Chapter Text
" Briiiiinggg!!! Briiiingg!!! "
"Ugh.... Shatap..."
A hand aggressively hit the alarm clock sitting on the wooden table, knocking it over with a thud on the carpeted floor.
A yawn and the shuffling of sheets followed. Zanka rubbed his eyes, attempting to make the sleepiness go away. He stood up, nearly tripping over the fallen alarm clock on the floor. With one last yawn, he stumbled out of his room and made his way to the bathroom.
In front of the door, he knocked on the wood harshly. When no reply came, he pushed open the door and went inside. He splashed water on his face, the cold liquid immediately awakening his senses.
He brushed his teeth and took a shower. He changed into a white shirt and a slightly baggy dark blue jeans, his favorite blue jacket thrown on top. He walked out the bathroom feeling refreshed and more energetic.
When he made his way downstairs and into the kitchen, he had to suppress both a shriek and a laugh.
Riyo, Rudo, Enjin, and even Gris was sitting around the dining table, dark circles under their eyes. They looked like literal corpses, hunched over the breakfast Gris must've cooked.
"What in 'da world happened to y'all...?" He asked, his voice a southern drawl. He hesitantly joined them, sitting down on an unoccupied chair next to Riyo and Enjin.
Riyo's hollow green eyes shifted onto him. "You... Didn't hear all the ruckus last night?" She asked, her voice tinted with disbelief and a tiny bit of envy.
Zanka tilted his head as he swallowed a bite of the omelette on his plate. "What noise? I didn't hear a peep last night, I slept like a baby." He admitted. Suddenly, four pairs of eyes landed on him, heavy with envy.
"Wow.. Lucky you..." Riyo grumbled bitterly, turning her gaze back down to her food and glared at it like it personally committed a crime. Rudo also grumbled, but it was some unintelligible stuff Zanka couldn't hear.
"What's your secret, Zan? I genuinely couldn't sleep last night, at all." Enjin asked, looking at Zanka pleadingly.
Zanka blinked, confused. What in the hell were they talking about? "I dunno..? What are ya guys even talking about? What noise?" He asked, eyes looking at the pure exhausted look on his family's faces.
"It was the new neighbors.." Gris replied with a sigh, "They're really loud." He sounded bitter and annoyed as he spoke — which was a red flag, Gris is rarely annoyed.
"That's an understatement!" Rudo slammed his hand down on the table, causing all their plates and utensils to rattle. "Rudo!" Riyo yelled in surprise, glaring at Rudo. Rudo blinked, before he seemed to regain his composure and sat back down, "Sorry.." He mumbled, going back to eating.
"Whatever.. But he's right. Loud is an understatement." Riyo spoke with a tired sigh. "I mean, they moved in at twelve freakin' am! What are they, a family of vampires?" She complained, Enjin nodding along.
"Yeah, and more ridiculous? When I tried to tell them to tone it down, some old graying dickhead turned up the volume of their music and shut the door in my face!" Enjin added, his eyes practically twitching as he spoke.
Zanka stared, stunned. How had he not heard anything? It sounded like a bunch of ruckus and mess, but he basically dreamed of unicorns and rainbows — He actually didn't, but metaphors and all that jazz.
"Huh? I could've sworn I didn't hear anything though?" He mumbled in confusion.
"Well shit, lucky you then, don't gotta rub it in our face, man." Enjin sighed. Riyo and Rudo nodded as they ate, Rudo glared at him for a second before focusing on eating.
Zanka rolled his eyes, continuing to eat as he thought quietly to himself.
After they finished eating, Riyo and Rudo also finished getting ready for school. Enjin dropped the three of them off at school and they departed to each of their own respective classes.
It was in the middle of English class that he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Normally, he would've ignored it and focused in class, but he couldn't resist pulling it out and opening it under the desk. He clicked on the notification and found it was from a very infuriatingly familiar person.
DONT RESPOND TO!!!
- wsp bb
- u in class???
- my new skl boring asf af rn
He rolled his eyes, taking one glance at his teacher distracted with the lecture, he typed out a response.
