“Precisely,” Rus said with a grin. “You’re here because I like your company. I like Dylan’s company. It’s cool that you’re both chill since you’re like a package deal.”
“Yeah, we’ve been friends a while.”
Rus didn’t respond, simply stared silently for a long time. The longest ticking seconds of Kaiden’s life.
“Still, it means a lot, you letting me crash here. Sharing your bed, quite literally.”
“Well, this bed deserves some action.” Rus playfully bucked his hips upward. “At least with a few guys rolling around in it most nights, there’s the illusion of something fun going on in here.”
Kaiden laughed at that, slapping a hand over his mouth when Dylan rustled a bit in his sleep, eyes fluttering before he buried his head into Kaiden’s side.
“Plus, I say pay it forward,” Rus continued. “My freshman year dormmate was a total douchebag. Thankfully, I madefriends with Daysha, who lived in a campus suite and let me crash on her couch for damn near a semester straight. Luckily, my douchebag roommate dropped out, and then I just casually crashed at Daysha’s instead of desperately escaping.”
“Sleeping on a couch isn’t really the same as giving up part of your bed.”
“It is when Daysha had three suite mates who she had to regularly sweet-talk into not snitching to the RAs about my unauthorized sleepovers,” Rus explained. “It was a big deal for her to offer me somewhere chill to crash. So, I can offer you the same. I know a little bit of what it’s like to live with someone who is insufferable.”
Kaiden scoffed. “Surprised you didn’t just hit your roommate and knock some sense into him.”
“Actually, I got stuck with that douchebag after being relocated and threatened to lose my housing because I might’ve sort of maybe just a little bit decked my previous red hat roomie.”
“Jesus Christ, you really don’t believe in using your words.”
“There’s enough folks attempting peace talks with the fascists; I prefer my support methods as a healthy alternative.”
Kaiden smirked at that, honestly wowed by Rus’ brazen and bold behavior. Also, a little intimidated by the fact that someone could act so chill one moment, then rush into conflict at the drop of a hat.
“I am getting better at it,” Rus said, seemingly reading Kaiden’s mind, or registering the slight anxiety on his face. “I just hate evil people with no regard for the well-being of others. But it is a flaw to be controlled by one’s rage—or so my therapist has pointed out.”
“Therapist?” Kaiden asked. “Court-appointed?”
“No. I mean, I do have court-appointed anger management, or I did, but I’ve been going to therapy for years.”
“Why?”
“To get out my rage. Rawr.” Rus grinned. “Now, I try to reserve the worst of it for really awful bigots. That and I don’t need anything else on my record since I barely avoided serious charges the last time I punched an asshole.”
“I guess I’m just surprised you go to therapy.”
“Yeah, everyone should when they need it.” Rus shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve gone off and on since I don’t even know. Probably since I was like twelve or thirteen. My folks are big on that stuff. Exercising the mind, healing the mind, investing in the mind.”
He made a few silly gestures at that with flowy arms, perhaps mocking his parents in a playful manner.
Kaiden had never considered therapy before. It wasn’t something his family did. Talking honestly to each other was an impossibility, let alone a stranger. Still, he sat with Rus’ words during the rest of the film, giving real weight to the conversation.
Heading to the local on-campus coffee shop had sort of become a morning ritual for them. Since Rus had 8 AM classes three days a week, Dylan and Kaiden needed to get up pretty early to head on out. Though there was more than one morning Kaiden overslept, and the duo simply left him in bed unattended. It was an awkward thing, having Rus trust him alone in his apartment with no supervision or accountability.Even Kaiden’s parents didn’t trust him alone in the house he’d grown up in.
Still, Kaiden ignored his family woes, seeing as there wasn’t much he could do about it, and focused on getting ready for the day. Rus had allowed him to leave some of his makeup in the bathroom. It wasn’t like Rus utilized much of his counter space. He had a few more hygiene products than Dylan, but overall, Rus was pretty basic about his skincare routine. It was made all the more annoying by the fact that he had damn near perfect skin. Perfect skin he continued coloring on with his random tattoos.
Kaiden focused on getting ready for work, then joined Rus and Dylan on the walk to the coffee shop. Neither of them did anything to get ready. Well, Rus at least changed his clothes and put on a bit of deodorant. Otherwise, he was done with his morning rituals. Dylan, on the other hand, wouldn’t even bother getting ready for the day until he returned to his place at Dorothy’s Home. So, his morning ritual of getting ready for the day didn’t really start up until about ten or eleven, depending on when he wandered home.
“You two could be so put together,” Kaiden sighed as he brushed by Dylan. “If, of course, either of you bothered putting yourselves together with any effort at all.”
“Meh.” Rus shrugged as he held the door open for Kaiden, who waltzed right up to the barista and put in an order for the three of them.
He had Dylan’s fancy mocha order memorized from years of friendship, and learning Rus’ order hadn’t taken too long either. He liked his coffee black and bitter like his soul, or so he professed. Kaiden believed Rus to be anything but bitter. Well, maybe to jerks who deserved it.
Once he’d gotten the orders, Kaiden made his way to a corner table the duo had procured for them. Dylan wiggled in his seat while sipping his super sugary mocha with the lightest dash of coffee inside. It was mostly a caffeinated chocolate milkshake at this point. Rus did his sleepy gurgle of annoyance, then took a gulp of hot coffee. This was his real morning ritual. He wasn’t much of a person until he’d had his first cup of coffee.
