This was undeniably the worst day of his entire life...
Chaz had just lost the best thing that has ever happened to him the span of, like, five minutes; and it's all because of a few mishaps that he felt could easily be fixed without any sort of problem at all. He couldn't believe Summer would actually do something like this to him, after all the good times that they've had together; and even worse, he couldn't believe he was so gullible to trust Luke, who's still at his ex-girlfriend's house, presumably having sex with her as we speak. Now that he was thinking about that last part some more, a huge part of him wanted to turn his car around and head back to the house, kick through the door, and punch Luke through the face; but...he couldn't bring himself to do this, because he knew that, deep down, fighting him wasn't going to make Summer change her mind. Oh, how he wished there was something he could've done to stop their relationship from ending this way.
After what felt like hours of driving, listening to nothing but the radio playing sad power ballads, Chaz finally managed to make it back to the house; where upon pulling up into the driveway, he noticed that his best friend was sitting on one of their lawn-chairs, presumably waiting for him to come back. Once he was parked, he got out of his car and headed up to the front-porch. "Hey..." The biker says upon approaching his best friend.
"There you are, dude." Tim says calmly, as he stood up from his chair. "So, how did things go between you and Summer?"
"How do you think they went?" Chaz asked as he began to cross his arms, his expressionless face turning into that of anger and depression. "It's over..."
After hearing that two-word response, Tim let out a sigh and shook his head in a disappointed manner. "I'm sorry to hear, dude." He simply said, which prompts the biker to hold up a hand.
"No...I should be the one who should be saying 'sorry' here, Tim." Chaz stated, causing his best friend to become confused for a moment. "When you and that Pinky girl called to warn me about what's going on, I was quick to doubt the both of you for it; and even on the way to confront Summer, I was still hoping that everything you've said was nothing but some kind of sick joke or something."
"There's no need for you to apologize, dude; because if I were to be in your shoes, I don't think I would've believed me either." Tim assured his best friend as he gave the latter a light pat on the shoulder, which didn't really seem to do anything to make the dispirited biker feel any sort of better. "So, uh...h-how do you feel right now?"
"Well, I've been dumped by the love of my life..." Chaz started off saying, before turning his head to glare at his best friend. "How do you think I feel?"
"Obviously, you feel like sh-" Tim immediately stopped himself in the middle of his sentence, not wanting to say any sort of swear words in this situation; because unlike his best friend, he really hates using them. "You feel like trash."
"Have you ever heard of a rhetorical question?"
"Uh...no, not really." Tim answered sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head, which was when the duo heard the sound of a familiar voice coming from somewhere close by.
"Hey, Chaz..." That was Katie's voice.
After hearing the studious tomboy's voice, the two men turned their attention over to the sidewalk, where they could see both Katie and Crystal walking up the driveway and up to their spot; the former of the two seemed to be worried, while the latter didn't appear to be all too devastated, compared to her friend. "We've heard about what happened, dude." The latter tomboy stated once they approached the two men.
"How?" Tim asked, clearly confused. "I haven't told you guys about what happened between Luke and Summer yet."
"Some girl with blue hair came up to Goth Boy's cart today and started complaining about Summer stealing her boyfriend from her, despite the fact that said boyfriend was apparently some new guy in town; and then Goth Boy told Yuki, who promptly told me afterwards."
"Goth Boy and Yuki know too?!" Tim asked in surprise, which receives a nod from the rebellious tomboy. "Well, that can't be good..."
"What do you mean 'that can't be good'?" Crystal asked as she glared at the biker's friend. "Are you taking that bitch's side?"
"No; and I really don't have any reason to do so." Tim assured the rebellious tomboy, before proceeding to explain everything he had just said a little more clearly this time. "Now that those two know about what happened, and how that Yuki's told you about it, which has me wondering if she's planning to tell the rest of the goths too, it's likely that Summer's not gonna be hearing the end of this for awhile."
"Who cares?" Crystal then asked in an uncaring way, crossing her arms as she continued to glare at the blue-haired boy next to her. "The bitch deserves it after what she did to Chaz; and if everybody's gonna go and scold her for it, then I'll say 'let her have it'! In fact, whoever the fuck that new guy is deserves to suffer the same exact punishment as she's getting; but even worse!"
It was around this part of the conversation that Katie finally decided to chime in, hoping to ease the tension between the two. "Let's just say that Crystal knows exactly how Chaz feels right now." She informs Tim, while placing a comforting hand on one of her best friend's shoulders. "She and Derek Oaken were together back in 2013 until-"
"Derek Oaken?! Your friend used to date that prick?!" Chaz asked in surprise, which received a nod from the rebellious tomboy. "Our condolences."
