let the water not complain.

“What?” She asked, her eyes widening. “It’s Wednesday isn’t it?” Violet could feel herself starting to freak out. “Please tell me it’s wedenseday because otherwise I stayed up all night writing that freaking paper for nothing because I had another day to do it…” Her eyes went to the glass and she smirked at him. “Is it? Considering how fashionable Adderall and Ritalin arw with wayward students now I would’ve thought you’d encourage Red Bull.” She joked, drinking the whole glass in two big gulps. “Oh it was a YA but a pretty good one at that. It’s called Six of Crows.” She rolled her eyes. “A paper in Victorian literature and it’s influence on post modern writers.” The brunette quirked an eyebrow. “Oh. What did they add now?”

Atticus’ mind didn’t immediately consider checking his phone for the date, no, he reached into his case and pulled out his planner; breathing out in relief as his eyes fell on the page his marker had been left on. “Wednesday.” He stated with a slight frown. “I know better than to lecture you on how much easier it would be to split your workload over the week–” Atty backtracked, looking at the pen he had just used to stir his coffee with. “–that was what I did when I was your age. Don’t end up like me.” He rubbed his face with his hands in an effort not to groan. “Don’t remind me. You know how many of them try knocking on my door and take me for a dispensary. Red Bull does not like me.” He’d only tried it a handful of times in his life and the absolute crash that followed the energy spike wasn’t worth it. “I’ve heard of it, I think. What’s it about?” Atticus chuckled at her reaction. “Is it bad I want to read it? I’m sure you made something awe-inspiring during what seems to be an out of body experience.” He scratched the side of his beard and let himself fall back on the chair. “My mentor was under the impression he had arranged for my last year as a resident, this one, could be taken as my fellowship year as well. Apparently that is not the case.”

Astrid shrugged, watching him struggle with the phone before he finally looked up at her again. “Yeah, I’m fine. No broken bones or bruised egos here.” Her head tilted to one side. “Though I’m not sure the same can be said for you. You sure you’re okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“That’s good. Good.” He nodded in relief and offered her a smile that still had an uneasy edge to it. “Yes, uh, it’s not that. I probably would’ve turned into one.” Atticus felt his shoulders slowly relax. “I just had the screen fixed; it’s shameful how many times I lose my grip.”

THE MISC CHALLENGE || More about Atticus

Atta let her shoulders fall as she realized who’s stopped her. “Because I always win?” she teased, eyes sparkling. “I’s so satisfying, being right all the time.” She pulled her purse strap up higher on her shoulder. “Neverland is havng a buy one, get one day today, want to go there?”

“You could write a memoir.” Atticus chuckled, glad he had decided to reach out to Atta. It was a nice day and she was always terrific company. “All of us, as ill-starred as we are, might learn a thing or two.” He scratched his beard and squinted his eyes at her. “Does that mean you didn’t agree with me when I said there was a fifty-fifty chance?” Atty nodded, evidently delighted at the suggestion. “Neverland it is. I’ve been meaning to buy some of their amaranth cookies for a while now.”

“we could always go back to the usual?”

The words hit Bernie more than they were probably intended. There was nothing more that Bernie wanted than for things to go back to ‘the usual’ when it came to the two. It wasn’t an unrealistic dream; it was, however, one that Bernie was having a hard time allowing himself to achieve. Time and time again, Bernie had tried his hardest to push past the selfish feelings he was (for some reason) still clinging on to. Never had he wished for a time machine as often as he did since the day he was delivered the news of Atticus and Louie dating. The words that were left unsaid were dying to be said, yet, he knew he could never have told them even if he had that time machine—especially knowing what he knew now. On the inside, he had felt as though he was going through his inner turmoil for longer than the seconds that had passed since Atticus asked the question, and Bernie settled on being selfish for the evening. “The usual sounds perfect.” He sincerely replied, offering a warm smile. Sure there was an awkward feeling around the guy, there was no doubt about that, but Bernie was still a sucker for his friends smile, and the idea of them being able to be ‘normal’ for even a short moment sounded like just what he needed. Not to mention, it seemed scarier, and more thrilling than any ride (or food) at the carnival could offer.

“I haven’t been here for too long. If I’m honest, though, I lost track of time the moment the sun went down, and the carnival lights went up.” He admitted, laughing a bit. “What can I say? I’ve been taking this entire ‘summer vacation’ thing a bit too literal, I guess. I honestly don’t even know the day of the week at the moment, and it’s a bit refreshing. I think that kind of answers your other question about how I’ve been.” He was partly lying at the end, but if he were to address the question directly, then he feared their interaction wouldn’t make it to their usual spot, and he at least wanted that. “Enough about me, tell me about you. How have you been old friend?”

