The bell rang out through the halls, marking the end of the school day. Zedaph, one of the juniors, haphazardly threw his books into his bag and tossed it over his shoulder. It was a brisk October Friday, which meant most of the school had one thing on their minds: football.

Zedaph couldn't care less for football, if he were completely honest. Yet, he never missed a single game. His best friend since the first grade was the quarterback on the Hermitville High football team, and he wasn't about to let him down.

"Hey, Zed!" a familiar higher hoarse voice called from behind.

Zed turned around to see who it was. Tango, just as he expected, his far-too-big leather jacket hanging lazily off his shoulder and his laptop sticking out the top of his canvas messenger bag which was covered in too many pins. As usual, his hair was an absolute disaster underneath his rather questionable hat that everyone wondered how he never got dress coded for. Bigfoot is real and he tried to eat my ass, it read. Zed let out a little chuckle as he always did when he saw his friend's signature accessory.

"You comin' to the game tonight?" Tango asked, rocking back and forth on his feet as he spoke.

"When have I ever missed a home game? Especially against DSMP Academy."

"You know it! Come on, there's still a couple hours until it starts, let's go find Impy and go over to Tangawatta Park."

Zed frowned, not enough for Tango to notice in his own little world of happiness, but enough that anyone walking by could tell there was something else on his mind.

"There's going to be a lot of people there, seeing as it's the two biggest schools in the area against each other... Why don't we just hang out in the cafeteria for now?" Zed suggested quietly.

Tango closed his eyes and nodded silently to himself. He'd forgotten about Zed's little fear of crowds. At least when he was in the stands, he could sit over by the band, where nobody dared to go. The band kids were far too much of a cult for most "normal" kids to want to associate with. And yet, somehow, by some miracle, Impulse, their best snare drummer, ended up as one of the most popular people at Hermitville High.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Let me just text ol' Impy where we're headed. You go right ahead, I'll catch up in a few!" Tango said, waving Zedaph on towards the cafeteria hall.

With a sigh of relief, Zedaph turned on his heel and made his way to the nearly empty cafeteria. The writing club was there as they always were Friday afternoons, but he didn't mind. It was better than whatever chaos was going on over at Tangawatta.

"Zedaph!" a Russian voice called from the table.

Zed's heart stopped. The whole writing club was staring at him now, their eyes piercing into his soul and making him shiver a bit. He gulped and broke a little smile, pushing his thick plastic frames back into place.

"You gonna join us today?" the same senior's voice called. It was Zloy, the head of the yearbook club. Zed just knew if he went anywhere near him, his face would end up on the front cover. In fact, dodging Zloy's camera had recently become like a game to him. Paper, books, his phone, or even Tango or Impulse were often used to block his face from view.

"Not today, I'm afraid," Zed said sheepishly, "I've got plans."

After that, he raced down the ramp to the lower section of the cafeteria, where he was completely out of sight from the writing club. Zedaph let his bag fall off his shoulder and swung it onto the seat next to him. All he had to do now was wait for his two friends to make their way over.

He pulled out his phone, plugging in his earbuds as he scrolled through Sahara Music to try and find a good playlist. Eventually, he settled on some relaxing soft rock, letting the music clear his racing mind. Listening to music before a big game was his routine at that point, a way to keep his head on straight when he was about to be surrounded by more people than he ever wanted to be around.

His thoughts were so sucked into the melodies that he didn't even notice Tango and Impulse throwing their own stuff onto the table, Tango sitting next to Zed and Impulse sitting in the middle across from them.

"Hey, music man, we're here," Tango teased, pulling out one of Zed's earbuds, much to his friend's surprise.

"Oh, hi guys," Zedaph said quietly.

Zed had almost forgotten that Impulse had to wear his whole football uniform that day, since it was a home game day. He chuckled a bit to himself at how silly he looked just going about a normal day dressed like he was about to tackle someone in the halls.

"So, did you talk to Xisuma about joining the robotics team?" Impulse asked, leaning forward with a smile across his face.

"No," Zed mumbled.

"Why not? You'd fit right in. You need to have other people you can trust and talk to," Impulse said.

"I've got you two, that's all I really need."

Tango shook his head.

"Nah, you guys are my best friends, but it's nice to get to really know everyone else. Like, Bdubs and Keralis and I like to get together every so often, and Impy here has his weird band and chorus people. You gotta open your mind to other things, Zed!" he said excitedly.

"They're not weird," Impulse said, punching Tango lightly from across the table, "they're fun."

"They're a cult," Tango joked.

"Only the marching band!"

The three broke into hushed laughter, trying not to disturb the writing club on the upper level. Before they knew it, the band was being called to the music room to get ready.

Impulse sighed, pushing himself up off his seat. He threw his bag over his shoulder, brushing off his green and gold football uniform as if it weren't about to get completely stained with grass.

"Well, I gotta go, the band needs their snare," he said as he headed out.

Zed and Tango reluctantly bade their friend goodbye. It was almost time for the game, and the two remaining friends had some plans that needed to start early. To get there before everyone else and snatch a spot that no one else would go near was their strategy for every home game. If they weren't able to get their good spot, they'd sometimes just sit past the edges of the field in the grass, where Zedaph could sit in peace and not fall into a panic.

That's one thing that Zedaph appreciated more than anything with his friends, the fact that they actually cared about his anxiety so much. If something was too much, they'd always do everything they could to help calm him down or get him out of the situation. There'd been a few times in the past when they'd been at a restaurant together and they just ended up taking the food home when it got too loud. Zed smiled thinking about it. How could he ask for something more than the perfection he already had?

