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Paige and Sue have sat down at the kitchen table facing each other. Paige is pointed towards the outside backyard doors and Sue is pointed towards the stairs.
“This is… a bit complicated to explain.” Paige mumbles, fists curled up in his lap.
“Try me,” Sue says, sitting straight up in their chair.
“Okay, um… Leaf is… like, a part of me?”
“A part of you,” Sue repeats. “But not you?”
“Exactly.”
“Elaborate,” Sue says after humming. “I don’t think I quite get it, and I want to understand entirely.”
“Well… okay. I think Leaf would be a better explainer than me, though.”
“Then I’d like to hear what they have to say.”
Paige nods pensively and lets Leaf slip in. “Hey,” he greets lazily, slouching immediately. “Sorry for lying to you or whatever. I hear you don’t like it much.”
Sue blinks. “...Leaf, I assume?”
“You assume correctly.” They don’t try to disguise their voice. “So, okay. Not to like, dump everything on you, but it’s the reason I’m here, so…” Leaf leaves the unsaid question in the air. You sure you wanna know this?
Silently, Sue nods.
“Alright, you asked for it.” Leaf bends over and clasps their hands together, looking away. “We had a sh—we had a bad childhood,” they quickly correct. “He needed someone to help him, and I was what came of that.”
“So you were here to… protect Paige from his father?”
“How do you know about that?” Leaf frowns, staring at Sue. “Did Paige tell you?”
“He mentioned it offhand once.”
“Oh.” Leaf huffs. “Right. Well, yeah. Daddy Dearest is the reason I exist, I guess.”
“So you were here to deal with him.”
“Yeah.”
“Mackerel is dead, though,” Sue points out. “So why are you here now?”
“Ouch,” Leaf laughs. “Rude, much?”
“Sorry that I don’t take kindly to those who ruin my friend’s night.” Sue says deadpanned. “I’m guessing you’re the real reason Paige stayed home tonight, aren’t you?”
“Little Mx. Detective aren’t we?” Leaf chuckles, putting his hands up. “You got me. I don’t see why you needed to know this though.” He pulls his legs into the chair and lays on them, twisting his hands in front of them. “I don’t really need to explain anything else to you either. But you’ll just bother Paige if I don’t so…”
Leaf sighs. “Daddy Dearest drank like a sailor. I knew there’d be spiked punch or whatever at that party, and I…” They pause for a moment, looking away. “I didn’t want Paige to get in trouble.”
Paige holds his breath. It wasn’t technically a lie, so maybe it would pass the test?
Sue stares hard at them hard before glancing away. “Sorry,” they apologize. “I think I stepped over a boundary.”
“Eh,” Leaf shrugs. “Paige gave me permission, and I don’t really mind explaining what happened to us. It’s whatever if you know.” They slump forward though, face growing serious. “You better keep everything in that little filing cabinet of yours, though. There’s no point in keeping it a secret if everyone knows And we need it to be secret so they don’t freak out like Brandon did.” He sighs. “We didn’t even tell M—Quinn yet,” he coughs.
“...I see,” Sue nods. “I’ll keep it to myself.”
Suddenly, Sue straightens. “What’s that?” they ask, pointing towards the stairs.
Leaf blinks, turning to look behind themself. If there was anything there before, it’s gone now. “I dunno. Maybe you’re seeing stuff.”
Sue immediately pulls their hands inwards, churning them together, face upset and eyes flicking everywhere.
“Aw shit,” Leaf thinks. “Did I say something fucked up?”
“Um…” Paige thinks back. “I don’t know. But they seem really upset, so maybe let me help them?”
“Yeah, sure.” Leaf and Paige swap again, Paige moving over to Sue and placing a hand on their shoulder.
Sue jolts. “Yes?” they sputter.
“You alright?” Paige smiles awkwardly. “I um… You… left me for a second there.”
Maybe it’s the fact that Paige mimicked them from earlier, or maybe it’s the tension finally getting to them, but Sue barks out a laugh. “I’m fine,” they assure. “I’m fine.” They stand up. “Come on, we forgot we were supposed to be getting stuff for everyone.”
“Oh!” Paige gasps. “We did! Maybe OJ should’ve come down to help us after all…”
As if on cue, OJ announces his arrival with heavy steps down the stairs. “Hello, hello!” he smiles. “I came to check on you two! You’ve been gone for quite some time.”
“We got sidetracked,” Sue answers. “You can help us back up now if you want to, though. We’ll only need one trip that way.”
“Oh, okay!” OJ grins. “I can carry whatever!”
+++
Aside from the hiccup in the kitchen, the party is fun! They all dance to music and bring the Wii upstairs to play games and everyone has a great time. When it’s time to go, everyone reveals they planned on making this a sleepover!
Paige was so, so excited. His closest friends all spending a night together! It was all he could ask for. Besides, if he’s to believe his admirer, he’s going to try and get them to meet up again soon! So, really, it wasn’t that bad of a trade off.
Paige sits at his desk now, kicking his legs. With everyone else comfortably asleep on the floor, it was time to write tomorrow’s note.
Paige’s note reads:
“Sorry I couldn’t make it to the party last night! I wasn’t really feeling 100% and I thought it might be too overwhelming. Sounds kinda lame, I know, but it’s the truth.
Oh, but! The Sonic fact was really fun! I don’t think I’ve heard that before, which is surprising! My friend OJ knows so much about Sonic, you’d think it would’ve been mentioned by now! Heehee! I passed on the knowledge to him when I saw him again and he loved knowing it!
(P.S.
Your poetry is wonderful! Do you have any other fun talents?)”
“There…” Paige nods. “That should be good!”
Carefully Paige picks around his friends to get to his bookbag. But, as he’s slipping the paper into this bag, someone stirs.
“Paige?” OJ asks, lifting and rubbing one of his eyes. “Is something th’ matter?”
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Paige says quietly, though it’s very clear he’s excited. “I just finished writing my note to my secret admirer!” He’s grinning so hard.
OJ squints, looking like he’s thinking. “But I…” He quickly shakes his head. “Oh, right!” he laughs quietly. “It nearly slipped my mind that you were getting notes.”
“It’s still so exciting to me!” Paige squeaks. “Oh, OJ… he’s so kind and wonderful… Funny and thoughtful too!”
“I’d hope so,” OJ smiles. “I’m sure… he wants to be the best for you.”
“Heehee!” Paige giggles, blushing and pushing his hands to his cheeks. “Oh, but I’m sorry to keep you up with this. You can go back to sleep!”
“You can tell me anything, Paige,” OJ says in the kindest voice Paige has ever heard. “I’ll always love to listen.”
Paige’s face turns completely red, but no longer for his admirer.
“Um!” he blinks. “I—I have to—I have to use the bathroom!”
In a quick sprint, Paige leaves the room as quietly as he can, dashing to the bathroom and closing the door behind him.
“Ohh my good—oh my god,” Paige breaths.
“You bombed it!” Leaf laughs. “You like that guy or something? ‘Cause you’re gonna need a looot of glue to fix this one.”
Paige pushes his hands into his closed eyes. “Oh. My god.”
“Aw, look at you!” Leaf chuckles. “Leveling up in vocab!”
“Leaf,” Paige growls lowly. “Please shut up.”
“Huh?”
“Shut up,” Paige repeats, stressing it. “I just messed that up so bad. I’m falling for him so badly, but my admirer is also holding my heart—”
“Cheesy,” Leaf comments.
“Shut up!” Paige shushes again. “I don’t know what to do!” he laments. “I—”
The sound of footsteps fills the hallway. Someone was coming.
Paige clears his throat and says, “Occupied! I’ll be out in a minute!”
The footsteps stop for a moment before starting up again and getting quieter.
“Oh thank goodness,” Paige sighs. “Oh, my god.”
Eventually, at some point Paige manages to get back into his room without waking anybody up this time. OJ had gone back to sleep too, so slipping into his bed was much easier than he was afraid it’d be.
Paige is banging his head lightly with his hands. Ughhhh… I can’t believe I blew that so badly!
“It could’ve been worse,” Leaf shrugs. “I’m sure he doesn’t actually care about that.”
“That’s almost worse!” Paige pouts.
“Ugh. There’s no winning with you, is there?”
Paige doesn’t reply, just whining. Soon, he frets himself to sleep.
When Paige blinks awake the next morning, the beams of sun in his eyes are the culprits. That was odd, though. Paige usually kept his blinds closed.
Sitting up, he sees none other than OJ sitting at his desk.
“OJ?” Paige yawns, causing the other to yelp. “Oh! I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“I-it’s quite alright,” OJ breathes. “Sorry if I woke you.”
“No, no,” Paige shakes his head. “The sun got in my eyes.”
“Ah…” OJ smiles awkwardly. “That… would still be my fault. I always open my blinds in the morning by habit.”
“Oh, it’s alright,” Paige waves off playfully. “I’m up now.” He looks down at the others, still knocked out. Sue is curled around a stuffed bunny while Brandon and Bro were sleeping with one held by the other. “It looks like the same can’t be said for everyone else, though.”
“It is rather early,” OJ comments. “Ah, but let me finish what I was doing so I can get out of your way. I’m almost done.”
“You can take your time,” Paige says, stretching. “I don’t use my desk in the morning, really.” He jumps up and moves over to OJ. “Whatcha doing, though?”
“Ah!” OJ gasps, covering his station with his whole upper body. “It’s—it’s a secret!” he panics. “My—my secret diary!”
“Oh!” Paige gasps, pulling back. “Sorry! I didn’t know!”
OJ sighs heavily. “It’s quite alright.” He looks off to the side, a wry smile on his face. “It’s not like you’d know it just by seeing it.”
Paige hums. “I guess so. Unless it said ‘OJ’s Diary’ in big text, I would’ve probably thought it was one of my old books.”
OJ’s face drops for just a moment, smile forced. It’s almost like hearing that scared him.
It’s a good thing he didn’t get to see anything about it! He would’ve hated to upset OJ for something like that.
“Oh, don’t worry! I didn’t see anything, honest!” Paige promises.
…Well, that was only mostly true. No, he hadn’t seen the contents, but he did see the cover. It was a nice pastel orange embroidered leather. It looked like it would feel good to rub his hand against.
But, surely OJ had only meant the contents. Surely.
+++
The Crew go to school the next day, having brought their uniforms with them for the sleepover. It’s a surprise to Quinn in the morning, and there’s barely enough space for them all in the SUV. They manage, though. Sue sits in the front while Paige, OJ, Brandon and Bro are squished together in the back.
When the kids all pile out of the car, Quinn wishes them all a good day and they all thank them in varying ways.
“Note,” Brandon requests as the small group disperses into the crowd.
Paige rifles through his bag for a moment before producing the note. “Here we go!”
“Nice,” Brandon smirks, snapping it up. “See you at lunch?”
Paige nods. “See you at lunch!”
+++
With his classes being ones he can keep to himself and let his mind wander, Paige does just that. He thinks about his admirer. He thinks about OJ. He thinks about the way his heart was fighting over the two of them.
Lunch comes faster than Paige is ready for. When Brandon hands him his note, it’s like he’s blinking back into reality for the first time since that morning.
“Letter for Paige!” Brandon smiles, holding it over… just to snatch it back. “Only, Paige,” he stresses quietly, seriously, almost pulling his Scary Face.
Paige gulps. “I-I’m Paige,” he reaffirms.
Brandon’s smile is back on his face in a flash. “Then here you go, playa!” He hands the note over in earnest now.
Paige blinks, but doesn’t comment. It was weird, but he pushes it away, choosing to focus on it later. Right now…
Today’s note reads:
“It’s quite alright. In the end, I ended up leaving early and having my own fun with some friends of mine. It’s quite sad we couldn’t meet up just yet, but know I’ll be thinking of a better way for us to meet until it happens.
I do have some other talents though, yes. I can dance fairly well and I know several languages! One of them is Russian. :)
I also can sing okay, I guess? I don’t think it’s all that, but my mothers say I’m talented, and who am I to disbelieve them?
(P.S.
Here’s a fun fact: I’ve been thinking fondly of you for almost a year now. I’m glad my sudden burst of bravery to start writing you these notes has made us closer than before!)
…Closer than before? What could that mean?
+++
When he gets home later, Paige writes his note. It reads:
“Can I ask what kind of dance? Just curious! I’ve never danced before in my life, not really. Just for fun. You know.!
Also, I tried to write you a poem this time, since it only felt fair to learn something you’re into, right? So I thought really hard about this. Here it goes!
Violets and roses,
I’m not too good at proses
But with you in mind,
I think I’m capable of anything with enough time!
I think I’m falling for you,
I really, really do
You’ve got my heart caught,
I get dizzy at your thought!
I hope we’ll meet face to face soon,
I’m sure your voice will be my favorite tune
So I don’t feel like a fool,
When I say that meeting you will be way past cool!
(P.S.
Don’t laugh when you get this!I tried my best! ;_;!)”
He smiles down at his note. “Way past cool…” he mumbles. Wasn’t that the one phrase OJ used to say all the time way back when?
“Cheeeeesyyyy,” Leaf says, sticking out his tongue and derailing Paige’s train of thought. “But I guess it’s perfect for your loverboy. You’re great and all, Paige, but you gotta admit you’re a bit of a nerd.”
“I’m not a nerd…” Paige pouts, neatly folding his blue and white paper. “I’m just a guy.”
“A guy who’s a nerd,” Leaf chuckles. “It’s not bad being a nerd, by the way. But you are very much a nerd.”
Paige sighs and lets the conversation drop. If he didn’t encourage this, then it wouldn’t continue.
“Aw, you’re ignoring me?” Leaf pouts, crossing their arms. “Yeah, alright. I can ignore you too.”
“Who’s pouty now?” Paige smirks humourlessly.
“Whatever.”
Rolling his eyes, Paige puts his note in his bag and turns on his TV to a music station. It’s only about 8, so there was no reason to go to sleep so early. He had suddenly had this burst of energy that allowed him to stay up past 6 or 7 for most days. He could even make it to 10 at this point!
But, lazily, he falls back on his bed and reaches for his phone, looking for someone to message. Brandon was always available, but he was acting a little weird earlier… better just wait to see if he comes to him first. There was Sue and Bro too, but the former was always busy watching something and forgetting to text back, and the other would fall asleep mid sentence without warning.
So, realistically, that only left OJ. Paige remembers him mentioning offhand that his curfew wasn’t until 10, so he was probably awake. Doing what, Paige couldn’t guess, but probably going down some rabbit hole online. He remembered OJ doing that a lot when they used to hang out a lot too.
OJ it was, then.
Paiges: Hello OJ!
Paiges: I hope i didn’t wake you! I was just wondering if you were free to talk!
There. That was enough not to bother but enough to get attention, wasn’t it? Oh, what did those articles on double texting say again…?
As Paige is panic-googling information, his phone dings.
hyaku% oj: Evening, Paige! It’s quite late for you, isn’t it? Unless your sleeping habits have suddenly changed, I remember you usually falling asleep around 6. It was the same when you came over too.
hyaku% oj: But listen to me, rambling about something weird. Excuse that, please.
hyaku% oj: I’m free to talk though, yes! I was just. Going over some old homework.
Old homework? Who goes over old homework? Silly OJ, always being so honest. It was so endearing.
Paiges: Oh? Whats the assignment?
Paige doesn’t wait long before the response.
hyaku% oj: Old language homeworks. I’ve told you I can speak multiple languages before surely? In fact, I feel like I’ve told you this recently. But perhaps not. I can get kind of scatterbrained, haha!
hyaku% oj: That being said, if you’d like to waste some time away with company, we can call while I practice.
hyaku% oj: We could also talk! I’m not opposed to that at all. I can put the homework away for the night.
Paiges: Oh, we can call while you practice!
Paiges: That sounds like fun! :)!
hyaku% oj: Alright then. I’ll call you in about a minute.
And, in exactly 60 seconds after the message is sent, Paige’s phone rings.
“Hello?” Paige asks.
“Hello! OJ greets. “Or, bonsoir.”
“Bonsoir?” Paige repeats.
“Good evening,” OJ translates. “It’s French, one of the languages I know.”
“Ohh…” Paige nods. “Yeah, that makes sense. You strike me as someone who would want to learn French.”
“Do I?” OJ laughs.
“You do!” Paige laughs back.
The two of them go back and forth like this for a while, before Paige quiets and lets OJ study. It’s not like he can understand OJ, so he just hums quietly to the music coming from the TV.
Then, at some point, the curiosity that’s been gnawing at him since the call started finally snaps. “OJ, could you say something to me in French?”
OJ stops in the middle of repeating some phrases. “Oh? Like what?”
Paige shrugs. “Anything.”
“Shall I recite a poem I like, then?”
“Sure!”
OJ is quiet for a moment, tapping away at what must be his keyboard. Then, he takes a deep breath and starts.
“L'eau qui caresse le rivage,
La rose qui s'ouvre au zéphir,
Le vent qui rit sous le feuillage,
Tout dit qu'aimer est un plaisir.
De deux amants l'égale flamme
Sait doublement les rendre heureux.
Les indifférents n'ont qu'une âme ;
Mais lorsqu'on aime, on en a deux.”
Paige’s face is really warm for no reason whatsoever. “Wow… I don’t have any idea what any of that meant, but it sounded like it meant something beautiful!”
OJ laughs. “It’s a bit of a mouthful, honestly. I always get some of the parts mixed up and have to look it up to make sure I’m getting it right.”
“Aw, c’mon! You know three languages, I think you deserve some slack for mixing up some of them.”
“Four,” OJ corrects.
“Oh?” Paige blinks. “What’s the other one?”
“It’s—” OJ cuts off abruptly. “It’s—the—Zelda language!” His laugh is a little awkward. “Um, but it’s late, isn’t it?”
Paige pulls his phone away, looking at the time. It’s 8:47.
“Oh geez, it is getting kind of late,” Paige nods. “We should get to sleep soon, shouldn’t we?”
“We should,” OJ agrees. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow? There’s something I wanted to ask you in person.”
“Oh, sure!” Paige smiles. “Before or after?”
“After, if that’s alright. It would make things move smoother depending on your choice!”
“Ooh, a choices game!” Paige laughs. “I’m excited to hear what it is!”
“I’m excited to ask it!” OJ’s smile is evident in his voice. “Tomorrow, then?”
“Yep! Goodnight, OJ!”
“Goodnight, Paige.”
Their phones click off and Paige settles properly into bed, holding Teds.
But before Paige can fully fall asleep, his mom knocks on the door.
Spinning around with a small groan, he shouts, “Come in!”
Quinn pushes in, a soft smile on their face. “Hello, sweetie.”
“Hi, Mom,” Paige grins sleepily. “Did you want something?”
“Not really,” she shrugs, walking over and sitting on his bed. “I normally check in on you around this time.”
“You do?” Paige blinks.
“I do,” Quinn nods. “You’re normally fast asleep, but I still like checking in.”
“Mom…” Paige smiles, heart swelling. He gives her a strong hug. “I love you!”
Quinn laughs, holding him back. “I love you too, honey! But what’s all this?”
“It’s just been a weird couple of days,” Paige sighs, pulling back. “I don’t even know how to explain it. Everything… everyone… it’s all just… weird.” He pushes back into his mom weakly. “But you’re… the same. You always do this. Just to check in on me.” Had Paige’s voice grown wobbly? “I-I don’t know… It got to me, I guess.”
“You’re the sweetest book of Paiges in the world,” Quinn coos, pulling her son into her lap and hugging him tightly, kissing his cheeks back and forth. “I love you soooo much!”
Paige laughs, pulling away without actually doing it. “Moooom! Stopppp!”
“Nope!” she giggles, stopping anyways. “I do, though. It’s so sweet that you’d start to cry over something like that.”
“I didn’t—!” Paige starts, only to sniff. “...Okay. Maybe I did start crying a bit.”
“And that’s perfectly okay, honey.” Quinn squeezes him again, “It warms my heart to know you’re so caring. No matter what, you never lose that, okay?’
Paige nods slowly. “...Can I hug you again?”
Instead of saying something, Quinn simply opens their arms.
Paige pushes in immediately, sighing.
“...”
Paige blinks inside, looking at a hovering Leaf. He looks upset in a weird, wanting sort of way. It doesn’t take Paige long to put two and two together.
“C’mon,” he thinks. “Get over here.”
Leaf bites his lip for a long second, before floating over and joining the hug’s sensation and sharing it with Paige.
The immediate weight Paige feels lift off of his heart is almost painful.
On Friday the usual song and dance is performed, the swapping of notes being an automatic highlight of Paige’s day.
Today’s note reads:
“You did spectacularly, Paige! Poetry is tied to one’s heart. So, no matter how it may seem to you, I see the effort put into it and appreciate it for all it is.
Not to mention, you wrote it for me. Not to be shallow, but I think I’d like it regardless of anything anyways. ♥
That aside, I used to ballroom dance. It was fun, swaying my partner around, being in sync with them. I do so think doing the same with you would send my heart aflutter unlike anything else so far. You have quite the effect on me, you know! ♥
(P.S.
I was thinking offhandedly today, if you turned into a Pokemon, which one do you think you would be and why? Would my saying Charmander be boring? Because I think I can see some Cyndaquil in me. The roster being mostly only starters sure does make things a bit more difficult, no?
As for why… Fire types always intrigued me. I like their drive! I like how kind they are, despite their power to destroy so easily. And I specifically like how laid back Cyndaquil is, so yes! I think I’d prefer being one of them rather than a Charmander.)”
Paige blushes at the beginning of the note, suddenly feeling embarrassed as he remembers his silly little poem. If he had liked it though….. well then….!
Paige giggles to himself. Butterflies are filling his stomach rather fast!
When he gathers himself, he turns to Brandon, ready for his daily quip, but instead of looking sly, there’s a look on his face that was… almost relieved?
“Brandon, what’s up?” he asks, concerned. “You have a weird look on your face…”
Brandon blinks away expression and smirks like he normally does, giving a thumbs up. “Yeah, man! I’m good, I’m good. I just… I got lost in thought is all.”
“Oh, okay.” Paige has no reason to not believe the other, but he can feel his eyebrows furrow as he looks away. Why did he feel like Brandon wasn’t telling him everything?
+++
“OJ!” Paige waves. He was beside the exit doors, waiting for the other. “Over here!”
OJ quickly finds the source that is Paige and walks over in a mostly straight line, weaving through the steadily thinning crowd. “Hello, Paige!” he greets kindly. “I hope your day was well.”
“It was!” Paige grins, clasping his hands together. “I got another note!” he whispers as loud as he can. “And it was so nice! I loved it!”
“I’m really glad to hear that,” OJ says, an expression Paige can’t quite place covering his face. It’s gone before Paige can comment on it, though. “May I ask you to accompany me outside?” he offers instead, holding out a hand.
Paige looks down at the hand and blinks for a second before his face breaks out in an awkward grin and grows really hot. Was he supposed to hold OJ’s hand? They used to do it all the time in the years before, but not since Paige had started having his little crush. Now it felt different.
OJ didn’t even know… It felt like lying in a way.
“Oh for the love of god,” Leaf huffs. “Take his hand or I’ll take it for you.”
Paige snaps up OJ’s hand immediately.
“Sure!” he laughs, strained. He starts walking, taking the lead even though he didn’t know where he was really supposed to be going. “You—you had a question to ask me, right?”
OJ looks concerned for a moment before shaking his head a bit. “Yes, I did.” He speeds up just a bit, effortlessly taking the lead for the two of them now. “If it’s not too much, there’s this place I wanted to visit with you.”
“Me?” Paige asks. “How come?”
“Ah…” OJ looks away shyly. “I just thought you’d like it.”
The hand in Paige’s twitches a bit, squeezing it. It’s an innocent gesture, but it sends Paige into an immediate tizzy.
Quickly he tries to remember the frankly silly amount of teen crush articles he had gone through a while back. What did it mean if someone you like squeezed your hand again?
“I’m—I’d love to go!” Paige says, a wide but shy smile on his face. “What—where is it?”
“Rather close to my house, actually,” OJ responds. “You probably saw it when we passed it in the RV without even knowing it.”
“Well now I can’t wait to see what it is!” Paige laughs.
“It’s just a couple of blocks this way.” OJ points up the sidewalk. “So we’ll be there soon.”
“Awesome!”
On the way there, the two catch up with one another a bit, mostly surrounding their school activities. Paige does his best to sound like he actually remembers the majority of his classes.
Other than that, the conversation wanders to games and cartoons (“You simply must see this one old cartoon, it’s called The Life and Times of Juniper Lee!”) and Paige simply enjoys OJ’s company. They’re having a great time, both trading facts and jokes and jabs. For a moment, it feels like they’d never stopped hanging out as much as they did in the past.
Then, OJ takes a sudden turn, cutting off Paige mid sentence. “Woah!” he gasps. “OJ, where are we going?”
“Oh, we’re here actually.” A bit of walking leaves the two of them staring at a thick bunch of ironically thin vines. They must have been here for ages.
“Um, OJ…” Paige mumbles. “This is a wall of plants.”
OJ laughs so hard he doubles over a bit.
Paige frowns a little. “Wh—I don’t get the joke…?”
OJ catches his breath soon after, wiping his eyes. “Sorry! Sorry!” he gasps. “I—I’m so sorry.”
“What was so funny?”
OJ shakes his head, a smile on his face. “It was unfair of me to assume you would just know. But I’ve been coming here so often, I suppose I just accepted it as common knowledge.”
Paige furrows his brows, putting one finger to his chin. “So… what… what is it, exactly?
”Here,” OJ says, grabbing one end of the vines. “I’ll show you!”
And, with one fell swoop, OJ pulls back the curtain of vines.
Past them is a small but flourishing patch of grass, wildflowers everywhere. It’s mostly surrounded by buildings, but there’s places you can clearly see through them, showing the bright sky ahead. The place is clearly unkempt, but it’s almost… methodical in a way? Like it was being carefully taken care of to only look a bit bad and not a lot bad.
And, smack dab in the middle of the place is a pair of swings. The bar holding them up is broken with sharp ends, suggesting that there used to be more to the set. But there’s no other proof, just that one thing. The swing’s chains, which should probably look shiny, instead look like black tar, strongly holding onto each other.
Leading up to the swings is a plank of wood, flanked by small fences. The wood then goes around and under the swings, also being blocked on all sides by wooden fencing. It’s a perfect little patio set up seemingly in the middle of a random small lot in the back of some buildings.
“Woah…” Paige breathes.
“Do you like it?” OJ asks, hands clasped together in front of his chest. “I found this place during summer vacation. I then spent time fixing it up as much as I could, making the road to and from the swingset easier to traverse, as well as reinforcing the swings themselves. I spread a couple of quick growing seeds around after that, hoping it would up the atmosphere.” He looks extremely proud of his work. “Everything else is completely natural, that mostly being the amount of grass that was already here, as well as the unaltered swingset.”
“OJ…” Paige gasps. “That’s so incredible! How did you…?”
“Ma likes cars, but he also likes carpentry,” OJ chuckles. “What’s that one saying? Apples not falling so far from the tree?”
“This is so cool, OJ!” Paige grins, jumping over and giving him a hug. “You’re so cool!”
OJ starts laughing in an odd kind of way, starting and stopping every second. He honestly sounds a bit embarrassed. He was always so humble!
Paige lets go of OJ and holds one of his hands instead. “Can we sit on the swings together? I haven’t swung on a swing in what feels like forever.”
“O-of course,” OJ stutters, looking down shyly.
Paige tilts his head a bit, looking down too. Only then does he realize that he’s the one who started to hold OJ’s hand this time, which makes him think of the sudden hug he gave OJ just a moment ago as well.
He has the sudden urge to pull away, scared that he’s crossing boundaries they haven’t reestablished yet, but…
OJ hasn’t pulled away once.
So maybe it was okay?
Paige lets his hopefulness win, pulling OJ towards the swings. When they get there, they both take a seat, looking out at the sky.
They swing lightly, Paige smiling wide. It’s peaceful, even though the only thing that fills the air is the wind.
“Ah, Paige,” OJ says after a couple of minutes. “There’s actually something else I wanted to ask you.”
“Oh, okay!” Paige smiles brightly, turning towards the other. “Hit me.”
OJ nods, a small smile of his own showing. “Well, tomorrow happens to be the last day of the extended season for Luna Park. And my cousin has the uncanny ability to find sales and deals for anything in the world for some reason. I asked if there were any for the park, and they were able to get me two fairly cheap band deals.”
“Band?” Paige blinks.
“Oh, it’s a newer system than the old park. You know how you used to have to pay admission?”
“I guess,” Paige says. “I never really went to Brooklyn growing up, so I think I’ve only gone to Coney Island once or twice.”
“Ah,” Orville nods. “We go fairly often, so it’s unsurprising you wouldn’t know of the updates. That being said, the bands are like… they allow you to ride a certain amount of rides for a certain amount of credits instead of buying tickets to every ride. It comes out cheaper, somehow. I’ve never really cared to do the math… but now that I think of it…”
Paige smiles softly. OJ was so cute when he rambled. And he always found a way to get on some type of tangent no matter what. It was so charming!
“Ah, anyways,” OJ says, shaking his head. “I acquired these tickets for a quarter of the usual price, which is good since the normal price shoots up during the extended season. So, to make a long story short, I was wondering if you would like to go to the park with me tomorrow…?”
Paige gasps happily, huge smile breaking out over his face. “I’d love to!”
Paige sits on the side of the sidewalk, waiting to see the Squeeze’s colorful RV to pop into view. He hums to himself and fidgets with his backpack, bright smile on his face.
He was dressed in one of his favorite light blue hoodies and a dark green shirt with a lighter strip going across it. His pants were a plain denim and his sneakers white. It was an all around general outfit.
