Wednesday:

"Hey wanna grab coffee before class? We can invite Beef too." Etho asked, combing through his hair before he put the headband on underneath. It was a pretty average morning, Doc getting coffee and food first and Etho ready first, and then switching to be efficient with space around the apartment.

"It's Wednesday man, Beef's taking that stupid zero hour." Doc replied, pouring his own coffee from the newly opened bag. "What makes you so excited anyways? You make up with Double-O?"

"Nah."

Doc raised an eyebrow at him, letting him continue, but Etho didn't, so he dropped it.

"How about after class? We'll meet with Beef and whoever else." Doc said, lips curling into a subtle smile.

"Sure..." Etho said slowly. He figured, if he got to keep his own secrets, Doc could too.

---

Classes went by quick enough, few extra assignments and all, but nothing worth worrying over yet. Nothing to worry about when caffeine was the first priority anyway, he could worry after if he had to, but right now was the time for sweet coffee and sweeter revenge.

The cafe smelled nice. It always did. But this time, Etho wanted to order a small side of revenge along with his coffee, and he had a feeling it would make it even sweeter. Beef had been able to join them too, but he was there first as Doc and Etho walked in, already talking with another friend.

Doc spotted Ren, the one talking with Beef, before they made it to the counter, and started to step towards him, quickly telling Etho his order.

"You owe me the drink." Doc chuckled.

"I owe you more than that." Etho said with a nod, pulling out his credit card for the order. Doc rolled his shoulders, walking over to the pair with a wave.

"Helloooo! And welcome to the Cleo cafe, turning you from undead, to awake!" Scar recited when Etho walked up to the counter. "How ya doing Etho?"

"Pretty good today." Etho smiled. "Soon to be better. I'll take a white mocha latte and a cold brew." He looked back at Doc and Ren, and feeling a little generous, he said. "And two snickerdoodle cookies."

"Coming right up!" Scar said, flipping the touchpad towards Etho so he could pay.

---

Bdubs wasn't boring. He wasn't going to do something just once for fun and then let it go. No! He was going to repeat it every time he could until it drove the other person or himself insane, because he was a petty guy and this was way too fun for all that it was.

It was quick, easy, and free! And gave him way more satisfaction than he deserved.

Scar had taken Etho's order (Bdubs caught Scar reciting the little intro happily out of the corner of his eyes, and relaxed a little) and now Bdubs was the one to make it. All according to plan..... Probably because he worked here and that was his job.

White mocha latte for the bitch who started this all. Sue Bdubs, he was having some petty fun messing with this guy.

"Oh right and the drinks he ordered for his friends." Bdubs remembered, quickly making those second, and popping a cookie in each of two bags.

"Coffee for Emo kid with a mask!" Bdubs called out, and this time, Etho was prepared to catch the eye contact thrown his way right away. Bdubs fumbled a little when Etho's eyes caught his, but held his stance, like it was a game of its own.

"Not a kid Double-O, and you almost got my name right too." Etho said as he strided to the counter smoothly. He grabbed the drink in one hand, and then looked back down at Bdubs.

Bdubs looked almost confused at the reply, but only answered back just as smoothly.

"You act like one Emo."

"I guess it takes one to know one, huh? Short stuff."

Etho was smug under his mask. And Bdubs knew it, and Etho knew he knew it. They both knew the other knew, and so forth, that both of them were taking delight in this little game they started.

"Call me short again and I'll gladly knock you down a peg pretty boy." Bdubs struck back just as quickly.

"Down to your level then?" Etho quipped, not quite registering that Bdubs technically called him pretty.

"Nah, at my feet." Bdubs grinned.

"All that arguing with Doc over the summer really paid off huh? I'm a freaking pro at this." Bdubs thought mischievously. And he was, the back and forth, the one liners that sparked rivalry in the acid of the tone, sometimes he felt like he lived for them. Maybe it was the love of action movies talking for him.

Etho just hummed, pulling his mask down to sip some of his drink. It was still too hot, so he only licked off some whipped cream, but he could still taste way more sugar than last time. Better. He walked away without another word, letting Bdubs feel like he won as he walked back over to Doc and Beef, and Ren.

"Uhm, what just happened?" Beef looked at Etho, and then back at the counter where Bdubs was walking away with a grin, and then back at Etho. "What just happened between you two?"

Ren and Doc were too busy talking with each other to notice, and Etho just shrugged at Beef.

