The GoGos left after having lunch with Milo and I, and after a lengthy discussion (or argument) about what my costume should be. Or armour, according to Milo, because he was more worried about the functionality rather than the aesthetics of my outfit. Not that I would need to be bullet proof when going against vegans and their cartons of pigs blood or whining Karens. Still, Milo had stressed that in case, just in case, I needed to at least have some protection.

The discussion-slash-argument had ended with Gia gathering our primary-school level stick figure drawings of ideas and burning them to ash, saying that he needs to go home to her 'creative space' and away from people who didn't know the difference between teal, turquoise and robin egg blue. 

Like usual, for the rest of the afternoon it was just Milo and I in my oversized mansion. Although Milo used to visit often, he rarely stayed overnight, and never overnight for so many consecutive days. I can't say that I hated having him stay over, even if he was complaining about my habits half of the time, and rolling his eyes at me for the rest of it. Having another presence in this large house was comforting, and walking around in its endless corridors never seemed so cold with him here. It may have been because of my unnatural natural cold resistance, but I knew that, at least, my heart was warmer when Milo was around.

It was now around 5 in the afternoon, and since it was winter the days were short, and the nights long. It was already dark outside, so I knew that Milo would probably leave to go have dinner with his family soon. I always found myself dreading this time; usually from around 5:30 until 9, the house would return to being overly quiet, with just one beating heart inside it.

But whatever. Nothing a joint couldn't fix.

It was also the only time I could have a good wank and not have to try and keep the noise to a minimum. Otherwise, it was just me in the shower, using the sound of water hitting the tiled floor to muffle my moans. So, Milo being out of the house for a few hours wasn't all bad.

Milo had his books splayed out on the dining table, and was nursing his lower lip between his teeth as he read through some of his revision notes. Mid-semester exams were approaching, and Milo was, as always, a model student.

Me, on the other hand? I had my books out in front of me, but I concentrating more on blowing smoke rings while I scrolled through instagram. Acoustic music filtered out through the speaker system, Milo and I just enjoying each other's company in silence, though Milo would often look up from his books and give me a disapproving look when he saw that my books were still open on the same page.

It was as I closed my book for good that Milo looked up through his glasses, sighing heavily.

"Did you revise anything?" Milo asked, though the way his voice didn't lift at the end told me that he already knew the answer. I took a deep drag, exhaling through a nonchalant smile.

"You know I do better under pressure," I said, laughing loosely. "Nothing like a good cram session the weekend before the exam."

"I don't know how you scrape by," Milo muttered, checking the time on his phone. My light buzz from the weed dulled slightly as Milo, too, closed his books. He didn't pack them up completely; just pushed them into a neater pile so they didn't take up too much space, even though the dining table was made to seat at least 12 people. My heart lifted a little again at the sight of his books there, neat but relaxed. Ready to come back to.

"Drive carefully, baby," I sang, voice cheerful as I leaned my elbows on the table, joint between my lips. 

"Says you. Who mangled their bumper the day they got their Ps?" Milo reminded me with his signature eye roll as he stood up, making me shrug with great exaggeration.

"What? Someone drove into the fountain in their front yard? Sounds like an idiot. Don't know him," I said, Milo's mouth curving upwards, eyes narrowing with amusement. 

"You good, C?" Milo asked softly then, his eyes appraising as he stared at me. His dark eyes glanced down the length of the table, at the empty seats, the darkness outside and the creeping darkness inside.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, totally. Why wouldn't I be?" I said, popping the joint out from my lips and flicking some ash into the marble ash tray in front of me. "You should get going though, it's already pretty dark outside. I have to get onto my leftovers from dinner the other night. Don't worry, I won't microwave it with my fork in it and blow up the microwave. I learnt my lesson already." 

I gave Milo a wide smile, which he didn't return. Instead, he bit his lip again, scratching the back of his neck.

"Milo?" I asked, voice suspiciously scratchy, and I coughed. Must've been the weed.

