Luke's Diner, Thursday

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Ugh. That jerky white kid was back at the house again this morning. After the...issue...that had arisen when Alec, Jerkface, and Weird Girl had woken up sharing a bed, Alec had been more than happy to spend all of yesterday avoiding them, even if that had meant participating in the paintball thing. But he hadn't had any of his fake credit cards or IDs on him, so he'd ended up going back to the house last night.

To find Jerkface also there. Ugh. And he thought Weird Girl might have been around, too, but she was fast and kinda creepy, so it wasn't like he'd gone looking.

So Alec was out of the house as soon as he was up (at the crack of noon!), casually swiping one of the expensive laptops that had been lying around. Maybe if he could hack into that (maybe? HA!), he could get himself an ID and a cash stream and away from the house. Before Jerkface could decide to beat him up for, like, existing or whatever.

The sign on the restaurant's window caught his eye:

Today's Specials
Yeah, we know you don't have money. Come in and get a meal and pay us back next week. Unless you're Eliot, Hardison, Miguel, or Kanan Caleb. You gotta work.
Spaghetti and Meatballs
Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup
Shrimp Fajitas (You're welcome, adults)

Free food? Ish? Alec was going to worry about why he was singled out later. He was going in to peel some potatoes and get a huge helping of spaghetti and meatballs.

[Content Warning for a physical fight in the Eliot/Hardison thread with underlying homophobic tones. Please practice good self-care when deciding whether to read, my dears.]

Comments

[uncertain_dume]

"I still have no idea what that has to do with eating today," Caleb agreed, watching the busboy flounce before looking back at the other boy, utterly baffled. "I'm going to move this right up to the top of my 'weirdest things to have happen today' list, which is impressive, because I had to teach a class at the school already today."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Pretty sure half this island is filled with jerks," Alec declared. He'd know, he'd woken up with the biggest one there was yesterday.

[uncertain_dume]

Well, that one caught Caleb's attention, anyway.

"... Has someone been giving you trouble?"

Hello, Alec. There was now a puny little warrior-monk who was immediately honing in on any possible need to totally wipe the floor with a bully.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Just this guy," Alec mumbled, looking away. He didn't need anybody fighting his battles for him. Except for how he very much did. "We woke up in the same--house."

Same bed, no clothes on. Details. There'd been a girl there, too. It had all been very weird.

"He freaked out and started yelling. Calling names. You know, stupid bully stuff."

And was going to come back in and kick Alec's ass in...you know, a few minutes.

[uncertain_dume]

Whelp. Caleb was going to have to be a little disapproving Jedi at some stupid bully, wasn't he?

Once he realized that he'd come back. And started calling this other kid names. And doing stupid bully stuff.

"In the same house...?" He frowned a little. "Look, um. If you don't want to go back there, I woke up in an apartment? It isn't very big, but at least Hera seems pretty nice. And there's a... dog?"

The hesitation there was more because the dog looked nothing like the dogs he was used to than because of the rainbow spots, honestly.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

There had been a dog at their place, too, but she'd just taken one look at these shenanigans and slunk off.

"Nah, I'm not gonna let him kick me out like that," Alec declared because he certainly didn't get bad feelings about things. "But thanks for the offer. It's really nice of you to make."

[uncertain_dume]

Caleb tilted his head a little bit, and then lifted his shoulders in a shrug.

"Okay," he replied. "It sounds like you have just as much right to be there as anybody. But if you even just need a break from it, it's the MCA, in the apartment with the three on the door, alright? If I'm not the one to answer, just tell her you're a friend of Caleb."

It didn't even occur to him that he should possibly also warn Alec that 'she' was a green alien with head-tails.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Fortunately by the time Alec dragged himself there, he'd be too worn out and sleepy off the half a vicodin the nurses had given him to be anything more than mildly surprised to see her.

And the following morning, it would be far too rude to do anything but carry on like normal.

"Okay," Alec said, with a nod. "MCA, knock on apartment three, ask for Caleb."

It was weird, how reassuring having a safehouse felt.

[uncertain_dume]

Someday, Caleb would understand that one very well himself. He smiled, satisfied that Alec knew he had somewhere to go if he needed it, and then gave him a thumbs-up.

"You've got it," he confirmed. "Any time, okay? Any time at all."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"I'll remember," Alec said, appreciating Caleb's earnestness, even if right now, he was certain it wasn't needed. "And--hey. If you're hungry, just lemme know. I'll make sure you eat something and forget that whole stupid sign."

[uncertain_dume]

"I appreciate that," Caleb replied, still smiling. "Let me consider the menu, and I'll get back to you, okay?"

Maybe he'd recognize something on it yet?

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Just stay away from the milk," Alec said in an undertone. "It looked kinda blue."

[uncertain_dume]

...

"What color is it supposed to be?"

What could it possibly be, if not blue?

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"...White?" Alec said, with a heavy undertone of 'duh.' "You ain't never had milk before?"

Aww, look. He was so confused, he'd stopped using proper grammar.

[uncertain_dume]

"Sure I have," Caleb replied, blinking. "It's... usually blue. Sometimes it's green."

It depended on what was milked to get that milk.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Ewwww!" Alec said, wrinkling up his nose. "What kinda milk you been drinkin'? Milk is only supposed to be one color! When it turns colors, that's how you know it's spoiled!"

[uncertain_dume]

"Bantha milk, mostly," Caleb replied, not entirely certain how it had come down to being utterly baffled about milk. "You don't have banthas on Earth, huh?"

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Milk was a very divisive subject. A lot like butter.

"...What's a bantha?"

Probably answered that question, huh?

[uncertain_dume]

Little bit!

"It's an animal that stands about three meters tall? Covered in shaggy hair, with big curly horns?"

They made milk, Alec! Everyone knew what a bantha was!

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Like a cow?" Alec asked. "Wait, I don't think cows have horns. Sheep neither." Bulls and rams, sure, but not cows. Or sheep. "Maybe a goat?"

Did goats get that big?

Either way, he was grabbing a napkin and drawing a credible likeness of several barnyard animals.

[uncertain_dume]

Caleb leaned forward and watched intently as Alec doodled away.

"Those are all really good," he offered, but they're not really bantha-like." He pursed his lips a little. "Maybe take that one," he pointed at the sheep, "and make the hair shaggier? So it hangs all the way down to the ground. Oh, and make the mouth way bigger. And they have a big long tail in the back, almost like a lizard tail, but hairy too."