Sleep came with little fanfare, one moment he was counting headlights as they slowly passed over his ceiling, the next his neighbor’s cat was begging for pets in a demandingly high voice outside his window. Squinting at the cheery sunlight outside, he fumbled for the latch, allowing the marmalade tom to grace him with his presence. Already purring, he plopped right down onto the bed from the ledge, flopping with maximum stretch in order to allow for the most thorough of petting.

Ren obliged with a sleepy hum, running a gentle hand from ear to tail in a lazy repeat. There was no way he could have a pet, not with his father being allergic to almost every animal on the planet. This was a pleasant secondary option. His dad had no clue along with his mother, and they were never in his room anyways, so it didn’t exactly endanger him with an allergy fit. Win win, right? He spent nearly a half hour spoiling the cat with affection before he got hungry for something and left the same way he came, the only mark of his existence a drool spot and stray hairs on Ren’s deep blue sheets.

A check in the driveway afforded him a lack of either car, something he’d failed to check the night before coming in from the front instead of the side porch below his room window. Perfect. What wasn’t perfect was the fact that as he stretched, his hand bumped into the glued together chunks of his hair from the gel of last night. Immediately his face screwed up, and there was no shame at the slightly unmasculine noise that left his lips. Seriously, he’d heard Ethan at almost the same pitch one day when he slipped on ice in the winter and his hand came in contact with the remains of his banana pudding on his food tray. The guy was pretty one minded about touching his food that wasn’t finger food.

Shoving that thought out of his mind, Ren centered his thoughts on making it to the bathroom for a shower in a hurry. Product was not a thing that often made it into his hair, as it felt like it just emphasized femininity with his old hairstyle. So it’d slipped his mind to hit the shower after his adventure. Easy to rectify, and easier to remember for next time. And there would be a next time, considering how much he favored spiky hairstyles. Perhaps he could take tips from his new friend.

Ten minutes later he was dancing about the foggy room with his toothbrush in use, hurrying to simultaneously blot his hair while cleaning his gums. Drying his hair now was ridiculously easy, a fact he couldn’t help but be ecstatic over. In no time at all he was out the door with a bagel in hand, clad in another button up with a bit more slouch and lacking the need for a bandage for the day. His chest still ached slightly from the night before, there was no need to risk it further if public wasn’t his main escapade for the day. Today, he was just with friends.

Their meeting place came in the form of the fountain outside the central mall. It stood near most of the conveniences in the area, and was a relatively short walk for either one of them. Apparently Malcolm had offered to pick them up, but Ethan had declined it for the both of them. Rides were pretty convenient for them when it came to farther trips, but meeting up was just tradition for them on Saturdays by now. That, and it gave them a chance to talk in private.

Ethan peeled off from a bench near the closest jet of water, tugging earbuds from his ears and offering a vague nod which meant he was surprisingly lively considering the hour on a weekend morning. That probably meant there was at least three shots of espresso running through his bloodstream. Wow, he was actually wanted to make an effort to pay attention for this. Flattering. “Morning. Sleep alright?”

Grunt.

Maybe not. “That bad huh?” Ren joked, tilting his head the barest down to meet his eyes. Mild point of contention that despite being lanky, Ethan was still slightly shorter than him.

“Dad wanted to talk to me about doing a short internship during winter vacation.” He vented at last while they waited for the crosswalk light. Ah, parental issues on both parts. Perfect.

“Aw man, really? Does he even understand you’ve got like, still over a year left of high school?” It was shocking, considering how laid back Ethan’s father usually was about this sort of thing. The man ignored a lot of suggestions when it came to how his son should be indoctrinated into the company, something Ethan often detailed while they were walking about or spending their lunches, albeit in shorter spurts with grunts added.

“Yeah, it’s mostly because El’s getting stuck doing one too, and dad figured it might be incentive for me to try. I mean, hanging with him wouldn’t be that bad, but I’d mostly be stuck wearing a suit my entire winter break. It’s bad enough we have a school uniform.” It was almost bewildering to hear another rant in less than twenty four hours from the last one.

“So, did you just tell him no or was it kinda an argument?” It felt like Ren was waiting on baited breath, and in fact, he was. He’d been toying with the idea of a job, since his birthday was coming up soon. Seventeen meant he was eligible to work at a good amount of stores, and with that came more money for his fund. Once he got a binder, he could focus on the more hesitant goals he could look into.

“I told him no, but I did say I’d think about getting a part time job. Don’t think he even expected that.” Ethan was only a few months older than him, which meant he was already able to grab something. Not that he’d shown any inclination before this.

“This has nothing to do with our conversation last week and me saying I wanted to work at the coffee shop near school, right?” Ren drawled with a sly smile as they started up a small incline alongside a park. The little corner cafe was trendy but quiet, always filled with rich kids who wanted a hot coffee but had no inclination to answer the ‘Now Hiring’ sign that collected dust in the window.

“Not at all.” The immediate if blase response cinched it. You’d think that there could only be so much gleaned from someone as constantly bored looking and monotone as Ethan, but his language was surprisingly vast. For instance, his half shrug and immediate shift of gaze to their surroundings meant he’d not only thought about the barista job, it was likely exactly what he would gun for.

“Sure sure, keep telling yourself that. I’ll grab a couple applications in a few weeks.” Birthdays never really had a tendency to be celebrated for him. It was right in the busy cram month before holiday break, which made sense as to why he and Ethan never really spent much thought on it. His parents were usually gone, but they made an effort to buy something thoughtful. Last year his parents had been kind enough to pay attention fairly well, and he found a pretty box filled with several nice pens and a wealth of thick papered sketchbooks. He’d made sure to complain when they were about that his old ones were getting too full, and his inks were drying. They’d gotten the hint quite well.

In fact, his messenger bag, covered with various bits of flair and safety pins held precious supplies he hoped to use at some point during the day. Yesterday’s stress had quite the impact, and nothing helped relax him more than mindless art on a quiet day. His musings had him distracted, enough so that he hadn’t realized they were slowing until he bumped into Ethan at the edge of a walled off apartment building. “Dad owns this, mostly employees are moving in, to help with the commute and stuff here once the new building is open door.” He buzzed in on Elliott’s name, waiting only a few moments for the gate to open once the camera clicked on. “I think some of the security firm rent out a portion too, since a lot of their contracts are out of the district too.”

“That’s pretty cool, and it’s in a nice area too. I bet he could walk to school if he had to, not that he would.” That car was far too nice to leave in a parking lot every day in neglect. Climbing into the well lit elevator, Ethan jabbed a button, taking them to the top floor and a quaint little hallway beyond. It was the last door on the right, which stood slightly ajar in open invitation. Open enough for Ethan to just shove wide and slouch through, at least.