Chapter Ninety-Two: Stroke

Chapter 92

Stroke

Jaxon awoke that afternoon and turned to see that Celeste was gone from their bed. Jaxon jolted up out of bed with a loud gasp.

Jaxon: “CELESTE?!”

He panicked, hastily throwing on a fresh pair of boxer briefs and pulling up his leather pants. He hastily threw on his shirt, leaving the buttons open as he rushed out of the room to look for her. Noah was in the living room vacuuming.

Jaxon: “HEY! Is Celeste around?!”

He shouted over the vacuum. Noah turned off the vacuum.

Noah: “No, Jaxon, she left this morning and never told me where she was going.”

Jaxon knit his eyebrows.

Jaxon: “Shit!”

He put on socks and then his Chelsea boots, rushed out the door to his Toyota Celica, and climbed in.

Tristan saw Jaxon get into his car. He approached him.

Tristan: “Hello, Jaxon. Where are you going?”

He asked him.

Jaxon: “I gotta find my Green Queen!”

He cried. Tristan knit his eyebrows and cupped his mouth.

Tristan: “Her car and motorcycle are still here. She’s not at my place or Deimos’.”

He replied.

Tristan: “Jaxon, I don’t want to be a damper, but… this is what started to kill whatever weak foundation she had with my Papa… I’m not saying you and Celeste have a weak foundation but… she tried to get his attention and he… preferred to mope about Ivy.”

He twisted his mouth.

Jaxon: “Ohhh, she HAS my attention, all right!”

He dangled his car keys up.

Jaxon: “Look man, I know I fucked up last night. I don’t wanna dwell on it. I wanna move forward and find my Green Queen!”

He declared.

Deimos came running down the street in his karate gi.

Tristan: “Deimos, what’s wrong?”

He knit his eyebrows.

Deimos: “I was practicing karate at my dojo and I saw Celeste as I was leaving!”

He began. Jaxon’s eyes widened.

Jaxon: “WHERE?! Where is she?!”

He gasped.

Deimos: “Some nightclub called ‘Club Tempation.’ ”

He replied. Jaxon’s eyebrows rose.

Jaxon: “Nightclub?! She said they’re boring and they’re only fun if I’m there!”

He cried.

Tristan: “And this is near your dojo?”

Deimos nodded.

Jaxon: “Let’s get a move on!”

He huffed, climbing into his car, started it, and drove off.

Deimos: “We should go, Tristan! This could be dangerous, and you’re going to need all the protection you can get!”

He said doggedly.

Tristan: “Of course, mon chéri, but why is Celeste at a nightclub?”

He stroked his ponytail and vaguely recalled a stupid Hallmark movie Ivy made him watch, where the heroine tricks her rival into going to a nightclub to cause problems.

Tristan: “Ah, right, Ivy.”

He rolled his eyes.

Deimos: “She got it from a Hallmark movie, didn’t she? It’s all she ever watches.”

He huffed.

~

Jaxon arrived at a Club Temptation in Little Tokyo. It was a neon pink building with a circular dome that had “Club Tempation” written in neon pink cursive letters and circular steps leading up to the entrance.

The inside had plush pink lounges with a bar at the end. The bar counter had neon pink lighting on the trim and neon pink backdrop with pink barstools. There was a dance floor in the center with a DJ on stage. He anxiously looked around for her iconic green hair.

He froze in his tracks and smiled when he saw her. Celeste was at the bar. She wore a leopard print dress with a belt around her waist, a leather jacket over it, cowgirl boots, and a leather cap on her head. His expression soured when he saw another man was talking to her. The man leaned to her, smiling at her and she kept staring at him like he was crazy. He was a tall, muscular half-black and half-Asian man with a mop of curly dark pink hair. He wore a yellow t-shirt, a dark blue varsity jacket, jeans, and sneakers. Jaxon’s face contorted with rage and he marched up to them.

Jaxon: “HEY! BACK OFF FROM MY GREEN QUEEN!”

He shoved the man away from her and wrapped his arm around her. Celeste glanced at Jaxon. The man staggered back.

Man: “HEY! I saw her first, KID! Get out of here and go play in the Burger Berserker play place, junior!”

He grinned at him. Jaxon glared at him.

Jaxon: “FUCK YOU! She’s MINE! Go get trampled by big-foot Vikings!”

He fired back at him, putting his arm around Celeste.

