originally "Marshmallow Cream 2: Love Never Dies"
The next morning greeted Ash with a multitude of feelings. He still couldn't fully process what had happened. Yes, his crush he was about to ask out exploded in his face- literally. But was he really gone? More importantly, why wasn't he facing any repercussions?
His usual morning routine now had a morbid air to it, despite the fact he was on winter break now, and Ash was more focused on his physical state than anything. He could feel his palms moist with sweat, and through the weight of his arms, scrubbed them against his weakened knees. A quick shower was enough to offset the grossness for a bit.
After yanking on a fresh pair of skinny jeans and a full hoodie, Ash didn't even bother adding his signature wolf tail chain. He was marching himself straight to his goth friend Yuli's house down the street, hoping for either an explanation or a distraction.
One ring of the doorbell and Yuli's silver locks had zipped to his front door.
"Ash! What a surprise!" The goth greeted his furry friend with an unusual amount of enthusiasm. "Ahem.. please come in, you're probably freezing."
"Thanks.." Ash mumbled, stepping into probably the largest house he had seen in his life. More comparable to a small castle, really. Somehow even with his family's ridiculous wealth, Yuli's home was situated in a modest suburban neighborhood, likely just to brag about their money. If he wasn't his only friend, Ash thought, why he oughta..
Getting off track, realign those rails! The boys made their way to Yuli's sanctuary- his bedroom- and after kicking their shoes onto the floor and flopping onto the bed, Ash exhaled deeply and let himself sink into the mattress.
"You alright?" Yuli asked, reaching for his pal's shoulders but refusing to touch. Ash flipped onto his back and sighed again, but louder.
"I RUINED IT!" The furry cried. “I was finally going to talk to Smile yesterday, but I BLEW IT! I made those brownies for nothing, I waited all day for nothing, and after I screwed it up I just went back to class!"
As the words kept pouring out, they grew more frantic.
"And when I got home, what did I do? Nothing! I sat in my room on my laptop, and I did some homework, I ate my dinner, and I went to bed! Everything was completely normal except I fucked it up somewhere and nobody's acknowledging it!"
"Ash, Ash," Yuli firmly grasped his friend's shoulders, attempting to steady the trembling. "Nobody knows you fucked up, right?"
Ash nodded.
"So… you don't have to worry about it."
"...What?"
"So you couldn't impress the poser, big deal. It's not like he's moving, you can just try again over the break. Unless you're going out of town, then it's hopeless."
"Yuli, you don't understand. He literally exploded."
"He yelled at you?!"
"He was in PIECES. He died, Yuli!"
"What? No, he didn't." Now the goth was dumbfounded. "I saw him hanging out with one of his nerd friends earlier- Cyber, I think? I wouldn't know, we don't share any cla-"
"Wait, he's ALIVE?" Ash immediately jumped to the nearby window, now thankful he had a reason to spy on the neighbors. Cyber actually lived next door, and if Smile was still there…
He was! Oh joy! The blue haired teens were in the backyard (thank god for the second floor) reenacting Gambler Z moments in cheap costume- something Yuli would have found abhorrent, but Ash saw as another facet of this mysterious boy he was yet to woo.
"So, are we done talking about Smile?" Yuli sighed, reaching for his school bag. "Because I have some serious geometry to study, and-"
"I have to go, thanks Yuli, bye!" Ash called as he hastily plugged his feet back into his boots and flung himself down the stairs. Not as majestic an exit his BFF would have preferred, but it would have to do for now- Smile was top priority now!
The freezing air would have paralyzed Ash, but not in this moment. A few steps to Cyber's front door, a quick knock and...
".. Hello?" Cyber answered, still decked out in his homemade Gambler Z cosplay.
"Is Smile here?" Ash was oozing with joy and on the verge of tears.
"Yeah, I'll get him." The boy sighed. He left the door open, but ventured further into his house to find the object of the furry's attention. Moments later, and he was in front of Ash, though instead of just his head of hair being blue, his skin had been painted to match, and one of his eyes covered with a gauze wrap.
"Oh, Ash!" Smile grinned. "I had your brownie from yesterday. Stupid tasty."
"Thanks, Smile..." Ash blushed, but he didn't have time to be a lovesick mess. "Wait, I actually have questions about yesterday.."
"Mhm?"
"So... you remember it, right?"
"Clear as crystal."
"But... you exploded."
"Oh yeah, I just hit my killbind."
"... What,"
"Don't worry about it." The bluenette smirked, waving a hand. "Hey, you should hang out with us while you're here. Cyber's brother brought snacks. We're doing Gambler Z roleplays, but you don't have to join.. unless you wanna be Gambler R or Warudoc. Cyber's Gambler Z and I'm Spirit Z."
Ash didn't know jack shit about Gambler Z and was already lost, but what the heck, he'd have more time with his blue crush. “Sure!” He replied, and before he had time to respond, Smile had yanked him inside and had his heart set on telling his new friend every detail from his favorite anime.
