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Jessie stared down at the homework on their desk, hoping maybe, just maybe the answers would magically come to them. After about a minute of waiting with no answers magically appearing, it seemed that doing the rest of their homework was simply not something that would be happening right now. Instead they decided that it would be a far better and more fun use of their time to go bug Lake and see what they up to right now. Glancing over to the other side of their shared bedroom, Lake appeared to be relaxing on their bed, or at least as relaxed as Lake tended to get. Engrossed in drawing, they glanced back and fourth between their tablet and some book about nature, seemingly trying to take note of the minute details of their reference. The second Jessie stood up from their desk though Lake’s head immediately shot up to look at them, startling Jessie and causing them to yelp. “I swear, no matter how many times you do that I don’t think I’m ever gonna get used to it.” Jessie said with some adrenaline still lingering in their voice. Lake quickly came down from their minor panic and set down their book. “Sorry about that, it’s still kind of involuntary for me at this point. Like I know I’m safe here, but it’s kinda hard for my brain to get that message.” They joking knocked on their head to demonstrate their point. “Hey! Ya hear me in there?”
Smirking at their own joke, they shifted their attention back to Jessie. “So anyway did you need something? Math homework still giving ya trouble?” They popped out an earbud and watched Jessie stroll across the room and sit on their bed. Jessie shrugged. “Well... yeah, definitely. I guess I’m just kind of burnt out on homework for now, I think I’m gonna take a break for awhile and do something else that might actually be fun! Like maybe... whatever it is you’re up to right now? They asked hopefully, in the same manner that a golden retriever might beg for table scraps. Lake rolled their eyes and very quickly gave in to their bff wanting to join them. “Ugh, fine, here, you can hold my book and look at the pictures while I draw. Want an earbud?” They extended a shiny chrome hand holding a singular black earbud, which Jessie happily took.
“So what are we listening to today? I just got Ari’s new album on my phone if you wanna listen to that or maybe-“ Lake unintentionally cut them off with their answer. “We’re listening to my vintage rock playlist, I like it for my drawing sessions, it’s inspiring.” Jessie shrugged slightly. “Okay cool, I’ll give it a shot, maybe I’ll even end up really liking it!” For a few songs Jessie just sat back as Lake drew and they watched. It was sort of fun to watch Lake’s stylus glide across the screen and see the picture starting to come together. About fifteen minutes in, a song came on that Jessie hadn’t heard before. They debated asking Lake about the artist since they liked the vibe of the tune, but figured they would wait until their shiny bff wasn’t quite so engrossed in their drawing. After all, if Lake got startled and broke another tablet, they probably wouldn’t be able to afford a new one until December on the allowance Jessie’s parents were giving them.
As they listened to the song both of them began to think about the lyrics, albeit in very different interpretations. “Train to nowhere, at least your there...” Jessie liked those lyrics, after all they could relate to trying to make the most of an unfortunate situation and trying to turn it into a positive experience. Meanwhile Lake looked over to Jessie and set down their pen. “I can’t believe it, I JUST got the message of that song!” Jessie tilted their head. “You mean about making the most of a hard situation and relying on the people you love?” Lake reached over to flick them on the forehead but thought the better of if and pulled their hand back. “No, ding dong, I’ve listened to that song a thousand times and I just realized, it’s obviously about the train!”
Jessie raised a hand to their chin. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense, I mean according to your phone it is literally called ‘Train to Nowhere’.” Lake nodded. “Of course it is, I bet they were passengers just like us!“ Jessie grinned. “Oh wow, that’s so cool!” Lake put a chrome fingernail in their mouth as they thought. “I wonder which one of them it was? I bet it was Ryan since his lyrics always made him seem like sort of a hot mess!” They said with a chuckle. “What do you think Jessie?” Jessie shrugged. “I don’t know maybe it was him, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything by this band, who did you say they were again?” They asked with a sympathetic look.
Lake raised an eyebrow. “Wait, your seriously telling me you’ve never listened to Chicken Choice Judy?” Jessie shook their head. “Nah, I’ve mostly just listened to whatever my friends were listening to at the time before, so I guess I just haven’t really gotten the chance to listen to older stuff like this.” Lake grinned and flapped their hands with excitement. “I can’t wait to show you all of their stuff! They’re so good! And they’re like the original queer rock icons! Well maybe not original, but still pretty classic!” Jessie smiled at their bff’s excitement. “Wow, you really seem to know a lot about these guys.” Lake’s chrome cheeks warmed up a little. “Yeah... Tulip and her dad were really into their music, so I kinda picked up a lot of knowledge of it secondhand. I still like it though, I mean, just because we share a few interests doesn’t mean we’re the same person or anything, right...?” Jessie caught on to their hesitance and made sure to shut it down as best they could. Jessie nodded intently and reassured them. “Right.”
Relaxing a little bit Lake continued. “Anyway though, they have a ton of good albums and songs, I’d love to even go to one of their concerts someday, if I get the chance.” Jessie smiled, fiddling with the pages of the book they were holding as they talked. “Thats so cool, I’d definitely wanna go with you. Any recommendations for which of their albums we should listen to as prep for this possible concert?” Lake eagerly nodded. “Yeah! Okay so ‘Our Oeuvre’ is generally considered their best album by a lot of people. But I also really like their first album ‘202’. Oh! And we have to listen to the album they put out after they got married ‘Ode to a Concierge Bell’! And there’s a bunch more good ones too!” Jessie grinned. “Well I’ve got a little bit of time before I have to start on my homework again so why don’t we listen to some now?” Lake pumped their fist. “Yes! I was hoping you’d say that! I know just the perfect one to start with too!”