Chapter Text
12:56 PM, August 22
Grian added 17 people to the chat.
Grian renamed the chat ‘Chaos in a Box’
Grian changed their name to Pesky Bird
Solidarity: what is thsi
Pesky Bird: A groupchat tim
GoodtimeswithScar: Hello everyone !!!! :D
Pearlescentmoon: i think a better question is why is this
Pearlescentmoon changed their name to Pearl
Pesky Bird: It’s our last year of high school, why not?
Smajor: still why.
Solidarity: hi scott !! :DDD
Smajor: hi jimmy :D
Pearl: i don’t know if i can stand being in a group chat with both of you
Smajor: </3
Smajor changed their name to Scott <3
Solidarity has changed their name to Jimmy
Pesky Bird has changed Jimmy’s name to Timmy
Timmy: what the hcek
Geminitay: Scott told me to check my phone, what’s happening o/
ImpulseSV: geez that's a lot of people, is this every senior?????
Scott <3: impulse it’s 18 people
Scott <3: we are an extremely small school
Inthelittlewood: and an extremely gay school
Scott <3: and an extremely gay school
Inthelittlewood changed their name to Martyn
Rendog: Indeed me hand
Pesky Bird: Oh void why would I let them both in here
Martyn: sighs, indeed me lord
Timmy: thyeree roleplaynjg get them oit
LDShadowlady: omg can anyone tell what he’s saying or do I have to translate??
Smallishbeans: MY WIFE!!!!
LDShadowlady: babe i’m right next to you <3
Smallishbeans: well yes but now youre here too
Scott <3: simp
Smallishbeans: SCOTT I WILL FIND YOU AND FUCKING STAB YOU WITH A SWORD
Smallishbeans: Lizzie told me to say sorry so i’m sorry youre a smelly boy who cannot handle getting stabbed
Scott <3: i think i could survive <3
Timmy: i would drive you to the hospital
Scott <3: awww thanks jimmy ily too /p
ZombieCleo: There are too many gay people here Grian, why would you do this?
Pesky Bird: Because I was bored
Pearl: can confirm, he is currently talking my ear off about Mumbo
MumboJumbo: I was called
GoodtimeswithScar: :O
GoodtimeswithScar: woag how did you know
MumboJumbo: uh i dunno
Rendog: insane instincts dude
Pesky Bird: Mumbo always knows when i’m talking about him
Pearl: true somehow
1:15 PM
Pesky Bird changed MumboJumbo’s name to Mumbo
Pesky Bird changed GoodtimeswithScar’s name to Scar
Pesky Bird changed ImpulseSV’s name to Imp
Pesky Bird changed Skizzleman’s name to Skizz
Pesky Bird changed LDShadowlady’s name to Lizzie
Pesky Bird changed Geminitay’s name to Gem
Lizzie: Grian please
Pesky Bird changed ZombieCleo’s name to Cleo
Pesky Bird changed Rendog’s name to Ren
Lizzie: Grian
Pesky Bird changed TangoTek’s name to Tango
Pesky Bird changed EthoSlab’s name to Etho
Lizzie: GRIAN
Pesky Bird: wha
Lizzie: I’m doing homework
Lizzie: shut up
Pesky Bird changed Smallishbeans’s name to Short man
Short man: why do you already have homeork class schedules come out tomorrow
Short man: grian i will not hesitate to FIND YOU
Lizzie: honors classes love ^^
Short man: oh ya i forgot my girlfriend is the smartest person in the world <3333
Pearl: barfffff
Lizzie: Joel just grabbed a piece of paper and wrote HIT LIST at the top
Pearl: if he thinks he can hurt me, he has something coming for him :D
Short man: pearl i will hunt you down an
Pearl: LMAO???
Lizzie: I took his phone
Pesky Bird changed BDoubleO’s name to Bdubs
Lizzie: OMG
Lizzie: STOP
Pesky Bird changed BigBSt4t2z’s name to B
Pesky Bird: ok liz I’m done
Pesky Bird: why are there footsteps coming up the stairs
2:39 PM
Tango: why do I have 81 more messages than normal?????
