Azure: 19

Penne: 17

Navy: 18

Tweed: 18

Mr. Klein: 43

"So. Where are you two going exactly?" Penne asked, following them through the halls and stairs, bumping into them now and again since she didn't exactly know where they were because they were trying to be as stealthy as possible.

"...don't...exactly...know..." Azure mumbled, and Navy threw up his hands, rendering them visible for a split second before they reconnected.

"HOW COULD YOU NOT KNOW!?" he bellowed, his voice echoing throughout the stairwell. Then he clicked his tongue, mimicking Azure, "Let's go do something fun, c'mon, it's gonna be great!!! Ugh."

"Hey, hey, hey...I was going to burn that bridge as we came to it!"

As they bickered, Penne was suddenly reminded of the smooth, vanilla-y, cookie dough filled milkshakes that she hadn't had in weeks. After slurping up two every day for the past five years, shaping her cravings to sweet, and only sweet things, these past two weeks had been torture as she had tried to sustain herself only on cookies and weird flavored juice boxes instead of her marvelous milkshakes with fine company. She honestly didn't know how she didn't have diabetes yet.

"You're in luck!" she said perkily, feeling out their positions as they walked down to the first floor, wrapping her arms around their shoulders the best she could. "Because I happen to know the best boba shop in all of New York City. Don't thank me!"

But before she could get another word out, she nearly spit out her non-existant water as they both said in unison, "What's boba?"

"OH MY GOD, I'M GOING TO SHOW YOU!" she said, pushing them across the lobby and getting various looks from employees, shoving them out the door and dragging them down the streets of New York until they arrived at the mystery place that she had been preaching to them about. "IT'S THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD!!!!" she screeched, bolting inside. Shrugging, they both followed her, their hands faintly brushing because they wanted the contact but didn't need to be invisible.

When they entered, they found her leaning against the counter, talking nonchalantly with the blond-haired guy at the register. She wordlessly passed him a ten-dollar-bill, and he immediately turned around to start making something for her, while she was still babbling on about things no one could guess.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

Turning around to resume conversation with her as whatever she had ordered was being made, he looked surprised to see the two of them standing there. "Oh!" he said, a mix between a smile and a frown on his face. "You brought...friends."

"Yep!" she said, grinning. "And that's all they are! Friends! They're my best friends! Couldn't do anything without them! I've told you about Azure before, that's him right there. And that guy- well, that guy is a total creep, I don't even know where he came from, but you gotta love a guy for that, don't'cha!?"

The blond smiled warmly, his orange eyes never leaving her face as he took in every word she was saying.

"Don't have many customers today, do ya?" she asked, still leaning against the counter.

"Do we ever?" he asked softly, turning back around and bringing her a milkshake. And Azure suddenly rememberd; she always had one of those in her hand before Dad had died. He had asked about it once or twice, but she had always answered really vaguely, saying things like "'s from a friend," or completely diverting the subject, answering, "They're really good, wanna sip?" He smiled at her cheekily and suddenly knew why. She had wanted this guy all to herself.

"Oh, how rude of me, I haven't even introduced you!" she said, ruffling his hair and turning back towards Azure and Navy. "This is Tweed! His mom and dad run the shop and his apartment bills spiked a couple years ago, so he's been helping out for the past few years!! Ain't that right, Tweed?"

"Mhm.." he said, brushing down his hair and smiling at her.

"He's very shy," she whispered, turning back around and grinning at him, slurping her milkshake and moving out of the way so that Azure and Navy could order something if they wanted.

"Tweed, quick question..." Azure said, staring him dead in the eyes until the orange irises got uncomforatable and looked away, "What's boba though?"

"I believe I can help you with that," said a gruff voice from the back, and a tall man came out, slapping his hands together before patting his son on the back. "Why don't you take a break, Tweety?"

Penne snickered. "Tweety..." Tweed glowered at her before running into the back and snagging a weird looking thing with a mass of black at the bottom, stabbing a straw into the top and sliding over the counter before placing a hand on Penne's shoulder and leading her to a seat.

"You kids don't know what boba is?" the tall man asked, giving off an aura of power. But his expression brightened right away as he said, "That's ok! It's not for everyone. Bubble tea, or boba, is a tea-based drink that originated in Taiwan in the early 1980s. It most commonly consists of tea accompanied by chewy tapioca balls, but it can be made with other toppings as well such as grass jelly, aloe vera or red bean." He grinned at their befuddled expressions before Penne called out, "HE GOOGLED IT AND SAYS IT TO IMPRESS PEOPLE."

Slamming his fist on the table, fake tears streaming down his face, he shouted, "PENNE WHY WOULD YOU BETRAY ME LIKE THIS!?!?"

"Sorry Mr. Klein~" she said, without an ounce of regret on her face.

Looking up from the counter and smiling as though none of that had really happened, the man, who's name was apparently Mr. Klein, simply asked, "So, what would you boys like?"