A/N: this sucks shit but whatever fuck it

"Geez, hold still, would ya?!" Sadiq exclaimed, pulling the boy in front of him upwards again. The boy, Herakles, muttered an apology and tried to sit still as his new friend bandaged him up. They were riding bikes, or, more like, Sadiq was riding his bike as Herakles just went back and forth on the side walk with his scooter, when Herakles suddenly ran over a clump of tar that sent him and his scooter flying. Now with scraped up hands and puffy, red eyes, he watched as Sadiq patted the last bandage on his knee lightly.

"Oh, it's lunch time." Sadiq said as he stood up looking at his race car wrist watch he always had on. "Doesn't your mom come home to make you lunch?" Herakles' mom was a very important business woman and rarely came home. Not for lunch. Not for supper. She didn't even stay long enough to have breakfast with him. Herakles had to rely on a lazy, inexperienced nanny to feed him, which never happened. She was always too caught up watching her Hungarian soap operas and reality T.V. shows. So, he had to cook for himself, and by cook I mean all he ate was fruit that hopefully hasn't gone bad (he didn't really know how to read expiration dates) and sandwiches. Anyway, because it was for sure his mom wasn't coming home any time soon, Herakles shook his head no.

"What! Oh, wait, you have that lady that..." Sadiq trailed off when he saw Herakles look away, something, some emotion, was displayed on his face that his friend has never seen before and he seemed to have said something. "Huh?"

"Ms. E doesn't make me lunch either." he said in a soft, gentle voice. "She never makes me any food." Sadiq looked at him in disbelief. Having always been well feed or at least well taught in how to feed himself he was in a lot of shock. His weight made a little more sense now. Herakles was as thin as a string, his ribs practically showing. Sadiq always thought it was just fast meatobalism or whatever the word his dad used, not that the kid didn't eat. He had heard about people who didn't eat. Bad things happen to people who don't eat...

"Do you ever eat?" A shrug was given this time with a muttering of '..sometimes..' "Well, c'mon then! Hop on the pegs of my bike and I'll take you too my place. I can make you lunch." Herakles looked at him with as much disbelief as Sadiq looked at him with.

"Oh, no, that's alright. I'm fine. I'm used to it, honest!" But his pleas were useless as Sadiq was a lot stronger than him and dragged him to his bike. They travelled in silence, mainly because Herakles was petrified. He hated bike rides, he hated bike in general, that's why he rode a scooter. He found bikes unstable and dangerous, mostly because his mom never taught him, and he tried to teach himself but so many bones were broken that you'd think he would have needed a full body cast. So, by the time they reached the large, rustic brick house that was Sadiq's home, Herakles was shaking with fear. He stumbled off the bike as the other gracefully got off. 

"Hey, you okay?" Sadiq asked, noticing Herakles' state when he came back from putting his bike in the garage. He shook his head no, more hastily than before. "Hey, hey, shhh. It's okay, whatever it was, it's not going to get you or anything" After about 10 months of being friends, Sadiq had not only learned that Herakles didn't had many fears, but the ones he did have were really traumatic and messed him up bad. "Was it a dog?" Head shake. "That one mean American kid?" Head shake. "Was there lightning in the sky?" Head shake. "Well then, what?"

"B-B-Bike" Herakles finally managed to get out, tears starting to form at his eyes. Not only from fear of the ride, but of what his friend might do, Sadiq loved bike rides, building bikes, anything that had to do with a bike, he enjoyed it to the fullest extent. Fortunately, instead of pushing him to the ground and beating him for being such a pansy or rolling his eyes and telling him how stupid he was, which were both unlikely but still very much a possibility, he hugged him. As he hugged him he petted his hair and soothed him with words like "I'm so sorry" and "I promise it won't happen again". He did this until the boy in his arms relaxed, the last of his tears rolling down his sullen cheeks.

 "Now, come oooon! I'm starving and I wouldn't be surprised if you were, too." They finally entered the house, which smelled of spices and Axe. Sadiq had a good number of older brothers, all teenagers, and a master chef mother, non of them there. His father wasn't there either, he being an important business man, like Herakles' mother. They had been paired up to work together, which was how Herakles and Sadiq met.

"So, what do you want?" Sadiq asked when they reached the kitchen. Herakles pondered on the question, a question he had never been asked. After a long and confusing inner monologue he came to his decision.

"I want cake."

"You can't have cake for lunch! Even if you could, I don't know how to make it!" Herakles pulled a face only he could manage and made a noise low in his throat.

"Can you make..... mark m cheese?"

"Mark m cheese? What is.. Oh! You mean mac and cheese! Yea! We can totally have mac and cheese!" Sadiq quickly started to get out the ingredients to make mac and cheese as Herakles stared, entranced. Sadiq had many more skills than Herakles, physically at least. He had quick reflexes, had a lot of energy, and could easily lift 30 pounds at the age of 8. Which is quite impressive if you think about it. He was also pretty tall for his age, and could reach the wall behind the counter easily, something Herakles wasn't able to do.

Once their lunch was finished they sat down, said separate prayers, one to Allah and one to God, and began to eat. After a bit, Herakles felt more comfortable and, with a mouth full of cheesy noodles, started chatting away. Herakles was a very smart kid and often had a lot to say, most of it said in the same gentle voice he said everything in. And eating didn't stop the stream of words he always had ready. First he talked about a movie he watched with Ms. E and her boyfriend. It had a lot of hitting, naked hugging, and explosions. It also made Herakles rant about how bad the effects were and how you'd think in this age they could at least make stab wounds look somewhat real. Next he talked about a cat he saw in his backyard. Apparently it was unlike any cat he had ever seen, no picture of it in any of his books. Speaking of books, got the most wonderful fantasy story just a few days ago and maybe he'll read it to Sadiq one day. And for Sadiq, well, he just sat there silently, eyes locked on the younger boy. He listened and took in everything, trying to remember as much as possible lest his friend bring it up again later. 

Then, about 5 servings and 80 topics later, Herakles started to doze off. His face was smashed against the table when Sadiq came back from putting their plate and cups away. The latter snickered at him. His lips bulged out caused by his smooshed cheek and drool had already started to appear. Using all his strength, Sadiq lifted Herakles up, which was easier than he expected, and carried him to his room, laying him down on the bed. He decided he'd take a nap, too. There was really nothing better to do now that his only playmate was unconscious. So, with arms gingerly wrapped around the smaller figure beside him, he fell into a deep, peaceful sleep, filled with the smell of watermelon and the constant softness that pressed against his right cheek.