Man: “Okay, you wanna fight me, kid?”

He smirked.

Jaxon: “Bring it on, cotton candy head!”

He spread his arms out. The man smirked; his body burst into flames, burning the clothes off himself. Jaxon’s eyes widened.

Jaxon: “Ah, pyromancer, eh?”

He shrugged. Another one with powers? He wondered. The man grinned and threw his fist at him. Jaxon dodged his blow, and the man’s fist landed into the wall, melting the plastic. He swung his fist at Jaxon, who swiftly ducked his blow, rolling on the ground. He noticed his shirt was singed.

Deimos and Tristan entered.

Deimos: “Stand back, Tristan! I got this!”

He lunged after the man and delivered a jumping high kick to his face. The man staggered back and laughed. Deimos flicked his gaze and noticed his pants were on fire. He dropped and rolled to put the fire out.

Man: “You wanna go at me, little man?!”

The man charged after Jaxon and Deimos. Tristan raised his hand and shot him with an ice blast, freezing him up. The man lay on the floor screaming and wailing in pain. Deimos gaped at Tristan.

Deimos: “I-I had him, Tristan!”

He knit his eyebrows.

Tristan: “You couldn’t touch his body without catching fire, Deimos. Neither of you could have.”

He said evenly.

Jaxon rushed over to Celeste.

Jaxon: “Are you okay, Celeste?! Did he hurt you?!”

He knit his eyebrows, rubbing his hands all over her and activating his healing powers.

Celeste: “No. All he did was talk to me about boring stuff.”

She said flatly.

Jaxon: “Who the fuck was that guy? What did he say to you?”

He held her shoulders.

Celeste: “Boring stuff. I don’t know who he was. He came up to me and offered to buy me a drink.”

She shrugged. Jaxon pouted.

Jaxon: “That ASSHOLE! That’s for ME to do!”

The man rose, bearing his naked body.

Man: “SHE came here by herself! Where were YOU, pretty boy?!”

He snarled at Jaxon.

Jaxon: “...I was asleep. Why did you come here?”

He asked her. Celeste looked away.

The man tried to light himself up again, but couldn’t.

Man: “What the fuck did YOU do, you fancy pants fucker?!”

Tristan: “Froze you, so you can’t use your powers until the effect wears off.”

He said flatly.

Deimos: “I’m going to kick your fucking ass!”

He snapped. The man smacked Deimos away. Tristan knelt to Deimos. Deimos glared and kicked himself back on the floor.

Man: “Man, I forgot who that pipsqueak was. You and Tristan! You two are the weirdos who hung around that fat old guy! And I remember YOU being engaged to that weirdo who loves Varg the Viking! I guess that didn’t last!”

He laughed at Tristan, Deimos, and Jaxon. Tristan glared at him. Deimos stood in front of Tristan protectively. Jaxon gaped at him.

Jaxon: “WHAT?! WHO the FUCK are YOU?!”

He snapped at him.

Man: “Since you three loserteers don’t remember me, I’m Yudai King!”

Tristan: “Oh, right, the school bully of Damien High. It looks like nothing changed here.”

He said smugly.

Tristan: “Still wearing that jacket from high school, I see.”

He smirked.

Yudai: “Well, I came here to pick up some chicks, and I found her at the bar. So she’s mine, right, babe?”

He asked Celeste. Celeste gaped at him and punched him in the stomach. Yudai keeled over as tears burst from his eyes and he fell to the floor, wailing in pain. She slid her ass from the seat and started walking out. Tristan picked something up from the floor that Celeste dropped. It was an ad for free popcorn chicken at this club. Tristan folded it up and tucked it into his jacket.

A wide grin spread across Jaxon’s face.

Jaxon: “No, she’s MINE!”

He ran after Celeste as she started to walk out, grabbing her hand.

Jaxon: “Celeste! Wait!”

She sighed.

Celeste: “What is it?”

She asked him.

Jaxon: “Come home with me.”

He pleaded with her. She gazed at him.

Celeste: “Why?”

She looked away.

Jaxon: “Because I want to be with you, and I want to make this right.”

He assured her, taking her hand. She sighed and went with him.

~

Jaxon arrived home with Celeste. She was silent during the car ride from the nightclub until they got home. Jaxon led her inside the house and turned on the TV, flicking over to wrestling. Celeste took the remote and shut the TV off.

