They didn't stick around to watch the fallout, finishing what they could grab of their meal at a far, far away bus stop.

“Hey, want the rest of my fries?” David offered.

“Sure, gimme.” Adam accepted, tilting his head back and opening his mouth wide.

David poured the fries in, and he made quick work of them, swallowing them in one go.

He then did the same with what remained of his salad as David took a pack of chicken nuggets from his pocket.

Adam closed the box and threw it in the trash, then snuggled closer to his friend as he went about peeling the nuggets.

“Hey. When we grow up, you want to move to the South with me?” Adam asked, looking up as rain began to fall.

“Sure thing. But the South's kinda big. Have a specific place in mind?” David asked, handing him a peeled chicken nugget.

“...Texas?” he suggested, accepting his offering. “Went to Corpus Christi a few years back; it's pretty nice.

“Oh hell yeah, dude! I want to be a cowboy, baby!” David joked, mouth full of chicken nugget skin.

Adam smiled.

“David, Corpus Christi is a city.”

“Ah, boring… We already have a city here.”

“No, it's different. It has lots of sun, and a nice beach, one you can actually swim in without growing a third leg,” Adam advertised, “They even have fish, David. Fresh off the fishing line and straight into the grill fish. It's nice.”

“A coastal city? With swimmable water? Look at Mister Fancy Pants over here. Are you planning on winning the lottery?” David delivered a dose of reality with the ease of a joke.

“Well… I still have my old home and the savings account.” Adam reminded. “If we get a job there, I can sell the apartment or rent it. We can use the money to buy something over there.”

“Oh, yeah-- Bus is here.”

(...)

They rushed inside just in time to avoid the hail, and passed their cards through the reader, then quickly made their way to their room.

“Yo, Spice.” David greeted the seemingly empty room, throwing their backpacks onto the table. “Fogo, frio do caralho…”

“Yo.” The ghost made herself seen, floating just above their heads. “How was your day-- What happened to your hand?” She questioned, grabbing a hold of his wrist and pulling it for a closer inspection.

“Cassie gave Mark a nasty read, and he got pissy,” David explained, hanging his jacket in the closet. 

“He made me stab my own hand,” Adam explained as David helped get his jacket off. “Thanks.”

“...Who's Cassie?” Spice questioned.

“Adam's future vampire queen wife~” David teased.

“Fuck off…” Adam's ears turned red as he hid his face. “But yeah. She's a new girl in school. She just moved in from England and… Yeah, she's pretty… nice. Yeah, that.”

“She's goth.” 

“Yes… That too.”

“I see. And why did you get stabbed again?” She questioned, squinting her eyes at him judgmentally.

Adam recounted the series of events that had transpired that morning, Spice crossing her arms and glaring at him harder and harder, before giving him an earful for being reckless and stupid, for putting his neck on the line for a girl that he had just met, just because she's “cute”. 

“I-it's not like that--” He denied, pulling his beanie down. “I just saw she was about to get hurt… and intervened--”

“Would you have done so even if she wasn't just your type?”

“I-I… By that logic, I wouldn't have helped David!”

David stopped pretending he was untying his shoe and looked up at him, obviously offended.

“Just because you ain't my type doesn't mean you're not attractive.” Adam passified. “You're hot, just not for me.”

“Ah. Thought so.” He mumbled, going back to staying out of it.

“Also, so what if I helped her because I'm into her?! Can't I be into someone now, huh?! Fuck off!”

Spice closed here and took a deep breath.

“Fauna, pa laon ti fer froice-- Adam, that is not the point! You're thinking with the head in your underwear instead of the one on your shoulders, and being all kinds of reckless! Also, pretty sure you're about to get your horns mounted on a wall!”

“...What?”

“Oh please, ũmilhani… You can't be this stupid. The girl of your dreams just gets dropped into your lap by your arch nemesis like that? Really? Think, Adam. Think!” She yelled, pressing her finger against his forehead.

“What are you saying, huh!?” He slapped her hand away. “That I'm so ugly, that if a girl likes me then it must be a trap?”

“Of course not, stop being stupid! I'm saying that if a girl who looks designed to cater to your tastes shows interest in you, it must be a trap!”

“Jesus, why-- Why would Mark do that, huh?”

“Why does Mark do anything? He has claws for brains!” She raised her voice. “He's probably just trying to set you up for a traumatizing break-up and betrayal. Or maybe he just wants more reasons to hurt you, so he got you stuck with a girl that seems way too good at pissing him off!”

“He doesn't need to get me a fake girlfriend to find reasons to hurt me; David already pisses him off every other Tuesday!”

David stopped making the bed he was about to lie on and looked at him, a hint of guilt in his eyes.

“And that's not your fault; you could just blink, and he would still find a reason to be mad.” He reassured.

“Okay…” David sighed, going back to pretending to be busy.

“Very well, let's assume she's not a trap then. Still sounds way too good to be true. You're setting yourself up.” Spice insisted.

“Oh, so now we're moving the goal post again? Okay.” Adam rolled his eyes.

“Listen, she's going to take advantage of you and leave you high and dry; that's all I'm saying.”

“So what?”

“Excuse me?”

“Okay, let's assume you guys are right and she's just going to turn tail and leave, so what? What's the lesson here? That I shouldn't help a girl unless she fucks me in return?! Should I go and ask for payment upfront then, huh?!” 

“Of course not-- I just don't trust her!”

“You trusted David day one!”

“David is different. He…”

“Can see you?” 

“Well, yes, but… He's a goose!”

David lowered the history manual he was definitely reading and looked up at her, obviously confused by the comparison.

“You're loyal, like a goose.” She explained.

“Huh. Didn't know gooses were loyal,” he said, going back to the homework he was definitely doing.

“Geese.” She corrected.

“No one fucking cares about the geeses!” Adam dismissed. “And now that I think about it, no one cares whether or not you trust her! I'm the one on the hook, not you!”

“Oh, you're on a hook for sure.” She rolled her eyes. “Listen, Adam, I'm just trying to warn you--”

“How about you try to get a fucking hobby and get off my dick?!”

“Adam--”

“You know what? I think you're jealous.”

“Excuse me?”

“Yeah, you're jealous that unlike you, I'm actually getting a fucking life, while you died so alone that instead of moving on and being with your people, you decided to stick around and haunt me!”

“Adam, I'm just trying to help you, protect you--”

“I don't need your 'help' and 'protection', fuck off--”

“Ada--”

“You're not my mom, so LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE, YOU NOSY BITCH!”

The room fell silent, Adam feeling his chest burn and throat ache, while steam poured out of his mouth with each quick breath--

He stumbled and held onto his cheek, pain echoing throughout his flesh as he slowly lifted his gaze towards the dead woman.

Hurt. She looked genuinely hurt--

She disappeared, leaving him staring at the well-decorated closet.

He then turned to his friend, who, in turn, looked at him awkwardly in… quiet judgment--

“What? She… started it.” He argued, massaging the burning sensation on his face.

“I guess.” David refused to keep the matter going. “Want me to fetch some ice?”

“Nah, it's just a slap…” He dismissed, his eyes traveling to the window, seeing the light hail outside had now grown into a violent storm. 

Maybe it was about time they set up the winter nest--

*skrrrrrrr* *clink* *skrrrrrrr* *clink* *skrrrrrr--

Adam grabbed his phone and dismissed the alarm.

“Come on. We need to give the sewer gators their meds.” Adam rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, wouldn't want them going with working legs and dicks... Ugh.” David commented.