Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Rain. 

It just had to rain today. 

007 despises the rain; it always messes with his hacking work. Which is something he really.. REALLY enjoys doing.

It's always fun messing with his victims’ computers, especially watching the discord ensue through the cameras if the building has any to offer. He gets to see his work doing its magic, all in the comfort of his own home.

But of course, the universe was out to get him, which sucks because he had planned a hilarious prank on his favorite prey, Elliot. 

Now Elliot is special to 007, something about the son of Mr.Builder himself has piqued his interest. 

Sure, he has those charming tired black eyes that welcomes everyone who walks in the front door, his adorable smile that never falters even if the customer he’s dealing with is a complete dickhead, and don’t even get him started with Elliot’s perfectly round ass - 

What he's trying to say is, Elliot has quickly become his favorite person to mess with. 

He remembers meeting Elliot for the first time.

007 was looking around town to see if there were any new potential spots to hack and play around with. Eventually, he decided to stop by Builder Brother Pizza for a quick lunch break. 

And lo and behold, there he was. Elliot, weaving and staggering around the busy pizzeria, running to tables serving customers their pizza and drinks, and tending the register... all by himself? 

Where are the other staff? Surely he’s not the only employee working on a busy Friday afternoon. Maybe that's why he saw a ‘Now Hiring’ flyer outside next to the glass door.

007 almost felt bad about contributing to the chaos

keyword: almost

So he walked up to the counter and joined the line, and as much as he hates waiting, he does so patiently. It almost took half an hour before his turn came, losing his patience by the second. The person in front of 007 took forever to order and proceeded to talk to the man behind the counter with a crass attitude. 007 can see the employee’s face, exhausted and on their wits' end. It suited the man.

Fortunately, the customer finally got their order taken and left. Finally, it was 007’s turn. 

When stepping closer to the counter, he sees it, the most wonderful, heart-melting smile he’s ever seen. Yes, it's most likely his customer service persona, but dear Telamon, 007’s breath was taken away.

“Hello! Sorry for the wait. Welcome to Builder Brother’s Pizza.” The cashier greeted with his attractive smile. Oh, may Telamon just take him now. 

“How may I take your order today?” Even with all this chaos around the man, the tired look in his eyes, he still acknowledged 007 with a cheerful expression. 

007 just stared at him. All the words he was planning to say were instantly taken out of his mouth.

“Um, sir?” The man tilted his head to the side. A confused and slightly agitated expression registered on his face.

Fuck, that was hot.

“Oh- Right, sorry. May I have uh, a plain cheese pizza?” 007 barely managed to get his order through. “With a soda.”

“Of course! Will this be to-go or dine in?” Elliot, at least thats what his name tag says, asked with that warm smile that he managed to bring back.

“T-To-go is fine..” 007 mumbled. 

Elliot nodded and placed the order into the system. “Alright, the wait should be 10 to 15 minutes. I’ll call on the number when it's ready, that alright?” 007 nodded back.

After receiving his receipt and memorizing the number he was allotted, he stepped to the side of the building. Looking around the establishment, he realized that he’d never really considered a pizza place to be a potential target to exploit. 

He glanced up, spotting a few cameras near the register. One aimed directly where Elliot stood, and one faced the dining area. There's a good chance there are some in the back, too.  A bunch of screens surround the place, just begging for attention.

007 smiled. 

He’d get to see Elliot again soon. 

Maybe in some, rather unfortunate circumstances for the pizza boy. How fun would it be to mess with him and the pizzeria? There's only one way to find out.

Snapping out of his thoughts, he heard his number being called. He grabbed his order, giving Elliot a small thanks with a smirk on his face. He walked past the busy environment, opening the door, and proceeded to walk home with a grin.

Yeah.

Elliot had no idea what he was getting himself into.

Anyways, the c00lgui doesn't work particularly well when it's raining. Leaving 007 to sprawl on his bed with boredom. 

He’d lie there, staring at the ceiling of this room. Suddenly, an idea popped up in his head. He rapidly checked the time on his phone and saw that it was still about an hour until Builder Brother’s closed. Meaning that Elliot is still there working! 

