Chapter Text
“It’s already getting cold, huh?” Kel glanced at Sunny as he spoke, and the other visibly jumped, clearly having zoned out.
“Oh–um…actually, I guess it is, isn’t it?” Sunny seemed to pull the paper bag he was holding closer to himself, as if keeping it warm. “Do you think it’s gonna be too cold for Basil’s plants? Back when we were in school it was practically freezing in the dorms during the winter, what if–”
“Sunny, that’s because the buildings were like a hundred years old and the university refused to ‘waste’ its budget on fixing the heat, remember?” The pair were on their way to Basil’s college to help him move into the dorms. Basil, not wanting to base his career off of photography, had put off even applying for so long that the rest of the group were already starting careers by the time he was finally attending college. “Besides, Basil’s university is relatively new, so he should be fine.”
“I guess I forgot about that…” Sunny’s voice trailed off as Kel playfully slapped his shoulder.
“Hey, you were super busy. Hell–you spent almost no time in the dorms anyways!” The two approached a set of large sliding glass doors. “What was the address again?”
“Uhhh…he said he was supposed to be in building 2B, so this should be it.”
Kel followed Sunny through the maze of a building, the other mumbling to himself as he stared blankly at his phone.
There had been a time where Kel was worried about Sunny and the fact that he had abandoned dorm living for sharing an apartment with Aubrey and Kim. Sunny was already pretty socially stupid, and Kel knew the lesbian couple did nothing but party and try to get Sunny to drink with them (thank God Sunny avidly refused alcohol of any sort, else he’d have been dealing with three borderline alcoholics).
Surprisingly, though, the girls had matured in the past few years, so he didn’t have to worry as much. Well–okay, “mature” might not be the right word to describe them. They were more like two nineteen year olds trapped in the bodies of twenty-seven year olds, with some weird maternal tendencies sprinkled in among the neverending sex jokes and drunken banter.
At least they didn’t beg Sunny to come with them to parties anymore.
“This is it!” Kel grabbed Sunny’s wrist before he could open the door.
“He has roommates, remember? We don’t want to interrupt anything, so you should probably knock.”
Sunny blinked.
After a few seconds of staring, Kel decided Sunny probably wasn’t going to knock on the door and did so himself. One of what he assumed to be Basil’s roommates opened it, confusion etched across her face.
“Sorry, we’re here to help Basil move in? He’s the really short kid with–”
“They’re here for me!” Basil pushed past the young-looking girl, glaring at Kel as he spoke.
“Ah, there he is!” Kel refrained from making any more short jokes, though Sunny seemed to be enjoying them. “So we gonna do this or what?”
“Kel, you know you don’t have to help, right? I know you’re supposed to be moving into a new apartment and a–”
“You’re moving?!” Sunny whipped around to gawk at Kel, who almost shrank under the other’s gaze. He nodded meekly. “Why didn’t you tell me?!”
“I uh…” He glanced at Basil, both of them worried Sunny might sink into a panic if he was told he had forgotten yet another thing. Especially of such importance. “I dunno?” He plastered a grin across his face.
Sunny just stared at him, his expression dripping with betrayal.
“Um! Anyways, you guys are gonna help me unpack, right?” Basil stepped between them, casting Kel a sympathetic smile.
“Right! Let’s get started.”
…
Unpacking Basil’s things had gone about as smoothly as it could’ve, and soon enough Kel found himself being awkwardly pushed out into the hall by an overexcited Basil.
“Enjoy the cactus!” He grinned, and Kel glanced back into the room to see Sunny flipping idly through a gardening manual. It was clear Kel would be walking home alone, though he didn’t really mind. “Don’t kill it by overwatering it, ‘kay? And enjoy your new apartment, I’m sure it’ll be nice to have some peace and quiet for once.” Basil motioned towards Sunny. “I know how unnecessarily loud that household can get.”
Kel just shrugged, though Basil did have a point.
He waved to Sunny, though something in the book appeared to have caught his attention since the other barely acknowledged the gesture.
