Chapter Text
The small city of Crossroads is home to many. Its main inhabitants are inphernals—human-like beings with horns and thin, tufted tails. Among the many inphernals, the phighters stand out—there’s a total of fifteen phighters.
The phighters are all quite famous permanent participants in the hit show, Phighting!, which is held and commentated by Valk and Dom. Amongst the fifteen phighters, they each have their own skills and talents, and are split into three groups; melee, ranged, and support.
The five melee phighters are known as Sword, Skateboard, Biograft, Katana, and Ban Hammer.
The five ranged phighters are known as Rocket, Slingshot, Hyperlaser, Shuriken, and Scythe.
And then, the five support phighters are known as Medkit, Boombox, Subspace, Vine Staff, and Coil.
Now, majority of the phighters are quiet, and often keep to themselves. Boombox, however, isn’t a very quiet guy. He has a huge passion for music, and always carries a boombox with him, wherever he goes.
He’s loud, sure, but he’s also extremely compassionate, selfless, and always willing to give his help to any other inphernals whenever it’s needed. Though, he often gets taken advantage of because of his vulnerability. Yet, despite his joyful demeanour and altruism, he rarely feels like he’s doing enough for others, so he regularly pushes himself past his limits.
Boombox struggles with self-worth more often than not. He has twice the respect for others than he does himself. The unhappy reactions from both Medkit and Ban Hammer in particular only make it worse.
Currently, the phighters are participating in yet another long show. At the moment, they’re waiting for the next phight to start. Skateboard and Coil are bantering as usual, occasionally punching each other in the shoulder. The others are either wandering around the waiting area, practicing their skills before the next phight, or just talking with each other.
Boombox is sitting by himself, his boombox sitting beside him, playing loud-ish pop music. He’s enjoying it, his tail flicking in time with the music.
“Ugh…do you mind? That’s way too loud.” Medkit huffs from nearby, his tail swishing irritably.
Boombox looks up at Medkit. A small frown appears on his face for a split second before it gets replaced by a smile.
“Oh, c’mon, Med! It’s not that bad!” He says joyfully.
“It is that bad. Can’t you just not listen to that damn music for five minutes?” Medkit snaps back, shooting a sharp glare at the younger inphernal.
“Nah! I like the noise! Silence makes me feel sick.” Boombox answers warmly, though he shivers slightly at the thought of sitting in silence for five whole minutes.
Medkit mutters a quiet, “of course not”, under his breath before he swiftly makes his way over to Ban Hammer.
Boombox shrugs that interaction off, knowing that he shouldn’t think about it. He continues to listen to his music, but he subtly turns it down.
He kinda hates that he’s so easy to boss around. But, it’s in his nature to agree with everything and be complacent. He’s never complained about anything before—not even when he gets hurt or gets sick. Not one complaint has ever left his mouth.
He’s thankful for a few people though—other than his friends, Slingshot and Coil, Katana has been quite nice to him. He once told him about a song that a relative sung to him. In addition, Katana often tells Medkit to be a bit nicer to Boombox, as he noticed that Medkit is particularly rude towards him.
He glances up again as he hears Skateboard approaching and sitting down next to him. He smiles joyfully and hugs Skate tightly as soon as he sits down, practically tackling him.
Skateboard has been Boombox’s best friend since basically forever! Of course he’s happy to see him! He’s been there for him when he’s sad, when he’s happy. Skate’s always been there for him. And he’s always been there for Skate. The dynamic between them is that if either of them are happy or sad, the other feels the same way.
“You good?” Skateboard murmurs quietly.
“Yup! I’m great! What about you, Skate?” Boombox replies excitedly.
“I’m good, thanks, Boomy. The next phight’ll be starting soon. I hope it’s conquer this time…” Skate says in that calm, laidback tone.
This time, Boombox doesn’t know how to reply. He doesn’t want the next phight to be conquer—he wants it to be escort. But, he doesn’t want to upset Skate by saying so.
“Oh…yeah, me too!” He answers after a moment of quiet thought.
Skateboard raises an eyebrow at Boombox’s response. That small pause before he replied wasn’t exactly…normal for him. Usually, he replies quickly—but he paused this time. Odd.
“Heh, guess we can agree on that then…” He whispers gently.
“Yeah!” Boombox exclaims just a little too loudly—a few of the others look over, but thankfully don’t say anything.
Skate laughs softly. He’s always liked how unintentionally loud Boombox can be. He knows it’s not his fault—he can’t help having ADHD. But, he’s always worried about him—his complacency makes him so easy to take advantage of. He’s worried that one day, Boombox is going to trust the wrong person and end up getting hurt.
Boombox’s self-worth issues are also a source of worry for Skateboard. He’s noticed that whenever his team doesn’t win, Boombox blames himself for the loss—even though it’s no one’s fault, he always takes the blame for it. He also said one time, “looks like I wasn’t good enough this time”, after his team lost a phight. He looked so…disappointed in himself.
