Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

-June 1st, 2010, 2:38 pm

“I’m going to miss you so much, who else will I play video games with?” Ren cried, he was holding onto Martyn for dear life.

“You will literally see me in like two months.” It was the last day of sophomore year, and Martyn had to spend the whole summer with his aunt and uncle.

“Two months is so long though!” Ren responded. Martyn and Ren were best friends.

“Okay, get off me, if get home late my mom might make me stay the whole year.” Martyn said. Ren complained a bit more before he said goodbye and let Martyn go back home.

Martyn walked home from his school every day, the gravel roads were all so familiar to him, the clouds were covering the sky and making it look like a filter was put in his eyesight.

Martyn walked past some kids jump roping and bouncing a ball in a fenced off area, he had to guess it was the elementary school. He wondered why they were still in school until he realized that the high school ends early on the last week of school.

“Martyn!” A young person with curly red hair came running up to Martyn.

“Cleo!” Martyn hugged her. Cleo went to a school across town, and they only usually saw each other on the weekends.

Martyn pulled away first and looked at Cleo’s outfit, they were still in their school uniform. “Why are you still in your school uniform?” Martyn questioned with a teasing look.

“Oh, you know, just sneaking out of school and stuff.” Cleo answered, they looked down at their outfit, it was a red pleated skirt and a white, embroidered button-up shirt.

Martyn had on a white button-up shirt that was also embroidered but with navy colors and black dress pants.

“I snuck out of school once,” Martyn was thinking back to middle school and freshmen year.

“Uh huh, once.” Cleo agreed giggling. Martyn had snuck out way more than once and they both knew it.

“Well, I probably won’t be sneaking out much anymore.” Martyn whispered; he didn’t mean to, but he was ashamed.

“Yeah, it might be hard to sneak out when you're with your aunt and uncle.” Cleo agreed. Neither Cleo or Martyn knew his aunt and uncle.

“Speaking of them, I should probably get home so I can pack.” Martyn announced, he turned around and started walking in the direction of his house.

“No goodbye or anything?” Cleo questioned, there was humor laced in their words.

“Ughhhh, goodbye Cleo!” He yelled as he walked home.

“Goodbye my best-est, bravest boy!” Cleo exclaimed, waving at him.

-

Martyn unlocked the door to his house; there were two cars parked in the driveway which meant his mother was home. “Damn it.” Martyn tried to walk upstairs without making any noise, but a loud creak bellowed from the step.

Martyn’s mom walked out of the kitchen to see a not-so sneaky teenager walking up the stairs. “Martyn, your home.” She inspected him, looking at him up and down. “How many times have I told you to take the makeup off?”

“It’s just eyeliner.” Martyn grumbled, he looked down at his feet.

“I just don’t want people to think...” Martyn’s mom didn't finish her sentence but they both know what she meant.

Martyn looked up to face his mom, he almost had an expression of pity it seemed. "Are you too scared to say it?” He said with an airy laugh.

“Get your bag packed, your aunts picking you up at four.” Martyn’s mom walked back into the kitchen.

Martyn glared at his mom and sped up his walking speed while going upstairs.

-Martyn’s room, 3:04 PM

Concert posters scattered the walls; a faint smell of old soda and burnt-out candles added to the moody teen aesthetic. Martyn threw his bookbag on the ground and pulled out his phone. No one had texted him and he didn’t know what to do, he could pack like his mom said but that's too much work.

Martyn got up from his bed and looked at himself in the mirror. The school uniform was not going to work, he was wearing dress pants and eyeliner, who does that?

Martyn walked to the restroom and put his hair up; he then proceeded to rub his eyeliner off with a wet towel. “Hope I have an outfit that doesn’t make me look like...” Martyn looked at himself in the mirror again. “...me.”

Martyn changed into a sage green hoodie and some black jeans, he put his hair into a small ponytail, so it was out of his face.

Martyn threw random clothes into a duffel bag but made sure not to put any ‘emo’ clothes in it. Martyn was heavly bullied in middle school for being weird and he never wanted to feel like that again.

