Shine - Part Sixteen
This episode is part of a larger story, Soft Touch. If you haven’t yet, you can go back and read it from the beginning right here.
“Noah!” I blurt out excitedly, the instant I open the door and see him standing there. “Dude! You’re getting married, the day after tomorrow! Holy shit!”
Noah takes in my beaming expression with one pierced eyebrow arched, then laughs and backs away as I eagerly rush forward, my arms held out for a hug.
“Okay, dude, that’s enough of that.” He puts a fingertip on my forehead and uses it to steer me back before I can reach him. “You fucking goofball-”
“Oh, you have literally no room to call anyone else a goofball, Noah-”
“I’ll take that, Jamie!” Raj appears from behind Noah, grinning from ear to ear, and instantly accepts the hug I was trying to offer Noah. I laugh as he squeezes me tightly, bouncing in excitement so that his dark curls flop up and down on his forehead. “Can’t fucking believe it, brother!”
“Hi, sweet thing,” Melanie giggles, leaning around Raj to give me a kiss of greeting on my cheek. She’s beaming, too, her eyes almost turned into two little dark curves by her huge smile. “Is Aiden here?”
“Yes, hi,” Aiden rumbles, stepping up behind me. He reaches down to knuckle Nikita’s cheek, and she glares furiously up at him from where she’s cuddled up against Melanie’s chest. “And hello, grouchy-face.”
“God, that glare,” I laugh, still caught in Raj’s tight embrace, now struggling to free myself. “She looks ready to rip our heads off.”
Noah lets out a soft, affectionate snicker of laughter, smoothing a tattooed hand over Nik’s back. “That’s our girl.”
I find myself smiling at Noah from where I’m trapped in Raj’s arms. Raj lets me go, which is unexpected, but which makes sense as soon as he eagerly goes past me to get a hug from Aiden, too.
“Really?” Aiden groan-laughs, reluctantly folding his arms around Raj, who gives him a tight squeeze.
“Yes, really, bro,” Raj sighs happily. “You give crazy good hugs. You’re gigantic, feels so safe - oh, speaking of - we need your help with something.”
Raj lets Aiden go, and Noah moves out of the way to let us see what’s behind him. I blink down at it, surprised and confused.
It’s a thick, rounded tree stump with rich brown bark, its surface covered with fresh cut marks. Shaggy green moss is growing up one side.
“Can you help us move it?” Raj asks Aiden, sounding a little out of breath. “Noah and I got it here from the truck, but it was the effort of a fucking lifetime.”
“I think we almost died.” Noah stretches out his arms, wincing deeply. “It weighs so damn much. There’s gotta be like, an entire semi-truck hidden inside that fucking thing. We basically crawled the last few - oh.”
He cuts himself off as Aiden bends down and easily sweeps the tree stump up into his arms.
“What do you want me to do with it?” Aiden asks Noah, straightening up.
“Well, first of all, bro, you don’t have to clown on me right directly in front of both of my fiancés-”
“You asked me to move it!”
“Bicep Boy,” I laugh, and Aiden shifts the tree stump to one arm so he can extend one of his long fingers in my direction.
“Where should I put it, Raj?”
Raj points into the house. “That little round room near your guy’s kitchen - the coffee room.”
“What?” I ask, as Aiden leads the way inside. Mel, Raj, and Noah follow behind him, and I close the door after them. “Sorry, why-?”
“What a find, right?” Raj asks brightly, bending to give Luna’s ears a scratch as he follows Aiden towards the coffee room. “Snagged it on the way over here! They were doing some tree removal.”
“By the library,” Noah pins on. “Must have been a mad smart tree. Grew up around all those books.”
“Is that how it works, Noosh?” Aiden laughs, setting down the tree stump in the coffee room, across from the soft-burning fireplace.
Noah blinks at him, confused. “I mean - pretty sure it is, dude, yeah.”
I watch as Luna weaves through Melanie’s ankles and comes trotting over to inspect the tree stump. “Okay, I’m sorry - smart or not, why are we putting it in our coffee room?”
“It’s part of your coffee table,” Raj explains, dropping to one knee to take a closer look at it. “The base, I think. You guys mind storing it in here for now?”
Aiden and I exchange a baffled glance.
“We didn’t ask you to make us a coffee table, Raj,” Aiden points out.
