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[img]https://i.imgur.com/TRLli0Q.png[/img]
[sub][@BrutalBx] & [@NeoAJ][/sub]
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[indent][indent]With one of Fleetwood Mac’s most hidden gems, [url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EYkslCXJMGE&pp=ygUQaXNudCBpdCBtaWRuaWdodA%3D%3D]Isn’t it Midnight[/url], blaring out of the speakers as the [url=https://www.classicdriver.com/sites/default/files/cars_images/feed_738228/d5fbe6eaedb6423a5f71fcc2df1f8f1d472e5b19.jpg]The Roadster[/url], one hundred percent a little bit over the speed limit, screeched down the highway towards the Pier, where a yacht of bountiful plunder awaited, Ziggy glanced from behind their Top Gun aviators at the single passenger of their convertible; one Kainat Qureshi. 

Ziggy had known Kai going on fifteen years, since their family arrived in Florida from Baltimore. She was an early friend for the owner and proprietor of the Dead End Lounge AKA the hottest fucking club in Miami, baby. When Zig first made their way into the social hive that was King's Academy, they initially struggled to find their way. There weren’t many people who were willing to reach out to the non-binary kid in a sheer flowing dress who had the mouth of a sailor and the temperament of a porn star. Kai was one of the few that was willing and Ziggy always made sure that she knew how much they appreciated that. This was why when the sun-kissed wandering angel contacted them and asked for a place to crash prior to whatever the hell was about to go down at their ten-year high school reunion, Zig couldn’t refuse.

To say they weren’t intrigued by the prospect of catching up with some old faces would be a lie. Ziggy had stayed in contact with a few of his fellow alumni from Kings over the years, with many making their club a port in the storm over the years. Others they had only been able to see via social feeds and lifetime movies. Zig had always been a people watcher, an instigator when it was time to solve the problems of their compatriots, even if it was as simple as throwing a party to make sure two people who needed to hook up were locked inside a closet for seven minutes of dry humping. Zig wanted to know how everyone turned out and selfishly, they wanted to know if they were right about certain people all along.

[color=FF4C6E]“Penny for your thoughts, KQ? You look like you’re confused or in desperate need of a shit.”[/color]

That was Ziggy. You could say a lot of things about them, but they were always quick to the point with just the right splash of inappropriate. At least for the old Kai.

[color=AD1F9A]“Well, if it was the latter, I’m not sure I’d risk it at one of these gas stations, but I will admit, I don’t know how this is going to go for me.”[/color]

For someone who has had to relieve themselves in some uncomfortable places, it was strange to think that the… Thousand Sunny could top them all. However, since her arrival in Miami a day earlier, it was tough for Kainat to think about anything else. It had been ages since she had seen the majority of her classmates. Only a select few had contact with her since she left for her undergrad at Princeton. How the hell were they going to perceive her now that she was merely a Bachelor of Science as opposed to the doctors and lawyers and successful people that were surely going to have emerged?

Kai-Q tried to keep count of how many people might know that the hijab had been long abandoned for the life of a vagabond, aside from the trips to the locales where observing the local customs was the right play. The driver of the vintage vehicle serving as her ferry to the yacht obviously knew. It wasn’t the party lifestyle that linked Ziggy and Kai during the Kings’ days, with the Pakistani-American abstaining while under her parents’ roof, but they were both excellent students and both headed off to the Ivy League. So when Kai started breaking down in senior year, Ziggy got a lot of her attention, as well as the girls in her classes. Ziggy tried to get her to come down to Miami at that time, but instead, she accepted Kristen’s offer to travel to Morocco, and that was that.

But Ziggy was also a safe haven for her. As the channel was starting to grow and Kai was trying to figure out what she was going to do, Ziggy always had a spot at their place, a meal at their table, and a bit of green to calm things down. Now that she was a bit more open-minded, Kai was able to see the point of certain things and enjoy more of Ziggy’s talents. It was a huge benefit heading into this party.

And Asher would be there. Asher was her business manager, in a sense. He negotiated the money coming into her accounts from the various sponsors and made sure the contracts were on the up and up. He had that level of trust with Kai. But who else? Trevor, maybe? Matty, if he escaped from whatever shack he was staying in? And then after that, who would there be? A lot of people probably expecting the buttoned-down cheat sheet that stuck to her after-school activities and went home right after.

She struggled to think about how she would handle that revelation, and she still did. Her hand rested in the purple-streaked hair she sported for this party, a royal purple for the Kings’ reunion. It didn’t completely hide her natural black tones, but it was still a welcome contrast. She liked the freedom to change her hair color as she pleased. As the wind was hitting it, cooling her brain down, she still wasn’t coming up with a cogent plan.