Celeste: “I don’t want this!”

She snapped.

Jaxon: “Why the hell did you run off with that guy?!”

He huffed, looking hurt and fuming with jealousy.

Celeste: “I saw an ad for free popcorn chicken at that place, and he just approached me. They didn’t have popcorn chicken.”

She replied. Jaxon gaped at her.

Jaxon: “The fuck?! Nightclubs don’t sell stuff like that, baby. So, what the hell?!”

He shook his head.

Celeste: “I didn’t know that!”

She snapped and folded her arms.

Jaxon: “I know you didn’t know that! What I’m saying is someone set this shit up!”

He huffed.

Celeste: “It was Ivy. I got an ad in the mailbox, and she knows how to do this stuff.”

Her eyelashes dipped. Jaxon gaped at her and twisted his mouth.

Jaxon: “That green wannabe bitch!”

He huffed.

Celeste: “It’s not the first time I got sexy for someone and they paid more attention to Ivy instead.”

She muttered.

Jaxon: “Are you kidding me?! You’re way sexier than her! She has no sex appeal and wishes she had a tenth of yours.”

He countered.

Celeste: “Yeah, well, I took some sexy pics for Vic, and… he didn’t look at them at all, so I called you up to take me to the park where we had our first date.”

She said to him. Jaxon’s eyebrows rose surprisingly.

Jaxon: “Seriously? You know, I had those sexy pics you sent me on my walls? I fapped to those every night.”

He laughed. Celeste tilted her head and sighed.

Celeste: “I don’t think he and I had a chance anyway, but… it hurt me when he did that. When you did that, it reminded me of that, and two people doing it now? I don’t know.”

She sighed.

Jaxon: “Come on, you were way too good for that guy.”

He assured her.

Celeste: “I knew Vic would do this. He has issues but when you did it, it cut me a lot.”

Jaxon: “Nah, I gotcha, you hate the bitch and Vic was a whiny bitch about her, so when I let her get to me last night, it pissed you off and I get that. I wrote songs about and looked around for you, not her. She can’t get a man’s attention by being sexy, so she has to cause drama ‘cause she’s jealous of you. You’re way better than her.”

He said earnestly.

Celeste: “So why did you ignore me, Jaxon? That hurt me a lot, and I don’t understand why?! I am STILL hurt about it! You faced worse adversaries than this and never did this to me!”

She said with hurt in her tone.

Jaxon: “I don’t know?! I didn’t mean to ignore you! I don’t know what happened! I just got so worked up that I lost control?!”

Celeste: “And because of this, I never heard Dougal coming, and he did that to you!”

She added as her voice rose.

Jaxon: “I was there too, and I didn’t hear him coming either! He’s a big fat whale! How did we not hear him?!”

He threw his arms up.

Celeste: “ ‘cause we were both upset! If Deimos and Tristan didn’t come in time…, I don’t want to think of what would’ve happened.”

She looked away. Jaxon pursed his lips, looking away, not wanting to entertain the thought.

Celeste: “Why does your family upset you so much?”

She finally asked. Jaxon was taken aback by her question.

Jaxon: “Huh? What do you mean?”

He asked her.

Celeste: “Like, you got upset with your feet fans at your birthday and with Fabien and Craig, but you never ignored me… Your family wasn’t there; they were at this event.”

She replied.

Celeste: “Percy set your birthday up, but he wouldn’t invite your family. Ivy set this up, and she did.”

She brushed her hair behind her ear. Jaxon paused and furrowed his eyebrows when it dawned on him.

Jaxon: “... I was wrong about her… she’s not an NPC. She’s a BITCH!”

He snapped.

Jaxon: “It’s like she was throwing all my buttons at me. How the fuck does she know shit?! Is she psychic or some shit?!”

He huffed.

Celeste: “She has telepathy, yeah.”

She replied. Jaxon frowned.

Jaxon: “Oh, fucking great! An evil bitch with telepathy! I wish she were just an NPC!”

He pouted.

Celeste: “I can’t read minds, unlike her, so tell me why your family affects you so much.”

She asked and bore her hot gaze on him.

Jaxon: “...I don’t know. I didn’t realize they did this much. I cut ties when I ran away from Nariko and never wanted to deal with them again… but then they kept popping up like those stupid whack-a-mole games, telling me how terrible and shameful I am!”

He groused.