Now Raj is the one who looks confused. He blinks at us, then looks down at the tree stump.
“Yeah,” he says. He points at the tree stump, clearly struggling over how to explain. “But - it’s your coffee table.”
I look to Noah for guidance and find him staring at Raj, his eyes swimming, overflowing with warm affection.
“What-?” I quietly murmur, and Noah shakes his head, his smiling eyes still on Raj.
“Just let him do his thing,” he tells me softly.
I’m not sure what’s going on, but I have no objections, so I shrug my shoulders and turn back to Raj. “Hey, whatever. We’ll take a coffee table. Sounds nice. Thanks, man.”
Raj brightens up, springs to his feet again. “No problem, brother. We’ll get to it after the wedding.”
“Speaking of the wedding!” Melanie gives Nikita to Noah, straightens out her dress, then holds up what she was carrying in her other hand. A few brown-paper bags, which she’s got by the handles. “This is for you guys.”
I take them from Mel, and Aiden comes over to see. They all feel about the same weight, so I open one up. Inside, there’s a neatly-wrapped sandwich, a bag of chips, a banana, a chocolate bonbon, and a small bottle of ice coffee.
Aiden and I lift our questioning eyes to Mel, who tosses her braid over her shoulder.
“They’re for tomorrow, when everyone’s doing their wedding errands,” she explains. “We’re gonna be going pretty much all day, and I’ve planned enough events to know that you forget to eat, running from place to place trying to get everything done. There’s one for you, and Aiden, one for Ralph and Ripley, too. Think of it like a - lunchbox.”
Aiden and I both stare at Mel, smiling. Raj and Noah do the same thing from behind her. Raj lets out a little sigh, affectionately folds his arms around her.
“Sweetest thing, isn’t she?” he asks.
“Stop it,” Mel giggles, flashing a smile at Raj before she turns her eyes back to us. “Seriously, thanks, you guys. For working so hard for our wedding, rushing around all day tomorrow. We just really want to have everything done on time, so we can relax on the actual wedding day-”
“Hey, we get it,” I jump in quickly. “We’re happy to.”
“We’re the best men, right?” Aiden reminds Mel, and she casts him a warm smile.
“Well, we appreciate it. Everybody has their to-do list, right?”
“Yeah,” Aiden rumbles. “Got it in my pocket. It almost fits in there.”
“No, come on!” Melanie laughs, then presses her fingers to her cheeks. “I know it’s a long list, okay? Mmm - maybe me and Dahlia can do a little extra, if I overloaded you-”
“Mellie, it’s fine,” Aiden cuts in, smiling at her with his blue eyes. “I was joking. Like Jamie said, we’re happy to.”
Mel casts him a grateful look, then gives his arm a squeeze. “You got your stuff?”
Aiden is sleeping over at Mel, Noah, and Raj’s house tonight, so he can go with Noah and Raj on their errands while I get an early start on putting the flowers together. Mel has everything planned for them, pretty much down to the minute.
“Mhm, got my backpack by the door. Should I go grab it, are we heading out?”
“Oh, wait - we’ve got a few more things to bring in from the car, the flower containers for Jamie. Could you guys-?”
Aiden and Raj are already headed for the door, so Melanie breaks off, smiling, then turns back to me and Noah. She opens her mouth to say something, but Nik suddenly lets out a muffled little noise against Noah’s chest.
“Someone’s getting tired, I think.” Noah heads off towards the kitchen, gently rubbing Nik’s back. “I’ll get her some air.”
Mel waits until he’s gone, then turns to me and tugs on the sleeve of my flannel.
“Jamie, I’m so sorry, but can I add one more thing to your list?” She slips a folded piece of paper from the pocket of her dress, hands it to me, and quickly folds my fingers around it. “Can you pick up these ingredients? It’s for a specialty drink I want us to have at the wedding.”
“Sure, of course.” I unfold the paper and look down at it. “Jack and Coke slushies? Oh, that sounds good.”
“Just don’t tell Noah, okay?” Mel drops her voice to a whisper, glancing at the kitchen. “It’s a surprise for him, for the wedding day. I don’t even know if he’s gonna remember, but this drink - he and I - it’s a long story, um - you don’t mind picking that stuff up?”