"It was a relationship that never should've happened in the first place, nor should've I expected that a relationship between him and I would've last longer than...well, yours." Crystal replied as she shrugged nonchalantly, which, unfortunately for her, Chaz replied by giving her an irritated glared. "No offense, dude..."
"None taken..." Chaz grumbled as he continues to glare at the rebel, before letting out a sigh and losing said glare afterwards, continuing to talk. "To be fair though, the more I think about my past relationship with her, I...probably should've expected us to not last long as a couple as well. Back in high-school, she and I used to be in totally different cliques; and for the most part, the boys she'd tend to be interested in were either the jocks or, as bizarre as this sounds, Travis Dylan."
"Travis wasn't part of the football team though." Katie points out.
"That didn't stop Summer from falling in love with him though." Chaz snickered to himself as he lifted his head. "Although, her crush didn't last long, since Liberty came into the picture and then he became her boyfriend instead."
"Oh..."
"Before we get too sidetracked, I think I now need to ask: what happens now that you and Summer aren't together anymore?" Crystal asked the biker as she kept her arms crossed.
"Well, I think it's pretty obvious that things are going to be a lot more different for both me and Tim from here on out, like the fact that we might no longer be hanging out at the Boardwalk anymore."
"Really?" Tim asked in surprise. "But what about the 'Gyro-Dance Sphere' we've been trying to build for the past few days?"
"We haven't got anywhere farther than the machine's base, Tim; and besides, I doubt that Summer would still allow us to continue doing stunts over there now that we've broken up!" Chaz told his best friend while accidentally raising his voice. "Which reminds me, I need to call Ian later to inform him that the plan has changed."
"Oh..." Katie could be heard saying, which caught the attention of the biker, who just stared at her with a look of guilt on his face.
"I'm...sorry that this had to happen so suddenly, Kate." Chaz told the tomboy. "I know how much you've wanted to see Ian again."
"It's fine, dude." The dentist replied as she shrugged causally. "Besides, I'll most likely see him at the get-together tomorrow night anyway."
"You're still going to that; are you, Chaz?" Crystal proceeded to ask, which earned a glare from both her best friend and Tim.
"Now's not the time to ask something like that, man!"
"Katie, it's alright." Chaz insisted as he held up a hand towards the dentist, attempting to calm her down. "As long as Summer doesn't show up at that party tomorrow, then I'm totally down when it comes to going there."
"Are you sure about this, Chaz?" Katie asked as she stared at the biker with a look of pure uncertainty. "It doesn't seem right for you to attend, knowing what you've went through today."
"I'm sure I'll be fine." The biker insists once again. "Tomorrow, I just want to enjoy that party for all it's worth, have myself a few beers, and hopefully leave with Summer off my mind for good."
"Knowing Liberty's not much of the 'drinking-type', I doubt it."
"Well, then I'm hoping that Travis might bring some anyway, if he doesn't want his little get-together to be a snooze-fest; and if not, I'll probably bring some myself to really get the party started."
"Well, if you're actually going to do that, then I'm totally down." Crystal replied as a smile then appears on her face, holding up one of her hands in order to high-five Chaz, which he did; but unfortunately, this wind up causing her best friend to glare at her. "What?" She asked with a causal shrug.
"You do know that allowing oneself to get drunk doesn't always solve the issue, right?" Katie asked as she shook her head 'no'.
"It helps me out whenever my sisters piss me off." Crystal then pulled out her phone and looked at the time that was on it. "Oh, that reminds me...I have to meet up with Candy and Sapphire at the bar right now."
"Candy and Sapphire?" Katie asked in confusion. "Aren't they usually at their own club around this time of night?"
"They're taking the night off so that they can go out on a date."
"But...why are they inviting you though?" Chaz asked, equally as confused as Katie was.
"According to Sapphire, she and Candy wanted to talk to me about something, but she never told me about what." Crystal explained as she pulled out her skateboard, placing it down at her feet in front of her. "I'm sorry to leave you guys on such short notice."
"Eh, it's all good." Chaz assured the rebel. "Besides, I think Tim and I are ready to call it a night."
"Same here; and my dad's probably wondering why I'm even out here anyway." Katie stated as she glanced at her house for a moment, before turning her attention back over to her best friend. "I'll see you sometime tomorrow, okay?"
"Tomorrow morning, so that we can spend the day-off together." Crystal told her best friend with a smile.
"Sure thing." Katie agrees as the two tomboys bumped fists, before her best friend made her way down the driveway and onto the sidewalk. "I'll make sure to meet you at your house if you don't reach mine first!"