After about thirty minutes of packing, cleaning and making sure he didn’t look weird the doorbell rang. “It’s only... 3:37? She shouldn’t be here yet.” Martyn got his bag, his phone and an extra charger and went downstairs.

Martyn’s mom was standing at the bottom of the doors most likely waiting on him. “That should be her, please answer the door.” Martyn’s mom said, she looked him up and down and walked away with a content smile.

“You were right next to the door why didn’t you answer it?” Martyn asked, he emphasized with his hands, pointing at the door. Martyn sighed and went to the door; he braced himself before he opened it, he’s never met this woman before. What if she was crazy, maybe a murderer? Martyn grabbed the doorknob and turned it, opening the door to see a tall woman with pink fluffy hair in two space buns.

“Hello Martyn!” His aunt, Lizzie, gave him a hug, he hugged her back. “It’s so nice to meet you! You are going to love Lostwood!” Lizzie looked at Martyn, she noticed his blonde hair and how he was fidgeting with his sleeves.

“Lostwood?” Martyn asked, he guessed it was the name of the town.

“Mhm! That’s the name of the town, sounds scary, doesn’t it? It really isn’t though, the people can be weird but...we’re all weird, aren't we?” Lizzie laughed at herself. She saw Martyn’s bag and saw how worn down it was, probably years of usage.

“I’m going to say bye to my mom, so...” Martyn didn’t know what to do next, so he turned on his heel and walked inside. “Goodbye mom!” He didn’t receive a response. Martyn looked outside and saw Aunt Lizzie moving some stuff in the back of the car.

Lizzie saw Martyn come back out of the house and waved him over. “That didn’t take long, did it?” Lizzie said, it was more of a statement than a question.

“Nope!” Martyn threw his bag into the trunk. Lizzie shut the back of the car with a thud. Lizzie dusted her hands and looked over at Martyn.

“We have about an hour drive, maybe two hours depending on traffic, so get cozy! Any music you want to listen too?” Lizzie hopped into the car and Martyn followed suit.

“Uhm, do you know Hamilton” Martyn asked, he didn’t want his aunt to think he was weird, but she seemed pretty weird herself.

“Do I know Hamilton? "She asked with mock offence. “Of course I do! What's your favorite song?” Lizzie asked, she started up the car and pulled out of the driveway.

“It probably has to be ‘Wait for it’ I love Aaron Burr’s voice in that song.” Martyn answered, no one at home except Cleo knew what Hamilton was, he was surprised that Aunt Lizzie knew.

“That’s a good song; I think my favorite song has to be ‘satisfied’ or ‘the Schuyler sisters’.” Lizzie said, she turned on the musical and Martyn and her started to sing every word to it.

About an hour into the car ride things got quieter and they weren’t singing along anymore, Martyn was looking out the car window, watching the trees go by. Maybe in another life I could be a tree, he thought.

“We made it into Lostwood!” Lizzie exclaimed. Martyn looked away from the car window up at the old sign that said ‘Lo-t w-o-’ instead of Lostwood.

Martyn admired the old run-down feel to the place, it probably felt like that because it was run-down. “What happened to the sign, was it a storm or something?” Martyn asked, he turned in his seat, so he wasn’t pressed up against glass anymore.

Lizzie had a look of sorrow; she gripped the steering wheel tighter. “No one is sure, but we have our suspicions, I’m pretty sure it was that Scott kid, he’s always getting into trouble.” Lizzie grumbled. It was the first time he saw her mad; she seemed happy a few seconds ago.

“Well, I'll have to make sure I don’t run into him.” Martyn murmured, he wanted to meet this kid and wreak havoc immediately.

Lizzie parked in the parking lot of a random box-looking building. “We have to go to the store really quick,” Lizzie got out of the car and Martyn followed her into the store.

They walked into the store, side by side. Martyn pulled his phone out and looked at the time, the screen glowed showing that it was 5:14 PM. Martyn looked up and he heard a someone gasp, he looked to his left and saw a middle schooler, or atleast what he thought was a middle schooler staring straight at him, their mouth agape.

“Who are you?” The kid asked, he looked about thirteen or fourteen.

