Chapter Text
— 2021 —
The two of you giggled as you recalled the events that happened on Saint Patrick's Day fifteen years ago.
"You looked like a deer in headlights," Yasper said in between laughs.
"Aye, so were you, pal," you pointed out with a smile. "You were so quick to remove your arm around me."
"Gosh, I cannot believe how obvious we were back then," he said, shaking his head before leaning back, feeling more relaxed.
"Wait, actually?" you asked, surprised.
Yasper smirked in amusement as he looked at you. "Yes. Basically everyone on the campus can sense it," he answered. "Even Aniq."
"Well, obviously," you replied. "He caught us almost kissing."
"But," he interjected, playfully wiggling his eyebrows. "He didn't catch us actually doing it. Nobody did."
Your lips curled into a mischievous grin.
— 2006 —
"Dumbass Eugene," Aniq grumbled as he looked through the window where Zoe and Brett, a man who is a total player, could be seen. "This is all his fault."
You and Yasper shared a look, feeling pity for your friend for missing his shot. Aniq told the two of you that Xavier suddenly pushed him in the pool earlier, and then some strange guy handed him the gray tank top that he's currently wearing.
"Okay, you know what?" Yasper said, trying to distract Aniq. "Let's not play the blame game, all right? He's had a weird night as well."
Aniq suddenly pulled out a huge pitcher containing a light blue alcohol. How the hell did you not notice that he's been carrying that the whole time?
"Woah, Aniq! Slow down," you said, voicing your concern before nudging Yasper using your elbow, a silent way of asking him to back you up.
"Big bubbles," Yasper commented as he watched his friend take big gulps of alcohol, causing some bubbles to appear in the liquid. "Those are big bubbles. Make them tiny."
Aniq finally stopped, closing his eyes and letting out a big burp, which made Yasper grimace.
"Ugh, you okay?" he asked.
"I just wanna head home and cry myself to sleep," Aniq replied before looking at the two of you. "I've had enough of this party."
"Yeah, let's bail," you agreed, glancing at Yasper for a moment before gazing back at Aniq. "I need to sober up anyway."
Before either of the two men could respond, you hear Jennifer 2, one of the Jennifer twins with a foul attitude, talking behind you.
"Oh, there she is," she hissed, which made you turn around. There, you saw Chelsea stumbling outside of the house. "Hey, you hoe-bag. I heard you had sex with Eugene."
Jennifer 2's directness had you floored, your mouth slightly agape. You stood frozen, forced to watch the argument that was about to ensue.
"Oh, my God, what are you saying? Shut up," Chelsea replied, her movements wobbly.
"You shut up," Jennifer 2 snapped. "You shut your lying Monica Lewinsky mouth."
You, Aniq, and Yasper quietly watched the two women with fascination. Other people stopped and observed as well, interested in where the confrontation was heading.
"You stand here, in front of a jury of your peers, and you try and tell me you didn't just hook up with Eugene in front of all the most important people—"
"Oh, my God, what?" Chelsea replied, confused. "Oh, no..."
"—in your life, Chelsea!" Jennifer 2 continued, talking over the other woman.
You dissociated, your head hurting from the alcohol you consumed earlier along with the argument in front of you. You were only pulled back to reality when Chelsea projectile-vomited on Jennifer 2's chest, making the crowd, including your friends, gasp in horror.
Yasper gagged, looking away from the scene. "I can't watch people puking," he told you. "Makes me sick."
"Man, what the fuck is happening?" you questioned, lost in the sequence of events that just occurred.
"I don't know, but I felt like my stomach just turned inside out," Yasper replied before clinging to you. You placed a hand on his back, caressing it to offer comfort.
"Oh, come on. You're being dramatic," Aniq protested as he looked at Yasper. "Let's just go home, you guys."
Then suddenly, a music familiar to Aniq's ears started playing inside the house. "Yasper!" he gasped. "What are the odds?"
The two of you looked at him. "Of what?" Yasper asked, still close to you.
"This is Zoe's favorite song," Aniq answered, his expression hopeful.
"Woah, crazy coincidence," you replied with a grin.
"This is a sign," he said with a huge smile on his face.
Yasper laughs. "You're drunk, dude," he responded, snapping the other man from his fantasy.
As the two of your friends chatted, you glanced at the doorway and made eye contact with the man you and Yasper had been avoiding: Xavier.
Xavier sneered at the sight of Yasper clinging to you, which caught Aniq's reaction.
"Stay away from me, Eugene," he warned as he glared at the man.
"It's Xavier," Xavier corrected him before turning towards the window. "Hey, not sure if you noticed, but Brett's eating your girl's face in there."
There, the three of you saw Brett and Zoe passionately making out on the sofa.
"Yeah, I guess if you hadn't slipped and fallen in the pool that would be you right now," Xavier added with a mocking pout. He shot one last nasty glare at you and Yasper before patting Aniq's chest and walking away.
You ignored Xavier and focused on Aniq, who stood still and quiet, watching Zoe and Brett kiss with an unreadable expression.
"Hey Aniq, ignore what that dick just said," you told your friend. "He's provoking you."
"Don't listen to him, man," Yasper added in a low and serious tone. "You okay, dude?"
It seemed like Aniq didn't register what you and Yasper just said as he stormed inside the house, leaving the two of you alone.
"Aniq," Yasper called out, but the man in question didn't look back. "Aniq."
"High school."
The two of you looked at the weird man who spoke, wearing nothing but a bathrobe, that seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
"Why are you wearing a robe?" Yasper questioned, to which the man struggled to respond.
Before letting the dude have a chance to reply, you placed both of your hands on Yasper's shoulders, catching his attention.
"Yasper, we gotta shake some sense into Aniq before he gets himself into trouble," you told him.