And with that Basil shut the door, leaving Kel standing alone in the hallway cradling a tiny potted cactus. His housewarming gift, according to Basil. Kel was pretty sure he’d somehow manage to accidentally kill the poor thing within the week, but he still appreciated the gesture.
He started towards what he thought was an exit, though he quickly found it was just another hall lined by student rooms.
Shit.
He couldn’t remember how Sunny had even gotten them here in the first place, how was he supposed to get out? He wandered through the mostly empty halls until eventually stumbling across a poorly printed map of the dormitory someone had pasted to one of the walls.
Not even the map made sense, whoever designed it had tried to draw all five floors from above, meaning the ‘map’ was really just a bunch of color coded squiggles contained inside the outline of a building.
“Lost?”
Kel practically jumped, realizing someone was standing behind him. He turned, surprised to find that the owner of the voice was a short and scrawny looking man–weird considering how Kel wanted to shrink under the other’s glare.
Had he done something wrong?
“Um…actually, yeah. I was hel–”
“I don’t need the story, just tell me where you’re going and I can point you in the right direction.” The man glanced at the potted plant in Kel’s hands, eyebrows raised.
“The–uh, the exit, please?”
“Great. Just follow me, I’m heading there too.”
Kel nodded, walking behind the stranger as he navigated the concrete maze. The
two entered an elevator, the other person stopping briefly to press the button marked ‘one’.
“I’m Kel.” He grinned, holding a hand for a handshake. The stranger looked unimpressed.
“Trying to get on my good side? I promise my class isn’t as hard as you seem to think it is.”
Kel blinked. Was this a professor? This grumpy little man??
“Oh–I…um, I don’t go here, actually…I finished college like…forever ago…” At least he looked young enough to be in that age range? Kel figured the sleepless nights would’ve been starting to show by now. He would take that as a compliment!
“Well that makes sense, considering you look like you could be someone’s sketchy uncle.”
…Or not.
Kel was relieved to see the elevator doors open, and the exit up ahead. Great–it was already dark.
“Well then, Kel , you can call me Rowan, but I doubt I’ll ever see you again.” Rowan left the elevator first, lifting a hand as a farewell. Kel couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the forced nonchalance.
He was probably right–the chances of the two crossing paths again were low, which Kel was certainly glad for. There was nothing pleasant about the other person anyways, though he couldn’t ignore the curiosity growing in the back of his mind.
What would such a rude person teach? Hell– why would such a rude person teach?
He stepped out the same sliding doors he and Sunny had entered through hours ago, just to find that it was raining.
Pouring, actually. The heavy droplets bounced against the metal overhang with vigor, fuelled mostly by the wind. The streets ahead of the newer buildings were completely empty, and so was the space under the overhang, save for Kel and his new professor friend.
Which he really shouldn’t be surprised at, even if it was a little annoying.
Kel sighed, approaching Rowan, who was too busy trying to evaporate the rain with his scowl to notice.
“Not expecting the rain?” The other visibly jumped as Kel spoke, almost stepping out from under their cover as he did so. Kel was surprisingly satisfied to have caught him off guard, considering how poorly he had handled it when he had been the one spooked by a stranger’s voice.
Rowan glared at him before mumbling quietly, “...No.”
“Yeah, I figured.” Kel stared blankly at the rain, which only seemed to be getting worse. He wouldn’t have minded running through it, but it was already cold enough being dry and he did plan on at least trying to keep the cactus alive. “So what do you teach?”
“How about we not try to make awkward small talk right now?”
“I’m not, I’m just curious.” Kel grimaced. Was this what Aubrey meant when she called him annoying? Probably not…and he was pretty sure she said that affectionately, anyways. “I mean, it’s not like you really look like a teacher so I j–”
“What do you mean I–?!” Rowan shook his head, exasperated. “Ugh, I teach botany, okay? Will you leave me alone now?!”
Ha, like he was gonna leave him alone after that reaction.
“Botany’s like, the science of plants, yeah?” Kel watched as Rowan hesitated.
“...Yes? It’s stuff like…y’know…how they work and–”
“So then how do I keep this thing alive?” He shoved the little cactus into the other’s face and Rowan took a step back, pushing the pot away with two fingers.