“Nope,” I answer, baffled, but smiling warmly.
“Cool,” Mel says, blushing, faintly embarrassed. “Well - let me go make sure the guys don’t miss anything from the truck. We have zero time for mistakes.”
I give her a little salute. “Go lead the troops, commander.”
Melanie laughs as she heads for the living room. I tuck the paper into my pocket, then set off for the kitchen. Noah left the back door open when he went outside, so I follow him out there.
I step out into the night air, then stop when my eyes land on Noah.
He’s on one knee by the malachite tree, and he’s holding Nikita out so she can take a close look at it. The tree is bathed in warm light from the living room window, and Nik’s wide, wondering eyes are staring at the beautiful gemstone veins in the leaves.
She looks tiny in Noah’s tattooed hands, held easily and gently. He’s got her propped on his knee, his head bowed over her so he can see, too.
“Qu'est-ce que c'est, princesse?” he murmurs softly, then places a few fast, ticklish kisses on the top of her head. “Hmm? Plante étrange.”
She giggles and squirms, but her attention is instantly reabsorbed in the malachite tree as it ripples in the breeze, lets out the softest sigh of its music.
Nik stares at it, spellbound. Noah blinks at it, drawing his head back in surprise - then catches sight of me standing there.
“What’s up with this plant, Jamie?” He straightens up as I come over to join him, settling Nik against his chest again. “I’ve never seen one like that before. And why’s it make that noise?”
I hesitate, trying to find an answer that doesn’t involve lying. “It’s - a super rare plant. Makes sense that you haven’t seen one before.”
“You’re so suspicious, right now.” Noah arches an eyebrow at me. “Did you illegally import some exotic plant, dude? Hope it was worth it. Can we smoke it, have you tried yet?”
“Oh my god, no! It’s native to Ketterbridge, actually. But like I said, really rare, it’s - got complicated growing needs.”
Noah exhales a soft laugh, then leans back against the mossy wall of the house. “You would have it in your garden.”
I take a look at Noah’s eyes when they flit over to me. I’ve been thinking to myself that he’s been a little quiet, tonight. I was just starting to wonder if something is wrong.
But now, looking at him more closely, I can see that isn’t the case. Not at all.
Noah looks deeply, radiantly happy, in a quiet way that I rarely see on him.
A giant grin spreads across my face as soon as I understand the expression in his eyes. Noah breaks into a grin, too, and we both laugh softly. I move to lean back against the wall beside him. We stand in silence for a moment, looking out together at the moonlit garden.
“I can’t hardly fucking believe it, Jamie,” Noah says, very quietly. “I can’t hardly fucking believe it.”
I look over at him, thinking to myself that I must sound really good to Aiden right now, and it’s purely because of how happy I am for Noah.
I don’t say anything, because he looks like he’s trying to decide if he wants to say more.
“Seriously,” he murmurs, after a moment. “How can this really be happening? You have no fucking idea how long I went thinking that the way I feel about Raj and Mel was definitely, inevitably gonna cause everything that matters to me to blow up in my face.”
“I do have a little bit of an idea, Noah,” I answer slowly. “You told me and Aiden that you started catching feelings for Raj pretty much as soon as you started working on the house together. The same week you met.”
I shake my head at Noah in disbelief, then add - “I’m still kinda shocked that you kept it hidden so well. And for so long.”
“No one’s more shocked than me, bro.” Noah breaks his eyes away, smoothing his hand in gentle circles on Nik’s back. “I felt like I was gonna go fucking crazy, trying to keep it to myself. You don’t know how, like…”
He fades off for a moment, keeping his eyes on the garden.
“With Raj - it - it just hit me so hard that I could barely even handle it. And I was also, you know… confused as fuck about what was happening to me…”
“First time falling for a guy,” I say sympathetically, and Noah’s grey eyes flit to me.
“Yeah, and first time falling in love,” he says, quietly and helplessly. “With anyone.”
“Oh,” I murmur, blinking hard as that sinks in. “Yeah, that’s - a whole other layer of confusion, isn’t it?”
Noah lets out a pained laugh, turning his eyes back to the overgrown garden. “And then Mel came along and hit me just as hard. I was fucking panicking, dude.”
I let out a little laugh, too. Noah casts me a small smile, then grows serious again.
