[SYNOPSIS: The year is 2015. School is out for summer, and Dum wants to invite her brother to come with her friend group to see this year's blockbuster! Surely, he'd love to come along...or WOULD he? Better make sure he's not too busy brooding first.]

[LOCATION: The Playson Family household]

Based on a headcanon for Player from my first headcanon chapter that I have not utilized until now for some reason. XP

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"Ohhh, Player~!"

Dum skipped merrily up the stairs as she called for her brother, feet still marching and tapping the same way they had at her final junior pep rally two weeks ago...It was weird to think, really, that she wouldn't be back to cheerleading until at least late September. And after going through all that practice, all those rallies, and the school's sporting events, the lack of cheering felt almost alien to her.

...Well, the pink crewmate figured she'd at LEAST stay on her toes and do a few exercises a day; she didn't want to be completely rusty for tryouts for her senior  year, after all!

"I got all my chores done early and we have the WHOLE rest of the day to kill, so I'm going to the movies with my friends!" she announced, arriving at his bedroom door. "I've got enough cash for five tickets! Five tickets for me, Jamie, Diane, Stephanie, and..."

She paused dramatically.

"Ohhh, shucks I forgot! Rebecca's not part of our friend group anymore after she carved my name in the bleachers and tried to blame it on me. And even if we did wanna take her along, I hear she's grounded  the whole rest of the summer! Awww man...What should I DO  with my extra ticket money? Hmmmmmmmm...Well ghee whiz, I wouldn't suppose someone like YOU might want to tag along and go see this year's summer blockbuster with us? Eh? EH??"

...She got no answer.

"Come on, Player! Don't you wanna see people get eaten by a bunch of dinosaurs? I know you do~!"

Still no response.

"...Player?"

This time, she knocked. STILL nothing. And she couldn't hear anything either...Heck, was he even IN there?

"Hellooooo?"

Proceeding another brisk knock, Dum turned the doorknob and opened it just  a crack to confirm whether or not her brother was even present inside.

"...Oh."

He was in there; the reason he couldn't hear her was because he was currently lost in whatever music was blasting in his headphones. His head was turned upside-down over the side of the bed facing the doorway, but he couldn't see her either due to his eyes being shut.

"Uh...Player? You got a second?"

Bravely, she reached out and tapped the side of his headset.

"GAH-!"

Immediately, the red bean let out a startled shriek and scrambled upright on his mattress into a sitting position to look the trespasser in the eye, headphones falling clean off his head in the process...When the shock wore off, his wide eyes narrowed in contempt.

"DUM!! How many times have I told you to KNOCK  before coming in here!?!"

"But I did  knock! You just didn't answer..." Dum told him, hands now on her hips. "...How many times has Mom told YOU not to turn up the volume on your headphones too loud?"

"I don't know, but...But she doesn't understand! It's the only way I can drown out the rest of the world and truly be at peace. No distractions, none of my inner demons surging forth to try forcing me into the mold of society...They can't get me when my mind is where it belongs."

With the headset now off his head and exposed to the stagnant air of the room, the pink crewmate could now faintly hear the song playing through them...to which she raised an eyebrow.

"...You'd rather be lying on your bed listening to Green Day than doing anything else?"

"It's my element, Dum," Player insisted, brushing back the long, ebony bangs from the side of his face to reveal the rest of his annoyed expression. "Apparently you'd never understand either..."

Deflating, the bubblegum pink bean sat down beside her brother on his bed, hands landing in her lap.

"...Something happen today?"

"Tch..."

He looked away, still wearing that ugly scowl...Even with this new weird "phase" he was going through, according to their mother, Dum couldn't help but notice that he seemed especially  irritable right now.

"Come on, Player. You can tell me what's goin' on."

A frustrated growl escaped him, and he finally turned to face her.

"FINE!! I'm peeved because someone stole my last pop tart from the cabinet!" he admitted. "That was s'posed to be my Saturday breakfast, EVERYONE here knows that! So why'd they-!?"

"Oh...um...Yeah, I, uh...I may have eaten that."

...Player's rant came to a halt, and the look of annoyance in his eyes now intensified into a frighteningly quiet rage.

"I'm sorry Player, I-I didn't know they were bought just for you, and I wanted to get rid of the box taking up room in there!" she explained. "I can make it up to you, I promise!"

The silent fury in her brother's gaze quelled ever so slightly, and his cast a thoughtful glance off to the side.

"...How?"

"Well, um...I was coming in here to see if you maybe wanted to...go to the movies to see Jurassic World  with me and my friends since I had money for an extra ticket, so if you wanted to do that, then maybe...that's  how?"

"Hmmmmmm..."

Player thought for a moment. He wasn't sure he'd want to be caught up with Dum and her obnoxious group of preppy cheerleading friends...but on the other hand, there was a free trip to the movies. And seeing a bunch of greedy billionaires being eaten alive on the big screen might help him feel better about the sorry state the world was in.

"...Just make sure I'm at least three seats away from Rebecca, and I'll take you up on that."

"Oh, she's not part of our group anymore. Didn't you hear about what she pulled the last week of school?"

"Uhh...no? Can't say I did. I try to avoid meaningless drama, after all."

"She was jealous that I'd gotten the spot for 'Best Dancer ' in the school yearbook, so she carved my name into the bleachers and tried to blame it on me...Security cameras are a beautiful thing, aren't they?"

"Wait. WHAT??" the red bean exclaimed, voice suddenly a bit higher. "Ugh. Why am I not surprised? I always had this feeling that she was a snake in the grass, now I know for sure."

"How'd you guess? Did it come to you in one of your brooding sessions?" Dum jeered.

"UUUGH, I don't know, maybe...But whatever. Which showing are you guys going to?"

"The 3:00. We've got an hour and a half before we have to be there, so if you're game then make sure you look the part!"

"Fine...Just lemme fix my bangs and put on my black hat."

"Why don't you wear the one Grandad gave you anymore?"

"It doesn't fit my aesthetic, Dum!" he insisted. "...And maybe I also don't want it to get ruined out there in that...cruel world."

"Awww, you're still my sweet little brother~!"

She pulled him into a tight side hug...much to his dismay.

"You're in my personal bubble, Dum."

"Sorry..." she apologized, pulling back a bit. "...Soooo, all's forgiven?"

"Sure. Whatever...Just get me a box of Darkside Skittles when we get inside."

"YAAAAY, let's take a selfie together to celebrate~!"

"Wait, I didn't-"

SNAP

"...Agree to that."

Too late. Dum had already pulled out her phone camera and captured a picture of the two of them side by side.

"#SiblingsForever~! That one's a keeper!"

"Just let me get ready to go and stop embarrassing  me..."

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...

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"Y'know, it's weird. Your whole childhood you're waiting for the moment you finish school, but then when it's over you've got all these fond memories of it that almost make you wanna go back...almost."

"Guess that's just how life is, Veteran," Player shrugged. "It really is about the ride and not the destination."

"Hey Dum. You got any photos of that massive Zoo-Wee Mama  comic strip that some kid drew on the hallways wall our senior year?" the yellow crewmate asked, peeking at the photos on her phone from between the two siblings' heads.

"I think I did! I just have to go further ahead and see..." she replied, starting to swipe ahead. "...Oh, hey! This is the one I took of us after my junior year ended!"

"Uhh, yeah. Can we maybe fast forward to 2017 instead of going through all these?"

"What? No, come on, I like this one!"

"Dude wait, did you have BANGS back then?" Veteran noticed. "Wait...Player, were you EMO!?!"

"Please, don't ask, Veteran. It'll just...make things worse..."