You hear commotion inside of the house, which makes you and him panic. The two of you quickly shared a look before sprinting towards the front yard.
Your eyes widened as you saw Aniq carrying a bat and walking towards Xavier's new car.
"Aniq, what are you doing?" Yasper called out, the panic in his voice evident. "Buddy? Hey, bud?"
"Aniq, oh my god, stop!" you exclaimed as you ran to him, but Yasper held you back. "Dude, let go! He's about to destroy an expensive car! He cannot afford to pay for damages!"
"He has a bat and he's blinded by rage," your friend replied calmly. "As much as I love him, he might end up hurting you."
"No, no, no," you heard Zoe's voice. "Wait, no!"
But it was too late. With one big swing, Aniq hit the car's hood, causing a massive dent. Everyone collectively exclaimed a loud "ooh!"
Yasper buried his head on your shoulder, refusing to look, as your other friend continued to bash and wreck Xavier's car.
"Aniq, enough, please!" you yelled, Yasper's grip preventing you from coming closer. "Even with me, you, and Yasper's money combined, we cannot pay for that shit!"
No one dared to stop him, not when he was aggressively swinging the bat. All of you, with Yasper peeking at your shoulder, watched as Aniq destroyed both side mirrors of the car.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!?!"
Xavier sprinted and jumped on Aniq's back, pulling the man away from his beaten car.
Yasper pulled away from you as he watched in horror. "No, no, no, don't fight! Don't fight!"
Only you, Yasper, and probably Zoe protested. The rest of your schoolmates chanted "fight!" on repeat as the two men stumbled on the grass. Xavier got off of Aniq's back and placed his fists in front of him, ready to throw some punches.
"Wanna do this?" Aniq said, in his fighting stance as well.
"Yeah!" the other man replied before kicking in the air pathetically. "You ready for this?"
"I'ma jack you up!" Aniq exclaimed.
It was your turn to hold Yasper back as he was getting too close to the two men, afraid that he might hurt himself.
"Yo, make contact, you pussy," you heard Brett say. "If you're gonna fight, fight."
Then, Aniq started spinning with his arms wide open, which left you baffled.
"No, that's my move! You know that's my move!" Xavier exclaimed before following Aniq, spinning wildly.
"Are you dancing or fighting?" Yasper questioned, just as puzzled as you are.
"AAAAH!" the two men screamed loudly before slapping each other's hands like how children would fight.
"Hey guys, this fight sucks," Brett commented. "Fucking hit him!"
Meanwhile, you just stood there, completely bewildered and wondering how you got in this situation.
"Guys, come on! We're friends," Yasper said, desperately trying to break up the fight. "Everybody's friends."
Suddenly, you heard a loud siren blaring in the neighborhood. You and Yasper looked up and saw a police car approaching the house.
"Cops," Yasper said, unsure if he wants to run away and hide or save Aniq from getting caught by the police. "Aniq, cops!"
The crowd quickly dispersed, running and hiding in different directions. You grabbed Yasper's hand and dragged him away from the scene.
"I'm sorry, man, but we tried stopping him multiple times!" you told him while the two of you were running away, finding a hiding spot.
You and Yasper managed to hide inside a group of comically large bushes, both of you panting from exhilaration.
"Man, what a night," you whispered, trying to look at what's happening to your friend Aniq, but the leaves and branches were too thick to see anything.
Then, you stopped and realized that your face is extremely close to Yasper's. One wrong move and your lips would touch his.
He whispered your name, which made your heart jump. "About earlier when I said I want to confess something..."
"Mm-hmm?" you replied, swallowing nervously.
Yasper didn't utter any more words. Instead, he closed the gap between the two of you and planted a quick kiss on your lips before pulling away.
"I—" he said, but fell silent when you leaned in once again, silently asking for more. He slowly closed his eyes, and both of your lips touched.
It was unlike Zoe and Brett's extreme makeout session earlier. The kiss you shared with Yasper felt pure and innocent, which you adored.
— 2021 —
You grinned as your memory reminded you of the intimate moment you shared with Yasper. You didn't realize that the two of you had been sitting closely.
"Good times," you whispered, looking at the empty field in front of you. "I just wish we never drifted apart after high school, you know?"
Yasper stretched his arms before putting one of them around your shoulders. "Well," he said casually. "We could start over, if that's what you want."
Your head snapped towards the man beside you, your eyes wide at his statement. "Huh?"
Yasper chuckled before leaning his face closer to yours. "You know what I always say to myself?" he asked, looking into your eyes. "We all get one shot twice, and well, this is me shooting my second shot. So, what do you say?"
"Yasper?"
Startled, you and Yasper pulled away from one another, the romantic tension quickly dissipating. Both of you turned your heads to the source of the voice in unison.
Zoe and Aniq stood three benches away from the two of you. You noted that Aniq is carrying a bottle of alcohol while Zoe holds two glasses.
"Aniq, buddy!" Yasper exclaimed enthusiastically, returning to his earlier state, cheerful and full of energy. "Nice to see you as well, Zoe. Nice dress, by the way."
"Sorry, was this a bad time? We hope we're not interrupting something," Zoe asked, her voice apologetic.
"No, no," you quickly denied before holding Yasper's hand, wrapping your fingers around his. "We were just catching up, but we're about to head out anyway."
"Yeah, see you later pal!" Yasper exclaimed as you pulled him away, leaving the two lovebirds alone.
You and Yasper walked in an empty school hallway while holding hands, unsure of where to go.
"So, do we head back in the gymnasium?" you asked, looking at Yasper for his opinion.
"Eh, to be honest, I don't have the energy to mingle anymore," he replied before pulling out his car keys using his free hand. "Wanna see my car instead?"
"Okay," you answered with a grin, as if you didn't think his car was ugly earlier. "Lead the way."