Ben

“Damn right I do,” she laughed. “Have you seen me? We both know you miss hanging out with me. We always did know how to have fun.” Which was true. She was able to bring out the little wilder side of Benjamin Phillips. She also loved watching the girls flirt with him and then come in pretending to be his girlfriend. She would never tire of seeing his reaction. “Ah, see, I knew you wouldn’t let me live that one down.” Spencer teased. It was fine texting and talking, but nothing beat hanging in person. Especially with Atticus gone now, she could use a friend. “Of course there is a bar close by.” She knew all the bars and clubs. She was sure the both of them had tons to catch up on. “We can move your junk in and then go grab a beer…on me.” She smiled, picking up a box. “I thought I heard him in the halls. He must have lost a game or something.” She nodded her head. “I opened my own PR business. I moved away from teams. We can talk more over alcohol.”

He couldn’t deny that he did miss hanging with her. They had their fair share of interesting stories from all those times a quiet drink had turned into coming back home when the sun was back up. She was the best kind of bad influence on him and he loved it. “That sounds perfect” he started piling the smaller boxes one on top of the other jenga-style and carrying them into the apartment faster - the idea of a nice cold beer spurring him on. “You saving all the good stuff for when the alcohol comes out?” Ben was sure that the last time they’d spoken there’d been a mention of a guy but he knew better than to ask outright. Spencer was the kind of person where if she wanted to talk about it she would when she was ready. “Ready?” he asked, glancing around the apartment which now had everything inside but looked like a warzone, he was more than happy to leave the unpacking for hours yet. “Come show me this bar you were talking about.”

Caleb deadpan before a snort erupted. “We both know that is bullshit.” He turned the toy upside down and showed his brother the foot where he had craved in his initials. “Did’t know your initials were CP.” He wiggled his brows at his younger brother. “If I remember correctly, it was I who introduced you to the Hulk.” He wasn’t surprised with his brother’s next actions. He was beginning to wonder what other wrestling figures he had that were his. “I should help you unpack that box later.” He offered more assistance. “Of course I came to help you.” Truth, he was hoping to run into his brother once he was all moved in. “You can believe what you like.” He reached down to grab the box before following Benny boy into his apartment. “How was the move here? Did mom and dad give you the same hard time they gave me?”

“How did they get there” feigning confusion at the initials that were as clear as day and had been pointed out to him by his brother. “Weird.” But that didn’t stop him packing that box away quickly and dropping it into a corner of his apartment. “You introduced me to wrestlers in general, particularly your home-made attempts at their finishing moves!” 

Benny was one of the first people she met when she moved to LA, after university. He was someone she completely trusted. “I told you where I moved to. I would understand why you would want to move here.” She teased him. They always kept in touch. When she had a problem, she went to him. She raised a curious brow at him taking a few steps towards him. She laughed at his words. “We both know that is true.” Spencer hugged him back. She shook her head. She wasn’t in the mood to tell him about another failed relationship. She had decided it was best to stay away from those. “I decided to start my own company.” She thought best to start here. “I heard your brother lives here too.” 

“You think I moved here to follow you?” he asked incredulously, his serious expression melting away into his familiar smile knowing full well she was joking. Truth be told, he had missed having one of his best friends around, it wasn’t’ the same catching up over a few texts and the occasional phone call. “I actually moved all the way to Denver because you owe me a beer and I came to collect it” he did really want to check out what the bars were like around here. It would take a lot to compare to his favourites back home alongside the beach but he was more than willing to give it a try. It would be easier to catch up over a drink or two. He hadn’t told Spencer that he’d branched away from his brother’s company yet, the last time they’d spoke Caleb had been in the process of trying to branch out. “He sure is here, even if you haven’t seen him I’m sure you’ll have heard him by now” Ben laughed, nothing was as loud as Caleb when he died during a killstrike mission “But you have to tell me more about your company!

She nodded, “Well, I am the only one in here, so that explains the silence.” The blonde closed the lid of her laptop, standing up to refill her cup of coffee. “Hello, Ben. I figured I would be seeing you soon after running into your brother.” Nes smiled up at him. Though, she didn’t blame him for not recognizing her.

“That would probably be why..” he agreed, returning her smile with an amused nod. “You know my brother?” There was something he couldn’t quite place about her, she seemed familiar...but not. He did have the memory of a sieve which was usually his excuse for being so scatterbrained. “I didn’t interrupt you working, did I?” The room did seem like a great spot to catch up on work, not that he’d started at his new job yet.

Neslyn had found the figurine laying lonely on the hallway floor. Knowing someone must have dropped it on their way by. Though, seeing one of the apartment doors open the blonde decided to go see for herself. “I think you dropped something in the hall,” she questioned. Though, before he could even warn the blonde peered forward into the box. “Ah, so it is yours.” Nes held up the small figurine. “Suppose you will be wanting this back?” she chuckled softly examining the wrestling figure before placing it back in the box. “I think you have all the excuses of being messy since you’re just moving in.”