“Just don’t overwater it.” He straightened his glasses, keeping an eye on the potted plant.
Kel sighed. “That’s what everyone keeps telling me! I apparently let my last one dry out though, so I don’t get it.”
Rowan turned his gaze from the plant onto Kel. “If you can’t keep them alive, then why do you keep buying them?”
“I don’t ! People just keep giving them to me. You know, the whole ‘oh your personality vs your flower’ thing was fun until everyone started giving me cactuses!”
“So you’re a cactus?” Kel was surprised to see the other laughing, though Rowan’s laugh was actually quite nice. He grinned.
“Yup! I’m strong and resilient, just like a cactus!”
“And you drown really easily.” Rowan looked thoughtful. “And you’re prickly, and yo–”
“Okay, I get it! But I was told I’m a cactus because they’re strong and resilient.”
“Alright then.” He smirked, and Kel resisted the urge to shove the cactus into his face a second time. “Hey, doesn’t it look like the rain has calmed down some?”
Kel turned to face the street, realizing the rain had calmed to a drizzle.
“Great, I’m gonna run, then. Hopefully the rain doesn’t drown my cactus.” And with that, Kel took off across the street.
…
“...Hopefully…” Rowan stared blankly after him, figuring he’d wait a while longer to see if the rain would fully stop.
That had been…weird, to say the least. It was rare for anyone to be so friendly, especially to a stranger. Guilt was starting to make him wonder if he should’ve been nicer.
It wasn’t long before the storm picked up again, and Rowan quietly hoped his unwanted companion had made it to shelter before he’d been drenched by it.
He briefly considered that it might’ve seemed creepy for him to be in the student dorms, even if it really was no one else’s place to judge. The truth was, one of his student’s names had caught his eye, and it wasn’t long before Rowan realized why.
His brother had enrolled in the school and would be taking his class next semester.
While it wasn’t a big deal, Rowan hadn’t seen his brother in years, and for good reason: Basil hated him. He hated Rowan to the point where he pretended the other didn’t exist. So Rowan simply figured he would simply rip off the bandaid before it could become a big issue. He had friends that worked in the dormitories, so he found the room number there.
And he tried to go for it.
He really did.
Yet here he was, waiting for the rain to pass so he could make his escape without having done so much as knock on the door.
He was a coward, wasn’t he?
…
Kel struggled with the keys to open the door to his apartment, and he accidentally pricked himself on the cactus multiple times as he tried to balance it on his arm while he inserted the keys into the lock. He was soaked; the rain had picked up about halfway through his walk to the complex.
The door to the apartment finally clicked, indicating it unlocked, and Kel rushed inside.
He set the cactus on one of the old nightstands he had been lucky enough to acquire with the apartment. The poor thing was just as wet as he was, and Kel was already prepared for it to be wilted in the morning.
He wished Basil would give his gifts more thought, but he also knew that it wasn’t Basil’s fault. All of them did this–hell, even his parents started doing it after a while. Whenever anything interesting happened in his life, he got a cactus. Kel wasn’t sure if it made the others feel better about themselves, or if they just did it to make it look like they cared.
But it was probably just an easy way to avoid showing him that none of them really knew him, even if Kel already knew himself. The only person he could count on anymore for meaningful gifts was Sunny, and even then, it was just the occasional basketball or figurine from a show they watched together.
Kel flopped down onto his bare mattress, figuring he would find the sheets tomorrow. He rolled onto his side, digging around in his pockets for his phone. Eventually finding it, he pulled it out and stared at the lock screen.
10:13 PM
Did he even have the right to complain? If none of his friends ever tried to get to know him, then maybe he just wasn’t worth knowing. Or maybe he just wasn’t putting enough effort into these relationships? But he tried–maybe he wasn’t trying hard enough.
Maybe he was just unlikable.
He shook his head, a feeble attempt to clear it. He was the glue that held the group together–it had been that way ever since Sunny came out of hiding. Hero had said so himself.
