"Hey," Jade says, coming down the stairs, now back to her usual perky, slightly silly mood. You chuckle, ruffling her hair.
"How's my favorite dog?" you ask in a silly voice.
"Woof!" she says. The dog thing is a joke about when she was younger, she would act like a dog, she even wore dog ears and tail. She stopped doing it when she came here to Oregon.
"Woof," you respond, walking over to the gun safe, pulling out your pistol holsters and twin 9mms. You also grab Jade's BDT-5M light rifle, tossing it to her. You grab two clips for your pistols and a clip for her rifle. You hand her the rifle clip, which she loads before slinging the rifle over her shoulder. You load your pistols and holster them, making sure the safety is on.
"Jade, we've got to open up in ten minutes. I'll check the rifle range, you check the pistol range," you say, opening the door and hopping on your quad. You rev the engine and set off for the rifle range, about a quarter mile from the shop. You arrive back at the shop with two minutes to spare. Jade is upstairs in her room, listening to music on her stereo-mp5 player hookup. You already opened the gates, and so you sit down in your office in the back room of the first floor. Myrian isn't supposed to be here until around 11 AM, so you are alone until then.
-10:30 AM, Southern Oregon University-
"Now, now, Aranea, I'm sure Meenah didn't mean it when she said she hates you, you know what she's like over the weekends, almost always drunk, or worse," you say, patting your friend on the back.
"Sigh… I know you're probably right, Kankri, but… she can get a bit sexual around me when she gets drunk. It's probably just her remembering our relationship in the wrong light, and is trying to bring it back, but, alas, she does it while drunk…" Aranea responds, a sad, heavy tone in her voice.
"Aranea, it's okay to remember your relationship with Meenah, but… she might not remember it the same way you do," you say in a comforting tone.
"Kankri, I just… miss having her as a girlfriend, even though I know i'm straight," Aranea responds, the sad, heavy tone getting more pronounced by the word.
"Well, you might not be straight, i've seen how you react to seeing more attractive females. After seeing some of your reactions, I would say you are actually bisexual," you say, in a matter-of-fact tone.
"But then why is this feeling only around Meenah?" Aranea asks, looking as though she is about to cry.
-10:30 AM, Southern Oregon Middle School-
"Fuck off Ampora, no, I will not date you!" you yell, shoving him away from you.
"But Sol, why?" he responds, complaining.
"Because I'm not gay, you fucking moron. Now go away before I change my mind about blowing up your computer," you yell in response.
"Whatever," he says, strutting off with his snobby rich friends.
"Fucking dumbass," you mutter under your breath as you walk over to two of your friends.
"Hey Nepeta, hey Strider," you say, collapsing on the bench next to them.
"S'up, man," Dave responds, his eyes still glued to his phone with his headphones plugged in, no doubt listening to one of his shitty 'ironic' raps again.
"Hey, Sollux!" Nepeta responds in her usual giddy and bouncy tone.
"So, what's up with you, Nepeta? you ask, giving her a high-five.
"I have SO many more ships!" she exclaims, jumping up and down as fast as she can. "Ooh! Sorry, Sollux, but I have to go, Equius is here!" she exclaims, running off towards her best friend, giving him a tacklepounce.
You pull your laptop from your bag and turn it on, and promptly resume coding another really shitty virus, which you will email to Karkat to show off how much better at coding you are than him. That usually pisses him off, as he hates anyone showing that they are better than he is at anything. It's kinda cute sometimes when he gets mad though, and almost everyone comments about it, which just makes him even more mad.
"Hey, my motherfuckin bro," you hear the voice of a seriously drugged Gamzee to the left of you, but then again, when Gamzee is not like this, he goes on brutal rampages, which usually involve him getting drugged to stop him from hurting anyone else. And, as all your friends can attest, a drugged Gamzee is better than a sober Gamzee.
"Sigh… Hi, Gamzee," you say, keeping your eyes glued to the screen, working away in JavaScript.
"What're you doing, best friend? More of the miraculous computer stuff, bro? he asks, leaning over your shoulder to read what you are coding.
