𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 ~ T. Nichols

Ace Degenerate

Theo LaRusso, the emancipated seventeen year old son of the All-Valley Champion and car salesman, Daniel LaRusso, shot up from the sofa, a beer can falling off his chest as he groggily walked into the kitchen of his apartment, seeing Camila eating cereal and Freddie passed out on the floor.

Camila and Freddie had been Theo's best friends since Freddie and Theo were in the sixth grade, Camila being in the grade below them. The two boys stuck up for her when she was getting bullied, and together they formed The Social Scum, that was their band name.

You had Theo, lead vocalist and guitarist, Camila, the bassist and Freddie the drummer, though they were desperately searching for a secondary guitarist.

"You look like shit," Camila scrunched her nose in disgust, watching Theo reach into the fridge and pull out a can of beer.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention, the band had a massive drinking problem.

"I feel like shit too," Theo grumbled, kicking Freddie lightly in the ribs.

"It's 6:30 and you're drinking beer," said Camila, spooning more cereal into her mouth. Theo glanced into her dish, seeing beer mixed in.

"You're literally mixing Coors and fruit loops together," said Theo, grimacing as he flicked her forehead. Camila went to swat him but ended up dropping the bowl on Freddie's head, the contents spilling over Freddie, but the boy didn't budge.

"Are we sure he ain't dead?" Theo asked, placing his can on the counter.

"Nah, he's fine," Camila smirked, kicking Freddie. The boy groaned, confirming he was in fact alive. His two friends laughed, Theo stepping over the boy and walking into the bathroom and locking the door behind him.

By the time he was dressed and fed, it was time for school. Theo and Freddie looked the part of a Rock/Indie/Alt band. Theo wore black leather boots, black ripped skinny jeans, a black button up shirt with the tip three buttons undone and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows with a black waistcoat left undone, while Freddie just wore black that complemented his crazy hair. Camila however, dressed like a preppy girl when she wasn't performing. Bright coloured jumpers and plaid skirts were her thing.

"Fucking door!" Theo said loudly, smashing his fist into it. At that moment, the three friends heard a clang and they turned to see their next door neighbour, Johnny Lawrence exiting his apartment with his trash in his hands.

"Morning, Johnny!" The three chorused in unison, smiling sweetly at the older man. The three friends had made friends with Johnny after they had moved into the apartment nearly two years ago, much against Johnny's will, but over time he grew to like them, especially when Camila would actually cook him food in exchange for alcohol.

"Morning,," Johnny chuckled, picking up his tool box and his trash. "Off to school?"

"Unfortunately," Freddie answered for them, getting a smile and a nod back from the older man. At that moment, the new neighbour walked up to the group as they continued on walking to their respective cars, well van for the band.

"Hey, I'm Miguel," the boy who appeared to be the trio's age said to them, walking up next to them. "My family and I just moved into 109," Johnny and Camila seemed to be the only ones to acknowledge Miguel, with Freddie being too tired and Theo just being antisocial.

"Great. More immigrants," Johnny scoffed, getting a snort from Theo and Freddie, and a light smack on the arm from Camila, telling him, to be nice. Johnny sent her a small glare, which Camila sent him one back.

"Be nice to him," she whispered, causing Johnny to scoff, shaking his head.

"Actually, we're from Riverside," said Miguel, shaking his head as he still followed them, not taking the hint. "Anyways, I was wondering if you were having trouble with your water pressure, cause' I know our sinks being weird right now and... oh, bottles goes in the blue bins," he told Johnny.