"Not sure what you're talking about Beefers."

He looked Etho up and down. "I don't believe you." Beef said, squinting his eyes.

"You don't have to." Etho lifted the bags of cookies up. "Just take the bribe and forget about it."

Beef looked at Etho, and then the cookie, and then back at Etho. "You sir, are a very good con-man."

Etho did a mini mock-bow, and gave Ren the second cookie when he finally noticed Etho with a friendly "Hey dude!"

"Hey Ren. Heard you like cinnamon."

"Aww thanks man!"

"Don't thank me, Doc told me about your sweet tooth and love for cinnamon. I think I'm getting one myself as well. The sweet tooth that is."

Ren turned to Doc with a fond smile. "Aw dude, you remembered?"

"Uhm-" Doc paused. He definitely never told Etho anything about Ren or cinnamon. He glanced at Etho, who winked at him. "Yeah, always getting those cinnamon mocha-latte-whatever's on my card y'know?"

So either Doc blew it, or Ren was totally enamored by his deflective joke. Either way, Ren was not-so-lightly punching him in the arm and grinning.

"You softie."

Beef and Etho both held back a cackle, making fun of Doc behind Ren's back so Ren couldn't see. Doc couldn't even glare at them properly with Ren noticing, making his pain even funnier. All talk about Bdubs was soon forgotten.

----

"What the fuck was that?" Grian prompted the second Bdubs entered the backroom and customers couldn't hear them anymore. Cleo had emphasized no swearing in the main room anymore, it deterred customers, which is something they couldn't afford to lose. Grian could still swear in the backroom; that was the compromise.

"I don't know what you're talking about G?" Bdubs said innocently.

"Oh don't get all secret-y with me Bdubs. I can smell revenge a mile away."

"It's true, he can." Scar added as he giggled, wheeling into the backroom as he said it.

"You're starting something with Etho huh?" Grian continued.

"No- Hey wait is no one out there right now?" Bdubs realized with a groan.

"Oh? Really?" Scar faked confusion, repeating the fake innocence Bdubs had been before. "Well be our guest, Bdubs." He said a little too politely, waving towards the door back into the shop. "Can't keep the customers waiting now can we?"

Bdubs rolled his eyes, but didn't frown for long. He was still on a rivalry-high.

His eyes scanned the room as he stepped back in and it looked like Etho had already left. He felt like the king, a crowned winner. Of course it was only one battle, but that seemed enough to win the war with how Etho couldn't hold his own after even a little bit of back and forth banter.

"He just couldn't compete! Not against the perfect and flawless Bdubs at least. He gave it a good shot."

The bell rang, and Bdubs was back to work.

----

Thursday:

The afternoon was a long one. A-whole-nother day of classes, work, and Etho was only thinking about coffee. Not really about needing it or being tired, but the smell of the shop, and the sweet taste of rivalry too to follow.

Etho was the only one waiting for an order. He knew the cup was his, but still waited for Bdubs to call out whatever he was going to say before he would stand up to pick it up. It added to the fun. Let the game draw out.

"Sugar water for Eyebags!" Bdubs sang out happily.

"Ah my favorite." Etho smiled. "Sounds delicious; if only I could see the cup clearly with such deep eyebags."

Was that- Was that even an insult? It was hard to tell, but Bdubs didn't stop either way.

"Maybe if your hair wasn't always in your face you could see it better. Ever heard of pony tails?" Bdubs asked with an eye roll.

"Like horses?" Etho asked dumbly, on purpose.

"What- no!" Bdubs paused to get it. This Etho guy was just messing with his head to annoy him. "Like a hair-band to pull your hair back. Like- wait you know what that is!"

Etho shrugged, smiling. "Maybe I do. Is it like the way you keep your hair up with that red thing and more gel than hair?"

"No..." Bdubs growled. "But one could do your stupid face some help. Whatever the mask doesn't cover."

"I can't tell if you think my face is nice or if you think it's stupid." Etho titled his head. "You're very indecisive."

"It's stupid! You should cover the whole thing with a mask!" Bdubs exclaimed.

"I will on Halloween if you ask nicely." Etho took a sip of his "sugar water" and smiled. "For now, I'll see if I can get one of those horse-tails you were talking about." He turned around, walking towards the door without giving Bdubs the satisfaction of looking back.

"It's a- you know what it's called!" Bdubs yelled after him, fuming.

