trailed off with a frustrated sigh, praying that she might finally get the ditzy DJ to see sense. "You need to stop defending his shitty behaviour."

"And do what?" Carrie mumbled, unknowingly giving Juliet just what she wanted: a chance to unleash her anger with the infantile blond bozo and the mockery of a relationship he had roped her best friend into.

"Hold him accountable," she urged, hazel eyes blazing with passion. "Relationships should not have to revolve around making excuses and placating your partner with blow jobs - it's a fucking joke. I don't care about all the 'good times' you guys have, or all the memories you've made; the way you've been treating each other lately is appalling, and you deserve way better," she said, pausing to let Carrie absorb everything she'd just thrown at her before delivering the finishing blow. "And I know you know that too, because you're already looking for it in someone else."

Carrie's blood stilled in her veins. Sometimes it scared her how deeply Juliet understood her, and other times it felt comforting. This was not one of those times.

She took in a slow, shuddering breath as Juliet's words seeped into her skin, carrying a deep sense of guilt with them. As much as she wanted to denounce Juliet's observations and stand by her own, joyously declaring her undying love for her boyfriend at the top of her lungs…her mouth made no attempt to move from its crestfallen frown. It couldn't, because she knew she was wrong.

The despondency in the blonde's vacant, blue eyes soon drew Juliet down from her soap box though. This time she approached with a gentle, almost apologetic, smile as she entwined their fingers and began rubbing circles into the back of her tanned hand with the pad of her thumb. "I just want what's best for you, Car," she quietly promised.

"I know," Carrie murmured, mustering a grateful smile as she squeezed her hand back, as though to say a 'thank you' her mouth wasn't quite ready to commit to yet. "I'm fine, Julie, I swear," she went on to profess. But when she started to get a sneaking suspicion that the statement wasn't all that convincing, she decided to switch up her tactic. "Now can we please get back to algebra?"

The genuine laughter that tumbled from Juliet's lips was music to Carrie's ears. "There's a sentence I never thought I'd hear you say," Juliet chuckled as she picked up her pencil again.

"I'll do anything to get us talking about something else," Carrie admitted with a woeful chuckle of her own. "And besides, I think I've got a better chance of wrapping my head around this than anything to do with my love life at the moment."

"Boyfriends suck, huh?" Juliet snorted with a knowing smirk.

"Try all boys suck," Carrie countered with a smirk of her own, at last feeling as though some of her signature confidence was leaching back into her frame. Although the pair's giggles took a few seconds to die back down, a mischievous glint remained in Carrie's eyes before she let them glaze over in thought. Mind idly wandering down untrodden paths, a wistful sigh escaped alongside a rogue proposal. "Wouldn't it make life so much easier if we could take them out of the equation altogether?"

Carrie was too lost in thought to notice, but the words that left her mouth forced an entire systems reboot in Juliet's brain. She had to do a double take, certain that she must have misheard her, or had at least missed the joking undertone. But no, the glassy, pensive blue irises held nothing but sincerity. And that confused Juliet more than ever. Her mind whirred with possible explanations for the brainless musings that definitely didn't sound as though they came from a girl in a committed, heterosexual relationship, but before she dared to question her on any, a tanned hand, the size of a frying pan, pulled her prospective interview subject right out of her seat.

Carrie's eyes widened as she was whisked into a pair of cotton-clad arms the size of tree trunks, hardly able to catch her breath before it was being exchanged for someone else's. A faintly stubbled smile pressed into hers several times before she fully regained her bearings and was able to catch the frying pan hand from travelling too far south of her waist. "Eric," she giggled once she finally managed to inch their lips far enough apart to mumble a greeting against his skin. A subsequent flurry of kisses kept her from elaborating any further though. It was a wonder they didn't pass out from lack of air.

"Hi, beautiful," he eventually greeted with a smitten grin. But their lips didn't stay apart for long as the dopey quarterback seemed hellbent on keeping his coated in his girlfriend's saliva. "You have a good study hall?" he mumbled, nuzzling his nose against hers. His roaming fingers shattered any hope of his interest in her life being genuine though.