"Uh, C, do you want to... um... come with me?" Milo asked, and I blinked. "I mean, it's been a while since you came over, and my mum's been asking about you. And, you, um..." Milo hesitated, giving me a tentative glance as I stared back at him silently. Clearing his throat, Milo continued. "Then there's no chance of you blowing up the microwave."

"Such little faith!" I exclaimed, pushing my body back in the dining chair dramatically, stopping my fall at the last second with my wings. "You wound me."

"Drama queen," Milo said, muscles tugging at the corners of his mouth as my smile grew.

"Your brother's going to have a fit," I said, Milo shrugging, but the tension in his shoulders meant that he was a little worried. His younger brother looked up to Milo a lot, but that was probably only because Milo was so soft with him.

"He'll be fine," Milo said, lying through his teeth. Not bothering to call him out on his lie, I just snapped my fingers.

"Is your Mama making that stuffed beef thing?"

"Rouladen?" Milo guessed, his native German accent loud and strong. Milo smiled as I apparently started drooling, having to suck up my spit and swallow it down. "Yeah, she is. And she knows how much you love her Rouladen."

"Ooh, and her nodule thing?" I asked, Milo letting out a short, blunt laugh.

"It's Knödel," Milo said, making me wave my hands as I stood up. 

"Yeah, nodule," I repeated, in German so terrible that even Milo's angelic mother would probably cringe. "That's what I said, didn't I?"

"Dummkopf," Milo uttered, making me gasp as I grabbed onto his arm to steer him towards the garage.

"Hey! I know that word, idiot! It means idiot!" I yelled, before Milo tugged on my arm as we neared the garage. "What? Doomcough - or however you pronounce it!"

"You need to put on a shirt. And put them away," Milo chastised, pinching my wing.

"Oh, right," I said, laughing freely. "Jesus, I'm getting too used to these girls."

"Like I said," Milo smirked. "Dummkopf."

***

Milo's house was not large, a one-storey red brick building with peeling white paint overlying wrought metal fencing. Milo wasn't particularly wealthy, which was one of the things that had isolated him in our privileged high school (apart from his fear-inducing glare). In fact, he had once called me a "spoiled rich princeling" at some point during our prolonged platonic courting period, when we weren't quite friends yet. At some point he had gotten over it, or at least been around me enough to know that I didn't act like a spoiled rich princeling.

He had been surprised when I told him that I'd hadn't had a birthday party since I was seven, or that the only thing I would ask my parents to get me for my birthday was an ice cream cake from that one shop that made them just right. But maybe that was me being a spoiled rich princeling - my parents had bought me all the toys, games and gadgets, so the only thing I could ask for was cake.

"That's sad," Milo said as he sat across me during lunch break. He had one of his cool lunches again; steaming, hot and drenched in something that looked like gravy. Much better than the sandwiches other people brought, and far better than the cafeteria lunch I bought every day.

"Why? It's fine. It's not like I'm sad about it," I said, nibbling on my lukewarm sausage roll through a smile when Milo actually answered me for once. And he was listening. I knew that I talked a lot, and that most of it was complete rubbish, so I thought that he wasn't listening and ignoring me like everyone else.

"Lonely, then," Milo said, looking up at me from his lunch, which I was eyeing curiously. Looking down at his food, and then at the crumbling sausage roll in my hand, Milo's mouth seemed to harden as he steeled himself. "Want to try some of my lunch? It's Rouladen." I nodded eagerly, opening my mouth wide so my friend - he was my friend now, right? - could spoon a morsel of it in.

"I'm not lonely," I said, chewing through the delicious food, eyes wide with wonder. 

"You're not lonely," Milo repeated sarcastically, not believing me at all.

"No, I'm not," I said, smiling as I leaned on the palm of my hand. "I mean, you're with me right now, aren't you?"

Before we even knocked on the door to Milo's house, it had swung open, revealing a middle-aged woman in a light green apron.

