General RP Forgotten Faces and Old Friends (Visiones)

[Kasumi]

Lee & Alex

Name: Lee Chapman
Age: 21
Hair & Eye Color: Black hair, brown eyes
Height: 5'7"
Profession: Art student, side jobs.
Jewelry: Various rings on index and ring finger
From: London, UK
Currently: USA

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Name: Alex Chapman
Age: 27
Hair & Eye Color: Black hair, brown eyes
Height: 5'9"
Profession: Language Teacher (Japanese). Leader of gang The Royal Demons.
Piercings: Ears and navel pierced
Tattoo: Crown on inner right wrist; related to gang.
From: London, UK
Currently: USA

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America wasn't so bad. The city wasn't bad, either. The clubbing scene was fun, better than the UK. Not that Lee clubbed when he was in the UK. Being too young and all back then. Word of mouth decided that for him, and Alex; his older brother. It felt good to drink and pop a pill to take the edge off, a typical prescription painkiller. He knew better than to use the harder stuff. Plus, painkillers were easy to come by. His college friends were his suppliers, his stash hidden in a shoebox inside his closet at home. His brother was aware of his dirty habits, hell his brother was even at the club with him! It was strange, but they each had their secrets, respecting each other's privacy - as much privacy as he could have with his older brother supervising him at the club.

Alex stayed by the bar, lazily keeping track of his brother's intake. He wasn't looking to cut his brother off at any point. It was more to let himself know how sloshed his brother would be when they walked home after this. Alex sipped at his own drink, the male glancing around the club. There were some familiar faces amongst the crowd, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Pulling his phone out, he distracted himself by scrolling around social media.

Lee spotted a rather handsome guy off in the distance. Feeling sufficiently high and very good, he approached the male. "Hey, handsome~." He purred, joining him where he was. "What do you say we get outta here? You can do whatever you want with me." He gently brushed the tips of his fingers over the male's arm. It was typical for Lee when he went clubbing; getting drunk and high, and ending the night in a motel or hotel room (hell, maybe even the stranger's own home!), thoroughly fucked out of his mind by a stranger. Anything for a much-needed, sweet distraction.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo was honestly hating the US. Everyone would crowd him, annoy him about his strange accent and even try to get pictures with him. It made him completely tense at all times, unable to relax at all. One specific night, the man decided that hell…maybe a few drinks would get his voices under control. Maybe the whispers would stop. So, he had found himself a club and was luckily accepted in. As Apollo held onto a glass of whiskey, quietly sipping it in a corner, he was approached by a very tipsy looking boy. Apollo was fine with him at first. Until the guy touched him. He quickly pulled back away from the boy as he looked down at him.

“No.” He said sharply, unaware of his tone due to the loud noises all around him. He felt somewhat overwhelmed by all the flashing lights, loud music and screaming people in front of him. Yet, he was able to find his little corner which he could just enjoy the music while watching the light patterns with awe. Now, Apollo felt severely annoyed by the sudden intrusion on his hypnotic, silent state. “I don’t wanna go anywhere with you. Thanks.” His tone sounded more of an insult than what he meant. All he was trying to do was say he didn’t want to leave with someone he didn’t know, and politely say thank you as not only an apology, but also for the offer. Yet, Apollo found himself replaying what he had just said in his mind and grimaced at his sudden realization.

”Sorry!” He spoke up, trying to hear himself over the music. “I didn’t mean it like that! I just don‘t wanna go anywhere!” Oh now he was screaming. He didn’t mean to of course. He was only attempting to understand himself over the loudness. “Thanks for the offer.” He added for safe measure. Yeah. The cherry on top to a seemingly rude first impression. How wonderful. However, his empathy was cut short as he heard a little voice in his mind say, That bitch.