Celeste: “Sometimes you say you cut ties, and sometimes you say they banished you. What is it?”

She asked him. Jaxon drew a breath.

Jaxon: “All right, fine. They banished me.”

He admitted. She nodded.

Celeste: “Would you want them to welcome you back?”

She asked.

Jaxon: “Not anymore.”

He stated.

Jaxon: “I found a new and better family now.”

He grinned at her and also thought of Tristan and Deimos. She smiled a bit.

Celeste: “But I need to know why they upset you. I can’t read minds… I want to understand.”

She gazed at him intently.

Celeste: “Like, it ended with your engagement to Nariko, but what else happened? I noticed your mother ignored me, saying Tristan, Deimos, and I almost got eaten by sharks because of her, and she went on about how your grandmother put on an engagement party.”

She explained. Jaxon sighed.

Jaxon: “That doesn’t matter to them… they think you’re exaggerating those stories because it goes against their narrative.”

He pursed his lips.

Jaxon: “Well… you know what happened with Nariko…”

He said with strain. She nodded.

Jaxon: “I never wanted to be with her, but… THAT ‘threesome’ was the final straw for me.”

He groused. Celeste nodded, recalling him telling her about the giant plush.

Jaxon: “When I didn’t show up to the wedding, my grandmother was so heartbroken, she had a stroke and died in the middle of the wedding…”

He explained with strain, and his voice trailed off.

Jaxon: “She was the head of the family and ran everything. When she died, they were like headless chickens.”

He shook his head.

Jaxon: “I brought shame onto the family, and I killed her because I broke her heart, so I wasn’t allowed back.”

He hugged his knees, staring blankly off into space. Celeste shuffled closer to him and put her hands on his. Jaxon smiled at her touch and cupped her hand with his other hand.

Celeste: “Jaxon, that wouldn’t cause her stroke. I was told about this when those scientists were shoving what kills people down my throat, and she couldn’t get a stroke from you not showing up. She would have croaked even if you did show.”

She explained gently. Jaxon gaped at her.

Celeste: “I know Ichiro is boring and a coward, but wasn’t he a doctor or studying to be one? Why didn’t he speak up about this?”

She asked him. Jaxon’s eyes widened.

Jaxon: “Huh… I didn’t think of that.”

He pondered.

Jaxon: “I know why. Because he’s a coward.”

He frowned.

Celeste: “Yeah, I know that. I knew this because I was told what vital points to hit to kill someone. What poisons to make to make it look like they had a stroke. Don’t ask me for the recipe because I honestly forgot, and poison is not my MO.”

Jaxon: “Oh! Can you kill Hypno-Bitch and Ivy?”

He said half-jokingly.

Celeste: “Ivy didn’t do anything to warrant that… yet, and no one hired me. Robin will be difficult. She cannot hypnotize healers.”

She replied. Jaxon pondered that.

Celeste: “This is why she never used her hypnosis on you during that kidnapping. She couldn’t. She tried to on Deimos and failed.”

Jaxon: “Ohhh, that explains a lot then!”

Celeste: “So is that what was upsetting you? Your grandmother dying at the wedding you bailed on?”

She asked. Jaxon pursed his lips and nodded.

Jaxon: “Yeah, I’m sorry…”

He sighed. She nuzzled closer to him and leaned her head on him. Jaxon wrapped his arms around her as she leaned onto him.

Celeste: “It’s not your fault, Jaxon. These things… happen. Old people die.”

She wrapped her arms around him.

Jaxon: “Yeah…”

He sighed.

She turned and saw Oliver sitting before them with a listening device attached to his collar. Jaxon looked down at Oliver.

Jaxon: “What’s that cat doing in here?”

Celeste: “That’s a listening device on his collar.”

She pointed to the circular thing attached to it. Oliver meowed.

Celeste: “He’s Tristan’s cat, but Victor can communicate with animals.”

She paused.

Celeste: “Victor has been listening to our conversation…”

She reiterated slowly. Jaxon twisted his mouth.

Jaxon: “WHAT? Why is that geezer listening in on us?!”

He huffed. Celeste hugged her legs.

Celeste: “He is crying to Tristan that you stole me from him.”

She murmured. Oliver turned around and ran through the door to go outside and walk back home.

Celeste looked away.

Celeste: “The reason I needed space was because… I was angrier with myself.”

