Searching for Purpose (Twenty One Pilots)

7. Baked Beans

"I win again!" Josh chanted as Tyler buried his face in his hands. They had been in Josh's room all morning playing whatever game was within reach.

"That's because I was second player this time. I normally play first player and the screen thing was messing me up," Tyler defended himself. That probably wasn't the case, but Josh didn't need to know that he was just naturally bad at any game besides Mario Kart.

"Dude," Josh said as he dug through his pile of games for a new one to put in, "You've said that the past three times you lost. You don't need to lie."

"It's true!"

"Sure, whatever," Josh joked.

The start screen for the new game flashed up in the screen. It was one that Tyler had played many times before with his sister. She had only ever managed to beat him once, and so of course, Tyler considered himself a pro.

Tyler let his mind wander as he continually smashed his thumb down on the A button. He thought about how weird it was that he was sitting in someone else's room, a friend at that, and he was enjoying himself. Tyler couldn't remember a time when this last happened. It was probably around fifth grade, right before his old best friend, Blake, had moved away.

They had been extremely close as kids. It was rare to find them at their own houses without the other. Tyler was pretty sure that he spent the entire summer between fourth and fifth grade living in the basement of Blake's house. Tyler guessed that was when he was the happiest. Sitting on Blake's old beat up couch and reading all of his older brother's comics and laughing at children's shows.

But then Blake had moved. It wasn't even an "Oh this house is getting small. Let's go find one a few streets over". No. It was "Look Dad got a new job. I hope you know German".

"Hey, man," Josh nudged his shoulder. Tyler looked over at him and blinked his eyes a few times. The game was on pause and Tyler' remote control was barely in his hands. "You okay?"

Tyler shot him a quick smile. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"You sure? You looked almost upset. Is it because soemthing happened last night?"

The concerned look on Josh's face made Tyler' chest ache in a way he wasn't familiar with. Some one cared about him and this someone wasn't his family. He had no obligation to be worried about Tyler, he was just some kid that he ran into the other day, but yet, he did care, and from the look he was giving Tyler, he cared quite a bit.

"Just thinking, you know? Like, about the past and stuff," Tyler replied. He figured he might as well be somewhat truthful.

"Whoa, classes haven't even started yet. It's way too early to be revisiting your past glories," Josh joked. He had a smile on his face, obviously trying to lighten the mood and make Tyler smile as well, but Tyler was sure he could still see the shadow of worry clouding Josh's dark eyes.

Tyler didn't blame him. He worried about himself, too.

"Come on," Josh said suddenly, standing up and turning off his small TV, "Let's go get something to eat. It's pushing one and I saw this flier for burgers yesterday and now I really want one."

Tyler hesitated.

"Dude. They had macaroni and cheese and bacon on them. We've gotta go."

It was that simple sentence that sold Tyler. He wasn't one to pass up on macaroni and cheese on a burger with bacon. Only fools did that. Tyler may be sad and not quite happy, but he was no fool.

The restaurant was only a few blocks away so they decided to walk. Plus, gas cost a lot more out here than it did back home. Tyler wondered why people still drove cars everywhere. Bikes were clearly a better investment. Or seaways. Segways are cool.

"What are you thinking about now?" Josh asked. He had noticed he deep look of concentration in Tyler's face.

"The crumbling economy," Tyler replied.

"First you past glories and now the state of our country?" Josh let out a laugh. "College is sure getting to you."

Tyler smiled back and held the door to the restaurant open for Josh.

Even if he felt really gross and abnormally full and almost a little fat, Tyler was glad he agreed to go out and get the burgers. Never before had he had something so right yet so wrong at the same time. That, and he and Josh shared more slightly embarrassing stories from their childhood.

"Seriously?" Tyler asked between gasps for air.

"Yeah," Josh admitted sheepishly.

"They kicked you out for that?"

"Well, I mean, I did kind of knock down the entire display. But it wasn't my fault!"

"Yeah, sure," Tyler joked. "You totally aren't to blame for knocking over the baked beans tower. That baby was solely to blame."

"It was giving me the stink eye!" Josh defended.

"It was a baby!"

"Yeah, well," Josh blushed even more. Tyler laughed at how this was kinda like hoe he got banned from the mall for slamming the revolving door. Except this involved a baby and baked beans. "It wasn't as bad as the time I took my dog to get groceries. The owner was completely pissed."

"What happened?"

"He peed in the cereal isle. I don't really know why. He pulled me into a display as well, but it was for this new fancy olive oil that came in really poorly designed glass bottles."

Tyler let out another round of laughter and had to bite his knuckles to try and stop because the elderly couple in the booth across from them was giving them dirty looks.

When they were back at campus, they decided to try and explore. Better get lost now than when classes start and they actually have to be somewhere on time, or so Tyler thought. Josh didn't really seem to care about figuring out where they were in relation to other buildings. He was too preoccupied in pointing out other people walking around the campus and making up pretend conversations for them in mocking voices. Tyler didn't know it, but Josh was doing that for him.

Sure, he had only known Tyler for a day, but there was something about Tyler that told Josh that he didn't smile as much as he should. And that, to Josh, was one of the saddest things he had ever realized.

When they finally retreated back to their own rooms, after becoming hopelessly lost and ending up two miles from campus as the sun was setting, Josh decided that no matter what it took, he was going to make sure Tyler was happy.