“Hello bdubs, this is Martyn, the new kid in town!” Lizzie giggled, she playfully pushed his shoulder. Martyn thought it was cool how everyone knew each other here; he didn’t want people to know him though.

“Martyn, it’s nice to meet you,” Bdubs stuck his hand out for Martyn, he looked at it for a moment before he shook his hand.

A taller kid came over to Bdubs, he had dark hair and a cane. The most notable thing about his appearance was the scars that were covering him. The man’s outfit was a little silly, he had a flowery button-up and a white tank top underneath. “Hello! Is this Martyn?” Scar looked over at Lizzie. Did everyone in this town already know him?

“Yep! Martyn is a little shy.” Lizzie responded, he wasn’t shy, it’s just that nobody gave him time to talk and they all acted like he wasn’t there.

“My name is Martyn, my favorite colors are blue and green, I'm a sophomore. What else do you want to know?” Martyn sighed, he looked at Bdubs and then to the taller man, and the back again.

“Ooh! I love these games, my name is Scar, my favorite colors are red and green, like Christmas! They aren’t my favorite because of Christmas though; I like red because of-”

“Grian.” Bdubs interrupted Scar and finished for him.

“Ha ha, no!” Scar’s voice got higher, and his face got red, Martyn guessed he had a crush on whoever Grian was. “Well anyway, I like green because of the forest and bamboo, I feed my cat Jellie bamboo sometimes, and I'm a junior!” Scar laughed and looked over at Bdubs.

“Oh! Uhm my favorite color is green. I'm an eight grader and...yeah.” Bdubs looked down at his feet, Martyn didn’t know if he was going to elaborate or not.

Lizzie tapped Martyn on the shoulder and gestured to him to follow her. He said his goodbyes to Bdubs and Scar. Lizzie and Martyn made it to the checkout.

“I think you will like Grian.” Lizzie said, she was helping the cashier with some of the groceries. Martyn wondered why Lizzie thought that, was Grian weird, and Lizzie thought they were both weird? Maybe he was just paranoid.

Martyn glanced at Lizzie and back at the cashier and then at his bit nails. “Probably,” Martyn mumbled.

The drive to Lizzie’s house was quiet but it was comfortable. The soft hum of the car on the road and the sky changing from a light blue to a light purple. “What are you going to do tomorrow?” Lizzie asked, she was looking at the road and her posture was good.

“I’m not sure.” Martyn answered truthfully. Maybe he would try to meet this Scott kid, he was a pain, according to Lizzie. “Maybe meet some more people.” He knew that's what Lizzie wanted to hear; he never told her what people he was going to meet.

“That’s great, I'm glad that you want to make more friends.” Lizzie exclaimed; she gave his arm a squeeze. Martyn knew there was a beach around, he just didn’t know where the beach was. He thought to himself, maybe he could meet some people at the beach.

-

Martyn and Lizzie arrived at the house, Lizzie helped Martyn get his back out of the trunk and they headed inside. “Is there anything you want for dinner? We could get takeout or something?” Lizzie asked, she got Martyn to follow her to his room.

“I didn’t even think that this town had takeout.” Martyn answered; he put his bag down next to the door. He looked around the room and saw that there was a twin size bed, a few pictures were on the walls, and there was a side table.

Lizzie laughed at Martyn’s response. “Well, we have a rundown pizza place and that’s about how exciting it gets.” Lizzie leaned against the doorframe, and she heard footsteps behind her. Lizzie turned around and saw Joel walking towards the bedroom. “Hello Joel. We have a guest.” Martyn turned around to see a man shorter than his aunt with a green streak in his hair.

“Is this Martyn?” Joel questioned, he looked Martyn up and down. “Make sure you don’t sneak out, you know I will catch you.” Martyn flushed a red came to his face, and he looked down at the ground.

“Joel, don’t torment him this early, try doing that maybe next week.” Lizzie giggled, she playfully hit Joel. Martyn looked out the window and saw the pale sky. It was overcast, and it made the town seem scarier than it already was.

