[cityscape] [a derp crew superhero au kinda]

"idk but it was like sluuurrrpp there goes mah tooth"

From: Short Stack (5)

anthomyg

Anfhifny

ANTONGY ANSWERS MREEE im aT A PLAYGROUP

Neurobiology

Waiig sorryy ayticorrect ahahahajf thats nog what i meantnn v

Chilled sighs. For all he loves this Aphex... why does he text people at two in the morning? He rolls over in his bed and turns his brightness down as far as it'll go. He thinks for a moment, then begins to type out a response.  Sadly, whatever response he would've had is suddenly forgotten as another message comes in.

Short Stack (2)

Lololmskfl im drink.... can u ppelase pick me up i need hydratign

I was partingy anf then i went 2 drink and it was liike idk what happeneded but it waz like slurrrrrp there goes mah tooth

"... What the fuck," Chilled whispers to himself. Who gets drunk this late at night? Chilled looks at the clock on his wall, as if the one on his phone might be off. He tries to bring himself to say no- he's tired, his leg hurts from Rex, and he's tired.  He has all the reason in the world to say no, but you know what he does?

He texts Aphex a simple 'be there in 10' despite having zero clue where Aphex is. He drags himself out of bed, putting on a light jacket and the first non-ripped pants he can find, then whatever shoes he happens to grab. He also ends up bringing Rexxar along, for the tiny guy thinks it's the perfect time for a car ride.

After buckling Rexxar in (and by that, Chilled means he sat him in the back and gave him a toy so he'll stay still), they're off and driving to the only part of the city that might be open this late at night.

It takes a few minutes of aimlessly searching, but he does find Aphex, sitting on a bench in the middle of a park. He's laying across it and appears to have his phone on his chest, if the bright glowing rectangle is any kind of indicator.

"Aphex! Aphex! Come on, dude, its fucking cold!" Anthony calls out to him quickly, trying to keep Rexxar from jumping out the window as he calls out.

There's no response, which is clearly suspicious. He groans to himself as he gets out of the car, letting Rexxar run freely around the area. He has his collar, he'll be fine.

Anthony walks up to Aphex. He taps his shoulder gently. "Hey, buddy? You wanna... oh."

Though it's hard to see from the crappy lampposts in the park, Anthony can barely make out a dark ring around Aphex's eye. A bruise? Why would he be hurt?

Aphex shifts- clearly asleep- and Anthony cringes as he sees a second bruise on his jaw, right by his left ear. The bruises make him decide against shaking Aphex awake, and so he goes for a more simple route.

He scoops up Aphex, bruises and all, and carries him back to the car. Aphex is set down in the backseat, Rex being forced to sit in front. Anthony doesn't know where Aphex lives, so he'll have to stay the night for today. Once Rexxar is settled down, Anthony drives the three home in silence.

--

"Ugh... what? The fuck? A- Anthony?" Aphex walks into the living room, just in time to see Anthony sit on the couch with eggs, pancakes, and a reheated slice of pizza. "Why am I here?"

Anthony shrugs. "Texted me saying you were drunk last night. Asked me to pick you up, but when I came you were asleep. So I brought you here and put you in bed."

(He's quite thankful Aphex doesn't ask any other questions, because Anthony isn't sure he's ready to admit he was afraid of hurting Aphex further and instead slept on his own couch.)

"You want some food? I made eggs and pancakes. No bacon or any of that, because somebody got into the fridge last night and ripped it up," Anthony explains, sending Rexxar a stern look. He's not guilty in the slightest.

Aphex smiles brightly, laughing and nodding his head. "I see. Did he...?"

"Nah. He doesn't like raw meat, so he threw it all over the floor instead of eating it. I raised my boy right."

Another laugh comes, and this one warms Chilled's heart in all the right ways. He smiles at Aphex happily, though his smile falters at the black eye Aphex has, much more clear in broad daylight.

Aphex seems to be aware of Anthony's concern, for he gasps and touches his eye gently. "Oh, fuck, I forgot about these. Haha, yeah, sorry if I worried you. Some drunk ass tried to jump me when I went to meet a friend for lunch, then I got dragged to some little clinic and the cops came and... yeah."

"So you go out and get drunk too..?" Anthony isn't sure if this adds up. Aren't you supposed to avoid alcohol with medicines? Surely he was given painkillers...

"Uh... yeah. They gave me-" Aphex pauses here to pull a small bottle out of his pocket- "I... Ibu-something. I haven't taken any, though. Didn't hurt too much, figured it would be easier to just take one before bed but you know how well that went."

"What about-"

"My job? Meh. I'm just the camera guy, I don't have to look pretty like Bryce. He'llp probably pull some mother hen shit and make me get something cold to my face, then complain about me being reckless. Basic Bryce stuff," Aphex says, as if this has happened a million times before.

Anthony still feels hesitant, but nods along. He knows what's best for him more than anyone else. Anthony decides he'll be fine. He watches as Aphex opens the fridge, then makes a disgusted face.

"Why is there creamy spinach in here?" Aphex pulls out a small container full of Anthony's guilty pleasure.

All Chilled does is grin sheepishly. "What can I say? I like my spinach, and I like it creamy."

"Ew. You're nasty. I'm taking the last two slices of pizza, that's how gross it is. Was gonna take the leftover Chinese but... yeah. Do you have coffee?" Aphex glances over at Anthony from his apartment's tiny kitchen.

Anthony shakes his head. "It broke last week. Haven't been able to buy a new one yet."

"Aw, why not?"

"My job left me a bit tight on cash because our building got destroyed last week. You know, the crazy plant guy and all that."

Aphex seems intrigued. He sits next to Anthony on the couch, turning to face him with excitement all over his face. "What building?"

"The financial consulting firm, the one just behind the Starbucks and creepy library." He tries to sound as casual as he can, but honestly? He feels like a giant loser admitting this out loud.

"Fuck, that's cool. Can you, you know, consult me or whatever? Isn't that what consultancy firms do, point out problems and all that?"

Fuck, he's cute, Anthony realizes. Even all beaten up like this he's still cute, which is probably (hopefully) illegal. He finds himself sighing in resignation and nodding.

"Yeah. Problem number one- your face looks like shit. Problem two- you don't like creamy spinach. Problem three- you owe me for dragging me out at two a.m. Problem.. four? You better be free for the rest of today, or else we're gonna have another problem on our hands." Anthony does his best to keep his voice level, but wow is this a stupid way to ask someone out. Will it even work?

Aphex seems to get the hint. His face flushes and he turns away, staring awkwardly at the wall as he takes another bite of pizza. "Are... are you asking me out?"

"Well... yeah," Anthony admits, laughing nervously. "I am."

There's a brief moment of silence between the two, the only noise being the faint panting from Rex as he plays with someone's shoe. Anthony is sure silence has never been as terrifying as it is right now.

Aphex does, in fact, turn back to him, a sheepish grin on his face. "Yeah. I'd really like that, actually. Um... what kind of food do you like?"