The bell rang, and Bdubs glared out of the window as Etho walked down the sidewalk calmly.

"What was that, Bdubs?" Cleo asked, giving him the most confused look he'd seen her in a long time.

"Were you-" Grian stopped and started again. "Was that fighting?" He asked "Or flirting?" He mumbled with furrowed eyebrows. Bdubs didn't hear him, but Cleo stiffed a cackle.

"He's getting on my nerves, that Etho guy." Bdubs cursed, glaring at the door. The bell was still slightly moving.

"Mhm." Cleo hummed. "Well annoyances aside, including you-"

"Hey!"

"-Get back to work. Both of you. I have some paperwork to do." She grumbled.

Cleo walked (read: sulked) to the backroom, shutting it behind her a little roughly.

"I'm no fan of housekeeping, but I'd clean this floor spotless a thousand times if I never had to touch paperwork again." Grian admitted. He felt a little bad for her.

"Agreed." Bdubs nodded. "Not like you've ever cleaned it spotless before though."

"You wanna trade jobs Bdubs? I got a dirty mop with your name on it!" Grian grinned fakely.

"Figure out how to use the caffeine machine without breaking it and then we can talk." Bdubs used the same grin right back and Grian rolled his eyes before turning away to get back to work.

----

Friday:

"What are you doing with your hair Slab?" Doc asked the next morning,

"Just uh- trying something new." Etho said, struggling to pin at least half of it behind him with a small band.

"Are you sick?" Doc joked. "The famous Ethoslab, trying something new with his look? I don't think you've tried a new style since freshman year of highschool."

"Hey, when something works, no need to change it." Etho defended casually.

Doc hummed, and got back to sorting his stuff into his bag better. A couple of grunts, bands breaking, and frustrated humms later from Etho, Doc stopped, stood up, and walked over.

"You can ask for help, you know."

Etho gave him a look like, 'you? Help me? With hair?'. And while it was true that Doc had shorter hair, messily swept up normally, he still had some experience.

Doc replaced the next small band on Etho's fingers with a bigger one in his palm.

"Wrap it around a few times. Looser might look a little better too. Unless you're exercising or somethin'."

"Uh thanks." Etho said unsurely. The unsaid 'how did you know?' hung in the air, and Doc answered it unprompted.

"I help Ren with his hair sometimes. The bigger scrunchies are more comfortable, he says."

"Oh. Cool."

---

Etho walked up to the shop confidently, in the morning this time instead of after classes, totally not hoping or expecting a certain employee to be there.

"I'm just going before class because this coffee tastes better than ours." He convinced himself, "Not because my hair might be ruined after or anything."

And no, he was not planning on going after class if Bdubs wasn't there in the morning. Because that would cut into his coffee funds, going twice in a day, and really he should focus on that right now instead! Hmmmm! Money or something, money to buy coffee, he was probably spending too much right? Yeah he was going to focus on that.

He looked in the shop before opening it, not looking for anyone specific or anything of course, and caught sight of a red bandana barely visible with the glare on the glass.

"Bingo- I mean uh. Cool. Yeah. He works here. Whatever." He shook his head slightly to set his mind straight and opened the door.

"Oh Etho, you changed your hair." Cleo commented, looking him up and down to see if anything else changed.

"Yeah." He said slightly awkwardly. Come on! Where did all of his cool aura leave to today?!

"Is the world ending or something? I feel like you would only change your style if it were."

"Not that I checked-" Etho tried to joke, poorly. "I just, uh, wanted to try it for a change."

Cleo, sensing the discomfort, dropped the teasing.

"I like it. The hair tie is so not your color- that purple really clashes with the green and black- but if you want help with that later I can give some tips. Now, order?"

Etho nodded, actually taking note of that. "White mocha, extra whip." He said.

She typed it, flipped the ipad, and let him swipe his card.

"I'll get Bdubs on it." She said, a subtle smile curling on her lips. Etho noticed, but didn't question it. There was the question of why she wasn't doing it herself, but he wasn't complaining. He sorta wanted to see Bdubs react to the ponytail "keeping his hair out of his face" like he suggested the day before.

Etho stood by the side, letting his hair fall into his face even more as he messed with it a little. It didn't look bad, right? He hoped not. It wasn't like he was a self centered guy, or usually cared about his appearance, but he felt like today was a little special.

Because he was teasing someone. He was making fun of them a little. That was it.