Lizzie sighed and looked over at Martyn. “So, do you want to get takeout, or do you just want to wait in the morning for breakfast?” Martyn looked at Joel and then back at Lizzie “I-”

“We should get takeout, that pizza place is really good.” Joel answered for Martyn. Martyn didn’t know how he felt about Joel, he had just met him, and the first thing he did was interrupt Martyn.

Lizzie glared at Joel and then looked at Martyn with sorriness in her eyes. “Sorry about him, would you like takeout Martyn?” Lizzie gleamed.

“Why not?” Martyn smiled, he sat down on the bed, and waved Lizzie away.

“Okay, I’ll call you when the pizza gets here, take a nap or something I bet you’re tired.” Lizzie walked out of the room and closed the door.

Martyn looked up at the ceiling and laid down on his bed. Well not his bed but the one he would be staying in all summer. Maybe he should call Cleo? Maybe he should watch a show? Did this town even have service? He hadn’t checked yet. Martyn looked out the window and saw lonely waves crashing into rocks. The sky was beautiful it was a dark blue mixed with some type of purple. He pulled the window up and quietly crawled out, it was only a two-story house, and he was on the first floor.

Martyn made sure not to close the window just so it would be easier to get inside. He walked over to the pier; he didn’t get on the pier but walked on the sand next to it. Looks like Joel wasn’t as good at catching Martyn as he said he was. The only sounds he could hear were the waves and his shoes crunching and pressing down onto the sand.

-

“Fuck you mom!” Martyn yelled, he just stopped walking and screamed. Martyn caught his breath and breathed in the sea breeze; he looked over to the long road and saw two cars on it, one van and a pickup truck. The pickup truck pulled into...wait, the pickup truck is pulling into his driveway?

Martyn ran as fast as he could back to his aunt’s house, it was probably a five-minute run at best. Martyn yanked the window further open and collapsed onto the bed.

A knock was heard from the door and then it was pushed open. “Martyn are you okay, I heard a loud thud.” Lizzie looked alarmed and her stance looked freaked out.

Martyn tried his best to catch his breath without being suspicious. “I’m good, I just fell of the bed.” Martyn answered, his voice was airy. Lizzie didn’t look like she trusted him but still gave Martyn a small smile.

Lizzie interrupted the silence by saying goodbye to Martyn and closing the door shut. Martyn closed his eyes and sighed. He had seen a car coming to the house, what was it doing, was that not the pizza? Martyn thought.

Ding, dong.

Ah, there it is, Martyn thought the least he could do was answer the door. He got out of the bed and opened his bedroom door; he was hit with a scent of cinnamon, how did he not smell that when he got there? Martyn walked to the front door and opened it; he was not expecting what he saw or heard for that matter.

“Who are you?” A blue haired boy stood in front of Martyn; he was a bit shorter than him and wore a white button up with a pizza slice on his chest. The shorter man looked, mad at Martyn? He couldn’t tell.

Martyn looked around himself then back at the man. “Oh, me? My name is Martyn, I’m new here.” He gave the guy a small smile.

Scott wordlessly looked Martyn up and down. “How old are you?” The guy asked, Martyn just wanted to know his name and get the damn pizza. Martyn thought about lying just so he could get the pizza, but he voted against it.

Martyn cleared his throat. “I’m sixteen, well I turned sixteen in April.” Martyn answered, he looked down at his feet and then back up at the man. “Hold on, how old are you?” Martyn asked.

The guy's face flushed and he coughed, he looked to his left and didn’t look back. “Why do you want to know?” The man argued. He looked back at Martyn and his eyes drifted down to his lips then back to his eyes.

Martyn laughed, a real laugh for the first time in a while. “You asked me my age, can I not ask you?” Martyn was giggling so much. The man looked almost horrified at Martyn.

The man sighed and looked at Martyn straight in the face. “I’m fifteen, almost sixteen, my name is Scott...if you wanted to know.” Scott, that name was pretty if Martyn thought about hard enough. Speaking of pretty things, Scott was pretty, almost too pretty to be a boy.

Oh shit, that was Scott, the Scott. At least Martyn thought, now he hoped it was Scott that vandalized the sign. Martyn cleared his throat once again. “So, uhm, Scott, were you the one who vandalized the town sign?” Martyn leaned into Scott a bit more and whispered it.