Me
- Shut up, genuinely
- Can't focus on the lecture now because of your dumbass
DONT RESPOND TO!!!
- hhehe does dis mean i have all ur attention
Me
- I'm gonna murder you
DONT RESPOND TO!!!
- yes pls
- say you swear
Zanka now remembers why exactly he put 'DONT RESPOND TO!!!' for this godforsaken man. Absolutely fucking vile. He doesn't even know how he hasn't blocked him yet.
Oh wait. He has. The fucker just finds a way to contact him again.
With a sigh, he typed out a response.
Me
- Let's talk later, i got class
DONT RESPOND TO!!!
- promissss????
Me
- Yes dude whatever
- You clingy fuck
DONT RESPOND TO!!!
- yayayyay
- text me ok
With an affectionate eye roll, he turned his phone off and focused back on class.
~
Zanka has a secret.
It's not necessarily a crime, or a bad thing.
It's just something that'll be really awkward to tell anybody. Even his closest of friends doesn't know, but he's sure that Semiu has a hunch.
Well, what the secret might be you ask?
He has a boyfriend. An online boyfriend, no less.
It would cause a massive surprise, Zanka just knew. Like, imagine him, Zanka 'I-dont-like-romance' Nijiku, having an online boyfriend? Having a boyfriend is already a surprise itself, but an online boyfriend is.. wow.
Jabber Wonger was this boyfriend's name. They never met, but they called almost every day. They met on Twitter, they had argued over whether the difference between poisonous and venomous is important and took it to dms.
After that, they found things to argue about until they grew close and ended up where they are now. They'd chat everyday about everything and nothing, call and not speak at all, sometimes play games on call. It was just that.
Now, Zanka was chatting Jabber while waiting for Enjin to come pick him, Riyo, and Rudo up.
Apparently, they moved somewhere but Jabber wouldn't tell him where because he might 'dox him if he gets angry' or 'show up to his house and kill him'. Which is reasonable, if not for the fact that Jabber would be more likely to do that than Zanka, considering the other's weirdo behavior.
A black truck stopped in front of him, and he barely looked up from his phone as he climbed inside the vehicle, immediately assuming it's Enjin's truck, not registering the unfamiliar set up before a voice spoke.
"Hello? I believe you got into the wrong vehicle." A rough male voice spoke from the front of the car, making Zanka freeze up and look up in pure terror. In the rearview mirror, he saw an unfamiliar man with black hair peppered with white sitting in front, staring at him coldly.
Panic and embarrassment rose up from his chest and to his face, making it a shade of bright red. "Oh my god! I-I'm really sorry! I'llgetoutnowpleasedontkillme!" He sputtered out as he basically leaped out of the car.
Just in time, another black truck pulled up in front of him as he got out. He hesitated for a second but when he saw Enjin's blonde mop of hair, he instantly pulled the car door open with more force than necessary and basically flew inside.
He sat in the backseat, mortified and staring into the abyss. He didn't snap out of it until Enjin snapped in front of his face. He blinked and looked up, meeting Enjin's concerned gaze.
"Yo, Zan. I've been callin' ya. What happened?" He asked, tilting his head at Zanka. Riyo and Rudo were already there too, apparently. They were all looking at him with concern.
He immediately felt guilt pool at his stomach, he didn't mean to make them worry for no reason. "It's nothing... Just a lil' mistake..." He reassured them, but by the way they were staring at him said that they didn't buy it.
"You sure?" Enjin asks, still looking at him with concern.
"Yes, yes.. Let's just go home." Zanka responded with a reassuring smile. Enjin's eyes lingered on him for a second before letting out a sigh and driving out of the parking lot.
The rest of the drive back home was normal, but a little more quieter than usual. Back home, they all ate dinner together and everything was good.
The night air seeped through the gap of his bedroom window, letting cold air inside. He was laying in bed, staring at the ceiling and waiting for sleep to come.
Suddenly, he felt vibrations coming from his phone sitting on the bedside table. He glanced at the name, and a smile grazed his lips almost subconsciously.
" 'DONT RESPOND TO!!!'
Video call
Answer - Decline "
He reached out and clicked on answer.
~