hey tiger

He looked up from the textbook he was pretending to be reading, “Chem?” The tone of his voice was surprised, like he’d ever be caught dead taking a science class again. “Oh hello no, I do not fuck with Chem. This is why you’re crazy. Clearly.” Santino placed his textbook down on the table and began to fumble through his bag, managing to find a small cologne he’d left in his bag for moments like this and a pill bottle. “Take two of these and-” He suggested, spraying the male besides him, “I’m sorry, you smell like freshman year. It was giving me flashbacks.” A single chill ran down his spine. Those were dark times. “What did I tell you? If you can’t drink on the weekdays, don’t.” Offering a laughing, Santino shook his head, “It’s been interesting to watch, though.”

“It’s organic chem,” JJ added, as if he were announcing the toxicity of a snake. He propped his chin in his hands just in time to get spritzed with drug store Armani. He blinked slowly, unphased-- or rather too trashed to be bothered to dodge the plumes of masculinity and synthetic testosterone. 

“I ain’t no quitter. The guys were going so I kept up. I must’ve had a dozen picklebacks. My body’s gonna last forever once I’m dead with the amount of vinegar I drank.”

“how is it that you always manage to do this?” kai teased, shaking his head at the boy in front of him. “you know, i’m going to have to start charging you for this shit soon.” the boy’s words were still playful, fully knowing that the boy was trying to get over a hangover. kai respected him nonetheless, he’d had some pretty rough nights himself that carried on to the morning, so how could he not help a friend in need? 

@tigermckinnon​

“Charge me whatever you want, man. You and Lav are lifesavers.” JJ couldn’t deny the relief he felt at Kai’s concession. Pre-med was proving itself the kind of beast that he couldn’t believe he was taking on every time he showed up for a class. Just the thought of it made him want to slam another jagerbomb. 

“Sometimes I can’t believe they haven’t kicked me out yet,” he admitted, sitting upright to retrieve his books. “And there’s four more years after this one. Minimum. Beats me how anyone does it.”

sydney could smell the boy from a few tables away, it was obvious to her that the boy was now trying to cram. “i’m not.” she told him before lightly shaking her head. “don’t you think it would be smart to take care of your smell and hangover first? you’re distracting yourself and everyone else.”

@tigermckinnon​

JJ groaned, dropping his head in between the bracket of his arms and deflating as Sydney chided him, her voice nothing more than another jab at his throbbing skull. He could hardly smell himself but he sniffed his t-shirt anyway. 

“I’m fine,” he insisted, yanking himself upright with a renewed sense of purpose. “I just need to make it to Christmas break. Do you know anyone in Chem?”

Lavender was in the student’s lounge when she heard someone open the door, lifting her head to see JJ joining her smelling like tequila. “Can I ask what were you doing before coming here?” She raised her eyebrows at him. After three years in college, she thought he would learn to deal with alcohol and parties only on the weekends. “Yes, I am taking Chem 2220. And, yes, lucky, you, I did my homework. You came to the right person. Honestly, what would you do without me?” The blonde joked with a soft chuckle.

“You’re a godsend,” JJ told her, shoulders sloping in relief as he sat up to sidle up to her. It was a good question that he asked himself frequently as his bad habits doubled and tripled themselves through the school years. College wasn’t the good time people made it out to be. Pre-med was even worse if the alcoholic fumes wafting off of him on a Thursday didn’t say it all.

“I don’t know but I’m glad I don’t have to find out,” he said, kissing her temple. “I was sleeping. Honest. It’s just things ran late with the guys this morning. Really late. So late that it was morning by the time it was all over.”

JJ looked at her earnestly. “I don’t do this all the time, I swear.”

JJ slumped over the arm of the chair in the student’s lounge, reeking mildly of tequila and pickle juice.

“Please tell me you’re taking Chem 2220. I can’t remember if I did the homework. I don’t know where my notes are,” he said. “Please tell me you did yours.”

[ & ; * - kj apa / (closeted) homosexual / he/him ] isn’t it weird how close { JJ “Tiger” McKinnon } resembles { kj apa }? damn, i heard they are a { twenty-one } year old { undergraduate } and a member of { zeta lambda epsilon } studying { pre-med }. outside of class { tiger } participates in { football, boxing & water polo } and their party anthem is { West Coast Smoker } by { Fall Out Boy }. — j / 21+ / they/them / pst 

TW: War, military, PTSD, gun implication