“Fuck you, why do you think I did it?!” Scott grabbed the forgotten pizza box and shoved it into Martyn’s arms. Scott looked down at the ground and started shaking his leg. Martyn would shake his leg when he was stressed, had he done something?

“Scott, I’m sorry. Lizzie just said she thought you did it, so I took her word for it, I thought it was cool.” Martyn sighed, he rubbed the back of his neck and looked at Scott. Scott’s leg wasn’t shaking anymore. That was good. Scott finally looked up at Martyn, into his right eye and then his left.

Scott shrugged and then sighed. “It’s fine, people just think I do things that I don’t.” Scott kicked a pebble that was next to his shoe.

Martyn only had one question for Scott, but he didn’t know if it was appropriate since he had just met the guy. “Yeah,” Martyn breathed. Martyn took some money out of his pocket and gave it to Scott.

Scott laughed and gave the money back to Martyn. “The pizza is already paid for, your fine. I guess Lizzie already paid for it?” Scott looked at Martyn's hand and then at his face. “I guess I should get going, I’ll see you around Martyn.” Scott waved and walked down the front steps.

Martyn closed the door and brought the pizza inside, he didn’t know where Lizzie and Joel were, he grabbed a slice of pizza and ate it, Martyn walked to his bedroom. Martyn looked out the window and saw the pickup truck still in the driveway, it looked like Scott was calling someone and he seemed really excited about whatever he was saying.

Martyn turned the light off and changed his shirt, he sat in bed and picked up his phone, he decided to call Cleo. The phone rang for a few seconds before a bright voice came from the phone.

“Martyn! I’ve been waiting for you to call me.” Their voice sounded tired but still energetic.

Martyn smiled, Cleo’s voice could comfort him in the worst of times, Cleo is his best friend. “Why didn’t you just call me yourself? I probably would have answered.” Martyn laughed as Cleo answered with a witty response. They called for abot an hour or an hour and a half.

“Okay, wait, he asked you for your age, but he didn’t want to say his own age?” Cleo giggled and laughed so much she snorted.

Marty was also laughing. “He kept looking at my lips! He is cute, if he asked me out, I'd probably say yes.” Martyn laughed.

Cleo gasped. “Wow Martyn, already getting summer break boyfriends?” Cleo asked, her voice was laced with humor.

Martyn smiled at the thought of Scott. “You never know!” Martyn giggled even more, tears were pricking his eyes. “I should probably get some Sleep Cleo.” He breathily laughed; his ribs were hurting; he needed to stop laughing.

Cleo sighed. “Okay, don’t dream to hard about this mysterious Scott guy.” Cleo said their goodbyes and hung up. Martyn looked up at his ceiling and smiled. He didn’t actually like, like Scott, but if he asked Martyn out, he wouldn’t say no.

That night Martyn dreamed about Cleo and Scott, he dreamed about who Scott was calling and he dreamed about Grian, he wondered what he looked like.

Lizzie silently opened the bedroom door and saw Martyn sleeping, she smiled and hoped he would have a good time in Lostwood, she hoped he wouldn’t run into Scott because she knew they would be friends. Lizzie closed the door and let Martyn sleep, hopefully tomorrow he could meet some more people.

Chapter Text

A bright light came from the bottom slit of the door; it had awoken Martyn. The first thing Martyn thought was, I wonder what Scott is doing. Martyn got out of bed and opened the blinds, it was pitch black outside. “What time is it...?” Martyn groaned and picked up his phone. The bright light blinded him. Before he checked the time, he put down the brightness. “Why am I up at 6:45.” Martyn usually got up at eleven on the weekends, he supposed he did go to bed early last night.

Martyn heard two knocks at the door and looked over. Lizzie opened the door slightly and gave Martyn a smile. “I made eggs and bacon, if you want you could go to the pier after breakfast. I remember you talking about wanting to go to the beach.”

Martyn slowly blinked and gave her a thumbs up. “Yeah, I’ll go to the pier.” Lizzie walked out of the room and closed the door. Martyn changed into some black jeans and an oversized T-shirt. Martyn looked out his window to see the driveway. The image of a red truck was floating through his head.

