From sad to interesting to hip

[firewalled]

[The first thing Rich notices is that his hospital bed is feeling mighty uncomfy at the moment. No matter how he tries to shift himself around, it feels like he's sleeping on rocks. He really doesn't want to wake up so soon, but with a mumble, he opens his eyes, hoping that maybe one of his friends has popped in to visit.

When he opens his eyes, he doesn't see any of his friends. In fact, he doesn't see the room he's almost gotten used to. When he turns his head to the side, he notices what he mistook for his hospital bed is actually a hard stone chair, something like a throne that he's currently seated in.

Then he notices that he is seated, and looking down at his legs, the bandages are completely gone. He makes a confused noise as he lifts his arms. They're mobile again... covered in scars, but otherwise healed. He frowns and looks around the room.]

Um... Mr. Nurse Dude? Did the doctors take the casts off while I was out?

[He takes in the rest of the room: the tall stained glass windows, the looming pillars, the sprawling velvet carpet covering stone floor. He feels way tinier than he usually does.]

...Also am I high?

[There is regrettably no answer. Not when he calls for Jake or Michael or Jeremy, not when he even tries calling for Chloe or Brooke. He waits for a while, but, antsy as he was when he couldn't move his limbs, it isn't long before he hops off the throne and starts using his newly healed legs to start wandering.]

((This is a joint intro of sorts! Rich's bestest bro Jake Dillinger (jakeyd) will have a tag under this post to respond to if you are so inclined.))

Comments

[firewalled]

[Well, he had no idea what he was about to do, which was give Rich a small heart attack. He hears the mention of his sexuality and immediately tenses up on instinct. It's not like he's... self-conscious. Not as much as he used to be. But that's the problem, is that he used to be horribly afraid of what people would think, to the point that his squip made him hide it just to play it safe. And here the most popular guy in school was going to comment on it.

He thinks he knows what's coming. He thinks he's going to be called weird, or mocked, or at best, asked a bunch of ignorant questions about how he could possibly like more than one gender. He's already running through answers in his head when... he realizes what Jake is saying. Inspiration? He inspired him to think about... Rich's face goes red.

And then the bomb drops. Rich inhales sharply, and looks at Jake while his heart does little flip flops. Shit, he's not straight! How is he supposed to function now? Abort mission, abort, abort-]


Um, wow! Good for you, man! [Why is his voice so squeaky? He tries to clear it.] Seriously, that's a big deal... I-I'm really proud you trusted me enough with that.

[jakeyd]

[Jake turns to look at Rich, a bit concerned by the dramatic change in octave...and mood. Should he bring it up? Would it better to keep going? Maybe Rich is just shocked?]

Uh, yeah, well like...even after all the cyborg bullshit you're still the person I trust the most so--[Alright, no he has to check. He's worried.]

Um, are you alright bro? I know I did a pretty lame job of getting that out, but--wait, that's not a squip thing is it? Your voice going all weird??

[firewalled]

[Ugh, Rich is being weird and it's freaking Jake out. He definitely doesn't want that. He wants to be supportive. And he definitely is! He just... wonders what it means that his unattainable crush might be slightly attainable.

Push that aside. Try to act like a friend and not a massive loser. He's got this.]

I'm fine! It's not the squip. Sorry, dude, I guess I was just shocked you trusted me with that. I'm really happy for you! Man, now everyone in school is going to have a crush on you.

[jakeyd]

[Jake looks a little uncertain at first, since Rich sounded almost...distressed somehow? But as he just said, he trusts Rich more than anyone--so he shakes his worry for now. He can't think of a reason Rich would lie to him about this if it wasn't a squip thing, anyway.]

Oh, I guess I get that. I know it's weird that the whole two years under 'robo control' haven't really made me doubt you that much, but like, I dunno. [Jake shrugs, running a hand through his hair as he speaks, a little embarrassed.]

I just can't get that time you got pissed about my parents leaving out of my head. Nobody's ever really...gotten that angry on my behalf before. It meant a lot.

[He laughs at the part about 'everyone having a crush on him' part. Jokingly:]
Oh shit man, you mean they don't already? Guess I've got work to do.

[firewalled]

[Of course he's going to be a little distressed, hearing that his closest friend and very closely guarded secret crush was single and could potentially be interested in people of Rich's gender. But he's trying very hard to ignore that. Jake is still a friend first, and he deserves support and understanding. He always does.