She sighed and hugged her legs. Jaxon’s eyebrows rose surprisingly.

Jaxon: “Why were you angry with yourself?”

He asked.

Celeste: “I let my emotions get the better of me… If I didn’t, I would have stopped Dougal from… doing that…”

She admitted. Jaxon pursed his lips.

Jaxon: “That wasn’t your fault, though, babe…”

He assured her, placing his hand on hers.

Jaxon: “I didn’t hear him either!”

She grasped his hands.

Celeste: “But you were just as upset, too. I should have known better; I was trained for this.”

She looked away.

Celeste: “I am glad Tristan and Deimos came, but I am angry with myself for not keeping on top of this.”

She hung her head.

Jaxon: “It’s not your fault, babe! I’m not blaming you! It’s that big fat whale!”

He assured her, putting his arm around her. Celeste rested her head on his chest.

Celeste: “I’m sorry, Jax…”

She sighed and traced her nails on his chest.

Jaxon: “I’m sorry too, baby.”

He sighed, holding her close to him and kissing her forehead. Celeste took Jaxon’s head and gazed into his brown almond eyes. She leaned over and kissed his mouth, wrestling her tongue with his. Jaxon moaned into her mouth, tasting her on his lips and dancing his tongue against hers in a sweet embrace.

~

Tristan stood by his father’s bedroom, listening to the conversation he was listening to between Celeste and Jaxon. He tried to listen between his father’s sobbing and trying not to have Victor hear him. He heard his father bawling and rolled his eyes, gritting his teeth in aggravation. He felt sympathy for his father at first, but now it’s grating on him.

Tristan left his door and saw Oliver ascending the stairs and trotting on the pedway. Tristan approached Oliver, knelt, and removed the listening device, freezing and shattering it. He went to his bedroom, dumped the shards in his wastebasket, and shut the door to go to his computer.

Tristan: “I would have stopped him, but what Jaxon told her was… interesting. His grandmother conveniently dropped dead during a ceremony he never attended… He was blamed for it even though stress doesn’t cause strokes. The good son, who is a doctor, never spoke up, even if he could rub everyone’s noses in his expertise. This runs deeper than him being so craven.”

He muttered as he lit up a cigarette, and his fingers flew over the keyboard.

Tristan: “Celeste mentioned poisons that, when ingeste,d can imitate a stroke. Jaxon is banished. His parents keep bringing this up, but it’s radio silence from Ichiro.”

He mumbled and inhaled a long drag. He had Sylvia install a “Detect Language and translate it to French or English” on his home and office computers. It saved him trips to the library.

He clicked his tongue as he pulled up information about “Chiyo Tachibana” dying of a stroke on the day that Jiro Tachibana and Nariko Nakamura were to wed. Tristan raised an eyebrow. Interesting how this never came up during my research, he thought. He looked up her obituary. She had one son, Hiroto. Survived by two grandsons, Ichiro and Jiro. Was there a will, I wonder? Tristan thought.

His fingers typed something up , and a will popped up with an English translation. Tristan raised his eyebrows. It stated that Ichiro Tachibana inherited nine million yen, her mansion, her business, and estate. Why wasn’t any of this left to Jaxon or his father? He wondered. Then he saw the will was notarized the day before she died.

He did some more digging and came across a marriage agreement. Chiyo arranged it with Hiroto to marry Jaxon to Nariko. Why didn’t they arrange for Ichiro to marry Nariko? He wondered. He is Hiroto’s and Mayumi’s favorite, and it would have made more logical sense for him to wed Nariko, being a prodigal son, but Chiyo wanted Jaxon to wed Nariko; he pondered. I knew it was a political move on Hiroto’s part anyway and assumed they didn’t wed Ichiro off because he was busy with his studies, but what if that was never the case, he wondered.

I wonder if previous copies of her will exist, he thought, and exhaled a long drag. He surveyed his cell phone, picked it up, and dialed a number.

~

Blair marched to Lazaros’ house. He came by earlier to talk to Ashley about the engagement party and how their pineapple squares gave Ivy food poisoning, so she had to lock herself in her studio all day, but he saw them place a blanket over Vanessa and bake her carrot cakes. He was furious. He saw Ashley in the greenhouse working on making mystical spirit water. Ashley was channeling their love energy for Lazaros as the water swirled around in their hands and across their heart.

Blair knocked on the doorframe..

Blair: “Ashley? Can we talk?”

