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A week ago...

Zachary Harper, an ebony haired man with ocean blue eyes stared into the darkness of the night with a small, sleeping white puppy cradled in his right arm and his left hand holding onto a flashlight. He wore a white tee with Slayer on it, with ripped, dark denim jeans, black vans, and a red hoodie. The sound of crunching leaves could be heard in this vast Wood right behind the playground in Allure Park. The young man had strayed off the hiking path, following small landmarks of his past. Lately, there had been a growing desire within him, especially this night in particular, to visit this place he hadn't seen... in awhile. Halloween was swiftly approaching, which meant it would have been his and Scarlet's six year anniversary. They would have been married by now.

Her image kept flashing in his mind while he laid in bed, trying to get some sleep for his early morning helping his twin move into her boyfriend's new apartment. It got to the point where he just said 'fuck it' and took his puppy out for a late night drive in his deceased parents' midnight blue minivan. Absentmindedly, he found himself by the park which led to a distant memory.

As Zac walked deeper into the wood with brisk wind blowing against his light skin making his cheeks a faint pink, his mind projected small figures he hadn't seen in years. The innocent children ran around him as they played 'Hide & Go Seek Tag" in the dark. Looking up, he saw a young Julius on a branch peering down at little Genie, who was following suit. Trees away, Alver poked his head from behind a trunk to see if the person that was 'it' had come out yet. Zac watched as his mirage self, with vibrant maroon hair rather than black, tripped over the roots of a fairly large tree, scrapping his knee. Tears built up in his deep blue eyes but no sound escaped his lips. He didn't want to give away his position. Picking himself up, lil Zac limped to find a hiding place, unaware of someone not too far behind him. Time was running out. He was sure to get caught!

A hand grabbed a hold of his and the youngest of the friend group was pulled in the direction that led toward their paradise shack. Within time, little Zac's blurry eyes realized Niles was holding his hand and taking him inside to clean his wound. Silently, they made their way to the side of the shack. Leaning against the side of the clubhouse as a strawberry blonde boy with heterochromia ran out of it, excitingly yelling, "Ready or not, here I come!~", the two boys waited for their moment to slip in. As they waited, the now 25 year old man watched his doe-eyed little self look up at the brunette with admiration. His small hand tightening on the bigger hand as they slipped into the fortress without being noticed.

Breaking from his daze, Zac found himself standing inside the aged shack... (Holy shit, it's still standing)

After reminiscing for a bit but also recalling some of the worst times in his past when his childhood friends fell apart, Zac made his way back into the heart of town to where his humble abode was The Music Loft, or well above it. He's been at this joint for years and he'd like to keep it that way.

Placing his sleeping prince on the right side of his bed, the man went to his desk and opened up his laptop. It was 3 AM in the morning. Going to his email, Zac began writing a message.

To: Graham, Julius <j.graham@gmail.com>
Subject: Hey buddy! Catching Up



Julius' phone went off in the dead of night, chirping off a loud, vibrant tone that pulled him from his slumber. A little aggravated, the muscular man's green eyes fluttered open and snatched his Galaxy S7 from the bedside table. His frustration faded as soon as he saw what had awoken him was an email from his old friend Zac, and a smile replaced the grimace that had been there before. Zac apparently wanted to talk to him about something, but in person... Julius could only guess as to what that meant.

To: Harper, Zachary <Zmusixx@yahoo.com>
Subject: RE: Catching Up

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Zac is wearing something like this: Click Here. With ripped black jeans and red converse.
Julius is wearing something like this: Click Here


<sub>@Silver Fox


@AimeChambers


@Henri


@Fabricant451</sub>

A shiver ran through his psyche as he woke up, but Micah couldn't seem to move. Sleep paralysis, that's what it was. It was all just a dream... If only that was what it was. Memories slipped to the front of his mind from his nightmare, sending daggers through his heart. Luke... He had fallen asleep by his bed again. He was laying on his side on the floor with Luke's tiny comforter slipped over him. His sweet little boy didn't have to see this.

Mikaela could move again. He bolted upright and slipped a hand over his brow. How many times had this happened over the last couple of months? At this rate, he might need some kind of medication... Micah just needed to calm down. He slipped his knees up and planted his face in Luke's comforter, the blue cloth dotted with dinosaurs.

"Pa-pa, if you don't get up now I'm not gonna hug you for the rest of the day!"

"I'm up, I'm up!" Mikaela reassured Luke, throwing the comforter off of him and wrapping it around his adorable son's shoulders. "Ah, I don't think I'll be able to survive without Luke's hugs for a whole day!" With a flick to Luke's nose, Mikaela finally got up and looked at the time. "Eheheheh, I'm gonna get yelled at~ Let's go Luke!"

The sound came from the back a few minutes after the two men walked inside. There was a crash! And a bong sound that seemed like it came from something bouncing off the dumpster outside. Next thing anyone knew, the door at the back of the small coffee shop opened and in came a small boy with platinum blonde hair and a... rather frazzled Mikaela. His hair was sticking up in some places, which had to be some feat considering it was so straight normally (what kind of sleeping habits did he have). Luckily, Luke had remembered for his father to put his contacts in, the manager of DeJa Brew slipped passed regulars apologetically as he headed to the back.

No one knew yet why the small boy was there. In truth, Luke's school had been holding conferences so he had the next few days off, there was no way the boy would skip. Luke stretched and looked around, peering at the customers to distinguish the regulars and the newcomers. Lunches were always considerably rushed, which is why he had pestered Micah so much for taking a nap. Knowing that Luke would be staying at home all day, he had tried to get his shift off to no avail, that being said he took a shift in the wee hours of the morning, then had a break right before noon. Luke had found him asleep, kneeling against his bed when he woke up.

Oh! There was someone in the corner. Their ebony hair was long and seemed really silky. Luke slipped two chocolate chip cookies that Micah had made and headed over to him... Or were they are she?