He rushed to his desk and began to log into his computer. Even if the rain affects the c00lgui, he can still access to the live camera feed the pizzeria has. 

What better way to annoy Elliot than to create a new account and message him with whatever he wants! And who knows! Maybe they can get to know one another better. Not that 007 has trouble with knowing what Elliot likes. 

007 liked to monitor Elliot and the pizzeria through the cameras when he wasn’t in the mood to hack or just wanted a bit of entertainment. 

Anywho, this could also be an opportunity to fix their bad relationship. For some reason, Elliot’s demeanor changed towards 007 since the argument. No matter, it's all in the past now. He’ll get Elliot to change his mind. How hard could it be?

He quickly set up the live footage of the pizzeria on his left monitor, stopping to gaze at Elliot, who seemed to be mopping the floor. The place was empty due to it being late at night and pouring cats and dogs out there. 

On his right monitor, he sets up a new account on Instablox with the anagram “GamerBurn” as the username. If Elliot is clever, he’d recognize who the person messaging him is. 007 chose his profile picture to contain the c00lgui’s theme colors and added a silly smile in the middle. 

It was finally time to message the pizza boy. He found his account rather quickly: “Elliot_2007”. Simple and boring, which disappointed 007. Elliot was nothing of the sort. 

After thinking of what to message him, he decided to also be simple and well, not boring, because that's totally not his style. He’ll add a little something to make it seem welcoming but playful.

“Hey ;)” 

Perfect. 

He clicked send and immediately looked to his left. By the time he messaged Elliot, the mopping was done, and he was sitting behind the counter. As the live feed played on his monitor, 007 rested his head on his hand, quietly observing Elliot as he received the message. 

He faintly sees the silhouette of a text bubble appear on his right.

He smiled when he heard a chime ring out.

Chapter Text

It was a slow day today..

Not many customers come in when it's pouring outside; that's good. 

Elliot liked slow days.

No customers to yell at his face when he accidentally makes an error, no unnecessary cleaning, and especially no 007 . 

Ever since he met the man, he’s been a nuisance with his c00lgui, as the burgerman himself calls it. Which was unforunate, he was a good customer that would visit him from time to time, tipped well, but seemed like it was all a facade. 

He started noticing things change, first the system would be down for long periods of time, which made his job 10 times harder. He’d also receive fake online orders, fake calls, and deliver orders to fake addresses. It was starting to piss him off. 

After a casual conversation with 007, the man just blatantly confessed to all of that being his doing?? Snickering and grinning as if his antics were the most hilarious thing in the world.

 A heated argument occurred soon after, causing Elliot to receive a scolding from his father after closing that night. Something along the lines of “It's not appropriate to engage in quarrels with the customers. Especially not in public when there are patrons nearby,” Elliot tried to explain his reasoning, but Mr.Builder left no room for debate.

Ever since that day, 007 likes to annoy Elliot on his busiest days, messing with the pizzerias’ systems, the screens, or with him in general. Leaving Elliot defenseless to his exploits. 

However, he doesn’t show up, nor mess with anything when it's raining. Maybe 007 dislikes the rain?

Whatever.

Elliot pushes away the thought and gets to relax behind the counter, watching the clock tick its seconds as it gets closer to twelve. 

He has the closing shift today, so it’s just him alone to take care of the final tasks. With the pizzeria understaffed, it's quite a common occurrence for just one employee to handle closing. 

He stretches his arms before mindlessly scrolling through social media and occasionally liking some posts. 

Until he receives a notification in the top right corner of his screen..

Maybe it’s Dad checking in on the pizzeria? Nah, he talked to him earlier today.  

Mia maybe? Or Lulu?

Elliot didn’t really have many friends on social media.

Sure, he follows some people from high school, but actual friends who text him? He has Lulu to thank for letting him get incredibly lonely on his days off. Not that he has many to begin with.

Elliot tapped on the message icon with his thumb, thinking it’s from someone he knows.  

Instead of seeing a familiar profile picture, he’s met with a.. rather interesting icon? A black and red theme, with what seemed to be a semi-colon smile in the middle. Weird. 

Next to the icon is the message the person left, ‘Hey ;)’

He doesn’t remember following anyone with that kind of profile picture. Maybe someone changed it. 

