𓈊 The Red on My Face is Matching You

3

OKAY OKAY I KNOW I SAID I WASN'T GOING TO WRITE ANYTHING UNTIL JULY BUT I PROMISE I DIDN'T WRITE THIS AFTER I STARTED MY BREAK /gen/lh

I forgot I finished this chapter and so I never posted it so here you go! /srs

TW: mention of death

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Bdubs stopped talking to Mumbo completely for a few days after their small quarrel, and it made Mumbo seriously reconsider wanting being friends with Grian. No, wait- Ren. Or... should Mumbo call them Ren? It felt wrong now.

"Psst! Mumbo!"

Mumbo turned his head when he heard the very person he was thinking about whisper his name when the teacher wasn't looking. Their hair was still brunette, but it wasn't as much of an ashy brown anymore, it was brighter. And a lot longer, but braided. Their eyes were green now, too. "Oh, hey," he murmured awkwardly. "Are you... going by something new today?"

They nodded. "I go by Scar today," they said, and Mumbo shivered. He definitely remembered seeing a memorial of a kid named Scar who passed away recently. "You'll... call me that, right?"

"Uh, yeah," Mumbo said instinctively, not missing now adorable their face was as it lit up with joy and... something else that Mumbo couldn't quite name. But whatever it was, the face they made lit a fire in Mumbo's cheeks and he felt a flutter in his chest. "So, what's up?"

Scar blinked. "Oh, I was just saying hi," they said happily. "And, uh..." Their cheeks turned bright red as their eyes drifted down slightly to Mumbo's suit, which he wore for a superhuman research presentation he was doing for one of his supernatural courses. "You look really nice today. That tie looks especially nice... Red is such a beautiful colour on you..." They trailed off, then blinked and shook their head. "But how are you?" they asked.

"I'm... not that great, to be honest," Mumbo answered, choosing to ignore how odd Scar was acting. Scar frowned. "I got into a bit of an argument with Bdubs, and he hasn't talked to me for days now." He glanced over to where Bdubs sat, his chin in his hand as he stared at his phone and swiped the screen with his thumb. "I think he hates me."

Scar groaned. "He's dumb anyway," they said. "He thinks Ren and Etho killed his ex boyfriends and stole his identity, when Ren existed before we even knew about Bdubs' exes."

Mumbo blinked. "Etho?"

"One of our... alters," they said hesitantly, like they forgot the term for it. "And the name of one of Bdubs' ex boyfriends." They sighed, then glared in Bdubs' direction. "I just wish he would stop telling people I killed them. It really ruins my reputation, especially for new students like you." They turned their attention back to Mumbo and smiled fondly. "But you're different. You believe me and you actually..." They sniffled, their eyes beginning to water. "You actually treat me like a human being."

"W-well, don't cry," Mumbo said in a slight panic. "I'm sor-"

"Why are you sorry?" Scar asked, wiping at their eyes. "You didn't do anything wrong."

Mumbo stared at them awkwardly. He didn't even finish his sentence before Scar knew what he was saying. Was that part of his gift? "Uh- I just... I didn't mean to make you cry," he said with a nervous laugh. "That's all."

Scar smiled softly. "That's okay," they said. "They're happy tears."

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"I can't believe they're using Scar's name like that," Mumbo heard a redheaded girl say as he walked down the hallway.

"He just passed away, too," said a much taller, dark blonde-haired girl.

Mumbo shook himself. It had to be a coincidence. There's no way Gri- R- Scar actually killed people. They were so nice and... a little strange but it wasn't their fault. It had to be a misunderstanding.

Mumbo couldn't be in love with a psychopathic murderer...

Could he?

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"Hey, you're the new kid, right?" a brown-haired girl said to Mumbo as he sat down with his lunch at a table in the courtyard. At his nod, she pursed her lips. "I saw you hanging out with Xelqua earlier," she said, and part of Mumbo was angry that she called them that. "I just want to warn you to be careful around them. Every time there's a new student, they start to buddy-up to them and..." She shivered. "Nothing good happens after that. I suggest you get away from them as soon as possible before you get in too deep."

Mumbo sighed. "Thanks for the, uh, advice," he said with a grimace. "I'll... take it into consideration." He knew he wouldn't. He was probably already in too deep with Scar to get out of being friends with them now. Besides, they'd probably be heartbroken.

The girl nodded. "Just lookin' out for ya'," she said with a sweet smile. "I hate when new students fall for their creepy tricks. Well, I hope to see you around for the rest of the year." She waved and Mumbo waved in return as she left.

"Something tells me I should heed that advice," he murmured to himself before hearing Scar call his name.

"Mumbo!" they said, waving and beaming brightly.

"How am I meant to get away when they're so happy?" Mumbo asked himself aloud, smiling nervously back at them.

They sat down at the lunchtable next to Mumbo, scooting awfully close to him. "So, who's that girl?" they asked, glancing in the direction she went. "She looks... nice."

Mumbo shrugged. "'Dunno," he answered honestly, then picked up his sandwich to take a bite. "She just came up to me and started talking to me."

Scar nodded. "And what did she say?" they asked. They sounded awfully suspicious of Mumbo, but he guessed it was to be expected. They might've heard the conversation.

"Some weird stuff about you being creepy," Mumbo answered honestly, then shrugged. "I don't really believe it, though." That part wasn't exactly true. "You seem really nice."

Scar hesitated before smiling brightly. "I'm glad you trust me," they said. "It means a lot."

Mumbo nodded. "...Of course, Scar."