I've wanted to write this one for so long, I was so excited 8D;; but i'm super not good at drama so i'm sure I messed up anyway.

Inspiration: "man to man" by gary allen

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"man to man"

It was raining steadily, the drops pattering noisily against the window pane. Lag watched the dreary weather from his desk, head resting in his hand. It had been raining for a few days now and he hadn't had any deliveries for the day. Whats more, his friends were all busy and he felt the bordem and loneliness sink into his bones like the chilly air.

Sighing, he wondered why at least Connor hadn't shown up. He loved Sylvette's end of the week meals, where she used up whatever was left to make dinner. But he'd seen neither hide nor hair of the pudgy boy. More alarming, was the lack of Zazie in his daily life. The boy seemed to evade contact with him after deliveries and hadn't shown up in a week for breakfast or dinner.

As he went to heave another long sigh, the boy heard the door open quietly. Lag knew from the way his foot fell over the floor boards who it was, before Noir even spoke. Casting a glance over the sullen child, the man frowned.

"Whats the matter?"

"I'm worried about Zazie..." Lag mumbled, frowning. "He hasn't been himself lately...and he didn't come for breakfast at all this week."

Noir set down the basket of laundry Sylvette had sent him up with, blinking. "That is strange. Did he say why?"

Lag shook his head gloomily. "No...but I think he's avoiding me."

The words struck a cord in Noir. "Is that so..."

Sighing heavily, probably for the third time since Noir had come in, the boy replied, "I wonder what I did wrong...He sees Connor still."

Turning his attention back to the laundry, the man began to fold it and put it away. "I'm sure its not you. He might just be anxious about the news of the Head Bee."

Lag wanted to believe that. Zazie had never cared about the title before. But maybe the governmental turmoil had caused some stress on the boy. Maybe Lag's big reveal had been too much. Sighing again, Lag mumbled, "Maybe..."

Pausing in his chores, Noir stepped over to the boy, ruffling his hair gently. He smiled a bit when Lag whined in dismay, attempting to fix the tangle of hair. "I'm sure its nothing big. Don't worry so much."

Glancing up through his messy hair, the boy felt a smile tug at his lips momentarily. "I hope so..."

000

The rain had let up just in time for his return, as luck would have it. Zazie's mood soured as he attempted to side step the deeper puddles of murky rain water, holding his empty bag closer to avoid the still emptying rooftop drains. He hated rain.

The sight of Sylvette's door caught his attention, and a sigh of relief escaped him. He was eager to tug off his soaked uniform and warm up with his friends. He'd been so busy this week that even if he was forced to endure Noir and Lag's gushy displays, Zazie was more than happy to just relax with Lag and Connor.

Pausing in the road, the boy felt a frown tug at his lips. Speak of the devil. Noir had just stepped out of the house, a paper in his hand. Probably a grocery list. If he wasn't mistaken, Sylvette's famous end of the week dinner had passed the other night.

He was hoping that the man would just continue down the street, but he glanced up from the paper and spotted Zazie just as the boy had begun to step away. Noir regarded the boy as if he'd known he was there the entire time, blinking. Zazie felt his hair stand on end.

"Hello, Zazie. Did you come to see Lag?" Zazie nodded curtly, and the man continued, "He isn't here, I'm afraid. He just left a bit ago."

Scowling, the boy let out a quiet "tch..." and began to turn around to leave. It figured. He'd come to see the boy, but it was just as well. He didn't think he come stomach Lag and Noir tonight anyway.

Noir watched him turn, frowning. "Is there something on your mind?"

Pausing, Zazie glanced back and raised an eyebrow. "Whats it to you?"

For a moment, Noir felt around for the right words. "Lag's been worried about you. He thinks you've been avoiding him."

Zazie winced. Lowering his gaze, he muttered, "Figures he'd think that..."

"So," the man ventured, tucking the paper he'd forgotten he'd been holding into his pocket. "It isn't true?"

"..." Zazie was silent.

"Does it have to do with me?"

He could practically see the fur stand on end, as the cat boy's disposition soured. If he were a cat, his haunches would be raised. Struck a nerve then.

Zazie's face scrunched into a scowl. "Why the hell would it?"

Noir felt like he was cornering an animal. One wrong word, and he was fairly certain the boy would lash out. "You've been avoiding Lag since he announced we were together."

In an effort to reel in his irritation, Zazie took a slow and steadying breath. "Listen, its not my business what he does. I don't care."

His voice shook, just a bit, Noir noted. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, "that's so"." Zazie snapped.

"So," the man began, knowing he was about to step on the boy's tail. "this doesn't have anything to do with jealousy? Or your past affair?"

Caught off guard, the boy shot him a disbelieving look. "E-Excuse me?"