He asked sharply. Ashley snapped out of their daze, dropping the water back into the bowl. They could feel his vibes, and they weren’t good.

Ashley: “What do you want, Blair?”

They asked flatly.

Blair: “Well, first of all, your pineapple squares gave Ivy food poisoning. She hasn’t come out of her studio all day, and secondly, you have to stop this nonsense of pampering Vanessa! You have to tell her to abort that bastard child of Jiro’s father!”

He hissed. Ashley gaped at him and furrowed their eyebrows at him.

Ashley: “Excuse me?! What nonsense?! Vanessa is being bullied, and she’s vulnerable right now! She’s hurting and needs our support! It’s not up to us what she does with this child and how can you speak of a child like that?!”

They gaped, appalled and disgusted at him.

Ashley: “As for my pineapple squares… Lazaros fed me a dozen of them, and I’m fine, and no one else complained about food poisoning. I didn’t even see Ivy eat ANY of my food at all! Are you sure she’s not just… painting Tristan in her studio?!”

They countered, folding their arms across their chest, thinking of what Vanessa told them.

Blair: “No, Ashley, she is done with that manipulative little liar!”

He snapped.

Ashley: “Manipulative little liar? You mean Ivy, right? Tristan is not little.”

They tilted their head and laughed bitterly.

Blair: “No, I mean Tristan. He was mean to me in high school!”

He said through clenched teeth. Ashley drew a breath.

Ashley: “Blair… that was a long time ago now. People change and aren’t the same as they were back then! You and Ivy are mean now in the present....”

They frowned with hurt and frustration in their tone.

Blair: “Whatever. I don’t want Jiro, Tristan, and Deimos around the house when that kid is born! You have to tell her to get an abortion!”

He furrowed his eyebrows. Ashley’s jaw dropped.

Ashley: “...What has gotten into you?! When did you become so… selfish and cold?!”

They cupped their mouth.

Ashley: “I’m not going to tell her what to do! It’s not my place, and it’s not YOURS!”

They snapped at him.

Blair: “So you’re a pro-lifer like Grandpa?! YOU chose THAT fat feeder fetishist over ME! I was good and kind to you! And you want to be with someone who sees you as an object, and you’re around people who were mean to me in high school! That’s what happened! Maybe Maxx is right about you! You used to be his best friend and turned on him when you found me!”

He barked at them. Ashley’s jaw hung open, stunned beyond belief.

Ashley: “...So, that’s how you see me, huh? I thought maybe Ivy poisoned you, but maybe these were your true colors all along. Were you only nice to me because you wanted to date me? You can’t tell me what to do! I fell in love with Lazaros, and these people who were mean to you in high school are good and kind now in the present. You’re the one who is mean now in the present! Both you and Ivy are MEAN! Maxx abused me! How could you say that?!”

They cried.

Blair: “Lazaros is objectifying you and doesn’t love you. But whatever makes you happy, Ashley. Maxx is right; you did betray him, and you made a monster!”

He snapped at them. Ashley’s eyes widened.

Ashley: “He’s NOT objectifying me! YOU’RE objectifying me! You were only nice to me to make me date you, and then you got all mean to me when I fell in love with Lazaros! Is that what happened with Tristan and allof them, too?! YOU betrayed ME, Blair! I ‘betrayed’ Maxx by agreeing with your critique and sticking by you. You have no idea what you’re talking about ‘cause you live in your little bubble in your ivory tower, looking down on everyone else and saying mean things about them!”

They fired back.

Blair: “Excuse me? I don’t have weird fetishes, thank you very much! How can I objectify you?!”

He fired back.

Ashley: “What’s wrong with having fetishes, Blair? I have fetishes, too! Did you ever think maybe, just maybe, I share the same fetishes as Lazaro,s and this is all consensual?! You were only nice to me because you wanted to date me, and then when I said no, you got mean to me! That’s totally objectifying!”

They fired back.

Blair: “Okay, if you don’t care that Lazaros is forcing his brother, his brother’s boyfriend, and two idiots watching you eat, whatever.”

He waved his hand at them. Ashley frowned at him.

Ashley: “...Those ‘idiots’ are my friends!”

Blair: “If you don’t convince Vanessa to get an abortion, I am going to have her put out and be homeless! I am not having Jiro, Tristan, or Deimos around that bastard baby!”

