"Ew! Nate! Don't drink water in the bathroom! That's, like, so disgusting!" Leo squealed. Ricki heard the sound of laughter and water being sprayed from their mouth. He cringed and shuddered. There were a lot of gross things that didn't bother Ricki too much, but spit was definitely one of them. 

"Whatever. It's not like they're eating food on the toilet or something." Theo sighed. Ricki snorted a little bit and they all fell silent. 

"Omg. There's someone in here," Leo stage-whispered. He had no sound filter. Ricki wondered if that was part of the reason he was good at acting on a stage. Ricki froze. He was caught. It would be super awkward if he didn't come out of the stall, but it would mean confrontation. He took a step towards the door and his head spun from dizziness. It took a second for his balance to return. 

Ricki slowly opened the latch that locked the stall. The scraping sound it made as it opened was taunting. Ricki opened the door and mentally prepared himself for an onslaught. 

"No way! It's Ricki! Hey!" Nate greeted him cheerfully the second he was in their line of vision. Cyren and Leo waved aggressively. Theo gave a nod of acknowledgment. Out of all of them, he was the most mellow. Ricki wasn't all that sure that Theo enjoyed theater or acting. 

"Hello." Ricki returned a curt greeting. He was tired and dizzy, and his heart was still beating faster than normal. He really didn't want to have a conversation with the most emotionally draining people on the planet. 

Leo reached a hand out to pat his shoulder and Ricki flinched. The flash he saw earlier was fresh in his memories. Even though Ricki knew it wasn't Leo's hand in the vision, his body responded on instinct. Anxiety and fear sprouted anew when he got the feeling that it had happened before. Leo's smile faltered and his expression morphed into concern. Great. He's going to ask questions. 

But he didn't- Leo remained abnormally quiet as he watched his friends leave the bathroom without him. Ricki washed his hands but kept his gaze fixated on the faucet. He was uncomfortable with the silence. Ricki desperately wanted him to leave.

Ricki attempted drying his hands with the weak hand dryer. The air was less powerful than a hairdryer on the low setting. 

"Ricki?" Leo asked. Here we go, Ricki thought. "Are you... okay?" Ricki snorted. Was he okay? Yes. He had possibly gotten a mild concussion, a panic attack, been mugged, received terrifying visions, and discovered his best friend was hiding something from him all in 24 hours. 

"Yeah. Why?" 

"No reason. Just realize that there are people all around you, you know? Like, even me." Leo's face was apprehensive like he was afraid Ricki was a bomb that would explode at the slightest touch. 

"Okay. Thanks." Ricki tried to smile and left the bathroom as quickly as he could. Theo, Cyren, and Nate were waiting outside the door for Leo. Ricki gave them a small wave before heading towards the exit. 

Though he had many things to think about, one new worry came to his attention.

Was Leo okay?