But Paige had wanted to bring a bit of flourish to this… meet up? Hang out? D… d…
Paige shakes his head.
Whatever this was, he wanted to look a little better than he would normally. For absolutely no reason, of course.
What brought the ensemble to a higher level were the accessories, his rare Eevee bag being one of them. The other was a cute brown teddy bear hat on top of his head. He hoped it wasn’t too childish… it was one of his favorite hats!
Paige doesn’t have to long for the cool RV to make its appearance. He stands as it gets closer. It rolls up and stops right beside him.
“Hey, kiddo!” Dani greets. “C’mon, get in!”
Paige nods brightly, opening the back of the car, only to be greeted by OJ, hand outstretched.
“Ah, you got to it before I did,” OJ chuckles. “Well, that’s quite alright. Come,” he flips his hand palm up. “Let me help you in.”
As opposed to Paige’s basic casual wear, OJ seems to be almost in business casual. He’s got a dark brown cloth coat on, a light red shirt under it and a cozy looking dull orange scarf on. His pants are nice black slacks and he’s got on a light brown over the shoulder bag.
From this angle, OJ is taller than Paige. The way he holds himself is so… Paige can’t even describe it. But either way, it’s making his face really warm.
“O-okay!” Paige blinks with a dumb smile. He takes the other’s hand and lets himself get effortlessly pulled into the RV. “Strong…” he mumbles.
“Hm?” OJ asks, crossing over his lap to close the door behind the other. “What was that?”
Paige was going to explode.
“Nothing!” he says quickly. “I just… was thinking outloud is all!”
“Ah, alright.” Oj smiles.
“So!” Dani claps. “What’s the plan again, kids?”
“You drive us to the Pizzaria where we all share a three way split pizza,” Orville starts.
“Then we take a couple of trains to get to Brooklyn,” Paige continues.
“And then we can be tourists for a bit,” OJ jokes.
Paige laughs and ribs him. “We’ll miss the rest of the trains to the park if we do that!”
“Joking!” OJ laughs back. “But yes, we take a few more trains to get to Coney—”
“Conely?” Dani breaks in, a grin in her voice.
OJ chuckles. “Conely Island.” He glances over at Paige with a sly face. “And then we can be tourists for a minute or two, surely?”
Paige laughs and nods. “Of course! We can do whatever we want when we make it to the park.”
“Excellent,” OJ says, a self assured smile on his face.
The ride to the pizzeria isn’t too terribly long, and soon the four of them are eating their shared pizza. Paige actually finishes his slices this time (“Sorry about leaving a mess last time, Mr. Antonio.”) and then, the two teenagers bid the adult Squeeze’s goodbye. They make their way to the nearest train station on foot, as they would be going from now on.
“I haven’t been on the train in a while…” Paige murmurs as they buy metrocards for the day. “I don’t even think I was a teenager yet.”
“That is quite some time,” OJ blinks. “But worry not, I know these stations and stops like the back of my hand. We shouldn’t get lost as long as we stay on course.”
“You know all the stops?” Paige gasps. “Like, all of the Bronx or all of the boroughs?”
OJ looks away humbly. “All of the boroughs,” he confirms.
“Woah!” Paige smiles. “That’s amazing!” OJ just rubs the back of his neck shyly.
“The next train will be arriving soon,” announces over the intercom.
“Oh, we should probably get upstairs,” OJ says, grabbing Paige’s hand. Paige lets OJ take him up the stairs, him holding onto the rail.
“Train now arriving,” drones the announcer again. And, true to their word, there’s a train pulling in. People shuffle in and out, the pair of them snaking their way in with OJ at the lead.
“Good thing we were just in time!” Paige says as they both take a seat.
“Now we just transfer a couple of stops from here, which will take us to Brooklyn,” OJ rattles off, curling a finger with the other with each thing he says, “And then we transfer twice more. And then we should be there!”
“Yippie!” Paige cheers quietly as not to disturb the other riders. “So, did you bring anything to do? We’ve got a lot of waiting to do!”
“I actually brought an activity I thought both of us could do,” OJ smiles, reaching into his bag. He pulls out a fairly large iPad and opens it up with his finger. “Have you ever heard of a game called Flow Free?”
“The little bridges game, right?” Paige asks. “Where none of them can cross each other?”
“Exactly.” OJ navigates to a folder on the second page before opening up none other than Flow Free.
“Oh, cool!” Paige smiles. “I think I might remember some of these, actually.”
“Perhaps,” OJ smirks. “But not the ones I have.”
True to his word, OJ taps on a button that was not there for Paige when he played forever ago. “What’s this?” he asks, leaning over on the other to get a better view.
OJ chuckles. “This is all the DLC that came out in the years since you’ve last played,” he informs. “So many stages have been added! That’ll get us from here, to the park and back, I can assure you.”
“Awesome!” Paige grins. “So, how are we gonna do this? Back and forth with each round?”
“Mmm… I had an idea that might be a bit more fun,” OJ says slyly.
“Oh?”
“We can do that, but also keep score.”
Paige tilts his head. “What do you mean? Won’t we have the same score by default?”
“Not if we give up and let the other try after getting frustrated,” OJ suggests. “I’ve done it before with my moms with other games.”
“Ohh…” Paige nods, then stops. “But, wait. You’ve had these for way longer than me! You probably know all the answers!”
“I don’t, actually.” OJ scrolls for a little bit before he gets to a page that is only a bit lit up. “I come back to this game very rarely, so I’ve only really completed a couple of the new ones.” He turns to Paige. “We should have plenty of them left.”
“Oh, okay!” Paige nods again, fully getting it this time. “We can keep score in the notes app with little tally marks!”
“Oh, I love tally marking,” OJ sighs. “Can I do it for us both?”
Paige has to stifle a giggle. He knew OJ liked doing the tally marks. That’s why he suggested them in the first place, he knew OJ would be happy to do them.
Ah… he was so cute when excited like this.
Paige blinks and quickly rubs at his face a bit, trying to get the blush he knew that was there to calm down. He couldn’t be getting all air headed about OJ now! They were on a… They were hanging out!!
Paige gets it off of his mind by playing the game with OJ, transferring trains when they needed to. Before they knew it, the announcer is droning over the intercom, “Coney Island, last stop, Coney Island.”
“Oh!” Paige smiles, lifting up from leaning over on OJ to see his progress in the level. “We’re here!”
The walk to the park proper is made with oohs and aahs from Paige as he takes in all the changes from when he was last here. The place had gotten quite the facelift since forever ago, pretty mosaics showing the new rides all over the walls. The boardwalk was mostly the same, but it was the park itself that was the interesting place.
“Here we are, Paige!” OJ grinned. “Luna Park!”
+++
The two teens enter the park proper, getting a lay of the land. While Paige looks up and around, OJ glances up and down from the scenery to a map.
“Alright…” he mumbles. “I think I can tell where mostly everything in this area is…”
“Ooh!” Paige gasps, grabbing OJ’s arm and shaking him slightly with one hand, pointing with the other. “OJ, look, look! That carnie game has Pokemon as prizes!”
“Carnie…?” OJ repeats, sounding confused as Paige jumps up and down.
“Can we play? Oh my gosh, I remember when I was little and too short to play… but I can play now!” He keeps rambling. “The prizes were so big to me then! And then—and then I would get on the frog hoppy ride and I would be so pumped up! Because it just kinda threw you up and down, you know? And then I—”
“Paige!” OJ laughs, putting the map away. “While I would be remiss to stop you from continuing, we can walk and talk, no?” He smiles brightly. “After all, how am I supposed to win you a prize by just standing here?”
“You’re going to win me a prize?” Paige gasps. He moves his hand down and grabs OJ’s. “Oh my gosh, c’mon then! What if they run out?”
OJ giggles as the two rush to the game, one of the dart throwing games.
“Step right up, step right up!” the person manning the booth says. “Care to try your luck?”
“Yes!” Orville nods, clapping his hands together. “How much for a round?”
“Three bucks, kiddo.”
“Huh?” Paige questions, lifting up his banded wrist. “Didn’t you say we exchange points for stuff?”
“Ah, yes,” OJ says, handing the booth handler the money, “But these games are technically not a part of the park itself. They’re their own and require money to play.”
“Ohh…” Paige looks off to the side, a bit snide. “Sounds like a con.”
OJ bursts into a laugh, nearly dropping his acquired darts. “Paige! Don’t say that in front of the handler!”
“Oh ho ho!” the handler laughs. “Worry not, kiddo. I’ve been called way worse.”
“If you say so, sir,” OJ says, still a hint of apology in his voice. With that, OJ places the three darts side by side as he tries to aim his throw with the fourth one. He tosses it after a moment of just staring, throwing his whole arm in an arc sideways.
It’s a swing and a miss.
“Aw!” Paige pouts. “Try again!”
OJ nods and does.
Swing and a miss.
And then, twice more, swing and a miss.
“Ouch,” the handler laughs. “Wanna try again?”
“Hmph,” OJ huffs, digging out some more cash. “Give me two more rounds.”
“Oh! Not feeling very lucky, are we?”
OJ shakes his hand. “Two more rounds,” he pouts. “I’m trying to earn something for Paige, here. It just makes more sense to have left over if I want something else, no?”
The handler shrugs. “Whatever you say, kid.” They hand over the darts.
“You know, it’s okay if you can’t win something for me,” Paige says honestly. “I’m just happy to be here with you, so I don’t mind if we just ride some rides and call it a day!”
OJ smiles at Paige, but then gets serious. “I told you I would win this for you, and I intend to keep my word.” He takes a deep breath and lines up for the shot.
And whiffs five times in a row.
“UGH!” he groans, stomping into the ground and shoving his hands in his hair. He scrubs at it as he stomps, growling all the way.
“Hey, it’s ok!” Paige says, holding his arms up in a placating manner. “Really, if it’s a money thing, I can pay you back what you lost. It’s only like 10 dollars, right?”
“It’s not the money!” OJ huffs, crossing his arms and looking away. “I really wanted to win you something…” he grumbles. “I’m usually so good at these…”
“Maybe I can try?” Paige says, looking down at the single dart left. “You have one more play left.”
“Be my guest,” OJ sighs. “Maybe you’ll have some better luck.”
Paige nods with determination. He picks up the dart, aims, and throws.
POP!
“Woah-ho!” the booth manager whoops, ringing a loud bell. “We’ve got a winner here, folks!”
Paige smiles wide. “Oh, cool!” He turns to OJ. “OJ, I won!”
“I see!” OJ says, dumbfounded. “And in one throw, too!”
“Which prize do you want, kiddo?” the manager asks, picking up a long stick and pointing at the many, many plushies that hung on top of the booth.
“Oh, um…” He looks over them all, then looks back at OJ. “You choose!”
“Me?” OJ blinks, pointing to himself.
“Yes! It was your round, after all.”
OJ stares for a minute before his face melts. “Oh Paige, you’re just the kindest aren’t you?” Paige’s smile turns shy as he rubs the back of his neck, giggling a bit. But OJ shakes his head. “No, it was your win. I insist you choose a prize for yourself.”
“Okay…” Paige drones temptingly. “If you’re suuuure….”
OJ nods. “I’m sure.”
“Okay, then!” Paige grins. “That one, please!” he says, pointing to a more hidden one in the corner.
The manager fishes it out. “This weird gray dog?” they ask as confirmation.
“Yep!”
“Oh, there’s no way…” OJ gasps.
“Oh hey!” the manger laughs as he hands the shiny Eevee plushie over. “The thing matches your backpack!”
“It does!” Paige nods happily.
“That’s incredible, Paige!” OJ congratulates. “I didn’t even notice this back there!”
“Heehee!” Paige giggles. “Even I can have a sharp eye sometimes!”
“And you would’ve given that up for something of my choosing?” OJ asks, wonder in his voice.
Paige shrugs. “It’s just a plushie. It makes me happy having it, yeah, but I don’t know. I think seeing you happy would be an equal trade.”
OJ’s grin is shy as he looks away.
“Hey, kiddo,” the handler butts in, “You want a free shot?”
“Huh?” Paige blinks, turning to them. “Why?”
“You’re the first one I seen this whoooole year make a good shot, let alone popping a balloon. I’d think my boss wouldn’t be too upset if I lended you one.” They smile and cover half of their face, mock whispering. “I’ll even let ya get a second prize if you can hit it twice in a row!”
“Then OJ can get a prize after all!” Paige claps happily.
“Oh, you really don’t have to…” OJ says kindly. “We can go.”
“But it’s free!” Paige argues. “I might as well try, right?”
OJ sighs. “Yes, I suppose. But don’t gets discouraged if you—”
“Winner!!”
OJ blinks.
“Okay!” Paige smiles wide and turns to OJ. “Which one do you want now?”
“I-I…” OJ breathes. “Ah…”
“OJ?” Paige blinks, pulling into himself. Did he make OJ feel bad by winning twice in a row? “Are you okay?”
“Yes!” OJ gasps, shaking his head. “Yes, yes, I’m quite fine. I just… was surprised! Even when I win at this game, it normally takes me a good couple of shots between wins!”
“I guess I’m just lucky!” Paige grins, giving a peace sign. “Now c’mon! Pick one, pick one!”
“Okay, okay!” OJ laughs, releasing the tension. “Um… let’s see…” He looks over all the plushies like Paige had just done a minute ago before gasping and pointing. “That one, please!”
“This weird blue one?” the handler asks, tapping at the Cyndaquil hanging up.
“Yes, please!”
“Here you go, kiddo.” They hand the plush to OJ and he smiles before looking Paige in the eyes.
“You know, Paige,” he starts, hugging the plush to his chest, “I always did think I could see some Cyndaquil in me.”
Paige’s smile becomes slightly strained and confused. Why did that sound so familiar…?
……Ah!
Paige’s eyes widen.
That was exactly what his secret admirer had said on his last note!!
OJ’s smile softens.
Paige’s face heats up beyond belief.
There was no way.
There was no way that OJ was…!!!
Paige couldn’t believe it. OJ? The one person he was already crushing hard on? He was Paige’s secret admirer!?
“L-let’s go ride something!” he yelps suddenly, surprising even himself. “I-I mean, no use just standing around, right?” He pulls off his bag and slips in his Eevee plushie before putting it back on. “Daylight only lasts so long in November!”
“When you’re right, you’re right, Paige,” OJ nods with a cute smile, opening his bag. He gently places the Cyndaquil into it, zipping it so it was secure. “I’m ready to ride whatever you wish!”
The two teens make their way from one end of the park to the other, riding everything that piqued either of their interests. Neither of them would really call one another thrill seekers, but for whatever reason, they were both drawn to higher thrill rides the whole way through.
On one ride, The Tickler, OJ leans over on Paige after the two of them have been flung back and forth and squeaks, “Kyaa—!” Paige freezes for a moment, not ready for OJ to be on him. But he recovers before the other can and retaliates by holding him closer.
By the time they climb off of that ride, both of them look as red as tomatoes.
At some point, the sun begins her descent and the two decide it’s time to get a small snack before going on a few more rides and going home. As Paige sits on a bench to take a breather, OJ gets on line for them to get a couple of overpriced hot dogs.
Finally alone with his thoughts, Paige rocks back and forth a bit, legs pulled onto the bench with him. Does he know I know? he wonders. Do we just… pretend like neither of us know? I don’t want to push him if he’s not ready… but then why would he have said that? It was a direct quote! …But still… Maybe I should keep acting like I don’t know…
Paige’s train of thought is interrupted by OJ sitting down next to him, handing him a small hot dog. “Here you are, Paige!” he smiles wide.”I made sure they didn’t put ketchup on it for you.”
“You remembered?” Paige blinks, taking the food. “Thank you!”
“Of course,” OJ shrugs. “It’s no problem.”
The two of them eat in relative silence, sitting rather close to each other. Paige takes longer than OJ to finish, so once the other does, he stretches out. When he puts his hands back down, one of them lands on top of Paige’s.
They stay like that until Paige finishes eating. He takes a really long time to finish for some reason.
The pair ride a couple more rides until the sun is really starting to lose her shine. It’s time to go.
“So,” OJ says, taking out his Cyndaquil plush from its confinement, “How did you enjoy Luna Park after all this time?”
Paige follows along, freeing his Eevee and smiling. “It was great!” he grins, jumping a bit. “There were so many new rides from the last time I was here!”
“The park sees steady maintenance,” OJ nods, holding his plush to his chest. “It’s unsurprising, but exciting, isn’t it? There could be any new ride there next season for all we know!”
“That is exciting!” Paige agrees. “Can we go again?”
OJ’s expression grows a little odd, but he replaces it with a soft smile after. “Of course, Paige. I’d love to do anything with you.”
Wow! Was it suddenly really warm in here? Or was it just Paige’s face?
“Um!” he starts awkwardly. “What—what should we name them?”
OJ blinks. “Name them?”
“Our Pokemon!” Paige smiles, feeling a little more at ease. OJ would no doubt follow this thread and leave the other one alone until Paige could get home and think about it so hard. But that was for then, and not now.
“Oh!” OJ chuckles. “I don’t know, I rarely name my plushes.”
Paige gasps, “But you have so many!”
“Exactly!” OJ laughs. “I would hate to forget one of their names.”
“Mmm…” Paige pouts. “That’s fair, I guess.”
OJ laughs more as the train pulls into the station.
“Okay, okay, okay,” Paige giggles, taking a seat next to OJ on the train. “But seriously! I think our guys should have matching names! Since we got them at the same place together, you know?”
“Ah… hmm…” OJ twiddles his thumbs. “If you’re certain, I have an idea, but it may not make much sense to you.”
“Tell me!” Paige smiles.
“Well… how about Patro and Achili?” OJ holds up his Cyndaquil. “I’d like Achili for this little guy if that’s alright.”
Paige hums, furrowing his brows. Those names sounded vaguely familiar for one reason or another… he feels like he remembers hearing them in school, but that would make sense. OJ was a bit of a nerd, so he would pick kind of nerdy names for their plushies, wouldn’t he?
“Then Eevee is now Patro!” he grins. “You’re right, I don’t really get what they mean, but you do, don’t you?”
OJ looks away with a wide but shy smile. “I do.”
“Then they’re perfect!” Paige assures, leaning over on the other. It takes the three seconds that he stays there for him to realize, oh. He’s tired.
The teen yawns. “OJ, is it okay if I take a nap? I just realized how much today took out of me…”
“Of course, Paige. Here.” OJ rearranges the two of them so that Paige is comfortably against OJ’s shoulder, using his scarf as a makeshift pillow for the other. “I’ll keep vigil until we have to transfer, alright?”
Paige nods and lets himself become limp against the other, a small smile on his face.
+++
“OJ……” Paige whines as they trudge their way out of the subway station. “I’m so sleepy……”
The current set up is Paige being all but dragged by OJ by the hand as he leads them where they need to go. In their unoccupied hands, each of them hold onto their plushies.
“You sound dead on your feet,” OJ giggles.
“I aaaaammm…” Paige groans.
OJ laughs outright now. “Would you like to stay over, perhaps?” he offers after recovering. “I’m sure my moms wouldn’t mind.”
“Can I?” Paige asks, sobering a little. The sudden prospect of spending more time with OJ after finding out… well, Paige wasn’t about to give that up, was he?
OJ chuckles. “That woke you up a bit.”
“What?” Paige blinks. “Oh, um… I mean…” He coughs and leans all his weight to each of his steps. “Caaaaannnn I…? I’m soooooo sleepyyyyy…”
OJ laughs so hard he snorts, and then blushes and covers his face. “Um!” he squeaks, coughing. “I—I’m the one who invited you, aren’t I?”
“You areeee,” Paige nods slowly.
“Then you’re more than welcome to, silly boy.”
Paige decides to worry about what that does to him later, like tomorrow, or the next day, or 70 years from now.
+++
“Are you all good?” OJ asks as he finishes blowing up the air mattress.
“Yep!” Paige smiles. “I texted Mom everything and she replied with a thumbs up emoji.” He yawns. “Sorry I had to borrow some of your clothes after showering by the way… I didn’t exactly plan on this, heehee.” He rubs the back of his neck shyly.
“It’s quite alright, Paige!” OJ assures, standing up. “I don’t mind at all.”
Paige picks up Patro from where he had left him on top of his bag. “Thanks for blowing up the mattress. I could honestly just sleep standing up right now…”
“Oh, did you forget?” OJ chuckles. “You take my bed. I take the air mattress.”
Paige pouts, but knows he’d just be fighting a losing battle if he were to argue. “Fiiiine…” he laments, walking gingerly over to the bed and sitting. “If you’re sureeeee…”
“I’m just as sure as I was last time, Paige,” OJ giggles.
Paige likes OJ’s giggle.
He blinks. “Um,” he says quietly, shaking his head. “I’m going to fall asleep now, okay?”
“Alright.” OJ has collected the bedding he would need for the mattress and fixed it all up by the time Paige had come back to reality. “Rest well! Goodnight!”
“Goodnight!” Paige says back, rolling over in the bed. Soon there are two clicks in the room, one being the overhead lights being turned off and the other being his desk’s night light being turned on. OJ really didn't like the dark.
Paige holds his stuffed Eeeve close to him as he tries to drift off, but he ends up just laying there. For what feels like hours. The only thing he can hear is his own breathing and OJ’s, but neither is steady.
Oh… that meant OJ was also still awake, didn’t it?
“OJ…?” he calls quietly.
“Yes Paige?” OJ mumbles, lifting up. “Wh’t is it?” He’s rubbing at one of his eyes.
“Oh no, did I wake you up?” Paige despairs. “Nevermind, nevermind.”
“No, I w’sn’t quite asleep yet,” OJ assures. “What is it?”
“Oh… umm…” Paige had not come into this without a plan. He hums a bit shakily. “Um…”
“Oh, are y’u cold?” OJ asks, standing. He leaves Achili on the bed. “Here, I c’n get you s’me more blankets.”
“Um!” Paige says quickly, using that thread as a lifeline. “Actually, I don’t think I need anymore blankets!”
“Oh?” OJ blinks blearily. “Th’n what’s up?”
“Um… actually…” Paige scoops up Petro. “Petro is cold! A-and I’m… sure he could use a companion! For warmth! Y-you know?”
OJ stares at the other, looking a bit confused, until his face clears. “You w’nna sleep with Achili?” he mumbles. “You just had t’ ask.” He picks up his Cyndaquil and hands it over gently, sleepy smile on his face. “Silly.”
Paige was going to explode.
“Actually!” Paige says before he can chicken out, “I don’t think! Achili would like to sleep without you! S-so you! Can sleep here too! I-if you want!”
OJ again takes a moment to process Paige’s words, but jolts once he does. “You want me t’ sleep with you?”
Paige squeaks. Oh goodness. How was he supposed to answer that? “I-I mean, you can—I can sleep on the air mattress after all!” He’s backpedaling so hard it’s like his life depended on it. “It’s—really, I can—”
OJ giggles, cutting Paige off. “M’ve over,” he says, shooing the other weakly.
Paige blinks and does so, moving towards the back of the bed. Before he knows it, OJ is laying down next to him, holding onto Achili.
“G’night, Paige…” OJ mumbles, snuggling in closer to his stuffed Cyndaquil.
“G-goodnight…!” Paige replies, head swimming. Within minutes, OJ’s breathing has evened out.
Paige’s heart hammers for the rest of the night.
The next day is spent at Paige’s house, playing games, watching TV… doing whatever the two wanted before it’s time for OJ to go back home.
So, here Paige is, Sunday night, sitting at his desk in despair.
We both know! he thinks. What do I write? Do I write in the first place? Oh gosh…
“Is this really worth all this goddamned stress?” Leaf interrupts roughly, rolling their eyes. “If you both know, just walk up to him and tell him. That’s how this thing is supposed to work, isn’t it?”
“...Nnno?” Paige says, unsure. “I… Look, I don’t know! I’m new to this!”
“Well hurry up and make up your mind,” Leaf huffs. “The light is bothering me.”
Paige pouts, upset. Leaf never made things easy for him, did they?
+++
The next morning, Paige shuffles out of his mom’s car, Brandon right behind him.
I didn’t even tell Brandon… Paige thinks to himself. Should I? I normally tell him everything, but he might say I should do something if I do…
“Yo!” Brandon shouts suddenly. “Earth to Major Control!”
“Huh?” Paige asks, blinking out of his thoughts. “Um… what—what is it?”
“I asked for your note, dude.” It’s true, Brandon has his hand out like he normally does when waiting for the notes. “I gotta get to class early, so I wanted to make sure I got it before I bolted.”
“Oh… u-um…” Paige shyly takes out the note he wrote last night and hands it to his brother. “Here…”
Brandon takes the note skeptically. “You alright man?” he asks, putting a hand on Paige’s shoulder. “You’re normally like, super hype about this.”
Paige nods, but it’s a little pathetic. “I’m just… worried about how he’ll take this one, I guess.”
“Psh!” Brandon smirks, ribbing the other. “You’ve been going back and forth strong so far! I’m sure he’ll love it no matter what.” He turns around, shrugging. “Besides, nothing’s changed, right? So you’ll be fine.”
“Right…” Paige mumbles. “Nothing’s changed…”
“That’s what I just said, dude!” Brandon laughs. “But look, I gotta get t’ stepping. I’ll see you later, ‘kay?”
“‘Kay…” Paige waves. And like that, Brandon is gone.
I hope I didn’t screw this up… Paige worries as he slowly follows the crowd into the school.
+++
Paige heads into the cafeteria, chewing his lip. He’s not looking where he’s going, navigating by muscle memory the whole way, so when he gets off of the lunch line, he’s not looking at the table the Crew normally sits at. So when he hears a “Paige!” he’s surprised by whose voice it is.
”Oh!” he perks up. “OJ!”
OJ waves, beckoning Paige over. “Hello, hello!”
Paige rushes over, thoughts dispelled. “Hi!” he beams, sitting down and turning towards the other. “What are you doing here? Isn’t your lunch period after ours?”
“It is,” OJ nods. “But I had an empty period, so I thought I’d come visit everyone today!”
“Oh!” Paige smiles wide. “That’s awesome!”
“We’re all happy to see you too, Paige,” Brandon says with a fake pout. Everyone else laughs, but Paige flushes.
“Ah! Sorry!” he apologizes. “But it’s not everyday OJ’s here, you know? I just got a little turned around.”
“I’m sure you did,” Brandon says not unkindly, but he does roll his eyes. “Here, by the way.” He holds between his pointer and middle fingers the reply note for today.
Paige gasps and glances over at OJ, who is conveniently sipping at juice with his eyes closed. Can I read this with him right here? Paige wonders. Is that weird?
“Go on,” Brandon urges. “Read away. I think today’s is pretty good!”
“Oh, Brandon! Honestly!” Paige pouts, snapping up the note. “If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a million times…”
“Yeah, yeah,” Brandon laughs. “Go on, loverboy. Read your note.”
Paige huffs, but opens the note regardless.
Today’s note reads—
Before Paige can properly read it, there’s a loud slam on the table in front of him, an arm shooting between him and Brandon. “What the FUCK is this?” booms a loud voice.
Oh.
It’s PB again.
“What the fuck is what, asshole?” Brandon immediately frowns. “You interrupting our wonderful second-rate-bully-free lunch?”
PB growls and points down at what he placed on the table. “This,” he stresses. “What the fuck is this.”
Paige blinks and slowly looks down at what it is, which happens to be the school newspaper. On it in big letters is the headline: PAIGE IS A FIGHTING MASTER? The Yin Yang Cutter’s Response!
“Um,” is all Paige can say.
“Is that all you can say?” PB laughs humorlessly. He then grabs Paige by the collar and lifts him a bit. “Get up you little twerp. I never got the chance to beat you up last time.”
“Hold on,” Brandon says, shooting up and grabbing the hand that holds Paige. “First, put my friend down. Second, what the hell does this have to do with you anyways? You just trying to find reason to fight?” He rolls up his sleeve. “‘Cause I can fight if you just want to fight.”
“Brandon—” Paige tries, only to be cut off by PB.
“That kid you beat up is my cousin,” he spits. “Not that I actually give a shit, but I’m not about to let his reputation ruin mine.”
“S-so you’re going to fight me?” Paige squeaks.
“So I’m going to fight you,” PB replies, unkind smile on his face.
“No,” Brandon says, removing PB’s hand from Paige’s collar and pushing him back, “You’re going to fight me.”
“No,” says a third player, throwing their hat into the ring, “I think he’ll be fighting me.”
Paige blinks as OJ stands, pushing Brandon back down. “OJ…?”
“Aww, are you his little boyfriend or something?” PB sneers mockingly, then takes a closer look at OJ. “Wait a sec. Aren’t you that one nerd everyone smart hates?” Paige frowns at the remark. Did OJ have problems with other bullies? “Pfft. You think you’re gonna beat me with what, some math facts or some shit?”
OJ carefully steps over to the other, a cool look on his face. Paige panics. “OJ, no! You don’t have to—”
“Nah,” PB says, drawing himself up. “He does now.”
OJ and PB stand only inches away from each other, an intense staredown happening. OJ doesn’t seem the slightest bit scared, even though PB is at least a foot or two taller than him.
And then PB swings first.
…And OJ deflects him like it’s nothing…!?
“What the—” PB groans and throws another punch, only for that to get blocked as well. “What the fuck!?”
OJ’s expression is neat and put together, a small smile on his face. “What? Did you not take martial arts as well?” He tuts. “I assumed someone who wanted to fight would actually know how.”
“Martial—are you fucking kidding me?” PB sounds completely dumbstruck.
“I’m not,” OJ says, shaking his head. “But I am done with this fight.”
“Wh—AUGH!!”
