:[march to the sea]:

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(A/N: if you're wondering, Josh and Tyler are both 17 in this. Ashley is 14, Jordan is 12, and Abby is 7. Also, it's the beginning April in this story right now.)

J O S H

Tyler really scared me earlier. Or Blurryface scared me I guess. Looks like Brendon was right, he does change. My dad said we're gonna say grace. We all hold hands, except for Tyler. He's just staring off into the distance, like he's in his own little world. I don't think we should hold hands, but I'll ask him anyways. My family will think it's weird. I say his name a few times.

He snaps out of it, looking around embarrassed.

"I'm s-sorry, what d-did you s-say?" He asks nervously.

"It's ok Tyler, calm down. We're just saying grace. You can hold hands if you want, but it's fine if you don't." I smile at him. He quickly shakes his head. If he changes when he gets nervous, then we just have to make sure he doesn't get nervous. But he seems flustered when I grab Abby's hand across the table.

He seems to hate when he changes, and I really feel bad for him. "It's ok Tyler." I whisper to him, smiling again. He just nods. My dad starts the prayer. Tyler awkwardly shifts in his seat. "Amen." We all say when it's finished. My mom starts cutting the pizza that's on the table.

"Do you like pizza Tyler?" She asks. He nods hesitantly. My mom smiles at him, and he gives an all lip smile back. He looks extremely nervous when my mom hands him a plate with a slice of pizza and a breadstick on it.

"What's wrong?" I whisper softly. He shakes his head, taking a bite of his breadstick. Everyone starts eating when my dad speaks up.

"So Tyler, are you in Joshua's class?" He asks. Tyler freezes when he realizes he'll have to answer. I quickly intervene.

"We have the same lunch period." I tell dad.

"Do you have any hobbies Tyler?" He asks.

Damnit dad, why do you have to make him talk?

I can't answer for him this time.

"I-I-I l-like m-mu-music." He stutters. I smile at him. I really feel bad for him.

"Do you play any instruments? Josh plays the drums." My mom asks. She's talking really softly.

"Piano and ukulele." He breathes.

"I've always wanted to learn the piano, but I have zero patience." Ashley says, taking some of the attention off of Tyler.

"How was football practice today Jordan?" I ask the boy.

"Good. Coach made us do 20 extra push-ups." He says.

My family keeps talking about how well Jordan's gonna do in football. I look over to Tyler. His leg is bouncing nervously and he looks distracted again. I lean towards him to whisper.

"Are you ok?" He doesn't respond.

"C-could I b-be excused to the b-bathroom?" He asks softly. My mother nods.

"Josh, why don't you show him where it is." She smiles. I nod and stand up, Tyler doing the same. We walk into the hallway towards the bathroom.

"Tyler, you don't have to be nervous. Sorry my dad made you talk though." I tell him.

"I-it's f-fine. I-I'm always ner-nervous w-when I e-eat." He says.

"Well, we'll just go back and finish our food. Then we can go hang out in my room if you want." He nods. I stop at the bathroom door and open it for him. He walks in. I walk back into the dining room to finish my food.

T Y L E R

I've been trying to stop from switching the whole dinner. As soon as I step into the bathroom, I give up. Ruby's voice gets louder.

R U B Y

I sigh. Finally, Tyler let me take over. I'm actually gonna help him, unlike Blurry. When I go back out there, I'm gonna be talkative and confident, unlike Tyler. I step out of the bathroom. Tyler needs better clothes. I smooth out his skinny jeans and head down the hall. I sit back down in my seat and smile at the family around me.

"This is very good pizza, Mrs. Dun." I compliment her before taking another bite.

"Why thank you Tyler." She smiles. I feel bad for Tyler though, since my voice is higher than his. Hopefully no one thinks too much of it though. Josh looks at me. I smile back. Everyone else is finishing up their food, and I take my last bite of pizza. Jordan takes everyone's dishes to put them back in the kitchen. Josh gets up, but I follow Jordan.

"Please, let me help clean up." I smile at the younger boy. He just seems happy that he doesn't have to do it. I start helping him scrub the dishes. Josh walks in, along with his mother.

"So Jordan, do you like football?" I try to start a conversation.

"Yeah it's pretty fun. Do you play any sports?" He asks.

"I used to play basketball, but I had to stop because it took up so much time. I liked it though." I smile at the boy.

"Tyler, you don't have to help clean up honey." Their mom speaks up.

I'd prefer to be called Ruby, but I don't really have a choice right now. "Oh, no it's my pleasure." I give her a charming smile.

"How kind." She mutters as she walks out of the room. I finish washing the dishes and pat Jordan on the back.

"I'll let you put them away." I giggle, walking out of the kitchen with Josh.

"You ok?" He seems skeptical of me.

"Of course I'm ok. Thank you for inviting me over and thanks for dinner. I should get going now." I smile at him. We're about the same height, I'm probably just an inch shorter than him, though.

"No problem. Do you need a ride home?" He asks.

"No, I'm not that far away. I'll just walk, get some fresh air yknow?" I smile at him. He nods. I walk into the living room really quick to find Mrs. Dun.

"Thank you for dinner Mrs. Dun, that was probably the best pizza I've ever had!" I giggle. She smiles.

"No thank you, Tyler. You're welcome back any time sweetheart." She gives me a gracious smile. I wave, walking to the front door.

"Have a good night everyone!" I say before walking out. My house is actually about 2 miles away from here, but I didn't want to make Josh drive me. So, I start my trek home.