Guys

Aster

"...I promise to be true to you, in good times and in bad; in sickness and in health..."

Zeke scoffed as he sat outside the chapel, getting his pack of cigarettes from the inside pockets of his tux. He shook his head, listening to the muffled, overused vows, lighting the cigarette dangling between his lips and taking a long drag of it, extending his arms across the backrest of the bench as his ankle settled on his opposite knee. The day was lovely-- frankly, it was the perfect day for a wedding. If only he was into that kind of thing.

Don't get him wrong, he was ecstatic that the wedding was happening. It was meant to be and he couldn't possibly feel more proud for the couple. Of course, he'd feel happier if he actually knew who the couple was, but hey, he got to see the city and put on a nice tux. Plus, he felt like he was doing a nice deed; who else would stand in for their friend's AWOL plus-one?

His thigh vibrated and he pulled out his phone from his pocket, exhaling the smoke from his cigarette through his mouth and nose as he saw the incoming text, which only said, 'Almost there.' That was his sign to probably stand up, get ready, but he decided to wait it out, with another puff of smoke going up into the air. And, within maybe two minutes, he could hear it-- Machine Gun Kelly, muffled by closed car windows. He stood up and got into the ratty old van, starting to undo his tie as soon as he closed the door and felt the vehicle begin to move.

"Holy shit, bro," he said with surprise in his tone, cranking a window down to flick out his cigarette butt and buckling up. His eyes were glued on his friend, thick brows knitted together. "What happened to your hair?"

"You like it? Pretty sick, huh?" Aster had this way of speaking, it was like everything excited him, but in a smart way. The music was still playing loud, but they could hear each other through it just fine. He glanced over to Zeke before placing his eyes back on the road, making a stop at a red light and looking at him again. "Why do you look so shocked?"

"Because your hair's the same color as the fuckin' stoplight, man." He laughed loud, taking off his jacket and throwing it in the backseat, along with a toddler booster and other miscellaneous things. "When did you do it? It looks sick."

Aster started driving again with a huge smile plastered on his face, making a turn on the road and heading deeper into the city. Even if they hadn't spoken about it, or decided on it, they knew the perfect spot to go after ditching a strange couple's wedding. He pushed his newly dyed red hair back and hummed along to the song, finger-drumming when traffic slowed down just a bit. "It's sick. Elio helped me. You remember him, yeah?"

Zeke, in fact, did not remember Elio. Not at first, anyways. Him and Aster had been friends for quite some time now, and sometimes names and faces in stories had a way of mixing up together. Then it clicked for him, and he pursed his lips to try and hide a smile of his own. "Yeah, yeah. You two are getting along quite nicely, huh?"

The question was received with silence, but he knew he was right. Mainly because the man's cheeks and ears were suddenly as red as his hair. He took the silence in comfortably and looked over at the city surrounding them from the outside, knowing this'll most likely be the last time he'll see it for a few weeks. He had an admitted soft spot for this scenery (or lack thereof), but his heart, as well as his life, had been set by the beach long ago. His gaze was still focused on the outside when they arrived at a parking lot, and soon enough, the engine was being shut off and the doors unlocking. 

They hopped out of the car and made their way into their favorite, stinky, greasy, somehow always full burger joint, saying hello to the fat dog that always slept by the door. They got into the line, knowing what to order before they'd even walked through the door, and simply stood by each other, like they usually do when they're together. Silence was something Zeke learned to look for in his relationships, and he held the people that respected that very dear to his heart.

"You sure those people were okay with you leaving?"

Zeke looked over at Aster again and gave him a half-shrug, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Beats me, honestly. I've never met the couple. All I know is the whole catering was gonna be seafood, and... yeah, no thanks. And, thank you for picking me up, As. Weddings have no reason to drag on the way they do."

"'Course. You owe me one, though. I had to leave Sunny with the neighbor. Not that I mind, she's nice, but..."

They both nodded at each other, understanding the situation. Leaving a two-year-old with the neighbor while you go get burgers isn't always the most optimal of choices. And just like that, the conversation ended again. Before they knew it, they were ordering and heading outside, sitting by the sidewalk as part of their ritual. Their vanilla milkshakes were set beside them and they unwrapped their usual orders, one bacon cheeseburger with extra cheddar and fries, and one "char burger with cheese, no tomato or pickles, with a side of fries."

And that was it. 

Contentment was a very good word to describe what Zeke felt, sitting on the dirty ground, eating burgers with his friend. He knew that this wasn't as good as it could get; there was more to life than boring, too-tall brick buildings covering the sunset, or the fat brown dog sleeping by the door. It wasn't even his niece and aunt, waiting for him back home. But it damn sure was a good start.