"Hi there! I've um, never seen you in the shop before. Your hair is really pretty uh..." The young boy blushed as his hand held out his bounty, "Cookie?"

Now Mikaela was late, luckily he still had been wearing his clothing from his earlier shift. He shifted into the back room and slipped his red apron on, before taking a look at the new coffee the trucks had been bringing in that morning.

Some of his coworkers were gossiping at the counter in hushed tones, "Did you see that guy at the counter! I've never seen him before... Should I be so bold as to put my number on his cup?" Someone new? Micah didn't exactly think that anything was out of the ordinary as he took a step out of the back room, seeing Julius. His shocked expression came with a tiny blush. Not only was he seeing his 'younger brother,' but he was just... so much bigger than him.

It wasn't particularly hard or easy nor was it particularly something to be proud of but, it paid well and it made him feel worth something. Waste Disposal Truck Driver. Maybe if he'd paid a little bit more attention in school, skipped less, and actually gone to college, Genie Fulton might have become something a little more worthwhile. But with all the chaos rampaging his home, his absent father, his promiscuous mother, Genie became nothing more than a trouble child. He had been a hot-headed child back then, easily snapping at others. These days, however, Genie had mellowed out and patched up his relationship with his mother somewhat. A little call once a week, maybe a home visit as well - it was nice.

Genie woke up at exactly seven-AM every morning and went about his morning routine. Then it was nine-AM, time for work. He left his home, walking down the little sidewalk, then made his way to the bus station. From the bus, he went into the city, to the large building where all the other disposal trucks were held from there, he took a truck on route. It was fairly simple really. Stop at a house, pick up the trash - keep at it until his lunch break at twelve-PM, then work some more until five-PM.

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3.10 PM

There was a strange feeling disturbing Genie's mind. As though someone was following him. Now mind you, in his off time, Genie hit the gym often and could fend for himself fairly well but Genie just couldn't shake off the feeling that something big was to come. So as he paused his truck and hopped out to pick up the green-colored garbage tin, he felt a shiver run down his spine as a familiar voice addressed him.

"Oh! How silly of me. It's Zachary Harper, you remember from elementary?"

Oh yes. He remembered quite well. Genie dumped the trash into the back of the truck and settled it back down on the driveway. Zachary Harper had been one of his few friends in the short time he'd attended school. 'Friend' was a relative term. Zachary had just been one of the kids that had hung out with some group of kids just as Genie had. Genie had never been particularly close to any of them, often skipping school in favor of playing at the arcade or trying to look 'cool' with kids older than he. But - he had appreciated their company and if anything, Genie almost missed spending time with them, even if it had been plenty of years since. If Genie remembered, Zachary had been the quiet one of their little group - and quite pretty as well. Genie recalled his first meeting with Zachary - a little school play where Zachary had been chosen to play the heroine. How silly it was; Genie had mistaken Zachary as a girl and afterwards, upon discovering he was a boy, he'd teased him relentlessly about it. It was a friendly tease, Genie thought. Nothing too harmful. They had their fun times.

"I remember," Genie didn't smile back at Zachary, opting to cross his arms, peering curiously at the other man. He was dressed in a simple light blue jumpsuit with many pockets and construction gloves on his hands. On the other hand, Zachary was a little more flashy, a little more stylish, and most certainly male.

He couldn't help but feel a little irk of irritation. If he remembered well, Zachary had been the sort of boy to sit about and avoid exercise - why was it that he was taller?

"Hey, Gene! Wow, you look great! Long time no see."

Now this man, he remembered. Julius. An old-time crush and as tall as ever. Genie couldn't help but let a little bit of pink dust over his rugged features. Julius had certainly toned out well. They'd often fought when they were younger but perhaps it had simply been that Jules' unrelenting courage to stand up to him that charmed Genie. He'd often pushed Jules to his limits, trying to see just how far Jules would go and each time, Genie had fallen harder for the blonde man. He'd thought he'd gotten over him but perhaps he hadn't. He felt his heart flutter and beat a little more rapidly because it had just been so long, and he couldn't help but think Julius had not changed at all.

"Long time no see," he agreed with a little smile of his own. Had he been in his teens, he probably would have shouted and made a huge ruckus but Genie was no longer the aggressively hostile boy he'd been back then. He was most definitely still quick to snap and quite terrifying when he did - but Genie had been working on his brash attitude because he was an adult now. Brash attitude and bar fights would put him behind the bars - then who would look after his sweet Sally?

"I get off at five tomorrow," he glanced at Zachary then back at Julius, "If you want to meet up. I'm working right now so - "

Genie opened the truck door and glanced back at the two, a little bit of nostalgia swirling in his chest, " - it was nice seeing you two." Julius knew his email.

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It was quiet. Like normal. Though the birds chirped ever so softly outside that jogged a very tall almost bleached white man out of focus from his drawings. Pale lavender eyes blinking slowly as he stared down at his sketches for his next manga book, he slowly removed his oval shaped glasses and set them on his desk. Drawing slender fingers against the tired eyes to ease them awake. It was already morning it seemed, it felt like time just flew by. Perhaps he should call it a night then, since he got a lot of work done. Alver tended to stay awake at night, and sleep during the day. Those who knew of him often referred him as vampiric because of this. It was a custom he had grown accustomed to after some time. To avoid the sunlight as much as possible. He hadn't had much reason to leave the house anyway ever since he broke up with Lucas. Before then was even rarer. Especially after father died...

Giving a slight yawn, he stretched out a little before standing up from his desk. Setting down his pen, the white haired man glanced over the collection of figurines, manga books, posters, and plushies before moving toward the closed curtains and pulled it aside. Examining the outside, to find some satisfaction of having a dimmer light despite being morning. It looked pretty cloudy, and might rain today. Perhaps after a three hour nap or so, he could go take a walk at the park. For now, perhaps he should have some tea before going to bed.

