Brightside | ✓

45.1 | twin flame

It took too long for Everleigh and Maverick to walk into the building that the latter had insisted they all be in for his supposed birthday party. What Eddie was more annoyed with was that she should've known better than to show up on time. They even cheered and scattered voices across the group even wished him a happy birthday.

            The second thing she was annoyed with? The fact that it wasn't even Everleigh and Maverick coming into the building. It was Brendon and Rami, famously a member of MARS.

            Stevie groaned. Part of Eddie wanted to compliment her adorable Dottie Hinson outfit. But that would mean existing outside of her existential crisis. "Bro. We thought y'all were Leigh and the birthday boy."

            "Are you also calling Bash bro—" Rami asked. Dying on that hill versus dying on the short enough to be mistaken as Maverick hill was the correct choice. At least he was Neo—could dodge the short accusations all night if he had to.

            Brendon frowned and pointed a finger to his right. "Isn't Leigh sitting right there?"

            Everleigh's head shot up from her variety of too many textbooks and papers surrounding her. They were on a coffee table that had absolutely been shoved into the corner so she could study instead of celebrating. In her defense, she was on theme. (90's movies because Maverick couldn't make everyone specifically 1994.) (Eddie was assuming the white shirt and blue jeans were Billy Loomis and was willing to give her the credit even if she was wrong.) "I just got set up, you fuckin' courgette, now I have to move—"

            An older blonde man stared at Everleigh. Eddie was pretty sure she'd seen him on Maverick's Instagram before but didn't know him. "I honestly thought that was you, too—"

            "Adopt him and leave me alone." Ah. It was Everleigh's dad. Dr. Alan Grant. At some point, Maverick had said his name to Eddie, but no part of her could place it.

            "Brendon would be more appreciative of me anyway."

            "Do you have scrubs I could borrow?" Brendon asked. Notably dressed as Dr. John Carter from ER. Eddie wished she hadn't identified it that quickly. "These are a little too... tight."

            The first, and simultaneously last, person Eddie wanted to see, appeared in short pigtails, a velvet green dress, and fake fangs at Brendon's side. A small stumble in his step. He took a long look at Brendon from behind him. "No, they're not."

            "You rip them," Everleigh said, "you're buying me new ones."

            "You're the one who offered them," Brendon said.

            "Axel," Moxie—Edward Scissorhands and it was spot on—said. "Your girlfriend literally helped save the forest spirit and you're drooling over a guy in too-small scrubs? Get a grip."

            Axel barely spared Eddie a glance and she tried not to be too upset about it. Hopefully the red face paint on her hid any semblance of red she got from the borderline glare Axel had shot her way. Princess Mononoke was one of the only movies Eddie made Axel watch when she invaded his apartment, so he had every reason to be annoyed with her on top of anything else.

            He looked around a moment. Tried his best to act casual. Put his hands on his hips. "I was told there was an open bar here, have any of you alcoholics tracked it down?"

            "Obviously," Seira said. "Who do you think we are? Amateurs?"

            Axel made a face. "I'm not answering that."