OJ does what can only be described as a turnaround, grabbing one of PB’s still outstretched arms and twisting with his whole weight, pulling the older skinny teen with him. OJ spins on an axis, taking PB from off his feet to being slammed on the floor with a loud thump.
“Oh my gosh,” Paige gasps as OJ dusts his hands off. “OJ, are you okay?”
“Quite fine, Paige,” OJ smiles. “I don’t take kindly to bullies, is all.”
“That was so cool!” Brandon cheers. “Did you really take martial arts?”
OJ nods along with Sue. “Orville took some classes around 3rd grade if I recall correctly.” They smile wryly. “I knew this fight would be open and shut.”
“Woah…” Bro breathes. “H-how did you know th-at?”
Sue shrugs. “He told me once.”
“And WHAT is going on over here?” booms a voice suddenly.
Uh oh.
It was the Lunch Squad.
Ms. Meredith storms over, Mr. Memphis and Mr. Merlyn right behind her.
“I-it was that insane kid!” one of PB’s lackeys accuse, pointing at OJ. “He threw PB down on the ground for no reason!”
“Literally a lie,” Brandon breaks in, only to be cut off by the other lackey.
“Is not! It was completely unprompted violence!” they shout.
“B-but…” Paige mumbles.
“It’s—it’s—” Bro tries. “That’s—it’s—they’re—”
Sue places a hand on theirs and gives a steely gaze to Ms. Meredith. “Peewee decided to fight Paige, and Orville stood up for him.” They raise an eyebrow. “Surely you’re going to punish the right party?”
Ms. Meredith shivers, frowning. “I will be doing whatever I want to do, Ms. Cruz.”
Sue frowns, but says nothing more.
“Hmph!” Ms. Meredith huffs, snatching up OJ’s hand and PB’s right after his two lackeys help him up. “Both of you will be receiving punishments for fighting on school grounds.” She turns to Mr. Memphis. “Memphis, watch this area while I’m gone.” He nods and she then turns to Mr. Merlyn. “Merlyn you…” she falters. “You do whatever you want.” He also nods and then the three of them break away, OJ and PB in tow with Ms. Meredith.
“Oh no…” Paige frowns, upset. “OJ got in trouble because of me…”
“Orville will be fine,” Sue assures. “As far as I know, he’s got no offenses prior to this, so Mr. Parlett will most likely just let him off with a warning.”
“Do you really think so?” Paige asks, worried.
“I do,” Sue nods.
+++
Paige and OJ text all night. It turns out Sue was right, OJ only got a slap on the wrist while PB was suspended for a couple of weeks.
Paiges: You really didn’t have to do that for me you know! I’m sorry I made you…
hyaku% oj: It’s quite alright, Paige. You didn’t make me do anything, I assure you. I simply did what I thought was best at the moment. If someone was going to fight you, I wasn’t going to sit back and watch it happen. After all, it’s you we’re talking about. I don’t mind a bit of fighting for you.
Paige tries really hard not to let his blushing distract him.
The two go back and forth until it’s time to sleep. Paige sighs heavily as he curls up under his bedding with Teds.
Well, he thinks, With PB gone, at least tomorrow can’t be any worse than today was.
Still, he worries. He worries and worries until he falls into a fitful sleep.
+++
Tomorrow is worse.
Paige goes through the motions of waking up, getting dressed, eating, going to school with Brandon… Everything is fine for all of that.
And then he steps inside of the school. Almost immediately giggles fill the air, causing Paige’s anxiety to spike. He wasn’t a stranger to laughs being thrown his way, but this seemed almost concentrated. He could almost swear people were staring and pointing at him.
“Jeez,” Brandon huffs. “What’s with everyone today?”
Paige’s phone rings. He blinks and checks the caller ID.
It’s Bro.
“Hello?” Paige answers, worried. “You don’t usually call, Bro. Is something wrong?”
“Don’t—don’t—d-don’t—” Bro stutters, groaning after. He takes a deep breath before managing to get out, “Don’t go to your locker.”
Paige furrows his brows and stops, causing Brandon to stop too. They were close to it by now, they only needed to turn the corner. “Why? I’m almost there.”
“Just don’t,” Bro stresses. “Not right now.”
“But…”
“Paige!” Bro shouts. “Do not! Go! To your locker!”
“O-okay!” he yelps. “I won’t!”
“Good.” With that, Bro hangs up.
“What was all that about?” Brandon asks. “And what aren’t you doing?”
Paige sighs. “I don’t know… Bro called and told me not to go to my locker…” He bites his lip. “But my books are in there…”
“Maybe there’s someone there waiting to fight you or something?” Brandon suggests, making Paige gulp. “B-but maybe not!” he backpedals. “Look, I’ll go with you. Whatever’s there can’t be so bad, right?”
Paige hums as Brandon takes his hand and starts to pull him to his locker. The closer they get, the more the crowd concentrates. In fact, it all seems to be surrounding… his locker?
“Alright!” Brandon shouts as they reach the outskirts of it, completely cut off by the amount of students around it, “Anyone who wants to get the snot beat out of them is welcome to stay! Everyone else, get the hell out!”
Brandon’s patented Scary Face is on when he says it, forcing a majority of the crowd to immediately dissipate. There’s a couple of stragglers, but Brandon jukes at them and they rush away. There’s only one left, who’s taping something… to Paige’s… locker…
Oh.
Paige’s locker is covered in notes.
“What the hell is this?” Brandon frowns, stomping on the ground next to the outlier, who scrambles away once they realize they’re being threatened. Brandon stares at the many pieces of paper stuck to Paige’s locker and blanches.
“Paige,” he breathes. “Paige, leave.”
“What?” Paige asks, breath starting to speed up. First Bro and now Brandon? What was this all about? “Brandon, what—”
“Paige, leave.” Brandon stresses, taking out his phone. He takes a picture of the locker before looking back at the other. “Please. You don’t want to see these.”
Paige is really upset, but he’s honestly too scared to actually read what’s on any of the notes now. So he bites his lip hard before nodding. “Can you… get me my books?”
“Yeah man,” Brandon says, still distracted by his phone. “No problem. Just wait in front of your class, alright? I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Okay…”
Paige stares a little longer before turning around and walking away.
Just what did any of those notes say? And why were they so bad nobody wanted him to see them?
…And why was everyone else so interested in them?
Paige’s head is hazy for the rest of the beginning of school. No matter what, he can’t get his mind off of all the stuff that was plastered all over his locker. What did it say? Why was it so horrible? Why did the whole school seem to be in on a joke he wasn’t?
When Paige leaves his fourth period class, he doesn’t even think twice about it as he heads to his locker. His head is so full of whys that he just lets himself follow his natural route to the lunchroom, where he always passes by his locker.
It’s not until he’s at it proper does he notice something.
All of the notes that were taped to the locker earlier have been replaced by one single neat note. It says, “I cleaned up that atrocious mess for you.” In a small circle under it is a smiley face. At the bottom, it’s signed S.S..
Paige plucks the note off of his locker to see it’s actually folded. He flips it over to read:
“P.S. If you have even the slightest inkling of who may have done this, please report them to the principal immediately.”
Paige blinks.
“Always need someone to clean up after you, huh Paige?” Leaf snickers., causing Paige to frown again.
“Can you please be nice to me?” he pleads. “Things are kind of scary for me right now!”
Leaf blows a small raspberry. “I’m sorry, do you want somebody to hold your hand?”
“Ugh!” Paige stomps his foot and whines. “I don’t know what your issue is, but I can’t deal with it and everything else right now!”
“Whatever,” Leaf says, rolling their eyes. “I’ll go and die then, I guess.”
“What?” Paige gasps.
…There’s no response.
“Leaf?”
Nothing.
Paige sighs. Leaf just kind of talked like that, didn’t they? He was sure they were okay.
Maybe.
Hopefully.
+++
“Paige,” Sue says as the teen approaches the lunch table he shared with his friends. There’s an urgent tone in their voice. “We know who committed the crime.”
“Crime?” he asks, sitting down and looking around. “Also, where’s Brandon?”
“He-he’s at th-e Dean’s,” Bro answers.
“What!?” Paige gasps. “Why!?”
“He’s reporting what happened to you.” Sue lifts an eyebrow. “You know. The crime.”
Paige squints. “...You mean the notes on my locker earlier?”
“Yeah,” Bro nods. “It was… i-it was…” They shake their head. “I—I’m just glad you d-didn’t see any of th-at.”
“Could it really have been that bad?” Paige asks with a small laugh in his voice as he opens his milk box.
Sue and Bro stare very seriously at Paige.
“...I guess it could have,” he frowns, taking a sip.
“Hey guys!” says a voice Paige is happy to hear. “Ya boy’s back!”
“Brandon!” Paige smiles, turning to the other as he approaches. “Hi!”
“Hey man,” Brandon grins, giving the other a Brotherly Pat On The Back. Paige only coughs a little bit. “You doin’ alright?”
“Yeah, I’m okay!” he nods. “My locker was cleaned up by someone!”
“Oh for real?” Brandon blinks. “Who?”
Paige shuffles around and pulls the note out of his pocket. “Here, look. They left this.”
The whole Crew looks at the note, passing it around. Sue holds onto it and stares at it hard. “I recognize this handwriting too.”
“Too?” Paige blinks.
“Ah, that’s right, you weren’t here,” Sue mumbles. “Brandon reported the notes because I was able to parse the handwriting of a couple of them.” They frown deeply. “It was PB and his lackeys again.”
“Again?” Paige laments. “What did I ever do to that guy to deserve this?”
“I-I th-ink he’s just like that,” Bro sighs.
“I guess…” Paige mumbles dejectedly. But then, he gasps suddenly. “Oh no! I never got to read O—” He coughs. “I-I never got to read my note from yesterday!”
“You also never gave me a new one, so I don’t have one for you today,” Brandon informs. “Might as well pretend like yesterday’s was today’s, I guess.”
Paige nods and digs out the note from where he had haphazardly shoved it into his bag the day before. He smooths it out once he’s got it.
Yesterday’s note reads:
“Perhaps a meet up should happen sooner than later then, hm? I tend to be a lot more verbose in the flesh, but I’m always happy to talk to you, should you be willing to listen. Though, something tells me I might already know how you feel on the matter. ♥
(P.S.
I’m glad you had a fun time recently! I can only imagine what going on those rides with your friend was like, but I hope to experience the same with you at some point… maybe even next year? Heehee!)”
Paige’s day has been pretty bad so far, but the note makes his heart swell. OJ could pretend like they didn’t both know for as long as he wanted. Paige was more than happy to play this game with him!
+++
When Paige gets home, his mom is absent as usual. Her job kept her busy during the week, and sometimes during the weekends.
But honestly? Today was for the best. Because Paige tosses his bag down and sits down angrily on his bed, crossing his arms. “Okay,” he frowns. “Leaf, what’s happening with you right now? You’ve been so mean to me recently, and I don’t get it!”
Leaf does not respond.
“Leaf!”
“God, what? What?” they growl. “What the hell do you want?”
“I want you to stop being so distant!” Paige shouts, curling up. “You said you came here to protect me… but you’ve been nothing but mean for like the past couple of weeks now!”
“Hmph.” Leaf huffs. “You don’t actually care.”
“Why in the world would you think that?” Paige pouts. “I’m literally trying to get you to open up to me right now!”
“......”
“Leaf,” Paige pleads. “Please.”
Leaf sighs heavily. “Look, me and Brandon had an… argument.”
“What? When?”
“That Sunday after we watched those movies.”
“Oh…” Paige frowns. “I was asleep for most of that day…”
“Yeah.” Leaf frowns. “So I said something fucking stupid. And he left.”
“Okay?” Paige says. “But you apologized right?”
Leaf is silent.
“Leaf,” Paige despairs. “You didn’t apologize?”
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Leaf laughs. “You’ve been sooooo busy with your little boytoy I don’t think I ever found the time!”
“Boyt—” Paige flushes. “Do you have something against OJ or something too?”
“I don’t care about that nerd.” Leaf says, rolling their eyes.
“Hey!”
“Oh, be quiet. You’ve literally called him a nerd before.”
“Yeah, but…”
“But nothing.”
Paige groans. “Look, this doesn’t matter right now! You’ve gotta apologize to Brandon right now!”
“Are you out of your mind?” Leaf frowns. “He’ll probably just tell me he wants me to die and then I’ll do something stupid again and you’ll be even more mad at me and I’ll just have to kill myself—”
“Wait, wait, wait!” Paige says, waving his hands in front of him. “None of that is gonna happen! You just have to say sorry and everything will be okay!”
“It won’t,” Leaf says sternly. “And I’ll show you.”
Paige opens his mouth to ask what Leaf means, but then he’s suddenly not in control of his body. He watches as an angry Leaf finds his phone on the bed and dials Brandon’s number.
“Ayo!” Brandon greets as he picks up. “What’s up, dude?”
“I’m sorry,” Leaf says roughly. “I shouldn’t have said that.”
Brandon is quiet for a moment before laughing. “Dude, what’re you talking about? Said what?”
“Last week,” Leaf continues. Their voice hasn’t gotten any less scratchier. It’s like they’re purposefully pushing it to be like that.
“...Paige?” Brandon asks warily.
“Leaf,” the teen sighs.
Brandon immediately scoffs. “You sure have some fucking nerve.” His tone has changed viscerally. “What, Paige ‘asleep’ again or something? You gonna try and get more info out of me? Huh?”
Leaf opens his mouth and makes noises, but they’re definitely not words. Paige can feel how hurt Leaf feels. It’s almost overwhelming.
“Oh, speechless, are we?” Brandon huffs with a laugh. “Cat got your goddamned tongue? ‘Cause it didn’t seem to have anything when you pulled that cheap trick.”
“I said I was sorry!” Leaf shouts.
“Over the phone?” Brandon asks. “Out of nowhere? Probably without Paige’s permission? Over a week later?” He laughs, but it doesn’t sound quite right. “Leaf, you’re a goddamned piece of work.”
“I—”
“Heyyyy.” Brandon’s voice has lost all emotion, becoming bland. “Do me a favor?”
“O-okay?”
Brandon’s voice is sharp when he speaks again. “Don’t fucking call me again. In fact, don’t even talk to me. I don’t ever wanna hear your voice again.”
And with that, the line goes dead.
Leaf listens as the line beeps, signifying the end of the call. Their head is filled with static of all kinds. Thick, thick layers upon layers of static.
Something comes over them. Some want. Some need.
“L-Leaf?” Paige asks, worry in his voice. “Are… are you okay?”
They can’t help it. Leaf laughs. And laughs. And laughs.
“What the FUCK do you think?” they finally spit. “What the fuck do you really and truly think I feel like right now?”
“Um.”
“Yeah. Um.”
Leaf breathes heavily, clutching their head. “Why the fuck did I say anything,” they mumble. “I should’ve kept my fucking mouth shut like I was doing. But no!” Leaf laughs. “I had to hurry up and apologize or some shit, right? Because that would fix everything?”
“Leaf…” Paige warbles. “That’s not fair…”
“Oh, shut the fuck up!” Leaf stomps their foot to punctuate it. “I’m sick of this shit! I come back just to help you and I’m treated like a fucking villain because, what? I expect people to act like how I know they do?”
“You didn’t come back for me,” Paige says, a little mad. “You came back for Kevin.”
“Because your ass wouldn’t have done anything!” Leaf shouts back. “I had to do it!”
“Why? Kevin didn’t ask you for help.”
“Ugh!!!” Leaf pulls their hands out of their hair and holds themself, clawing at their arms. It doesn’t do any damage through the hoodie they're still wearing, but it makes them feel better anyways. “You’re the worst! I do something that you’d never do! I get revenge for one of our best friends! I try to learn one thing and I piss off our other best friend so much he wants me dead!” They fall down on their bed and push their hands into their eyes. “It’s not fucking fair!!”
“Leaf…” Paige mumbles.
“And now!” Leaf shouts, sniffling, “Now, I have you all mad at me! What the fuck am I then? What good am I?” They laugh humorlessly. “Nothing. Fucking garbage.” They fall down sideways on the bed. “I need to be thrown away.”
“No you don’t!” Paige cries. “You just… you just need to calm down a bit…”
“Calm down?” Leaf laughs, blubbery. “You want—you want me to calm down?” They sniff. “I’ll show you what makes me fucking calm.”
The teen rises, vitriol and rage and just plain anger flowing throughout their bloodstream. It was like they could physically feel themself heating up.
Blood boiling, they stomp into Quinn’s room and then her bathroom, an odd smile pulling at their face.
“Leaf?” Paige asks quietly. “What are we doing here?”
“Oh?” Leaf says kindly. “Did I not tell you?” Their voice gains its natural edge again as they spit, “I’m showing you what makes me calm!”
Leaf laughs maniacally as they open the cabinet where their mom kept her razors to shave with.
“Leaf!” Paige shouts. “What are you doing!?”
Leaf pulls out a box of brand new razors and takes one out. “You know exactly what I’m doing,” he scoffs.
He goes to roll up his sleeve, but suddenly, he can’t seem to move.
“You’re not—I’m not gonna let you do that!!” Paige shouts, dropping the thing along with the rest of the box into the sink. He’s making the both of them tremble. “Leaf! Wh-what the heck!!”
“Whatever,” Leaf huffs, angry. “What the fuck ever.”
“No, not what the eff ever!” Paige yells, scrambling back into his room. “Leaf, you were about to—you—” He breathes heavily. “You—!”
“Get over it,” Leaf says, rolling their eyes. They use all their power to hide how mad and upset and hurt and pained they feel. If Paige wanted to be mad at them, then he could be mad at a husk.
“I—No!” Paige curls into a ball on the floor, back against his bed. “I can’t let you do this anymore, Leaf!”
“Do what? Protect you and our friends?”
“You haven’t done any ‘protecting’ in ages! You just tried to hurt us!!”
“It wouldn’t have hurt you,” Leaf says nonchalantly. “Big baby. Unlike you, I know how to take a bit of pain.” They snort. “Not like I didn’t suffer the worst from Mack or anything.”
Paige’s whole body becomes limp as he sighs. “I’m not going to take this from you,” he says quietly. “You can’t come in here out of nowhere, hurt my friends and family and me and expect me to just deal with you.”
Leaf laughs. “Oh, I’m something to deal with now, huh?” Their tone becomes like steel, but there’s still a challenging smile in it. “Then deal with me.”
Leaf knows they have nothing to worry about. Paige is too scared to do anything. Ever. Even if he could do something, there was no way—
“F-fine…” Paige says pensively. “Fine. You… you asked for this.”
The teen clasps his hands together and strains for a moment. Leaf doesn’t know what that’s supposed to do, but it’s obviously not doing anythi—
…was that the sound of something cartoonishly falling?
Leaf looks up just in time to see a bottomless red cage fall overtop of them, bars plentiful and tight together. They blink.
“...What.”
“I—I can’t trust you!” Paige cries as Leaf grabs at a bar and begins to shake with rage. “What if I fall asleep and I wake up in the hospital again because of you!? I—I can’t—!”
“Oh so what, you’re gonna cage me? Cage me for forever or until you need me again or some shit?” Leaf laughs. They laugh and laugh and laugh. “Okay. Fine. Cage me.” They sit and turn away from Paige, crossing their arms. “See if I fucking care.”
“...I’m sorry,” Paige says quietly.
Leaf does not respond.
“Honey…? Honey, wake up…!”
Paige yawns as he’s gently rocked awake feeling completely drained. “Mm… hi?” he asks, rubbing an eye.
He’s then suddenly being held in a crushing hug by none other than his mom. “Oh my god, you’re alright,” they breathe. “Oh, I was so worried…” They run a hand down the back of his head and keep it there, holding Paige impossibly tighter. “Oh, sweetie…”
“M-Mom…?” Paige struggles out. “What’s—what’s wrong…?”
Quinn loosens their grip a bit, enough for Paige to be able to breathe again. “Baby,” they warble, tears in their eyes. “Promise me you’ll never do anything like this again, okay? Please.”
“Mom, what are you talking about?” Paige questions, worried. “You’re starting to scare me…”
“You?” Quinn gasps, pulling back and looking their son in the eyes. “You nearly gave me a heart attack!” They rub at their eyes. “I come home and my brand new box of razors is open and all over the sink. Then I come into your room to check on you, and you’re passed out on the floor!”
Paige furrows his eyebrows, trying to remember what he was doing on the floor in the first place. And why his mom was worried over a box of razors that he didn’t even—
Oh.
It all comes flooding back.
Everything that happened after he had come home, everything that was said since he had come home. And…
He looks within himself to see Leaf still caged, on the floor and breathing evenly, asleep.
Paige remembers everything that had been done after he came home.
“Baby?” Quinn asks, moving a hand to hold his cheek. “Promise me if things ever get that bad again, you’ll tell me first, okay? You’ll tell me and we’ll work it out, okay?” They hold him close again. “You never have to do anything like that again.”
“Mom, Mom, calm down…” He pushes away from them lightly. “I’m okay, I’m okay. I didn’t—I didn’t do anything.” He pulls away enough to take his hoodie off and roll up his sleeves. “Look, see? I didn’t—I wouldn’t…”
“Then… why were all my razors scattered everywhere in my bathroom? And why were you on the floor in a heap?”
“I…” Paige bites his lip. How the heck was he supposed to explain his way out of this one? “I-I….”
“Paige, honey,” Quinn smiles, water still in their eyes, “If you even have ideas of doing that, you come and tell me first. Okay? You can tell me anything.”
“But…” That’s not…
“No but’s!” Quinn swallows their child in another hug. “Please, baby. I don’t know what I’d do if I came home and I had lost you.”
“I…” Paige sighs. Maybe he ought to just let this go for now. He could try and explain properly another time. “Okay, Mom. I-I’m sorry I…”
“No, it’s okay honey,” Quinn is quick to shush. “It’s okay. I’ll clean them up and then we can have dinner together and you can get to sleep on your actual bed, alright?”
“Alright…”
Quinn nods and smiles a watery smile before lifting up and holding out a hand for Paige. He grabs it and his mom lifts him up as well. “I’ll start making something,” his mom starts. “And you can do your nightly routine. By the time you’re done, maybe there’ll still be some stuff to do and we can cook together, okay?”
Paige nods sullenly. “Okay.”
+++
The only word Paige can think of to describe his current situation is despondent. Everything seems far, far away as he moves like a ghost from one room to the next, class after class. Even when he gets to lunch, he stares down blandly at his food, uninterested in eating.
“Paige?” Bro asks suddenly, surprising the teen.
“Huh?” he blinks slowly.
“Y-you alright?” Bro frowns sadly. “Y-ou’ve kind of j-just been staring at y-our food th-is whole time. A-and you h-aven’t said anything s-ince you—since you got here.” He puts a hand on Paige’s shoulder. “I-is there something—something you want t-to talk about…?”
Paige hums slowly, looking off to the side. Sue and Brandon are still in the middle of an animated conversation, talking about who knows what. They’re going so fast, Paige can barely keep up.
“I’m… I’m alright,” Paige lies. “I’m just… tired.”
Bro doesn’t look convinced, but Brandon asks him something and he gets distracted, answering before turning back to Paige. “L-look… I know—I know that—that the past couple of days haven’t—-haven’t been…” Bro bites his lip. “They’ve kind—they’ve kind of been shit for you, huh?”
Despite himself, Paige lets out a small laugh. Bro rarely swore, so it was always a bit funny to hear them do it. “It… has,” he agrees. “But really, I’m fine.”
Bro stares at Paige for what feels like forever. And then they say, “I-if you’re sure, Paige.” They then return to the conversation at hand, but Paige can feel their gaze on him for the rest of the lunch period.
+++
Thursday and Friday are a repeat of Wednesday, Paige blearily walking through his life. But on Friday, lunch is a bit different.
While he had spent the other two days “resting his eyes” until the bell rung, this time when he sits down at the table, everyone is pensive in one way or another, all twitchy.
“Hi…?” he greets warily. “What’s um… what’s up guys?”
“Dude,” Brandon says stiffly, “What’s up with you?”
“Nothing,” Paige answers for what must be the umpeenth time in the past couple of days.”I’m fine. Just tired.”
Brandon stares long and hard at Paige. Then, with a certain tone in his voice quietly goes, “You are Paige, right?”
“What?” Paige blinks. “Of course I am,” he waves off, putting his head down and huffing humourlessly. “Heh… who else would I be?”
He can’t help it. After just a second of silence, he giggles. He giggles and giggles, tickled so deeply. Who else would I be? he asked, as if everyone currently here wouldn’t know the answer to that question.
Of course, there’s no way they’d know what had happened, but maybe that was for the best.
“Mm…” Brandon hums, but he doesn’t press. “Well, you know… you uh…” He mumbles to himself a bit before continuing, “You haven’t given me a note in a while!” He gently ribs Paige. “Don’t you wanna write up another one so I can go back to delivering them? I don’t wanna lose my job, haha!”
Paige stares blandly at Brandon, blinking slowly. “Maybe,” is all he says.
“Paige,” Sue speaks up, sounding serious as they thump the table a bit. “You have to tell us what’s wrong if we’re to help.”
“Nothing’s wrong!” Paige snaps, only to gasp at himself. He never yells at his friends like that…
Maybe there was something wrong.
It’s not like you deserve the help, though, laughs some voice in his head. The worst part? It sounds like his own voice and not Leaf’s, which is extremely distressing.
Suddenly, Paige stands up. “I don’t feel well,” he says tightly. “I’m going to see Ms. Tiseu.”
“Paige, wait—” Sue tries.
Paige ignores them. “Bye, guys.” He takes his untouched food tray and pushes it in front of Brandon, a silent offering. He then turns and leaves off to the nurse’s office.
+++
Paige makes up a story about him slipping and hitting his head in the hallway,citing it as the reason he needed to go home as soon as possible. Ms. Tiseu knows about how fragile Paige can be, so it’s a good enough lie to get his aunt to come pick him up and take him home.
“Mijo…” Carmen frowns as he buckles the teen in. “You’ve got to be more careful… We don’t want to see you in the hospital again anytime soon, okay?”
“Okay, Aunt Carmen,” Paige nods slowly. “Can we go home now?”
“Of course, sweetie.” He kisses the top of Paige’s head and goes to the front of the car, getting in and pulling off soon after.
Paige dozes as they drive, head swimming. He feels nauseous, but he can’t place the exact reason why.
This was awful.
Ping!
Paige blinks up at his bedroom’s ceiling as his phone’s text tone goes off. At first, he decides not to answer it, but then it goes off again.
Ping!
And again.
Ping! Ping!
And finally, Paige just gets frustrated enough to check the thing.
There’s several different texts. One is from Brandon, a simple “here for u” having been sent. Another is from Sue, a gif that says “GWS” is in bright, light up letters. Next to it is a small drawing of a plain faced Sue with a thumbs up.
That one, admittedly, makes Paige smile a bit.
Then there are two from OJ.
They read, “Paige, I was informed earlier today that you aren’t having the best of times recently. Is that why you haven’t texted in a bit? I of course have no issue with texting less, but if it’s because you’re not feeling well, I’d like to know so maybe I could help?”
The second one goes on to say, “I don’t mean to pry, of course, but I worry about you. You’re one of my dear friends and you mean a lot to me. Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you, alright? Anything at all. I’ll text you later to check in, but feel free to tell me if you’d rather be left alone for right now. I will absolutely respect your wishes.”
Ugh. Now even OJ knew something was wrong. At this point, the whole school would know something was wrong with him. And then it’d get out that he had another person in his head. And he’d be treated like some sort of roadside attraction, people coming up to him and begging to see Leaf, telling him they’d pay him and everything to just do it once! Just do it once!...
…Paige realizes he’s shaking. When did that happen?
+++
The next day, Quinn stays home. “I thought we could make pancakes and watch your favorite movie today!” she grins after he wakes up around 2 in the afternoon. “I did think you would’ve gotten up sooner, but that’s alright. We can have pancakes whenever!”
Paige actually smiles a bit, his mom’s happiness being infectious. “Alright,” he yawns. “Let’s make pancakes.”
Quinn jumps up off of the couch and claps her hands, rubbing them together. “Alright! Mother-son bonding time a-go-go!”
She’s so full of life and vigor, it restores some of Paige’s. He’s smiling passively, happy at the thought he and his mom get the chance to do something together for the first time in what feels like forever.
But then, once they get to the kitchen, all of the wind in Quinn’s sails dry up. “Um,” she giggles. “Paige, sweetie?”
“Yeah, Mom?”
“We don’t have any pancake mix.”
Paige can’t help it. He bursts out into a laugh. “Mom!” he giggles, “How long have you been up?”
“Since around 10…” she answers shyly.
“And you didn’t think to check if we had mix this whole time?” He’s honestly laughing the hardest he’s laughed in a hot minute now. “Silly!”
“Oh, c’mon!” she laughs along with him. “Give you Mama a break, will ya? I just got so, so—” she ruffles her kid’s hair, “—soooo excited to make some pancakes with my little man I forgot!”
Paige swats her hand away weakly, big grin on his face. “Mooom!” he giggles.
Quinn giggles back, and then she sighs. “It’s good to see you happy again, kiddo.” Her smile turns sad. “You were really starting to worry me there.”
Paige sobers a bit, looking away. “I’m alright, Mom,” he assures. “It’s just been a rough couple of days.”
Quinn’s expression grows knowing for a second, and then she sighs. “Yeah. I know, buddy. We can talk about it after the pancakes, alright?”
Paige is a bit confused, but nods anyways. He’s not entirely sure what Quinn means, but he’s very curious to find out.
“Okay then!” Quinn claps. “I’m gonna go run to Family Dollar and get us some pancake mix!” She exits the kitchen and calls behind her. “I’ll be back in like, two shimmies of a dog’s tail or whatever!”