So, Alver headed out of the room and down the stairs. A soft meow could be heard and once he took the final step to the first floor, a grey ball of fur rubbed up against his legs. With a smile, the tall pale man bent down and stroked his slender fingers against the affectionate feline's head. "...Morning Miko." he greeted the cat gently before continuing on to the kitchen to make his cup of tea.

There was no denial that it was a bit lonely... but that's alright. He at least had Miko and since he moved here, it has been rather peaceful. No buckets full of paint falling on his head, no chittering neighbors within earshot, no looming stares.. no children gossiping and using him to play chicken, it was rather alright when he thought about that.



After a cup of tea and taking some time to relax, he washed his cup, put it in the dishwasher before heading to bed. Flopping down on the bed face first, he mumbled as Miko decided to jump on the cushy bed as well and promptly step up along his back. Kneeding it before curling in a ball between his shoulder blades. The albino gave a few mutters of disapproval but didn't move from his position. Too tired and comfy to really care about his feline deciding to use him as a personal heated pillow. Slowly, he removed his glasses and set them down on the nightstand. Just a little nap would do.



About a minute into his nap, he could hear something outside. Before long, his door was being knocked upon. Head jetting up in alarm, Alver whipped his lavender eyes toward the direction his front door was. This of course caused Miko to give mew of complaint as she padded off his back, alarmed by the sudden movement. Confusion etched its way on his slender face as he tried to think of who this mysterious visitor could be. Lily hadn't scheduled a meeting had she? No he couldn't recall any. Mother still was out at work, so she wasn't stopping by anytime soon. Lucas? Hopefully not. There wasn't really anybody around that would bother walking all the way over here since he lived in the more woodsy part of town. Just so he can avoid people. Perhaps some salesman? Maybe.

Ugh... He did not want to go open that door. It meant he had to socialize. No. No, It's fine. It was rude to not answer it, so he better just suck it up and deal with it. Glancing up on his back wall, was a sword displayed on it, and he gave a minor prayer. "Okay. For emergencies, Sakabato... check. Guide me well Kenshin." he mused before rolling out of bed. Running his hands quickly over himself to flatten out his clothes to look somewhat decent. He wore a plain white silky shirt, unbuttoned to the middle of his chest. Hugging his slender frame. Wearing beige sweat pants and a pair of white socks. His white hair reaching just pass his shoulder blades, hanged loosely and was only mildly disheveled. Quickly he ran his fingers through it to flatten it a bit. Muttering as a strand frizzed out and he'd have to try and flatten it again quickly. Not exactly formal wear, but it would do. He wasn't planning on having visitors for long. Long enough to find out what they wanted then shooo them away.

Walking out of his bedroom, he headed to the front door, peeking his head from around the staircase cautiously to stare at the door. Moving his eyes toward the batman bat the rested just beside the door, he took a deep breath. "Batman Bat... double check... Hopefully I will not need your services, Dark Knight." Alver murmured before taking another deep breath to get his composure. Okay, everything was alright. He was a tall, intimidating, odd looking man. It was all fine. If anything weird happens, he can totally scare them off. Just intimidate them, use the vampy/ghostly features to the advantage. They don't have to know that he totally wouldn't hurt a fly. Nope.

Once he got his bearings, Alver walked to the door, posture straight and his lavender eyes narrowing seriously. Pressing his hands against the door, he took a look through the peephole to examine his unexpected guest. Guests apparently. It was difficult for him to see clearly through the peephole, but it seemed to be two boys. One pretty small with black hair, the other pretty big and beefy with blonde hair. Hesitant to open the door, he bit his bottom lip in minor suspicion before shaking his head to get up the courage and just interact. So he opened the door, slowly, before fully revealing his tall pale form. Lavender eyes staring down at his two visitors. Thankfully, his porch protected him from sunlight even on sunny days, so he could safely stand at the door.

Alver opened his mouth slightly to say something before pausing as he felt... a sort of familiarity. Squinting his eyes as he fully looked over the two shorter men, they soon snapped open wide as recognition finally came to him. That baby face.... that air of jovial joy that surrounded a giant being... No.. it couldn't be.

How? Why? When? What?

Harpy and Teddy.... or in other words Zachary Harper and Julius Graham. Alver was not prepared for this. Not at all. He hadn't seen these two in... years. He was for sure he had disappeared from their lives. How in the blueberries did they find him?! For whatever for?! Did mom tattle? Did Lily decide to play a sick joke on him? Did someone stalk him home?! Once full reconition and movement was allowed, Alver immiedietly tried slamming the door. Despite feeling... a part in his heart filling with joy... a great part of it was utter terror. Though his expression remained blank other than mere surprise, his mind was trying to retreat.

"Mission abort Mission abort Mission abort! Noping out of Nopeville!" He couldn't help but think in his mind.

Sadly, it would seem that his attempt to complete shut out his childhood friends was met with failure as Julius managed to catch the door. Right eye slightly twitching, he took a deep breath before crossing his arms over his chest and narrowed his gaze into a full on glare. Well. That didn't work.

After a few moments of silence, Alver finally managed to speak. ".....You have five minutes to either leave. Or explain what you want. Or I'll drain all of the life essence from your body..." The ghostly man's voice spoke out in a minor threat. It was a bit silky and elegant, yet sharp. Though in reality it was empty. He wouldn't actually ever hurt them. Still if they left then all the better. Playing the weird ghost or vampire worked on the kids sometimes... He appeared to be annoyed, though not necessarily at what they were currently doing. Honestly, Harpy dear probably had some silly plan and dragged Teddy into it. It wouldn't be surprising. Really, he was more glaring at Zachary's hair, as he looked over the two of them. Considering his mode of proper escape was just halted, he might as well check out his friends and see how they grew up. Teddy definitely got bigger and put on some muscle, but Harpy still had that pretty face. But he dyed his beautiful red hair! Little twerp!

Course, Alver held his tongue. He wasn't Harpy's mother, so not like he could complain. But for the love of all that is holy... Zachy has such a pretty shade of red hair.