So when he shrugged off his confused expression, he tapped on the message to see if they sent anything else. 

Nope.. just a greeting..

Elliot looked into the profile, but nothing appeared; it was as if the account was newly created. Just the profile pic and their user showed: ‘GamerBurn’. Now that's a username he doesn't recognize. 

Actually, he sees that they only follow one person, Elliot. 

Now, Elliot isn't an idiot. He knows he shouldn’t open a random message from a random person he doesn't know, let alone message them back. It practically screams a bot advertising a horny website or a scammer trying to get some quick cash. 

But Elliot is bored and too tired to care about the consequences. It's currently less than an hour until close, and he finished everything he needed to do early, cut him some slack, alright?! 

He pushed back the weird feeling in his gut, screaming this was a bad idea, and started typing a response.

Chapter Text

Elliot_2007: 

Hello? 

See? Elliot can be cautious; just a simple hello is fine! It's not like a simple greeting will do anything; all he's going to do is check what this mysterious guy wants from him. 

He set his phone down on the counter. If he's going to wait for a response, then he’ll do it while finishing last minute tasks.

To his surprise, as soon as the blue and red-themed cellphone came into contact with the tabletop, the sound of a toaster-oven bell rang, signifying that a new notification popped up. 

Yes, he set his notification sound to be the ding of an oven. He grew up in a family that literally bakes pizza 24/7. It's not that surprising.

GamerBurn: 

Hey Elliot! 

how are you doing on this lovely night?

“Huh?” Elliot let out a confused hum. Guess the wink wasn’t for anything too malicious. 

Still, better to be safe than sorry.

Elliot_2007: 

I'm doing alright. 

. . .

Sorry.. but who is this?

There, that should be fine. Elliot should be able to get a clear answer on who this ‘GamerBurn’ guy is now.  On the off chance that this is actually someone he knows, he’ll make up to them somehow. 

. . . 

. . . 

. . . 

He sees the text bubble signifying that the other is typing.. 

But it suddenly disappeared. 

“Great. So much for getting my question answered.” Elliot groaned and looked at the time on the top of his cell. 

‘11:49 P.M.’

“Eh.. I'll just leave right now. It's just a few minutes until close.” He shrugged, standing up from the stool he was sitting on. 

He entered the break room and gathered his stuff. Zipping on his black hoodie to protect himself from the rain, he slipped the strap of his satchel over his head so it rested firmly on his right shoulder. 

Right as he was about to arm the security system, he heard the same familiar ringtone.

Elliot read the message on his lockscreen, not bothering to open the app anymore. 

GamerBurn: 

Hey!! dont leave so soon! 

..What?

How did this guy know he was about to leave? 

Elliot instantly opened his phone and went straight to the application. He can feel his heart pounding in his chest. 

This has to be a coincidence? 

Right?

GamerBurn: 

apologies for the late reply, got a bit uh

busy~

. . .

kidding!! 

Okay, great. That's totally helping his nerves right now!

GamerBurn:   

anyways

im a bit hurt you dont remember me :(((

though the new account doesnt help my case but its me 

Seven!  🍔

.

.

.

“…no fucking way,” He furrowed his eyebrows together. “He couldn’t possibly..”

Elliot looked at the username again. 

“GamerBurn” He sounded it out. 

.

.

.

Elliot’s a fucking idiot. It's right in front of his eyes. 

‘Burgerman’ 

.

.

. 

. . .

Elliot_2007:   

Don’t message me again. 

Elliot went to his profile, his face seething. He knew Seven had guts, but to message him out of the blue like it's nothing?? 

He refused to let Seven have another form of entertainment. 

This nonsense ends now. 

Elliot blocked the account, turned off his cell, and immediately went back to arming the system. He could feel the vibrations buzzing violently in his hand from the device. 

Not right now, he still has a job to do. 

He entered the security code and quickly left the building, locking the door with a key. 

“Fucking hell..” Elliot muttered, reaching back to grab his hood and moving it to cover his head. 

He started walking towards his car, which he stupidly parked under a tree away from the back door, thinking it was going to be a nice sunny day. 

The rain was supposed to be a good sign. 