Timmy: TAGNP !!!!
Tango: JIMMY !!!!!
Scott <3: do you have a normal amount of messages?
Tango: 3578
Etho: 3578
Skizz: 3578
Imp: 3578
Bdubs: 3578
Scott <3: wtf
Short man: damn eefo picked up the phone to answer that
Short man: why does it fucking autocorrect to eefo everytime
Etho: Because that’s what you have me saved in your phone as.
Short man: how did you know that
Lizzie: babe I told him
Short man: ok i can accept that <3
Scott <3: how did you all know that?????
Imp: you would be surprised how much he talks about it
Tango: I have a system :D
Scott <3: clearly /neu
Scar: G do we know everyone in here
Pesky Bird: you should weve all been going to school together since we were 5
Scar: actually pearl mumbo and lizzie joined in middle school and gem joined last year
Scar: can’t believe we only had one woman for 5 years
Cleo: excuse me
Scar: can’t believe we only had one they them for 5 years
Pesky Bird: :laughingwheeze:
Cleo: thank you scar
Timmy: gem why did you only jojn last year if scotts bern here forerve
Gem: homeschool
Gem: because I didnt like teachers
Scott <3: i convinced her to start last year because she definitely liked pearl and i told her she could see pearl more often if she went to school
Gem: SCOTTTTTTTTTTT >:O
Scott <3: yyeeeeeessssss??
Gem: how would you like it if I told them all about ur crush >:(((
Pearl: *crushes
Scott <3: pearl please
Scott <3: not you too </3
Scott <3: at least your already dating pearl i dont have a boyfriend
Pearl: *boyfriends
Scott <3: PEARL
Timmy: who is it :o
Scott <3: no
Timmy: :(
Timmy: pleeeeeereerrrreesssaaaaassssseeeeeeee?
Scott <3: no
Lizzie: C’mon scott he said please
Scott <3: all of you hate me
Short man: i do
Scott <3: i know joel
Pesky Bird: void jim ur dumb
Timmy: ?????????
Etho: Even I know.
B: even I know
Scott <3: who knows????
Pesky Bird: me
Lizzie: me
Short man: me
Etho: Me.
Imp: me
Pearl: me
Cleo: me
Gem: me
Martyn: me
Ren: me
B: me
Scott <3: 11/17
Scott <3: great /sar
Bdubs: wait I wanna know
Bdubs: cleoooooo
Bdubs: telllll meeeeeeeeeeee
Cleo: no
Bdubs: >:((((
Etho: I’ll tell you.
Bdubs: :DDDDD
Scott <3: etho whyyyyy
Timmy: wait i wanna know too
Short man: no
Lizzie: no
Pesky Bird: no
Scott <3: no
Tango: can i maybe know
Imp: no
Scott <3: no
Etho: No.
Bdubs: no
Scott <3: BDUBS YOU DONT EVEN KNOW
Bdubs: I DO NOW
Scott <3: its been nice knowing all of you
Scott <3: but im going to go jump off a cliff <3
Timmy: :(( dude
Scott flopped onto his bed, letting his phone bounce out of his hand and onto the floor. It made a loud thunk, but it had survived worse falls, so he wasn’t worried. The back glass was cracked, and the screen had too many small scratches, but it still worked. A drop to a carpeted floor wouldn’t do anything.
He groaned into the duvet, flipping over so he was looking at the dumb glow-in-the-dark stars he and Gem had super glued to the ceiling as kids. His parents hadn’t been able to pick all of them off, leaving some of the smaller ones glowing sickly green when the lights were turned off.
The door opened softly, scratching against the carpet. Seconds later, there was a weight beside his chest, and Gem was peering over the lenses of her glasses to look at him. Her auburn curls fell over her shoulders in a wild mess.
“I’m sorry,” she simply said, putting her hand on Scott’s arm. He let it rest there, closing his eyes softly.
“It’s fine. Neither of them will ever know, anyway.”
He’d had a crush on Jimmy for as long as he could remember. There were so many things about him to like, and unfortunately, Scott had found all of them appealing. He had other crushes during the span of six years since they started middle school and Scott actually started thinking about romance (he and Martyn had a whole ‘thing’ freshman year before they decided to be friends, and he would be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about Joel at least once) but his attraction to Jimmy never faded.