It appeared his intimidation factor didn't work and his old friends just sort of forced their way in like they visited so often. Lavender eyes blinking as the bag of offered goods was forced in his hands, he gave a slight sigh. He somehow didn't feel surprised by these actions of there's. Despite leaving at the age of eleven, it seemed they still somewhat remembered how he was. To be honest, he hadn't changed too much from then either. He just got a little bigger bark. Sort of was required he learned in order to avoid too much trouble. Obviously, these two weren't exactly leaving and taking no for a answer so the pale man relented, closing the door behind them with his back. Nodding in minor approval as Zac took off his shoes before he looked to the blonde man.

"....Shoes off." Alver said firmly before taking a moment to glance over his home as his two friends seemed impressed.

"Grandfather gave it to me eleven years ago.." He murmured before snapping his gaze to Julius as the beefy man assaulted the bag. Alver instinctevly tensed up at being in close proximity of someone else. Though his eyes laxed at the childish Julius. He hadn't changed much it seemed.

Frowning slightly as they joked about Julius's foot, guilt and concern tugged at his heart a bit. He hadn't meant to hurt the big lug. Though the moron shouldn't had purposely blocked the door like that.

"Sorry..." The tall pale man apologized, mentally facepalming at himself. Why was he apologizing? They're the ones inviting themselves in.

"Don't talk with your mouth full. Chew with your mouth closed. And eat at the dining table. You're still a kid." Alver scolded, though his voice was softer compared to the sharp 'go away' tone he had been using and minorly flicked a slender finger against the shorter man's forehead. Mhm. Here he thought he broke that mother hen habit. Guess not. Gosh gooseberries.

Looking to Zachary at the mention of checking the place out, Alver sighed again. Mildly amused as it seemed Zachary was a bit more outspoken and social then he remembered. But still had curiousity, and a little bit of a troublemaker. Setting the bag of food goods on the table before striding through the house gracefully.

He couldn't believe this was happening.

Eyes snapping to glance toward his blue eyed friend, blinking a bit in surprise at the apparent reason they were here. It took a long moment for it to process this before Alver gave a response that was just as clear cut.

"No."

This really did seem like a ridiculous idea. It had been years, people change. They probably hardly knew one another now. At least, Alver barely knew them. He had avoided all contact with them. He didn't use Facebook or any of those fancy internet doohickey thingies. His email was his work alias, and his phone was just known by his mother, Lily and Lucas. He had no idea who anyone was.

Course, Harpy and Teddy didn't seem to change much. Mostly Teddy. Plus, getting the childhood friends back together meant he had to actually socialize. With people. Outside. Do things whatever friends do nowadays. What did they do again? And he'd have to see Miky... Alver didn't think he had any lingering feelings. He put those aside after the rejection. Still, he could still remember that day very clearly. It would surely be awkward. Then again, a part of him wanted to see if the boy was still so moe.

"We're not kids anymore. I'm sure everyone is living their own lives. Why start this now?" The pale man asked, his voice cool and calm, all the while his mind rattled at who decided to suddenly throw a curveball in his quiet uneventful life.

@lovely complex@Viciousmarrow

The small boy shook his head and smiled, "It's on me!" He said in his big boy voice. This person was even prettier now that they had spoken. They weren't the kind of person to uncomfortably take the cookie and shoo him away. Luke got that a lot with people that looked the pretty person's age, something about children reminded them about their responsibilities. His smile got even wider.

It seemed like his face was as red as a tomato when the person, Zac, had complimented him. He set the cookie on the table in front of him and said, "I-I'll call you Zac then, my papa-"

Another woman crouched down next to him, she was a tiny bit cute with her pastel colors, but she had interrupted him! Luke did his best to cover up his somewhat annoyed pout. His blush had gone down a little bit as he gave the man a high five. Who knew this pretty person was so good with children?

Singing? Luke had heard Micah sing, his papa was most certainly tone deaf. The only people he normally heard sing was the kids at his school, but they didn't even have proper vocal chords yet. He didn't exactly like that the woman was pressuring Zac, but he was definitely intrigued. When Zac wasn't looking, he shot Nina a tiny glare.

Luke took a seat on the chair Zac used to be sitting in. As the pretty person began singing, he stared at Luke, and his heart was seriously a flutter. His cheeks were two cheery rose buds, and the childish locks on his heart started to come undone.

Luke was frozen for a second before he heard the applause. What was what Papa said when he read that storybook to him? A gift of gratitude should be given to the ones you love. With a quick leap off the chair, he gave Zac a kiss on the cheek.

Luke shook his head again, "No, my Papa works here."

Mikaela had been drawn closer by Zac's voice. He stood in the midst of the aisle. He had gone to inconspicuously take someone's order, when they whole shop had been stopped by the pretty boy's singing.

As it continued, Micah remembered the time when all the boys had come together to watch Wicked. Usually Mikaela wasn't too interested in physical things, but he had really wanted to watch this one play. Some group was playing it really late at night one day, and he had convinced the others to go see it. They had all snuck out to go see it. Zac had convinced the peddlers to give them tickets and even though most of the boys had fallen asleep during it, Zac, Alver, and him hadn't.

A tear slipped down Mikaela's face. All the memories rammed through the flood gates. The times he had so treasured. He couldn't seem to move. The pain and guilt he had gone through rejecting Alver, the... pain he had endured after they all separated. Maybe he could reunite with his two little brothers again... but he could never let them know about what had happened.

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(Why did... I even come here?)

The alcohol wasn't helping his self confidence. Zac stared at Niles...

(You're right... I don't belong here.) He needed to be strong. Coming this far, but for what? To run away? Niles was probably waiting for it to happen. Old habits die hard, right? Was Zac always going to be seen as a kid to him? This needed to be fast. If he kept brooding on this, he was bound to let his emotions get the best of him. Sighing to himself, he did as Niles told him and went to the VIP lounge. (Maybe I should have asked Jules to come? I-I don't want to be here...)

