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Wemmbu was brushing his teeth, only half awake and barely aware of his surroundings. He heard his dad moving stuff downstairs—he was probably cooking breakfast. The smell wafted up to the bathroom.
His brother, Spoke, was sitting on the toilet lid, scrolling on his phone while also brushing his teeth. Suddenly, he stood up and pushed Wemmbu away from the sink to spit out the toothpaste foam. Then he flashed his phone at Wemmbu.
Wemmbu could barely read it with how bright the screen was. It felt like his eyes were being assaulted. He blinked a few times before finally being able to see the Instagram story FlameFrags had posted without getting flashbanged.
There was somebody leaning on Flame’s shoulder. They were sitting on a park bench, and the person next to Flame had their face hidden behind the bunny they were holding. The song playing was “Lovers” by Anna of the North.
Was this a… soft launch!? Had Flame just soft-launched someone on his story?
Flame—as in Flame, his neighbor and the guy Wemmbu had the biggest crush on since he was seven years old.
“I wonder who it is,” Spoke mused, moving to like the story. Before he could, Wemmbu snatched the phone out of his hands. “Don’t like it, idiot!” Wemmbu huffed.
He analyzed the picture, zooming in on the hand holding the bunny, but he didn’t recognize the person. The only distinct features were tan skin and an orange jade bracelet on their wrist. What a tacky choice in jewelry!
“Give me my phone back! Why can’t I like it?” Spoke tried grabbing for his phone, but Wemmbu shoved his face away with his hand. His cold metal rings made a loud clank against Spoke’s circle-rimmed glasses.
“Whose side are you on, Spoke!” Wemmbu sighed, exasperated and very overdramatic. “There’s no side, you creep. You never had a chance with him to begin with,” Spoke reasoned, a smug tone in his voice.
Wemmbu scrunched his nose and sent Spoke a mean glare, but the other boy responded by sticking his tongue out like a petulant child.
“Who doesn’t have a chance with who?” Mapicc walked into the bathroom, grogginess evident in his voice.
“What the fuck? Since when were you here? Does our dad even know you slept over?” Wemmbu asked, putting his toothbrush back into the cup.
Mapicc shrugged. “Your dad loves me anyway. He won’t care.” That was the stupidest logic Wemmbu had ever heard, but it was 9 a.m. on a weekend. No one should have to deal with a conversation with Mapicc and Spoke this early.
Wemmbu dragged his feet across the carpeted floor of the stairs, skipping the last one and beelining to the kitchen. “Mornin’,” Minute greeted.
“Morning.” Wemmbu grabbed a plate and scooped an ungodly amount of bacon onto it. He took a piece of white bread from the bag and made a BLT without the T, then brought the plate up to his room.
Wemmbu closed the door, placed his breakfast on his table, and opened his window, which had a perfect view of Flame’s bedroom window.
Sometimes when neither of them could sleep, they would go to their windows and write messages on a whiteboard or a piece of paper—whatever was closest—and talk until the dark sky started to streak with orange.
Flame’s window was closed, so Wemmbu clicked his tongue in disappointment. He sat down on his chair, opened Instagram, and checked Flame’s story again.
It was the same thing. He didn’t know what he had expected, but a sad feeling settled over him.
He opened Flame’s account to see if he had ever posted this person before, trying to spot the orange jade bracelet in any of the pictures. But Flame only had a few posts, and most of them were of his dog, Ashen.
With no other choice, he opened his messages and decided to text a certain someone named after a bird while eating his sandwich.
Wemmbu (9:38): Parrot
Wemmbu (9:38): Do u know anyone who wears an orange jade bracelet from our school?
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:40): No?
McDonald’s 10 piece(9:40): Why are you even awake wtf ts is like the second coming
Wemmbu (9:40): Why are YOU awake
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:40): I have choir bro
Wemmbu (9:40): Y do you have mass it’s not even Sunday
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:40): It’s Easter idiot, we have mass every day
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:40): You should come to cleanse your unholy soul
Wemmbu (9:40): sybau ur literally an atheist
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:41): Yeah but between the two of us who is gonna sing with the church choir for Easter mass
Wemmbu (9:42): I will attend mass to make fun of you and prove I am a better person
McDonald’s 10 piece (9:43): Careful when you enter the church you might burn
Wemmbu (9:43): 🖕🖕🖕
Wemmbu closed his laptop and turned his head toward Flame’s house again. He caught a glimpse of him entering a car with his family, and his heart sank once more.