Tango, however, was a recent addition. At the start of the calendar year, Scott had started to notice him more than before. Tango was… well, Tango was overwhelming in a good way. He spoke fast and changed topics at the speed of light and was so excited all the time, Scott couldn’t help but find it cute.
“Why?” Gem asked, even though he had reiterated the reason again and again. Scott sighed, throwing an arm over his eyes.
“Because Jimmy’s straight, and I’m not a girl—”
“Lizzie said he was questioning!”
“I have my doubts. He’s the straightest man I’ve ever met.”
“Don’t stereotype.” Gem squeezed his arm. “And why won’t you tell Tango?”
“Because Tango’s gay, and I’m too much of a girl!” Scott exclaimed, voice cracking in the middle of the sentence. “My binder barely makes me a boy, Gem. I’ve been on T for three months. I don’t pass very well at all.” He grabbed the pillow from above his head and squished his face into it.
“So you—”
“Won’t tell Jimmy because I’m not a girl, and won’t tell Tango because I’m too much of a girl? Yes, you’ve said this before.” His voice was muffled, but Gem could obviously still hear it very well, because she scoffed softly.
“Honestly, I think you are very much a boy,” she said quietly. “And you pass well.”
“...Thank you,” Scott grumbled. He was tired of having feelings, especially feelings about other people. Some part of him wished he could just spend the rest of his life in this room with his sister, but that wasn’t possible. Besides, if he did, he wouldn’t have anyone to show off his progress on T too.
On the windows of their room, rain started to fall softly. Scott took the pillow off his face, frowning at the droplets making their way down the glass. Gem had gotten up and was fixing her bed. She grabbed a light blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders, throwing one in Scott’s direction as well. Instead of sitting down as she looked like she had been planning to do, she walked to the door and opened it.
“I’m making tea.”
“Make me some too!” Scott called, finally sitting up and dragging his computer onto the bed.
“No!”
And yet, five minutes later, there was a large mug of mint tea in his lap as we watched a youtube video with his headphones in. Gem sat across the room, tapping away on her phone in the way she did only when texting Pearl.
Maybe she was right, and he had a chance one day. Just maybe.
Bitches & Faggots <3
3:14 PM
Lesbian: Scott you need help
GemGem: he knows
Scottie DOES know: i know
Lesbian: jimmy might be bi we dont know
Lesbian: and tango’s gay, so you don’t even need to worry about that part
Scottie DOES know: but what if he doesn’t like meeeeeeee
Theatre boy: scott i liked you and i’m gay
Scottie DOES know: is ur name tango
Scottie DOES know: i don’t tjink so
Oh Naur Cleor: The rare Scott typo, spotted in the wild
NOT bi herself: Jimmy’s been talking about you a lot lately…. :>
Lesbian: he said he misses youuuuuu
Lesbian: a lottttttt
NOT bi herself: Not as much as Joel talks about Etho though
Scottie DOES know: oohhh are you suspecting something?????
NOT bi herself: I mean, I’d be ok if he wanted to date someone else AND me
NOT bi herself: Ethos cool ig
GemGem: etho is something all right
Oh Naur Cleor: Etho is my ex husband, so do not let Joel near him unless you want an obsession of some kind
NOT bi herself: /j ???
Oh Naur Cleor: /srs
Lesbian: protect Joel I guess
Lesbian: anyway
Lesbian: SCOTT GET BACK HERE
Scottie DOES know: im right here what
Lesbian: literally just talk to them
Theatre boy: actually wait until Jimmy comes out to you before you do anything
Scottie DOES know: this is the worst advice
Scottie DOES know: ill just wait until college and then i wont have to see them anymore
Lesbian: but you’ll still see them???
GemGem: dude we’re literally gonna go to Pearls house more than once a year
GemGem: i need my girlfriend time
GemGem: bc i love her
Lesbian: love you too <3
Theatre boy: and here the faggots part of the groupchat name comes into play
GemGem: >:(