[color=AD1F9A]“Trapped on a boat for a night with a bunch of people probably expecting me to be doing something else… shoot, I don’t even know how many of them will even recognize me at this point.”[/color]

[color=FF4C6E]"You’re kidding right?”[/color] Ziggy shook their head as they pulled into the next lane of traffic. [color=FF4C6E]"Sweet, sugar, my baby lollipop princess.”[/color] Reaching out with their bejeweled fingers adorned with rings of high value, the club owner pressed their fingertips onto Kai’s shoulder and gave the young woman a reaffirming squeeze. [color=FF4C6E]"Listen to Mama, ok? Cos she did not just get dressed in her finest Stevie Nicks flowing dress just to drive through these muggy Florida palms and turn back before anyone sees us looking this sexy.”[/color] Zig glanced towards their friend whilst trying to maintain eyes on a steadily growing traffic problem.

Ziggy for all their flaws had over the years somehow taken on a more parental role amongst the reprobates and miscreants that called Kings their alma mater. Zig, a heavy drug user, corrupted genius and usually fabulous bitch was dishing out advice, meddling in love lives and making sure that their friends, loved ones and randoms were always happy and feeling themselves at their best. It was a strange sensation, being a protector when one considers themselves toxic to begin with.

[color=FF4C6E]"Nobody is expecting you to do shit, ok? Like you realize who some of the people we went to school with are, right? The expectation on them is far worse than the one on us. We just two illustrious bitches coming to fuck shit up and maybe get ourselves fucked. Open bar on international waters? Sissy the world is ours, and so is everything in it.”[/color]

[color=AD1F9A]“I’ve certainly been able to see a lot of that world the past few years,”[/color] Kai concurred as she patted her driver’s hand, rubbing the ring on top of it for that extra bit of silent praise. [color=AD1F9A]“And there are definitely some nice things to take. You should make it up to my place in East Point sometime when I’m not out and about. I can show you even better stuff than I’ve brought you down here.”[/color]

She was wearing a bit of it to the ocean affair. As Ziggy pointed out, they did look sexy. At least Kai thought so. The playful [img=https://imgur.com/a/pRxWcRu]green and white dress[/img] she was wearing for the evening was a pickup from a quaint little shop in Java that she couldn’t help but give some extra rupiah to ensure would be hers. It also showed more skin than she was ever allowed to show in the halls of Kings, lest her dad be informed how much of a harlot his youngest was being, as well as a couple of new tattoos that she added to her look. In truth, her father had mellowed a decent amount in the 10 years since she was in high school, realizing how much pressure he was putting on both his daughters. It wasn’t full acceptance, but it was something.

Still, Kai at least knew where she stood with her family. Aside from the handful of people she kept in touch with, she still had no idea what anyone from her teenage years would think of her now. That was part of the joy of traveling. Sure, if she went to some place in the States or the odd European excursion, she might get a fan or two nowadays, but for the most part, there were no expectations of her. Every person that she met while off on one of her whirlwind trips had no knowledge of Kai-Q and her cheat sheet service, or the girl with the Princeton degree. They saw someone entering their world and they would judge her right there on how they would talk to her and interact with her. It wasn’t always a positive interaction, but it was far less stressful and more enjoyable than anything she would have done in a hospital or a courtroom.

Maybe that’s why Ziggy ended up her closest friend out of the high school collective. She knew there was no reason to judge them back then based on their appearance, just as they didn’t judge her. It started as mutual respect and then evolved into so much more. They were a hotly-requested guest on the channel, even if they had their clear preferences for locations. Besides, who else had a ride this fly ready to roll to this party?

[color=AD1F9A]“Maybe I’m more worried for everyone else about having their mind blown when I show up? I mean, if you didn’t know what I’d done after high school and just guessed based on those days, I’m pretty sure this is not the occupation or look you would expect to see me sporting. And don’t lie to me Ziggy, I can tell when you’re lying.”[/color]

Zig placed a hand on their chest in a feigned shock with mouth agape before returning it to the steering wheel. [color=FF4C6E]"Me? Lie? Oh my little caramel square, I don’t lie. I just don’t always tell the truth.”[/color] Their outburst of laughter was devilish and dirty. [color=FF4C6E]"But of course you’re right. We all expected you to have cured cancer by now but here you are, a foxy millionaire with umpteen million followers and abs you can bounce a quarter off. Speaking of, what is it with you travel types? You seen Trev Moreau lately? Doctor Jones but on some BEEF. Daddy History can dig around in me any time.”[/color]

Kai looks down at her stomach. [color=AD1F9A]“Oh I don’t know if my abs are that good. But I did see Trevor recently. I can confirm he looks pretty good for an archeologist. Probably going to swing in on a vine and land on the deck.”[/color] She hadn’t spoken with Trevor before the party, but they had collaborations on a couple of things given they were both crisscrossing the world. Still, she wasn’t much for keeping tabs on people from high school. That was her driver’s forte.