Paige laughs quietly. “Okay!” he calls back.
The door closes and locks a second later, and Paige sighs, slumping. What was he supposed to do about all this? It looked like he was gonna have to tell his mom about Leaf before he was ready and he didn’t even have a single person to talk about it with. Brandon was furious with Leaf, Sue was great and all, but they weren’t the best when it came to emotions, there’s no way he was going to tell OJ, and Bro—
Wait! Bro! That was it!
Paige rushes upstairs for his phone and almost calls Bro straight away, but catches himself. Bro didn’t like it when you called without texting, so he quickly shoots him a, “Can we call? It’s important”.
It only takes a moment before, “ya” shows up on his screen, and then it’s being lit up with the call interface. Paige picks up immediately.
“Bro,” Paige breathes, “I-I need help.”
“O-okay,” Bro says “With what?”
“You—you know… u-um…” How did Paige even begin to describe what was happening with him? “You know how—how there’s—You know Leaf, right?”
“Y-yeah,” Bro confirms. “We t-talked to them that—that one time, r-remember?”
“Oh, right,” Paige sighs. “Sorry, I—It’s—Something happened. With Leaf.”
“S-something… bad?” Bro asks.
“Something bad,” Paige nods.
“...Is it—is it okay if s-someone else talks for m-me?”
“Of course, Bro. Just let me know who it is.
“A-alright. G-give me a second.”
A couple of moments pass before the person on the other end of the line clears their throat. “Hii Paige!” they greet. “It’s Maxine.”
“Hello, Maxine,” Paige greets back. “U-um… Bro said you could help?”
“Tell me what’s poppin’, girly-pop,” Maxine says, playful tone in his voice.
“Um… okay…” Paige bites his lip. “So Leaf did something… something dangerous. With my body.”
“Dangerous how?” Maxine asks.
“H-he was going to hurt us.”
“Oh shit,” Maxine gasps. “Paige, buddy, you alright?”
“I’m fine, I’m fine. I-it was a couple days ago now.”
“Is that why you’ve been all down in the dumps?”
Paige’s mouth becomes a flat line. “Y-yeah. I guess so.”
“Okay,” Maxine sighs, “Okay. So, he did something dangerous. What did you do about that?”
“I… kind of… locked him up…?”
“What.”
Paige groans. “What else was I supposed to do!? I—I don’t know what he would’ve done when I wasn’t looking! And he’s been hurting people physically and emotionally, and—”
“Okay, okay, buddy.” Maxine cuts off, sounding a bit overwhelmed.
“Sorry,” Paige mumbles.
“No, look, it’s okay.” Maxine pauses and then hums. “Well, no. It’s not okay. You shouldn’t just be locking Leaf away. That’s never gonna solve nothing!”
“But—!”
“Look, Paiges. You wanted our advice, right?”
“Um… yes…?”
“Well, the council has decided. You gotta find some way to make everything livable in there for the both of you.” Maxine sighs. “I mean, if you’re like, scared for your life, maybe try to find some way to let him out without letting him take control?”
“I don’t know if I can do that…”
“Well, okay. How about this: you let Leaf out with the caveat that if he tries something again he’s grounded or whatever.”
“Grounded?”
“You’ll… have to lock him up for a bit more, I guess.” Maxine doesn’t sound very happy about his suggestion, but it also sounds like he doesn’t have any other ideas either. “Look, we can workshop the grounding. Let’s just get him out for right now, okay?”
“Okay,” Paige nods.
“You gonna do it right now? You want us to stay on the line?”
Paige is about to say yes, but the sound of the front door opening catches him off guard. “Oh, Mom’s home actually. But I won’t forget about Leaf. Mom wanted to talk to me about something, so I’ll let him out after that?”
“Sounds like a plan, nerd.”
“Nerd…?”
“Call back if you need help, ‘kay?”
“Um… okay.”
“Ciao!” The phone beeps, signifying the call’s end.
Paige sighs before lightly slapping his cheeks, pepping himself up.
Make and have pancakes with his mom, watch Finding Nemo, talk about something, let Leaf out.
Alright. He could do this.
+++
“Okay, kiddo,” Quinn says, turning the TV down. They had finished their pancakes some time ago and Finding Nemo just finished playing in full. “It’s time we get down to brass tax.”
“Brass tax?” Paige asks.
Quinn sighs. “You know the school calls me if something happens with you, right?”
“Okay?” Paige says, furrowing his brows. “But nothing’s happened.”
“Paige,” Quinn says, putting a hand on his shoulder, “Baby, what happened to you is no joke.”
“No, seriously Mom,” Paige frowns. “Nothing happened?”
Quinn looks really upset. “You got hatecrimed, Paige!”
Paige blinks a couple times and hard. “I… What?”
Hatecrimed…?
What in the world—
“Mom, what in the world are you talking about?”
“Paige, do you not remember seeing your locker covered in those horrible notes a couple of days ago?”
“N—oh!” Paige jolts. “The notes on my locker! I… I never got to read them. Everyone told me to stay away from them. By the time I was able to see them, they were gone.”
Quinn sighs in relief. “You never even saw them?” Paige shakes his head and Quinn lets out a laugh. “Oh my god, you never even saw them!”
“Mom?”
Quinn moves over and hugs her son, only to noogie him gently. “You’re something else, Paige. Even when bad things happen to you, good people are always around to help you, aren't they?” She looks at Paige with love. “My lucky book of Paiges.”
Paige thinks of all the many, many things that were going on in his life right now, and chuckles awkwardly. He wouldn’t exactly call himself lucky but… No need to upset his mom with that right now.
“I love you too, Mom,” he says with a small smile. “But… if I never saw them, was it really a hatecrime?”
Quinn frowns. “Of course it is!” she says loudly. “Paige, it was a targeted attack against you!”
“Yeah, but…”
“No but’s!” Quinn says, shaking her head. “You know what, we should sue. Teach the little so-and-so who did this to you to take responsibility for his actions.”
“Sue?” Paige repeats, confused. “Mom, we don’t have to sue anybody over this, really.”
“But we should! It’s despicable what they did to you. Even if you didn’t see the notes, they still affected you, didn’t they?”
Paige opens his mouth but then pauses, thinking. There was the fact he was anxiety ridden the whole rest of that day. And how awful it felt to have people laughing at him. And how alienated he’d felt after the fact.
“...Yeah,” he finally says. “It did.”
“Then they shouldn’t get away with hurting you like that,” Quinn frowns.
“But, Mom, think about it. The amount of money, the amount of time, the amount of police and reporters and everything…” Paige shivers. “I don’t wanna go through that anymore than you would.”
Quinn tries and fails to come up with some sort of rebuttal, but ultimately gives up. “You’re right,” she sighs. “And I don’t wanna do anything that would upset you.” She pats his head. “I’m sorry, buddy.”
“It’s okay, Mom,” Paige reassures, leaning into the touch. “I’ll be okay.”
“I know you’ll be,” Quinn smiles. “I know you’ll be.”
+++
After that, Paige goes to school on Monday feeling… not happy, per say, but not freaking out either. He’s able to pay attention to his classes a bit and actually answers some questions correctly. And best of all, lunch would be returning to normal.
Why? Well, because Paige had written a note to be ferried off to OJ last night. He’d given it to Brandon this morning before they split up and now he was almost guaranteed to be getting one back.
So, when he sits down at the Bro Crew’s usual table, he’s pretty excited. “Hey guys!” he greets.
“You got well soon,” Sue smiles.
Paige laughs. “Something like that,” he says. “Oh, but!” He turns to his brother. “Brandon! Did I get a note? Did I get a note?”
Brandon laughs. “You did, king! Calm down!” He digs through his bag before pulling out the note, handing it over to Paige, who reads it with a dumb look on his face.
Things continue on for about two weeks like this. Knowing notes fly back and forth as Paige and OJ play a silly game neither of them really needed to. Because of this, there’s a calm throughout the entire Bro Crew, Paige included. Things were finally starting to go well for him again.
It’s not until Paige’s mind wanders to Leaf one night does he realize—
He had never let Leaf out!
“Oh, shoot!” he swears, closing his eyes and looking inside himself. What he sees makes him gasp hard and start shivering.
Leaf is curled up and trembling in the cage, but it’s not how Paige left it. Instead, it’s shrunk down on them, leaving barely enough space to get up. Inside of it is a cold snowstorm, heavy snow covering the ground and Leaf’s tattered clothing.
Paige doesn’t know how or why that happened to it, but he shakes his head. Now wasn’t the time to dwell on it, now was the time for action.
Again, Paige clasps his hands together and thinks and wills really hard for something to happen. It takes a moment of straining, but the sound of the storm soon clears up. When Paige looks again, Leaf is still on the ground and covered in snow, but the cage and clouds are all gone.
“Leaf!” Paige cries, running over to him. He pushes away the snow on top of him. “Leaf, wake up!”
Leaf’s eyes are shut tight as they shiver and shake. “C-c-c-old…” they chitter.
“Um! Um!” Paige thinks hard about a green blanket covering Leaf, and when the other moves under him, he looks to find they’re now starting to clutch at that exact blanket.
“H-h-hel-p…” Leaf all but begs. Paige nods and takes the blanket, wrapping it around the other. “Th-anks…” they cough once the deed is done.
“Leaf, what happened here while I was gone?”
Leaf chuckles a bit, but it devolves into a cough. “I started—I started th-inking. A-about everything I’d done.” They cuddle up closer to their blanket. “A-and I thought, ‘wow, I-I d-eserve to go to h-ell, h-huh?’”
“But? Th-the snowstorm…?”
“Your hell m-might be hot, b-but not mine,” Leaf laughs a bit painfully, looking away. “It’s s-so cold…”
“Leaf…” Paige is so distraught. He didn’t know ignoring Leaf like this, by accident or not, would make something like this happen.
“Can you—c-can you do that m-magic shit w-with like, a-a space heater or s-something?”
“Oh!” Paige gasps. “Y-yeah!”
Paige does his magic thing as requested, popping a fireplace into the dark room. It lights it up a bit, but not enough to see any sort of walls yet.
“Yess…” Leaf hisses, pushing out his hands. “F-fuck yes.”
Paige sits there quietly as Leaf warms up steadily, thinking hard. This was all his fault. He was supposed to have let Leaf out weeks ago. He can’t believe he forgot!
“H-hey,” Leaf grins. “Shut th-e fuck up w-ith that.”
“What?” Paige blinks.
“Y-you forgot,” he sighs, “So what? I—I deserved th-at, I think.” Paige opens his mouth, but Leaf shushes him. “I-I did!” he asserts. “I did—I did you s-so bad.”
Paige is quiet. They’re right, they were pretty awful to Paige for a while there. But stil…
“Maybe you deserved something, but not this.”
“S-sure, man,” Leaf says, tossing an arm up. “Wh-whatever you say. C-an you get in bed and get under the covers n-now?”
“Oh!” Paige jolts up in reality, shivering. Oh, he didn’t like that he was a bit cold.
He slips under his bedsheets and holds on to Teds, warming up immediately. “Is this better?” he asks.
“Y-yeah,” Leaf nods.
Paige sighs. “We’re gonna have to talk about this.”
“...Yeah,” Leaf says again. “Just… g-give me a bit.”
Paige nods back, and does just that.
After what feels like a minute too long, Leaf sighs.
“Okay,” they murmur, “Let’s talk.”
“I… don’t know where to start…” Paige mumbles. “I guess I should apologize first…”
“For what?”
“I left you locked up for weeks!” Paige frowns. “I didn’t mean to, but I did! I’m sorry…”
“It’s whatever.” Leaf shrugs, still cozy under their blanket, though now they’re sat up. “Like I said, I deserved it.”
“But…”
“Paige,” Leaf sighs. “I almost seriously hurt us. …I almost seriously hurt you.”
“Yeah but…” Paige is quiet for a moment before frowning. “No… no, that was pretty bad of you.”
“Exactly.” Leaf groans and lets their head fall forward. “I keep doing stupid shit…”
Paige hums with worry, but doesn’t actually say anything. He keeps nervously twitching and playing with his hands.
“What.”
“C-can I ask what the… the snow storm and small cage were all about?” Paige asks pensively. “Sorry, it just keeps weighing on me. I thought I left way more room for you in there…”
Leaf looks off to the side. “I wasn’t kidding before. The idea of the cold is worse to me than heat. So when I kept doing all that thinking, it was just… I was so convinced I had to go to hell. And I guess it manifested as whatever I thought hell would be.”
“Oh…” Paige furrows his eyebrows. “And the cage?”
Leaf breathes heavily, eyes stinging. “...I don’t like small spaces.”
“I’m sorry…” Paige apologies again. “I shouldn’t have—”
“You should have,” Leaf stresses. “I… I can’t say I know if I would’ve done anything. That scares me, Paige. I don’t like being afraid of myself.”
“I’m—”
“Say sorry one more time and this talk is over.” Leaf huffs. Then, his expression falls. “See! I just… I just say stupid shit without thinking about it!”
“Well… we can work on it, can’t we?” Paige says hopefully. “I know sometimes I don’t know what to say to people. We can work on it together!”
“Work on it…” Leaf mumbles. “...I guess.”
“See!” Paige smiles. “You’re already doing great!”
Leaf blinks. “I… guess so.” They curl up a bit. “But I wouldn’t have if you didn’t leave me in there.”
“Leaf…” Paige mumbles. “There had to have been some other way…”
“Doesn’t matter. It’s done now.” They sigh. “Thank god.”
“We still have to talk about where we’re gonna go from here,” Paige reminds the other. “‘Cause I don’t wanna lock you away anymore! You’re not… you’re not a villain, Leaf. You’re someone who came to my rescue when I needed it the most. How could you be a villain?”
“I fought that kid just ‘cause I wanted to see them hurt.” Leaf says without missing a beat.
“But you did it out of the love and justice in your heart!” Paige rebuts. “You wouldn’t have done anything if you didn’t love Kevin or you didn’t have the want to see things be righted!” Paige calms down a bit. “Sure it’s not the way I would’ve handled it, but you didn’t know a different way. So, actually, doing what you did shows how good you are!”
Leaf is silent.
“Leaf?”
“I don’t…” The teen sniffs. “I…”
Paige gives a small smile. “It’s okay if you need a minute.”
Suddenly, there’s a knock on Paige’s door. “Sweetie? You okay?”
Paige jolts, shooting up. “Mom? You can come in!”
Quinn pushes her way inside with a worried look on her face. “Hi honey,” she greets. “Are you alright? I thought I heard you talking in here…”
“Shit,” Leaf swears. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Paige thinks and then says aloud, “I was um… just trying to think of something to write for one of my school reports! I-it’s this… um…”
Quinn laughs a bit. “You can just say you don’t wanna talk about it, sweetie.” She ruffles his hair. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” She frowns then. “And… I also wanted to tell you the bad news.”
“Bad news?” Paige frowns back. “Mom, is something wrong?”
“Oh, no, no. Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” She takes a seat on the bed. “It’s just… I’ll be busy for Thanksgiving…”
“Aw…” Paige deflates. “Are they making you go on one of those trips again?”
“They are,” Quinn confirms. “And since I didn’t go to the last one…”
“I get it,” Paige smiles sadly. “It’s alright. We can just do something the next day, right?”
Quinn gives a sad smile. “They want me to stay until Sunday, honey.”
“But that’s like four days?” Paige blinks.
“I know. I have to make up for the ones I missed.”
“Oh…”
“Don’t worry, I’ll leave you the card and you can get whatever you want, okay?” Quinn’s smile turns more genuine. “You can even order ice cream and eat it whenever you want! I bet cookies and creme for breakfast sounds fun, doesn’t it?”
Paige plays with his hands. “Can’t I just stay with Brandon and Aunt Carmen?”
Quinn looks down at Paige weirdly. “Didn’t you know they went on a trip?”
“A trip?” Paige blinks. “Brandon didn’t tell me about them going on a trip.”
“But… Min told me Brandon told her you said you didn’t want to go…?”
Paige furrows his brows. “I didn’t know about this at all…” Brandon and Paige had been texting over the break like it was nothing. And he hadn’t said a single thing about a trip!
Quinn frowns. “Well, we can talk to him about it when they get back. But you’ll be fine alone for a couple of days, won’t you?”
Paige nods slowly. “I’ll be okay.”
Quinn smiles and hugs her son. “I knew you’d be, honey.” She pulls back and whispers, “Thanks.”
“It’s no problem, Mom.”
Quinn leaves shortly after, leaving the brothers alone.
“Do you think…” Paige whispers, curled up under his blankets. “Do you think Brandon didn’t tell me on purpose…?”
Leaf flattens his mouth into a thin line. “If he did, it was because of me.” He sighs heavily. “He probably didn’t even want to run the risk of seeing me.”
“Leaf, no, I don’t think—”
“You heard that call,” Leaf snaps. “Brandon basically wants me dead and buried now.”
“We just have to talk things out!” Paige says, fatally optimistic. “Brandon and you just got off on the wrong foot! I’m—I’m sure if—”
“It’s not gonna work, Paige,” Leaf says blandly. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to talk to Brandon again.”
Paige frowns, but doesn’t say anything.
“Look, can we talk about this more tomorrow or something?” Leaf asks. “I’m tired. I want to sleep.”
“Okay,” Paige says quietly. “But I’m holding you to it.”
“I bet you are,” Leaf says with a small smile.
Paige smiles back, and Leaf closes their eyes, pushing out contentment.
But truthfully? They were terrified. Fixing things with Brandon would ultimately be impossible. They knew that. But, if it would make Paige happy to at least try to play mediator, they suppose they could try too.
Leaf just hopes whatever happens, he doesn’t snap again.
Paige wakes up the next day feeling extremely exhausted. It takes him a good minute to get up properly, since he chooses to just lay there looking up at the ceiling instead.
“Tomorrow will be the first Thanksgiving I’ve ever had alone…” Paige frowns.
“Is it really all it’s cracked up to be?” Leaf asks. “From what I remember, all it brought was food and alcohol and…” They stop short, shivering. “...It’s not something I think of fondly,” they finish after a moment.
“Yeah, but that was when Dad was here, wasn’t it?” Paige asks. “Thanksgivings after he died became a lot nicer. Me and Mom would play games all day after eating and watch our favorite movies and just spend time together…” He gasps for air. When did his eyes start getting watery? “...I like Thanksgiving.”
“...Sorry,” Leaf mumbles. “I guess it’s important to you.”
“It is,” Paige nods, “But I can also get how it’s not to you.”
There’s no response after that, so Paige assumes Leaf is done talking for right now. He sighs and stands up. Time for the morning routine.
+++
Paige is lazily eating cookies on the couch when his phone springs to life, ringing loudly. It shocks him a bit, making him kick and displace the cookie box on his lap, but he catches them before they go flying everywhere.
He doesn’t check the caller ID, still a little ruffled by the call to begin with. Everyone should be busy today, shouldn’t they?
“H-hello?” Paige answers, moving the cookies to the table.
“Good afternoon, Paige,” OJ greets. “How are you?”
“Oh, OJ!” Paige smiles, kicking his legs a bit. “Hi! I’m okay! How are you?”
“Good, good.” Paige can practically hear the smile in OJ’s voice.
“What’s up?”
“Oh, you know how we shut down on Thanksgiving proper, right?” OJ asks.
“Oh yeah,” Paige nods. OJ and his family would normally turn off all their electronics (except for the TV) on Thanksgiving so they could all spend uninterrupted time together. “You won’t be able to call tomorrow, right?”
“Exactly. So, I wanted to wish you an early happy Thanksgiving!” The sound of a party popper goes off in the background and OJ gasps. “Ma! I asked you not to do that!”
“Sorry, sweets!” echoes from Dani.
OJ sighs. “Honestly…”
“Well, um… I wish you a happy early Thanksgiving too, OJ!” Paige is trying to push everything he can into it, but he feels as though he falters near the end. He chuckles to cover it up, but it comes off as awkward. Oh, gosh darn it.
“Paige?” OJ asks. “Are you quite alright?”
“It’s nothing really…” Paige says with a sigh. “It’s just… tomorrow will be my first Thanksgiving by myself. Mom had to go somewhere and Brandon and Aunt Carmen are on a trip.”
“Oh no!” OJ gasps. “Surely you have someone to celebrate with, no? It’s such a day of togetherness, you don’t deserve to go it alone!”
“What’s happening, Orv?” It sounded like Dani again.
“Paige is going to spend tomorrow alone!” OJ pouts.
“Aw, what? That’s wack.”
“I know…” OJ mumbles.
“Oh, it’s okay!” Paige cuts in. “Really, Mom left me the card so I could get whatever I want! Even ice cream for breakfast!”
“Yes, but still…”
“SAM! C’MERE!” Dani shouts from the other side of the receiver.
“Ma!” OJ shouts back. “Please, I’m still on the phone!”
“Good!” Dani says right back.
“What is it, Dan?” Sam is here now.
“We got room for one more tomorrow?”
“Huh?” Sam asks. “Why?”
“‘Cause we’re gettin’ company! YO PAIGE!”
“Mom! Just take the phone!”
There’s the sound of laughing, shuffling, and then Dani’s voice is a lot clearer. “Hey kid!”
“Um! H-hi, Mrs—I mean, hi Dani.”
“There you go,” he smirks. “Now, I want you to do me a favor.”
“Um… okay?”
“Pack you a change ‘a clothes and get ready to head out.”
Paige blinks. “Change of… why?”
“Why? ‘Cause you’re spendin’ your Thanksgiving with the Squeezes, duh!”
…Huh?
“Are you sure this is okay?” Paige asks as he climbs into the RV and buckles up. The whole Squeeze family is here.
“Of course, Snowy!” Sam singsongs. “You’re always more than welcome over. After all, you’re no stranger to us, and I’d hope we’re no strangers to you!”
“You’re not!” Paige assures. “I just feel bad for crashing your Thanksgiving…”
“Hey now!” Dani calls, pulling off. “I’m the one who invited you, ain’t I?’
“You are…?”
“Alright then!” Dani stops at a red light and turns back towards Paige, giving him a thumbs up. “Then no feeling bad!”
“Ah…” Paige mumbles, unsure if he should apologize or not.
“Just say you won’t anymore,” Leaf supplies.
“I won’t anymore then!” Paige repeats, putting more into it than Leaf did.
“That’s the spirit, Paigey!” Dani cheers, pumping a fist up in the air.
“Paigey…?” Paige echoes with a blink.
“Ma likes making nicknames for others too,” OJ explains. “Though, his are a bit… less creative than Mami’s.”
“Oh, shut up!” Dani laughs.
“Name one person you don’t use a shortened version of their name or just add an -y to,” OJ challenges with one raised eyebrow and a smirk. “Go on.”
“Ummm…” Dani hums. “Uhhmm…”
OJ rolls his eyes and gently ribs Paige, hooking a thumb at his mom. “Get a load of this!” he’s saying without words.
Paige giggles and Dani groans. “Oh, what-ever! It just means I got a name for everyone!”
“Sure, Ma. Whatever you say.”
Paige laughs a little harder, tickled. The way OJ would talk to his parents was so different from the way he would talk to others. It was so funny! He was so funny!
The rest of the ride passes by in a similar fair until they reach the Squeeze household. Everyone climbs out, but then Sam walks around and gets into the driver’s seat.
“Are you going somewhere else, Sam?” Paige asks, tilting his head.
“Yes, my little turtle dove!” Sam smiles wide. “I’ve got to get a couple more ingredients for tomorrow! I forgot some stuff.” She knocks her hand on her head and sticks her tongue out. “My bad!”
“Don’t overbuy!” Dani waves. “You can get three little treats and no more!”
“Yes!” Sam cheers. “Alright! Be back soon, darlings!”
+++
Paige, Dani and Orville talk amongst each other while Sam is away, but it feels more like Dani Quiz Time.
He asks Paige all sorts of questions, from how he’s been since the last time he was here to his favorite color to… the age he learned to tie his shoes?
“I think we were like four,” Leaf supplies for that one.
“Um…” Paige starts, only for OJ to cut him off.
“Ma, honestly?” he laughs. “If you’re running out of questions, we could stop your little pop-up game show and actually do something more than just let the TV run in the background.”
“Psh,” Dani scoffs. “I wasn’t runnin’ outta anything. But sure, let’s do something else.”
“Like what?” Paige asks.
“Do you know how to play chess, Paige?” Dani asks, causing Paige to blanche.
“Ummm…” he mumbles.
Dani laughs. “It’s alright if you don’t! It’s not for everybody.” Then he smirks. “But you know how to play checkers, don’t you?”
“Oh!” Paige smiles and claps his hands together. “Of course!”
“Great!” Dani turns to his son with an odd look on his face. “Orv.”
OJ gets an odd look on his face as well. “Ma.”
“It’s time.”
“Of course.”
Paige blinks. What was happening here?
Suddenly, Dani throws a hand out, pointing in towards the house. “Go, my child!” he shouts with a smile. “ChessCheck time!”
OJ salutes. “Yes sir!”
“Ch—Chess check…?” Paige asks as OJ speedwalks away.
“No, no, no,” Dani tuts, shaking his hands in front of him before putting a hand on Paige’s shoulder from behind. “ChessCheck. Say it with me now.” He pushes his other hand out in a wowing motion. “ChessCheck~”
“Ch—ChessCheck…” Paige tries weakly.
“Again!” Dani laughs. “ChessCheck!”
“Chess—ChessCheck!” Paige says, trying to match Dani’s energy.
“ChessCheck! ChessCheck!” Dani cheers.
“ChessCheck!” Paige laughs, cheering as well.
OJ chooses this time to come back into the room. He’s holding two boxes, one a bit thinner than the other. “One game of ChessCheck, as requested by the lovely man of the house,” he says, bowing slightly.
“What’re those?” Paige asks as OJ places the boxes on the kitchen table. He gets up and follows Dani over there.
“It’s chess,” OJ starts.
“Aaaaand checkers!” Dani finishes.
“Okay…?” Paige says pensively. “I… don’t think I get it.”
“Here, let me explain,” OJ says, beginning to unbox the games. “Normally, both chess and checkers are two player games, yes?”
“Yeah, they are,” Paige nods.
“Right. So, what if you wanted to add a third player in the mix?”
“You couldn’t!”
“And normally, you’d be right. But say I were to do this…” OJ places the two boards next to each other and starts to set them up. “...And you were to sit opposite me with my mother…” Dani quickly pulls a chair over for Paige, sitting down in a separate one after. Paige sits as well. “...And then we played like this?”
Paige tilts his head. “I still don’t get it,” he says honestly. “Are you going to play both games at once or something?”
OJ’s face breaks into a wide grin. “You’re smarter than you give yourself credit for, Paigey!”
Paige flushes immediately while Dani laughs.
“Hey!” he says. “I’ve got a patent on that one! You can’t use it without my permission!”
“Well, do I?” OJ asks, setting the last of the pieces into place.
“Mmmm… Nope!” Dani giggles. OJ blows a raspberry, but lets the subject drop.
“Anyways, you’re spot on the nose, Paige. I intend to play both games at once; chess with my mother and checkers with you!” He smiles. “Hence, ChessCheck!”
“How are you gonna do that?” Paige questions, a little worried. Wouldn’t that be too overwhelming for anybody?
OJ shrugs, but doesn’t lose his smile. “I simply do. It’s easy for me to keep up with both of them for whatever reason. Besides, me and my mothers do this all the time! It’s quite a riot sometimes!”
The teen’s excitement is infectious. Paige loses his worry and nods, ready to be taught. “Let’s play then! What do I do?”
“Like I said, you worry about checkers, Mom will worry about chess, and I will worry about both.” OJ clasps his hands together. “So c’mon then! You two can start for us.”
“You think you can beat our epic tag team? Me and this guy?” Dani grins, holding a fist up to Paige. “We got this! Pound it, little dude!”
Paige smiles and completes the fist bump, cheering. “We got this!”
“And would you like to recount your wins as the second chess player?” OJ asks, setting his chin on folded hands.
“Urk…!”
Paige can’t help it. That’s the second time today OJ caught his mom like that! He laughs, OJ joining him
“Okay, okay you little rascals,” Dani pouts, only to lose it immediately in favor of a big grin. “Let’s play!”
+++
It’s neck and neck. Paige is fighting for his life against OJ, who had beaten his mom several minutes ago. She now sits on the sidelines, cheering her teammate on.
Paige is one piece up from OJ, three to the other’s two. They’ve been playing a game of micromoving, taking deliberate steps to try and avoid one another.
Just as OJ captures two of Paige’s pieces in one fell swoop, leaving the other to despair, the front door opens.
“Daniiii…” Sam whimpers. “I may have gotten more than three little treats…”
“Oh, honestly, Sam,” Dani laughs, turning towards her wife. “You knowI don’t—oh shit.”
Paige places his remaining piece and turns around to look at the door as well, gasping as he does. Sam is pulling in a cart filled to the brim with snacks and sodas and what looks like only a handful of actual ingredients?”
“Ahaha…” she laughs weakly, rubbing the back of her head. “Well, you know! We—we were running low on stuff anyways… And I wanted to make sure we had enough to share with everyone…” She looks off to the side and mumbles. “And everything was on sale…”
“Wait, for real?” Dani gasps happily. “Fuck yes. You know I love sales.”
Sam loses her guilty look immediately. “I knew you’d understand, honey!” she smiles. “Now could you help me unload all of this?”
Dani laughs. “Yeah, yeah.” He turns to the teens and smiles. “You two finish your game, we can do this.”
“No, that’s alright. We can help.” Paige turns back to OJ who suddenly has a very sweet smile on his face. “We’re done, after all.”
Paige blinks and looks down at the board. It’s true. somehow, OJ had captured his last piece, leaving only red checkers on the playing field.