 

[Kasumi]

Lee was a little out of it. He was present, but his mind and judgment were fuzzy enough that he missed the other's tone. Plus, the music was loud. So damn loud. It aided in drowning out bad thoughts but made it difficult for a tipsy Lee to attempt to seduce his potential bed partner. He smiled softly and went to move his hand on some other part of the male's body, completely without consent, until the male spoke up once more. He tilted his head slightly to the side, his smile still present, though slowly fading. He wasn't one to push- okay, that was a lie. He would push, but eventually, he would back down. He learned his lesson after a few harsh gentlemen turned him down.

Lee could sense the sudden tension building, the boy unsure if it was from himself or the other. Regardless, he figured it would be best to find someone else. "Sorry, sorry~" he said in a similar tone as before. Then, the male suddenly apologized and explained himself. "Hey, no worries, man!" He said as calmly as he could and held his hands up in defense, not wanting to seem like a threat. Some people came to the bar to let loose, and have some fun. Others came for the ambiance and only a drink. It wouldn't be hard at all for Lee to find someone to end up sleeping with that night. He would have to be a bit quicker as he had early classes the next day. He would certainly regret his choice to go out tonight in the morning. Present Lee didn't care.

With a shrug, Lee waved the male off to tell him not to worry. He then disappeared into the crowd, finding his next potential partner.

----​

The next day, Lee's head was pounding still from that morning. He overdid it again, the male unable to focus much in his classes. He walked out of the building, bag hanging over his shoulder, as he looked for Alex's car. His brother said something about a surprise, Lee not too sure what he had planned. He pulled his phone out, nearly ready to call Alex to see if he was even there yet when he bumped into someone. "Shit, sorry!" He apologized quickly before looking at who he had bumped into. The male looked strangely familiar and once the realization set in he froze. It was the guy from the club! The one he tried to get to sleep with him. "O-Oh, God, Sir... I'm so sorry!" He apologized again, his face flushing a cute red on his cheeks. "That's gotta be... pretty embarrassing. Hey, I'm sorry about last night." There was a chance the other didn't even know what he was talking about. Best he quit while he was ahead. It would be great if Alex showed up right about now.

Alex soon spotted Lee talking with someone and he shook his head, a warm smile gracing his lips. "Lee, there you are! Everything alright?" He asked as he approached the two, the blush on his brother's cheeks a curious sight to behold.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine, Alex. I just bumped into him," Lee said, motioning toward the stranger.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo had been trying so hard to get his life together. He really wanted to go to school. A nice school that could cater to his needs. However, just as he was walking around the campus, a smaller force crashed into him, making him grunt as he stopped in his tracks and stared down at the boy in front of him. It was that same guy…from the club. The same one who was feeling him up. As Apollo listened to the apology, he opened his mouth to speak when he was interrupted by another male voice. He looked up silently to see another guy walking over to them. He seemed familiar…but he couldn’t pinpoint where. Apollo then cleared his throat. “It’s all fine.“ He said plainly. “I was too caught up as well. You’re good.” He murmurs to the smaller boy as Apollo stared at the taller one. Where was that guy from? Who was he?

After a moment of silence, Apollo clears his throat. “Um…I’m sorry if I was rude last night.” He moved his attention to the smaller boy. “I completely accept your apology though. No need to worry.” He gave a slight crooked smile, trying to show he was genuine. Apollo was never good at smiling. No matter how hard he tried, his eyes were always squinted closed, or he was showing too much teeth. Or not enough teeth. Sometimes, he would think he was smiling, when in reality, he was giving the cameras a death stare. Apollo really did try. But eventually, he had just given up and went with his natural lopsided smile. At times when he was really happy, you could see his dimples, as well as see his eyes squint. That was when you knew he was genuinely smiling. Not just faking.

As Apollo stood there in his place, he fidgeted with a string on his jacket, his smile fading to a blank look. Some people had told him he had a ‘resting bitch face.’ Whatever that meant. It probably meant he looked mean. Even when he wasn’t trying to.