Maybe he really did need Jesus.
He looked through his closet and there was NOTHING church-appropriate in there, so he settled on a white polo with blue stripes and black slacks.
He didn’t even bother with his hair, letting his long purple hair that reached his waist fall free instead of putting it in a ponytail like he usually did.
He grabbed his phone, wallet, and keys, put them in his pocket, and took his dirty plate down to the sink. “Where are you going this early?” Minute hummed.
Wemmbu turned to see Minute, Mapicc, and Spoke eating breakfast together at the table. “Church,” he responded curtly.
“Really? I was just about to invite you guys. Why don’t we go together? I’ll drive,” Minute offered. Suddenly, all four of them were in Minute’s car on the way to church.
It took them almost an hour to get ready. Mapicc basically had his own closet at their house at this point—why the heck did this kid have semi-formal attire ready?
Approaching the church, Wemmbu could hear the choir singing inside, a clear sign that the mass was already in full swing. When they entered through the double doors, everyone turned to look at who had just arrived a whole hour late.
Wemmbu wanted the floor to swallow him whole. Then he made eye contact with Parrot, who was holding in his laugh. Parrot gestured with his eyes toward the front right row. When Wemmbu turned, he saw Flame sitting there with his family, looking straight at him.
He was going to die right here. Spoke tapped his shoulder and gestured for him to sit down.
He kept sneaking glances toward Flame in the front row. Flame must have felt it, because during one of the prayers he turned around and smiled at him.
UGHHH. Why would he smile at him like that when he had soft-launched someone on his story not even two hours ago?
During the distribution of the Eucharist, Wemmbu made sure to line up in Parrot’s line. Parrot handed him the host and gave him a look.
Wemmbu took it, popped it into his mouth, then went to one of the prayer booths and started praying. While he was trying to have a heart-to-heart with the big man upstairs, guess who sat down next to him?
That’s right—FlameFrags!
He could feel Flame staring at him, but he kept his eyes closed and tried to continue praying. Then he heard, “You’re really pretty with your hair down.”
His eyes shot open. “What?” he whispered, sure he had heard that wrong.
“I said you’re pretty with your hair down,” Flame repeated, like it was the most normal thing in the world.
He was about to ask more questions when a nun suddenly nudged them. “Once you’re done praying, you can return to your seats,” she said sternly.
Wemmbu shot her an apologetic look before racing back to his seat, cheeks burning. The rest of his family was already back in their seats. “I heard they’re gonna have an egg hunt after this. Do you want to join?” Mapicc whispered into his ear.
“Are you five years old?” Wemmbu muttered, trying not to make any more eye contact with Flame. All his blood was already in his face—if he blushed any more, there would be none left anywhere else.
“You’re no fun,” Spoke whined. Minute shushed the three of them for the sign of peace, and Wemmbu had to look up. Flame was once again staring at him. GOSH! What was that guy’s problem with staring?
Without realizing it, his foot snagged on one of the kneelers and he fell flat on his ass, hitting his head on the seat. Spoke’s loud laugh air-horned through the entire church.
When would his bad luck end? Jesus Christ.
He stood back up, acting as if nothing had happened even though a few people were still staring, and continued giving the sign of peace while rubbing the bump on the back of his head.
The mass finally ended and he was fully ready to go home. Parrot called out to him, and he left his family to go talk to his friend.
“Bro, what was that?” Parrot laughed loudly. Wemmbu buried his face in his hands. “Today has got to be my unluckiest day ever, dude.” There weren’t many people left in the church—everyone had filed outside for the egg hunt—so he yelled into his hands.
“Today is the worst day ever. It is Kill Wemmbu Day,” he murmured. “Yeah, okay,” Parrot laughed at his misfortune.
When a hand suddenly tapped his shoulder, he turned around. It was Manepear, Flame’s brother, and Lomedy, Flame’s best friend. “Yo, do you guys have a partner for the egg hunt? I kinda don’t have one,” Manepear asked.
Wemmbu glared. “Why the fuck would we join the egg hunt??” He pushed the hair out of his face. The long strands were limiting his vision. See! This is why he always kept his hair up.