Unlike some others, Ziggy had kept a lot of tabs open for their high school friends. It was their business after all, knowing what people needed and desired. It had been that way from the moment Chester Patrova first walked into the halls of Kings. At the time, they were still using He as a pronoun but knew that they were non-binary. It didn’t take the would-be Zig to figure out how to survive the Academy’s Serengeti atmosphere. Rich kids were primal in their instincts, they wanted and they were gonna get it one way or another; so it only made sense for Chester to be the one to get it for them. It started small, candy bars and homework answer sheets, that was easy enough they grew up on the mean streets of Baltimore. As time progressed it became weed and then eventually the hard shit. 

Ziggy didn’t particularly mind being called a drug dealer in the same way that they didn’t mind someone fucking up their pronouns. At the end of the day, they didn’t care what others thought about them but put much value on how they viewed their services. Zig was a businessperson born and if they weren’t providing the required service then what was the point in trying to do business? To survive Kings, Ziggy knew that they had to adopt a mantra which even to this day they still live by. As Gordon Gecko once said in Wall Street: [color=FF4C6E][i]“greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.”[/i][/color]

In the distance in front of the roadster, Zig could see the docks where they would depart, and in its bay sat the yacht that would be their home for the weekend. Seeing such majesty did not make Ziggy miss the harsh dry docks of Baltimore. They didn’t miss seeing a bunch of sweaty bearded polacks cuss out each other or weep in hidden dark corners when they lost hours and struggled to feed their families. No. Zig didn’t miss that hellhole one bit. [color=FF4C6E]"Almost there, get your game face on, honey.”[/color]

As much as Ms. Qureshi wanted to posture for her friend, the yacht still looked imposing in spite of the name. The massive boat was growing larger by the second, but still, Zig was right. She had no reason to be worried. She was going to be fine! She had backup! No matter what happened! And if people were shocked by who she had become, then they could learn themselves! For all the teaching and answers she gave in high school, it’s the least they could do!

[color=AD1F9A]“Good thing I don’t have to apply any war paint that I didn’t already put on at your place, Zig,”[/color] she remarked. [color=AD1F9A]“I’m ready for action. Let’s get in there and show off. I can’t promise I’ll match your talents in that regard but I’ll give it my best efforts.”[/color]

Ziggy giggled as they spun the wheel of the classic motor car which was guided by their hand then pulled into the parking area of the marina. [color=FF4C6E]"Oh my Kai…”[/color] Zig stopped the Jaguar in an available space and turned to face his friend once more. [color=FF4C6E]"Nobody can show off like me because I am the whole fucking show.”[/color] The master of the nightclub booped Kai’s nose with their painted fingernails before turning the engine off.

They glanced around, trying to absorb the surrounding faces and process the information. Zig never had any enemies and everyone owed him a favor but that’s not what the weekend was about. The weekend for them was all about seeing where everyone was, what they had become, and crushing them for forty-eight hours under the weight of long-held desires. Ziggy couldn’t wait. They stepped out of the car, a soft breeze blowing their flowy black dress around them, and tossed the car keys to a waiting valet. [color=FF4C6E]"Scratch her and I’ll use your dick as an umbrella for my cocktails. Mmmkay? Thanks lovey.”[/color]

Ziggy waited for Kai to get out of the other side and watched as some employees took what bags they had brought with them from the boot of the Jag and began to carry them onto the boat. Of course, being who they were, Zig had brought some “party favors” much like had done oh so many times in the bygone days of King's Academy. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Lacing their fingers with Kai’s, Zig moved their gaze to the people that were already at the yacht, faces that had aged from when last they were seen but were still as obvious as Tom Cruise’s height. [color=FF4C6E]"Come on Mama, let’s go say hi.”[/color]

Kai let out the breath that she was holding unbeknownst to herself. Despite all the psyche ups, this was still uncharted territory for her. Especially let her former classmates see her at her most vulnerable, with a beverage in her hand. Zig’s hand kept her tethered to reality, making sure she knew that this was real. This would be fine. It would probably be uneventful. A murmured hello, a quick “what are you up to?” that a half-minute on socials would solve. That was the Occam's Razor situation. However, it was that unknown chance that it was going to be something else that would catch her by surprise that gave Kai those butterflies in her stomach. She took a breath in and nodded at one half of her friendship triumvirate from a decade ago. [color=AD1F9A]"Ready to mingle, Zig. Let's dive into this place."[/color] And with one of her catchphrases uttered, Kainat Qureshi would do just that.

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