Chapter Text
Shamil didn’t really enjoy his job.
He was forced to wake up at 4 in the morning just to be able to get to the diner he worked at by 5:15 AM.
Not to mention the raggety, black shirt and pants he was forced to wear. Ugh, it annoyed him how not only he had to wear this 5 days a week, but he wasn’t allowed to style it in any way.
Not even his gorgeous, bright blue hair which faded into a black and had white at the bangs was able to be shown. Oh, how long it had taken to bleach and dye it too. Sad, sad times.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror as he tied his hair up in a bland bun.
Oh, the pain that came to his heart seeing himself like this. At least his handsome face did him some justice. He applied some cheap mascara and eyeliner he had gotten as a gift from Ella and a bit of foundation to cover his “stupid” scar and went on the way to the torture he called work.
He never really enjoyed socializing with people in general. Especially when some of them come into the diner at an ungodly hour in the morning and act like it was Shamil’s fault that their life was so terrible. How Shamil wished he could punch them as hard as he could at that very moment they spoke to him. The worst part was that those types of people didn’t even leave tips behind. How ungrateful.
To avoid these problems, Shamil would mostly just talk to Mystica and pay no interest to whoever would walk in through those glass doors. But like always, Mystica paid no interest in his very interesting conversation whatsoever.
Shamil didn’t mind though.
Actually, it was much better than whatever Ella was doing at the counter. She would just stand there and “fangirl” over their regular at the place; Holly, a sweet girl who would come in almost every day during her lunch break.
Although, it was very funny to watch from a distance how Ella would try and flirt with her and get completely ignored by the oblivious girl whom she called her “other half”. Yes. Her other half. Ella barely talked to Holly yet she believed she was her “other half”...
Now that was something Shamil found absolutely ridiculous, but a bit funny too.
But Shamil wasn’t going to say anything about it. Not when his friend not only looked very happy, but it was a way of entertainment most days.
At the end of their horrible 5 (sometimes 6) hour shift, Mystica, Ella and Shamil would all meet up outside of the diner that they worked at.
Most of the time, Mystica would drive the three of them to her apartment, which was not too far from the diner. It was about a 10 minute drive after all.
After changing into more comfier yet fashionable clothes and taking a small food break, they went to (by far) Shamil’s favorite place to visit after a long day of work.
The Sun Plaza
The Sun Plaza is a very big, open area, and very pretty too. Everywhere you looked there were different kinds of plants, flowers and trees. It seems as if it came from a fairy tale. There are benches that are underneath some of the fruit trees, which the benches were donated from a carpentry class as their final projects. That made it so all the 20 benches at the plaza were all unique. At this time of year, all the trees and plants were filled with flowers. The Sun Plaza looked like a painting where someone had splattered all kinds of brightly colored paint on it.
Shamil’s personal favorite were these small white flowers called “Milk Crowns”, which is what Shamil called them. He wasn’t sure he knew the real name of those flowers, but he was fine not knowing.
While Shamil started trying to set up the two large speakers they carried around with them, Ella and Mystica would connect either one of their phones to speakers. Then all three would take about 5 minutes to warm up and go through the songs all together, meanwhile a crowd would start to form around them.
The crowd wasn’t all too big, about 20-25 curious people would watch. But it was better than nothing.
Once they were ready, they set down a medium sized hat that Ella found in her closet one day (for any cash that people wanted to give to these beautiful people of course) and then they played the music. After a few seconds, hip hop started blasting from the two large speakers that were right behind them. And then, the part that Shamil loved the most came; they danced to the music.
Choreographies that he and his two friends spent weeks learning, hours of deciding what songs to dance to, disagreements over outfits to wear, everything was all finally put to good use. For once, Shamil felt free. The way his body moved in sync to his friends’ made him feel happy in a way. He was finally able to let free all of the stress he had that day.
Oh, how Shamil wished he could do this all day. His body would ache so badly, but he wouldn’t care. He enjoyed dancing more than he enjoyed his tedious job at the diner.
Shamil felt the breeze against his arms and face as he moved to the music, which transitioned from hip hop to a kpop song he thinks he knows. Most of the time, he would wear short sleeved shirts with a hoodie or a jacket over. But not today, not when it was fairly warm outside. Shamil didn’t care what he was wearing though.
He cared more about having fun.
Shamil started daydreaming about how his life would be as a full time dancer. Maybe he could be a singer too. Since he lip synced to some of the parts in a song, it would be cool if he actually sang them. His singing voice isn’t all too bad anyways. Plus, he wouldn’t mind performing in front of a large crowd. Oh, how nice it would be, especially since he knew that his friends would most likely tag along with him and he wouldn’t be left alone in this idea of his.
A full time dancer. Perhaps a singer too, that idea needed to be workshopped. He wouldn’t have to work at that pesky diner and wear those awful clothes all day anymore. He wouldn’t have to deal with stupid customers every day, even though some were nice to him.
But then again, that was only about 40% of all the customers he got. And 60% of the “nice” customers just wanted his number, ew.
After about what seemed like an hour, the music stopped.