A sign that today was going to be pleasant.

Not many customers, no deliveries to be made, and Seven made it clear he wasn’t going to do anything from past experience. 

But, of course, he had to ruin that. 

No matter, Elliot blocked the account.

Problem solved. 

..Right? 

.

.

.

He made it to his car, and after scavenging through his bag, he finally found the car keys. 

Unlocking the vehicle and stepping inside, Elliot can finally relax. He slumps in the diver’s seat, taking a well deserved breath of air.

…That's until he realizes his phone was ringing nonstop. 

He was stuck in his head, too busy grieving his night, now ruined, to notice.

“What the..” Elliot looks at what's causing the commotion. 

GamerBurn: 

ELLIOT!! COME BACKK

DONT IGNORE ME >:((

CMONN DONT BE LIKE THAT!!

LETS TALK!1!11 🙏

How is he still messaging him..? Elliot made sure he blocked the account. Did he press the wrong option? 

He warily opened the chat again. He’ll just make sure that he blocks him this time. 

GamerBurn:  

Elliot!! 

there you are :))) 

. . . 

GamerBurn:  

lets talk before you try to do anything dumb again ;p 

Elliot snorted, “Yeah, no..” 

He pressed the three dots in the top right corner and firmly pressed the ‘BLOCK’ option. 

. 

.

.

GamerBurn:  

whatd i say abt doing anything dumb??

How in Telamon’s name is he still able to message him??

GamerBurn: 

you can’t get rid of me that easily :3 

dont try to delete the chat or blocking anymore, ill always be here 😚

Wonderful, now Elliot can never find peace again. 

Not while Seven is monitoring his every move. 

Elliot_2007:  

Leave me alone. 

I dont want to talk to you.

.

.

.

. . .

GamerBurn:  

Awww dont be that way!! 

how about this..

we chat or rather text and ill lay off the pizzeria 

for now

how’s that sound?? pretty nice right??

He’s bluffing. There’s no way Seven will keep his word. 

Elliot_2007:  

How can I be sure I can trust what you’re saying?

. . .

GamerBurn:

tomorrow its gonna be sunny

and since im gonna count today as us chatting

i wont do anything to u or ur j o b >:P

ur welcom :D

Elliot doesn’t know whether to be glad that he’ll be free from Seven's shenanigans tomorrow, or annoyed that he has to talk to him every day to keep his side of the bargain.

. . .

Elliot_2007: 

Fine. 

Can I go now? I want to go home. 

GamerBurn:

yes yes u can drive home now 

wear ur seatbelt!1!1 

Elliot’s not going to even question how he knows he’s in his car. 

With an exasperated sigh, he inserted the keys into the engine and started the car. 

At least tomorrow, he’ll be free from Seven.

He’s actually almost excited to go to work tomorrow. 

A normal day. 

Finally.

—————————🍔—————————

“FINALLY!” Seven bounced in his chair, punching the air with his fists.

He’d finally gotten Elliot to agree with his deal! He won’t even have to mess with his work to get his attention! 

At long last, Seven can put that argument behind him now. He will be able to mend their relationship.

Seven may have gotten a bit carried away with messing with Elliot’s job, but he knows better now! 

He’ll explain, and then everything will be back to normal in no time. 

Maybe then, he can convince him that a few pranks here and there can be something they can bond over. 

He can just imagine it now, 

Elliot and Seven, sitting on a hill together. Watching the view of Robloxia in utter chaos. They’ll laugh and cuddle, keeping each other warm during the cold night. Then suddenly, on the run from the admins, taunting them as they successfully get away.  The once chilling night turned into a steamy one. They’ll be too busy sucking each other's- 

Seven lets out a cough.

He can’t get too ahead of himself now, one step at a time. 

For now, he can start researching ways to successfully engage in conversation. He desperately needs to rebuild their former bond, and now that he’s gotten the opportunity to talk to Elliot now, he can’t waste that chance. 

Seven calmed himself down and opened a new tab on his computer. 

To do this properly, a little help wouldn’t hurt. 

He typed in the search bar, “how to make pizza boy like me again”

Which turned into “how to communicate respectfully”

And then,

 “how to apologize” 

Chapter Text

Today will be fine..