"Gamzee, it is not the time for you to be doing this," you respond, slightly agitated by him leaning on you and practically breathing down your neck.
"Look, motherfuckin best friend, I think this computer thing is miraculous, and it'd be good if a motherfuckin bro taught me how to do this miracle," he asks. You can smell the drugs in his breath, and it reeks.
"Gamzee, ugh… maybe later. Just, can you leave me alone right now?" you ask, growing uncomfortable of him being so close to you.
"Sure thing, motherfuckin bro," he responds, walking off, most likely to find his "best bro", also known as Tavros.
-10:33 AM, Southern Oregon Middle School-
"Hey, Sollux," you say, slugging your friend in the arm.
"Hey, Adrian," Sollux responds, his eyes still glued to the laptop screen.
"What're you coding this time?" you ask, leaning in to look at the computer screen.
"Just another shitty virus to sent to KK," he says, typing furiously.
"Well, what does it do?" you ask, looking at the screen.
"It makes the computer restart every time you right click," he responds, still typing away.
"You wouldn't happen to know the location of Lillian, would you?" you ask.
"I have no fucking idea where she is. For all I know, she is at home sick with the pox," he responds.
"You know what? I'm going to pester Lillian and see how she is doing," you say, pulling out your phone and logging on to Pesterchum. Your username is cynicalSteampunker, and you t/\lk \/ery weird.
- cynicalSteampunker [CS] began pestering impulsiveArtist [IA] at 10:40 AM -
CS: Hey, Lilli/\n
IA: Whaat noow, Aadriiaan?
CS: Just \/\/\nted to see ho\/\/ you /\re doing
IA: OOh, ii'm fiinee.
CS: I he/\rd you \/\/ere sick, /\re you just riding it out so you don't h/\\/e to go to school?
IA: Yees, II aam. Myy mootheer dooees noot suuspeect aa thiing.
CS: /\h, cr/\p, i'\/e gott/\ go, cl/\ss is st/\rting
IA: Seee yoouu thiis weeekeend, theen.
- cynicalSteampunker [CS] ceased pestering impulsiveArtist [IA] at 10:45 AM -
You get up from the bench and head to your third period class, math. Math is a boring class, but at least you have Sollux in math with you.
-10:40 AM, English-Harley Weapons Range-
"Sorry if I'm late, traffic was terrible," you say to Jake, rushing in the door.
"Myrian, you're 20 minutes early," Jake responds, bolting upright in his chair, startled by your arrival.
"That would explain why the parking lot is empty," you say, grabbing your rangemaster gear from your locker in the back room. You put your bulletproof flak vest on, and sling your L/218 Assault Rifle over your right shoulder. The rifle was a birthday present two years ago to replace your aging L/184, which, to this day, hangs above the fireplace in the house you share with Jane. You are lucky she lets you live with her, as both your parents are still living in New York City, and you took your younger brother, Adrian, with you when you moved out here.
"Well, as you have 20 minutes until you are officially here, you want to come upstairs and have some coffee?" Jake asks, heading for the staircase to the upstairs.
"Sure, why the hell not?" you ask, following him up to the kitchen. He starts brewing a pot of coffee. The two of you go back a while, you met at a riflery contest in southern Oregon a while ago. You ended up sitting next to each other, and went out for a few drinks afterwards. You exchanged numbers, and then you found out he owned his own weapons range. He hired you when he found out you live so close to him, and he needed the help. You gladly accepted the job, and even though it pays almost nothing, it is good to have a job you enjoy as much as this one.
"Coffee's done," Jake says, pulling the pot off the machine and pouring you each a cup.
"Thanks, Jake," you say, grabbing one of the full mugs and taking a shot of it.
"Hmm… what kind of coffee is this?" you ask, eyeing the cup with suspicion.
"It's nothing special, just generic coffee from the store in town," he responds, sitting down at the kitchen table.
"Wierd, it tastes different than normal," you say, taking another swig. You also take a seat, and you hear footsteps as Jade comes around the corner into the kitchen.