“Man, there were times when I was holding on by a thread. Had no fucking idea what to do, or what was going on with me. I’d go out somewhere with Mel and put some flowers in her braid, and then I’d come home and see her cuddled up in bed with Raj, and he’d be taking the flowers out of her hair so they could go to sleep. I’d just have to go to my room alone, and I’d feel - just - I couldn’t even tell which direction it hurt from, or why it hurt at all…”
I stare at Noah, silent, caught by surprise. He takes a shaky breath, and Nikita takes a handful of his ripped-up shirt. She’s peacefully absorbing the reverberations of his voice through his chest, her eyes starting to blink slowly and sleepily.
She waits for him to start talking again, and he does.
“The way I felt about Raj and Mel, even really early on… for a long time I just tried to close my eyes to it, because it was confusing the hell out of me and stressing me the fuck out, making me feel so guilty and shit, but…” Noah can’t seem to look at me, all of a sudden. “Shit, man, it’s the most powerful thing I’ve ever - like - I was just fighting so hard not to let it show, and all the time feeling like I was gonna hit my limit, that I couldn’t take anymore, and I was so sure the only way it could end was bad, that whatever it was, it was gonna be brutal…”
Noah trails off, his voice suddenly rough around the edges.
“Just - didn’t see the miracle coming,” he manages, hugging Nik close to himself, then touching a finger to his engagement ring. “Didn’t know that it doesn’t have to end at all. Didn’t - didn’t even realize that I had this to hope for.”
I stare at Noah for a silent moment, my cheeks and heart aching in a warm, bright, blissful way.
“I was gonna ask if you’re feeling ready for this, but I feel like you already answered,” I tell him.
Noah smiles, dimples appearing at the corners of his mouth.
“Yeah, man, I’m ready. No doubts in my mind. Feel like every minute I spend with Raj and Mel, I get enough love to last me years.” His smiling grey eyes flit to me, and he breaks into a tiny grin. “As for me, I got enough for two.”
I let out a laugh, and so does Noah, and Nik yawns sleepily against his chest.
Melanie leans out of the house, her long braid falling over her shoulder.
“Noah,” she calls softly, her voice warm with affection. “Ready to go? We should get to bed early. Long day of wedding-prep madness ahead.”
Noah gives me a slap on the arm, then heads for the door. I follow him back into the warmth of the house, smiling to myself.
Aiden is waiting at the door with Raj, his backpack on his shoulder.
“You look like a kid heading off to school,” I laugh, crossing to him. “Waiting for me to say bye.”
“Shut up, no I don’t! Oh, wait - I almost forgot my lunchbox.”
Aiden scoops up one of the brown paper bags, and Raj opens the door. He gives me a quick hug goodbye - despite my attempt to dodge it - then turns to Noah.
“Ready to go, Nohea?”
Noah nods, his smile making dimples at the corners of his mouth again. “See you, Jamie.”
“Be right there,” Aiden says, and the three of them set off.
Aiden and I watch them go for a moment. Noah walking in the middle, Nikita bundled against his chest. One tattooed hand keeping her in place, the other holding Melanie’s fingers. Raj has one hand spread on Noah’s back, and he’s leaning in close to say something to Noah. Whatever it is, it makes Noah turn his head to smile at him.
I catch a flash of silver brightness in his eyes before he faces forward again.
I turn to Aiden and find him smiling just as hard as I am. We catch eyes with each other, exchange a bright grin, then both laugh softly.
“We have to sleep apart tonight,” I tell him, making a pouty face.
“It’s gonna be hard,” he rumbles, looking truly pained over it.
I laugh, then take two handfuls of his henley, use them to pull myself up to brush a kiss onto his mouth. “You gonna miss me?”
“Yeah.” Aiden draws back, then taps his temple with a fingertip. “But I’ve always got you right here. You make for sweet listening, Keane.”
I bite down on my smile, my cheeks starting to heat up. “Think everything’s gonna go smoothly with the wedding stuff?”
“Smoothly?” Aiden raises his dark eyebrows. “No.”
I blink at him, caught by surprise. “What?”
“I mean, I think it’s gonna be a blast, don’t get me wrong, but - this is Noah’s wedding, we’re talking about. Like, Noah is a groom in this wedding.”
