[attr="class","blboxb"]

At the question, Vic could do no more than laugh, almost glad that out of all of the things the other boy could have asked, he chose to question the amount of stickers on the lid of his lunchbox. ”Ha! Yeah… My mum gave my little sister some new ones the other day, and she was putting them everywhere. Cute, right?”
[break][break]
Just like every time he mentioned his family, there was a smile; Vic then turning his attention to his actual lunch and taking a bite out of a sandwich from which someone had carefully trimmed off the crust. That someone being his mum, obviously.
[break][break]
”Ooooh! Damn, you got cookies. Lucky!” A grin. Optimist as always, since honestly, someone else would have probably thought Alex’s lunch still looked kind of a bit depressing and extremely unappetizing. He was going to add another comment about how it was great that his classmate's meals had improved, but then Alex began talking about his time away, and this caused Vic to pause…
[break][break]
Alex had been at the hospital?! Why?!
[break][break]
”Whaaaat! Are you okay?!” He asked, his reaction far different from the other boy’s almost nonchalant way of bringing it up. But, that was to be expected, right? After all, other than a sprain that came as a result of falling from a tree as a kid, Vic’s visits to the hospital had only ever been the standard and expected ones. To him, it was a huge deal.

[break][break]

+ Alexei Ivanov

[newclass=.blboxb]font:11px roboto;--accent:#EF8883;[/newclass]





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[attr="class","blboxbl"]

”You’re so boring.”
[break][break]
Vic sighed, but honestly, he’d rather be called boring by the other man than have him insist on that they should “get out of here” and “go sleep in his bed” while being this drunk. Claude was struggling to even get up from his seat, so even though he had been the one who had declared drinks were on him long before getting this drunk, the pinkette still felt obligated to reach for his card, passing it to the bartender once the other had already turned around.
[break][break]
With the payment issue out of the way (and yes, he had made sure to tip poor Brian, who apparently had to deal with all of this way too frequently), he caught up with Claude just as he stumbled to the door, putting an arm around him to steady him so he wouldn’t lose his balance. ”Come on, at least let me help you so you don’t fall,” he smiled, ever-friendly and helpful despite it all.
[break][break]
He used his free hand to open the door, walking out into the cold of the night. Although, admittedly, it wasn’t all that bad when having someone by his side. Even if that someone happened to be stupidly drunk and one stumbling step away from falling face-first onto the ground. Hopefully, it wouldn’t get to that.

[break][break]

+ claude anderson

[attr="class","vic"]

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[attr="class","blboxb"]

”Ah, yeah. Kind of silly, right? I doubt anyone actually believed that though,” the pink-haired boy laughed, completely unaware that some of those rumours were much, much closer to reality than what either of them would have liked.
[break][break]
How could he have known? It was the kind of thing that people didn’t expect would ever happen until it did, and Vic himself was far from being fatalistic enough to even consider for a second that something really bad had happened to Alex. He had believed his friend would come back to school and be just fine, and he had, so that was that!
[break][break]
Smiling, he sat next to the other boy, reaching into his own backpack in order to retrieve the lunchbox that seemed to be covered by more and more stickers with every passing week. ”What did you do while you were gone? Were you home all that time? That must have been sooooo boring!” Vic went on, chatty as usual, almost as if they hadn’t just spent over a month without seeing each other. Right back to business as usual.
[break][break]
And just like he would have done any other day, he opened his lunchbox and began eating, unbothered.


[break][break]

+ Alexei Ivanov

[newclass=.blboxb]font:11px roboto;--accent:#EF8883;[/newclass]





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[attr="class","blboxb"]

Ladies and gentlemen, may you please direct your attention towards the pink fool to your right.
[break][break]
Standing at over six feet and with hair that almost perfectly matched the colour of fresh and fluffy cotton candy, he wasn’t exactly easy to miss. Well, he was at the time, since there was a not-too-happy metal bird momma defending her nest from a poor woman’s husband – who, honestly, had probably just been trying to be a good samaritan and had ended up caught at the mercy of the Skarmory as a result. But, he wouldn’t be easy to miss for long, because someone clearly had to help this man, and the pink fool over here had a plan.
[break][break]
Something small sailed through the air, making an audible ’CLANK!’ as it hit the Armor Bird Pokémon right on its shiny head and bounced off to the ground. A soft, harmless rubber ball; which for some reason looked suspiciously like a chewed up toy for canine pokémon.
[break][break]
Obviously, momma bird over here wasn’t just going to take this disrespect silently, and without even bothering to let go of the man, she turned in the direction of the attack…
[break][break]