 

[Kasumi]

Lee's face flushed a little darker as the male did indeed remember him from the club. "Please, no you're fine! I'm the rude one. I'm told I get handsy when I'm drunk. I promise I'm all for consent!" He overexplained, not wanting to seem like a creep to avoid whenever he was out. He smiled nervously, glancing back toward his bother. Alex had a strange look on his face.

"Wait. I think... Are you Apollo?" Alex asked suddenly. As soon as he had seen the other male, memories flashed in Alex's mind. If he was correct, he had just happened upon his old childhood friend! "I can't believe it. It's me, Alex Chapman!" He said with an enthusiastic nod. "Hey, listen! I was gonna surprise Lee and take him out for some dinner after his long day of classes. Do you want to join us?"

"Aw, surprise ruined!" Lee exclaimed, gently punching his brother in the shoulder in a playful manner. Still, it was quite a surprise that they all supposedly knew each other. From his brother's dinner date offer, he was certain it was catch-up time. Only, of course, if the other agreed to join them. He shrugged, "I'm good with whatever." He added.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo stiffened at his name as he stared back up at Alex. Alex Chapman…Alex… Apollo gasped slightly as he slowly came to remember him. His old friend. His…friend… He’s not really him. Imposter. Imposter! Not real! Apollo grunts as he shakes his head free of the thoughts creeping in and looks up at Alex with his same half smile. “Oh…well…okay…as long as it’s ok with…um…L…” It took a hot minute for Apollo to remember the boys name again. But once he did, he took a breath, “Lee. If it’s ok with Lee. Sure…yeah…” he mumbles as he tugs as the string on his jacket, almost suffocating himself as the hoodie tightens around his neck. “What time?“ He said bluntly. He didn’t seem all too enthusiastic about the invitation, but inside, he felt happy to be able to catch up with his…old…friend…

Apollo shifts his weight as he looks down at Lee. He needed to find a different focus. Anything…so he then started staring at the boys hair. It seemed soft. He really wanted to touch it, but decided against it after thinking about it.

 

[Kasumi]

Alex's brows raised at the man's reaction, a memory quickly flooding into his mind. His smile softened and he shook his head. "Or, you know, we can do something else. Would coming over to our place be better? I can make a good dinner for us." Alex offered gently. "Whatever you're comfortable with," he added on, leaving the decision for Apollo. He hoped that option would ease the man's nerves if he felt he had more control. "Mm, is now a bad time?" He asked when the time was mentioned.

Lee looked between the two and left the talking to Alex. It seemed the two were rather familiar with each other and Lee felt a little funny. He didn't want to interfere with anything. He shrugged once more, "We can do whatever. I'm cool."

Alex would be sure to reschedule that little dinner surprise with Lee for another time. He trusted his brother would understand and be fine with it. "If you're not busy, anyway. Do you go to this school, too?" Alex asked.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo blinks up at Alex, then clears his throat. “Um…it’s whatever. All up to you guys.“ He shifts on his feet once more, avoiding any eye contact he could. After a moment, he murmurs, “Oh no. No I’m just trying to tour here. I um…I just wanted to continue school…get my degree…” Apollo felt himself feel as if he was about to explode. His anxiety bit and kicked at his mind as he tugged on his hoodie drawstrings. However, just as he was about to zone out, Apollo blinked and snapped his gaze up at Alex.

”Wait- now? The…things now?” He hopped he misunderstood. However, if he hadn’t, he was about to panic even more than he already felt. He wasn’t ready! He hadn’t been able to get changed into actual clothing! And what about Lee? What if he wasn’t ok with this? Even if the boy said he was fine, Apollo still worried.

 

[Kasumi]

Alex could sense the tension and anxiety from the other and he tried to think of how to calm the situation. Apollo said it was fine, but he really didn't seem to be into it. His smile then grew wider. "Oh, that's great!" He looked at Lee for a second before turning back to Apollo. "If it's okay with you, would you like Lee to take you on a tour? Just to get a feel for the place. You don't have to." Alex made sure to make it clear that Apollo didn't have to do anything he didn't want to. He was the one in control.