"Hey, Myrian," Jade says, also pouring herself a cup of coffee, and proceeds to add sugar to it.
"So, Jade, how's school been?" you ask as a joke. You know she is homeschooled, and the questions about school have become a joke between the three of you.
She puts on an obviously fake smile and says, "It's been fun. I am learning SO much!" you all burst out laughing at her act.
"That was one of your best ones so far!" Jake says, still laughing, holding his sides.
"No doubt," you add, sitting back upright in your chair.
-10:50 AM, Baltec Inc. Metallurgists and Mechanics Repair Shop-
"Hey, Sergetov, you finished with that emitter casing yet?" you yell across the shop at Sergetov, who is hunched over a belt grinder.
"Almost, Letovi!" he calls back, still hunched over the grinder.
You hear a truck pull up outside the garage door to your workshop, its engine shutting off.
"Hey, Letovi," you hear from behind you, "Where do ya want this casing?" Sergetov asks.
"On the table next to the door," you respond, heading outside into the rear parking lot.
"I have a delivery of five tons of compressed cobalt-steel alloy for a… Mr. Romakov or a Mr. Nitram," the delivery man ask, holding a clipboard under his left arm.
"I'll go get Mr. Nitram," you say, "I have some bills to fill out."
"Hey, Sergetov!" you call to you business partner, even though he is more than 20 years older than you, the two of you are good friends.
"Yeah, Letovi?" he asks, turning his around to face you.
"There's a delivery man out front with the cobalt-steel alloy we ordered," you say, "You need to sign the forms, I have more paperwork from the power company."
"Okay then, where should I have him put it?" he asks.
"Over by the pulse cutter, there is enough room," you say, pointing at the corner of the workshop.
"Will do," he responds, walking out to sign the papers. You sit down in your office, picking up a rather thick packet of papers from PG&E, the power company.
-11:00 AM, Northern California University of Architecture and Engineering-
"Hey, Ryan, you got any plans for lunch? Dirk and I were planning to get pizza, you up for it?" you hear a voice call from your left.
"Oh. Hey, Devyn," you say, turning to look at your friend who you have known since elementary school.
"Well?" She asks, "you game for pizza?"
"Why the hell not?" you respond, a slight smile on your face.
"I'll call Dirk and tell him," she says, pulling out her phone to call your mutral friend, Dirk Strider, master of irony, puppets, and anything even remotely Japanese. A few minutes later, she hangs up, having informed Dirk of your plan to join them for lunch.
"So, how's your life been?" she asks, having moved over to sit next to you.
"Not bad, not bad at all," you respond, "I got the ring that I'm going to propose to Porrim with hidden in my room, and Juliana didn't see it, so I don't have to bribe her to keep quiet about it at all."
"Wow, you are finally proposing to Porrim, that makes me feel old. I remember when you two started dating, and Letovi, Myrian and I had a bet on if you would marry her," she says, staring off into space.
"Well, whoever bet on me marrying her has won," you say.
Not yet," she cuts in, "we only win once you propose and she says yes."
"Then you're not going to win until this summer after I get my degree," you respond.
"You're still putting off the engagement? But you have the ring, and you have the money to have the wedding," Devyn asks.
"I would have already married her, but I don't have the time to have the wedding," you respond.
"That explains a lot," she says sarcastically, "you could have at least proposed to her by now, I mean, you graduate in three months."
"And I'm going on a post-graduation trip with my sister. We're going to meet up with my parents in London, and we're going on a two-week tour of England." you interrupt, "and I want to propose to her somewhere significant, so where better than on the cliffs of Dover?"
"Dover sounds okay, but why not Paris, or almost anywhere in France?" she questions.
"Because I don't have the time while I'm in England to go to France," you respond, "I've already got the trip planned out, and I can't stay in England any longer, because once I graduate, I'm going to need to get a full-time job. No more of this on-off bullshit like what it's been working with Kurloz at his club. I mean, sure, I'm threatening and all, with all the metal on me, but I'd rather get a job where I don't have to use my night vision to see anything."