Bingo. Noir said nothing, watching Lag's precious friend crumple from the inside. The expressions flashing over the boy's face were like a broken record, the notes lost in translation. Finally, he settled on a cold, narrow eyed scowl.

"Listen." Zazie hissed, "You're stepping on some thin fuckin' ice here."

"So it isn't true?"

"Yeah, we went out." he snapped, voice quivering with the attempt to stay calm. "But that's not your business. If he wants to date someone who abandoned him and broke his heart, that's his choice. I've got nothing to say about it." he spat, fists clenching at his side.

Raising an eyebrow, Noir almost felt insulted. But this was just built up emotion, he reminded himself. Zazie knew the truth, he just wasn't thinking straight in his anger. "That's a rather serious accusation."

Realizing what he had said, the boy looked spooked for a moment. Zazie hadn't meant to say that. Swallowing hard, he pushed aside his momentary guilt. "Its the truth." he said bitterly, meeting the man's gaze straight forward. "You're gonna hurt him again. He's gonna cry and I'm gonna have to pick up the pieces again."

And I cant do it again. The unspoken words reminded Noir just how those predictions had come true, when he'd first arrived. Zazie had every right to make accusations, he mused, because he'd yet to prove he wouldn't do it again.

Still, he wasn't going to. Noir was certain in this at least, that he'd do anything to never hurt Lag that way again. "I can assure you, I wont."

Zazie snorted, "Yeah, sure. Lag might be fooled, but I'm not."

Words didn't mean much, the man had learned. It was actions that spoke louder, and he knew that he'd sent the wrong message. Sighing, he closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "Whether you're fooled or not, its you whose abandoning him right now."

Zazie couldn't hold back a flinch. He hated the idea of what Noir had just said, rejected it wholly. But was he wrong? Had Noir been wrong about anything just now? Biting his lip, the boy fought the urge to lash out.

"Whether you like me or trust me, Lag is who you're letting down." Noir continued, the memory of the sullen boy's figure coming to mind. "You're still important to him."

Casting his gaze to the slick cobble stone road, Zazie muttered, "Like I don't know that already..."

Watching him a moment longer, Noir sighed and moved to leave. "Well then, do something."

Zazie watched him go, the urge to throw something at the man growing with each step that carried him away. He hated him. He hated even more that he was right. Sighing hard, the raven haired boy tugged his cap down over his eyes, turning on his heel.

He absolutely did not like that guy whatsoever!

000

The scent of breakfast pulled Lag from his exhausted slumber. He'd gotten home late and had passed out, barely out of his uniform, onto the bed. He hadn't even bothered trying to squirm in the tangle of people, content to lay half on Noir and half buried under Niche. It wasn't until he smelled eggs cooking that he finally pulled himself from the comfy mound of blankets.

Surprisingly, Niche was up already and he could hear Sylvette's voice demanding that she brush her teeth. A lazy smile tugged at his lips as the boy tugged on his sweater and a pair of baggy pants, shivering in the chilly room.

As predicted, Noir and Roda were already seated at the table. Underneath was an irritated Niche, her hair holding her tooth brush as she did her chore miserably.

Glancing up from the pan of bacon she'd been frying, Sylvette smiled. "Hey sleepy head."

"Hello..." Lag greeted, holding a hand up to smother a yawn.

"Hey, Lag!"

Blinking sluggishly, the boy spotted Connor, his plate already full with whatever he'd brought, plus Sylvette's cooking. Next to him sat a disgruntled Zazie, pointedly ignoring Noir as he ate his eggs. A bubble of relief welled in Lag's chest to see the two after so much time had passed.

"H-Hey...!"

Zazie glanced over, raising an eyebrow. "Hey, don't cry. There's still lots to eat."

A laugh escaped the boy as he trotted over to the table. "I-I'm not crying!"

Sylvette set down their plates and joined them soon after with her own, a bright, pleased smile on her face. She was more than relieved to see the mangy cat kid had shown up, although she imagined Connor had probably dragged him here. Still, she was glad. No one enjoyed seeing Lag drift about like he was about to be executed.

Somewhere, in the middle of reaching for bread across the table, Lag caught Zazie's eye. He paused, before a warm smile graced his features. The boy felt his cheeks warm a bit and glanced away, mumbling about needing more milk.

"I'm really glad you came today, Zazie." Lag said, oblivious to the way his quiet words impacted the boy before him.

Zazie rolled his eyes, stuffing a piece of ham into his mouth. "Shuddup..."

At last, Noir thought, all was right with Lag and his friends. In the coming weeks, they'd need that warmth and that precious happiness to get them through the day. But mostly, he was just happy to see Lag smile again.

Zazie's words rang in his head, but he was confident that he wouldn't meet those prophecies this time. Lag wouldn't be crying over him ever again. And he wouldn't cry over Zazie either.

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