#strcngth

[antdesilvs]

closed starter for @strcngth location: wren's nest, a few days after the party

after his talk with wren and his scolding (for lack of a better word) from georgia, anthony knew that he needed to come clean. continuing to keep this secret from musa was only going to hurt both of them in the long run. and a... public space was probably the best place to tell your best friend that you slept with his ex, right? the diner was slow, at least, so there wasn't anyone around to hear the confession that he was about to give.

ant swirls one of his now semi-cold fries in the ketchup on his plate. "so," he starts, popping the fry into his mouthing before he continues, "that party was crazy, right?" okay, definitely not the topic he was intending to broach right now, but maybe anthony could find a way to segue into what he really wanted to say. "i can't believe it was just that-- a party. can you?"

[antdesilvs]

closed starter for @strcngth location: inside the cabin, near the refreshments

once anthony had finally made it inside the cabin, he was blown away by how set up everything was. if this was a trap from that anonymous psycho, it was a pleasantly decorated one. he had to tell himself to believe that whoever had lured them here wouldn't try attacking them in front of so many people from town. but he also couldn't trust that this was just a surprise part for liza-- it felt too good to be true.

after being promptly chewed out by vienna about not bringing a cake (which he had no idea about, mind you, but vienna was not hearing any excuses), he made his way over to the refreshments. he had no idea who had brought them, and he didn't know if any of it was trustworthy. as much as he wanted a drink right now, all he did was examine each can and bottle, looking for ways either might have been tampered with.

he was just putting down a can of beer when he noticed a familiar face. "musa!" ant called, feigning excitement over seeing his friend so as not to draw suspicion their way, "a surprise party for liza. can you believe it?"

[antdesilvs]

closed starter for @strcngth location: at one of the dinner tables

for anthony, it was pretty easy to pick out musa in the crowd. he could always find his best friend, even in the most crowded of places, but the purple shirt definitely made him stand out. though anthony hadn't seen eliza yet, he hoped that she had gotten to see musa and taken a picture together -- two purples in a sea of red, white, and pink.

anthony made a beeline over, pulling out one of the chairs at the table that his friend was perched at. he glanced from the dance floor to his best friend.

"think you'll be able to dance on that ankle?" the memory of their night in the graveyard was still ever-present in anthony's mind. the guilt of putting them in danger practically radiating off of him. "i would hate to see you stuck in a chair all night."

[antdesilvs]

closed start for @strcngth location: bitter end coffee

as anthony slides into the chair by the window, he slides the steaming mug of coffee across the table to musa. it had been a crazy few days, from the party to the funeral to now. ant felt as if he hadn't caught a wink of sleep, a side effect of all of his grief and pent-up anxiety. he was grateful to musa, a steady presence in his life even after all these years.

he felt relaxed as he cups his own mug into his hands, blowing on the steam to cool the liquid down before he takes a tentative sip. it felt good, the burn on his tongue, but he quickly sets the mug back down and looks up at his best friend.

"so," he began, letting out a sigh, "what the fuck, right?"

[antdesilvs]

location: the porters' dining room closed starter for @strcngth

when ant had laid eyes on musa at the party, it was as if all the light in the world had shone on his best friend. okay, so maybe ant was a little drunk. it was pretty obvious in the way he immediately threw an arm around his best friend’s shoulders and then proceeded to stumble into a chair.

regardless of how inebriated he was, ant was determined to get a game of beer pong going. it only makes sense that he would rope musa into his antics, in the hopes that his best friend wasn’t looking to play the angel on his shoulder tonight.

“there’s plenty of beer, but we need cups, musa. cups!”