The deep, long sigh of relief that wanted to come out of him had to be replaced by a heartfelt. “Wonderful.” Over the past few minutes, Atticus’ stomach had woven itself into a small knot that was slowly loosening; though he knew better than to keep all of his hopes up, he felt like he was treading on thin ice. For the most part, ever since Louie and him had broken the news about their relationship, he had been painfully aware of the slow but sure change in their dynamic. His younger brother is dating his best friend, Atticus. Two people that, for a considerable amount of years practically thought they couldn’t stand each other, are now together. There had not been a follow-up conversation to that day, he knew the words lingered over their heads and, being a shame for his profession, he was afraid to be the one that touched the difficult subject. Whatever Bernie was feeling was valid and he could not force anything out of him. Atticus thought, a few too many times for his liking, about going to Bernie’s place and setting the record straight... no opener was good enough for him to even begin, he feared he would be pouring salt on a wound. He wasn’t surprised that there was a space between them, but it didn’t mean it hurt any less to feel as if he had lost his best friend. “You paint a good picture of your day. I-uh, the Carnival does have more charm to it in the evening that it does earlier in the day.” He replied with slight worry, hoping that Bernie wouldn’t find it odd that he was giving their environment so much thought.  “In times like these, I’d agree that calendars are overrated.” Atty chuckled and gave the man a look. “Does that mean you’re finally taking that break you’ve been putting off since 2015?” He teased with a warm smile, looking at the street ahead of them. “If that is the case, I’m glad to hear it. It’s well-deserved.” Atticus cleared his throat, taking notice of how good it felt to hear the words old friend again. “I am on the last year of my thesis and that is something I too regret putting off for the last couple of months.” He said truthfully, scratching his beard. “It’s quite sad to think that it was only 10 years ago that pulling an all-nighter with one single pot of coffee was a feasible idea.”

Kiara took Atty’s hands and made her way onto her shoulders. Truth be told she hadn’t done that in a long time either, sitting on somebody’s shoulders. It made her feel like a child again without a worry in the world. “Rock climbing would be fun. Last time I did it though I could barely make it to the top.” She grinned. “Wow. Totally new perspective from this height. But I am gonna need you to walk a little closer to the tree.”

“I’ve never been. You’ll be able to run– climb, circles around me.” He replied with a chuckle, making sure his hands were safely holding Kiara in place as he took slow but certain steps towards the tree. “Next time I’ll climb up yours.” Atty teased, coming to a stop in front of the branch were the cat was looking at them, it looked like it was close enough to reach. “On second though, perhaps it’s better it sees you; you’re easy to trust.” He looked up, making certain Kiara could safely proceed with the impromptu rescue.

There was a high strength within Bernie that prevented him from automatically wincing the moment he heard Atticus’ voice. To say he felt awkward around his former best friend was an understatement. He had built a visible wall between them from the moment he found out about him dating his brother. Despite how close the two had once been,  he did no longer felt like being around Atticus as much. However mad he may have been at Atticus, it didn’t matter, he still replied with a gentle tone, “Hey.” He turned to meet Atticus’ gaze, giving him a small smile in return. As his friend offered to join him, he almost wanted to reply with something about Louie but simply kept the little smile on his face and nodded. “You sure you’re not busy tonight?” He asked, turning around to look at the line when the other pointed it out, frowning a little. The idea of standing in a long line with the other male just did not seem like the best use of whatever short time they were about to spend together. Not to mention, Bernie no longer felt like being around people. “Maybe not the ride. We can grab some food, though.” He said with a soft sigh, turning back to look at Atticus. “You can pick the food. You know me, terrible with deciding on what I want to eat.”

Though he still felt as if his shoulders were still tense and it was hard for him to maintain eye contact with the other man for more than a couple of seconds, he was grateful to see even the hint of a smile on Bernie’s face. “Not at all. I’m down to the last quarter of my thesis and I needed a break.” Atticus responded calmly, thinking it had been a while since the two of them had spent some time together– not that he was wondering why that had happened. He was happy to at least get a moment with his friend. “How about you? Have you been here long?” Yes, granted. It was a dumb question but he had to start somewhere. Atty gave the ride a look before returning his attention to Bernie. “S-sounds good, I could eat.” He nodded and scratched the back of his neck, not really in the mood for something sweet. “I hear the corndogs here are quite good– uh, if not we could always go back to the usual?” The thought of a certain restaurant crossed his mind, it was open 24/7 and had just about any non-gourmet food on the menu; he couldn’t count the amount of hours nor money they’ve spend there during their college years. “My treat.” He smiled as a peace offering of an afternoon he hoped would turn for the best.

Kiara turned and smiled at Atticus; he was always looking out for her, even if he didn’t need to. “Something leads me to believe you haven’t climbed a tree in a very long time,” she grinned, getting a foothold at the base of the tree. She turned to him and sighed. She didn’t like to make him worry. “Yeah, okay, that sounds like a good idea.” She got back on the ground, waiting for him to help her up. “If I’m being honest, I haven’t climbed a tree in quite a while either.”