Is what Elliot repeated in a mantra. 

He tied his dirty blond hair in a low ponytail, covering the overgrown dark roots with his signature red visor hat.

His father lets Elliot and Mia dye their hair whatever they’d like, just as long as they are responsible for taking care of it. Which they did, Elliot dyed their hair since he turned thirteen, and always were on top with touch-ups and knowing when to take it easy when their hair started to damage. 

Recently, Elliot had been too busy with the pizzeria and dealing with a certain asshole, so he hasn’t had the time to fix his roots. Luckily, his visor covers up most of his roots; you’d only need a clear view of the top of Elliot's hair to see the dark roots clearly. 

He puts on his uniform and goes to the kitchen to have a late breakfast. 

The clock in the room read 9:20. Mia had already left for school, and Father tends to go on business trips often. So, it's just Elliot for now. 

He didn’t mind; he’s gotten used to waking up alone. It was coming home when it was the hardest. 

On weekdays, he’d come home around midnight. Mia had already been tucked into bed, Elliot always kissed her goodnight before heading to the kitchen to prepare for her breakfast. Leaving it in the fridge for her to heat up in the morning.

Elliot always feels guilty for not being there for her, but he needed the money to pay rent and buy groceries.

His father always believed in working to earn your keep. If Elliot wanted something, he had to work for it. 

And he did. 

Growing up, Elliot dreamed of working at his father’s pizzeria for as long as he could remember. Always wanted to spend his paycheck on anything he’d ever want.

Everything changed when his little sister came into the picture.

He grew close to Mia, always trying to be the best big brother for her.

He worked tirelessly everyday to put a roof over their head and food on the table. Any spare change he could muster up went straight to Mia’s wants and needs.

For now, Elliot needs to make his own breakfast and make his way to work, which should be free from any.. distractions.  

He quickly opens the refrigerator door and sees an already prepared ham and cheese sandwich with a note attached to the paper plate. 

It read: “Have a good day at work! <3 Mia    P.S. Don't overwork yourself!!”

He smiled and grabbed the plate and began to eat the meal. 

Mia always wanted to help around the house whenever she can, Elliot appreciates the gestures every time.

After finishing, he grabbed the keys and started to head to work. 

———————————————————————————

It's around three in the afternoon, rush hour had already passed. 

And Seven was telling the truth. 

Nothing had happened, at least not yet..

Elliot still wasn’t convinced that he'd keep his word. 

He’d occasionally glance behind his shoulder and double check the POS and Kitchen display systems for any interference.

It was driving him mad, to the point where his coworker, Lulu, had grown concerned for Elliot.

Lulu walked up behind Elliot and placed a hand on his shoulder, “Hey.. Elliot? You doing alright?” She asked, “You look a lil’ paranoid there..” 

Elliot let out a sigh and turned to Lulu, “Oh hey.. Yeah, um– I'm just worried.. That something will go wrong today.”

“Well, it is strange nothing happened yet, even the screens haven’t been tampered with yet!” Lulu rests her hands on her hips, “I wonder why though..”

That’s right, Elliot hasn't told Lulu about the deal he made with Seven. 

“I might’ve uh–” Elliot rubbed the back of his neck, “made a deal with the guy who has been messing with us lately..” He admitted sheepishly. 

The look on Lulu’s face would’ve cracked Elliot up if he weren’t too worried about her reaction to all this. 

“Uh.. Lulu?” He poked her forehead. “You in there?” 

She stood agape, eventually shaking it off, and began to ask questions. 

“What? How? What happened? Tell me everything!!” Lulu bounced up and down, grabbing Elliot’s hands in excitement. She had always loved gossip and anything drama related. Work has been boring lately, so this definitely caught her attention. 

Elliot let a sigh of relief out and led the both of them to the break room. The pizzeria isn’t too busy, so it’ll be fine for now. He’ll be quick about it.

After they both entered the room, Elliot started to explain the deal he had made with Seven. He mentioned that if he just talked to the man, he’d leave the pizzeria alone. 

Lulu’s expression went from excitement to worry. She didn't seem to like the idea of Elliot having to converse with an exploiter. 