Martyn opened his bedroom door. Joel, for some reason, was walking towards him. “Hi, Joel.” Martyn realized it was sort of weird to say hi instead of good morning. “Good morning... I mean.” Martyn awkwardly walked past Joel.

Joel looked back at Martyn. “I needed you for something.” Martyn sighed and turned to face his uncle. Joel looked at Martyn from head to toe. “You might be too scrawny for it.” Joel laughed.

Martyn looked at Joel and then walked to the kitchen; it was too early for his own uncle to be bullying him. “Good morning, Lizzie.” Martyn waved at her and sat down at the kitchen counter.

Lizzie glanced over at the sound of Martyn’s voice. “Oh! You spooked me, good morning to you too!” Lizzie’s voice was always sweet, Martyn was always amazed on how Lizzie was always happy, he was scared to see her when she's mad.

Martyn started messing with his nails; he was bored of this town already. “Do you think I could go down to the beach?” Martyn asked, he didn’t want to just walk out of the house without telling anyone, even though he used to do it all the time.

Lizzie looked up from where she was cooking eggs and bacon. “Do you not want breakfast?” Lizzie was being a lot nicer than his mom would have been, if it was his mom he wouldn’t have even asked.

Martyn felt bad for not eating breakfast; he just wasn’t that hungry. “I’m not that hungry, I’m sorry.”

Lizzie looked surprised when he said he was sorry, almost like it was foreign to her or something. “Well, you didn’t have to say sorry, I just want you to be fed, okay?” Lizzie then smiled and went back to the stove.

Martyn hopped off the kitchen counter and walked to his bedroom. He opened the door and walked over to his bed; he grabbed his phone and a pair of earbuds. When Martyn opened the door to go outside, he was hit by the strong smell of the ocean. He could see the waves crashing into the rocks and the pier he was at just last night. The only thing different from now and last night was that there was a tall dark-haired boy and shorter blonde boy walking together.

Martyn didn’t want to intrude on them, but he did tell Lizzie he was going to make friends. Martyn slowly walked over to them; they were far in front of him-

“Hey Martyn!” The tall dark boy was looking at him, waving him over. It was Scar.

Martyn walked over to Scar and the blonde guy. “Hey Scar.” Martyn felt bad for intruding, the short blonde guy was staring at him, he didn’t look very happy. “Hi, I’m Martyn, you are?”

The blonde guy cleared his throat and put his head down. “I’m Grian, it’s nice to meet you Martyn.” There was tension in the air; Martyn could feel it he turned to face Scar, and he was just rambling about Star Wars and Grian.

“I was thinking, we should go to the diner downtown, Martyn has never gone! Right Martyn?” Scar turned to face Grian and Martyn at the same time.

Martyn nodded his head. “Never been, it would be cool to explore this town more.” Martyn laughed; he wanted to meet more people and see more places.

Grian started to walk, turning away from Scar and Martyn. “Well let’s go.” Martyn felt bad, had he made Grian upset, what happened?

“So, how long will you be staying Martyn?” Scar asked, they were all walking at a steady pace, Martyn was staring into the blue ocean. Not really paying attention. A sharp pain hit his foot.

“FUCK!” Martyn yelped and grabbed his foot. He looked down and saw Grian standing directly in front of him. “What the hell was that for?!”

Grian rolled his eyes and gestured his thumb towards Scar. “He asked you a question and you didn’t answer.” Scar looked at Grian and then at Martyn.

“What- wait what did he do?” Scar turned towards Grian, his eyes sending daggers right into the other boy's face. “Grian, what did you do?”

Grian turned and started walking again. “Nothing...”

“He stepped on my fucking foot.” Martyn scoffed.

“Grian!”

“Scar.”

Scar sorrily looked at Martyn. “I’m sorry about...him, let’s just go to the diner, okay?” Scar smiled. Martyn gave a thumbs up but stared at Grian. Grian nodded his head and started walking up the beach, ahead of Scar and Martyn.

Scar sighed and slowly walked next to Martyn. “What’s up his ass?” Martyn asked, being careful when he talked. Martyn knew how Scar felt, or at least he knew what it was like to be embarrassed by one of your friends.

