#ca open

“...Ah, who m’kiddin’. Y’couldn’t miss me! Not even in a crowd of me’s! Ahahaha!”

“Now, I know what y’thinkin’. Dante, my man, y’ve been real quiet lately. Where y’ve been, ol’ buddy, ol’ pal? N’ y’right, I’ve been as quiet as a mouse these days, n’ let’s face it, that just ain’t me — but all y’true believers, y’ Adderal poppin’, 5 hour energy bingin’, graveyard shift grindin’ night owls, y’know I didn’t go nowhere, don’t y’? ‘Course. S’why I love y’. Never stop lookin’ f’that caffeine fix, Joe.”

“Nah, just had t’take it easy f’a bit. Kick back with my bro— hey, shout out to my bro, ‘cause I know you’re up, y’zombie, I swear t’Moses in a manger— n’, y’know, do some soul searchin’. Well, s’much soul searchin y’can do in this hell hole. So, y’know, that kind of thing. S’real snoozefest, trust me.”

“Anyway, ‘nuff ‘bout me. Who cares ‘bout me? I mean, s’not everyday y’get t’see th’world end! S’one night only kind of deal, y’feel me?”

“...A—ahaha, damn, s’pretty dark, huh? I— uh—”

“...Shit. Jesus.”

“...Y’know, I. I gotta be real here. I ain’t sheddin’ one tear f’this fucked up wannabe Thunderdome. Y’wanna know how I feel? Couldn’t have happened to a nicer city. There. That’s how I feel.”

“N’ whatever happens—”

“... N’ whatever happens, happens. I— I ain’t afraid of what’s on th’other side of Carol Ann’s T.V. Never been. Can’t be worse than sittin’ around in this hell hole, that’s f’sure.”

“But man, m’gonna miss y’guys.”

“...B—but, hey, who knows? Maybe it ain’t goodbye. Maybe it’s— just— ‘see y’, Space Cowboy.’”

Showing off his body to all the gorgeous ladies in swimsuits, obviously! And yes, Travis DID have muscles, doubters. All of that fighting he did on a daily basis made for some killer exercise. Finally, right here, in front of everyone, it could pay off! Y’know, aside from helping him win fights. 

But first, that Vegeta shirt had to come off. Dramatically. 

Arms bent at Travis’ sides, angled outward. Fists clenched tight. Knees apart. People looking on, more than a few babes included. Good. Preparations were complete. 

Travis yelled. A primal, shonen-anime-warrior-kind of yell. And he flexed. Dear lord, did he flex. It was the perfect set-up for a “tear off the shirt through goddamn will” moment. 

Only nothing happened. 

“...” 

He tried again. Nothing happened. I mean, you could see the muscles underneath the form-fitting shirt. But dammit, that wasn’t what Travis wanted! 

This was going horribly! At this rate, he might as well have torn the shirt off by hand! 

“... Fuck it!” And so, Travis did. 

It of course, of all things ended up being a white hoodie and black swimtrunks with a skull motif. 

...Opening a poolside shop in a little beach tent. At least he was dressed in theme, and not in his usual frumpy attire.

“Don’t look at me like that. Bathing suits snap, break, or tear sometimes anyway.”

Calling it a ‘shop’ was pretty generous, considering the price of most of the items were laughably inexpensive.

“Did you need something?”

It’s ironic how this makes him more dress than usual when he floats in through the gate with an appropriately Star Platinum sized beach towel draped over his shoulder. Ok, so he sewed four vintage beach towels together. He ought to survey the area first, but he spots someone he recognizes and heads over to say hello, pushing his bangs out of his eyes with a pair of chunky sunglasses. That was a mistake since now he’s lifting them up and flipping them around so they can see what he’s dramatically pointing at.

“This happens about every month or so.” “I just stay at my mother’s while the house repairs itself.” “This is the first time I’ve seen you trying to help. This must be new to you, huh kid?”

Hell, the NPCs seemed to want to comfort Anda more than the other way around (likely because of the tears...) Most were generally grateful for the help, like an elderly lady thanking a child for helping her cross a road. No casualties were reported. It was all so... heartbreakingly routine for everyone, if the ankle-deep sea of sorrow said anything about it.

As the shuttle buses came to transport the temporarily deposed, Anda joined them, hitching a ride to Vario before slouching into the sheltered bench stop. Soaked, reeking of fire, soot staining the cuffs of their jeans...