“Ellie..” Lulu’s hands cuff Elliot’s arm, “I.. don't feel comfortable with you doing this.”

“You shouldn’t go out of your way to message a guy just so that they leave you and your workspace alone.” Her grip tightened. “No one should.”

Maybe she’s right..

No, she is right.

“But..” Elliot’s eyebrows tense up.

“You seriously can’t be thinking about messaging him again.” Her eyes widened, “You don’t know what that man really wants, we can just tell an admin!” Lulu pleaded, “Maybe they’ll finally answer our reports!”

A few seconds passed, no words were exchanged until..

“I know, and I get it, Lulu,” Elliot began, “but maybe.. This’ll be good for him.”

Lulu lets go her grip on Elliot before he continues,

“As much as I hate to admit it, but even he deserves a second chance.”

A sigh left Lulu’s mouth.

“I forget how stubborn you are when you have your mind set on something.” Her shoulders relax, though that doesn’t hide the fact that she still seems uncomfortable. “Just promise me you’ll stay safe? Please?” 

“Of course, I will.” Elliot gives a reassuring smile.

Elliot and Lulu went back to work; the repetitive tasks help pass the time. 

Eventually the day has ended, Lulu was in charge of closing for the night. Elliot waved her goodbye and headed home. 

———————————————————————————

Elliot unlocks the front door and enters, tossing the keys on the side table while lightly kicking the door behind him to close. 

He takes off his red button-up, leaving on his black undershirt. He hung the red shirt on the coat hangers near the front door. 

Since he’s gotten back home earlier than usual, he decided to relax for a bit in the living room. 

He plops onto the couch, but before he can get comfortable, he feels a vibration near his rear bottom. 

Grunting annoyingly, he shifts enough to grab the phone that was tucked into his back pocket. 

He didn’t need to look at the notification to see what or who had messaged him.

Elliot instantly went to the app, and lo and behold, he sees a message notification from none other than ‘GamerBurn’

GamerBurn:

Heyyyyyy Ellie 

:]

Right, the deal. 

He’d almost forgotten about that. 

He lifted up his thumb to reply, but another message had popped up.

GamerBurn:

how was work?

Oh. 

That's something Elliot didn’t expect Seven to ask, but alright. He quickly typed a response. 

Elliot_2007: 

Hi. 

. . . 

It was okay. 

GamerBurn:

thats great!

. . .

any work gossip? 

What? 

Elliot_2007: 

Uh, no? 

Why?

GamerBurn:

oh 

just wondering what you were talking about with that girl in the break room

. . . 

Lulu? was it?

Elliot’s brows furred, where did that come from?

Never mind that, how does he know all this?

He shifted himself to sit up correctly,the grip on his phone tightens. 

Elliot_2007: 

..what?

GamerBurn:

who is she to you?

Elliot_2007:

. . .

Are you watching me?? 

GamerBurn:

answer the question.

Elliot_2007:

She’s just a friend? 

And my coworker?

. . . 

Where did that come from??

GamerBurn:

you sure? 

Elliot_2007:

Yes. Im sure. 

. . .

Why are you asking me this? 

GamerBurn:

you seem to be rlly close to her

thats all

Why does he care? 

It’s not like anything is happening between Elliot and Lulu.  

It had been about a year since Lulu had expressed her interest to Elliot. 

He rejected her confession and explained that he didn’t feel attraction to women. 

Lulu understood, and things seemed to go back to normal. 

Nothing happened after that. 

So, why does Seven care about what's going on between them?

Elliot_2007:

Well, she is my friend. 

. . . 

Why do you even care? 

GamerBurn:

. . .

its nothing

sorry. 

. . . 

The text bubble pulses for a while, but no message came through. 

Elliot_2007:

Was there something else you needed?

GamerBurn:

. . .

I want to apologize to you. 

for what i’ve had done to you and your work

That gained a chuckle from Elliot.

Elliot stared at the text, rereading it over; there's no way he’s being serious.

He can’t possibly be apologizing now, right? 

It's been a year with Seven’s torment, and he’s suddenly going to say he’s sorry? 

Just like that? 

It’ll take much more than that to change Elliot’s opinion on the exploiter.