“Well, I don’t know...he has been acting so weird recently. It’s like, whenever I hang out with anyone, especially girls, he gets upset. I was walking home with my friend Pearl; Grian saw us and then ignored me for the rest of the day.” Scar looked over to Martyn; it seemed like he was asking Martyn for something with just his eyes.

Martyn thought about it and then looked back over at Scar. “Okay Scar, this might be a weird question but...are you homophobic?”

Scar stopped in his tracks and looked directly into Martyn's eyes. “Excuse me, of course not. Who do you take me as?” Scar scoffed and started walking again.

“Wait, no! I was just going to say I think Grian likes you.” Martyn said, the only reason he had asked Scar if he was homophobic was to make sure he wouldn’t get mad at Martyn.

Scar turned around to look at Martyn. “Actually?” Scar looked down at his feet and then walked over to Martyn. “What do I do then?”

Martyn was surprised at how well Scar was taking this. “Well, do you like him back?”

Scar thought about it for a second and then finally answered. “Yeah, I really like him, he’s my best friend.”

Martyn realized that Scar thought Grian liked him as a friend. That was not what Martyn was thinking. “Do you like him in a maybe more...personal, way?” Scar looked confused and laughed.

“Of course! He’s my best friend not just my friend.” Martyn slapped his face; he gave Scar an unsure smile.

-

When Scar and Martyn got to the diner, they saw Grian sitting in an empty booth, a sad milkshake in front of him. “Grian!” Scar ran over to Grian and gave him a hug, sitting in the seat next to him. “So, what have you been doing while we were walking?” Scar asked, he grabbed the milkshake and took a sip of it.

Grian looked over at Martyn and then smiled at Scar. “I got a milkshake, and a basket of fries are on the way.” Grian smiled, he looked at Scar’s eyes and then at his lips, then back at his eyes.

Oh, Grian definitely liked Scar.

“So, how long have you two known each other?” Martyn sat opposite of Scar and leaned on the table.

Scar laughed and Grian chuckled a bit. “So, funny story. I’ve lived here my whole life and Grian lived here when he was a little kid. Apparently, we knew each other in elementary school. Grian moved away in fifth grade, and he moved back in freshman year, we became fast friends and soon we realized we had already known each other!” Grian and Scar started laughing with their whole stomachs, leaning on one another, wiping their eyes.

While they were all talking a slam rang out through the diner, two people were rushing inside, one was upset the other was really upset.

“Oh my god! You always do this, you always go and hang with that emo kid, do you like him or something!?” The girl that was yelling had braided red hair; she was wearing overalls and was holding her phone. The other girl that was following her inside had dark, long hair that had a few highlights dyed in.

The taller, dark-haired girl, was walking behind her, also holding her phone. “We’re just friends! You know that, Gem!” The shorter girl looked over her shoulder and glared at the other person.

“Actually, I don’t, I asked you if we could hang out today and you said ‘No, I’m hanging out with Scott’ God! I hate that kid.” The shorter girl rushed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind herself.

“Shit...” The taller girl walked over to an empty booth across the diner.

Scar leaned into Martyn. “That’s Pearl.” Scar gave a wary smile.

Martyn looked over at the tall girl, Pearl. Was she talking about the Scott he knew? “Who was the other women?” Martyn asked; he looked at Scar and then at Grian.

Grian sighed and then looked over in the direction of the bathroom. “Her name is Gem, she’s one of my friends, so is Pearl.” Grian looked back at Martyn and gave a soft smile. “It’s hard having two of your friends somewhat dating.” Grian laughed, though the laugh had no humor behind it.

Martyn silently nodded. Martyn noticed the tall girl walking towards them. “Hey Grian, Scar.” Pearl looked at Martyn and then at Grian. “So, are you Martyn? Your aunt talks a lot about you.” Pearl slid into the seat next to Martyn.

Martyn chuckled a bit. “Yeah, I’ve heard. You must be Pearl?” Pearl gave a shy nod and leaned on the table; her cheek pressed against her palm.