---

The sun was already beginning to set as people started to fill the stands. Zed and Tango had grabbed their usual far corner over by where the band sat, which was closed off using what had to be the oldest and most worn out rope they could find. Tango's lap was full of snacks, and by his feet were the two's drinks.

"You sure we need all that?" Zed asked, glancing at the stack of food on his friend's lap.

"We're playing against DSMP Academy, this game ain't gonna be short!" Tango answered, pulling a handful of kettle corn out of a bag.

"If you say so..."

The band began to line up perfectly on the far side of the field, turning to face the gigantic flag in the corner.

"Band, halt!" Ely's voice shouted with surprising power.

Two counts, and the band was perfectly still. They raised their instruments, and with a swift movement of the drum major's baton, the national anthem began to play. The stands went silent in respect. It was a perfect autumn evening for a game of football.

The band was always Zed's favorite part of the games, other than cheering on Impulse. Music had been such an important part of his life, and though he wasn't exactly gifted in the performing aspects of music, his appreciation of it and knowledge of the theory behind it exceeded that of almost everyone around him.

At last, the band died down. With a "mark time, mark!" and a "forward, harch!", they filed into the stands, where they would be playing the stand tunes that made the whole game so much better.

The air was chilly, and Zed could faintly see his own breath as he bundled up in his coat. Impulse threw down his snare drum and dashed over to where the Hermitville High School football team was sat on the field.

"Get 'em, Impy!" Tango shouted, making his friend on the team flush bright red.

Impulse flashed a dangerous look in his direction, but it quickly broke into a lighthearted smile. That was one thing about Impulse, he could never be upset for more than a couple seconds. He was the kind of person to see the stars even on the cloudiest nights.

As the game finally began, Zed found himself spacing out as he always did on those Friday nights. He only really went to support his best friends, and Tango cheered enough for the both of them and then some. Zed leaned his head on the wire fence on the edge of the bleachers and let his mind wander to imaginary places.

---

Cheers erupted from the DSMP Academy students as the game came to a close. It was a close game that had taken almost two and a half hours, with the opponents winning 28-23. Tango groaned dramatically as ever.

"Did you see how Dream got that last touchdown? So unfair! We would've won if it weren't for that!"

Zed rolled his eyes. To him, the scores were nothing but numbers, meaningless and just there to boost one ego and tear down another.

"Let's go find Impulse, 'kay?" Zed suggested.

Tango nodded, still clearly frustrated. Looking out to the field, they could see the DSMP Academy students rushing towards the team, shouting in excitement and pride. To both of their surprise, as they scanned where their team sat, they could see Impulse getting up and pushing gently through the crowd towards Dream.

"You don't think they're gonna fight, do you?" Zed whispered.

The two peeked through the mass of people. Only a sliver of the scene was visible, but that's all they needed. Rather than the punch Zedaph expected, he watched as Impulse gave Dream a pat on the back and shake his hand.

"You did awesome there, man! GG!" they could hear him say.

The two exchanged looks of relief. This was Impulse, after all, and the thought of him of all people getting into a fight over a game was laughable. Impulse looked through the mass of people, locking eyes with his two friends and excusing himself to get back through.

"You're too kind, dude, it's sickening sometimes," Tango teased.

Impulse shrugged.

"Well, they did pretty good, and so did we! A fair and fun game."

He pulled his helmet off his head, shaking his head of fluffy brown hair. It stuck up in all directions from the combination of friction, static, and sweat, but he couldn't care less.

"So, what now?" Zed asked, watching as the crowd dispersed heading back to their cars.

"My place?" Impulse suggested.

"Sounds good to me," Tango said.

The three nodded in agreement before deciding to make their way back to the school to pick up their things. Tango would be riding with Impulse in his Ford F-250 as usual, and Zed in his own 1988 Volkswagen station wagon. He never really minded driving alone, but a part of him couldn't help but feel a tad left out.

As he reached into his bag with one hand for his keys, he waved the others goodbye. His parking spot was on the other side of the building, which was unfortunate, but it wasn't a big deal. He preferred the extra steps, and the feeling of walking through the near-empty parking lot as the moon shone down couldn't be matched. It was ethereal, almost otherworldly, like as he walked through the side door of the school, he was walking into another universe.

Zed tossed his bag into the messy backseat of his car before slumping down in the driver's seat. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and let his mind relax in the silence for a little while. This was his routine after every game, to just sit in peaceful quiet and allow himself to recharge before heading home, or in this case, to Impulse's place.

He straightened his posture, glancing around for any headlights before turning on the car and throwing it into reverse. Impulse lived on the very outskirts of town, which wasn't a bad thing when it came to moments like these. Zed needed that time on his own before going right back into socialization again.

In the distance, the roar of Impulse's truck faded. Just as he thought, Zed would get there last. Not that it was a big deal, a difference of maybe one or two minutes at most. Still, he felt the smallest pang of jealousy in his heart. He needed his time alone, but the idea of the fun conversations he was missing out on, making fun of Impulse's strange music taste, and all the other essentials of a car ride with the trio, it almost hurt. It had always been that way, it seemed. Impulse and Tango were completely inseparable like glue, but Zedaph had the feeling that he was more like velcro to them. Sticking when needed, but can be torn off at any time.

He shook his head. These were his best friends of all time. They weren't that kind of people, his mind was just being cruel to him as it always seemed to do in the later hours of the evening.

As he pulled out of the school parking lot and turned on the radio, his worries melted away as if they were never even there in the first place. This was going to be a good night, and he wouldn't let it be any other way.