GamerBurn:

Elliot? 

You still there?

The buzz vibrated Elliot’s hand, causing him to snap back into reality. 

Elliot_2007:

yeah. 

GamerBurn:

I know me texting you this isn’t nearly enough to show you how i truly feel but 

I really am sorry.

Elliot_2007:

You have caused me nothing but torment for the past year

So yeah, I don’t forgive you

. . . 

For now. 

But I appreciate you wanting to apologize. 

GamerBurn:

How about this, I can prove to you how sorry I am. 

Can we meet up? At a park maybe?

I know youre free tomorrow, hows 5pm?

Elliot is gonna move past how Seven knows his work schedule, but tomorrow at five? 

Tomorrow was supposed to be Elliot’s day with Mia; he can’t leave her alone at home. 

Wait, he can use that as a valid excuse!

Elliot_2007:

Sorry, I won't be able to. 

I have to take care of my little sister. 

It was almost as if this answer was expected. Seven instinctively replied in mere seconds.

GamerBurn:

i have a younger brother too!!1!

we can make it like a..

double date?

;)

Elliot_2007:

._.

. . .

bye. 

GamerBurn:

WAIT IM KIDDING!!

kind of.

fine 

lets call it a playdate for the two of them

That made Elliot pause for a moment; he stood from where he sat, making his way over to Mia’s bedroom door. 

He turned the knob and creaked the door open until he was able to see platinum-blond hair surrounding her resting head.

Mia always struggled to make friends, and the fact that she’s so rebellious definitely doesn’t help.

This could  be a good opportunity for her to make new friends. 

Elliot contemplated a bit more before shutting the door with a small click and walking back to the living room. 

He leaned on the armrest of the couch, looking back at the chatroom.

Elliot_2007:

. . . 

. . .

. . . 

Okay. 

We’ll meet you at the park near the pizzeria.

See you there.

“Elliot..?” A yawn soon followed the tired mumble. 

Elliot flinched, snapping his head up. 

He sees Mia standing under her bedroom door frame; her messy hair briefly covering one of her eyes, her pajamas disheveled, and her hand seems to be rubbing her other eye. 

“Telamon Mia!” Elliot blurted, clutching his phone to his chest. “A little heads up next time, yeah?” 

“..heads up.” Another yawn escaped Mia. She tiredly walked towards the couch where Elliot stood near, sat on the cushion, and rested her head on the back cushions. “I tried to wait for you..” 

Elliot lets out a small smile. He reached over and ruffled her hair, which gained an annoyed grumble from Mia. “Oh yeah? How’d that go?” He playfully mused.

She responded with yet another yawn. “What’re you doing?” Mia’s gaze went towards Elliot’s bright phonescreen. 

“Well, guess what?” 

“It's almost 12 in the morning, just tell me.”

“You’re no fun, you know that?” Elliot huffed. Mia sat there amused. 

“I found a new potential friend to play with you tomorrow after school, is that alright?” Elliot asked, “I know it was supposed to be our day togeth–” Elliot couldn’t finish his sentence before Mia jumped out of her seat and faced Elliot. 

“Really?!” She grabbed Elliot’s arm and tugged. Just as quick as her enthusiastic manner developed, it just as fast died down.

“Elliot..” Her somber tone filled Elliot’s heart with worry. 

“What if–  What if they don’t like me?”

“Well..” Elliot pocketed his phone and picked up Mia onto a hip carry. “If they don't, then it’s their loss.” 

“I don't know a single person who wouldn't like a chaotic little gremlin,” He teased, pinching Mia’s nose with two knuckles. A small smile resurfaced on Mia.

Elliot carried Mia all the way back to her room. 

“You can always let me know if things go south.” He gently placed Mia on the pink comforters. She quickly tucked herself in, getting cozy underneath the thick blanket. 

Elliot sat down on the edge of her bed. 

“Now,” He moved a stuffed plush next to Mia’s face. “Go to bed, it's way past your bedtime.”

“I'll make you breakfast tomorrow morning, yeah?” He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Mia tiredly nodded, whispering a goodnight to Elliot.

He stood up and walked towards the door. “Goodnight.”

Click.