---

Bdubs gulped. Etho looked-

"Annoying. He looks annoying. He put up his hair, and it's still in his face! He's doing it to mess with me!" Bdubs thought, cutting off the involuntary gasp when he saw him.

"Bdubs." Cleo snapped him out of his thoughts. "White Mocha for Etho, extra whipped cream."

"He always orders the same thing." Bdubs thought, grabbing out the cup to start it.

He was really good at making these fast now, not even needing to look at the ingredients list. Sure they were trained to make each drink when they got the job, but this one was completely memorized now, and because Etho never switched anything up like soy or cinnamon, it was muscle memory too.

"Mocha for messy hair man!" He said, thinking of it on the spot. He was a little more tired in the morning, especially with the earlier shift making him wake up before the sun, and it was all he could come up with.

Etho, with a growing sense of normalcy to catch Bdubs eye and walk forwards unblinking, caught his drink in one with a smile underneath his mask. "Aww but I put on extra gel just for you!"

"Oh you know what gel is huh? I thought you just shook your hair to style it." Bdubs shrugged. He looked at Etho's hair not-so-subtly, taking in the half ponytail that possibly put even more hair over his face.

"I see you took my advice the wrong way."

"But I got one of those horse-tails you said." Etho smiled. It was borderline-normal. To an outsider, this probably looked and sounded like a normal conversation.

"You know what they're called Etho." Bdubs frowned, acid dripping with the name. "Don't disrespect horses like that."

"Oh I would never disrespect horses." Etho smiled, "Unlike you, they deserve my respect."

Oh.

Fuck.

He did not.

Cleo might not have been fully listening to their conversation, as funny as it was, but when she heard that, her head whipped around in shock.

She wanted to run in, stop the fight before it could start, but also grab popcorn, and maybe a lounge chair. Was her phone on here? Aw damn she left it on the desk in the breakroom.

Bdubs frowned slowly, with an unreadable expression. Was he processing it?

If he exploded, how much would the damages cost? Would it be worth it? Probably not, but-

"Oh you fucking BASTARD." Bdubs lunged forwards to- well he didn't really know, either point a finger in his face or just growl, but he still lunged, going as close as he could with the counter between them, and Etho took a hesitant step backwards.

"You stupid-"

"Haha!" Cleo stepped in immediately, chuckling nervously. "What did we say about swearing out here Bdubs?" She mumbled with a slight edge in her voice, mostly trying to distract him.

She grabbed his wrist harshly, dragging him to the backroom with little resistance.

"Bdubs, sit here, drink some water, forget Etho, and relax, kay?" Cleo said, leading him to a chair.

He numbly sat down, and she took that as a sign to leave.

"Did I uh- go too far?" Etho asked sheepishly when she stepped back out. His hair was tucked behind his ear so he could see a little better, and his eyes were going back and forth from looking at her and looking to the side or the ground.

Cleo took a deep breath in, "He had an English essay due at midnight and a morning shift because Grian had math and Scar had to take Jellie to the vet. Keralis has that food class, meaning he had to cover. He got really shitty sleep and that's why he's a little more on edge today. Sleep means a lot to him. You're fine."

"Should I stop with the teasing?" Etho asked.

"Nah, it might hurt his ego more if you do. He really doesn't like to be treated like glass, trust me." Cleo stepped closer. "Whatever rivalry you too have going on is fine, but don't let it interfere with my customers or my shop, alright?"

He nodded firmly, and she hummed. "Good."

"Now go drink that white sugar before it gets cold. If you dare leave a bad review on this place because it is already, you won't be around to taste another."

And it was a very empty threat, but the way Cleo said it had Etho hastily nodding and walking out the door anyways. She was smiling behind him. She was smiling behind him. She was smiling behind him. She was smiling behind-

Etho looked back through the glass at her, only to be met with a cheerful smile and wave, scary enough with context.

His phone buzzed and he pulled it out as an excuse to focus on that instead.

Beefers: nevermind clear your schedule for next friday instead

Eeetho: Will i get context this time?

Beefers: nope!

---

"So as I was saying, Bdubs is pissed." Pearl chuckled lightly, keeping her voice a whisper.

"I am so annoyed that I missed that! I should have skipped maths; today was a waste of time anyway." Grian grumbled, sorting through his bag of pens.