“Oh, you’re right,” I answer, realizing all at once. “It’s - it’s gonna be complete fucking chaos from start to finish, isn’t it?”
Aiden huffs out a laugh, ruffles my hair before he goes. “I guess we’ll see.”
~~~~
I set my alarm for really early in the morning, but I know I didn’t set it for 3:19 AM. Something else woke me up.
I sit up in bed, confused and still half-asleep, then fumble for my phone. It’s buzzing against the night table, because - someone is calling me. Now. At 3:19 AM.
Suddenly very awake, I snatch up my phone, then stare down at it in confusion and alarm.
I answer immediately, then press my phone against my ear. “Ripley?”
“Jamie!” He sounds seriously relieved that I answered. “Hey, dude - I’m sorry to call you this late. Or early, I guess-”
“It’s fine,” I cut in hastily. “Is everything okay?”
“Ah…”
I close my eyes, pressing the phone closer to my ear. “Out with it, Ripples.”
“Okay, okay.” He blows out a frustrated breath. “I - may or may not have just gotten caught trespassing on a property where I was gonna paint.”
My eyes fly open instantly. “What? Ripley!”
“I know, I know - it was so stupid, I’m sorry, but now I’m trapped in the security room of this shopping center. They told me to call my parents and have them come get me, or they’re gonna call the cops. But I really can’t do that, because if my parents find out that I’m Transgressive, I’m gonna be in trouble, like - pretty much for the rest of my life-”
“Okay, where are you?” I’m already stumbling out of bed, looking around for a pair of jeans. “I’ll call Aiden, we’ll come - figure it out, or something, I don’t know - just tell me where you are.”
“I’m - you know that shopping center kinda halfway between Greenrock and Ketterbridge?”
“Oh, shit, Ripley. It’s gonna take me a while to get there, that’s not a super short drive.”
I only meant that he’s gonna have to sit there for a little bit, but an apologetic tone comes into Ripley’s voice.
“I know, it’s kinda far. I’m so sorry, dude. But just - please?” He sounds increasingly desperate. “I’m afraid my parents might not let me go to the wedding, if they’re mad enough about it-”
“I’m on my way,” I tell him firmly, snatching up my car keys. “Sit tight.”
~~~~
The shopping center is dark and abandoned at this hour, the parking lot almost completely empty of cars. But the small security building is brightly illuminated, glowing with fluorescent whiteness. I can see someone sitting at a counter inside.
I park my car, then cross the parking lot and set off up the path to the building, shivering in the predawn cold.
The guy behind the counter looks up in an irritated kind of way when I step inside. He’s a big, burly dude with a deep frown on his face. I glance over his head, looking down the hallway that leads off behind the counter.
There are some chairs there, and Ripley is sitting in the nearest one. He’s sunk down in the chair with a frustrated scowl on his face, his arms folded over his chest, his legs stretched out and feet crossed at the ankle. His green curls are windblown and falling down over one eyebrow, like he was running. He’s wearing a shirt that says Boys Who Skate Are Better At Grindin’.
He looks instantly relieved when he sees me stop at the counter, but the security guy seems deeply annoyed by my presence, for some reason.
“Hi,” I begin, with a friendly wave. “How’s your night been, man-?”
“What do you want?” he asks flatly, not looking up at me.
“Oh. Um.” I stop, caught off-guard, then nervously nod at Ripley. “I’m just - here for him.”
The security guard looks up, scrutinizes me for a second, then rolls his eyes. “I told the kid to call his parents. You’re not his parent, are you?”
“No, but I-”
“Right, so, get lost.”
I’m a little startled by the cold, sharp tone the security guard is taking with me. I glance at Ripley, who cups a hand around his mouth, points at the security guard, then mouths: This guy is a total asshole.
I try to redouble the friendliness in my voice.
“Yeah, I’m not his parent,” I hastily explain. “But I’m - a grown-up? I can get him home safely. He really didn’t mean any wrong, and if we call his parents it’s going to be really bad-”
“Why are you still here?” the security guard interrupts, fixing me with a hostile glare.
I hesitate, taken aback, then whip around as the door opens. Raj steps inside, rubbing his eyes, his sleep-tousled curls falling into his face. He spots me and crosses right over.
“This guy won’t let me take him,” I whisper, when Raj casts me a questioning glance. “He’s - mean. Or he hates me, maybe? You try.”