“Aw, what?” Paige pouts. “I had you, though!”
OJ chuckles. “You did. But I love to work my way out of hard spots.”
Paige pouts harder.
OJ laughs at him, a sound that Paige finds so lovely he ends up smiling and blushing, looking away. “Let’s go help,” he coughs shyly.
“Let’s!”
+++
Paige and OJ end up doing more than just helping get everything out of the cart. They also help make the dinner, which makes everything go by surprisingly fast. By the time the moon has risen, the oven beeps for a final time, signifying the turkey having been cooled to perfection.
“Alright!” Dani cheers. “Food time!”
Sam gets up from where the four of them were playing Sorry and stretches. “Oh, you’re just happy ‘cause it means you get to finally break out the cider.”
“Guilty as charged!” Dani grins, getting up behind her. “You two can stay here and clean up the board. We’ll call it a tie for now and play again later, ‘kay?”
“Cider?” Leaf asks warily. “Like… alcohol?”
“I don’t know,” Paige replies. “Should I ask?”
“Please.”
“Um, Dani?” Paige asks aloud, “Sam said something about you and cider?”
“Yeah?” Dani nods, moving back to the table with a bottle and opener.
Paige suddenly feels a wave of nausea hit him. “Hurry up and ask,” Leaf hisses, but Paige knows it’s just because they’re scared.
“U-um…” he starts, having to cover his mouth a bit. “Um…”
“You good, kid?” Dani frowns, messing with the cork. “Is something wrong with the cider? You allergic or something? ‘Cause we can get you some soda or something.”
“N-no, it’s… not that. It’s—”
Pop!
The cork goes flying, catching Paige off guard. He jumps, yelping and covering his face.
“Paige?” OJ asks carefully. “Are you alright?”
Paige blinks and pulls his arms down. “Sorry!” he laughs, uneasy. “I-I startle easy!” He vaguely hears the remaining sizzle of the cider in his ears, but it sounds so much louder than he feels like it should.
“Paige,” Leaf stresses.
“Oh, um! But, about the cider! Is it, um… does it have alcohol in it?” He asks like a kid who got caught with their hand in the cookie jar, a little scared to know the answer. Normally he wouldn’t care one way or another, assuming it was for the adults only anyways, but with Leaf here again…
Well, it didn’t hurt to ask regardless.
“Oh this stuff?” Dani laughs, holding the bottle up and shaking it a little. He shimmies some, spinning.. “Well, it’s—”
“Ma, behind you!” OJ yelps, cutting the other off.
“Huh—Ow!”
Sam collides right into her wife and causes a bit of an accident. For Sam, that meant nothing more than spilling a bit of soda from the two cups she was holding. Nothing big.
But for Dani?
She drops the bottle of cider.
It shatters the second it hits the floor with a loud crash!
Paige gasps hard, breath getting caught in his throat. He grabs at it and trembles.
Mack had just finished breaking a bottle over the table right after popping it open and letting it sizzle. He used the newfound weapon to threaten Quinn, who had tears in her eyes. All Paige can remember her saying is, “Please stop. Please stop. Please, please, please.” At some point she had picked him up and started running, and Paige can vaguely see the hazy outlines of what used to be Quinn’s old bedroom.
The door was locked immediately, but that didn’t stop Mack. He banged on the door again and again, even stabbing at it with the glass. He’s shouting, but it all sounds like garbage noise. Quinn is crying, holding onto her son tightly. And Paige? Paige is…
Paige is screaming.
Fuck.
“Paige?” one of the Squeezes asks, but Leaf can’t tell who. Their eyes are shut closed thanks to Paige, who’s stuck in the past. “Paige, buddy, it’s—”
They’re reaching for him. Both Leaf and Paige can feel the sensation of someone coming closer.
“DON’T TOUCH ME!” Paige shouts, holding himself tightly.
“Okay, okay! No touching!” It sounds like Dani, but Leaf is a bit too preoccupied to care whether he’s right or not.
“Paige,” he tries. “Paige, it’s okay. We’re not there anymore. It’s okay.”
Paige’s heavy breathing doesn’t let up, though. Instead, he opens his eyes wildly to take in the current situation. The Squeezes are all standing a good distance from him, all with some sort of worried look on their faces.
“Paige…?” Sam says warily. “Turtle dove, what’s wrong?”
Paige opens his mouth and shakes his head and cries and does anything else but answer.
“Let me in,” Leaf urges. “Let me help.”
“No, no, no, no!” Paige shouts. “Don’t—I—” He’s sobbing. “Dad…” he breathes, curling up on his chair.
“Paige, please—”
Paige sobs again, clutching his head. “No! No! You’re—you’re gonna—no!”
This was not happening. Paige’s senses were too flooded with panic. Leaf doubts anyone would be able to get through to him like this.
So that meant it was time to wait.
Paige stays in the chair for what feels like hours, rocking back and forth. He cries and hiccups and calls out for his mom. Several times does Leaf try to slowly pry control from him, but it just spikes the anxiety and fear in the other each time with no leeway given. So eventually Leaf decides to sit back and hum tuneless songs, unsure what else he could do to help.
Eventually, Paige does calm down. But he’s so exhausted, even Leaf can feel it.
“...G-uys?” Paige tries weakly, tears still streaming down his face. Looking around, he doesn’t see any of the family anymore. “O-OJ?”
Almost immediately the Squeezes flock back into the dining area, causing Paige’s fear to spike again. OJ must notice it, because he quickly goes, “Perhaps only I should be here right now.” His parents share a worried look before nodding and walking away. Once they’re gone, OJ smiles pensively and waves. “Hello, Paige,” he greets. “Can you tell me where you are?”
A million answers bubble to the top of Paige’s head. Here. There. Everywhere. At home. With Mom. With Dad. At your house. With your family. With Leaf. With you.
Ultimately, the teen just shakes his head and points to OJ, seemingly unable to pick from the fuzzy thoughts.
“You’re here at my house, that’s right.” OJ smiles kindly, but there’s sadness in it too. “Can you tell me what just happened?”
Paige’s breath immediately hitches as the sound of shattering replays and reverberates in his head. He whines and clutches his head, shaking it more.
“It’s alright, it’s alright.” OJ moves the slightest bit closer. “My mother dropped a bottle. It broke. Do you remember that?”
Paige nods shakily.
“Is that what scared you?”
Paige nods again, faster this time.
“Do you wish to talk ab—”
Paige shakes his head so hard it starts to make Leaf dizzy.
“Okay, that’s okay.” OJ inches closer and closer until he’s close enough to touch. “Is it okay if I touch you now? I’m certain sitting like this can’t be comfortable, and I’d like to take you to my room if that’s alright.”
“R-room…?” Paige mumbles, still kind of out of it. “Why…?”
“I can turn on my night light and put on soothing music and ultimately help you calm down better in there, I think,” OJ explains. “How does that sound?”
Paige is silent as he thinks. Before long though, he gingerly uncurls and holds his hand out.
“I can take you?” OJ asks carefully, like he’s still afraid the answer might be no. But, Paige nods slowly. OJ gently takes the other’s hand and lifts him up, Paige rising with ease. His legs wobble though.
“Paige?” OJ asks, worry clear in his voice, “Can you get there on your own?”
“Let me help,” Leaf urges, feeling relieved he can finally offer something to the situation. “I’ll just walk for you, okay?”
Paige hums as an answer to the both of them and finally lets up his death grip on the controls, allowing Leaf to walk along with OJ into his room. He’s still breathing weird when he finally takes a seat on the other’s bed.
“Feel free to lay down and cover up if you wish,” OJ smiles tightly. “I’ll turn on soft classical music for you and leave the night light on as promised, okay?”
Paige nods and then begins to climb under the comforter. He’s no longer trembling, but he can’t seem to make his breathing even.
OJ walks around and does whatever he does, Paige’s eyes having slipped closed the moment he was under the covers. Eventually, the music comes on and the buzz of the lamp’s light turns off.
“I think that should be everything,” OJ says from vaguely above them. Paige cracks open his eyes to look at him. “I’ve left water on the table as well as two aspirin should you need them. Me and my mothers will be downstairs, alright? Ah, here also.”
OJ holds out his phone before placing it next to the water. “I’m not sure where your phone is, but I’ve removed the password from mine at the moment. Should you need anything, feel free to navigate to either of my mother’s contacts and call, okay?”
Paige mumbles nothing words, only to clear his throat. “S-sorry…” he croaks. “I don’t… “
“It’s quite alright, Paige.” OJ’s expression looks a bit more relaxed now, probably because Paige is talking again. “Don’t worry about it a bit, alright?”
“B-but…” Paige’s whole body is wracked by a yawn. “But…”
“Rest,” OJ says gently. “It’s alright. All that matters right now is you feeling good again.”
Paige frowns sadly. “I-I… I…” He shakes his head a bit. “I…”
“Don’t push yourself, Paige.” OJ bends down to be level with the other. “Everything is okay. You just need some rest.”
“Mmm…” Paige hums pensively.
OJ reaches out a hand but stops short. “May I…?” he asks politely. Paige nods and OJ places his hand on the other’s shoulder. “If you wish to apologize, do it after you feel better, alright?” He rubs the spot his hand lays gingerly. “Can you do that? For me?”
Paige stares at the other, some big ball of emotions bouncing inside of him like crazy. But he must not have the energy to act upon any of them, because all he does is nod with a small, “Okay.”
OJ smiles fondly and stands again. “We’re right downstairs,” he reminds. “I’ll come back up to check on you every so often, okay?”
Paige sticks out a hand and gives a limp thumbs up, eyes closing again.
“Wonderful. Rest well, Paige.” The sound of the door opening and quietly closing happens shortly after, leaving Paige and Leaf alone.
“Paige?” Leaf tries.
“Sleep,” Paige mumbles. “Talk. L’ter.”
He sounds so tired, so out of it, Leaf relents immediately. “...Okay.”
And so, Paige lays quietly until his breathing finally evens out. Leaf sighs, relieved that that was finally dealt with, only to immediately worry again.
Was that the first time Paige had ever experienced a flashback? He said he didn’t have many memories of Mack before, didn’t he? So why did he remember that so vividly, so suddenly? Even with everything put into place to cause such a bad reaction, shouldn’t it have been Leaf freaking out? Not Paige?
Not knowing is bothering the teen, but with his brother now blessedly asleep, there’s no way to get answers of any kind.
Ugh.
Well, he might as well catch some shut eye too, then.
Paige wakes up feeling like death.
“Ugh…” he groans, lifting up. He rubs his eyes and expects to see his bed, room and Teds.
Instead, this is someone else’s bed. Someone else’s room. Someone else’s… Cyndaquil plush?
…Oh!
…Oh.
The evening comes back to Paige in a steady stream, but it’s foggy. He remembers screaming and crying… but for whatever reason it’s like Paige can only see the memory of it in third person. He’s just slightly right of the action.
That, of course, did not hurt his brain at all. In the slightest. Of course not.
As Paige tries his hardest to recover from being blasted with everything that happened, Leaf stirs. “Paige…?” they mumble. Paige can see them rub their own eyes as they lift up from where they’d been laying near the fireplace. “You awake now?” they yawn.
“I guess,” Paige replies, voice cracking. He holds his throat. “Oh geez…”
“You were screaming for a while,” Leaf informs. “Use that water the nerd left for you.”
“Hey…” Paige fights weakly, reaching over and grabbing the bottle of water. He takes three big gulps before closing it again and clearing his throat. “Don’t call him a nerd…” His voice is still a little scratchy, but it hurts a lot less to talk now.
“Sorry,” Leaf apologizes. “I…” They falter. “Nevermind. Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Paige sits up and lets his legs hang over the side of the bed. “I messed everything up,” he says dejectedly.
“You had a panic attack after remembering something horrible,” Leaf corrects in a bland but matter of fact tone. “I think you’ll be forgiven.”
“But what if I’m not, Leaf?” Paige asks, worry starting to suffocate him. “Wh-what if they want me to leave immediately? And I’ve ruined me and OJ’s relationship? A-and I’ll end up spending Thanksgiving alone anyways? And—and—”
“Paige,” Leaf says seriously. “You’re gonna work yourself into another panic. Calm down.”
Paige takes a deep breath. “Yeah… yeah, you’re right.” He frowns. “But what am I supposed to do now? I…” He gasps suddenly. “Oh my gosh! The dinner…” He begins to rock a bit. “I-I hope I didn’t stop anyone from eating….”
“I doubt it. They probably set a plate aside for you, though.” Leaf huffs, but it’s not unkind. “They seem like the type of people.”
“Yeah…” Paige agrees. “I know they’re really kind, so they’ll probably forgive me too but… Augh!” His hands fly into his hair and he scrubs at it. “Why did that have to happen!? Everything was so good for once!”
Leaf sighs. “You were having fun.”
“I was!”
“And you wish it never happened.”
“I do!”
“...Sorry.”
“Huh?” Paige blinks. “What are you sorry for? I’m the one who freaked the heck out…”
“...” Leaf isn’t looking at Paige at all, biting his lip.
“Leaf?”
“It’s my fault,” he relents immediately.
“What? How is it your fault I freaked out?”
“If… If I…” Leaf shuts their eyes tight as they shake a bit, hands balled into fists at their side. “If I had just stayed… whatever I was before, you would’ve been fine.” He breathes heavily. “There’s no way you would’ve had that flashback if I weren’t here. I know it.” They sink against the side of the fireplace and mumble, “All I do is ruin things for you. Maybe I should just die.”
“What?” Paige gasps. “No! No, no, no!” He pulls up his legs and holds himself as he rocks now. “Leaf, this isn’t your fault.”
“Where’s your proof it isn’t?” Leaf snaps.
“Where’s your proof it is?” Paige says right back.
Leaf blinks, caught off guard. “U-um…” they stumble. “I—I don’t need proof. This.” They motion around. “This is the proof.” They then gesture to themself. “I’m the proof.”
“You’re not proof of anything other than how much I can’t deal with things on my own,” Paige sighs.
“That’s not fair,” Leaf frowns.
“But blaming you is?” Paige looks down sadly. “I had that freak out regardless of the fact you’re here, Leaf. I had it because I can’t… I can’t…” He trails off with a groan. “I don’t know. I can’t. End of sentence.”
“You did pretty good for yourself while I wasn’t here though, didn’t you?” Leaf prods.
Paige huffs humorlessly. “Barely.”
Days that turn into weeks that turn into months whoosh past Paige in his mind. None of them are clear except for the shining memories of his mom and his friends.
“The last two years of highschool have been… they’ve been nothing to me,” Paige laments. “I don't even know how I passed enough to get here.” He laughs quietly. “Somebody up there looking out for my grades, I guess.”
“Paige…”
“I don’t…” Paige closes his eyes and starts again. “I don’t know what I’ll do if OJ doesn’t wanna talk to me anymore. I’ll have put a rift in the Crew! And it’ll have been all my fault!”
“Your fault that you got triggered by something?” Leaf asks deadpanned.
“Triggered?” Paige repeats. “I didn’t… oh.” He stops rocking. “I did, huh. That did trigger me.” He sighs. “But why? I’ve heard things break before! Why did that specifically…?”
“Like I said, it’s my fault,” Leaf sighs.
“It’s—”
“It is.” Leaf’s voice has a tone of finality in it, one which Paige is too tired to fight against at the moment.
Instead, he sighs. “Okay, Leaf. If you say so.” He looks at the door. “But this is all… this is…” He’s having trouble with his words. “We still have to apologize and leave soon, I guess. We can worry about who done it later.”
“Do you want me to take the wheel?” Leaf asks. “I’ll take the brunt of any painful feelings the sorries may bring up.”
Paige is quiet for a long second before he mumbles. “...Yeah. …Please.”
Leaf nods and, while not seamless, the two of them swap spaces. “Don’t worry, Paige,” Leaf says with a small smirk. “I fucked this up, and I’m gonna do everything I can to do right by you.”
Knock knock.
“Erm… Paige..?” OJ calls from behind the door. “Can I come in please?”
“Yeah,” Leaf says in his normal voice, only to cough and raise it an octave. “I-I mean, yeah!”
The door opens and OJ’s form enters the room. He looks pensive and worried and several other syllables for the word guilty.
“H-hello, Paige, he waves. “How are you doing?”
“Say we’re okay,” Paige instructs.
“I-I’m okay!” Leaf smiles, rubbing the back of his head. “I um… I really needed that nap!”
OJ nods, but seems extremely distracted. “That’s.. good to hear.” He immediately barrels over that sentence, though. “Can I… M-may I talk with you? A-about something?” He’s wringing his hands. “Here, please. Between us.”
“Shit,” Leaf thinks. “Should we switch again?”
“I don’t know…” Paige says, holding his head. “That one took a lot out of me for some reason…”
“Shit. Shit, okay. Um. Tell me what to do, then.”
“Yeah, okay,” Paige nods. “First of all, tell him yes.”
“Oh. Yeah.” Leaf blinks back into reality to see OJ watching the two of them desperately. He coughs and says aloud, “Um… sure, OJ!”
OJ nods and closes the door behind him, coming over to sit next to the brothers. He looks over at them once and then away, sighing deeply. “May I be straight with you?” he asks. “There’s something on my mind that’s been haunting me, and I don’t think I should keep it to myself anymore.”
“Paige?”
“Of course.”
“O-of course,” Leaf repeats a bit awkwardly.
OJ looks straight down at the floor and twiddles his thumbs. “Do you recall the Halloween sleepover?” Leaf nods. “Yes, well… I may have overheard some things I shouldn’t have during it.”
“What do you mean?” Leaf asks, confused. He was there during that entire night and he doesn’t remember anything OJ could be talking about.
“When you were talking with Sue downstairs.”
“...Okay?”
“Do you… remember what you two were talking about?”
“We were…” Leaf gasps and frowns, looking over at the other. “You… you heard us talking about…”
OJ nods. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, honestly! But you two were already in the midst of conversation and I didn’t want to be heard and assumed to be some sort of snoop.” He bites his lip. “Even though I ended up snooping regardless, both then and now.”
“Now?” Leaf asks warily. “What do you mean now?”
In lieu of an answer, OJ asks, “...May I ask your name?”
“Wh-what’s the big idea?” Leaf has lost his fake Paige voice by now, taken aback. “What are you trying to… what are you saying?”
OJ gives an upset hum. “Forgive me for prying, please. But once I heard about your plight, I ended up researching it. I didn’t know what all your experiences were, but from what I heard they sounded like they were a lot to deal with on one's own. So I thought maybe, if I were to find out more about what you were talking about, I could help you in navigating whatever it was.
“I did a lot of searching with a lot of different keywords and hit a lot of brick walls. I don’t think I’d ever hit so many brick walls in any of my research, honestly. But, eventually things started to make sense as I narrowed down on several different things that could be ailing you and ultimately settled on the one thing I think matched up with everything I heard. And, with what I just heard, I can only reaffirm my thoughts.”
He looks up at Leaf and has a small, pensive smile on his face. “So, um… I suppose to close off all my roundabout rambling, I can only ask one question. Paige, do you know what dissociative identity disorder is?”
Paige and Leaf blink in unison, confused.
“What the h—” Leaf coughs. “Wh-what’s that?” he tries again in his higher voice.
OJ looks off to the side again. “I will explain, but first I would like a favor from you, if it’s quite alright.”
“Um… okay…?” Leaf asks warily. “What?”
“Could you refrain from pretending to be Paige?” OJ asks point blank, causing both brothers to blanche.
“I—OJ, what’re you talking about?” Leaf laughs tightly, ribbing him a bit rougher than strictly necessary. “I am Paige! St—Silly! Haha!”
“You might be overplaying it,” Paige points out helpfully.
“I’m fighting for my fucking life here, Paiges. Give me a break.”
But, when focusing back into reality, OJ has a dangerously serious look on his face. “Please,” he asks. “It would make it easier on both of us, I think.”
Leaf opens and closes his mouth, making noises but saying no words. “Paige. What. The fuck. Do we do.”
“I-I…” Paige falters. “I… We… tell him, I guess.”
“Are you sure about that?” Leaf asks, worried. “We could always just dip.”
“And what, leave OJ hanging and walk home at 8 at night?” Paige huffs. “I trust OJ. If he knows something about us that we don’t, then we should hear him out.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I am.”
With that settled, Leaf takes a deep breath and lets out a huge sigh. “Alright then, nerd,” he says, abandoning his fake Paige voice again. “Hi,” he waves lazily. “You got us. I’m not Paige.” He furrows his eyebrows testily. “Now explain what that thing you said earlier was. What’s it got to do with us?”
“O-oh… u-um…” OJ stutters, looking unprepared for the sudden change in demeanor. “I… hello…?”
“Hi,” Leaf greets again, no wave this time. “I’m Leaf, since I’m guessing that’s the question eating away at that brain of yours,” he supplies.
“Leaf…” OJ echoes, then closes his eyes. “You’re the one who came to help Paige with your father, correct?”
“Damn. You heard all of that, huh?” Leaf sighs, falling back on the bed. “Yeah, though. I am.”
Leaf can see OJ nod in front of him. “That would make you an alter then,” he mumbles.
“A what? Speak up.”
“Oh, right.” OJ turns and sits criss cross applesauce in his bed, looking down at Leaf. “I should explain in full, shouldn’t I?”
“You should,” Leaf says blandly, only to tack on a, “Please,” when Paige clears his throat in their head.
“Alright. So here are the basics: Dissociative identity disorder, often shortened to simply DID, is a form of, well, dissociative disorder. Dissociation is essentially like… an intense form of zoning out.” He frowns a bit. “It sounds like you suffer from extreme bouts of dissociation. Which, after reaching a certain threshold, is considered a dissociative disorder.”
“Okay,” Leaf nods, “But Paige does more than just zone out. He literally stops being himself. I.e. me.”
“That’s where the identity part emerges. If a person dissociates from reality so hard due to repeated trauma too often, they may develop a separate ego to help with the trauma. Someone who can handle what the original body’s host cannot.”
Leaf is quiet, and so is Paige. Neither really know what to say.
So, OJ continues. “Paige accordingly is the Yin Yang Cutter’s biggest enemy right now. Because he fought them. But the Paige I know would never fight anybody.” He looks down at Leaf. “So I assume now that the fight that happened was your doing, correct?”
Leaf looks away. “...Yeah.”
“And I imagine you also know that Paige wouldn’t have fought anyone, yes?”
“Yeah.”
“Then we have our final arrival at DID. Two different egos sharing one mind due to the need of aid from trauma.”
“...So what you’re saying is Mack made me exist,” Leaf asks.
“Yes.”
“Yeah, we already knew that.” Leaf rolls his eyes. “Did you just want to like, diagnose us or something?”
OJ’s eyes widen significantly. “No! No, that wasn’t my intention! Truly, I thought only about how I could help you manage after something made you resurface so suddenly.”
“How do you know I only just got here again?” Leaf asks warily.
“Well, if you were here to help Paige with his father, that must mean you’ve been here for his younger years. And since Paige hadn’t been suddenly fighting people all throughout highschool regardless of the fact he’d been bullied before, I think it’s safe to say you went dormant at some point and something triggered you to awaken again.”
OJ’s explanation is a lot of words, but Leaf can just barely follow them. “Okay,” he says. “Well, what now?”
“What now?”
“Yeah,” Leaf says, sitting up. “You heard us talk about our shit childhood and the fact that I exist, tell us we have some sort of disorder, and now what?” They sneer a bit. “Where does this leave us? What was this all for?”
“Oh… um…” OJ’s lips flatten. “I-I… thought I would be doing good by letting you know there were more than just you two who experience the same. And I thought knowing that and having some new sense of community would help you feel better and cope with things?” He looks away. “But… I also wanted to let the two of you know there’s no need to be afraid around me. I wanted to understand for your sakes. I wanted to make up for accidentally eavesdropping and make sure I was being a good friend.”
“OJ…” Paige breathes. “Leaf, let’s switch. I think I can do it now.”
“Yeah, alright.” Paige can feel how uneasy the other is. This would be good for both of them.
Again, the swap is less than smooth, but after a moment, Paige shoots up. “OJ!” he gasps.
“Oh!” OJ gasps back. “P-Paige?”
Paige wraps OJ into a watery hug. “OJ… You’re so kind! You didn’t have to do any of that for us!”
“What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t try to help in any way I could?”
“OJ…” Paige cries, holding him tighter.
“Ah…” OJ chuckles, hugging Paige back. “Had I known it would’ve made you this emotional, I would have warned first…”
“It’s okay,” Paige sniffs. “You did all that just to help us. A-and you didn’t even freak out like Brandon did when we told him!”
OJ frowns. “Brandon was less than accepting to you two?”
Paige shakes his head. “He was at first. But now he gets it! And we’re all friends!”
Paige feels a stab of pain in his chest and coughs. What was that about?
“Oh, that’s wonderful Paige.” OJ pulls him back again and looks him in the eyes with a smile. “I’m glad to hear you’ve already got others who are here for you!”
Paige smiles back, going in for another hug. The two stay like that for just a moment before Paige mumbles, “So you… you don’t mind?”
“Mind?” OJ blinks, pulling back again.
“That… that we’re more than one person.”
OJ chuckles lightly. “Paige, why would I ever mind about something that makes you you?”
Paige and OJ sit for a bit, the former laying his head on the latter’s shoulder. They’re quiet except for OJ’s soft humming along to the music. There’s an air around them that dances softly and neither one seems to want to shatter that.
Unfortunately for Paige, his stomach doesn’t seem to care about that.
Just like that, the bubble pops as Paige flushes and OJ giggles. “Goodness,” he says once he recovers. “Have you eaten today, Paige?”
“Umm…” Paige hums. “I didn’t eat before I came over so… nno…”
“Paige!” OJ gasps. “No, no, no!” He stands and pulls Paige up after him. “You must be so hungry! We’ve got too much food here for you to be, especially after recovering from that. Come on.”
Paige keeps himself rooted in place as OJ tries to pull him forward. “Wait!” he cries. “Wh-what about your parents?”
OJ turns back towards the other, a confused look on his face. “What about them?”
Paige frowns sadly. “I don’t know how long I was like… that,” he says, unable to think of a different way to describe it. “A-and I’ll have to apologize for ruining dinner…” He sighs. “And then probably leave.”
“Why would you leave?” OJ blinks. “Also, I wouldn’t worry about my mothers. They’re obviously not as in the loop as me, but I highly doubt they’d look someone in the eye after they had a meltdown and kick them out.” He smirks a bit, but it’s self deprecating. “I would be long gone if that were the case, trust me.”
Paige hums. “Still…”
OJ shakes his head. “No, I won’t hear anymore of this.” He tugs gently at Paige, who relents this time and follows as OJ begins to leave the room. “We’re gonna get some food in you and my mothers will be extremely understanding of your plight.”
“Wait!” Paige stops again. “Y-you’re… you’re gonna tell them about Leaf?”
“Oh, no!” OJ gasps. “No, that wasn’t in my mind at all. That’s for you and Leaf to decide after all.”
“We are not doing that,” Leaf says firmly.
“Leaf doesn’t want to,” Paige reports. “And… honestly, me either.” The idea of someone not a part of the Bro Crew knowing was really scary for some reason. And he hadn’t even told his mom yet…
No, no, no. There was no way they were going to say anything even if it helped explain things.
“That’s quite alright,” OJ assures. “All up to you. Are you ready to go now?”
Paige flattens his lips, thinking. “I guess so. I just hope my apology will be accepted…”
“Like I said,” OJ smiles softly as he opens the door, “I wouldn’t worry about that if I were you.”
Paige nods, but worries anyways.
The walk downstairs is quiet, but the moment Dani and Sam see the two of them, they jump up from the couch.
“Oh, turtle dove!” Sam beams. “You’re feeling better?”
Paige nods slowly, an awkward smile on his face.
“That’s great to hear, kiddo,” Dani sighs. “We were so worried after that…” She rubs the back of her head. “I’m sorry for droppin’ that bottle. I would’ve been more careful if I knew it would’ve set you off.”
“No, I’m sorry!” Paige yelps. “I-I don’t know how long I was stuck there, but… everyone was about to eat and have a fun time…”
“What?” Sam gasps. “Oh my gosh, Snowy! Don’t you worry your dear little head about that!” She walks over and grabs his face gently. “Whatever made you scream like that must’ve been awful to live through! We didn’t mind waiting for you to recover at all!”
“You haven’t eaten yet?” Paige frowns, face slightly squished.
“There was no way in hell we were gonna just sit around and break bread while you were out of commission, Paige,” Dani says seriously. “It’s not how the Squeezes roll.”
“Oh…” Paige mumbles, eyes beginning to water. “You guys are so nice…”
Sam wipes Paige’s tears away before letting go. “None of that! You’ve cried your little heart out already. Now’s the time ro feel better!” She smiles wide, clapping her hands together. “Hopefully, the love and care we put into the food will shine through and help with that!”
“It’s the reason I brought him down, actually,” OJ informs. “He hasn’t eaten all day!”
“Snowy!” Sam gasps, grabbing his hand and tugging him towards the kitchen. “That’s no good! No good at all! We’re fixing this right now!”
Paige simply blinks, allowing himself to be dragged along. Even after all that trouble, the Squeezes were so kind to him…
Despite himself, he feels like crying again.
“C’mon, you two!” Sam calls, pulling Paige out of his emotions long enough that he can stop before tears start falling again. “Soup’s on!”
“We didn’t make soup!” Dani calls back, laughing.
The other two laugh as well, and with all of them giving off such wonderful energy, Paige finds himself laughing too.
+++
Twenty minutes or so later, Paige and the small family find themselves in front of the TV. They’re watching a sitcom Paige has never heard about, but that the rest of them were deeply into. They’re commenting on things like continuity and character arcs.
