A/N: Hey there! Thanks for reading! I just wanna say that this is the first actual fic i've published, and something i wrote out in three hours running on a can of arizona. So, uh, i'm really sorry about quality. Feedback is appreciated! Enjoy!

Why am I here?

He hadn't even been there for five minutes, and he was already thinking about what he'd rather be doing. Adrian would like to be anywhere but Mcdonald's at 6 in the morning, doing anything but working a shift there.

Unfortunately, that was exactly where he was and what he was doing. All he could do was remind himself why he put up with it.

Adrian Shephard. Recently turned 21, height of 5'10, and currently employed at a small Mcdonald's next to an office building. Born in suburban Texas, currently living in South Austin. Light Brown, wavy hair that he hardly ever had time to brush in the mornings, hazel eyes that looked beautiful under the right lighting. Face was slightly more handsome than average, always friendly looking, lightly freckled. He looked charming enough, and attractive in a few ways, though he hardly ever actually cared. He was always busy thinking about other things- that was a big part of his personality. He was quiet, talented with the guitar, a bit detached, clumsy at times, socially and physically, but always calm. Always nice. People liked him, even if he didn't like them.

Of course, that's how it was. How it used to be. It's hard to keep things from changing. Turns out, people like you a lot better in school. While it looks like you have a decent future. So the second he got out, tried to move on to college, things started to change. By the time he noticed, he was already being forced to drop out and abandon that whole future thing. That was a year ago.

So what was the charismatic, talented Adrian Shephard doing now? Living in a cramped apartment, working at Mcdonalds every morning at the crack of dawn, and hoping the music he posts online will be heard by someone. Whatever he had achieved, living the life he used to, obviously wasn't paying off now. If it had, he wouldn't be stuck dealing with entitled assholes of customers in the middle of christmas season.

Yeah, there was one big upside to his life. He had found a new friend group in his coworkers. Some of the best people he had ever met, including an Asshole, Lucia, A pair of Twins, Agnes and Will, an out-of-place Country Boy (Who they mocked relentlessly, despite him being far more charismatic than any of them), Tate, and the most Canadian boy he'd ever met, his crush. Noah. 22, Tall, 6'2, Blond, handsome, Bi, thankfully, and nerdy. Gotta love a friend group when a crush is in it.

That's one plus to working in the morning- you're the first one there. You get to watch your friends walk in. Be the first one they see in the morning. Starts the day right. It was friday anyways- Adrian would be working until they closed, and then they'd head over to the Twins' loft, as every friday. They'd talk, hang out, and probably drink. The Mcdonald's closed at 11- they were awake until 4. A lot of the time it became a game just to not fall asleep there. Not like they had work in the morning- Lucia was the manager and had a dedicated weekend crew.

After that, they usually split up into smaller groups to do whatever they had to do on the weekends. That usually meant him and Noah at his place. Noah would do whatever college work he had, while listening to Adrian recording. Time together was something they rarely got- Adrian worked mornings, Noah worked late nights. Those few hours, when they did that, made Adrian feel like everything in his life had been justified.

It made him feel like the last year- tossed of out college, abandoned by whatever people liked him back then, working at a mcdonalds, living a rapidly stagnating life with a handful of good friends barely keeping him from slipping up- it all felt worth it with Noah. Like his life would go on forever, perfectly, with him around.

All he had to do, today, and what motivated him to do it, was getting to tonight. To the weekend, and to Noah.

All of it made it so much harder when change came for him again, walking straight through those doors.

The sound of them opening immediately pulled him from his thoughts- and hard. The Mcdonalds didn't exactly ever have the most money, and the door was especially noisy because of it. A lack of upkeep will do that to a door. Plus, there was that wave of cold from the slightly snowy outside. He raised his head up, straightening, and looking forward. It took him a second to recognize Noah, and the girl he was holding close to him. Average height, build. Red hair, radiant smile. Lovely green eyes, giving Noah a look that instantly made the situation clear to Adrian.

Adrian was good at not reacting- he did a good bit of theater in highschool, he was good at pretending he didn't care. They both walked in, Noah smiled at him- He smiled back.

"Hey, Adrian."
Noah opened the conversation, as happy as ever. Maybe even a little more.

