Just ask where he got his clothes from. That was all Aoba had to do. Granny had always warned him not to talk to people like them, and this was the one instance in which he trusted her judgment (even though that was uncool), but for the sake of fashion, he had to be brave. He wasn't dumb enough to go alone, however. Ren had become attached to him ever since he invited him to the lunch table the previous day. It just so happened that they were in the same grade but had different teachers. Whenever Ren spotted Aoba in the hallway he would wave. A single day since their acquaintance didn't provide much time for bonding, but so far the only thing Aoba knew for sure was that Ren definitely had a thing for wolves. Even his school folders had pictures of wolves on them.

Ren was very uneasy about the decision to visit the creepers behind the bleachers. He kept his head ducked low as they walked across the school grounds, staying close behind Aoba as if he expected an attack. "Aoba, I don't think this is a good idea," he said warily. "We don't even do drugs."

"We're not going to them for drugs, stupid," Aoba retorted, "we're just going to ask about their clothes. I said it like a hundred times already."

"You only mentioned it once-"

"Still. Do I need to say it a hundred times?"

"...No."

When they were only a few feet away from the bleachers on the edge of the football field, Ren went dead silent. There were not two figures ahead but three. The first two were who Aoba assumed to be the guys he was looking for - they were almost identical, with blonde hair that defied gravity and was reminiscent of those Dragon Ball Z cartoons that used to come on TV. One of them wore a sleek black suit and the other was dressed in the most god-awful plaid pants/vest combo Aoba had ever seen in his life. (He almost doubted if these were the people he was looking for. Who would even be caught dead in an ensemble like that?) The third person was a guy whose height could only be compared to that of the Toue Inc. building in the center of town. To be honest, he was even more intimidating than the Dragon Ball Duo. The person in the suit handed him a plastic bag - full of what, Aoba couldn't tell - and the intimidating man tucked it into his long overcoat. Then he glanced over at Aoba and Ren.

"Oh no," Aoba said under his breath. Ren perked up with a fearful expression.

"What?"

"He's hot."

Perplexed, Ren looked ahead at the man Aoba would now call Long Tan and Handsome, but he was not impressed. His eyebrows furrowed in displeasure and he gave Aoba an odd look. "Girls like dreadlocks?" he asked.

"What the hell? I'm not a girl." He thought people had stopped making that mistake in elementary school. His voice wasn't so high pitched anymore.

Guiltily, Ren tried to salvage the situation and instead he asked, "You like boys?"

"I like whoever I want. That's rule number one of being cool."

Ren could not argue because obviously he wasn't the expert of coolness. During this exchange, Long Tan and Handsome nodded at the bleacher creepers before walking away, his awesome trenchcoat swishing with each step. Aoba turned his focus to the DBZ Duo, who also turned to watch him, while Ren resumed hiding behind Aoba which didn't work well because he was so much bigger than him. The one in the suit adjusted his glasses in a foreboding manner.

"Do we have a newcomer? Hello there. I'm Virus, and this," he gestured to his plaid friend, "is Trip."

"Yo," Trip greeted, looking far less cheerful than Virus.

At least one of them seemed sociable, despite the aura of danger. Was he supposed to give them his name? Aoba didn't really want to associate with them, so he didn't see a point in it. He was just here for one thing.

"Nice to meet you," he replied. He tried to evade introducing himself by cutting right to the chase. "That's a nice suit. Where'd you get it?"

Virus' smile brightened and he took his hands out of his pockets so he could spin around and show off his outfit. "The mall in South District. The only place worth shopping if you ask me."

Aoba nodded in contemplation as he admired the suit. Granny would never take him somewhere that expensive, even if he managed to scrounge up enough money for something. These two were probably rich because of the business they had here. Maybe someday when he could make his own money… Aoba was pulled out of his reverie when Virus spoke again in his unsettlingly pleasant voice. "So what will it be, my friend?"

"What? Oh," the younger boy's gaze flitted to and fro as he quite literally searched for an escape. "I don't have enough money right now. I just wanted to uh, see if you guys were really here." He smiled sheepishly. Technically neither statement was a lie. They couldn't get mad at him for that.

"What about your skittish friend?" Trip asked. It startled Ren, who shook his head and tried to make himself even shorter behind Aoba. "No," he replied. Trip raised his eyebrows but did not persist.

Virus folded his arms behind his back and bowed to the two middle-schoolers. "In that case, you're welcome back anytime. I hope you change your mind."

His original mission was over, but now Aoba had yet another interest. Just one more thing he had to ask before he could get out of there. He had to be as casual as possible about it. He put his hands on his hips and nodded in the direction Long Tan and Handsome had gone, asking, "Who was that guy?"

Virus tilted his head - obviously curious as to why a shrimpy kid like Aoba would be interested in someone like that other guy - and said, "I don't give out customers' personal information."

"We don't give out customers' personal information," Trip repeated. Repetition was not needed, but okay. If that was the worst response they would give, Aoba could live with it.

"Does he interest you?" inquired Virus. There was the same smile on his face he had had the entire time, but somehow it had become creepier. Like he was staring right into Aoba's soul or something.

The blue haired boy uttered an "Uh" and decided now was a good time to leave. "No, just curious," he said, "and thanks for your time. Maybe we'll come again." He waved at the two high schoolers and nudged Ren with his elbow. They turned and walked briskly away. When they were far enough to be out of earshot, Ren looked worriedly at Aoba and asked, "We're not going there again, are we?"

"Hell no." answered Aoba. "They really are kind of creepy."