From Boombox’s point of view, if he just keeps everything inside, then it’ll all eventually go away. But so far, it’s only made things so much worse. He keeps messing up during phights, which makes him feel more useless than ever. He’s been losing his focus more easily, making him feel like he’s a liability.
He cares so much about everyone else, especially Skateboard, but doesn’t care about himself. He ignores his own needs and feelings in favour of the needs and feelings of others.
He doesn’t argue when someone tells him to be quiet, or that he’s too loud, or that his music taste sucks. He just takes it, pushing it down and trapping the animosity in a jar. Every time he gets insulted or told to shut up, the animosity and frustration in his heart grows. Eventually, all it’s going to take is someone saying the wrong thing at the wrong time—then he’ll snap.
Later, when Boombox gets home, he goes to his room and flops onto his bed. His room is a mess—music sheets scattered on his desk, at least ten different Monster Energy cans on the floor, and clothes covering half the floor. He hasn’t slept properly in…3? No…4 days? He doesn’t even remember at this point.
He can’t remember the last time he had a proper meal. He’s been living off the food he has in his apartment, which isn’t much. He’s gone from lean to skinny.
Boombox wonders if he’ll ever feel better. This depression has been clinging to him like a parasite, refusing to leave him alone. He feels so helpless. Despite having his best friend, he still feels alone in this situation.
He knows that Medkit isn’t just skilled in physical health and remedies, but mental health as well. But, Medkit obviously doesn’t like him, considering how many times he’s snapped at him.
He stares at the ceiling. It’s so quiet. It’s too quiet. There’s not enough noise. He needs noise. But he can’t bring himself to get up and turn on his boombox. Almost like…he’s lost too much energy.
He’s so tired of being told he’s too much. That he’s annoying. That he’s weak.
He doesn’t understand what he did wrong to deserve the cruel words of Ban Hammer and Medkit. He wants to know why they hate him so much.
Is he really that annoying?
Is he truly weak?
Is he too much?
He wants to cry, scream, maybe. But he doesn’t dare. That’s how selfish people act. He’s not selfish.
He’s Boombox! The compassionate, selfless inphernal who’s always there for everyone. The guy who never fails to make people laugh and smile. The guy that always shows up, no matter what.
Yeah.
That’s him.
That’s what he does.
But it’s getting tiring. Everyone seems to need his help now. He keeps giving and giving, yet, he rarely gets the same in return. If he does, it’s usually reluctantly.
He can’t keep this up much longer. He doesn’t have an infinite supply of happiness and energy to give away, though he wishes he did.
Boombox falls asleep after a while. He doesn’t dream peacefully. He dreams of losing Skateboard again. Of falling from Splintered Skies. The anger and disappointment in her eyes. The memories. The kindness that used to shine so brightly in her expression when she looked at him.
He awakes with a sharp, panicked gasp. He swallows his tears, forcing himself to stay quiet. He’s okay. He’s fine. He’d hate for anyone to worry about his useless existence. He only exists to help others. To give until he has nothing left.
Mhm.
Sure.
He’s fine.
Who is he kidding? He’s not fine. Not even a little bit okay. He’s sleep deprived, still struggling with trauma, hasn’t been eating, and hates himself even more for all of it.
He’s so…pathetic. He can barely hold himself together. He can’t do anything right.
He cares too much. He’s too gullible. He’s too loud. He’s just too much.
[…]
Skateboard stares at his phone worriedly. He hasn’t seen one message from Boombox since they split up to go home. Usually, Boombox always messages him to let him know that he’s gotten home safe. Usually, Boombox would be sending him silly memes and videos.
But there’s nothing. Not one single message.
To say that Skate’s worried would be an understatement—he’s fucking terrified. Boombox has never been so quiet before, and it’s scaring him more than he’d like to admit.
He knows that his best friend has depression, and that it gets real bad. But this? This seems so much worse than any other depressive episode Boombox has had.
Yesterday, while Skateboard and Boombox were having a day to hang out, Skate bought Boombox his favourite snack, but…he didn’t want it. He’s never rejected his favourite snack like that before. So, it’s only fair that Skate’s stressing out.
He has no idea if the most important person to him is okay. He doesn’t know where his best friend is. Doesn’t know if he’s hurting himself. Fuck, he could be dying right now, and he wouldn’t know.
He’s messaged him multiple times, his tone getting more and more frantic and terrified. He’s petrified of losing his best friend.
“Boombox, where are you?” — sent at 12:04 AM, Friday — unread.
“Are you okay?” — sent at 12:16 AM, Friday — unread.
“Please answer me.” — sent at 12:30 AM, Friday — unread.
“You’re scaring me, Boomy, please, just tell me that you’re safe at home.” — sent at 12:37 AM, Friday — unread.
“I can’t lose you.” — sent at 12:43 AM, Friday — unread.
The longer that Boombox doesn’t respond, the more panicked Skate gets. He’s trying so hard to not hyperventilate. He’s trying to calm himself down, but it’s hard when his best friend isn’t responding.
But then, something happens. Boombox replies. Oh thank the swords.
