OV   Im home.

OV   ...

You glance around the living room.

OV   Huh.

OV   Youve been redecorating.

OV   I guess it doesnt suck.

CV   Ah...?

CV   Ah! Olly!

He rubs his eyes and sits up from the sofa.

CV   I didnt mean to doze off.

CV   Here - let me take your bag.

OV   Dont bother.

CV   Ah are you sure?

CV   You must be tired after -

OV   I said dont bother.

You toss your bag onto the floor and fall face-first onto the sofa. He politely moves his legs out of the way and pats your head.

CV   Busy day?

OV   (Mmmprhphph.)

CV   Bad day?

OV   (Phhpthtphpt.)

CV   Ahaha.

CV   Im sorry.

CV   Could i suggest being a worse employee?

CV   That way they wont stretch you so thin.

You roll over on your back.

OV   Feeling like im contributing something to the world...

OV   And the pay obviously.

OV   Thats all that keeps me there.

OV   Otherwise id just start biting people.

OV   Or maybe pour some ice into a deep fryer.

CV   Scary.

CV   Lucky for us that you have morals.

OV   Im a damn martyr.

CV   And were lucky to have you.

CV   Dinners ready by the way.

OV   ...

OV   Italian?

CV   Glad you can tell.

OV   Mmm.

OV   Ill have some once i get my energy back.

CV   Ive already eaten but ill keep you company.

OV   Thanks.

He lifts his arms. You wordlessly crawl into his embrace, wondering why he can stand to be in close proximity after both a schoolday and a 5-hour shift.

OV   You smell nice.

OV   I probably smell like garbage.

CV   Then we balance out.

CV   Thats fine with me.

OV   Youre so weird.

You play with the long ponytail hanging off of his shoulders.

OV   So... your day.

CV   Ive passed the time productively.

OV   No kidding.

OV   Everything looks really tidy.

OV   You have a weird passion for interior design or something?

CV   Ah i just thought it would make for a better... whats the word.

CV   Fung shoo.

OV   Not the word.

CV   Fing shi?

OV   Stop.

CV   Good idea.

CV   Anyway youve seen most of the work.

CV   I thought to start with the living room and had no time to expand.

OV   Just dont touch my room.

CV   So you dont hate it for the rest of the house?

OV   Bleh.

OV   Not like i could change it if i did.

OV   You live here more than i do.

CV   Thats not true!

CV   Its our home. I wouldnt be here without you.

CV   ...and mom of course.

CV   She helped with a little bit of the rearranging.

You close your eyes, feeling a migraine forming.

OV   Is she home?

CV   Yes.

CV   Shes in her room.

CV   Maybe she didnt hear you come in? Do you -

OV   No. Please god no.

OV   Im alright.

OV   Just... let it be this for tonight.

When you open your eyes, you see him looking at you.

CV   Itd be good to at least talk to her olly.

CV   Im sure she wants to hear about your day too.

OV   ...

You make your way off of the couch, stretching and feeling some life return to your old bones.

OV   Blah blah blah school was whatever for me.

OV   Didnt you say that you had a presentation or something?

CV   Ah i did!

CV   It went surprisingly well actually!

OV   You looked super stressed about it.

CV   Thats right.

CV   My group was... well how should i put it...?

CV   They had trouble communicating. With me particularly.

CV   I wasnt sure what to do at first...

You two continue to chat and set up the dinner table. You stack your plate while Patricks is hardly enough to be considered an appetizer. But that makes it all the better as he talks up a storm while you feast on chicken puttanesca. Despite being the one working in the food industry, you can't execute dishes this well. Thinking about it too hard pisses you off, so you don't. You just enjoy every bite as he goes on about his dumb group project.

CV   Ahaha i hope theyll have more faith in me now.

CV   We still have a whole semester left after all.

OV   Man.

OV   High school sounds dumb.

CV   It has its moments.

OV   Its a dumb factory.

OV   Yeah you have some weird ideas but they shouldnt talk behind your back like that.

OV   Its not like youre trying to tank the project.

OV   Next time i hope you kick some dirt at them.

OV   In your head.

CV   Ah thanks olly.

CV   But high school isnt all bad really.

CV   Im sure youll have a much easier time.

CV   You always do.

He gives you that self-deprecating smile, and you can't help but groan.

OV   Shut up.

CV   What?

OV   Good things happen to you. Stop doing the pity thing again.

CV   Ah... sorry.

CV   Its not like i can help it you know?

OV   You can. You just have to stop thinking like the world is against you.

OV   Because believe it or not youre actually really lucky.

OV   Be thankful for that and stop being so scared of everything else.

He nods politely, but you know that he isn't convinced one bit. What was it that mom said? Whatever took his arm took his ability to think straight? It sounds callous coming from her, but the more you hear him rambling about fortune/misfortune, the more you believe it.

You wish he was better about it. You wish there was anyone in your life that didn't have a screw loose, so you can actually relax and feel taken care of.

OV   Thanks for dinner.

OV   Its really good.

But you're stuck with the people you got. And they're stuck with you.