But even Hero…
Kel turned to lay on his back, gazing blankly at the ceiling. The last crickets of the season could barely be heard over the continuous pounding of drops against everything within reach. In a way, it was peaceful. But it made anxiety swell in Kel’s chest, too.
He shut his eyes for what felt like a few seconds, but when he opened them again, sunlight was peeking through the ratty old blinds.
Shit.
He was late for work.
He grabbed a fresh shirt and practically ran out of the apartment, failing to notice the green sticky note on his door in his rush.
Kel’s job was entirely uninteresting; he worked customer service for one of the more popular retail stores, and he hated it. The people were annoying, his coworkers were constantly complaining, and at some point they had labeled Kel as the unqualified therapist, so his breaks were full of people asking him if he was free and him giving in because he felt guilty for saying no.
So by the time he had gotten home, he was far too exhausted to deal with the essay Hero had sent via text message about how he should so totally visit the rest of the family this year.
Like he was about to take time off to visit a bunch of assholes just because they were ‘family’.
Standing in the elevator taking him to his floor, he noticed that only one had been selected despite there being another person present with him. Probably one of his neighbors, though something about him seemed oddly familiar.
He glanced back at the metal panel which held the buttons for each floor, making eye contact with the stranger through the shitty reflection.
“How’s that cactus doing?”
Kel blinked, mentally listing off every person who would’ve known–or cared about how the cactus was doing.
Surprisingly, there was only one.
“No way!” The other person turned to face Kel, grinning.
“Low chance doesn't mean no chance. Did you get home before the rain started?”
“Oh…no, but that’s okay. Well–actually, I guess it wouldn’t be okay…at least for the cactus…but I managed to get the uh…um…what…?”
Rowan burst out laughing, at which point Kel remembered that most of the time they had spent talking was either filled with Rowan giving backhanded compliments or just being rude.
“What are you doing here anyways? You should be able to afford something a lot nicer with your salary.” Kel frowned.
“You’d be surprised, my pay really isn’t that great. Besides, it’s kind of annoying living by myself in a big apartment. It’s harder to keep everything clean and stuff. And then you just keep buying more stuff to fill the empty space, which is a total waste of money, especially when you’re decorating rooms you have no use for.” He sighed. “I don’t get any visitors, so it’s nice to have an apartment like this. Everything stays in two rooms, and I don’t have to worry about filling empty space.”
The pair stepped out of the elevator and into the small, easy to navigate hallway that held only four small apartments. Kel wasn’t sure how to feel about the fact that Rowan stopped at the door beside his own.
Actually, he wasn’t sure how to feel about any of this.
He felt like he should do something for his newly discovered neighbor–he was quite literally right there, after all. But it wasn’t like they were even friendly…or were they? Kel blinked, realizing he didn’t actually know what being friendly meant. If he was nice to a stranger, then were they friends? He was nice to strangers all the time. But this ‘stranger’ was a lot meaner than the old folks Kel was used to making small talk with…
“Hello?” Rowan was waving a hand in front of Kel’s face. “You there?”
“Sorry, what were you saying?” He shot Kel a confused glance before pointing to the opened door.
“Gardening is a hobby of mine, and I have fresh soil if you’re worried about the cactus having gotten wet.”
At least someone actually seemed to care about the future of the plant he was gifted.
“Um, great! Let me just go grab it–” He struggled again with the keys, embarrassment only worsening his competency with a lock.
Finally getting the door open, he dashed inside and picked the cactus up by the pot, accidentally catching his finger on one of the needles as he did so. He stared at his finger, unable to see what he could still feel pricking it. That reminded him–he still hadn’t gotten any of last night’s needles out either, and now that he was thinking about it, he could actually feel them brushing against the inside of his sleeve.
Walking back outside, he found himself standing awkwardly in the doorway as he watched Rowan dig around in one of the cupboards. His apartment was actually really nice–and now that he was seeing it, Kel understood what Rowan had meant by ‘filling empty space’. There was barely any wall showing through the mass of plants and pin boards and even the occasional poster or magazine page taped to it.
It was put together so nicely…Basil would love it here.
“You gonna come in or what?”