"That is true. Porrim would most likely get tired of you just being around in the apartment moping all day anyways," Devyn says, joking, "Well anyways, it was nice talking, but I've got a class to attend, so see you in an hour or so," she says, getting up and rushing off.
- 11:30 AM, West Coast Academy-
"Hey, Juliana, would you know where Jacody is?" John asks, tapping you on the shoulder.
"No, John. I have no idea. I think he might be sick, I'll just pester him to make sure," you say, pulling your smartphone out and opening pesterchum. Your chumhandle is clairvoyantRevolutionary and y{}u }{ave a }{abit {}f {}verannunciating }{'s and {}'s.
- clairvoyantRevolutionary [CR] began pestering elusiveRenegade [ER] at 11:31 AM -
CR: }{ey, jac{}dy, are you sick? J{}}{n was w{}ndering.
ER: yEAh, I'm At hOmE sIck AgAIn. whAt's Up?
CR: I was just asking, n{}t}{ing else.
CR: Actually, I }{ave a question. w}{y don't y{}u capitalize y? It's als{} a v{}wel.
ER: nO It Isn't thE Only vOwEls ArE A, E, I, O, U
CR: }{{}w is Y not a v{}wel? T}{ere are several w{}rds t}{at }{ave n{} v{}wels {}t}{erwise.
ER: nO, thErE ArEn't.
CR: I can name tw{} {}ff the t{}p of my }{ead: crypt and sylp}{.
ER: Ugh, fInE, I'll AlsO cApItAlIzE Y, ArE YOU hAppY nOw?
CR: Yes I am.
ER: wEll thEn, I gUEss I'll sEE yOU tOmOrrOw
CR: It was g{}{}d t{} speak t{} y{}u, see y{}u tom{}rr{}w.
- clairvoyantRevolutionary [CR] ceased pestering elusiveRenegade [ER] at 11:34 AM -
"He is sick, again," you inform John, turning to face him.
"Great," John mutters, "I was hoping to start planning for the Halloween get-together we usually have, I mean, we've only got two weeks until then."
"Then talk to him on pesterchum, he has an account. And if you can't get to him through that, pester his brother. He is helpful enough," you respond, slightly annoyed at John's naiveity.
"Ugh, fine. I'll pester him later. But not until after school," he says, exasperated with you bugging him to stop being so lazy about stuff like this.
"Well, I think we should go, the bell is about to ring," you respond, grabbing your backpack and heading off towards your 4rd period class, English.
- 11:40 AM, Southern Oregon University -
"Hey, chief. Long time no see," you hear a voice call from behind you.
"Oh. Hello, Cronus. I was not expecting you here, seeing as you are now a well-known musician on the west coast, I would've expected you to be off on tour around this time of year, not coming here to see an old acquaintance, and I would actually prefer it if you left, as I have an exam coming up, and I need to study," you say, turning around to look at him. He is wearing his usual ensemble, a leather jacket, blue jeans, a white T-shirt, and beat-up cowboy boots. His hair is perfectly slicked back with hair gel. You fathom exactly how long it took him to get it to stay down for any period of time, as he used to have terrible cowlicks back in elementary and middle school. At least he finally stopped with the purple streak in his hair, and he dropped the wizard theme.
"So, are you gonna say something, or are you going to stand there ogling me like a model in a Victoria's Secret catalog?" he says, breaking the awkward silence.
"Cronus! That is extremely offensive to suggest that I would even glance at one of those rags! I am a man of culture, I have no need or reason to ever browse one of things, much less purchase one!" you respond, blushing, very tempted to curl up into a ball on the floor and pull your sweater over your head.
"Heh," he chuckles, smirking, " I thought you might try to pull that 'man of culture' card again. If you are still pulling that, I assume you are still celibate?"
"Yes, that assumption is correct. I am still abstaining from any romantic or sexual relationship. I merely have platonic relations, or, as more commonly called, friends," you say, walking over and sitting down on a nearby bench.