Especially for his parents. Reminded of that time, Rich's anger flares up again, and he glares off at nothing in particular, practically daring the air molecules to disperse and let Jake's parents take up space there just so he could punch them.]

Of course I got angry! Those fucking assholes left their only kid behind because they were too irresponsible to actually fund their lifestyle the legit way! They just... abandoned you when it came back to bite 'em in the ass! Seriously, dude. You're better off without them. I mean... yeah, I know I'm a recovering cyborg, but I'll always look after my bro.

[He laughs softly.] Man, I can't speak for everyone, but I'd be surprised if they weren't crushing super hard on you.

[...Wait, that didn't imply he was crushing, did it?]

[jakeyd]

I know I'm better off now, but it didn't feel that way at the time, and like...I didn't think I could let any of that out? None of the anger or--or any of it? But you noticed something was weird with me and got pissed off as soon as you knew why, and it was-I dunno, man, just really...I felt really justified? If that makes sense?

[Jake keeps gesturing with his hands the entire time he speaks, like he's trying to physically give shape to what that time was like.]

Like it was okay to...not be okay, all the time. I didn't need to put up a front for everyone, you know?

[He exhales before returning to a more casual tone. Heavy stuffs out of the way now.]

Well, they'll have to get in line either way! [Jake slings an arm around Rich's shoulders.]

Because I've gotta get to know my bro better for now! Seriously dude, like, do you have hobbies and shit the squip was repressing? You've barely told me anything about yourself since all that, come on.

[If there is any implication of Rich crushing on him, he's trying to ignore it. Not because of anything complicated, just because when he was doing some research into all this sexuality stuff he saw a lot of people annoyed that when they came out to their friends, said friends got all 'So does that mean you want to date me?'. Jake doesn't want to be one of those people.]

[firewalled]

No, man, it... it makes sense. It makes perfect sense, and you should be justified. You gotta feel what you gotta feel, man. Don't you ever hold back on how you're feeling with me, okay?

[He sounds like he's almost threatening Jake, but really, he's just desperate. He knows how much pressure Jake puts on himself, and he'd always wanted to comfort him, even though the squip frowned upon dealing with such complex human emotions. And because he hadn't been there for him enough... Jake put so much pressure on himself he came to school on crutches, even with two broken legs. He can't let his best bro put himself through hell like that again. He won't... hurt him.

So despite his sinking heart, he puts on a smile for Jake, ignores the way his heart skipped a beat over that brief moment when it sounded like Jake was putting all his crushes aside just for him. He's being stupid. Jake's not into him like that. They're friends. He should be an ally to him. He won't make this more stupidly complicated.]

Oh, uh, geez dude, putting me on the spot here. I don't know if I was really that interesting. I was into lots of nerdy shit... art too. Photography, drawing, whatever. And I guess music too... but that wasn't as suppressed. Really, besides the nerdy hobbies, the squip just focused on repressing the fact that I was super bisexual.

[jakeyd]

[Jake seems more surprised about the intensity of Rich's words than anything. It's a really foreign feeling somehow, having someone care that much about his feelings. He'd been raised with his parents being so dismissive of them, and most of the girls he'd dated only wanted to know what he felt regarding them and the things they liked. So Jake's not really...used to his feelings not being some sort of bother to people.]

Okay bro, I'll, uh. Do my best, I guess? [He's obviously still pretty apprehensive about the idea. Even if he didn't want to hide them all the time, he can't help being afraid of running everyone off if he gets irritating.]

Shit man, you're like, artsy? You gotta show me some of your work later! What kind of stuff do you draw? Is it like, junk from your nerd hobbies? Wait, you gotta tell me what your nerd hobbies are. You're totally interesting dude, don't hide this stuff! Oh! I know, I'll tell you one of mine so you feel less weird about it.

[He clears his throat dramatically.] I, Jacob Dillinger, am still hella into Pokemon and Kirby. I kind of cried when pokemon amie came out.


Please don't mention that last part to anyone.

[firewalled]

[Rich definitely cares about Jake's feelings! More than nearly anything else in the world. Actually, probably more than anything else in the world. Jake is his best friend, and has been through far too much already. He deserves some consideration. He knows Jake is going to be weird about it though, as he always was, so he just shrugs and nods.