That was when Shamil snapped back to reality.
They had ended with a song that Shamil didn’t know the name of, since it was in a different language than the two he knew.
Once the music stopped, it meant Shamil had to go back to his ordinary, boring life.
Great…
He helped his friends pack up everything into Mystica’s car.
He sat down in the back seat, right behind the driver's seat. He enjoyed sitting in the back, since his friends knew not to mess with him when he did.
He didn’t want them to talk to him. Not because he didn’t like them. It was more so because he wanted to enjoy daydreaming or just being in his own silence for about 20 minutes before he had to face the cruel reality of his apartment he called “home”.
Despite it not feeling like home, it was better than nothing.
* * *
Most days, once he arrived at his apartment he would eat a small snack, pay attention to his cat, Astuce (meaning “trick” in French), and draw some kind of outfit he could come up with.
Shamil had studied fashion a while back. Although no one cared to see his designs and clothes he made. Well, that’s what his brain told him. That's the reason he had never shown anyone in the public his work, not after what…he had said to Shamil.
But, Shamil did sell plushies he made online (and sometimes to some of his friends), which is one way to put all those online sewing classes he took while studying fashion to good use.
But not today.
Before following all of that of which he called his “daily routine”, he got into the shower. A nice cold shower can't hurt, Shamil thought
He was actually glad that he got into the shower now instead of at night. His body ached, not from dancing for an hour straight but instead from carrying plates and cups back and forth for almost 5 hours.
What if I quit my job at The Beast Diner? Shamil started thinking as water poured down his face, I mean I do hate the job, but where else could I possibly apply? The library? No, I don’t feel like working there again.. And I would still have to interact with others too…
Shamil’s thoughts were abruptly interrupted by his phone, which was on the sink, and loudly buzzing.
Shamil let the phone continue buzzing. Judging from the ringtone, it was his oh so dear friend Sugar. He could call her back anyways. Plus if it was an emergency what was he supposed to do? Drive 20 minutes to help her? Heck no, by the time he got there she would probably be dead.
Once the ringing had stopped, Shamil went back to washing his hair and rethinking his life decisions.
His phone rang again.
…
Sugar never called him twice in a row.
Shamil started to get worried. Last time she called him twice in a row was because she was in trouble. He could never get that out of his mind. Not when what had happened that day caused him a permanent scar on his face.
…
No, he couldn’t let that happen again. He wouldn’ t allow it.
Without a second thought, Shamil exited the shower, grabbed his phone and went to call his friend.
Well, he was going to call her. That was until he saw the message she had sent her.
Sugar: Heyy Shadow! Sorry I called you twice in a row, the second time was an accident, oops <3
…
That bitch… Shamil thought, What a fool I am to get so worried over that
Shamil then proceeded to set down his phone on the sink and turn the water off.
He didn’t care if he still had shampoo in his hair, he wasn’t going to get back in the shower.
Not after it got ruined after that.
Once he left the bathroom, he took a deep breath in and called her. Well, she did call him for a reason, and he was too curious on why to just ignore her call.
Sugar picked up almost instantly. “Heyyyy Shadow! How are you?” She said,” I was wondering, are you free tomorrow? Since we don’t have work”
“Yes I'm free. Why are you asking me this?”
He was pacing around his room now.
“Well, I wanted to surprise you and Mystica and take you guys to a special place to rehearse our dances.”
“...what could you possibly mean by that Ella?”
“You will have to wait and see for tomorrow! Byeeee Shadow!”
And before Shamil could say another word, Sugar hung up.
Great, just great. First she almost causes me a full on heart attack, then she ruins my nice cold shower and now she doesn’t even tell me where we are going. Oh lord how I want to scream at her..
Shamil, who somehow was now sitting down on his oh so soft and comfortable bed, just stared at the wall in front of him.
Sometimes, Shamil would sit in his room and just think. He would let his thoughts take over his mind. He would bring back old memories and rethink about all the good times he had before..he entered his life.
* * *
Before all of this, Shamil had never been into street dancing much. He barely even knew what it was.
Shamil loved ballet. He had danced for almost 5 years when he was little, and once he got older and was a senior in high school, he began dancing again.
Due to some unfortunate events though, he ended up quitting not so long ago
He didn’t want to quit ballet. He had loved it basically his whole life. And to suddenly give up the one thing he loved was the worst.
He remembered he was at his lowest times when he quit. He quit for two reasons: he didn't have enough money to pay for classes, and he loved someone so much that he ended something he enjoyed for the ‘‘love of his life’’.
Shamil would cry almost all day. It was the one thing that made him feel free from his ex. He hated all of this. He wanted to go back to how everything was.
Well, until Shamil found a solution to his yearning to dance and feel free again: street dancing.
Ella had first introduced him to the idea. He didn’t really like it, it wasn’t his style. But it was the best at the time. He did dance ballet from time to time, but in the loneliness of his apartment where no one could see.
But he got to dance new dances on a daily basis. He also incorporated a few ballet moves into the choreographies he and Ella would make. It started off as the two of them, until they met Mystica and decided to let her join.