Even if Carrie had wanted to answer Eric's question, his tongue was shoved so far down her throat she couldn't get her words out. "Eric," she finally gasped, jerking her head back from his with a breathy laugh as she felt his thumb start to lift the hem of her cheerleading skirt. "You're gonna get us both detention."

"I can't help it," he chuckled, pulling her back towards him for another seemingly endless stream of kisses. "I missed you." And whilst a stupefied grin played at his constantly interlocking lips, something didn't feel quite right with Carrie. Her kisses were lazy, almost reluctant, and whilst her body normally felt like putty between his palms, today it felt…stiff. She seemed distracted. And because Eric's head was only ever swimming with thoughts of her, this worried him. "Hey," he gently prompted, nudging her chin with his knuckle to bring her gaze up to meet his. "Everything ok?"

Carrie's breath stuck in her throat, too scared of getting caught in the crossfire of two sets of brown eyes to dare to leave. Eric's sat beneath a pair of thick, furrowed brows, marred with insecure concern, and she could feel Juliet's boring holes into the back of her skull, begging her to remember everything they’d just spoken about. Tensions were high in her usually spacious brain - thoughts flying back and forth too quickly for her to make sense of as she tried to let her conscience guide her in the right direction. And although she felt herself inching towards a blonde ponytail-bolstered confession, her conscience's valiant efforts were all for naught. Carrie's fingers found purchase in the bristly blond hairs at the nape of Eric's neck, her cheeks were dusted in the scent of spearmint and the sweaty must from his football helmet. The profound warmth of his embrace seeped into her bones, and she curled up into it like a cat in the glow of fireplace embers - helpless to resist. "Everything's great," she promised, drawn in by the comfort of familiarity. "I just missed you too."

Disappointed, but not surprised by her best friend's decision, Juliet sighed as she tore her gaze away from the stomach-churning couple and began gathering together her and Carrie's things. She'd get through to her eventually, she had faith in the pit of her steadily grumbling gut. She just needed to be patient…or to find something that could drive a wedge between them once and for all.

"Ethan!"

The pint-size pothead almost jumped out of his skin at the barked greeting, which actually felt more like an accusation than a 'hello'. He didn't know what was more offensive, the girl's tone or the fact that she'd interrupted his concert-for-one.

"Jesus, Mick! You scared the shit outta me!" he cried.

Rolling her eyes, Mick let go of the headphone speaker she'd had to pry away from Ethan's ear after he'd blatantly ignored her fifth call of his name, letting it thwack the side of his head. The look on his face as he recoiled in bewilderment did have a faint smile tugging at her lips though. But it soon disappeared when he slumped back in his seat and readied himself to tune her out again.

Moving to stand in front of his desk, Mick didn't give him a chance. "Where's Miles?"

"What?" Ethan squeaked.

"Where's Miles?" she reiterated, crossing her arms across her chest and nodding at the empty seat beside him.

"He's talking to Carrie," he revealed with a blasé wave of his hand in the vague direction of the pair.

Even with AC/DC blasting through his headphones, Ethan swore he heard Mick's face crack.

"He's doing what now?" she demanded, flames roaring in the mahogany logs that made up her irises.

"He's just asking her something, it's no big deal," Ethan said - although his attempts to reassure the brunette were ham-handed at best given his lazy grin and total lack of concern.

This was further backed up by Mick's growing urge to strangle him. "Can I not trust you to do anything?" she hissed.

"What did I do?" Ethan squawked in indignation.

"Nothing - that's the problem! All you had to do was keep his mind off her-"

"I don't know what fucking mind-control powers you think I've got, Mick, but that was a bogus plan in the first place."

"Oh so what? You just weren't gonna go along with it at all?" Mick scoffed. "I just said to try to keep him distracted."

"And I tried, so I don't know what you're getting all pissy at me for," Ethan retorted. "What's so wrong with him talking to her anyway? I thought 'working through your feelings' was supposed to be a good thing."