Paige is more than happy to hear them talk amongst themselves, catching some things but mostly missing whatever references they were making. At some point though, his eyes start to lid. The food was so good and he felt so warm sandwiched between Sam and OJ.
“Paige?” OJ asks at some point, but he can barely hear it.
“Mm…?” he mumbles, opening and then immediately closing his eyes again.
“Oh, let him rest a while, Orv,” he hears Dani say, feeling her wrap an arm around his shoulder. “He needs it, dontcha kid?”
“Mmphm…” Paige nods.
Dani laughs quietly. “Night, buddy.”
Paige feels warmth lean into him from the other side of him, and he smiles softly as he falls asleep again.
+++
“Paige?” someone calls, shaking him. “Paiiiige…”
“Hhuh…?” Paige yawns, blinking his eyes open. In front of him stands OJ, a small smile on his face.
“There you are. The show’s over, we’re about to go to bed.”
“Oh…” Paige rubs his eyes. “Okay. Are you gonna make me sleep on your bed again?”
“Only if you want to,” OJ chuckles, pulling the other up. “C’mon. Let’s get to bed.”
The two of them walk upstairs quietly, much like how they came downstairs earlier. Paige goes to lag down on the bed immediately once they enter the room, causing OJ to scoff playfully.
“I thought you wouldn’t want to sleep on my bed?” he asks, putting a hand to his chest.
“Well,” Paige says simply, sticking his tongue out, “I do.”
OJ bursts into a small laugh, causing Paige to follow suit. He lays down and stretches a bit, bumping into Achili.
“Oh, here,” he offers, picking him up and handing him to OJ.
“You don’t want to sleep with him?” OJ asks, tilting his head.
“He’s yours, silly,” Paige smiles. “I didn’t bring Patro but I’d feel bad keeping Achili from you.”
“Hmm…” OJ hums. “Well, how about this?” OJ takes the Cyndaquil and sits down in front of Paige on his bed. “Since I doubt Patro would want you to sleep cold and alone, why don’t we all huddle up together?” he asks, a vaguely sly expression on his face.
Paige flushes at having his own tactic used against him. “Um!” he laughs. “I—Yeah! That sounds good!”
OJ’s expression melts into fondness. “Wonderful,” he smiles. “Let’s get some shuteye, then. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving after all! We want to be bright eyed and bushy tailed for it!”
Paige nods, still too stunned to speak.
The two of them don’t face each other originally, but OJ is a fast sleeper. He turns a few moments after falling asleep proper, leaving Paige with a beating heart that makes it a struggle to sleep.
When Paige wakes up in the morning, OJ is nowhere to be found. He’s a little sad at the idea of it honestly, but he lifts up and rubs the sleep out of his eyes anyways.
Today was Thanksgiving.
Paige smiles a bit as he thinks about the activities the Squeezes must have lined up for the day. OJ always had such fun stories to tell after the fact the last two years.
And his excitement is not misplaced! Once he gets up, does his morning routine and goes downstairs, the festivities are seemingly already underway.
“Turtle dove!” Sam greets, causing the other two to turn around and greet him as well.
“Kid! Nice to see you up!” Dani smiles.
“Good afternoon, Paige!” OJ waves, a dart in his hand.
Paige blinks as he walks over. “Afternoon?”
“Oh, just barely,” Sam laughs, patting OJ on the head. “He’s just a stickler for terms. It just hardly turned 12. Heck, we only got up about an hour ago ourselves!”
“Oh, okay!” Paige smiles, happy he hadn’t missed much. He looks over at OJ. “What’s with the dart?”
“Oh, we play a special game every holiday. Look.” OJ points to a circular board a little bit away that Paige had not noticed until just now. It’s spinning slowly. “This is our Random Choice board. One of us throws a dart at the board to pick an activity to do for the moment.” He places the dart down and moves to the board. “We have about three or four different things for different activities, but this is the one we use the most.”
Dani follows OJ with a grin. “Orv!” she shouts.
OJ gives a stiff salute before going, “Yes!” He points at one piece of the cardboard that covers the board. It’s divided evenly into a couple of categories. “For this one we have Trouble!” He moves his finger down. “Sorry!” And again. “The Game of Life!” And again. “Clue!” And once more. “And the classic, ChessCheck!”
Sam giggles. “They love doing this little bit of theirs.” They pick up the dart OJ left and hands it to Paige. “Orville normally goes first, but I think you should get the first shot, Snowy!”
“Are you sure?” Paige blinks. “I dunno how good a shot I am…”
“That’s alright! Neither are me and Dani!” Sam laughs. “C’mon you two, step out of the way. Let Snowy take a shot!”
The two other Squeezes diligently take a step away from the board, and then seem to rethink it and come back over towards Sam and Paige. No one to hit means no one gets hurt, after all.
“Okay… here goes!” Paige aims…
“Oh, wait!” Sam gasps, walking over to the board and spinning it seemingly as hard as they can. “Okay, now you can throw!” they nod, walking back over.
The board moving now kind of intimidates Paige, but he goes for it anyways. He throws…
“Aw right!” Dani cheers. “I was so close to beating y’all in Sorry yesterday! It’s time for my comeback!”
The others laugh and Paige smiles wide, feeling fully apart of the moment.
It’s nice.
+++
As it turned out, the other activities that could be put on the boards were actually movie genres and Wii games. Everyone got to throw a dart at the board game ome, then they played rock paper scissors to see who threw for the game and the movie.
All in all, Thanksgiving this year turns out to be really, really good. Even though Paige missed his mother, this was a great alternative. He’s so happy he was able to come, even with the hitch they had.
It’s much later, everyone’s played their hearts out and eaten, watched the movie that OJ got to pick, and are all ready for bed.
“So,” OJ asks, the two of them sitting on his bed, “How did you like your Squeeze Thanksgiving?”
“I loved it!” Paige cheers. “It was so much fun! Thank you for inviting me over!”
“Of course,” OJ smiles. “I’m glad to hear you had fun.”
“I really did! I wish I could stay longer!”
“And why can’t you?” OJ chuckles. “If it’s a matter of having a change of clothes or something, we can always drive you home to get whatever you need.”
“Really?” Paige gasps. “That’d be great!”
OJ simply smiles.
The two of them share the bed again that night, and this time Paige doesn’t have a heart attack trying to get to sleep.
+++
Paige looks out of the window of the RV the next day as they approach his house. He’s humming along to the radio while Sam and Dani talk animatedly.
Paige really likes these guys.
He’s so distracted by them, he almost, almost misses Carmen and Brandon climbing out of their car as they pass the Aguja household.
Paige gasps hard. “Brandon!?”
“Oh?” OJ blinks. “Did you see him?”
“Yes!” Paige rocks. “Oh my gosh. Can we stop? I need to talk to him!”
Sam blinks, but does as requested. Paige climbs out the second the doors are unlocked. “I’ll be right back!” he shouts back, running towards Brandon’s house.
He knocks on the door as soon as he gets there, bouncing from one leg to the next. Oh, please open the door. Please, please, please—
The door creaks open easily, showing Brandon’s face. It blanches the moment he recognizes Paige.
“Um.” he says.
“Brandon!” Paige despairs, “Why didn’t you tell me you were going on a trip?”
“Um.” Brandon says again.
“Brandon?”
“I…” Brandon sighs. “Look, we just got home. Can we, I don't know, talk about this later?”
“Later?” Paige frowns. “Brandon, you told your mom you asked me about coming when you didn’t! You lied just so you could go without me!” Paige feels like crying. “We’re best friends. Why would you—”
“Because of Leaf, okay!?” Brandon snaps. “That little… He claims he knows me but, then what, tries to guilt me into telling him something and ruining something that’s so important to you? Using your dad of all things to try and goad me into spilling?” Brandon laughs humorlessly. “You know he still thinks I’m Bad Brandon? Even though you know I’m not, he still sees me as something I’m not.”
“Brandon…” Paige breathes.
Brandon crosses his arms angrily. “So yeah. Maybe I didn’t want to spend my Thanksgiving with someone I’d never be thankful for.” He sighs. “Look, I’m sorry you got caught in the crossfire, alright? But it’s already happened. I can’t change it.” He frowns sadly. “Sorry.”
“So—so you’re just gonna avoid me because of Leaf from now on?” Paige asks, eyes watering.
“No!” Brandon gasps, putting his hands on Paige’s shoulder. “Paige, you’re my best friend. You might as well be my brother. I could never leave you for long.”
“But you did,” Paige bites back. “And you left for such a shallow reason…” Paige breaks away from Brandon’s grip. “I never would’ve thought you would be like that.”
“It wasn’t shallow!” Brandon shouts. “It—it wasn’t—” His eyes are watery now too. “Paige, we will talk about this later, okay?” He begins to walk back into his house.
“No!” Paige shouts back, stomping his foot. “Now!”
“Later.” Brandon says, finality in his voice.
He closes the door in Paige’s face, leaving a stunned teen in tears to deal with what he just heard.
Paige stands staring at the door for what feels like minutes, until he takes a deep breath and walks away.
“Paige?” Leaf mumbles, worried.
Paige’s eyes lid and his posture grows hunched with each step he takes, but he doesn’t respond.
Instead, he goes back to the Squeeze’s RV and says meekly to the family, “I… I have to do some stuff at home, actually.” He can actually feel his eye twitch this time. “So um… You can all go on without me.”
“Is everything alright, Snowy?” Sam frowns.
Paige closes his eyes and nods, a tight smile on his face. “Mhm! I just forgot. A-about the stuff I had to do.” He puts a hand to his face. “Silly me! Always forgetting stuff!”
When he opens his eyes, none of the Squeezes look convinced. He’s so worried he’s going to have to tell the truth, but he catches OJ’s eye, who gasps quietly.
“Ah,” he nods. “Yes, I understand. We’ll head home for now, then.”
“Aw, what?” Dani pouts. “I like Paige, though! We were gonna play more ChessCheck!”
OJ shakes his head. “I’m sure he’ll be back over sooner than later.” He turns to Paige, an odd look on his face. “Right, Paige?”
Paige breathes, nods, and throws up a peace sign. “Yep!” he says, pushing all the emotion he had left into it.
With that settled, Paige waves the family off as they drive away. Once they’re no longer visible, Paige wipes at his eyes, which had started to water again at some point.
This was awful.
+++
The second Paige lays down on his bed, Leaf springs to life. “I’m so fucking sorry, Paige,” they say, clear guilt in their voice. “This is—this is all my fault. I should’ve… I shouldn’t have…”
“It’s my fault,” Paige laughs. “It’s all my fault.”
“What??” Leaf asks, sounding completely taken aback.
“I forgot that stupid phone call. I-I forced you to apologize and then everything went upside down!”
“I did that,” Leaf sighs. “I’m the one who called him, remember? And I’m the one who fucked up with the sorry. And—”
“Leaf,” Paige sighs. “It’s my fault. If I had never said anything in the first place, maybe things wouldn’t be so horrible right now.”
“But things weren’t always horrible!” Leaf frowns. “I’m the one who said all that stupid shit and got Brandon to hate me! It’s not fair you’re being brought down with me!”
“Ugh,” Paige groans, twisting to the side and holding himself. “It doesn’t even matter. I don’t think Brandon likes either of us very much right now.”
“I…” Leaf falters and doesn’t pick back up.
The two sit in silence for a moment before Paige sighs. “Let’s just get some more sleep.”
“We just woke up a couple hours ago.”
“I don’t care. I’m so tired.”
“...Yeah, okay.” Leaf says it with a weird tilt in their voice, but they don’t fight Paige on the matter anymore, so he can’t really find it in him to wonder what it was about right now.
Instead, he curls up around Teds and Matro and closes his eyes tight, willing sleep to come for him swiftly.
+++
Brandon doesn’t call later. Or the next day. Or the next.
+++
On Sunday, Paige wakes up just as his door creaks open. “Sweetie?”
It takes him a second to piece things together in his sleepy brain, but he gasps once he realizes who it is. “Mom!” he smiles, jumping out of his bed. He rushes over to her as she swings the door open fully so she can intercept his hug.
“Hello to you too, my little book of Paiges!” Quinn laughs. “Oooh, I’m so happy to see you again!” She lets go and grabs his cheeks, tugging at them very lightly back and forth. “How’s my little man, huh?”
Paige’s smile falls as he remembers how everything with Brandon played out and how they stand now. “Mmm…” he mumbles, looking away.
Quinn’s smile drops too, confused. “What’s up, baby? Did something happen?”
Paige takes a deep breath and nods, prompting his mom to let go of him. He takes her hand and pulls her to his bed, where they both sit down. He then takes another breath.
Only to let the dam break open.
“Mom…” he cries.
Quinn’s eyes widen. “Baby? Are you alright?” She sounds worried out of her mind as she grabs his head and twists it around. “Did you get hurt again? Did someone fight you? Paige, are you okay?”
Paige sniffs and pulls his head back so he can shake it. “M-me and Brandon h-ad a f-fight…” he says pitifully. “And now I—I don’t know if he’ll ever t-talk to me a-gain…”
Quinn’s expression grows to be the saddest he’s ever seen it. “Oh, baby…” She scoops him up in another hug. “Can you tell me exactly what happened?”
“Please don’t tell her about me yet,” Leaf pleads. “I don’t know what I’d do if my mom of all people hated me too.”
Paige huffs out a breath, sobbing, nodding to both Leaf and Quinn. “I-I… Brandon didn’t—he didn’t tell me a-about the trip. S-so when I s-saw him come h-ome on Friday, I tried to talk to h-im… B-but…” His breathing has raised in pace considerably. “I was mean ab-out it, a-nd so h-he was mean b-back a-and we haven’t talked since then a-and I don’t know wh-what to do and I think he wants me—”
The teen tightly shuts his mouth. He wants me dead… Paige thinks. I was really gonna say that…
Quinn hums sadly. “It sounds like you two need to have a serious sit down and talk,” she says, rubbing his back. “You want me to come and help you talk to him? We can do it now, before school tomorrow.”
“NO!” Leaf shouts. “He’ll tell her about me! No, no, no!”
Paige sniffs. “N-no… Me and Brandon a-are big kids.” He pulls back and forces a smile. “I-I’ll… talk to him. I just—I needed to get that out.” He rubs at his eyes. “Thanks, Mom.”
“No problem, sweetie,” Quinn smiles, but it’s worried. “I’m always here for you, alright? Always.” She pats his head gently. “I love you, Paige.”
“I—I love you too, Mom.”
To say the next day was rough is an understatement.
Paige, after being convinced by Leaf, sits with his headphones in as he and his mom wait for Brandon to arrive.
There’s no music actually playing though. Neither he nor Leaf could take the idea of any extra stimulation than strictly necessary right now.
“...Sweetie?” Quinn asks from up front.
“Mm?” Paige mumbles.
Quinn sighs. “You’re as stiff as a board, sweetheart. I know this has to be about Brandon. Are you sure you don’t want me to—”
“No!” Leaf yelps, the feeling so powerful they manage to say it out loud. Paige clears his throat and blinks for a long moment. “I-I mean…
“No, it’s okay. You don’t have to explain yourself.” She turns back to him, a worried smile on her face. “Like you said, you two are big kids. I’m sure you can talk it out on your own.”
“Mm.” Paige nods, but only a bit.
Only a few moments later does Brandon make his entrance, opening the car door and climbing inside. “Hey, Tia Quinn! Hey, Paige!” he beams.
“Good morning, Brandon,” Quinn smiles back with a small backwards wave.
Paige, meanwhile, does not reply. His eyes have conveniently slipped closed, head bopping with the fake music he was absolutely listening to.
“Paige?” Brandon asks as Quinn begins to pull off. “Is your music that loud, man?”
Paige doesn’t respond.
Brandon huffs, reaching out a hand and pushing the other lightly. “Paige, c’mon dude.”
“This is torture,” Paige thinks
“There’s no other way,” Leaf sighs. “If we talk, he’ll try and mention me in front of Quinn.”
“You can just call her Mom, y’know,” Paige thinks absently. “She’s your mom too.”
Leaf hums, but doesn’t say anything else.
Out of things to do, Paige very slowly opens one of his eyes just enough to see out of it. He glances over at Brandon, who has his arms crossed and is slouching in the seat. Paige can just barely see his face, which has a pained expression covering it.
…Today was not going to be easy.
+++
Since they don’t share any classes together until after lunch, the two teens don’t see each other until they enter the cafeteria.
Paige gets his food absently, not actually hungry enough to eat today, but just following the motions. When he walks over to the Bro Crew’s table, he doesn’t even think twice about taking a seat next to Brandon, eyes glazed over.
“Hello, Paige,” Sue greets as they usually do. Bro waves, as they usually do. And Brandon…
Brandon pushes food into his mouth with each moment, not giving himself enough time to talk.
Paige pretends like he’s fully present with a small wave and a, “Hey, guys.” He opens his carton of milk and starts to sip at it, body otherwise limp.
The atmosphere is thick enough to cut with a knife. It’s oppressive and feels like a battle neither side is winning.
Sue opens their mouth several times, but then closes it right after. They’re really struggling to say something, but Bro beats them to the punch.
“Wh-what’s with this r-ight now?” they say abruptly. “There’s—there’s like some—something… Something’s wrong r-ight now. I-it’s weird.”
Sue nods, agreeing. “Brandon, you’ve normally gotten out about five different quips by now. Not to mention giving Paige his daily note.” They turn to Paige. “And you’re usually all excited to get said note as soon as possible, laughing at whatever excuse Brandon had for today’s bout of snooping.” They frown and cross their arms. “What exactly is going on here?”
Brandon barks out a laugh. “Why don’t you ask Paige?” he snarks.
Paige chokes a bit on his milk. “Me?” he asks when he recovers. “Brandon, you’re the one who didn’t call or come over for like, three days! It’s not my fault you didn’t!”
“You didn’t call or come over either,” Brandon mumbles.
Paige is filled with so many emotions so suddenly, he starts shaking. He tries to take a deep breath, but it starts to become a heavy hyperventilation. “I—You didn’t—You said we’d talk about it later! And you—you didn’t—!” Tears are forming. “You didn’t say one thing to me! A-and then you come this morning and act like everything is okay!?”
“Paige…” Leaf mumbles.
“I don’t—I don’t have to—” Paige is struggling as he stands suddenly, trying to catch his breath. “I don’t have to deal with this!” He moves to get his bag with one hand as he clutches his chest with the other. “I—I’m leaving!”
Brandon blanches. “Paige, wait—”
“No!” the other teen shouts. “I’m not waiting for you anymore!”
With that, Paige runs off. He runs out of the cafeteria and keeps going blindly through the halls.
“Paige, where are we going?” Leaf asks with worry clear in their voice.
“I don’t know!” he answers. “I don’t care!”
Paige runs until he reaches the stairwell, where he quickly ducks inside. Only then does he stop to catch his breath and to let his tears fall freely. “I can’t—I can’t believe…” he cries. “He… he really…”
“You gotta calm down,” Leaf says. “Here, do you want me to be in control? I can probably help.”
“S-sure,” Paige nods, sitting down on a step and leaning against the wall. “Go ahead.”
The transition is rough, what with Paige’s state, but eventually Leaf jolts into the front. “Oh god,” they mutter, clutching their head. “Headache central…”
“Sorry,” Paige sighs. “I should’ve said something.”
“Nah, I felt it a little bit in there,” Leaf shrugs. “Just wasn’t ready for it to hurt so bad…”
They close their eyes and take a moment just to even out their breathing for the both of them. It doesn’t take too terribly long, what with Leaf using the time to rewatch Ratatouille in their head to help speed up the process. Eventually, breathing isn’t so laborious and Leaf opens their eyes again.
“Okay,” they say. “What do we do now?”
“We go to class when the bell rings, I guess,” Paige says sadly. “There’s no way we can go back to lunch now.”
“Yeah, I guess not…” Leaf agrees. “Ugh. This blows. Can’t we just go home?”
“How? We’re not sick or anything.”
“We can pretend to be.”
“Is it worth it?”
Leaf hums. “Don’t you have a class with Brandon later? Like, two of them?”
Paige is quiet for a moment. Then he says, “How well can you pretend to be hurt?”
+++
Carmen comes and picks them up after Leaf puts on the performance of their life. They had Ms. Tiseu on the ropes the entire time. It was honestly kind of impressive.
“Do you want me to call Quinn, mijo?” Carmen asks as they pull off from the school. “It sounds like you had quite the nasty fall…”
“Um…” Leaf mumbles. “You don’t have to. I just think some sleep will be all I need.”
“You sure?” Carmen asks, worried eyes glancing back at them in the rear view mirror. “Your voice sounds a little weird… Are you catching a cold too?”
“Shit,” Leaf swears, coughing a bit. “N-no, I don’t think so,” they say, voice higher. “Just haven’t had a drink in a while.”
“You wanna stop at a store and get a juice or something?”
“No, it’s okay. I think I can make it till we home.”
Carmen doesn't look very convinced, but just nods. “Alright, sweetie. If you’re sure.” She’s quiet for a moment, before blurting out, “Can I ask you something?”
“Shoot,” Leaf says without thinking.
“What’s up with you and Brandon?” Carmen asks, sounding sad. “You two are always so close, always talking, but when I asked if he wanted to spend time with you while Quinnsie was gone, he said no and locked himself up in his room for the rest of the day!”
“Um,” Leaf mumbles.
But Carmen wasn’t done. “And when I asked him why the next day, he said you weren’t speaking to him! Which I thought was weird, because you’re always speaking to him!” She sounds so worried as she sighs. “I don’t know, mijo. My kid is so sad, and you don’t seem to be any better! And it’s worrying me so much!”
“Paige,” Leaf thinks, freaking out a bit. “What the hell do I say.”
“Umm…” Paige hums. “I-I don’t know… Maybe just think of a lie?”
“Will she buy a lie?”
“I don’t know, but I also don’t have any better ideas.”
Leaf takes a deep breath. “We’re um… having a bit of a fight, I guess,” they say, clawing at their arm lightly. “It’s okay though! We’ll um… we’re gonna talk about it later I think!”
Carmen immediately looks relieved. “Oh, thank goodness. The last thing I would want is for you two to have a falling out.”
“Me too,” Leaf laughs a bit, completely devoid of humor. “Me too.”
+++
When they get home, Carmen insists Leaf stay. “You’re gonna talk later anyways, aren’t you? Might as well do it face to face,” she reasoned.
Now it’s 3. Brandon would be coming home soon.
And Leaf would be out front.
And they were supposed to talk.
Oh god.
This was going to go horribly.
Leaf is taking their final bite of vanilla ice cream when the sound of keys in the door fills the air.
Oh boy. It was time.
The teen shrinks in on themself at the table as Brandon announces, “Ma! I’m home!”
“We’re in the kitchen, mijo!” Carmen calls back. He’s been sitting there on his phone for a hot minute now, dressed in his coat. Leaf’s been wondering why, but has been way too shy to ask.
“We?” Brandon asks as he enters the kitchen, only for his inquisitive face to turn into a shocked one. “Paige!?”
“H-hi…” Leaf waves, not even pretending to not be scared. Now not only did Brandon have home field advantage, but he could also tell his mom about them. And if they had no idea how Quinn would react, then guessing how Carmen would was like shooting at a distant target. Blindfolded. At night. And also if you don’t shoot soon enough bears will come and maul you to death. And—
“What are you doing here?” Brandon asks, pulling Leaf out of his bear mauling scenario. They look up to see the other looking like he’s genuinely curious, which was surprising. Shouldn’t he be mad or something?
“Maybe he had a change of heart?” Paige suggests.
“I’d hope so,” Leaf thinks, “But I’d doubt it.”
“Oh, Paige had a nasty fall at school today. So I came and got him home early,” Carmen explains, jumping up. “He said you two were gonna talk later, so I figured he might as well stay so you two could do it face to face.” He smiles hopefully. “Sadly, I won’t be here for it, but that’s alright. You two are big kids, you can—”
“What?” Brandon cuts off. “Where are you going?”
“Oh, to the store. I forgot something I need for tonight’s dinner is all.” Carmen claps his hands together with a nod. “Yep! It’ll probably take me about 30 minutes, give or take.”
“Ma,” Brandon deadpans. “This is not subtle.”
“Then I better take my exit, huh?” Carmen laughs airily. “Play nice, you two. I’ll be back!” And with that, he leaves the two teenagers alone. Soon the sound of his car starting and taking off can be heard, and that’s the second everything comes crashing down.
Brandon takes a deep breath before sitting down at the table and crossing his hands, looking dead at Leaf. “Well. It looks like we’ve got 30 minutes to talk. So let’s talk.”
Leaf pushes their empty bowl over before mimicking Brandon’s posture and nodding tensely. “Let’s,” he says, purposefully pushing his voice up to try to throw the other off their scent.
“Is this the right idea?” Paige mumbles, worried. “If he finds out, won’t he just get more mad at us?”
“Maybe,” Leaf agrees. “But I should be the one dealing with this. Not you. So let me deal with it for right now and burn that bridge when we get to it.”
“Don’t you mean cross?”
Leaf looks down for a second. “Hopefully.”
The two teens have a stare off for a moment, neither seeming to really want to actually start the talk. That is, until Brandon loses his stiff posture and sighs. “Look man, I’m… I’m sorry. What I said at lunch today was wack. I know I didn’t call or anything, and I should’ve. And I’m sorry about that.”
“I-it’s okay,” Leaf lies. It was most definitely not okay, but anything to get over this huge bump in the road. “I’m sorry I—Leaf was such a… a-a jerk. They shouldn’t have done what they did, and they’re really, really sorry.”
Brandon’s blinks. “That so?” He sounds wary. “Leaf is sorry, huh?”
“They are,” Leaf nods.
Brandon’s eyes lid. “Then let them say it themself.”
“I’m s—” Leaf cuts themself off ans blanches. “I-I mean—I…”
Brandon chuckles lowly. “I thought so. Did you know your Paige impression isn’t very good? You’re about here,” he says, putting a flat hand in the air, “When you need to be aboouuut here.” He pushes his hand up just about two or three inches. “It’s a subtle difference, but it’s there anyways.”
Leaf just stares, completely taken aback. “I-I thought it was pretty good…” he mumbles to himself.
“Well it wasn’t.” Brandon’s expression is serious. “Didn’t I tell you I never wanted to see you again? What did you truly and honestly think would happen by pretending to be Paige right now?”
“It wasn’t on purpose!” Leaf defends. “I just—I was here! And I figured I should deal with this since it was my fault!”
“How noble,” Brandon says, rolling his eyes. “But I don’t want to talk to you. Bring Paige back so we can actually talk.”
“Brandon…” Leaf frowns sadly, closing in on himself. He scratches at his forearm. “I… Paige has to want to come back out.”
“Well?” Brandon asks, looking through Leaf. “C’mon Paige. We should get this over with.”
“I…” Paige warbles. “I don’t…” Leaf can feel Paige’s apprehension, probably scared he won’t say the right thing if he comes out.
Leaf sighs. This was never going to work like this. So, it was time to make a decision.
“I got this,” Leaf thinks. “Just roll with me.”
“O-okay.”
“Brandon—” Leaf starts, only for Brandon to cut him off.
“Paige,” he demands. “I want to talk to Paige.”
“Will you listen to me at least?” Leaf asks desperately.
Brandon pulls his lip into a thin line for a moment, but doesn’t say anything. Leaf takes that as a go ahead.
“Look, I… I fucked up. I know I did. And if I can’t fix it, I can at least try to make sure I don’t ruin Paige’s life any more than I already have.”
“What?” Paige blinks. “Leaf, you didn’t—”
“Just roll with me,” Leaf repeats.
Paige hums, but it’s filled with worry.
“So,” Leaf continues, “I have a proposition for you. What if…” They sigh deeply. “What if I agreed to never be here while you were around Paige?”
“What!?” Paige gasps. “Leaf, we can’t promise that!”
“If this is the only way Brandon will ever talk to us again, then we’re gonna have to,” Leaf replies gravely.
It was okay though. They’d make their peace with it eventually.
Finally Brandon talks. “...Do you promise?”
“Leaf!” Paige despairs.
But still, Leaf nods.
“Then prove it.” Brandon crosses his arms. “Let Paige come out right now.”
Leaf leans back in their chair and lids their eyes, sad. “Okay.”
“Leaf?” There’s so much worry in Paige’s voice.
“It’s okay,” Leaf replies. “Just… pretend like I’m not here for now, okay?”
“But—”
Leaf takes a deep breath before looking at Brandon one last time. “Goodbye, Brandon.”
Paige jolts into reality. “Brandon!” he shouts, upset.
Brandon on the other hand has its face light up in joy. “Paige!” He pushes his chair up and stands. “Look, I’m s—”
“No you’re not!” Paige cuts off angrily, pushing his own chair back as he stands too, slamming his hands on the table.
“What?” Brandon blinks, taken aback.
“You’re not!” Paige yells again. “You just made Leaf agree to basically not exist around you!”
“And?” Brandon laughs a bit. “Isn’t that great? The problem took care of itself! Now we can go back to being best friends again!” It walks over and tries to put a hand on Paige’s shoulder, but he pulls back.
“No, it’s not great!” he shouts, putting a hand to his chest. “Brandon, no matter what you do, Leaf is a part of me. You can’t have me without them!”
“B-but…” Brandon frowns. “They weren’t always here, right? And everything was fine before that! So if we just act like it’s like that again, we can—”
“We can’t!” Paige snaps. “Honestly, Brandon! Did you really think I would agree to something like that?” He holds himself tightly. “I’m not stupid, Brandon! I know being called Bad Brandon must’ve stung, but is it really so bad that it’s worth all of this?”