He growled. Ashley gaped at him.

Ashley: “H-How could you do that to her?! You’re NOT a nice guy at all, Blair! You’re SELFISH and MEAN and CRUEL! You know what? You and Ivy deserve each other, and Vanessa should move out and be away from you evil jerks! In fact, I will take her in! She can come live with me!”

Blair glared at Ashley with a burning rage.

Blair: “Whatever, you fat piece of crap! And you’re getting fatter with Lazaros, but that’s how he wants you! Fat and immobile! Good riddance, Fatley! Enjoy your XXXXXXXXXXXXXXL underwear, you pig!”

Ashley glared at Blair, taken aback by his complete 180.

Ashley: “Wow… your true colors are orange, pink, and yellow like Maxx! I’ll show you immobile!”

They snapped at Blair, shoving him. Blair fell and flared at Ashley.

Blair: “GO TO HELL, FATLEY!”

He snapped and stormed off. Ashley embraced themself.

Fabien was there in front of Lazaros’ laughing hard and loudly.

Fabien: “OH MY GOD, IT’S IDIOT VS. BIGGER IDIOT!”

He laughed at them.

Blair: “Shut up, Fabien!”

He snapped and marched down the street.

Fabien: “Don’t go, Blair! You didn’t finish your fight with the big fat tomato head!”

He laughed and held his arm out.

Ashley: “What do you want?”

They sighed with exhaustion.

Fabien: “To laugh at the big, fat joke standing right before me. You’re the only one who can make Blair funny!”

He laughed.

Ashley: “What’s so funny about a mean guy who whines all the time and kicks out his pregnant cousin?!”

They pouted.

Fabien: “Everything?”

He shrugged and laughed.

Deimos came out of his house after hearing everything.

Deimos: “Yeah, if any of you run into Blair, or if I do, I will gladly tell him when this kid is born, Tristan, Jaxon, and I want nothing to do with them. Blair has nothing to fear.”

He said flatly.

Fabien: “Fatley has an empty fridge to fear.”

He snorted.

Deimos: “Lazaros will never have an empty fridge.”

Fabien: “I bet. Jesus, guy or girl, your ass is getting so big, you won’t be able to fit into that green house.”

He cackled.

Ashley: “Why do you do that?”

They asked him.

Fabien: “Do what, fatty?”

He laughed.

Ashley: “Why do you mock everyone?”

They asked.

Fabien: “Because it amuses me and I love pissing people off.”

He smirked.

Ashley: “Why?”

They asked.

Fabien: “Same reason you love shoving food in your fat fucking head.”

He winked.

Ashley: “It’s a kink?”

They tilted their head. Fabien gaped at them.

Fabien: “Dear God, you and your brother are space cadets. Reona to Fat guy or girl? It’s a thrill for me!”

Ashley: “Space Cadets? Blair is mean to people because he is unhappy.”

Fabien: “That’s… Blair. He claims to be a nice, wholesome guy. I never said I was nice.”

He laughed.

Ashley: “Yeah… well, at least you aren’t pretending to be nice. That’s so much worse.”

They said as their voice trailed off.

Fabien tossed a jar of slime in his hands.

Fabien: “Well, since the dullard left the fatty, I’m going to drop this in Jaclyn’s car. See ya, Deimos.”

He patted his shoulder and left.

Deimos gaped at Ashley.

Deimos: “I meant it. We’re not going to have anything to do with that baby. Jaxon is not excited and doesn’t want that baby she’s having with his dad.”

He said awkwardly.

Ashley: “And that’s your choice… Vanessa has her own choice too, and it’s out of our control…”

They sighed.

Deimos: “I agree, but she’s making a bad choice. The shit will hit the fan.”

He leaned over and locked his gaze on them.

Ashley: “I don’t agree with her choices either… but this isn’t about us. That’s what she has to live with. She needs help and support…”

They sighed.

Deimos: “It’s not your job to take care of her, Ashley. My brother is not going to be happy. I know my brother better than anyone else. I hope you know what you’re getting into.”

He said to them as a warning. Ashley knit their eyebrows.

Ashley: “She’s got nowhere and no one… Blair and Ivy tormented her.”

They sighed sadly.

Lazaros stood outside the door listening with a glare.

On a good note, Ash loves me, and they should, he thought. Bad note? They want to help that little tramp?! He thought with a sneer. Over my dead body, he thought.