“And you would be correct.” Atty chuckled softly, he scratched the back of his head as he took a good look at the tree. Granted, it could be an easy climb for anyone that knew the right moves... he still couldn’t shake off the worry from what would happen after a fall to the ground. He’d already had his fair share of disasters when he was younger. “Teamwork. Great.” He smiled gratefully at Kiara as she agreed, kneeling down and offering his hands out so she could safely make her way up. “It sounds like we could benefit from that rock climbing wall at the community center.” He replied with a light in his eyes.

Atticus splashed the cold water on his face until he could feel something beside his own nerves. He sighed as he looked into the mirror and then the clock on his phone; it’d be a matter of moments before Louie would get to the apartment and they’d have around... moments before Bernie showed up as well. 

There was a strange feeling at the pit of his stomach, and he knew it couldn’t be blamed entirely on nervousness about breaking the news to Bernie…there was a considerable amount of another rush in his veins; he could deem it as excitement, it truly was a rare something for him, looking forward for something so much as he did that moment. He wasn’t sure how his best friend would take to what the nature of the relationship between him and Louie had become. In a deep corner of his mind, though he was mildly concerned about the outcome and the last thing he wanted was to add further strain between the brothers, or between Bernie and himself; he knew it would all be worth it in the end. 

They still had to talk things over, but what they had been going through for the past few months felt so natural that it just felt fair to let things run their course. He knew he cared for Louie, he always had; but it was about time he admitted to himself that was not all there was to it. It was all good going on better and Atticus knew that was about the second time in his life he could’ve ever said that. Looking back, Atty would’ve never thought things would have gone down that way with Louie. Even if there was always a certain something between the two of them, he believed the thoughts he kept to himself would have just stayed in his mind; he thought any further sentiment to them wouldn’t be reciprocated. For him, it was nice being wrong for a change.

The sound of the doorbell pulled him back as he finished buttoning his shirt up, hurriedly making his way to the front door of his apartment to open it; Atty smiled warmly at the man standing behind it. “Morning, Lou.”

@the-berlioz-mess​ @bernie-berlioz​

Louie turned back to him with a grin. “What’s that I heard about learning again?” He asked, wiggling his eyebrows jokingly. “Nah, it’s more fun to get hammered somewhere else and have you pick me up and carry me to your house.” He replied with a wink, placing a hand on the small of his back as he moved along. The young man scoffed, giving him an offended look. “You beat me once, don’t get too cocky now, Mr. Schnapps.” He replied. “What if we make it more interesting and bet on it, huh?” He asked as they sat down in front of the tv, waving around at some newcomers. “Make it a little more interesting.” He added with a devious little smile. 

“As long as you weren’t hurt.” Atty said softly, leaning down quickly to steal a kiss from him. He still remembered that one night, he would’ve never forgiven himself if he hadn’t picked up the phone and found out what had happened. “Besides, I know this is your place but, who says I wouldn’t do that anyway?” The roll of his eyes came as naturally as he followed him. “No one that is called Mr. Schnapps can ever pretend to be cocky.” He chuckled and sat down, pretending to get lost in thought at the offer as he handed off one of the controllers. “I wonder what’s on your mind, Lou.” Atticus replied with his best inquisitive voice, though his eyes– and the sudden rush of blood, betrayed his bashfulness. He extended his hand to Louie and smiled. “Best out of five?”

Kiara followed Atticus’s line of sight to see a cat sitting in a tree. “Aren’t we supposed to call the fire department or something?” she joked, surprised that this was a thing that happened in real life. How did the cat even get up there? “Hold my bag, I’m going up to get it,” she stated, determined.

“Should we?” He asked sincerely. “I could imagine the least they need is something that sounds like a pra– oh.” Atty took the bag and looked at Kiara with slight alarm. “M-maybe I should climb up there, I don’t want you to get hurt.” Yes, the cat wasn’t that far up but he wouldn’t allow anything– not even a scratch, to happen to Kiara. “I could hoist you up on my shoulders? That way you don’t have to worry about gripping on anything and I’d help stabilize.”

Louie snickered, moving closer to him and placing a hand on the small of his back. “Does it?” He asked, leaning closer to is ear, “Do you know how to carry them properly now or do you need help?” He asked in a huskier tone before stepping back to meet some more guests. When he turned back to Atty he grinned. “Don’t worry I don’t plan on drinking too much tonight. I got my old GameCube out and connected it to the little tv in the living room so we gotta keep an eye on that. We can play a while!” 

“There’s a thing or two I wouldn’t mind learning again.” He managed to reply– though it probably looked at he was talking to himself; he settled the boxes down on the counter before looking for some space in the fridge... the statement made him raise his eyebrows. “Really now? I thought you’d take advantage of the fact you’re already in your place.” Atticus teased and turned around to arrange some of the cans. “Great idea.” He briefly turned over his shoulder and smiled at Louie. “It’s been too long since I crushed you on Rainbow Road.”