Brandon gawks, shocked at Paige’s outburst. “I—I…” it tries and fails. Then it shakes its head. “It’s…” Brandon starts to hold itself now, looking off to the side with a pained expression. “It’s… it did more than sting, Paige.” It laughs. “It did a lot more than just sting.”
Paige furrows his brows. “What do you mean?”
Brandon bites its lip and closes its eyes and sighs. “You can’t freak out,” it says wearily.
“Okay?” Paige frowns. What was happening?
Brandon sighs again and slips off his sweater. Underneath he wears a short sleeved t-shirt. At first, Paige is confused. What did taking its sweater off do?
And then, Brandon flips its arms outwards.
Paige gasps hard, eyes widening and starting to water. “Br-Brandon?” he asks, voice high and scared. “Wh—you… you didn’t—”
“I did,” Brandon huffs humorlessly.
Just below where its arms bend inwards are several small lines worth of raised skin on both arms. They look shallow, but they also look fairly new. There’s other lines of similar lengths near the same spot as these ones, but they look pretty old.
“You know, it actually stops hurting after a minute,” it says, self deprecating smile on its face. “And then that’s when you gotta do another. So,” it says blandly, “I’d say it did a little more than just stung.”
“Brandon…” Paige whispers. “I-I’m… I’m sorry…”
“It’s not your fault, Paige,” Brandon sighs, putting its sweater back on. “You would’ve never made me do this. It’s all Leaf’s fault.” It scowls. “If they hadn't pulled that cheap trick, maybe we’d all be singing Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows right now, but they did, and now that’s never gonna happen.”
“But…” Paige sniffs. “I’m so sorry that you… I-I’m sorry. But, it’s still not fair to any of us to make Leaf hide themself when we’re around you.”
“Explain,” Brandon prompts, taking a seat again and gesturing for Paige to do the same. “‘Cause I’m still not seeing how it’s not the perfect solution.”
Paige sits in front of Brandon, but doesn’t look at it. “Brandon, you’re my best friend,” he starts, playing with his hands. “You’re practically my brother. And I really don’t want to lose you. But…” He looks up at it now. “Me and Leaf are a package deal. And if part of me is making you…” Paige gulps. “Making you do… that, then… Maybe we… shouldn’t talk anymore.”
“Paige, no!” Leaf gasps. “It’s okay! I’m the one who offered to be quiet! Don’t leave Brandon just because of me!”
“I’m not going to let it pretend like it’s okay for it to just ignore you! The way I see it, you’re me and I’m you, so it either has both of us or neither of us.”
“Paige…” Brandon breathes. “Paige, no. I-I can’t lose you.” It grabs him by the arms tightly. “I can’t lose you,” it says desperately, shaking the other a bit. “I-I’m sorry, I—I don’t—I’m sorry! I just—you can’t leave me, okay!?”
Paige bites his lip. “I really don’t want to,” he repeats, “But if you can’t accept both me and Leaf without it hurting you, then…” Paige sighs, tears starting to fall again. “I guess we can leave right now.”
“I—Okay!” Brandon shouts. “Whatever you want! Just don’t…” It falters, grip loosening. “Just don’t leave me.”
Paige’s breath is uneven. “You have to mean it,” he says weakly.
“I—I’ll try, okay?” Brandon sighs heavily. “I… I’ll try. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
+++
When Carmen enters the house again, she’s greeted by the sleeping form of Brandon on one side of the couch and a texting Paige on the other. The TV is on, playing a random Pokemon episode and the both of them are sharing the creeper blanket they both loved.
“Oh thank goodness,” Carmen sighs, putting a hand to her chest.
Paige looks up. “Oh, hi Aunt Carmen,” he waves.
“Hello, mijo!” she smiles, coming over to kiss him on the forehead. “I’m so happy to see you and Brandon have patched up whatever spat you two were having!”
Paige looks away with a shaky smile. “Me too.”
“Bwhh?” Brandon mumbles, stirring. “Wh’t’s goin’ on…?”
“You fell asleep,” Paige informs. “And I’ve been texting Sue and Bro in the meantime. And also, Aunt Carmen just got home.”
“Oh…” Brandon rubs its eyes. “Hi Ma…”
“Hello, my sweet Branflakes!” Carmen beams, going over to kiss it on the forehead now. “Oh, I’m so happy.”
“Happy?” Brandon blinks slowly, confused.
“For you two!” Carmen smiles. “Both of you were so sad! It hurt my little heart to see!” She walks past them now, into the kitchen. “I’m sure Quinnsie will be just as happy to hear the good news!”
Paige looks at Brandon, who looks back at him. He can tell that the two of them have the same realization at the same time, causing them both to frown.
“Our moms must’ve been so worried,” Paige sighs.
“Yeah…” Brandon mumbles. “And you and me both know they don’t need the stress. Ugh.” Brandon bends over and scrubs at his hair. “This was so stupid. I’m so stupid.”
“It was,” Paige says with no hesitance. “But… it’s over now, right?” Paige smiles hopefully. “We can learn and grow from this and stuff, right?”
Brandon takes a deep breath and smiles back a bit. “Yeah, man. I’m… I’m gonna try and do better, alright?”
“I trust you,” Paige says honestly. “What do you say?” He holds up a fist, giving a small sly smile. “Bomb day tomorrow?”
Brandon stares for a moment, only for a grin to split across his face. It completes the brofist. “Bomb day tomorrow.”
The days amble by slowly after the two teens make up. Both Sue’s birthday and Quinceañera have passed by the time Paige can fully start to say the tension between the two of them has waned to a much more comfortable degree. It was only about a week to be fair, but it was still a whole week.
Paige and Brandon were such an inseparable bond for their whole lives that even just that one week of awkwardness was agonizing.
But! It was over now! It was over and even though Leaf hadn’t talked to him in a while, things were normal and everything was fine.
And, because everything was fine, Paige could finally relax enough to think about OJ again.
“Finally going back to your little crush?” echos in Paige’s head and he gasps, fumbling with his phone.
“Leaf!” he yelps aloud, only to shake his head and say it again in his mind. “Leaf! Where have you been?!”
“Around,” the other answers dismissively. “Don’t worry about it.”
“But…” Paige frowns. “Didn’t we agree we’d work on this together? Being better with each other?”
Leaf inhales deeply before sighing. “Yeah. Yeah, we did. Ugh.” They run a hand down their face. “Look, I’ll tell you later, okay? I don’t wanna ruin your little…” They clear their throat. “I mean, I don’t wanna mess with your mood. You were about to call nerd boy, weren’t you?”
Paige blushes a bit. “Don’t call him that,” he mumbles, focusing on his phone again. As accused, the contact information for OJ is on the screen once it lights back up.
“Go on, then,” Leaf says, making a shooing motion. “Don’t let me stop you.”
“If you’re sure…”
“I’m sure.”
Paige pouts a bit, but lets it go with a small sigh. He had to trust in Leaf if this was going to work. They would tell him what was bothering them later, he knew they would.
With that filed away, Paige taps on the call button and places the phone flush to his ear. It rings just a few times before—
”Paige!” OJ greets, sounding happy. “Hello, hello!”
“Hi, OJ!” Paige greets back, a big smile quickly finding its way onto his face. “How are you?”
“Swell!” OJ says. “Me and my mothers are about to go to a restaurant! It’s quite an event, as both of them think they can out cook any Michelin chef, so we rarely go out!” His voice grows hushed, but it’s got a playful undertone to it. “Between you and me though, I think that Outback does steak just a mite better than either of them.”
“I heard that, you traitor!” Paige hears in the distance, a hearty laugh from OJ following behind it.
“Oops! It seems I’ve been caught in my mutiny!”
“You sure have!” comes from the receiver, a lot closer this time. Paige can tell it’s Dani. “And y’know what mutinous little dudes get?”
“Ma, please!” OJ giggles, “I’m on the phone with Paige!”
“Oh? Hi, Paige!” Dani greets.
“Oh, hold on,” OJ snorts. The audio quality has a noticeable shift in it before he goes on to say, “Okay, you’re on speaker now.”
“Hi, Dani!” Paige grins.
“Hi, Paige!” Dani says again. “You’re lucky, you get to hear me giving your pal Orv the noogie of his life!”
“You’re going to what?” OJ gasps.
“I’m gonna getcha!” Dani replies easily.
And then the call is filled with the sound of parent and child laughing. The idea of what it must look like on the other side has Paige laughing himself.
OJ was always so fun to talk to, no matter what. Ohh, Paige was simply smitten.
“Out!” Paige finally hears through laughs. “Go get ready!”
“You’re not my dad!” Dani chuckles. “I’m your dad!”
“Gooo!!” OJ playfully whines. “I’m going to starve to death and it’ll be all your fault because you were too busy terrorizing me to get ready!”
“Oh, you and your theatrics!” Dani shouts, getting further away. “Fine, fine, I’m goin’! Bye, Paige!”
“Oh, bye Dani!” Paige manages before he hears the door close.
OJ sighs heavily, but it’s clear he’s happy. “Sorry about all of that, Paige. My mom can get rather… boisterous at times.”
“It’s okay! Don’t worry about it.”
“So, did you need me for something?” OJ asks. “Or was this simply a call to call?”
“Oh! Um…” Paige deflates a bit. His original plan had been to call and just talk with OJ all day, or maybe even come over to visit! But if he had plans already…
“Paige?” OJ questions, sounding a bit worried. “Did we disconnect?”
“Oh, no!” Paige says quickly. “I just—I just thought I’d call to say hi. I—You were on my mind.”
There’s a beat of silence before OJ goes, “...Was I?”
Paige can feel his face heat up a bit. “Um!” he fumbles. “You… you were!” He almost leaves it at that before realizing that maybe that was a little… weird of him. He barrels on, “So I thought I’d just call you real quick! See what was going on with you, y’know?”
“Ahh,” OJ hums. “That’s very kind of you, Paige. I really appreciate it.”
Paige giggles a bit, unprepared for the remark. “I-it’s nothing,” he says shyly. “But, um! I don’t wanna hold you up! So I’ll talk to you later?”
“Sounds like a plan.” There’s a bit of shuffling from the other’s end before he goes, “Pull your phone back.”
Paige blinks but does as instructed, gasping happily once he sees his screen. There sits OJ at his desk, a neat smile on his face. Paige scrambles to activate his own camera, managing to somehow almost drop his phone three different times in the process. His camera was on for two of them.
“You okay?” OJ asks, clearly fighting back a laugh as Paige finally gets a solid grip on his phone.
“I’m good!” Paige grins. “But um, what’s—why are we on camera?”
“I just wanted to wave you goodbye!” OJ says gleefully.
“Oh!” Paige’s smile widens. “Heehee! You’re so silly, OJ! I’ll talk to you later!” he waves.
OJ waves back easily with a simple, “See you!” before picking his phone up to end the call. Right before he does though, Paige can swear he sees the other look directly at him before winking. Before he can even think to say something, the line drops.
Paige stares at the screen until it dims, where he can then see his face’s ruby red reflection.
“This boy’s got you down bad, huh?” Leaf chuckles.
Paige opens and closes his mouth without actually saying anything back, just sputtering a bit. Leaf laughs openly at their brother now, causing Paige to shake his head and groan a bit.
“Oh, be quiet!” he pouts, but it’s playful. Leaf smiles easily at him and Paige smiles back.
This was a nice moment.
Before Paige can dwell on it for long though, his phone starts ringing.
“Oh!” the teen blinks, looking at the name that lit up his screen. “...Kevin?”
He picks up.
“Hey-hey! You picked up!” Kevin says, sounding relieved.
“I did!” Paige nods with a frown. “Are you okay? You don’t normally call…”
“Who, me?” Kevin laughs airily. “I’m—I’m good, man! I just, um…” He trails off, only to sigh a sigh so tired it only makes Paige worry more. “Look, uh… I…” The teen trails off once again before clearing his throat. “I… Are you free right now?”
Paige kicks his legs in the back of the limousine he’s found himself in, looking down at his phone. He’s currently texting Kevin as he gets closer and closer to them.
kev: but yea srry
kev: im like. u know.
Paiges: It’s okay! Don’t worry about it :) I think I’ll be there soon anyways.
kev: kay
kev: see u in a min then
Paige hums to himself as he clicks off his phone’s display. Kevin had called him not even 15 minutes ago asking him to come over before abruptly ending the call once Paige agreed. They then started texting him, thanking him and telling him Collins was already on her way.
The snow-haired teen looks out the window as the scenery passes by with a sigh. Kevin hadn’t been back to school since they were released from the hospital. It was a little worrisome to Paige honestly. That being said, they hadn’t called and neither had he, so the sudden ring had the poor boy even more worried.
“But,” he thinks as they cross the threshold into the Sharp estate, “Whatever’s wrong, at least I’ll be here for them now.”
Collins helps Paige navigate to Kevin’s room once they enter the home proper. It had been ages since he had last been here, so he would have gotten extremely lost without the help. He thanks Collins as she walks off before walking up to and knocking on the door a bit hesitantly.
There’s a quiet gasp on the other side followed by the clearing of a throat. “Come in, dude,” Kevin calls. “S’open.”
Paige nods and pushes his way in. He hopes the worry on his face isn’t as pronounced as it feels. “Hi, Kevin!” he waves, smile a little pinched. “It’s good to see you again!”
“Hey, man.” Kevin grins. They’re on their bed, rocking back and forth a bit. “C’mere,” they beckon, patting the space next to them.
Paige walks over and gently takes a seat next to them, only for him to be leaned against heavily immediately after.
“Oh!” the teen gasps. That was new. Kevin wasn’t really the touchy-feely type last time Paige checked. This was all very odd.
“Thanks for comin’,'' Kevin says after a heavy sigh. “‘Preciate it.”
Paige frowns. This really wasn’t how Kevin usually acted. What was wrong?
“Of course!” he says instead of pressing. “You’re one of my best friends. I’m always here for you.”
“Thanks,” is all Kevin replies with.
The two sit in silence for a bit, Kevin seemingly completely content to stay that way. Paige, being Paige, is willing to wait for them to say something first if they so wish.
Leaf, however, is not.
“Paige,” Leaf murmurs, sounding more worried about someone outside of the Bro Crew than Paige has ever heard him, “Do something. This is agonizing. They’re so…” Leaf falters with a deep frown. “I don’t know. Do something.”
“I don’t wanna push them…” Paige mumbles back.
“It’s not pushing if you just… ask, right?”
Paige squishes his face in thought a bit before ultimately agreeing. Kevin didn’t have to respond if they didn’t want to, right?
“Um, Kevin?”
“Mm.”
“Can I… can I ask what’s wrong?” Paige wrings his hands together. “Not that I mind sitting here with you or anything! You just seem… I don’t know, sad?”
Kevin sighs once again and Paige is about to rescind his question when they go, “I guess I am.”
“Did something happen?” Paige asks immediately, previous worries thrown away now that he knew for a fact something was wrong. “You didn’t come back to school before break started. I-I was worried but I didn’t wanna like… overwhelm you after you came home or anything…”
Kevin makes a noise that Paige can’t quite tell what it means before they slowly say, “...Pipes is outta town ‘till next week. And they’ve been here for me for this whole time, so… I miss them.”
“Oh…” Paige frowns. “I’m sorry.”
“S’okay,” Kevin shrugs. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to call you over just to be all depressed ‘nd shit. I thought having someone over would, I dunno, fix this weird funk I’m in and we’d be like… doin’ something.” They glance away. “But I’m still all weird. I feel like I just wanna lay down. For forever.” They look back at Paige with a small smile. “I do gotta say though, even if I’m like this, I’m really glad you’re still here.”
“I’ll always be here for you, Kevin,” Paige smiles back.
Kevin’s expression gets a little weird before it becomes relaxed. “You’re still too nice for your own good,” they say.
“Still?” Paige blinks.
“Eh,” Kevin smirks, “Don’t worry about it. Just know you’re good ol’ Paige.” They give him a hug and squeeze a bit before going back to simply laying against him. “Never change that, ‘kay?”
Paige nods, a bit dumbfounded, but happy that Kevin was happy to be around him.
“Sooo,” they say after a moment longer, “What’s going on with you?”
“Me?” Paige repeats.
“You,” Kevin laughs. “I don’t really have much else to fill the air with after all. And besides, I’m curious about what’s happening in PaigeLand. I feel like we haven’t talk talked in forever, man.”
Paige hums. “Well I mean… not much is going on.”
“Are you lying on purpose or do you seriously believe you haven’t had the worst couple of months of your life?” Leaf asks, eyebrow raised.
Paige pointedly ignores him.
“There’s gotta be somethin’,” Kevin prods.
“Well…” Paige starts, thinking back to earlier. “Let’s see… Did I ever tell you about OJ?”
“You mean about your awful, awful crush on him?” Kevin smirks.
Paige flushes immediately. “Um!” he squeaks. “Maybe!”
Kevin laughs heartily, lifting up. “You mentioned something back at the skate park. I remember Pipes being like ‘ohh don’t say anything! Let him figure it out himself!’ and stuff.” They smile easily at Paige. “Guess you finally figured it out then, huh?”
It’s now Paige’s turn to slump against the other, something between a wail and a groan coming out of his mouth. “Kevinnn…” he drawls, “I think I like himmm…”
Again Kevin laughs. “Yeah, I think so too buddy.”
“But!” Paige continues, “But! I-I think he likes me back!!”
“Oh shit!” Kevin smiles. “For real?”
“Yeah! You know—you know those secret admirer notes I’ve been getting?”
Kevin’s expression, for seemingly no reason, grows worried. “If what Seb told me is true, the whole school knows about your notes, buddy.” They push Paige up and hold him tightly by the shoulders. “You okay after that whole locked thing, dude? Like, really and truly?”
“You mean the stuff people put on my locker that one time?” Paige asks.
“Yeah,” Kevin nods. “Seb told me he took ‘em down ‘cause he…” Kevin trails off, shaking his head. “He took ‘em down,” he repeats. “So I know some of them were like, really shitty.”
“Oh, it’s okay,” Paige waves off. “I didn't get to see any of it really. Everyone kept telling me to get away from it before I could even process any of it.”
Kevin blinks. “No shit?”
Paige nods. “Yep.”
“Huh.” Kevin cracks a small smile. “You just stay winning, don’t you, little dude?”
“I’m taller than you!” Paige giggles.
“Semantics,” Kevin waves off. “Anyways, I’m glad to hear that. Seb’s been worried sick about it so I’ll have to tell him things are fine.”
Paige hums. “Why is Sebastian so worried?” he asks, curious. “I don’t… I don’t really know him? So why…?”
Kevin glances to the side. “You can ask him, if you’d like. I don’t think he’d appreciate me spilling stuff without his permission.”
“Ah… that’s fair.”
“He’s out now but he should be home soon.” Kevin pulls their phone over and checks the clock. “Yeah, it’s almost time.” They groan. “Mom’ll be back too.”
“Mrs. Lizabeth?” Paige asks.
“Yeah. Ughh.”
Paige’s face falls into a sad frown. “We don’t have to talk about her if you don’t want.” He can vaguely recall Kevin and Mrs. Lizabeth having… not so stellar problems with each other. He wouldn’t want to make Kevin feel worse right now, especially since she’ll be home soon anyways.
Kevin nods. “You were saying something about OJ liking you back?” they supply, clearly wanting to get back on that train of thought.
Paige nods. “We… We went to Luna Park a little bit ago, right? And when we were there, he said something that my admirer had said word for word in our notes.” He starts to get a little giddy. “And so! I think! He did that on purpose!”
“I don’t know OJ that well, but it seems like something a nerd like him would do.”
“I went to his house for Thanksgiving too!” Paige continues. “And it was—well, there was a… Something not so great happened. But! OJ was so kind to me about it…”
“Heh,” Kevin smirks. “Looks like it really is a two way street, then.”
“It is!” Paige groans. “And it sucks a little! ‘Cause neither of us are moving to cross it! And he keeps doing all these little things that I can’t tell if he’s trying to! I don’t know!” Paige buries his face in his hands and kicks his legs. “He like, winked at me today? I think?? Aaah, it’s driving me insane!”
Kevin, out of all the things they could do, laughs before patting their friend on the back. “Give it a little time, man. He’s clearly trying to take it slow for you.”
Paige pouts and blows a raspberry. “I’ve been waiting years for this! He needs to speed it up already!”
Kevin only laughs harder.
Paige loses the intense emotion after a second, sighing. “Sorry,” he apologizes. “I just… I kinda like him.”
“It’s all good, man,” Kevin smiles. Their phone then goes off in their hands and they blink, checking it. Their expression sours immediately.
“Kevin?” Paige asks, worried.
“Mom’s home,” they say blandly. “But so’s Seb. If you wanted to ask him about the locker stuff, now would be the time.”
“Will you be okay if I leave?” Paige doesn’t like the way the other’s voice lost all feeling so fast.
“I’ll take a nap,” Kevin shrugs off. “Don’t worry about me.”
“If you’re sure…”
Kevin nods. “Yeah, man. Don’t worry.” They stand and bring Paige up with them, giving him a hug. “Thanks for coming. We gotta hang out more, okay?”
“We do!” Paige agrees.
Kevin smiles. “You know what, I was actually thinking about having a little… get together soon. ‘Cause Mom’ll be leaving for like a week and I thought I’d make the most of it, y’know?”
“Ooh!” Paige smiles back. “Count me in!”
Kevin’s face is grateful as they give their friend another hug. “Awesome. I’ll text you with more details later, alright?”
“Gotcha.”
“Epic.” Kevin pulls back and looks over their phone. “Here, lemme call Collins for you. She’ll show you where Seb’s room is.”
Paige nods. “Alright!”
Time to get some answers answered.
Paige looks at the door Collins had led him to a bit apprehensively. Inside would be Sebastian who would, hopefully, have some information for him.
He holds his hand out before knocking in a peculiar pattern. Kevin had taught him it, and they said it would guarantee him access.
“Come in!” Sebastian trills, proving Kevin’s words to be true. Paige takes a deep breath before twisting the door handle and pushing inwards.
“Kevin, it’s good to see you out of b—eek!” Sebastian starts, only to stop abruptly once he turns and finally realizes who’s actually in the room.
“Um,” Paige smiles awkwardly, “Hi, Sebastian. It’s been a minute since we’ve seen each other, huh?”
“It… c-certainly has!” the other replies, holding his arms up near his chest. “Um, quick question about that, why are you here?”
“Ouch,” Leaf snickers. “Blunt guy, huh?”
“I’m sure he’s just surprised to see me,” Paige responds to Leaf. Then to Sebastian he says, “I actually came to ask you something? If that’s alright?”
“You came to my house just to ask me a question?” Sebastian asks, sounding dumbfounded.
Paige quickly corrects him. “No, no! I was here for Kevin. But I asked them a question and they said to ask you. So here I am?” He shrugs and finishes it off with a weird upturned tone, making it sound more like a question than a statement.
“I-I see.” Sebastian mutters something under his breath before covering his eyes with his hands and taking.a deep breath. When he pulls his hands back down, he clasps them behind his back and has an odd smile on his face. “Yes, well! What is it you have to ask of me?”
It was almost painfully clear he was afraid of what the question would be, so Paige just blurts it out. “You were the one to clean those notes from my locker, weren’t you?”
Sebastian blinks. “Um, yes. I did.” He tilts his head to the side a bit, expression confused. “Did I not leave a note saying as such?”
“You did!” Paige nods. “I-I mean, Sue never actually told me who’s signature it was, but your name has those initials, right? Sebastian Sharp? S.S.?” Sebastian nods. “Right. So, um… I guess I just wanted to ask why? Did you take them down, I mean.”
The already pale teenager in front of Paige somehow turns paler, a deep frown pulling at his face. “I…” Sebastian starts, looking away and taking his hands from behind his back to wring them together. “Please don’t get mad with me?” he practically begs.
Paige blinks, confused and worried. “Mad?” he asks.
“Please,” Sebastian pleads.
“Just say yes,” Leaf says, rolling his eyes. “You’re not gonna get anything out of him if you don’t.”
“Um, okay. I won’t,” Paige assures.
Sebastian nods and bites his lip before turning and beckoning for Paige to follow. He does, and the two make the short trek to a nearby porcelain table, both taking seats at one of the many comfortable chairs once there. The taller boy sits directly across from the shorter one, but he doesn’t look at him, instead, looking somewhere past him. “I have a confession,” he says, hands crossed together so tightly it looked almost painful.
“A confession?” Paige blinks.
“Yes.” Sebastian closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before rushing out, “I accidentally read one of your admirer notes once!”
It’s Paige’s turn to blanche now, mouth opening in shock. “You…?” he mumbles, a weird emotion filling him. He didn’t even know Sebastian that well! Why had he…?
“You must forgive me!” Sebastian bursts out. “It was an honest mistake! I would never do such a criminal act such as reading one’s mail on purpose!”
“Mistake?” Paige repeats, feeling a bit hazy.
“Yes!” Sebastian cries. “I thought it was trash sticking out of your locker, you see! So I retrieved it, and when I looked it over, it was actually a note addressed to you! But!” he barrels on, “But, but, but! I returned it! I couldn’t bear the thought of disrupting young love!”
“I…” Paige blinks slowly. “I mean… I got it, so…” He wants to say it’s okay, wants to push past this, wants to go home, wants to be in bed, wants—
The feeling of slipping out of the driver’s seat is sudden. It happens and then Paige can’t move his mouth or his body or anything.
So, Leaf does for him.
He clears his throat before saying in his best Paige voice, “That doesn’t answer why you took those notes down.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Sebastian wails, “Some horrible, horrible individual found out about your notes because of me!” He grabs their hand with both of his and squeezes it. “Those notes they left, they were awful! And it was all my fault!”
Leaf looks at Sebastian with a bland face. “I don’t understand,” he says simply. The other opens his mouth, probably to try and explain, but Leaf could honestly care less about how this added up in his mind. “Look,” he says, cutting Sebastian off prematurely, “It’s fine, okay? You’re forgiven or whatever.”
“Leaf…” Paige murmurs, causing Leaf to clear his throat.
“I mean, don’t worry about it,” he corrects. “Thanks for taking the notes down.”
“Of course!” Sebastian nods fervently. “It was the least I could do! Those vile words and disgusting excuses for ‘jokes’... Hmph!” He lifts up and crosses his arms. “Nothing of the sort will be tolerated in my school!”
Curiosity burns at Leaf. He had to know. “You know, I didn’t ever actually get to see them,” he says as smoothly as he can. “What was so… vile about them?”
Sebastian’s face saddens to a degree that actually starts to make Leaf a little upset. “Oh, Paige…” he sighs. “I would never repeat such things. Let alone to the one they were meant to harm in the first place!”
Leaf huffs a bit. “I want to know,” he insists.
Sebastian's frown grows deeper. “I… don't know if I’m allowed to even say some of those things.”
Leaf groans. “Try me.”
“Let’s not push him…” Paige thinks, voice wispy. “He clearly doesn’t wanna say anything.”
“Tough shit for him. I’ve been dying to know what those notes.”
“Well, I don’t want to know,” Paige frowns. “Can we just go home? I don’t wanna be here anymore.”
Leaf bites down a growl as he rolls his eyes. “Fine. Whatever. I don’t even care.” When he looks back up at Sebastian, the other has a curled finger between his teeth and he rocks in his chair back and forth a bit, expression beyond worried.
“Ugh,” Leaf thinks before pushing himself up off the chair. “You know what?” he says aloud, “If it’s so bad you can’t say, don't worry about it.”
“Oh thank goodness,” Sebastian sighs, clearly extremely relieved. “It was truly awful. I really did not want to repeat it.”
“Yeah, I’m sure it was,” Leaf says with a sigh. “Look, I’m sorry we—I bothered you. But I gotta like, go now. Can you ask your guy to come take me home?”
“Collins, you mean?” Sebastian asks, pulling out his phone.
“Yeah, her.”
“Of course.” He taps at his phone and says, “And again, I am truly sorry for reading your mail and causing that mess to happen.”
“It’s whatever,” Leaf shrugs.
A moment passes and then Sebastian nods. “There. I have texted Collins. She’s on her way.”
“Thanks.” Leaf turns and walks towards the door with a backwards wave. “Bye.”
“Wait!” Sebastian suddenly cries, causing Leaf to turn around with a raised eyebrow. “Erm…” he mumbles, shrinking in on himself. “You… aren’t mad at me, correct?”
“You’re good, man,” Leaf assures, fighting back an eye roll. “Don’t sweat it.”
“O-okay!” Sebastian nods. “Thank you! Get home safe!”
“Bye,” Leaf says again.
“Tata!” Sebastian waves.
Leaf leaves the room, closing the door behind him and leaning against it with a sigh. What an ordeal. He pulls out their phone and gets ready to distract himself as they wait for Collins.
…Who says tata in this day and age?
It had been a while since everything went down with Paige, Brandon and Leaf. They had since patched things up pretty well and life was beginning to return to the relative normal it was used to.
Paige and OJ talked basically nonstop, OJ even talking with Leaf sometimes. He found he had quite a good liking of Paige’s admirer too. He was nowhere near “down bad” when it came to him, though. Paige…
Paige was down baaaaaaad.
Paige rolls his eyes with a smile at Leaf’s thoughts as he marks another day off his calendar. The Bro Crew’s annual gift exchange was happening soon!
Every year on the 15th they would have their own personal gift exchange, separate from Christmas gifts. Every gift exchange had each gift come with a story, some sort of explanation for why they had gotten what they did. They didn’t have to be long or anything. They were more about showing your appreciation for the other in a personal way.
Leaf hums. “Hey,” he prods.
“Huh?” Paige asks quietly, tilting his head.
“You get a gift for Brandon yet?”
Paige’s grip on his marker loosens as he blanches.