"Perhaps after the tour? Or, we can always make it for another time, it's fine." He said with a nod.

Lee smiled softly, willing to help the other tour around campus.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo blinked and seemed to relax as he was given more control over the situation. With a slight nod, he agreed to being taken on a tour. “I’d like that.” He murmurs, starting to relax. With a soft sigh, Apollo smiled at Alex. “Thanks. I appreciate it. It…was nice seeing you…again…” He trailed off and stared into space for a while, then shook his head and looked back up from his miniature trance.

“I could give you my number and you could text me a good time…” He offers, trying to hide the fact that his mind had already started going all over the place.

 

[Kasumi]

"Great!" Alex said. "Do you guys mind if I join?" He asked, already knowing Lee didn't care. With the same warm smile, he nodded. "It's great to see you again, too. You look good." He added, wanting to boost the other's confidence some. At the mention of phone numbers, Alex pulled his cell phone out, pulling up the contacts page. "I'd love that. Here, you can add your number. I'll text you so you can add mine." Alex said, handing his phone over to Apollo.

With that done, Lee was ready to give the other a tour. Before starting, Lee asked what the other was majoring in. With that information, he would show Apollo whatever he wanted to see and answer any questions he could with what he knew about it. If he wasn't sure about something, he suggested seeing someone higher up, like one of the college student counselors to help him with any further questions.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo seemed zoned out for a while until he was asked what he was majoring. With that, he murmured under his breath, “Criminology…” He looked almost embarrassed to say it, his voice down to a soft, almost inaudible whisper. Though…it made sense. He used to be fascinated with crime and the court system even as a kid. He would spend hours at a time researching and analyzing everything there was to know about criminology. Hell…even rehabilitation. It was also something Apollo had sadly been bullied for. He had even been put on a school watch list for how invested he was in the topic of crime. Teachers hated him, kids called him names, and principals would pluck him out of class every time something happened in the school. A kid wrote on the walls? They would immediately question Apollo. If someone broke a water fountain, they would blame Apollo. It was no wonder he had started getting invested in court justice at 7. He had faced so much punishment from schools for no good reason, other than he was just looking up crime reports on the school computers.

With a shaky breath, Apollo ripped himself from his thoughts as he shoved his hands in his pockets. He seemed so awkward. The poor thing looked as if he would run away at any moment.

 

[Kasumi]

The two brothers nearly struggled to hear the other's answer, Alex catching it quicker than Lee. "Oh, criminology?" He asked to confirm. They both nodded, not thinking too much about the male's major. The two dabbled in listening to true crime stories so they were interested in the topic but that was about it. Lee didn't know too much about the major relating to campus, so he answered what he could, referring the rest of the questions to a counselor. Alex was pretty sure he knew of Apollo's interest back when they were close friends, the memory slightly vague. As this was their first meeting in so long, Alex didn't want to bombard the male with questions. So, they continued to tour once they knew where to go.

With the tour concluded, they headed back outside to where they first met. Apollo seemed so on edge, so Alex thought it may be better to part ways for now.

"It was really good seeing you again, Apollo," Alex said gently. "Whenever you're ready to hang out, maybe have a nice meal together and chat, you can message me. Sound good?" He resumed in the same gentle tone. He left it completely up to Apollo. If the male didn't want to meet up again, that would be fine. Alex understood that he had just up and left one day without so much as a hint that he and his family were leaving. He partially blamed his father for such matters but didn't want to get into it. Not now. Really, he wasn't sure if he would want to get into it much. He also let Apollo know if he just wanted to meet up alone, without Lee around. If the male had options, perhaps it would feel better.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo nodded slightly, now fidgeting with his hair as he grew more and more tense. Maybe this man wasn’t Alex. What if this was a stranger pretending to be Alex? Wearing his own skin just to trick Apollo. To gain his trust. Apollo wanted to rip that mask off so damn bad… No. Stop. Don’t think that. Stop. He scolded himself quietly as he stared off into the distance for a moment. Just as he snapped out of his trance, he blinked once and looked at Alex. “Yeah. I’ll text you sometime to plan out a meet up. Thanks.” Secretly, he didn’t return the ‘nice to see you again’. Because as far as he was convinced, this wasn’t Alex. Yet, he would make sure to confirm this suspicion on a later time. For now, he needed to calm down.

