" franks, i know the sound of your laugh too well for you to tell me you didn't have fun. " of course, there has been some down times too, otherwise they might have made it. but he likes to focus on the good. for them to have remained friends, only proves his point. amusement crinkles the corner of his eyes, chuckle sounding. " sorry, no can do. these ears are primed to listen at all times. i can't be blamed for what other people say. " and when your ex girlfriend is up for discussion, it's difficult to tune out. if only for the fact he'll always be ready to jump in and defend any disparagement against her name. because when blue cares about someone, he cares, in his own way, for life. and a certain level of protectiveness will always accompany that. " how long have you been skirting around it ? " he asks, curious. rolling his own eyes when she tells him to chill out. a little bit disappointed. " fine. " as her next words come, his smile threatens to falter, but he's become skilled at keeping it in place. " yup . . . that's me. " but it's not, is it ? and while blue has long since given up caring that the majority think of him that way, it hurts a little that someone he once loved might genuinely believe it, too. responsibility has been all he's known since he was ten years old. he'd raised three siblings, the youngest of which now calls him dad. dropped out of school to work in order to keep his family afloat, and still to this day he's running a bar while taking on as many side ( albeit illegal ) jobs as he can to ensure their life is better than his. " mr. shortcut. but i always get the job done. "