"Oh, hey. You're here a bit early."
Adrian said with a small bit of actual confusion. He kept himself calm, composed- He was good at that too. Calm. Noah laughed a bit.

"No, no, I'm just here for a coffee. Plus, Hanna wanted to see you. Y'know, my girlfriend and all." He nodded towards the redhead girl- she turned her smile to Adrian. She held out her hand, and spoke.
"Hey there. I'm Hanna. Nice to meet 'ya."
Adrian shook it, and took another second to process her. Irish, maybe? Accent isn't too far off. He stopped his train of thought before too long- didn't need to space out in the middle of a conversation.
"Yeah. I'm Adrian. Nice to, uh, meet you too."
His gaze shifted to Noah.
"Girlfriend?"
"Yeah. I told everyone in the groupchat, were you not there?"
Groupchat. That makes sense. In the way that Adrian hardly ever uses his phone.
Fucking hell. Could've at least gone for a bit more mental preparation. "Well, you know how I am. Slow to news, I guess."
Adrian said, acting a bit entertained about it. Keeping up the facade.
"Let me go make you a coffee."
Adrian walked away from the counter, scrambling to think as he made the coffee. This, what should have been a normal, usual friday with absolutely no problems, is now a disaster.
Incredible. Gotta be a record for Adrian fucking up his day.

He walked back to the counter with the coffee, seeming as casual as ever the whole way. He handed it over, and nodded. "Thanks, Adrian. See ya tonight."
Noah turned and started to leave. Hanna remained for a moment, eying him as if gauging a reaction, and turned. They left together. It took Adrian a solid minute to recover, and let his guard down. Thank god morning business was slow.

Of course, it was also the perfect time to realize that he wasn't the only one working there. He turned his head, quickly, behind him, only to see exactly what he hoped he wouldn't.

"Hey."
Lucia said, leaning against the kitchen counter, supported by her elbows, palms on her cheeks and a smug smile on her face.

Lucia was the group's asshole. Unfortunately, she was also the manager and his best friend. The two had been inseparable since middle school- Lucia befriended one of the most well-liked people in the school, coincidentally Adrian, just to spite the friends that said she couldn't. Adrian thought it was nice that somebody actually disliked him, as weird as it was. That dynamic continued for awhile, and the two formed a bond without knowing it. So, of course he would have told her, who organized the friend group (out of boredom) about his crush.

And now she was here to… Help, in her own unique way.

"Oh, for fuck's sake Lucia."
He groaned, facepalming against the wall. She giggled.
"Come on now, man. We can work through this together. I just need to get over how hilariously 'Highschool Movie' this all is."
"Oh, fuck off."
"Ah, you broke the immersion. They'd never say fuck twice in a highschool movie."
He shot a glare at her. She snorted and walked around the kitchen counter, stretching to the back of the restaurant, and came to a stop next to the counter with him.
"Alright, now, tell me what's wrong."
"You know what's fuckn wrong. That Irish girl is dating Noah. You probably knew before I did."
"Oh, hell yeah. Dude, the nerd's dating a hot Irish girl and you think I wouldn't know? I probably knew before he did. Shame."
Adrian paused for a second.
"Did you just admit you want to steal Noah's girl?"
"Of course I do. That's beside the point, though. The point is, you're hurting, And I'm here to help."

Adrian simply remained silent for a moment, thinking about this. They'd helped each other a lot over the years- they were best friends, of fucking course they did. Still, this was a bit different- they were adults now. This was highschool level drama. It was 7 in the morning now and Adrian was about ready to break down. He had so much he needed to think about- needed time to consider, to process, and he didn't have the time or space to handle it.

Change was coming about, again, and god only knows he was nowhere near fucking prepared.

"Hey."
Lucia called over to him, in a surprisingly soft and understanding voice, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"You good?"

He looked up, having been caught in his thoughts again.
"Fuck no."
"Could use a break, some time to think?"
"Yeah."
"Great. I've already called some people to take over our shifts. Let's get out of here."

They waited a bit, for the replacements to come over. Lucia was understanding of what was happening, and incredibly good at handling it. It was almost a bit jarring- He considered asking about it, but decided to leave it be. Not look a gift horse in the mouth and all. She changed the subject, and they chatted casually.

Eventually, the replacements came around, and they left, walking off with no real destination.