"I'm with Niles Blake..." the confidence was dying out of Zac the more and more he came to terms with his stupid fantasy. He was still a damn child and Niles could see that. A damn child whose closest thing to a best friend he had was his twin sister and the second closest person to him would be Jules, who just did random shit for him in the past because he never fails on being so goddamn nice. Friend was a loose term to call Julius. Up until last week, they didn't see each other since... that one night... and before that night, they didn't see each other since the group was together. Staring at his beverage as he walked to the corner of the lounge by a sofa (not bothering to sit down), Zac stared at the substance that gave him some sort of bliss, numbing the pain he could feel without it.

Lost in thought, the man didn't bother to observe the high class lounge. Everyone seemed to be doing good for themselves. Alver lived in his grandfather's house and was content with his life choices. Micah had a beautiful baby boy that brought him incomprehensible joy regardless of his issues. Julius was pretty well off and loved his job as a construction engineer. Genie was sure of himself, even with his skeptical glare and their short 'first' meeting. Last but never the least, there was Niles, someone Zac had recently found out was a decent actor and had a lovely fan base to show for his success.

Did Zac really allow a woman to cloud his perspective and ignore all his surroundings, including himself? He didn't want to blame Scarlet for drifting away from him. What did he have to show as a man? He had no degree, lived in a studio apartment his uncle paid off years ago, used his dead parents' car, had a lack of ambition to pursue a career in something he loved, and... the only thing he had worth talking about was his cultivating skill as a bartender. He remembered his third year English teacher encouraging him to pursue entertainment may it be acting or singing or both but at the time Scarlet was suicidal. He couldn't be selfish and leave her...

There he goes again. Thinking about her. (She left you for a guy that could take care of her. How do you expect to get anywhere if you can't even take care of yourself?) Huh. That's why he needed to do this. The only time he went through any positive leaps in his life was when he had this wonderful group of friends. No, he didn't want to use them to make him feel better about himself... not at all. Just seeing them happy with their lives would be inspiration enough to continue trudging on.

(I just want to know they're okay... and what if? What if we could be friends again?) Zac realized he was dazed out for a minute or two. Dammit. Time wasted. Turning to Niles, he brought his free hand to his hair and scratched his head, "Uh, yeah... sorry. Can we talk under better circumstances, like tomorrow? Do you have the same email or a snazzy business card?"

Taking a sip of his drink, Zac sighed, "I don't know much of what you've been up to, but from what I've heard, you're doing pretty well." His blue orbs softened the more he talked, unintentionally showing he was proud of Niles, "Um, I've been kind of... distracted, so sorry if this isn't the kind of meeting you'd want." He hinted at how he was unable to treat the actor as a fan since he would never be able to see him as some top dog he was becoming. Niles would always be Niles to Zac, even if he changed tremendously over the years.

"I shouldn't keep you... I can send you an email tonight and if I see you tomorrow, great, but if not, that's fine too. It's silly of me anyways." He gave his old friend a weak smile and though he was dying to leave, his feet stood planted on the ground until Niles responded.

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_{@Fabricant451}

The minute Julius moved, Alver snapped his lavender gaze toward him, resuming to tense up as he neared and dragged the taller man to another room. Once they were, Alver removed himself from the blonde and gave them a comfortable distance while smoothing out his clothes. "Language." he scolded immediately when 'crap' was uttered before continuing to listen to what the beefy man had to say. The pale man opened his mouth to retort against Julius' words, but closed it as the shorter man raised a finger of silence as he pulled out his phone.

Honestly, Alver was unsure why exactly they were so determined to get him in on this plan. He was sure, that the others would be enough to comfort Zac, and were probably better company. Safer. Not dangerous... not a waste of space. Pathetic. Disgusting. A walking disaster. Abnormal. Everything he wasn't. He had his reasons to keep his distance from the small girly boy. He was safer that way. Better without him. They all were. So they should just forget him. Let him disappear amongst foggy memories. Alver thought they would by now, as it had been so long ago now.

Listening to Julius read off what apparently was Zachary's message, a soft melancholy frown crossed the tall man's ghostly face. Honestly, Zachary was still such a kid. A baby. Who needed someone to hold his hand, and now he wanted his childhood crew back to do it. He made it difficult to say 'no' when it was for his own good. Yet as much as the albino wanted to be firm in his 'no' he was finding it harder now. A part of him did want to help, take care of Zac and get him back on his feet. Alver wasn't confident he could though, but he still felt that way.

The pale man took the card, giving it a brief examination as his lavender pale gaze narrowed thoughtfully. Alver then flinched slightly when Julius raised his hand, as if preparing to be physically hit, but his childhood friend only placed it on his shoulder in the usual friendly manner. Silently looking at Julius and slightly following as he bid farewell and left with Zachary, Alver watched before shutting the door and locking it before giving a deep exasperated sigh before looking at the business card again.

There was no way he could go. Right? But it was only for one night. And it was at night time, not like he had to worry about daylight. What was he even suppose to do though? Socializing as grownups was a lot harder compared to children. Especially when attempting to comfort and show a former friend a good time. How in cucumbers was he supposed to accomplish that? Him, the least social person probably in this town? Maybe he would just sleep on it...

Giving another sigh, Alver went back to his bedroom, placing the business card on his nice stand before getting into bed. Curling up and cuddling under the covers. Staring at the ceiling thoughtfully as he pondered on what just occurred. Absently petting a grey feline that had decided to jump up and curl up beside him. Closing his eyes, he grabbed one of his other pillows and pressed it against his face as he continually tried to force himself to just go to sleep.

Darkness rolled around, and the pale man continued to lie there. Thinking. He didn't feel like working at the moment. Another sigh escaped him before he rolled out of bed and grabbed his glasses and the business card. Slipping the glasses on as he headed upstairs to his work room. Sitting at his desk, he turned on the computer. Logging into his email, he frowned as he stared at the business card before giving another deep sigh.