[break][break]
”HEY! HEY YOU! OVER HERE!” The pink-haired fool yelled as loud as his lungs would allow, waving his arms frantically in the air in order to get the Skarmory’s attention.
[break][break]
It worked. Momma bird had had enough. She opened her beak in order to let out a screech, and in doing so, she happened to let go of the man. He fell, but in a split second a pokémon appeared to break the fall – Dragapult carefully catching him in midair and putting him safely back on the ground. Yay! Success! Good job!
[break][break]
The problem, however, was that the Skarmory was even angrier than what she had been before. She stared at the one who had thrown the ball with wild, amber eyes, and opening her blade-like wings wide, she prepared to swoop down for an attack.
[break][break]
Admittedly... the pink fool hadn’t planned this far. He only had a few options here, right? He could duck, he could run, or he could… cry?
[break][break]
Okay, so, it had been a plan, but maybe not a very good plan...
[break][break]
Vic, how will you get out of this one?

[break][break]

+ samuel carter (I told you he would get himself attacked LOL)

[attr="class","blboxb"]

What had gone on during the time Alex didn’t attend school? A whole heckin’ lot.
[break][break]
Disappearing without a warning as he had, of course their classmates had soon realized and began coming up with their own reasons as to why he was gone. Whispers had been exchanged in class when his name came up with every roll call, and sometimes, it would even be mentioned when they were all hanging out during lunch. “Maybe something happened to him.” “Maybe there was an accident.” “Maybe he got expelled.” “Maybe he went back to whatever weird place he came from, ha!” “Maybe he died...”
[break][break]
”Do you know what happened to him, Vic?” They would ask, because of course they would, being that he was the only person who spoke to Alex in their entire class. And, the few times the question came up, the boy could do no more than shake his head and shrug, because he didn’t know, even if he really hoped his friend was alright...
[break][break]
Had he told them to stop with the rumours? Of course! They hadn’t listened though. They had just gone on about it until bored of the topic; Alex’s disappearance soon becoming an event that was no longer new or interesting in their eyes. There were always other things going on to talk about, as such were the ways of highschoolers. That is, at least, until Alex returned as suddenly as he had disappeared, and he once again became an interesting topic.
[break][break]
Everyone had their speculations. Vic though… Vic didn’t care about all that stuff.
[break][break]
”Is it good to be back?” was actually the first thing that he asked when running into the other boy, a bright smile illuminating his expression. He had thought of approaching him while still in the classroom, but he had a feeling Alex himself would have preferred against that. Give him time to get settled in and all that, no? ”Everyone was wondering about what happened to you!”
[break][break]
He had so much he wanted to ask! So much he wanted to tell him!



[break][break]

+ Alexei Ivanov

[newclass=.blboxb]font:11px roboto;--accent:#EF8883;[/newclass]





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[attr="class","blboxb"]

Okay, so... this guy was a bit weird, huh? It wasn’t a bad thing, because Vic would have never thought someone acting different from the norm was bad, but he also had to admit that it was kind of strange to see someone acting so calm, unfazed, and composed when all this was going on. Could it be that he wasn’t actually scared or worried at all?! Could it be that he didn’t care?
[break][break]
Wait, that couldn’t be right, he had just said he wanted to go investigating…
[break][break]
Investigating what?
[break][break]
”Oh, yeah, I guess there’s some weird noises coming from that w–waaah!” What the hell was that?! Something had passed between them. Something red. Had it just been his imagination? No... No... It couldn’t be, right? He had felt it! It had made him shiver as it passed by his side. But, what had it been? What was going on in this café?!
[break][break]
He really wanted to go outside. For a second, he even wished he could have been more selfish and chosen to leave the other all on his own before heading straight for the door. Too bad Vic was rarely selfish though. So, even though Jayden would have probably not cared at all if he was left alone (he might have even preferred it, if we're being honest here), Vic followed after him, hoping that nothing else would spook him like whatever that one thing was.
[break][break]
Arceus, please be merciful.


