BRANCE + RINNEY

brance - badhum tsch

Vance drummed his index and pointer finger atop the metal desk, humming a light tune as he slouched back and sighed.

Lunch detention was, in simple terms, the bane of Vance's existence. Not just that. Of course there were the dickheads he went to school with, the cops who only cared about a pay raise, and his father. That bastard.

Okay, maybe lunch detention wasn't that bad. 'Least compared to his father it wasn't.

It was a quarter past two when the detention door opened, the hinges of it squeaking in desperate need of help before a student came through it.

And who would've thought that the student would be none other than Bruce Yamada, Denver's 'Golden Boy'.

"Yamada? What can I help you with?" There was a small man perched atop a swivel chair in the front portion of the room, legs dangling from it as he eyed Bruce with a questioning glare.

"I'm-, well. I'm here for detention, sir."

The words were said slowly, as if Bruce himself were trying to convince everyone that he was there on purpose. The small man gave him a head tilt before nodding his head and motioning his hands towards the space in front of them.

"Choose an empty seat. Work on assignments. No phones." Bruce nodded his head, smiling, before quickly making his way to a seat.

Vance was surprised, slightly horrified, when Bruce chose an empty seat directly next to his own. He tried to keep his eyes on his hands, which were now laying in front of him on the cool metal surface, though for some reason he couldn't stop glancing at the raven-haired boy next to him.

"You're Vance right? Vance Hopper?" Bruce's words were whispered, a brush of wind as he snuck a glance at the blonde. Vance's face burned vermilion as he gave a small nod and peeled his eyes away.

"Cool. I've seen you at the Grab N' Go, couple times. I was there yesterday with my f-" Bruce's voice was cut off with a slightly deeper, sterner one. "Yamada, Hopper, mouths closed. I don't want you in here longer than you two should be."

Bruce didn't look towards Vance for the rest of detention, even if he really wanted to.

The following day came and went, just as any other would. Bruce was glad it was Friday now. He would've gone mad if he had to go to school for another day in a row.

Bruce doesn't hate school, but he does dread it. He doesn't have any enemies there, or anything of the sort, it's just the atmosphere of the place. It's suffocating. Nauseating. Overbearing.

His parents do nothing to help him cope through it. In fact, they're one of the main reasons he's coping in the first place.

Who would've thought that being a golden child came with anything but perks?

Bruce found himself sitting outside the grab n' go. The skin on his fingers, right near each nail, were bloody and bitten. He didn't care much of it, seeing as it was such a minor thing. He rubbed the dried crimson-colored substance on his pants legs and winced at the burning sensation that shot through because of it.

He didn't even notice the boy looming over him.

"What's going on, Yamada?" Vance's voice was amused, blue pupils tinted with the shade of the roof above them. Bruce blinked at him, fumbling as he stood and ducked his head in embarrassment.

"Nothing really. Was just-, uh, just sitting. Just sitting here." Bruce bit down on his tongue to prevent himself from muttering out anything else deemed irrelevant. Vance let out a chuckle, nodding once, before his eyes traveled to the store beside them.

"You ever play pinball?" Vance had a glint in his eyes, causing Bruce to teeter just a bit on his feet. "Oh, uh, no. No, I haven't."

"Do you want to?"

Bruce's entire body was red, he was sure of it. Vance had his hands covering the other's, instructing him on how not to lose the game at hand. Bruce tried to listen, though his focus became slightly taken advantage of each time Vance's hands squeezed his own.

"So, that's how you play. Wanna try on your own now?" Vance wore a smile, light and genuine, as he looked at Bruce. "Could I watch you first? I mean-, watch you play. Not watch you like-," Bruce's foot tapped against the floor, overlapping the incoherent mumbles coming from his mouth as he tried to spit out the words he attempted to say.

"Bruce. Slow down. You can watch me play, then you can. Alright?" Bruce gave a nod in response, a small smile plastered on his face as Vance turned towards the game and inserted a quarter.

Bruce had learned how to play pinball that day, even though it had taken quite some time.
Despite that, both boys had finally found someone that allowed them to cover themselves up in their warmth, away from their parents and stress.
It was a weird friendship, but it worked.
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authors note: don't know if any of this made sense, but i love you guys and i'm sleep deprived <3.