"It's just one night. One night. That's all. Nothing more. I can do it. Just be the mature adult that you are and entertain them to the best of your ability. Just one night. Then I can go back to being into the darkness. Miky will be there... but that's okay just be a charming mature adult like some anime prince. Or something. It'll be fine, it's been years. I can do this. Just one night.. just for the good of a past friend and to help them get on their feet a little." He murmured, unnoticing slightly hyperventilating. Taking a deep breath, he started typing and emailed Julius.

"Alright. One night only. I'll come." he typed before sending it before he quickly changed his mind.

Pausing he tried thinking of the possibilities of this night out. What in the flubber were they going to do? Glancing toward the immensely large collection of anime, the white haired man paused before standing and started browsing. Taking out certain manga books and quickly started to do 'research' to the best of his abilities. Somewhat prepare himself for tomorrow night.

It took a second after his coworker asked if he needed a tissue before he got back to reality. "N-No, I'm alright... Sorry, don't know wh-"

Ow... The childhood friend Mikaela had unconsciously avoided came in and started to crush him with a huge hug. There weren't many people that were so big and strong in Micah's life so he hadn't gotten a hug like this in a while. Had... Had Mikaela ever been hugged like this? Hank gave him a slap on the back or a side hug, but nothing like this. Oh dear, he was getting teary-eyed all over again.

His eyes weirded Julius out, that was a little unsettling. His eyes showed off, let everyone know, that he was a freak, so a tiny prickle of pain slipped through his chest. He knew that the blonde didn't mean anything by it, but the traumatic experiences he had had because of his eyes were still plaguing him.

Luke took Zac's hand, his face slipping into a huge goofy grin and his eyes scanning the counter for his Papa. He really wanted Papa to meet this new pretty person! He hurried on his tiny legs to the back, slipping through the crowd of people that were starting to go back to their coffee and desserts. The barista- what was her name again? -Called his Papa's name so he pivoted towards that direction. Who was that hugging his dad? The guy seemed almost like a giant bear and he kinda scared Luke a little.

Zac was saying something about knowing Papa, it sounded like they were friends, but Mikaela had never talked about either of the two men. Luke's hair was suddenly ruffled and his head tingled from Zac's touch. "L-Luke, my name is Luke."

Okay, on the ground now. That meant he was supposed to focus, get out of his brain and get back to reality again. Zac was here and Julius, his two brothers! "It's been a really long time..." He said, embarrassed as he remembered he had never said goodbye. His hair was suddenly tousled, which actually did happen a lot. If he had been anything like his mother, he would have gone into a hissy fit for his hairdo would have been messed up. But Micah's hair already did whatever it wanted, so whatever.

Tomorrow night, he didn't have work, it seemed like fate. He would probably need to find someone to take care of Luke for the night, it wouldn't be a good idea for such a young boy to be out so late. Luke would already be out 'til at least ten for Halloween. With only Zac, Julius, and a few other... this wouldn't be that bad. Mikaela smiled, thinking that hey, a good catch up would be great!

When had Julius even gotten a hold of his wallet? It wasn't like he kept much money on him in the first place, the new Julius must have secretly been somewhat cunning. Mikaela did have a new email, he had done everything he could to separate from his life back in the Winter house. "Uh, okay, I'll send you a message the-"

It didn't seem like anything important was happening, so life decided to give him a slap on the back. One of the baristas slipped on the flour that hadn't been swept up from that mornings baking and she dropped everything she was holding. How would he get the coffee off the ceiling... Micah's face went pale. With the somewhat sneaky pat on the butt, Julius and Zac hightailed it out of there.

Luke pouted, Zac and that somewhat forward big guy were leaving, "I hope to meet again soon!"

Mikaela's cheeks puffed out as he watched the blonde leave. The manager didn't even know how to react to something like that. Luckily, the baristas hadn't seen the move, having been so busy cleaning up, or they would have teased the poor father 'til his face never stopped blushing.

Don't dwell on it... Micah had to get back to work. He ruffled Luke's hair passing him and called for all the employees to keep working and he would clean it up.

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Niles didn't make this easier. No, somehow he made this experience more agonizing than Zac was mentally prepared for. Cringing at the bluntness, Zac stared at the moving lips as they pointed out the flaws in his poor attempt. The grip he had on his drink tightened, but not once did he look away, no matter how fearful he was. The person he was afraid of meeting the most today was Niles... for more than just a simple reason. There may have been a contradictory hope of not finding him this lovely Thursday night. A scenario where Zac just stayed at the bar, got drunk, and Gabby took him home... but then that would mean, Zac didn't try. If he gave up, he would have felt even worse than hearing these sharp words. At least Niles was being honest and this pain was nothing like what the long-haired boy experienced in the past.

The chocolate eyes never turned away from the man child. Deep seated feelings that only good would prevail was something Zac had to constantly tell himself. His protective guard was crumbling as the hammer kept smashing into the poorly renovated wall he tried to create to protect him from all this torment. His shaken heart ached, but he didn't want to be seen as someone so weak even if his thoughts told him otherwise. Perhaps that is why Scarlet left him? A woman of her stature needed a powerful, confident man, someone who could stand tall and guide her through the creeping darkness of the world.

The voice came to a halt. Taking a deep breath in, Zac went to a sofa right next to Niles' chair and gently sat himself down. Placing his drink on a side table, he clasped his hands together and let his right thumb subconsciously rub his left. The couches were rather comfortable but Zac didn't want to think about anything but the matter at hand. Sitting down was for the sake of keeping himself stable. At this rate, Niles' words were going to make the young man collapse.

(You can do it... just be honest.)

His blue orbs became distant as he spoke the racing thoughts in his mind, "Do you ever wonder if you could turn back time? Rewrite your life so it wouldn't turn out so... painful. I can't help but find myself drifting further and further away from reality because... it hurts so much." Unintentionally, tears began to trail down his cheeks, his attention was no longer toward his old friend but locked inside the dark abyss that held all his memories, "I don't want any of you to feel like you need to take care of me. I just need one moment, only a moment, where things seem different. Lying to myself that nothing is falling apart. My plan is not the brightest but... you guys made me feel like I..." Covering his face with his hands, he just let the stream spill out. His voice became muffled by doing so.