[break][break]

+ jayden cross

[attr="class","blboxbl"]

”You can’t know what will happen if you don’t try!” is what Vic’s mother always says to him with a bright smile, and these are words he lives by. She is right and he knows it. He has to try. Although, sometimes trying simply isn’t good enough…
[break][break]
Trying isn’t going to cut it when it comes to Flynn, for example, and that becomes more and more apparent to Vic with the more minutes that pass. Just like before, the soccer team’s captain easily maneuvers around his attempt at stealing the ball, leaving the freshman to sigh in frustration. ”What! How?!” He exclaims, chuckling despite his own failure.
[break][break]
”You're thinking too much!” These, by contrast, are words that are not often said to the extremely impulsive pinkette, and they leave him to look at the other boy just as the ball rolls his way. Is that really the reason? Can Flynn see it that easily? Vic can’t help but think that he has never before met anyone their age who is that talented at anything, and in his heart grow the seeds of admiration. Is it bad if he wishes he could be more like him?
[break][break]
”Okay, okay, but don’t show off too much!” Vic grins, laughing. This time, it’s his turn to defend, and while many would perhaps say that this is much easier than trying to steal the ball, Vic knows that isn’t always the case. He readies himself, wondering exactly what the other boy will do next, and through it all, there is a smile on his face.


[break][break]

+ kris flynn-edwards

[attr="class","blboxbl"]

”Ah… Yeah, that’s true. I guess my family is also a little weird, in their own way,” he laughed, well aware that he didn’t exactly have the most ordinary parents out there. It was different from how Alex saw his own family though. A good kind of weird. A kind of weird that made Vic really happy.
[break][break]
“Oh!” He didn’t even bother with a proper reply when the other offered him one of the Dugtrio-decorated sausages, instead leaning in and taking it in one bite without a warning. ”Tha’s shooo good! Thanks!” The reply comes before even swallowing, then chuckling and going back to focusing on his own lunch box.
[break][break]
The story about the chocolate bar came as a surprise though. Especially considering that, at first, Vic didn’t exactly remember what Alex was talking about. He always gave candy to his friends, so the action had been insignificant to him, but apparently it had had a much different effect on the boy next to him…
[break][break]
”What! Wow, I hope you didn’t get into too much trouble… and that you liked the chocolate!” A laugh, because… that was a good thing, wasn’t it? Maybe not that Alex was getting in trouble at home, but it was nice to hear him talking like that, and he seemed really proud of what he had done. Vic was glad. Glad because he had made a new friend, and glad because it was good to hear him laugh instead of cry.



[break][break]

+ Alexei Ivanov

[attr="class","blboxbl"]

Claude was drunk. Obviously. It didn’t take a genius to figure that one out, and if the stupid amount of drinking he had been doing just a moment ago hadn’t tipped Vic off, the actions that followed surely would have…
[break][break]
A hand was placed on his arm. Which... okay, admittedly, wasn’t all that weird to Vic, even if it seemed out of place coming from a man who had barely told him anything about himself after they had been talking for a while. But then there was a chuckle, and those words that were far from being subtle – laced with the scent of alcohol.
[break][break]
”Oh…” To be fair, it wasn’t as if he would have been against it under different circumstances. Claude was a good looking guy, that much would have been hard to deny, and he had really been enjoying himself talking to him so far. The problem was that now Claude was drunk, and none of those thoughts crossed Vic’s mind. Instead, he couldn’t help but worry for the guy.
[break][break]
Thinking, he bit his lower lip for a short second, then gently placing a hand on the other’s in order to get him to let go of his arm. ”Claude.” His words were quiet, calm, soft. ”You’re drunk... How about you go home and get some rest? I can call you a cab,” he smiled, hoping the other would agree but suspecting it wouldn’t be as easy as that.

[break][break]

+ claude anderson

[attr="class","vic"]

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