Raj turns to the counter, places his hands on it.
“Hey, bro,” he says, in a bright, friendly voice. “That guy right there, we’d really appreciate it if you let us sign him out. We’re sorry that he snuck onto the property, but he didn’t mean any harm. He’s actually supposed to be part of a wedding the day after tomorrow, so it’s really important he doesn’t get in trouble - or, oh - I guess technically it's tomorrow, now, since the sun’s coming up out there-”
“No,” the guy says flatly, not bothering to even lift his eyes to Raj.
Raj looks just as taken aback as I am. He glances at me, and I shrug at him, bewildered.
“Aw, man, can’t you just let us sign him out?” Raj asks hopefully, turning back to the security guard. “Please, it’s really important. All he did was trespass at a mall, that’s it. Can’t you just go get the paperwork, and we’ll-?”
“No.”
“You have to!” I protest stupidly, starting to get upset.
The security guard lets out a scoffing laugh. “Who says?”
“We do,” comes a very deep voice from behind me.
The security guard glances up, then does a sharp double-take. He stares past me and Raj, suddenly shrinking down in his chair, his eyes widening.
Raj and I turn around, then freeze.
Aiden, Ralph, and Noah are standing there. I didn’t even hear them come in.
Ralph, on Aiden’s left, with a mocking, terrifying smile that could rip anyone apart, no words necessary. Radiating his unnerving Warlord presence, his dark green eyes burning, his face half in the shadows.
Noah on Aiden’s right, looking like a weapon, all tattoos and piercings and wild energy, a grin on his face like he’s ready for anything, like whatever happens, it’ll be funny. He’s bouncing a little in his combat boots, like he’s waiting to be unleashed.
And between them, Aiden, standing to his full, towering height, all of his power concentrated into the blowtorch glare in his blue eyes.
All three of them are staring past me and Raj, looking right at the security guard.
I turn back to the guy and find that he’s slid slightly further down in his chair, like he’s trying to hide behind the counter. He’s gone very pale, and he swallows hard as his eyes go from Noah to Aiden to Ralph, then back to Aiden.
Ripley, on the other hand, is suddenly grinning from ear to ear. Trying not to laugh, actually.
“Go get the paperwork,” Aiden says softly, looking the security guard right in the eyes.
The security guy flinches like Aiden touched him with a branding iron, then scrambles to his feet. He punches a code into a door behind him and disappears through it into another room.
As soon as he’s gone, Noah leans across the counter and beckons to Ripley. “C’mon, bro, let’s get the fuck out of here!”
Ripley slowly breaks into a grin, then bounds to his feet. He tries to open another door, throwing his weight into it - but it’s locked.
“Shit,” he says, panting from the effort. “C’mon, my board is in there!”
“God, I forgot how fucking scary you three are!” I sputter, pressing a hand to my chest as Aiden vaults the counter. “I think I only just recovered right now!”
Ralph shrugs his shoulders, suddenly looking like himself again, all traces of the Warlord gone. “It was an emergency, so.”
“Anyone see you on the security cameras, Ripley?” Noah asks, nodding at the bank of computers with camera feeds behind the counter.
“Yeah, that’s how I got caught. There was one I missed when I scoped it out.” He looks at Noah, biting his lip uncertainly. “But - they don’t know who I am, I didn’t give them my name, and I didn’t even get to paint anything, so-”
“It’s all good.” Ralph vaults the counter, then slips something out from his pocket. A thumb drive, which he plugs into the computer. “My girl made me this handy little thing.”
The USB lights up, and the computers - all of them, every single one in the security room - instantly go dark with a sharp sound of failing electrical equipment.
“Jesus Christ, Ralph,” Noah sputters. “Your girl made that? She sounds - scary.”
“Yeah, she is.” Ralph grins at Noah as he unplugs the USB and puts it back in his pocket. “She’s a gem. Gave this to me as a surprise present. Like - for no reason. She said she just felt like giving me a present.”
Ralph sounds baffled as he says it, but happy, too.
“That’s a wild present to give someone,” Aiden mutters, moving Ripley out of the way of the door.
“Not if you date Ralph, I guess,” Raj laughs. “That’s the Warlord’s kind of stocking stuffer.”