Starting street dancing was one of the best decisions he had made in his life.
After an hour or so of sitting on his bed and thinking back on the past few years of his life, he stood up and stretched.
Tomorrow he will have to meet up with his friends. Where though? He would have to ask them in the group chat. But that can wait for tomorrow. He knew that everything they had planned went down in the afternoon, so he had plenty of time.
* * *
Shamil paced back and forth in his kitchen.
He had to decide what to eat after all! Since he didn’t have a proper lunch or breakfast, he had to make the last meal of his day at least decent.
It was starting to become dark out, so he didn’t really want to make something very big. Perhaps leftovers? Maybe even order takeout, although that option was a whole ‘nother ten minutes of deciding what to order.
Shamil approached his fridge, trying to remember what was in there before opening it. Once he opened it, he stared at the container of plain, sauceless spaghetti he had made the other day. Eh, it was better than nothing.
As the microwave warmed the small plate of spaghetti up, Shamil and Astuce stared at each other.
The little kitten was a Calico Maine Coon. He had found the little kitten on the street near his apartment. Shamil still vividly remembers the day he found Astuce.
* * *
Shamil was walking to work, more annoyed than any other morning since his car didn’t want to work and his motorcycle was at his friend's house for some reason he couldn’t remember.
Shamil had been staring at plants while walking, and near some roses he saw something small and fluffy moving. Shamil being the curious person he is, he was going to attempt to grab it.
Until he saw the tiny kitten crawl out and sit down right in front of him.
And oh if you had seen the look on Shamil’s face as he saw that kitten.
Since the kitten didn’t have a collar or anything, he took the kitten home and locked it in an empty closet with food and water so it wouldn’t ruin his whole house while he was gone.
After he got home, he ended up taking care of Astuce, which is the name he picked out for it. Or should he say the name he picked out for her.
Shamil loved Astuce so much, it was as if the universe had heard his plea for something good to happen in his life.
And now, he was staring at Astuce, trying to figure out what to feed her today. What does one possibly give their cat when they have run out of cat food yet the store is closed? Shamil never had this happen to him, and he knew that his cat wouldn’t like any of the leftovers that are still in his fridge.
…
Can cats eat spaghetti? Hm… he should probably Google it.
…
Well, Google said they can eat plain, cooked spaghetti. And that was exactly what was still in the microwave. Oh well, it was only for one night anyways. Sorry Astuce..
* * *
Once in the living room, with two plates balanced on one arm, and on the other a glass of water and a water bowl, he set everything down on his coffee table.
That was one of the only benefits of being a waiter, he could balance plates and cups as if it were nothing too hard. The first days he worked at the diner he evaded up spilling some food on the ground, but over time he could basically run and have a high chance of nothing spilling.
Astuce jumped on the couch right when Shamil was going to sit down.
Normally, Astuce would sit right where Shamil was going to sit. But not today. Today, Astuce decided to sit right next to him. Aw, how cute.
Shamil sat down and set Astuce’s food on the ground, next to his feet.
Then he grabbed the controller, pressed play on the first thing he saw popped up, and watched tv until both him and his dear cat were done eating.
* * *
Shamil woke up to find that he was still on his couch.
His food was on his coffee table and only half way eaten. Normally, he would have only taken 3 or 4 bites out of it. His glass of water was empty though, which was good since he didn’t drink much water anyways.
He looked to his side thinking he would see Astuce sleeping next to him like always, but not tonight. Eh, she probably went to sleep on her bed already.
Shamil reached from underneath his pillow to grab his phone and check what time it was.
10:30 PM. Eh, it could be more late..
Shamil decided to just throw away the uneaten food and go throw himself on his comfortable bed.
He lifted his head up and looked at his messy desk. It was filled with a whole bunch of sewing stuff he had bought a while ago. His walls had designs he had drawn and photos of him and his friends stuck onto it, either with tape or push pins.
He stared at the part of the wall which had specifically pictures of him and his friends.
One picture is missing, he thought.
He stood up and picked up the small polaroid picture from the floor. It was of Mystica, Ella, Bruce, and him. Oh, how happy they all looked together. It was from their last day at Cookie High School.
…
He missed those good times.
Shamil grabbed a push pin from his desk and stuck the picture back up on the wall. Right next to the one which showed the four of them again. But instead of at school, it was at an arcade in which they met up at a few months ago and a “friend group reunion”.
He enjoyed that day so much that he didn’t want to leave the arcade afterwards. He didn't want it to end. He wanted this to be a daily occurrence for them.
Shamil felt his eyes tearing up a bit. Stupid Shamil, stop crying over nothing.
He turned the lights off and threw himself onto his bed.
He stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, doing the thing he did of thinking of all his past memories while staring at something.
He thought back to his friends. Specifically Bruce. How the last time they saw each other was one of the worst days of his life. He felt the scar over his now closed eye and he continued thinking about that day.
He felt a tear roll down his face.
He set his hand down right beside him.
I should go to sleep now, before I start crying my eyes out.
And in the silence of his apartment, which at one point of his life wasn’t so silent, he slept.