“Shoot, I’m so sorry! I got a little distracted with my sheet music! I didn’t mean to make ya worry, Skate :(” — sent at 1:47 AM, Friday — read.
“Nonono! It’s okay, just- don’t do that again, yeah? You scared me real bad, y’know.” — sent at 1:50 AM, Friday — read.
“Heh, yeah, I’ll try not to do it again, don’t worry :]” — sent at 1:53 AM, Friday — read.
A small, weary smile spreads across Skateboard’s face. He sighs tiredly, happy now that he knows that his best friend is alive and at home. But…something feels off.
He can’t explain it, but there’s something off about the way that Boombox replied. It’s not the fact that he didn’t swear, as he doesn’t usually, but rather…the thing about his sheet music. A few days ago, Boombox said that he was going to take a long break from making sheet music, so…that must’ve been a lie.
Boombox never goes back on decisions. He just…doesn’t, and Skate knows it. And now, he’s gone full circle, right back to worrying about his best friend.
Skate promised him that he’d always be there for him. That he’d never, ever leave his side. And Boombox promised him the same thing. But…now it feels like he’s slowly drifting away into a cold, dark ocean that is his depression.
Skateboard wishes that Medkit would just stop being so damn cold towards Boombox and actually be nice for once. Then maybe Boombox could get some help with his issues. But no. Medkit doesn’t just change when he’s told to. He’s too fucking stubborn.
Skate just wants his best friend to be okay. He wants him to feel like he’s useful, because he is. He’s talented at a lot of things apart from music. His memory is impeccable. He remembers everyone’s favourite things and their birthdays off by heart. But no one except for him, Slingshot, Coil, and Katana remember Boombox’s birthday.
It frustrates him, really, how much Boombox does for others, only to get selfishness and ignorance from them. Actually, it makes him so unbelievably angry. He knows that his best friend deserves so much better.
He deserves all the love he can get, all the kindness that he silently wishes for. Oh, how badly Skate wants to fulfil Boombox’s wishes, to make him feel better.
But, alas, he’s no genie. He can’t just snap his fingers and give his best friend everything he wants, needs, and deserves.
As of now, all he can really do is…try and support Boombox as much as he can. Other than that, there’s not much else he can do, other than…watch as he slips into a spiral of misery and despair.
[…]
Slingshot has heard from Skateboard that Boombox doesn’t seem to be doing too well. Boombox is one of the few people he cares about. He’s so kind and caring, it’s impossible not to worry when he suddenly gets all closed off and isolated.
Despite his usually blunt personality, he’s always gentle with Boombox, knowing that self-worth is something he struggles with often. He doesn’t want him to feel any worse about himself than he already does.
Even his siblings, Shuriken and Vine Staff, are worried when they hear that Boombox has been so out of sorts.
For all Shuriken’s sleepiness, he’s immediately alert whenever his friends aren’t doing okay. Hearing that Boombox, of all inphernals, isn’t alright? He knows that’s not good.
Vine Staff is just as worried, as indicated by her anxious fidgeting. Though she doesn’t know much about other inphernals, she cares for Boombox just as she cares for her siblings.
[…]
When Coil gets informed that Boombox, possibly the most joyous and caring inphernal, is having a crisis, he already knows who caused this. Medkit and Ban Hammer.
He’s caught the two of them complaining to each other about how “annoying” Boombox is, even when he’s right there and can hear every word they’re saying.
He’s seen Medkit snap at Boombox several different times. He’s heard Ban Hammer yelling at him for something dumb like him accidentally missing a shot on the enemy.
Coil blames those two for making Boombox feel like he’s too much to be around. He growls under his breath, barely resisting the urge to hunt those two down. They deserve to fall down twenty flights of stairs.
It’s weird to know that Boombox isn’t happy. He’s just so joyful and kind most of the time that you wouldn’t exactly think he has depression.
[…]
When Skateboard, Slingshot, and Coil go and visit Boombox on Sunday, all three of them have to try and not get too upset.
Boombox looks absolutely miserable. There’s dark bags under his eyes, his tail doesn’t wag like it usually does, instead it just drags behind him, and he clearly still isn’t eating.
Skate’s eyes widen ever so slightly—oh by the seven swords, Boombox is not okay. He’s never seen his best friend so miserable and broken before. Slingshot’s reaction is quite similar—he hasn’t ever seen this amount of pure negativity on Boombox’s face.
Coil growls angrily, but not at Boombox. At everyone who insulted him. At everyone who yelled at him. At everyone who didn’t even say a simple thank you to him. The expression on his face could melt glaciers. He’s always been particularly protective of Boombox, mainly because of the latter’s tendency to get taken advantage of.
Anger quickly fills Skate and Sling too. The three of them are all very aware that quite a few of the others don’t treat Boombox nicely—especially Medkit and Ban Hammer.
But for now, they have to focus on comforting Boombox, so, without another second of hesitation, they all join Boombox on his bed, and cuddle up to him.
Boombox relaxes a little. He smiles weakly, thankful that his friends care so much.
And for once, he lets himself be a little selfish. He soaks up all the comfort Skate, Sling, and Coil give him.