Scowling at him for using her own advice against her, she snapped, "Talking to her is not helping him distance himself from her." But when her eyes scanned the room for that familiar mop of coffee brown hair, the sight it settled on made her heart drop to her collegiate green Campuses. "And neither is a run-in with Eric Brennan."

Trailing back to his seat, muttering to himself about the mystifying female mindset and what the hell all of that could have meant, Miles soon realised he wasn't looking where he was going when he collided with what felt like a wall of meat.

"Shit, sorry," he muttered.

When he looked up and saw who it was that had almost knocked him off his feet though, he realised his assumption hadn't been too far off.

"Woah, watch it, man," Eric guffawed.

The amused twinkle in his eye, and the smirk that blossomed as soon as his gaze landed on him, made Miles' stomach twist. Something told him that this interaction wasn't going to be nearly as quick as he'd hoped.

"Miles, right?" Eric went on to ask, eyebrow cocked in recognition.

"Uh, yeah," Miles stammered, although he was more confused than concerned at this point.

"Why you in such a hurry, bud? You got somewhere to be?" he continued, a charming smirk still sitting proudly on his chiselled jaw.

"I'm just going back to my seat."

"Oh yeah?" Eric probed, steadily turning up the pressure. "And why were you out of it?"

Miles immediately regretted the exasperated huff that fell from his lips, but he couldn't help his frustration. "Why does it matter?"

To Miles' surprise, the jock didn't snap back at his remark - there was no sign of meat-headed defensiveness at all. Instead, the guy just laughed. "It doesn't," he reassured with a jovial smile. "I just thought I'd ask 'cause, you know, from here it kind of looked like you were going over there to talk to my girlfriend."

Any relief that jovial smile had filled Miles with steadily leaked out as Eric's words sunk in. "I was just asking her about our work schedule," he explained with a careful, albeit tight smile of his own.

"Yeah?" Eric tested.

"...Yeah," Miles confirmed. Although he could feel his bravery slowly shrinking under the hulking weight of Eric's arched eyebrow, he stood his ground, hoping that a nonchalant tone and a set of squared shoulders was enough to convince the dopey blond.

"Oh well, that's a relief," he said with another booming guffaw. Miles' wishes were seemingly granted as the warning smirk slipped from Eric's face, replaced with a laidback grin. "There I was thinking you might have been trying to make a move on her or something."

Miles managed to eke out a chuckle, more at his own expense than anything. "I wouldn't do that, man," he promised through a freshly starched smile. "I know you're both very happy together."

Eric's shit-eating grin must have been powered by at least three AAs with the way it lit up his face. "That we are, my man," he proudly proclaimed. "And that's good to hear 'cause I know you spend a lot of time with her at the end of your shifts, and she says you two get along super well, so I'd hate to think that you were getting the wrong idea or-"

"Not at all," Miles assured, cutting the blond off before he could drive the knife any further into his chest. Fixing a plastic smile to his face to cover up the wistful sigh that escaped between his teeth, he delivered an admittedly painful, "We're just friends."

Eric's rich brown eyes seemed to scan every inch of Miles for any sign of a lie before he proceeded, and the brunet's lack of acting skills left him squirming like a worm on a hook as a result. But the satisfied grin that soon surfaced, dropping the tensed shoulders to help it rise, told Miles the quarterback probably needed an eye test.

"Good," Eric said with a contented sigh. "'Cause you and I both know that it'd be stupid to think anything else, right?" he went on to cockily taunt. "Like, no offence, but she'd have to be fucking insane to choose you over me… Right, Miles?"

Although his ego was severely bruised, to save his face from meeting the same fate, Miles forced himself to maintain a smile, albeit reluctantly. "Right," he confirmed.

"That's what I thought," Eric smirked, finally satisfied that Miles had taken enough of an emotional pounding if his lazy grin and affectionate arm bump was anything to go by. "Alright, nice talk, bro. I might catch you tonight if I drop by to see her, ok?"