"Ah, welcome home, Schatz!" Mama Schulz - who I called Ada, upon her strict request - chirped happily, pressing kisses to Milo's cheeks and forehead, my best friend having to bend down so the shorter woman could reach him. Her accent was thick, I stifled a laugh as Milo sighed, though he had the hints of a relaxed grin on his face. Turning to me, Ada gave me warm smile, stretching her arms out. "It's been too long, Culver! I don't think I've seen you since valedictory! Oh, you've become even more handsome since then!"

"Aw, you don't need to lie to me," I laughed, Ada giving me a wide grin as she pulled me into a tight hug. She smelled of herbs and flowers, the warmth from her tiny body making me melt. "I haven't aged well, unlike you."

"Now who's the liar, Culver," Ada said as she pulled back, pinching my cheek affectionately. "The boys and the girls must be chasing you around uni!"

"Yeah, if he actually went," Milo coughed into his hand, making Ada give him a sideways glance.

"Ah, I'm not that popular, unfortunately," I said, rubbing my forehead glumly. "Not like Milo over here..."

"Ach bitte," Ada said, rolling her eyes in a way that made it very clear who Milo got his habits from. Despite being shorter than him, and with brown hair that had a few grey streaks, her strong features and tendency to sigh in exasperation made the two look more alike than one would think on first glance. "If he were so popular, he would have a Freundin by now."

"Mama," Milo said stiffly, giving her a look, saying something with his eyes that I couldn't decipher. Ada just stared back at him with a mirrored expression, unyielding. Their silent staring contest ended when Milo scrunched up his face, turning away and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Mein Schatz always gets like this when I tease him about this," Ada chuckled, fondly rubbing her son's cheek. "Grew up handsome like his Papa, but so damn awkward."

"Don't I know it," I laughed, Milo shooting me a flat look as Ada and I conspiratorially giggled. As we were giggling, Milo's younger brother - Felix - sauntered into the room. He had a cheerful smile on his face as he spotted his older brother, mouth opening to greet him. Like Milo, he had the same brown hair, though his was a little longer and more softly styled. His eyes were the same, but his face looked rounder, less harsh chiselled lines and more gentle boyish charm. To be fair, I hadn't seen the kid smile that much since he always had a sour look whenever I was around. This time was no different. His smile crumbled when he saw me, and I let out a soft 'yikes' when he visibly reeled back. Ouch.

"Sup, dude," I said, giving the kid (who was only a year and a bit younger than me, but a kid nonetheless) a small wave. Felix's face hardened, glaring at me before whirling around on his feet. "Bye, dude." Milo's eyebrows crinkled considerably, looking at me, and then at the doorway that no longer held his brother.

"Oh, sorry," Ada said, patting my arm apologetically. "He is at that age, unfortunately."

"Totally understand," I said, chuckling. "Been there, done that!" Taking in a deep breath, I grabbed onto Ada's hand, bouncing on the balls of my feet. "So, I smell my favourite dish in the whole entire world?"

"Of course!" Ada laughed, gesturing towards the kitchen. "I'm just waiting for the Knödel to finish. Won't be too long, so come to the kitchen after you wash your hands." I nodded with excitement, Ada humming to herself leisurely as she tiptoed back into the kitchen. 

"Hey, C, I'm sorry about Felix," Milo said, catching my elbow softly when I turned to head to the bathroom. Shaking my head with an unaffected laugh, I shrugged.

"Eh, he hates me, I get it," I said, Milo's face taking on that pained expression that, to most people, would probably just look like he got something in his eye. "He just thinks I'm too naughty to be friends with his saintly older brother." I snickered as Milo cringed, embarrassed.

"You know that's not true," Milo said firmly, making me pat his arm, feeling warm.

"It's not all false," I grinned, winking. "I mean, I am pretty naughty."

A/N: I don't know a lick of German, so anything in German is from google translate, which means it's probably wrong. Or just sliiiightly off. Many apologies to any German speakers, I've definitely butchered your wonderful language :')