"...could take on this godforsaken place... I haven't changed and you saw right through me, didn't you? I'm still selfish. I'm still hopeless. I'm still..." Zac couldn't help but choke on his words.

(Fuck me. Stop it. Stop crying. This is ugly.) Stopping his tears from making him look more of a fool, Zac wiped his face and brought his stare back to Niles, "All I'm asking is one night of your time tomorrow." He wanted to go home and drown himself in his bath tub. This... this display probably lost all chances at convincing Niles to come. He didn't need to put up with this. None of them did. Why was it so hard to be strong?

(Runaway, you know you want to. Why change now?) Standing up once more, leaving his drink on the table, Zac tried to figure out words of retreat, but no more words could escape his quivering lips. He was terrified of the backlash. It wasn't like Niles cared if Zac stayed or not, he said it himself...

(But why can't my feet move...)

@Fabricant451

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Email written by Zac the previous night that Julius forwarded to everyone (or words in Niles' case at the club)


What the young man forgot to share with his old friends was what the place was called (Google Maps has not been updated yet so if you were to search for it, it would show the Mockingbird), what kind of place it even was, what they were going to do besides dinner and that his brother is now a she.

If Zac could, he would go Trick or Treating. When it came to games, he was still very much a child. He just hoped his old friends could enjoy themselves. The Coopers were nice enough to let Zac bring some people to enjoy their new Entertainment center (BEFORE THE PREMIERE)! In this place, they even had a bar and a nice dining area. The young man could tell this was definitely going to be the hot spot of the century in Willow Valley. Of course, Jules had to put in some money to pay for electricity...but... the opening date for DADDZ FUN ZONE was on Halloween so this was also Mr. Cooper's way of testing his employers. A fun night to let go and have fun, even if his old friends probably planned to leave early. The arcade was an absolute utopia and they sold alcoholic beverages as well?! Fan-fucking-tastic! Granted, drinks and beverages had to stay in the eating areas. But man was Zac excited!

Standing outside nervously, the dark haired man with (red color spray on his hair) began to play with his top hat. He and his sister couldn't help but go all out in their wear. Yes, when they played some games they'd take some of their shit off but for now, they were going to bring out their inner kid again. Leaning on the wall, Vince, Gabby's boyfriend, brought his camera up.

"Hey you two, turn around." Gabriella and Vince were a 'Couple' of pirates, while Zac took on the role as a vampire. This costume was stashed in his closet for quite some time now. Something he wore senior year of high school. Thank god he could still fit in it. The two twins turned simultaneously.

Gabriella kissed Zac's cheek while her brother made a silly face, revealing his fangs. After he took the picture, Vince glanced down at his camera silently to review it. He wasn't one to talk often but when he did, he was pretty cool.

"Gabs... They're not going to have fun." Turning to his sister, the fear in the man's blue orbs were apparent as hell.

Taking his top hat away from him and then placing it back on his head, she playfully rolled her eyes, "You'll be fine dork. Just breathe. They're coming for you. Make the best of it. No depression from you Mister!" Bringing her pointer finger to his noise, she adorably poked it which made him smile.

"Yeah, you're right... oh, did we remember the-"

"Yeah. It's all set."

Turning to see if anyone arrived yet, the 'prettyface' boy turned to look at the parking lot, while replying, "Thanks man! I still need to figure out when I want to bring it out though..."

Alver paused as he received a email in the night, looking at his computer from his intense self manga study to help assist what would be somewhat expected in regular interaction. Of course anime or manga probably shouldn't be the one to help him out in socialization or friendship interaction but it was all he had. Clicking open the email, his lavender gaze quickly read it over and he raised a slight eyebrow. He vaguely remembered the place... and he wasn't sure what exactly they were doing now. Great, harder to prepare. Thanks Harpy. Wait.... wasn't his twin a guy? Eh.. whatever. For now, the tall ghostly man had other concerns to deal with. Whatever they were doing, Zachary apparently wanted to go all out and be fun. Considering the request to dress 'festive' whatever that means. It was a bit childish... or a lot. Wasn't even Halloween yet, but Alver still considered it since it would probably make his immature acquaintance happy. That was the whole point of him leaving his safe haven.

What would he go as though? He was basically a walking attraction anyway. At least, he didn't know any other albino in town. The children liked comparing him to a ghost or a vampire. Ghost was a bit too simple and be basically his everyday self. Vampire might work. He could even go as Zero Kiryu. Alver liked to think he looked quite like the ex-human vampire. Yet he wasn't quite positive the others would get it since Zero wore mostly everyday clothes. If he was going to dress up, it might as well be something he doesn't wear every day. His hair and eyes were natural, so of course he just wore those everyday. Since he was meeting everyone, he at least wanted to look somewhat impressive. After all, it was like a first appearance and in a way he wanted to come in like a dashing handsome man.

Sesshomaru? Nah. Samurai? Mhmm not quite. Perhaps a knight? Oh or maybe Dante? Mhm... decisions. Mhmm he did have that suit of armor so maybe a knight would be impressive enough. It wasn't something he wore all the time and it did feel like actually dressing up. So a knight it was! Something a bit opposite to the down terms people usually threw at him. More on the light and chivalrous path. The place probably would let him bring a real sword so he should probably just use a fake decorative one.

Glancing at the clock, Alver realized it was about morning now and decided to head back to his room for some rest.





After waking up and getting the costume ready, Alver called in to his boss/friend to give him a ride. Getting out of the car, Alver turned his head to Lily who stared at him with a serious nerve wrecking gaze.

"It's good you're finally getting out Alver.... but just a suggestion... if these guys are hot. Be sure to take photographic memory and draw them. Could be used in another good series." The older woman said, making the tall pale man sigh.