"Alright!" After this was said, Crystal took off into the neighborhood to find her two party-loving friends.
Once her best friend had left, Katie turned to face Chaz one last time. "I'm so sorry again for what happened between you and Summer." She said. "If there's anything that I could do to try and fix things between you and her, or perhaps try and get you guys to come to some sort of compromise, then I-"
"As much as I appreciate your willingness to help, I don't think it'll be necessary." Chaz interrupts, causing the tomboy to stop in the middle of her sentence. "Summer's already made up her mind when it comes to us in general; and even if there's some sort of chance that you could be able to somehow fix things between us, I don't think it'll be enough to convince her to come back to me."
"It's hard to change that girl's mind most of the time." Tim comments as he shook his head. "Also, it's even harder to change her mind after she changes her mind about...anything, really."
"So, there's really nothing I can do to help?" Katie asked in a disheartened tone, which received a silent nod from both boys, which in turn made the studious girl solemnly lower her head. "Well then..." She says softly under her breath. "It just...sucks to see you so heartbroken, Chaz; and it sucks that there's absolutely nothing I can do to try and make things better." She then paused so that she can let out a depressed sigh. "But if you insist..."
"It's not that I don't want you to help, Kate; it's just that-" Chaz paused for a second in order to try and think about his wording correctly here. "Sometimes, there are just some relationships you just can't fix."
"That's...still a bit of a pessimistic way of looking at things; but if that's how you feel about all of this, then I won't argue here." Katie told the biker, before the two proceeded to shake hands. "Regardless, I do hope that you'll be able to find someone else after all of your heartbreak clears up."
"I'm sure I will." Chaz replied with a smile forming on his face, before it falters into a somewhat sad cringe. "Although, it might be difficult, since all of the girls I know are either taken or hate my guts to the extreme."
"Well, I'm not taken and I don't hate your guts." Katie says in a joking manner, which causes the biker to stare at her with one of his eyebrows raised, which the former notices soon after. "I, uh...I'm not saying that to suggest that we should go out, I was just saying that out of-uh, out of comfort, that's all." She says sheepishly, all while blushing in embarrassment. "I...think I'm just gonna go home now."
"Alright." Chaz replied with a chuckle, watching as the tomboy made her way down to the sidewalk; but right before she could go any further past the fence, the former spoke up. "Oh, Katie; one more thing before you go!"
Katie stopped in her tracks and turned around, looking at the biker in confusion and surprise. "What is it?" She simply asked.
"T-Thanks for checking up on me." Chaz replied as he gave the tomboy a smile. "I appreciate it."
"No problem, dude." Katie replied back, before holding up one of her hands. "I'll...hopefully see you tomorrow."
"I'm sure you will." After that was said, Chaz remains silent as he watched the young dentist walk back to her house; after the latter had went back inside her house, the former let out a sigh and turned towards his best friend. "Do you think I was being a little too pessimistic there?"
"It's probably just the heartache talking, dude; so, I'm sure that she won't take everything you've said revolving around you and Summer's relationship too personally." Tim told his best friend, before expressing a comforting smile soon afterwards. "Maybe it's best that we go back inside now; it's been a long day for all of us..."
"No shit..." Chaz grumbled as he and his best friend made their way back into the house. "I just want to go upstairs, get to bed, and just forget that this fucking day ever happened..."
"Do you not want any dinner tonight?"
"Nah...I'm not hungry." Chaz insisted as he entered the house, and then immediately went upstairs to head to his room.
"Are you sure? It's my turn tonight to cook, so-" Tim paused as soon as he heard the sound of his best friend closing his door. "Oh, well...more pot roast for me then..." He tells himself as he makes his way into the kitchen.
Note: This one took a lot longer than I was hoping. Originally, I was wanting this chapter to start off with Katie rather than Chaz; but since the previous chapter ended with his breakup with Summer, it was probably a much better choice to select him for this segment, instead of the former. There's nothing really special here, other than Chaz being comforted by his small group of friends, as well as what's going to be focused on in the next chapter (which is Crystal meeting up with the two girls from Club Candy); but I hope you like it anyway.
Now, let's see what reviews we have for today are...
lordgemini: Bizarrely enough, I tried to balance likable and hatable with Summer in that chapter; but mostly hatable, since she still cheated. Now, Luke on the other hand, I was not trying to write him off as an asshole in that chapter, as despite the fact that wound up with Summer in the end, he still tried to ask her if he can try and fix their relationship, just like Katie does in this chapter here; but...yeah, after having to read the previous chapter again, Luke was kinda being just as bad as Summer was there, if not worse.
That should be it for now, folks. I will see you all in the next chapter.