Adrien Shakes His Head.

Lucas chuckles.

"So I should maintain my regular professionalism with the undertone of, 'You're not good enough for my best friend, but you're still good for her' level of amicability?"

He raises a questioning eyebrow with his smirk, continuing the light-hearted tone they've moved to.

Anastasia feels a swell of gratitude for Lucas; he’s been her steady anchor since they both took on the responsibility of leading this town. She manages a smile, nodding at his statement of hope. “You’re damn right we are.”

As she watches him idly sort through items on the table, she’s caught off guard when he brings up Cameron. She gives a casual shrug. “We’re alright. I just went over to check on her… you know I still care, even if we’re not together.” She knows he understands; they’ve spent more than a few nights drinking and hashing out the complexities of her and Cameron’s past.

With a bit of a wry smile, she adds, “I don’t think she’ll be coming to game night, though.” She tries to keep the tone light, hiding the small sting of disappointment behind a half-joke.

Tanner Buchanan photographed by The Emma Experience, 2020

Lucas hums.

"How many thoughts does a penny get you. I've got a few but I don't know how much you earn."

He smirks, enjoying the teasing conversation more than he usually would.

He looks over to the man with his smirk still in place.

A soft laugh escapes him. 'Exactly. You need to stay sitting for a few hours or I'll be out of a job.' He enjoys scavenging, more than he thought he would at least. When he first arrived Muz opted for what he though of as the least trying job with the least of a social aspect. Between trash collecting and scouring the place the way he does, he's happy with his decision. 'Go on. Hurry up, penny for your thoughts - or I've got a killer game of eye spy for us.' He raises his eyebrows in mock enthusiasm. 'Riveting.'

Lucas looks at the glass placed in front of him, seriously considering pushing it away. Then with a sigh, he crumples the paper and picks up the glass.

"Jim's not gonna be happy," he mutters as he taps his glass against Adam's then throws back the drink. Feeling the cheap alcohol run hot down his throat actually feels good in this moment.

He really needs to relax more often. Have a few drinks, get laid, talk about nothing and everything.

"You see those things out there? Running around like it's the middle of the fucking night?"

"You've been staring up and down that list boss, like anything's gonna prepare you for the mountain of shit we're gonna have to deal with tomorrow." there was no point in planning, not in a place like this, there was also no way to be prepared. So Adam walks over behind the bar, places two cups before the other and pours whatever piss-tasting-ale was confined within a glass bottle on the middle shelf. "Now come on, let's drink -- we did the best we could -- hell, we did better than that."

TANNER BUCHANAN in COBRA KAI

Adrien laughs with him.

"Yeah. Figured I could get my hands on new phones and figure them out better."

Adrien looks at the panel again.

"Maybe. We've got a radio station, right? There any other satellites or power lines?"

Then he laughs even louder.

"God, I almost worked at one too. Are they as stuck up as they sound?"

'T-Mobile, yeah?' Before he can stifle it, a huff of a laugh pours out. Not at Lucas, mind you - just that he'd run through a great mound of jobs in his adult life and since arriving here, had cursed himself for not settling into something handy job-wise as an adult. Something that could have been practical and put to use in a place like Oblitus. Not having these kinds of skills in his repertoire makes him feel less than more often than not. It's these little slips of information from past lives of other people stuck here that remind him to not be so hard on himself with that. Though he doesn't doubt life on a farm might give Lucas a leg up here.

Muz nods at the panel in Lucas' hand. 'You should start work on a cell tower with that there. I worked at the, uh... The Apple shop. Once. The genius bar - I thought the title was funny so I applied but hated it.'

Lucas considers this. He's been in a lot of the woods around town but hasn't come across a tree like that. Of course, that's not at all surprising. Still, it has him thinking.

"Okay," he says, focusing back on Elm. "That's good. Was there anything else?"

He gives her a small smile.

ELM CONSIDERS THE QUESTION FOR A MOMENT BEFORE SHRUGGING . " it's the only thing i remember ." elm wonders if that's enough to make it notable . there's another beat of thought where their head tilts before they're adding a, " there was a moon over it ." their brows furrow a bit . " it was full and ..." a thoughtful pause before elm is making a round gesture with their hands . " the tree was by itself . in a circle, like this ."

where: infirmary when: after the storm whom: @hcartcorruptcd

Adrien spends most of the morning after the storm at the town hall, getting the official rundown of where he is now and what the fuck they know.

Spoiler alert: not a whole lot.

Finally he's freed after his interview and led down the street to the infirmary. He's told that since he has mechanical skills he'll be working under someone named El at the Chop Shop. After a few months, he'll be allowed to apply for other jobs but for now, this is where he'll be.

He's led inside and to a room with lines of... beds? They don't look particularly comfortable but he supposes there aren't too many resources around.

He's pointed to a bed where a slightly older brown-haired person is laying. He shuffles over and tries to offer a comforting smile.

"Hi," he greets. "Sorry if this is a bad time but I was told I'm supposed to report to you for my assigned work."

Lucas hums and considers the best way to explain.

"So there was a cartoon show about a teenage girl, Kim Possible, that while also being a student and cheerleader, she was a hero that went around the world and saved people. She took her best friend, Ron Stoppable, with her. So Ana is Kim, and I'm Ron."

He sighs and rubs his face

"Yeah, it's loud. I think there are some quiet rooms upstairs in the east wing if you want to get away?"

East wing is designated quiet areas. West wing rooms are for private and not quiet activities.

she didn't understand his joke, but she offers a smile anyway. "what are you supposed to be?" not that she would even know when he tells her. her knowledge was very limited.

"no, i hate this," she says, looking out at the party. "it's too loud." it was the worst day of the year in her opinion and not because of the monsters outside.

Lucas is tempted to take the bottle, but he has things he needs to do today. Things he needs to be sober for.

"Yeah, not this time."

He lifts a foot to stretch while he talks.

"It helps me focus on things I need to do," he replies. "So yeah, I do it a lot. Probably more than I really need to, but it is what it is."

He let's his gaze travel over Adam's relaxed state, lying out, acting (if not feeling) careless and free. He's jealous that even if it's not 100% real, it still clearly helps the man. Is that the source of his unease with Adam?

If anything could make a man feel like shit, it was seeing another man be more of a man than himself. And going for a healthy morning jog was the epitome of fitness and health in Adams books. He doubted he'd ever become that person. "Time is just a concept, at the end of the day. 'Sides, I think I deserve a treat -- you know, after all the shit that went down." shit he had to see. Bodies he had to bury. He processed in his own way. "Guessin' that's a no to my offer?" he puts the bottle aside for now, almost uncomfortable at the fact other was standing and not sitting down beside him. "Running? That something you do a lot?"