"Unsure they would appreciate being made into a manga Boss. Thank you for the ride." Alver said, watching her role her eyes and wave her hand.

"Details. Probably wouldn't ever know. You probably draw them anyway and they are hiding in that garage of yours. Call me with the details. And email me a picture of them." Lily said before driving off.

Alver blinked slowly as he watched the black mustang car drive off before walking along the side walk, staring at a piece of paper he hand written down the address. His armor clinking gingerly as he walked along. It was a bit heavy, but it fit him well. Men of the medieval times sure had to have quite a bit of strength to always lug these things around. Thank his mother for her years of physical training to get him to stay reasonably healthy.

Mhmm.. maybe he should write something on that? Flicking his lavender gaze up, the coloring slightly flashing red with a lamppost he walked under. He spotted the building supposedly he needed to go. Harpy failed to give a name, but it seemed like this was the one formerly known as Creatures 'n Crooks then the Mockingbird. It looked like... some arcade? Entertainment center? Whatever it was, somehow Alver should of guessed Zachary wanted them all to meet them in someplace like this. Not that he.. disliked these places. He enjoyed games he was able to play without burning his eyeballs. Just usually these places were too loud for his ears. Still, it was for Zachary, so he'd tolerate it for now.

Taking a deep breath, the tall man brushed a gloved hand through his white hair, looking himself over briefly in the window reflection to check himself out. Had to make sure he looked alright. Satisfied, despite spending many hours in front of his mirror to get it right, he pushed the door open and walked inside. Standing tall and walking inside calmly and cooly. Tall.. handsome man. He could do this. He was a adult. He was tall. He could play it cool for a night. All was fine.

Spotting Zachary, the one who started all of this along with two others, Alver walked over, looking down at all three of them. Two pirates and Zachary was apparently a vampire. How cute. "....Salutations." the pale man managed to greet them. His face remaining calm, but managed to give a slight friendly smile.

@lovely complex

Ah, the feeling of discomfort, physically and emotionally hung over the strawberry blonde. After such a hectic day with how Zac and Julius had come over and coffee on the ceiling meaning that he and the barista had been chewed out by the cafe's owner, he hadn't even gotten a chance to look over the email until the day of the meet up. He had told Hank about how he was going to be going out the next day and his friend was surprised to find out the day of the party that he was going to be Mikaela's plus one, but Hank loved parties.

Micah had come upon the email, only a few hours before the party, getting ready to go home after his shift. He had been in the backroom on his chromebook, checking up on his inbox when he came upon it. Creatures 'n Crooks, that old bookstore used to be a favorite of his before it was torn down. Micah had heard about the Mockingbird being shut down as well seeing as how he was a higher up for one of the only cafes in town. This would probably be really fun! ...Awkward, but fun. Zac and Julius had always seemed like the ones that had the most energy when they were kids, and Micah thought it would be good to catch up.

Jocelyn had given the okay to take care of Luke for the night too, everything was set for tonight when... Oh, Micah had to wear a halloween costume. The male hadn't really dressed up as anything the past few years, he had wanted to look the part of the meddlesome father watching over his trick-or-treating son too much to dress up. Where would he get a good costume on such short notice? All the stores seemed to only have bad fake costumes that had been made of rather itchy materials.

As Mikaela thought this, one of the baristas, Lauren, glanced over at the email over his shoulder. "You're going to a party?"

"Um yeah... It's with a few old friends of mine. But I don't have anything to wear-"

The look that Lauren gave him sent chills through his body. Never again would he ask a girl to help him pick out an outfit. She made this rather evil grin and put a finger to the shorter male's lips. After silencing Micah, she skipped away to talk to Angela before they both came in, Angela mirroring her coworker's expression.

"We have the perfect idea~ Just give me fifteen minutes, 'kay?" The girls then hurried off, one walking down the few blocks to her house and the other leaving by car. While waiting, Micah called up Hank and talked to him about the party and they both decided that his friend would meet him there. The rest of the time was spent contemplating the email, a twin sister? That wasn't what Micah remembered... Anyway, what were those girls up to?

When some girls have the chance to get creative, they go all out. Angela and Lauren arrived with quite a few things that Mikaela didn't even know what they were used for, along with a wig... and a huge white wedding dress.

"Girls-" Micah got out of the chair he had been sitting on in the rec room and backed up, trapped with both exits blocked off. And so, Mikaela was dazzled up with makeup and hair clips and a wig and a garter belt? All the things you would expect a girl to wear on her wedding day in only a little over an hour to spare.

When Micah looked into the mirror, he couldn't help but feel shocked. It was the female version of him that was ready to walk down the aisle. He could still tell it was him, but any trace of man that had been on him was completely gone... How could he face the manly Julius like this?

"Just wear this as long as you can at the party. If you need to wear something easier to move around in, we have for you a shorter skirt and white blouse. You have to wear them okay~? We won't let you say no~" Yes, these girls were truely evil. Micah had to make sure Luke did not see this. And in order to make sure Mikaela went to the meet up in his feminine get up, they stole his original clothes.

So there he was, waiting about a block away from DADDZ FUN ZONE, going to meet up with Hank. It was a great laugh to see what Hank was wearing though. He had on a Hawaiian flower shirt that was completely unbuttoned, a flower necklace, and swim trunks, paired with sunglasses and flip flops.

"And I thought you would be making fun of me for my get up," Hank laughed, taking the necklace from around his neck and twirling it around. Micah's face went a bright red and he didn't say anything, a little to flustered and embarrassed. He walked ahead of the chuckling Hank, wanting to stomp on his foot, but having too much skirt to do so.

"H-Here goes nothing...!"

Mikaela started nearing where the group of people at the front were migrating. There was two pirates that appeared to be a couple and Zac as a rather extravagant vampire. And... That looked an awful lot like... For the love of all that is holy... Micah was feeling ready to faint. And though he didn't go unconscious, he did trip on his own skirts and start to fall.