Our Red and Blue Dynamic

Reki

I woke up feeling more exhausted than when I fell asleep. I rubbed my face and groaned, wishing I could go back to sleep and not have to deal with the day ahead of me. I rolled over and turned my phone on to see I was up an hour before my alarm was to go off, and that I had missed text messages from Joe.

Why was Joe texting me at one in the morning?

I opened up the messages and saw that I had been the one who contacted him first.

Geez, how tired was I to not remember that?

Me: Joe, I need ur help

Joe: What's up

Joe: Don't leave me hangin

Joe: You better answer as soon as you wake up then

I quickly sent off a message apologizing for not answering, explained that I needed to talk, and asked him if he was busy. He responded within five minutes, saying that he was at work, but I could stop by as long as I didn't pester him much. I leapt out of bed and started getting ready, throwing on a hoodie and jeans and put my hair up in a bandana. I started off out of my room and turned around to make sure I didn't forget anything, my eyes settling on my desk.

I considered the photo I kept of Langa and me for a moment. I walked over to it, picking it up and looked at it for a while.

How am I gonna fix this? Hopefully Joe has some advice, he knows people much better than I do. 

I went to set the picture back down, then glanced at the sticky notes on my desk. An idea popped into my head and I grabbed a sharpie, scribbled down a note, and stuck it to the photo. I tucked it away neatly into my bag and made my way out of the house. I was up early enough that the twins hadn't woken up yet and my mom was still in her room getting ready for the day. I wrote out a note on the whiteboard in the kitchen letting her know that I was heading out early. Just as I was about to open the front door, my sister popped up behind me.

"Where are you off to so early?" I jumped and whirled around, coming face to face with Koyomi.

"School, why are you sneaking around?" I asked, steadying my heart.

"I'm not, I was reading in the living room. Are you going to see Langa?"

My face flushed. "What? No! Not that it's any of your business. Anyway, I gotta go." I hurried out the door, ignoring the barrage of questions Koyomi still had for me.

I started off toward the school, sending off a text to a girl I knew on student council asking if she'd let me in early to drop something off. She responded right away, telling me where to meet her. Once I arrived, she opened the door with a smile, telling me not to be too long. I bowed and thanked her, then snuck through the halls and to Langa's locker. I pulled the photo out, made sure the sticky note was still on it, and slipped it in through a gap in the door. I fired off a text to Joe and told him I was on my way, then headed off to the restaurant. I went inside and looked around, finding him behind the bar, chatting with a familiar pink-haired figure sitting in front of him. 

"Oh- there he is!" I heard Joe say, then he waved me over. I sat beside Cherry.

"Hey," I grumbled, resting my chin on the tabletop. 

"You look miserable," Cherry said.

"Thanks."

"So what did you urgently need to talk about?" Joe asked.

I sighed and began explaining the events of the previous day, starting from when everyone took off, leaving Langa and me alone. Both Cherry and Joe listened intently while I relayed everything, chiming in with the occasional comment. At first I was hesitant to express my own feelings, but after a minute or two I was confessing everything. Every little detail came pouring out, and so did my tears. Joe handed me a stack of napkins.