"I did?” Ben had that much stuff scattered everywhere it was hard to keep track of what was where. “Thanks” he said amusedly as he watched her place the the figurine back with the others “I guess my big secret is out - I’m a big wrestling nerd that never grew up.” He’d barely been here a day and already appreciated that everyone he’d come across had been more than welcoming. “ But you make a good point, at least for today I have an excuse to be messy, I think the faster I go the worse it gets” he couldn’t help it, Ben just wanted to get his stuff inside, he could unpack later. What he really wanted to do was see what was around. “Is there like, a coffee place or somewhere nearby?”

Moving day was always interesting for Nicias. Mainly due to the fact he often met with unfamiliar faces and strange personalities. Not that his was any better. The musician just liked the contrast. Upon looking into the box, spotting the figures–an expression of awe and curiosity etched itself into Nicias’ features. “Are you a collector or is this for leisure?” He asked, casting no judgment.

“Ha, I guess you could say both?” Ben shrugged, pleased with the lack of judgement. He knew it was a childish thing to keep hold of but they held such fond memories he couldn’t see himself letting go of his collection anytime soon. “It was for leisure, now I just collect them. Ever been a fan?” He continued to kick boxes through his front door as he made conversation with the friendly stranger. “I’m Ben, is it a fair assumption to say that you live here too?”

Neslyn found herself in the clubhouse once again, looking over emails. Sipping a cup of coffee as she scanned each one that contained no important content. Hearing the door open she curiously peered past her cup and towards the fellow resident. “Coffee’s fresh..There are some homemade beignets too.” The blonde gestured towards a table against the wall.

With no work until Wednesday Ben found himself wandering the apartment building exploring some of the features it had to offer. He wasn’t even intending to look in the clubhouse much further than just a glance around the doorway but the welcome greeting had persuaded him. “I thought I smelt something good!” He wandered over towards the table taking in the room as he went “It’s quiet in here..” he noted, he didn’t want to disturb her too much as the woman seemed busy but it’d been a quiet morning and he needed some interaction. “I’m Ben” he offered, as he got himself a mug of coffee.

“So… you called me over? What’s up?”

Spencer heard through the grape vine that a certain person had moved in. She had suspected he might come since his brother now lived in the building. She leaned against the wall and let him stammer a little. “Are you sure about that Benny?” She couldn’t help but smirk. “I have known you for a long time.” Her eyes averted to the box that sprung open and the wrestling figures in it. “You seriously brought those to Denver with you?” She shook her head. “I always knew I was the cool one from this friendship.”

That voice was unmistakable, Ben couldn’t mask the excitement at seeing his old friend in the hallway. “This is where you ended up?” He’d vaguely remembered the conversation they’d had about moving but he had to admit he knew they’d stay in touch via phones and so hadn’t been overly worried about taking down all the details of exactly where. His grin at seeing her faded as he faked confusement “You? The cool one?” He gestured to her to come over “C’mon here a sec, let me check you don’t have some kinda deliriousness-inducing temperature.” Really, it was an excuse to pull his old friend in for a hug. “Do I want to know what you’ve been up to with yourself?” he asked playfully.

“No, I was just going to tell you that when you were coming into the building, you dropped this,” Lilja held out a small box. She’d assumed it was his at least as she’d seen it right after the man had been passing by with stuff. Lilja wasn’t really one to snoop but sometimes curiosity got the better of her. She could tell the man was moving in and when she head him say don’t, her automatic response was to look. She saw the box and it’s contents before looking back up at the man, still holding out the box to him. “You are moving in?” she asked, her accent slight but tone curious.

“Thank-you” He said appreciatively reaching to take the box from her. With all the hustle and bustle he’d barely been keeping track of his stuff. Being organised wasn’t a strong-suit of his. However, as he realised what the box was his eyes widened and he became more energetic “You are a lifesaver! Had this gone missing I’d have stayed inside and sulked for weeks.” And he was only half-joking. As he opened the box and exposed its contents to her revealing a bunch of HDMI cables entwined around his collection of TV and PlayStation controllers. “Look, see. All the important things in life. For that, I definitely owe you.” He smiled, nodding in response to her question “What gave it away?” His brother was yet to show his face and he liked having someone to talk to in the completely new environment. “Are you busy right now?

Caleb knew when Benjamin was moving in. He was more than thrilled his brother decided to move to Denver. Glad to have the help to start up the company here. Ben had a brilliant mind, not that he would ever admit it; it was some older brother code to make sure he knocked his brother down a few notches. “This is tame compared to what you can do.” He chuckled, his eyes glancing down at the box. It was the first wrestler he saw on top. “Hey, isn’t that mine.” He walked over and scooped it up. “Why do you have my Hulk Hogan?”