He still believes in his bro. He'll come to him when he really has to. For now, the talk of hobbies distracts him.]

Ah, geez man, it's not like I have anything with me! I kinda gave up on that for so long, plus when I was allowed to be into it again I kinda... couldn't move my hands, you know?

[He laughs, rubbing the back of his head.]

I don't know man, I think I drew a lot of people and scenes around school and stuff, but I did like... design my own characters for D & D. And drew some other nerd stuff...

[He doesn't even know where to start with describing what he was all into, but Jake's confession helps, as well as makes him snortlaugh.]

Dude, that's adorable. Remind me that I'm gonna have to show you shit like Animal Crossing when we get home.

[jakeyd]

Oh, right. Show me something when you do draw, then? [He was kind of getting ahead of himself there, huh?]

I don't think I've heard of D 'n D, what's that? What kind of characters did you make?

[Jake's pretty obviously genuinely interested, so that's probably helping too. He really does want to know about Rich's hobbies, hoping Rich can enjoy them without being ashamed from now on. Plus, they honestly sound pretty neat.
Oh, Rich is laughing again.]

Pfft, you're adorable. [Jake nudges Rich as he says that. Oh hold on, was that a weird thing to say to your friend? Wait what animal...crossing?]

I think I've seen that around but I was too embarrassed to buy something else cute without the excuse of being into it as a kid. That was pretty dumb, though.

[firewalled]

Um, okay. I guess I can do that.

[Note to self: brush up on your art skills. Rich might not show Jake the first few... dozen sketches. He wants to get something really good.]

Oh, you've never heard of Dungeons and Dragons? It's awesome! It's like, you make up a character who might be like, a wizard or an orc or an elf or anything, and you use them to tell a story with a bunch of other people? One dude lays down the ground rules and then you let your characters interact and fight with things and shit and... it probably sounds super lame when I describe it like that.

[Maybe he'll keep himself from rattling on about the many adventures of the great Thomas Firebringer for now. And also try (and fail) to keep himself from blushing as Jake calls him adorable.]

You might have! It was this video game with a bunch of animals on the cover? In it you'd move into a new town with a bunch of animal neighbors and kind of just hang out and plant flowers and catch bugs and stuff. It was super relaxing for me. Except when I'd forget to play it and... shit, that reminds me, when I get back my house is gonna have cockroaches in it...

[jakeyd]

Sweet! [It's pretty easy to tell he's excited to see Rich's art. Jake hasn't had a lot of artistic friends in the past. Or geeky friends--he's squinting a bit as he tries to work out how Dungeons and Dragons goes from the description.]

Nah, it doesn't sound lame! Kinda confusing, though. You'll probably just have to show me that too, sometime.

[It's pretty tough to miss the blush this time, and now Jake is worried that it really was a weird thing to say. At the same time, though, it definitely proves him right. Like, shit, blushing and freckles go shockingly well together? Who allowed that? He might've been staring a bit, but the animal crossing discussion snaps him out of it.]

Oh, yeah! I think I've seen Brooke play that. There's like...those downloadable outfits she'll browse through on her phone for later? I haven't heard anything about roaches though, that sounds gross.

[firewalled]

It's cool. I was... probably trying to explain it in a way that didn't seem totally lame. But who knows? Maybe I can find some dice and show you how to play sometime!

[He doesn't really notice Jake staring, fortunately, distracted by the mention of Brooke. He beams.]

Yeah, I showed her it when she was looking for something to try. She seemed to be a pretty big fan. Damn, I wish I had my phone. Maybe I could text her for help.

[jakeyd]

I'd be down!

[He scratches his cheek at the mention of phones.]

Yeah, if we hadn't been dumped here straight out of hospital maybe one of us would have a phone. Not that I've even bought a new one yet...oh, right, fuck.

[Jake stops walking and looks around.]

I was supposed to be watching the doors for a kitchen. How long have we been wandering around talking?

[firewalled]

[Rich's eyes go wide. Shit. He's such an idiot! He was so caught up making goo-goo eyes at Jake that he wasn't paying attention to where the hell they were. He groans and smacks his forehead.]

Long enough that we probably passed one by now. God... I'm sorry man, I...

[Luckily, just at that moment, Rich's eyes catch a glimpse of an open door, and more importantly, his ears notice the sound of pots clanking inside.]