“Well, the egg hunt seems fun,” Flame argued, suddenly appearing out of nowhere. Oh my god.
“Well, I wouldn’t mind joining, but my friend Wemmbu has apparently wants to go home, right Wemm?” Parrot hit his shoulder.
“Uhm, no! Maybe this egg hunt will be the change of pace my day needs, y’know! What are we waiting for? Let’s go—we gotta beat the kids!” He grabbed Parrot’s hand and dragged him outside.
“Oh shit! Wemmbu, I just remembered I can’t join since I helped hide some of the eggs! Shucks, guess you have to partner up with someone else,” Parrot said in a very unapologetic voice, letting go of Wemmbu’s hand.
“Yo, Manepear is gonna partner with Lomedy, so I don’t have a partner anymore either. Right, Mane?” Flame announced with a shrug.
“Yep! Totally,” Manepear nodded.
“Do you want to be my partner, Wemmbu?”
Yes yes yes in every way possible?! Yes yes yes. WAIT—LOCK IN, WEMMBU. HE IS ALREADY DATING SOMEONE.
“Uhhhh, um, sure,” Wemmbu muttered rather stupidly. Then Flame grabbed his hand. “Well, let’s go then.” His brain short-circuited at the sudden touch as they started walking away.
Flame sent Parrot a glare as the two of them walked off. Parrot sighed. “They are so down bad for each other.”
“Tell me about it,” Lomedy and Manepear said at the same time. Lomedy stretched, and Parrot spotted an orange jade bracelet on his wrist. “Wait, Lomedy—are you the guy in Flame’s story?”
“Yeah bro, it’s for April Fools’,” Lomedy yawned.
Flame hadn’t let go of his hand the entire time. Wemmbu was going to pass out. He held the basket as Flame plopped another egg inside.
Wemmbu spotted an egg in a nearby shrub, so he wiggled his hand out of Flame’s grasp and bent down to grab it. Once again, his hair blocked his vision. “Hey Flame, you don’t happen to have a hair tie, do you?” He bundled his hair up.
It was too long to hold with one hand, so he had to use both hands to tie it into a ponytail. “Yeah, I do,” Flame rummaged in his pocket. “Can you put it in my mouth? My hands are kinda occupied.”
Wemmbu opened his mouth slightly. Flame used his thumb to pull down Wemmbu’s bottom lip before placing the hair tie in his mouth.
Wemmbu tied his hair expertly, and when he looked at Flame, the other boy was staring at him like he had hung the moon.
“Uhh, I think they’re already counting the eggs,” Wemmbu spoke quickly, grabbing their basket and speeding to the stand.
They had won, beating out every five-year-old there—including Spoke and Mapicc—much to Spoke’s complaint.
As a prize, they got a giant teddy bear and a shirt that said “Egg Hunt 2026!”
“Here, you can have both of them,” Flame said, handing him the shirt and the ridiculously large teddy bear.
“Thanks,” Wemmbu smiled.
“I hope I made your day less shitty,” Flame scratched the back of his head.
“What?”
“I was listening to your conversation with Parrot. Sorry, I just heard you were having a shitty day and I wanted to make it better.”
Wemmbu’s jaw dropped. “Why?” was a stupid question, and Flame laughed. “Goodness, you can be so dense sometimes.” And suddenly Flame was leaning in, kissing him.
FLAME WAS KISSING HIM IN FRONT OF A SHIT TON OF PEOPLE—AND AT A CHURCH. WHAT THE HELL.
Wemmbu pushed him away. “Wait, wait, wait—aren’t you already dating someone??”
Flame’s eyebrows bunched together. “What? Where did you get that idea?”
“Your story?” Wemmbu mumbled.
Flame broke out laughing. “Wemm, did you forget what day it is today? That was Lomedy, dumbass.”
“Shut up!” Wemmbu huffed.
And for a bit of revenge, “Well… I like you,” he gritted out.
Flame suddenly stopped laughing, his face turning serious. “Really?” he said hopefully.
“No. Happy April Fools’!” Wemmbu cheered before grabbing Flame’s collar and kissing him again.
“Get a fucking room! There’s still children here!” Parrot yelled.
Well, maybe this day wasn’t so bad after all.