After some more thought, he remembered his manners and turned to Lee. “Thanks for showing me around.“ Then before he turned, he added, “I’ll see you guys again soon.“ With that, Apollo quickly walked away without another word. Usually, this was typical for the man. To seem so blunt and straightforward. To forget basic manners. People who would have known Apollo for long periods of time would have already known that he was definitely a bit off. Strange some would say. He tried his best to fit in…but it never seemed to pay off for long. Lots of strangers would see him as rude or unbecoming, but in reality? He just didn’t quite know how to socialize. He tried so hard though, and those who were close with him could tell.

As Apollo rushed home, he slammed his door shut, not caring about his neighbors who could be listening and screamed into a pillow. Why did he feel so much rage? Why was he so shaky? He hated it! He hated these scary thoughts of hurt. He didn’t want that! And yet…deep down, he craved it.

“No! No stop it I said! Stop!” Apollo begged for the voices, those images to go away. Maybe he just needed a nap…yeah. A nap might help. So, in desperate need to ignore these dark thoughts, he laid himself down on his couch and closed his eyes. It was around 8, already dark out when Apollo woke up. He had been ripped from his sleep by a terrifying image of gore and screaming, causing him to scream awake and almost fall from his couch. As his eyes darted around the room, Apollo’s heart pounded in his chest. Ok…that didn’t work… Maybe he should just text Alex. With that, Apollo picked up his phone and typed a simple,

-Hi.

 

[Kasumi]

As Apollo disappeared, Alex was able to treat Lee to his surprise dinner. Over their meal, Alex explained the few oddities regarding Apollo’s behavior when Lee asked. It gave the younger male a better understanding if they were to bump into each other again. It was to approach him calmly and to give him time. Seemed simple enough!

When they arrived home, Alex got a text from his old friend. Smiling to himself, he replied:

-Hey! What’s up?

He left his phone on the kitchen table and cleaned up here and there as he awaited Apollo’s reply.

 

[Visiones]

Apollo paced his apartment as he stared at the text for a long while. Should he really do this? Maybe he should leave this guy alone. But…maybe he should investigate? He should at least try. Right?

-I was thinking about your offer. When should we meet up? I can tell you when I’m free.

Was that too blunt? He hoped not. What if that question meant something different? What if there was something he didn’t get? A hidden message? Maybe there actually was a hidden message. As Apollo began to spiral down that same loophole, he highlighted the message that was sent to him. As he did, he couldn’t see any white text. What if… “Stop it, damnit…” He murmured to himself as he sat down on his couch. He needed to breathe. Maybe some background noise would help. As he turned on his TV, Apollo scrolled through YouTube and picked a random stream from someone he was subscribed to. That should help…maybe.

 

[Kasumi]

Alex sat down in the living room with a stack of papers to grade as he waited. He had gotten through a few before his phone went off. He checked the text and replied.

-Sure! When are you free?

Was his simple question. He sent the text and set his phone down to resume grading. Alex was trusting of his old friend. He wouldn't think twice about meeting up with him. Unbeknownst to the male, his friend was going through a pretty rough time. He didn't know of his friend's new struggles. Since last seeing Apollo, not much had changed. He was still the same Alex, same hair and eye color. His hair may have been styled a little differently, but that was about it. The only real difference was the new tattoo on his wrist. But people get tattoos all the time! It shouldn't freak his friend out, he wouldn't believe it to.