Dude! There's someone in there!

[jakeyd]

[Jake takes a step back to wave his hands in a weird physical attempt to shoo Rich's apologies.]

Nah dude I was the one thinking about your freckles being cute-oh shit did we actually find someone? [He's already heading over to the noisy door, not registering what came out of his mouth seconds ago at all.]

[firewalled]

[Okay, he totally didn't hear that. He didn't hear Jake 'Newly Out Pansexual' Dillinger call his freckles cute. And he's certainly not hyperventilating about it. No, he's just focusing on following Jake to the door and hoping his face doesn't look red.]



[The person inside the room at least looks half normal. A teenager only a little shorter than Jake and probably only a year or so older than the both of them, rummaging through some cupboards. He doesn't seem to notice them until he's managed to pull out a baking tray, and then, as he's turning to the oven, he catches their eyes.]

Oh! Hello, there. Sorry, I'll be out of your hair as quickly as possible!

[He's assuming they just want to use the kitchen.]

[jakeyd]

[Well, while Rich goes into full denial mode, Jake is busy wondering if this weird magic castle only teleports teenagers in. Somehow. But wait, what if this guy came in himself and they're the only ones that got dropped here without their injuries? Maybe this is some sort of weird alien situation. Oh shit he noticed them, okay Jake you can do this on the fly. No big deal.]

Oh! Nah dude we aren't here for the food--well, I mean, we wouldn't mind some, but uh...we just? [He rotates his hands slowly around each other as he tries to think of phrasing that won't make him sound completely insane.]

...Arrived? Here? But um, we'd kinda like to leave now? Could you like, draw us some directions to the exit or something?

[firewalled]

[You know, now that Rich looks, it is kind of weird that the first person they met is yet another teenager. But that's just something to wonder about later. For now, they need information. He nods along with Jake's explanation, while the stranger's eyes widen, and he offers a sad smile.]

Ah... I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were new here. I wish I could offer you what you're asking for but... all I can do is welcome you to the castle. Unfortunately, as far as we all can tell, there is no exit. We're stuck here.

The hell? But we were kidnapped!

[jakeyd]

[Jake puts a hand on Rich's shoulder to calm him down a little, and it's pretty clear he's thinking pretty hard on what they've just been told. "As far as we all can tell"?]

I think he means everyone here was kidnapped, dude. But like, how is there no exit? Can we just not leave the building? There's gotta be at least some windows or something, right?

[firewalled]

[Rich does relax, of course, feeling Jake's familiar touch, but even so, the stranger still seems distressed.]

You can leave the castle... just... not the island.

Wait, the fuck? We're on an island?

[Maybe they should have been looking out the windows.]

used 'pretty' too many times in the last 1, that's what I get for tagging tired

[jakeyd]

[Yeah, probably, but Jake's already made it pretty clear that he hadn't actually noticed the existence of anything aside from Rich in the past...what? Ten minutes? Fifteen? He'd forgotten the passage of time as well, it would seem.]

Oookay, I guess if someone can magically transport you to a castle it's not any weirder for the castle to be on an island. Uh...I bet there's no boats either, huh?

Re: used 'pretty' too many times in the last 1, that's what I get for tagging tired

[firewalled]

[Maybe to others, but Rich just assumed Jake was disoriented after being dumped here. He wouldn’t actually. Be staring at Rich or anything like that. That would just be ridiculous.

The stranger just shakes his head, eying Rich warily and assuming (correctly) he probably won’t like this news.]

No, unfortunately not. We aren’t exactly… in the ocean. I can show you, if you’d like.

[jakeyd]

['Ridiculous'? Wow Rich you are truly the thing standing in between you and dating Jake now.]

Uhh, sure? [Jake tilts his head a bit, confused. If it's not an island on an ocean, what is it on? A lake? Shouldn't that be even easier to escape from? He's pretty sure that if he had something that floats to rest on he could swim across even a huge lake.]

[firewalled]

[Well, of course he'd be the one ruining his own chances. He already kind of ruined his chances by taking the Squip and allowing himself to become such a huge asshole. Even if Jake forgives him, he doubts he'd be into the guy who burnt his house down.

Ryoji, meanwhile, just gives the two of them a guilty look and gestures to the window, which luckily has a nice view of the edge of the island, and the clouds surrounding it. Rich swears under his breath.]