"I'll be there," Miles verified with a strained sigh. Finally daring to drop his gaze from the sturdy blond, he made his escape without so much as a goodbye.

Apparently Eric thought he could take a little advice on the road with him though.

"Remember, watch yourself, Murphy," he hollered.

But the words didn't even register with Miles, because the swift shove between his shoulder blades was so jarring his entire focus was dragged to keeping himself upright.

Miles kept his eyes trained on the scuffed linoleum as he hastily lumbered back over to his desk, cheeks burning with self-hatred as he tried to push Eric’s no doubt smirking face out of his mind. It wasn’t until he heard a familiar voice that he finally dared to lift his head again.

“Are you ok?” Mick asked, expression overrun with an almost frantic concern. “What was that about?”

“I’m fine,” Miles brushed off, retrieving his threadbare backpack from its spot, slumped on the floor in one swoop. Haphazardly shoving the books from his desk into the main compartment, he mumbled a quick, “Can we just go?”

But Ethan’s glassy-eyed intrigue held him firmly in place. “Yo, what happened, man? Did he bust you for flirting with her?”

“No,” Miles sighed, wearily shaking his head at the stoner’s excitement.

“Did you flirt with her?” he pressed.

"No, I just- ugh," Miles huffed, quickly giving up on trying to explain the situation he didn't even fully understand himself. "It doesn't matter. Let's just go."

"I told you to just forget about her," Mick sighed.

"Yeah, well, that's a lot easier said than done, Mick," Miles retorted, returning her disapproving frown with a defensive one of his own.

"Did you at least get some closure?" Ethan offered as he rose from his desk - partly from curiosity, partly to try to prove a point to Mick.

Whilst Miles' tongue instinctively prepared to shoot Ethan's optimism down, his brain jumped in to tell it to hold fire. And after a few, brief seconds recalling the interaction, his answer soon changed. "Actually, I kind of did," he admitted with a chuckle of incredulity.

"You gonna try to talk about it more with her tonight then?" Ethan asked, smirking to himself at Mick's look of disbelief.

"Fuck no," Miles snorted with a nonchalance that took both of his friends by surprise. "I just want to forget it ever happened- just…move on."

"From her?" Mick asked, trying to hide the hopeful edge in her tone with a gentle smile.

Sparing the blonde in question one last glance over his shoulder, only to catch the tail end of her and Eric getting pulled up for their excessive PDA by their (up until now) entirely uninterested study hall supervisor, he let out a wistful sigh. A chorus of voices swelled in his head - Mick's, Ethan's, Carrie's, Eric's - each one telling a different side to the same story. He couldn't have picked one to listen to if he'd tried. So, in the end, his own took over, steering his heart down a path that promised the least damage in the long term, and that Carrie's indifferent dismissal of him had already forged in his mind. "...That's the goal."

#I know this part may seem a little boring because there's so much talking and so little 'doing'#but i promise that these conversations are all setting important foundations for stuff further down the line #you'll just have to trust me for now though #plus a lot of *interesting* dynamics are established in this part #*wink wink*#and get excited because in the next part we're heading back to All Skate #and the *real* action's finally going to start kicking off...#also I'm super sorry about being so inconsistent with my posts #finding time to write over the past few months with my crazy schedule and pretty poor mental health has been virtually impossible #but I really want to be better about that by the time I go back to uni in september #so hopefully I can find more time for myself and get some real progress made on this story and ASDO #anyway i've rambled too much #i'll let you go but I hope you enjoyed the chapter #and i hope it was a nice surprise after all the chaos you've been going through lately <3 #p.s. i know the order of things gets a bit weird at the end but I didn't know how else to write it without it sounding super choppy #basically eric bumps into miles before he goes over to greet her after class #his whole chat with miles is happening whilst carrie's having her little heart to heart with juliet #just thought i'd mention it because I wasn't sure how clear it was and my 2am brain is not a trustworthy resource

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