Ralph laughs, smiling warmly at Raj, then looks a little surprised at himself.
“Aiden, what-?” Ripley begins, then cuts himself off, wide-eyed, as Aiden gives the door a small but hard kick.
There’s a soft sound of splintering wood, and the door flies open. Aiden catches the ruined handle before it can crash into the closet, then seizes Ripley’s board and backpack. He tosses them over the counter to Noah, who catches them.
“Come on, Ripples!” Noah says urgently, knocking his knuckles on the counter. “You want to wait around while that guy calls for backup? Why d’you think he’s been in there so long? Probably hiding until they get here.”
Ripley gives himself a shake, then races to the counter and hops over it, Aiden and Ralph following right behind him.
“Hey, you.” Aiden says, brushing a kiss onto my nose before he grabs my hand and leads me to the door. “You look cute, all sleepy.”
I let out a dazed laugh, rubbing my eyes. “Oh, my god.”
“Alright, just walk calmly,” Ralph murmurs, pulling the door open. “Unless we have to run, in which case - just get to your car and go.”
Sunrise is slowly breaking over the parking lot. The deep blue indigo tint to the air is starting to retreat, chased off by the warm, rosy, growing light as we hastily walk down the path towards the parking lot.
“Noah, Raj,” Ripley says, glancing between them, a guilty look on his face. “I’m so sorry, you guys are probably so pissed - I shouldn’t have done this tonight. I just didn’t think I was gonna get caught, but I know we’ve got a full day of wedding errands ahead, and now you guys are here, doing this-”
“Are you kidding, bro?” Noah fixes him with a giant grin, then clasps his shoulder. “This is perfect! Wouldn’t be my wedding if nobody got chased by the cops at some point in the festivities. This was more of a jailbreak, I guess, but still counts.”
I let out a helpless laugh, then groan deeply, dropping my face into my hands. “Glad we’re getting that out of the way early, then.”
Ripley blinks at Noah, then looks uncertainly at Raj, who gives him a sleepy smile.
“Always nice to be up with the sun, brother,” he says, and gives Ripley’s shoulder a gentle slap.
Ripley lets out a relieved breath, breaks into a happy grin, and accepts his board back from Noah. “Well, thanks for rescuing me.”
“Sure, but why were you trespassing, dude?” Raj asks, looking over at him. “What were you doing?”
Ripley bites his lip. “Just some - graffiti.”
“Oh, sweet,” Noah says, then comes to an abrupt stop, his eyebrows knitting. “You - wait a minute. Wait a fucking minute.”
Based on Raj’s shell-shocked expression, he seems to be making the same connections as Noah, thinking through the graffiti art in Bright Future, the massive street art ad-spot that Transgressive did for the show, an illegal art project which made the news -
“Holy fucking shit.” Noah’s face goes blank, his grey eyes staring at Ripley in disbelief. “Ripples, you…?”
Ripley casts Raj and Noah a sheepish, busted smile. “Um - surprise?”
Ralph lets out a soft snicker of laughter, then gently pushes Noah into movement again. “The wedding chaos is off to one hell of a start, don’t you think, A?”
“Decidedly,” Aiden answers, around a huff of laughter.
“What wedding chaos?” Noah asks, recovering a little.
“Just - you’re one of the grooms in this wedding, Noosh.” Aiden shrugs his broad shoulders, looking down at Noah. “So. It’s gonna be chaos.”
“Oh, word. That’s true.” Noah breaks into a big, dimpled grin. “But the chaos doesn’t start until Raj, Mel, and I say it does. It’s our wedding, so. That’s the law.”
“Now seems like a good time to officially start, man. Ripley kicked us off right.” Raj throws his arms out dramatically, like he’s about to commence a grand ceremony. “Are we ready, boys? Wedding chaos begins in five, four, three-”
“Hey!” someone yells, from the general direction of the security building. “Stop right there!”
“One, one!” Noah shouts, shoving Ripley forward.
We all burst into laughter, then burst into movement, sprinting across the parking lot for our cars. Noah lets out a long, loud, euphoric sort of howl, which instantly draws a second burst of laughter from all of us as we scatter.
Raj catches his tattooed hand as they run, and Noah laces their fingers together, his face shining with happiness in the early morning light.
And the wedding chaos begins.
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