They were in chemistry, and they probably should've been paying attention, but they were only going over the highschool review of mols and stuff, so they could afford to gossip instead.

"Yeah, you would've been smart enough to record the whole thing and send it to me." Pearl joked. "Bdubs was telling us in English, but Keralis told me that Cleo had to text him to check up on Bdubs afterwards. I hope he's ok."

"I'm sure he is, he's been through worse than an argument." Grian reassured her. He pulled out a sharpie. He had no paper to write on.

"Plus I'm betting like- a lot on him with Iskall, so no offense Bdubs but...."

"Oh you are a cruel, cruel man." Pearl snickered, lightly punching him in his arm.

Grian only smiled deeper, and stayed silent for a second as he drew something on the desk.

"I think you mean a cruel, cruel pesky bird." He uncovered the drawing with his hand, and Pearl held back a laugh with her hand.

"Ms Moon, do you have something to say to the class?" The teacher asked.

Pearl sat up straight, and Grian hid the pen to the side of him while his hand covered the drawing. "No ma'am."

"Very well," She said, shooting once last glare at the pair before pointing at the board again, describing basic algebra 1 to the college students.

Pearl lowered her voice, "But really, Bdubs was venting about Etho the entire class. Impulse is too nice, so I had to be the one to tell him to shut up and write his essay after half an hour."

"That sounds like him. I just hope he got it out of his system with you guys and not me."

"Oh I doubt it, G. I cut him off short, he could've kept going for hours."

"Perfect." Grian said sarcastically. "Though, I think Iskall would love to hear about that."

Pearl chuckled softly. "Alright, tell them after class. She's glaring daggers at us right now." She whispered under her breath, subtly telling Grian to stop drawing on the desk. He pretended to be writing on a piece of paper by sliding Pearl's over, hiding the drawing and faking her out at the same time.

----

"Heeeeeey Iskall!" Grian said in a singsong voice over the phone. He was laying on his bed, computer open in front with some assignment he didn't feel like starting.

"Uhm- hey G?" Iskall said suspiciously. "Why did you call?"

"Oh, am I not allowed to simply call a friend on a Friday night after such a long day of classes?"

"You're smiling G. I can hear it through the phone."

"Alright you caught me!" Grain smiled. "I just wanted to update you on our little wager."

"Aaaand...?" Iskall prompted

"Aaaanddd wanted to ask if you wanted to forfeit. Because Bdubs is super mad at Etho, to the point where Cleo had to step in. There's no way you can win, but if you give up now I'll lessen the bets."

"It just sounds like you're nervous G." Iskall taunted. "You want me to give up, hmm? Insecure at all about your stance on this bet?"

"No, I'm just trying to be a good friend and give you a way out." Grian kept his voice steady. "Because these two being friends is already such a slim chance, let alone a couple, that it's almost cruel to take the easy win."

"I'm no coward, Grian." Iskall said firmly. "Do you want to forfeit?"

"Ok then, I was just trying to warn you!" Grian said, ignoring Iskall's comment.

"More like trying to get under my skin- is that how the English phrase goes? Sounds weird." Iskall chuckled. "Have a nice night dude!"

"You too, gotta finish up Chem before Monday." Grian groaned, letting the conversation turn into a normal one instead of continuing how it was.

"Oof, glad I did AP in highschool." Iskall laughed.

"Hey! You know wouldn't let me do AP until I did the normal class, and I didn't have time for both!"

"That was your own fault! Not planning your schedule ahead of time." Iskall accused, correctly. "Oh shoot."

"What?"

"Jevin is burning something-" Iskall sighed. "I gotta go dude, good luck with chem, since making me nervous failed miserably for you already."

"Hey!" Grian laughed. "You too, have a nice night."

Iskall hung up, and Grian put down his phone. Sure, his plan for freaking out Iskall and getting a quick bet locked and done failed, but the chat was still nice.

He really should start chem now. 

---------

(4154 words!)

To that one person who wanted Grian to draw on the desk in pen, I cannot remember if it was a pesky bird or a dragon and I can't find the comment so I hope I at least partially satisfied your request!

Sorry this one took awhile, just life sometimes! Have a great day or night (but if it's night, go to sleep!!!)

Also! I have a discord server! It's mostly chill, but you can get sneak peaks of chapters, suggest anything you want for details in my books or oneshots I might write, and get extra doodles of stuff that I might not post here. Link to it in the comment! (if it expires you can just ask for it)