What with their fight, Paige hadn’t actually gotten Brandon his present yet!
After dressing quickly and taking a short bus ride, Paige flits about nervously in the Barnes and Noble he finds himself in.
“What are you even looking for?” Leaf asks after a while of Paige hovering around in one section.
“Poetry book…” Paige mumbles aloud, trying to grab a book just slightly out of his reach.
“Poetry?” Leaf questions.
“Yeah,” Paige sighs, dropping off of his tippy toes. “There’s one specifically that Brandon’s been eyeing for a while now. He doesn’t seem to ever want to buy it, though…”
“Weird,” Leaf shrugs. “But if he’s read so much of it, won’t he be like… mostly done with it?”
Paige grins slyly. “Heh… That’s where you’re wrong.” He’s talking quietly, not trying to gain unwanted attention, but not caring enough to not talk aloud. Besides, people mumbled to themselves all the time while trying to find books, didn’t they?
As the white haired teen passes by every book on the shelf, he whispers the name of the book aloud. As he trails along, he mumbles a, “No…” or a, “Wrong one…” or even a, “I don’t think I remember the Dewey Decimal System as well as I think I do…”
He was really focused on finding the right thing.
Paige finally stops at a set of colorful books.
“Aha!” He smiles wide. “The whole thing!”
“Woah,” Leaf breathes. “There’s like… six books in there.”
“And they’re huge,” Paige smirks, tucking the collection under his arm. “He’ll be set for a while now.”
Paige grinned himself all the way home and then some, trying to craft the perfect story in his head the whole while long. Eventually, as he’s laying down, he finally nods to himself.
He had it.
“You’re kind of unbearable sometimes, you know?” Leaf asks, rolling their eyes.
“Blah, blah,” Paige chuckles back. “You’re just mad I thought of the perfect thing to say before you did.”
“Pfftt,” Leaf scoffs. “Yeah, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night, nerdster.”
Paige grins and holds both Patro and Teds close to him. Tomorrow would be the gift exchange. He was so excited.
“G’night, Leaf.” he murmurs.
“Good night, Paige.” Leaf replies. Paige can see the mental image of the form of the other curled up snuggly on a bed in a big blanket in front of a fireplace.
Paige smiles and sleeps easily that night.
+++
The doorbell rings and Paige lights up as he rushes to the door. That’d be OJ! He was the last one not here. Normally, they would have already started, OJ not having really been as active in the Crew as usual, but not this year!
He was just running a little late, was all.
But! That didn’t matter now! He was here!!
“Afternoon, Paige!” OJ smiles, eyes crinkling with it. He walks in and closes the gap between them suddenly, capturing Paige in a hug.
“O-oh!” Paige blinks, flustered, before returning the hug gingerly. Even though everyone else had hugged him as they entered, from OJ it just felt… different.
“Sorry I’m a bit late,” the slightly shorter teen apologies after pulling back. He still has his arms loosely wrapped around Paige’s. “Ma and I got stuck in traffic for a while.”
“No problem!” Paige nods dumbly. “Everyone else is already here! Put your coat up and stuff and you can come to my room!”
OJ nods in understanding. “Alright. I’ll be right up.”
Paige smiles in a totally not nervous way as he retreats to his room to wait for the other. He knows he’s only got a few moments before he’s following behind him, but still…
“OJ’s here…!!” he squeaked into his pillow, graciously gifted to him by Brandon when he noticed Paige’s I’m going to squeal face.
“That he is, man,” Brandon laughs now, patting his brother on his back. “You got this, playa.”
“I got this…” Paige breaths into his pillow. “I got this…!”
There’s a knock at Paige’s bedroom door.
“Idon’tgotthis!” Paige squeaks, covering his whole face again and stomping the ground a bit.
“Paige?” OJ calls from outside the door. “May I enter? You sound in distress…”
“I’m okay!” Paige smiles nervously, tossing the pillow aside as fast as he can and clasping his hands behind his back. “Come in!” he says brightly.
In OJ walks, holding a small velvet bag, black in color and with a bright golden ribbon tying it together.
“Are you alright?” he asks as soon as he steps foot in the room. “I thought I heard you scream…”
“I-I’m okay!” Paige nods. “Don’t worry about it!” He lets out a breath, voice finally dropping to its normal level. “Welcome to the gift exchange, OJ!” he greets properly.
OJ exhales before smiling, posture relaxing. “Um… Thank you, Paige. Thank you all for having me.”
“Of course,” Sue nods. “It’s nice to have you back.”
“We like seein’ your face around here,” Brandon nods.
“S-ome more than others,” Bro just barely mumbles under their breath, causing Paige to straighten.
“What was that, Bro?” OJ asks.
“Nothin’,” they chuckle. “Don’t m-ind me.”
OJ purses his lips and tilts his head a bit, but shrugs shortly after. “If you’re certain,” he says. “I hope I haven’t held up the exchange for too long.”
“You didn’t,” Brandon smiles, going over to where they had all placed their presents earlier. “I was getting kind of antsy though, I won’t lie.”
“Apologies,” OJ smiles authentically.
“Nah, it’s all good.” Brandon stops next to the stacked presents and claps his hands. “Alrighty! Let’s get this show on the road!” He holds up a box that’s plainly black, a dark red ribbon tied around it. “This is yours, right Sue?”
“Indeed it is,” Sue nods, scooping it up from Brandon’s outstretched hands.
The teen then picks up a bright orange rectangular box. The wrapping looks shiny and like it would probably feel good to roll your hands over. “Bart, this one yours?”
“Y-eah,” Bro nods, accepting the box from their friend.
Finally, a present wrapped in paper that had several Minecraft mob heads on a light background is presented. Brandon chuckles. “Gee, I wonder who’s this one is,” he jokes knowingly.
Paige smiles, fighting back a laugh. “Oh! My present!” he says, sounding very well put together. “Certainly there was no way you could have guessed that before I confirmed it!”
Brandon rolls his eyes, but he’s smiling wide. “Yeah, yeah.” He shakes the box a bit, looking a bit disappointed after the fact. “Come get your… very sturdy sounding gift,” he pouts. Was he hoping to hear something shaking…?
“Oh my god, he totally was,” Leaf cackles.
Paige has to quietly bite his lip to hold back a laugh of his own. “Thanks!” he manages to get out at least.
Brandon just sighs, picking up the last gift. It was a plain paper bag, but it was fairly large. “Everyone got their stuff then?” he asks.
A series of yeses float through the air and Brandon nods. “Alright then! Paige?”
Paige grins, nodding back. “Yep!”
He puts his gift down momentarily to grab the Gift Exchange Blanket from his closet. It was a thick comforter with present boxes printed all over it.
The other four teens step back as the host spreads the blanket out on his bedroom floor. He then grabs some pillows he had right outside his closet, them being slightly too big to all stuff in there. They were big and felt good to lay on, so they were used regularly as something to lean up against when his friends came over.
Paige pulls over four slightly beat up looking pillows and one that looks practically brand new. The four well worn ones came in the colors of sky blue, fiery red, dark red and brown. The final one is a bright orange.
“This one’s yours, OJ!” Paige chirps as the others take their seats, arranging them in a loose circle. “We got it earlier this month for you.”
OJ looks at him, eyes a bit wider than they normally were. “You got a pillow just for me?”
“Well yeah!” Paige nods as he picks up his present again and takes his seat. He pats the orange pillow, very conveniently placed next to the sky blue one he was sitting on. “Everyone has a pillow! And since we knew you were coming again, I had to make sure I had one for you!”
Something flashes in OJ’s eyes, but it’s gone so quickly Paige can’t quite discern what it was. It was very rapidly chased away by a big smile.
It’s only now as OJ sits down next to him does Paige notice he’s also wearing a very new looking backpack. It’s a deep shade of green, which struck Paige as odd. Green was definitely not the first color he’d expect OJ to pick for anything really, especially not something he’d wear as often as a backpack.
Either way, he takes it off and gently places it in front of himself before turning to his friend.
“Ready when you all are, then!” he happily announces.
Paige shakes his thoughts away and grins. “Then, let us commence the annual Bro Crew Gift Exchange!!”
The others all shout “Yay!” in various forms, from Brandon being the loudest to Sue being the most calm. Just like every year, really. Except, this time, OJ had once again joined the chorus.
It makes Paige so happy to think about.
In fact, he barely notices he’s gone silent, too busy thinking of OJ being a part of their group again. It isn’t until Brandon pulls an, “Earth to Ground Control,” while waving his hand in front of Paige’s face does he come back to the present.
“Huh?” he blinks, shaking his head once more. “Oh, sorry.” He rubs the back of his head, leaning back on the other. “I think I spaced out for a minute there.”
“You can say that again,” Brandon teases. “But, c’mon!! You know I get too excited for this to keep me waiting any longer!”
“I know, I know!” Paige laughs. “Who’s gonna start?”
“You always do,” Sue says.
“True, but OJ’s here today! Shouldn’t he start?” Paige looks towards the other, curiocity burning at him. Who had he gotten? Could it have been him? Ohh, it’d be such a coincidence that Paige doubts it a bit, but the idea was so exciting…
But, OJ shakes his head. “I’d rather go last, if that’s okay,” he says with a polite smile on his face.
“Oh, okay!” Paige nods maybe a bit too quickly.
Bro chuckles. “G-uess that m-means you’re up, Paige.”
“Okay!” the white haired teen nods. He lifts up his present and hands it over to Brandon. “Believe it or not, I got you this year!” he grins.
“Aww, a reversal from last year!” Brandon says, having been Paige’s secret gifter the year prior.
“Ahuh!” Paige giggles, also having noticed that sometime last night. “When I found out I got you, I decided I wanted to get you something really good.”
Brandon’s practically jumping out of his seat as he accepts his present. “Can I open iiit?” he asks, shaking it again near his ear.
“You called it!” Leaf laughs suddenly. “He was totally hoping to hear something when he shook it earlier!”
Paige smirks playfully. “I think you’re better off just opening it, yeah,” he offers.
“You don’t have to tell me twice!” Brandon shouts, causing everyone to laugh as he tears away at the wrapping paper haphazardly. Soon all that’s left is scraps and the long sheet underneath it, mercifully untouched since it was unreachable from above.
Brandon blinks at the large collection of books after he can finally see them proper.
“Titulations and Situations…” he reads aloud. “Parts 1 to…” His eyes widen. “6?! Paige is smiling so wide when he whips his head up. “Dude, no way!”
“Yes way!” Paige beams. “I know you were always looking at that first one, so I thought I’d get you everything the series had to offer!”
“Aww, man…” Brandon says, face contorting. He looks like he’s about to cry, but his smile is there nonetheless. “I… dude… I don’t know what to say…”
“Typically, one says thank you to something they were gifted,” Sue adds helpfully.
“Thanks, man!!” Brandon says, actually taking their advice to heart. “I mean it.” He looks at the other seriously. “Thanks so much.”
Paige sobers a bit. There was very clearly more to that thank you than for just the gift. Paige understood. He smiles easily.
“Nothing I wouldn’t do for my brother,” he says, eyes closing for a moment as he gives a thumbs up.
The moment passes shortly after, Brandon sighing contently. “Alright, I guess that means it’s my turn?”
“Oh wait, my story!” Paige gasps.
“Oh yeah!” Brandon gasps as well. “Sorry, man! I nearly forgot.” He fixes his position a bit before continuing. “Go on, let’s hear it. I know you saw me eyeing this, but what’s your full story for getting it?”
Paige claps his hands together. “Well! As I’m sure everyone here already knows, you’re a poet.”
“That I am,” Brandon nods. OJ glances at him, but doesn’t say anything.
“But not everyone knows that,” Paige continues. OJ looks away. Paige doesn’t comment, carrying on with his story instead. He could always ask OJ what that was about later. “So I thought, what’s something that I know about you that not many others do? Something you’re really passionate about, but rarely talk about?” He smiles. “And that’s when I remembered you looking at this book so often. It felt perfect.”
“It is, man,” Brandon nods, voice a bit watery. “It really is.”
The teen takes a moment to compose himself before picking up his bag. He hands it over to Sue, who takes it with a blink.
“Oh?” they ask. “I was your giftee this year?”
“Yep,” Brandon nods, leaning back. “And I think you’ll like it, too.”
Sue hums and opens the bag, pulling out several condensed looking books, as well as two things wrapped in plastic. They look over the packages, seemingly stunned.
“H-how did you…?” they stutter.
“Lani’s a good contact to have,” Brandon chuckles lightly. “But seriously, I’ve seen you talk about wanting these manga for a while now. I thought the cosplay was just the cherry on top.” He smirks. “Right, Utena?”
Sue sputters a bit, but recovers relatively quickly. There’s a bit of a blush on their face as they close their eyes with a nod. “Right,” they say stiffly. “Well, thank you. I-I’m…” They trail off, looking lost in their thoughts as they stare down at one of the packages in particular.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure Lani’s Anthy costume will fit her perfectly,” Brandon says slyly.
“Yes!” Sue says, snapping to attention. They restuff the bag with everything their friend had gifted them. “Thank you! V-very much…!”
Bro laughs. “W-why are you all flustered, Sue?” they prod.
“Yeah, and will we get your story, Brandon?” Paige adds.
“Ohh, I dunno…” Brandon says airily, leaning back on one hand as he looks over at Sue. “Do you want me to tell them about Utena?”
“You wouldn’t,” Sue huffs. “I doubt you even know the first thing about it anyways.”
“Utena is a pink haired individual who attends a uniformed school in which she always chooses to wear the boy’s outfit,” Brandon rattles off without missing a beat.
“Wh—Brandon?” Sue blinks, taken aback.
“I did my research,” he smirks, casually inspecting his nails.
“Okay, okay, uncle!” Sue says, shoulders to their ears. The blush on their face is deep now. “I don’t think everyone needs to know the story!”
Brandon laughs heartily.
Paige pouts. “Aww, does that mean no story?” he asks.
“You can always watch Utena on your own,” Brandon offers.
“You watched it?” Sue gasps.
“I do my research!” Brandon repeats, laughing this time.
“By yourself?” Sue presses.
“Lani watched a couple with me,” Brandon informs.
“I see…” They bring a hand to their chin and whisper, “So she was in on it…”
“Okay, anime nerd,” Brandon chuckles. “Your turn.”
“Y-yes,” Sue coughs, picking up their ribboned plain black box and handing it to Bro. “I do believe this is yours,” they say, a small smile finding its way back to their face.
“O-oh?” Bro blinks, taking a hold of the gift. “For m-e?”
“For you,” Sue nods, letting go of their end.
Bro holds the box in their hands and pulls the ribbon loose with one slow motion. They then pull the top off. Inside the box is…
“H-eadphones?” they ask.
“I have seen you wincing in the cafeteria for quite a while now,” Sue explains. “And it always happens when it gets loud suddenly. You used to wear headphones, but they broke sometime ago, didn’t they?”
“Th-ey did…” Bro mumbles. “I’ve been m-meaning to get a new pair f-for a while now, but I kept forgetting…”
“Well, no worries anymore, hm?” Sue’s smile is a lot more easygoing now.
“Y-yeah,” Bro smiles back. “Thanks.”
“Of course.”
“That your st-ory?”
Sue nods. “Indeed it is.”
“Alright, then.” Bro grabs their bright orange box and hands it to OJ. “Your turn.”
“Me?” OJ asks, as if he didn’t know he was the one who had the last gift.
…Wait. If OJ hadn’t given his gift yet, and Paige hadn’t gotten his gift yet…
…Could it be?
“You,” Bro says, not privy to Paige’s growing excitement-anxiety.
Oh, what did he get him? Was it something related to the notes? The velvet bag he had brought was pretty tiny.. What could it be?
“Thank you,” OJ smiles, accepting the gift graciously. He methodically rips the paper off, gasping as the gift inside made itself known.
“Oh…!” he gasps. “Oh my goodness!”
“Remembered you l-liked Sonic,” Bro grins. “Thought it’d be someth-ing you wouldn’t mind h-having more stuff of.”
“I don’t!” OJ says boisterously, rocking in his seat. “I-I mean, I don’t mind! I love having more Sonic merchandise!”
Being so close to OJ, Paige is able to look over and see a figurine set of several of the main cast of characters. They look sturdy and high quality. Bro must’ve paid a pretty penny for these.
“I-I’m so…!” OJ flaps his hand a bit. “Thank you!”
Bro’s smile is wide. “No prob.”
Paige giggles and gives OJ time to calm down, willing to wait.
Finally OJ clears his throat. “Aha… s-sorry about that,” he apologies. “I… just refound my love of the hedgehog, you see.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Brandon shrugs off, prodding at the book sleeve he was gifted. He looked like he was about to take one out and read it, but he quickly slips it back in. “You good now?”
“Yes,” OJ breathes, turning to Paige. “And I do think it’s finally time for Paige to receive his present, no?”
“Yay!” Paige cheers, bouncing a bit. “I’m so curious! What’d you get me?”
OJ smiles as he gently hands over the small velvet bag. It feels cool to the touch.
“Here you are,” OJ says simply. “I do hope you’ll like it.”
“Oh, I’m sure he will,” Brandon jokes.
“You know?” Paige asks, a bit confused. Why would Brandon know what his gift is?
“Something like that,” Brandon waves away nonchalantly. “Just open it, man.”
Paige purses his lips, but does as told. He pulls the ribbon (which was actually just a drawstring) loose and peers inside.
There’s something shiny inside. Curiosity burning now, Paige pulls it out.
Sitting in his palm now is a nicely sized golden locket in the shape of a heart. It’s attached to a long necklace that looks like it would fall snugly in the middle of Paige’s chest.
“A locket?” Paige asks, bemused. He wouldn’t have guessed this was his present in a million years.
“Open it,” OJ urges.
So, open it he does. Inside, there’s…
Paige gasps.
There’s a small and fun picture of the Bro Crew carefully inserted inside of the jewelry. It doesn’t include OJ, as Paige can’t remember if they had even taken a group photo since OJ really came back, but…
“OJ…” Paige breathes.
“I know you keep your friends close to your heart,” OJ starts, “So I thought something sentimental would be the best gift I could give you, Paige.” His smile is blinding and it has Paige swimming in a sea of emotions.
Leave it to OJ to get him something this thoughtful…
Paige’s eyes well a bit, but his tone is even when he speaks. “You’re not here though…” he mumbles.
“We couldn’t find a recent enough picture in time,” Brandon shrugs. “OJ said he’d be cool with it, though.”
“Yes, I don’t mind,” OJ nods. “I know I’m in your heart regardless.”
…Paige is extremely normal about that sentence.
“Y-you are,” he grins, face starting to heat up. “A-and it’s okay! You don’t have to be out of it for long!”
Quickly Paige stands up and grabs his phone. “C'mon, everyone! Gift exchange selfie time!”
The other teens laugh and giggle at Paige, who is just hoping his cheeks don’t look too red at this point. But, they all follow suit and stand, huddling behind Paige.
OJ leans some of his weight onto Paige wordlessly and Paige gulps. His heart was starting to hammer in his chest. He felt his stomach fill with butterflies.
“E-everybody ready?” he asked, ignoring the several different feelings flowing through him at once.
“Ready!” everyone nodded.
“Okay! On the count of three, everyone smile for the camera!” Paige takes a deep breath. “One… Two.. Three!”
Paige taps the circle on his phone and the device makes a quiet and quick click! He pulls the phone down after, everyone hovering around him to see the results.
“Oh, this pic is bomb,” Brandon nods in approval.
“It is quite nice,” Sue agrees.
“I concur,” OJ grins.
“Y-yeah,” Bro rumbles. “S’good.”
Paige finds he agrees with everyone as well. The picture is of them all, Paige just a bit out of frame to the bottom, but his face is still entirely visible. Leaning on top of him is OJ, who’s making two little peace signs with his hands on Paige’s back. Brandon has two fingers held up to his forehead while Sue is simply standing with their hands behind their back. Lastly, Bro has a hand out of their hoodie and is giving a small wave.
It’s a perfect picture.
“We just have to print that bad boy out and you can swap the pics,” Brandon says.
“Mmhm!” Paige nods. “So is that all it for our exchange?”
“Think so,” Bro says.
“Oh, not quite,” OJ smiles slyly. The group disperses a bit as he goes to pick up the green backpack he brought. He then hands it over to Paige.
“...Huh?” Paige asks, tilting his head. “Did… Did you get me two presents?”
“Mmm… Not exactly.” He grins, eyes crinkling. “Why don’t you take a look inside?”
So, confused, Paige takes the bag and takes a look inside. There’s several books inside. He pulls them all out at once, leaving a small package behind. He grabs that too once he places the books on a nearby table, looking over everything at once.
“...How to Draw Manga,” he reads. “Volumes 1 & 2.” He picks those books up and looks at the last one. “And a sketchbook. And…” he shakes the package around,” Lots of pencils and pens.”
None of this stuff made sense. Paige had never shown interest in these sorts of things, even if he did think some animes were really nice. And though he enjoyed drawing, he normally just doodles in notebooks with regular #2 pencils. Why had OJ brought him all of this?
Leaf gasps suddenly.
“What?” Paige asks in his head. “Do you have some idea of what all this is?”
“I…” Leaf mumbles, clear disbelief in his voice, “I think these are for me, Paige.”
“Aww!” Brandon is pouting before a stunned Leaf can think to do anything. “OJ, how come Paige gets two?”
OJ’s smile grows a bit strained. “It’s a secret,” he starts, turning towards Paige. “Just between all of us, right?” He winks.
Leaf is dumbfounded. All of them? Meaning more than just him and Paige?
…Leaf too?
“Leaf…” Paige mumbles in their head. “Are you okay?”
“C-can I thank him?” they ask in lieu of an answer.
Paige smiles happily. “Yeah! Of course!”
The switch is smooth. It’s not long before Leaf blinks into the driver’s seat. He looks down at his hands carefully.
They’re trembling a bit.
“Paige?” OJ asks, putting a hand on Leaf’s shoulder. “Are you quite alright?”
Leaf opens their mouth.
And a wail spills out.
“Paige!?” Brandon gasps. “Bro, what’s happening? Are you okay!?”
Leaf sniffs pitifully before turning towards OJ. “Th-thank you…” they mumble. “Thank you so much…” Their voice is scratchier than normal, the scream having been a lot more powerful than they had intended. It hurts a bit, but they power through it. “I don’t… You’re the first person to…”
Realization flashes in OJ’s eyes and his eyes round with more worry.
“Paige,” Sue tries this time, “Do you need to sit down?”
Leaf nods dumbly before looking down at the abandoned pillows. Without any further warning, he kneels down and lays on top of the sky blue one. All their friends follow behind, surrounding Leaf.
It’s an odd feeling. He can tell they’re all worried, but he knows they’re all worried about Paige. Not them. Not Leaf.
Nobody except for OJ.
OJ knows. He’s here for them.
They wish desperately that everyone else knew too.
“Don’t they?” Paige asks quietly. “Doesn’t like, everyone here know about you?”
…Oh.
They do, don’t they?
Maybe not as well as Leaf would like, but…
“Let’s change that, then,” Paige urges. “We should tell everyone about you. For real this time.”
“Why?” Leaf asks, pain filling their chest. Oh, what they wouldn’t do to be actual, real friends with everyone…
“You deserve it,” Paige says simply. “You’ve been trying so hard to be a better person, Leaf. And you’re doing great! You deserve to be recognized as your own person.”
Recognized as their own person….
“...Are you sure you’re okay with this, Paige?” Leaf asks carefully.
“They’re our best friends,” Paige smiles. “I’m sure.”
At some point their arm had found its way over their eyes. They pull it down and sit up before looking over everyone timidly.
“Le—Paige,” OJ says, coughing over his stumble, “Are you feeling a bit better now?”
“I-I…” Leaf tries. “I’m…”
“Hey man, it’s okay if you need a minute,” Brandon says, putting his hand on Leaf’s other shoulder. Sue and Bro nod at them as well, a silent confirmation.
“I…” Leaf tries again. “I don’t know where to start.”
“Wh-wh-what do y-you mean?” Bro asks, stutter showing itself more than it usually did. Oh god they must’ve done that. They must’ve worried him.
They must’ve worried everyone so much.
So, Leaf takes one big shuddering breath before taking the plunge.
“I… I mean…” they falter, unsure of what to say.
“Just tell the truth,” Paige instructs. “Everything will be fine.”
Right. Everything would be fine.
“I…” they start once more, finally pushing themself to finish their sentence, “I am… not Paige.”
The air around them suddenly grows heavy. Brandon’s hand squeezes Leaf’s shoulder and they can’t tell if it’s supposed to be comforting or a warning.
But they push on anyways.
“I am not Paige,” they repeat. “I-I’m Leaf.”
A pin’s drop could be heard with how quiet everyone is. Leaf screws their eyes shut and bites their lip, terrified. They knew they shouldn’t have said anything. Now everyone was gonna hate them. Because they went and ruined this little get together. Because that’s all Leaf’s good for, right? Ruining things?
“Leaf,” Sue says, pulling them out of their head, “Breathe.”
Leaf tries and immediately fails to follow instructions. Somewhere between them announcing their presence and now, they had begun to hyperventilate. It’s not an easy task to stop once started, and Leaf finds having it be expected of them just makes trying to calm down even worse.
“Hey, man,” Leaf hears Brandon say, close but also far away somehow. “Calm down, okay? We’re all friends here. We’re not gonna hurt you or anything.”
They weren’t gonna hurt them…
“W-we w-ould never,” Bro affirms. “Ever.”
“We’re here for you, Leaf,” Sue adds.
“All of us,” finishes OJ.
Leaf is so full of emotions they don’t know what to do.
“Y-you guys…” they mumble through tears that had started to spill at some point. “I…. You…”
Leaf is about to burst. They’d just have to spit it out if they were ever gonna get an answer.
“You guys… a-accept me…?” they ask, voice terribly quiet.
“What?” Brandon asks. “Dude, of course we do!” He looks at the rest of the group. “I mean, I didn’t know everyone else knew about you, but that’s besides the point. What I do know still stands, though. And I know for a fact everyone here trusts you, man.”
“Yeah,” Sue nods. “You were very open and didn’t lie when I asked you questions before. I appreciate that in a person.” Their gaze warms. “Besides, you’re the reason Paige is even able to be here with us, aren’t you?”
Leaf pauses before nodding. They were, weren’t they?
Sue smiles lightly. “Well then, there you go. I wouldn’t know Paige if not for you, and so for that I thank and trust you.”
“U-us too,” Bro smiles. “Y-you’re our friend, L-eaf.”
Leaf’s breathing is slowly returning to normal. They look around at everyone, ending at OJ.
The boy smiles. “You already know how much I like you, Leaf. You don’t have to earn that. In fact, you don’t have to earn anything from anyone here. You already have it.”
Leaf’s eyes once again fill with tears.
“See?” Paige grins. “I told you everything would be alright.”
Even though they’re crying, awful gross crying, laughter somehow bubbles up from Leaf. They can’t see anyone anymore, eyes shut tight, but they feel the second someone hugs them.
And then a second. And third. And fourth.
And before Leaf knows it, they’re the center of a large group hug.
They have a feeling in their chest that is both light and heavy and so, so many other things. But most of all, they feel loved.
Leaf cries harder.
It’s about 8 by the time everyone has left the Woods household. Now settled an hour later, Leaf is drawing himself in his sketchbook.
Paige and Leaf were trying something new tonight. They would both be in the driver’s seat, navigating together.
It’s honestly not… easy? They keep accidentally pushing each other out of front for a moment. And then sometimes they both stop fronting and both of their heads would fill with static and they’d have to hurry and push back into front.
With the hour they had to practice though, both of them had agreed they were doing pretty good by now.
Leaf is just about done with his current drawing when Paige’s phone pings from his bed.
“Wonder who that is…” Paige says aloud, stilling their hand.
“Dunno,” Leaf shrugs. “Let’s go check.”
The two of them walk slowly over to their bed and flop down on it the second they can. Paige scoops up his phone and taps at it, making it light up.
[9:29 PM]
> kev: don’t forget abt the party tmrw B)
“Oh my gosh!” Paige gasps, losing the grip he had on his phone and causing it to smush him in the face. “Oww…” he groans, picking it back up. Quickly he navigates to his messages with Kevin, looking at the previous ones.
[2:57 PM]
> kev: thanx for comin over again
> kev: i think i rlly needed some company
> kev: even tho u didnt stay v long. not ur fault ofc, but like ykno
> book of paiges: No problem!! I’m glad I could help :)
> kev: me too <3
> kev: but anywayzz here the info for the 16th
The messages after are Kevin explaining how Collins would pick Paige up around 2 and drop him back off around 8. He’s very adamant about Paige leaving when he does.
[3:09 PM]
> book of paiges: Any reason I can’t stay longer?
> kev: we’re gonna go to the skatepark and get super wasted lol
> kev: doesnt seem like ur scene
> kev: nd i wanna make sure ull b ok before we go
> book of paiges: Aw! You’re so sweet :)
> kev: <3
The last message is today’s.
“Ohhh my gosh…” Paige sighs. “I totally forgot…”
“You still wanna go?” Leaf asks. “It’s early enough. We could probably get good sleep and still be good for tomorrow.”
Paige thinks for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, I think I will!” He sits up. “I wanna be there for Kevin, y’know? And it’s not like we have anything else to do.”
“Awesome,” Leaf grins. “Let’s go get some sleep, then.”
As if on cue, Paige nods. “Okay. You want me to do our night stuff?” Leaf nods as he climbs into his bed. Paige still isn’t sure where he got that from, but it looked comfortable so he was sure it didn’t matter much.
“Ima knock out early,” Leaf yawns now. “Night, Paiges.”
Paige smiles wide. “Night, Lee!”