sᴛʀᴀɴɢᴇʀ ғʀɪᴇɴᴅs - sᴄᴏᴏᴘ ᴛʀᴏᴏᴘ (ʙᴏᴏᴋ ɴᴏ. 1)

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɴᴏ. ᴏɴᴇ

"Oh, shit!" A voice called from the backroom, followed by the sound of a  crash.

Steve and Robin bursted into the room to see their new co-worker, Dom Boyle, staring at the the ground with wide green eyes. The ground was flooded with VHSs and CDs scattered all around. Right by Dom's feet was a  blue cart that lay on the floor with only a few VHSs still inside of the cage compartment.

Dom slowly looked at his two co-workers and gave them a toothy nervous grin. Both Steve and Robin let out a loud sigh and rolled their eyes.

"It is literally your fifth day here, Dom." Steve said, looking at his co-worker with eyes of disappointment.

"I know!" Dom replied. "That's why you have to cut me at least some slack!"

"Dom?" Robin asked, leaning against the door frame.

Dom raised his eyebrows, ready to answer her question.

"How old are you?"

"Uh... why?" Dom asked, confused.

"Just answer the question." Robin sighed. "How old are you?" She asked again.

"I'm 19?" Dom answered with furrowed eyebrows.

"So, to recap," Robin started. "You are 19 years of age, and don't you know how to push a cart."

"It was heavy!" Dom resented. "I get that you two are used to it, but I'm not! I have no strength in my arms and I'm not very good at pushing things-"

Steve and Robin glanced at each other and pursed their lips as they tried to contain their laughter.

"Okay, okay! We get it!" Robin entered the room and lifted her arms up as if she were surrendering. "You have to strength of a 2-year-old." She lifted the cart and began placing all the fallen movies back into it. Steve let a laugh out. Robin giggled along.

Suddenly, the sound of a door barging open filled the building. Steve jerked his head around to see Dustin and Erica standing side by side.

Erica had the expression of: 'I would rather be anywhere else right now', while Dustin stood out of breath and wide eyed.

"We have an emergency." Dustin said.

Steve stared back at Dustin with wide eyes. The two boys stood in silence, staring at one an other.

"I'm waiting for you to tell me what the emergency is." Steve slowly said.

"The Russians, Steve!" Dustin exclaimed, fully entering the building. "They're back!"

"They're back?" Steve echoed.

"They're back!"

"We don't even know if it was them, you nerd." Erica rolled her eyes.

"You don't think a bunch of men standing outside of a sketchy looking building isn't suspicious?"

"It was probably a bunch of people hanging out!"

"I know Russians when I see them!"

"What?"

"I'm sorry," Dom interrupted. "Russians?"

"You didn't tell him?" Dustin looked at Steve.

"I didn't think I needed to!"

"Well you did!"

"About what?" Robin emerged from the backroom.

"The Russians!" Steve and Dustin said in unison.

"What Russians?" A voice said from behind. There stood two girls. One short blonde haired girl and one long black haired brown girl, Alex and Mia.

"You didn't tell them either?" Dustin gestured to the girls.

"Once again, I didn't think I needed to!" Steve defended himself.

"Dude, they're trying to take over the world!"

"Who?" Mia asked, adjusting her glasses.

"The Russians!" Steve and Dustin yelled in unison.

"The Russians are gone, you dinguses." Robin said.

"Oh, yeah?" Dustin said. He turned to Dom. "Where's your radio?"

"Radio?" Dom echoed.

"Yes! Asshole! Radio!"

Dom raised his eyebrows and quickly dashed to the counter, where he pulled a radio from inside. Everyone else followed as Dustin and Steve stared at the radio as if it were a new jaw-dropping discovery.

"How much do you want it for?" Dom asked Dustin.

"I don't want to buy it, you stupid ass, I want you to plug it in!" Dustin yelled.

"Well, I'm sorry!" Dom snapped.

"We could all die at any moment because of these people!"

"Well, I didn't know that!

"Well, you should!"

As Dom struggle to plug in the radio while being under all that pressure, Dustin turned to Erica.

"If he switches to a station, and we hear a Russian base, you owe me 5 bucks." He whispered.

The radio suddenly switched on to be playing "You Don't Own Me" by Lesley Gore.

"Switch." Steve said. And so, Dom did. He switched to the next station to be greeted with another song.

"Switch." Steve said again.

And again and again, Dom switched the channels on the radio, just to hear song after song after song after song.

Untill...

They were met with a different station. It wasn't a song, and it wasn't an ad. It was a man speaking. And he wasn't speaking English.

He was speaking Russian.