Scar looked at Pearl and then at Martyn. “So-”

“Do you know Scott?” Pearl interrupted Scar, looking at Martyn, a glint of almost...jealousy? In her eyes. Martyn’s face flushed, why was he embarrassed? Of course, Martyn knew who Scott was, Scott was the kid who came to his door and delivered pizza, Scott was the blue-haired guy, Scott was the kid who Martyn couldn’t stop thinking about.

Martyn cleared his throat and smiled behind his hand. “Yeah, you mean blue-haired Scott?” Pearl nodded and grabbed one of Martyn’s hands.

Scar sighed and answered. “There’s only one Scott in this whole town.”

Pearl squealed and looked at Scar, Grian and then Martyn. “I just wanted to tell you; Scott totally likes you.”

Martyn turned red and hid behind his hands, covering most of his eyesight. Pearl laughed and patted Martyn on the shoulder. “I would talk more about this with you, Martyn, but I have to leave and convince Gem I’m not cheating on her.” Pearl stood up and said her farewells.

After Pearl was out the door, Grian started staring at Martyn. “Martyn, you cannot date Scott.” Grian seemed upset, maybe not with Martyn but with Scott. “Scott is mean and he will break your heart.” Grian sighed and slumped back into his seat.

Scar nodded. “I’m sorry to say but Grian is right, have you met our friend jimmy yet?” Scar asked; he looked genuinely sad.

Martyn shook his head; he hadn’t met Jimmy or heard about him for that matter. Grian looked at Scar and Scar nodded. “Okay, we are going to tell you, but you can’t tell anyone, we told you, okay?” Martyn nodded. “Okay, basically Scott and Jimmy were best friends, like four years ago. Scott and Jimmy started dating because, of course. Jimmy was also best friends with this guy called Tango, Scott got jealous and basically told Jimmy he was basically cheating on him. Jimmy got upset and told Tango that Scott said that to him, and Tango said Jimmy should break up with Scott because he’s controlling so Jimmy did, and Scott now hates Tango’s guts, and he also highly dislikes Jimmy.” Scar took a big breath because he was out of breath.

“Wow.”

Scar and Grian looked behind themselves and saw a tall blonde-haired man, he was standing next to a shorter guy with hair that looked like it was made of flames.

Grian and Scar both got red and looked at Martyn. “So, we’re going to go now...” Grian grabbed Scar’s arm and ran out the door. Martyn heard Scar yelling something as they ran out of the diner. Martyn looked up at the two men standing in front of him and gave them a weak wave.

The two men hastily walked past Martyn and sat at a booth on the other side of the Diner. “Shit...” Martyn pulled out his phone and earbuds and started listening to music. The first song that came on was ‘Exit music (for a film)’ by Radiohead; it was one of Martyn’s favorite songs. Martyn decided that it was weird to just stay in the Diner without ordering anything. He stood up, but right as he did, a waiter came over and put a basket of fries on the table.

The waiter looked up at Martyn standing up. “Excuse me, where are you going?” The waiter grabbed a notebook from his back pocket, writing something down on it. “Hold on let me guess, Grian ordered the milkshake and fries and left without paying?” Martyn looked at the man, he had dark, slicked back hair and a faint mustache coming in. Martyn just nodded, did this guy know Grian and Scar? “Oh, I should’ve told you my name, I’m Mumbo and I’m Grian’s best friend.”

Martyn thought about it for a moment, wasn’t Scar, Grian’s best friend? “So, do I have to pay for this...?” Martyn slowly backed away from the man.

Mumbo laughed and grabbed the empty milkshake and fry basket. “No, no, I’ll just make him pay for it next time he comes.” Mumbo waved Martyn away and Martyn was so confused. Why does everyone know everyone here? He hated it; he wished he was home where the only person who knew he was, actually knew who he was, was Cleo. Of course, other people in his hometown knew who he was, but they just bullied him. Martyn walked out of the diner and literally ran to his aunt’s house.

-

When Martyn got to the house, he was out of breath and leaning against the door. No one was home and the door was locked. “God! Fuck!” Martyn banged his fist against the door and sadly slumped against it. He decided he would listen to music until his aunt or uncle got home.