“Wake up, lady killer!” A low, but feminine voice yelled, shaking Az awake.

He opened his eyes to find Rose standing by his bed dressed only in an old shirt.

“What’s wrong?” Az asked as he got up.

“What do you mean? You’re the one who wanted to go shopping, so get your lazy ass into the shower. Time's a ticking!” Rose said before marching out of Az’s room.

Az sighed as he got up.

He then stumbled into the bathroom where he took a quick shower and it wasn’t long before they were ready to leave.

Radhi made his way into the living room, half asleep.

“Have fun, wherever you’re all going.” Radhi said as everyone slipped into their shoes.

[Breaking news, the body of a man was found in one of Ix Chel branch of Lezzaro. What are the circumstances behind this man’s death and does Lezzaro have anything to do with it? Stick with us for more news.]

A reporter said as Radhi flipped through the various stations.

Az, Gloria and Rose hopped into Radhi's car before making their way toward a nearby mall.

Their first destination was the barber.

Az's hair wasn’t particularly long, but it wasn’t really stylish either.

Az got a rather neat and modern cut.

“Whoa! you look all grown up, all of sudden.” Gloria gasped.

“True, a simple haircut goes a long way, huh?” Rose said while giving Az a naughty look.

Az did his best to hide his fluster.

“What? Don’t you like it?” Gloria asked as Az dusted off any lingering hair off his jersey.

“Its not bad.” Az said only to receive eye rolls from both women.

“Anyway, let’s get into the real stuff. Clothes.” Rose said as they made their way towards one of the many clothes stores.

Az picked out a few things and got changed.

He eventually emerged from the changing room and was greeted by disapproving looks.

“That’s… weren’t you wearing the same outfit before?” Gloria asked.

Az looked at his outfit.

Sure, it didn’t vary to greatly from his normal style, but he still felt quite refreshed.

“Ok, I can tell that he’s gonna waste a bunch of time if we let him choose what he wants. Give me a sec.” Rose said before wondering off.

Az turned to his mother and gave her an awkward smile.

This was incredibly rare and so she smiled in return.

“You’ve become such a smart and handsome young man. Kinda reminds me of your father back in the day.” Gloria said with a smile that seemingly warmed the surrounding air.

“Oh? I doubt he was as good looking as I am, but do go on.” Az said.

“Yeah, he wasn’t exactly a model and he was a bit of a know it all, but he knew how to make me happy and that’s all I ever wanted.” Gloria said.

“Mmm? I’m pretty sure you were a head scientist… how did dad seem like a know it all to you?” Az asked.

“Meh, I’m sure you’ve noticed that he has a hard time separating work from home.” Gloria said before Rose walked by with what looked like three outfits worth of clothes.

Az noticed that most of them were either black, grey or dark blue.

“Well? What are you waiting for?” Rose said, promoting Az to get changed into the first outfit.

Az emerged from the changing room and received a rather confusing reaction from his two shopping mates.

Gloria’s eyes widened and Rose’s were narrowed, but they both remained silent.

“What’s wrong?” Az asked as he looked himself over.

“N- nothing.” Gloria said as tears welled up in her eyes.

Az checked if his pure black jacket had anything on it, but he quickly realized that his mother was just overwhelmed by his new look and so he slowly walked toward her.

“Aww, come on. Don’t cry. I’m literally only gonna wear this once.” Az said as he gave his mother a hug.

“It’s just- how much time do we have left together?” Gloria asked as she wept.

Rose joined in on the hug.

“Oh, come on, lil sis. You’ve got all the time in the world.” Rose said.

The hug fest eventually came to an end and after paying for their items, they made their way back home.

Az made his way to his room where he neatly stored his new clothes.

“Hey, champ. I need your help.” Rose said after opening the door suddenly.

Az turned around to find a fully dressed Rose.

“Come on, I need something.” Rose said.

Az got up, slipped into some shoes and followed her outside.

“Where is the nearest convenience store?” Rose asked.

Az pointed to the left.

“About five minutes from here.” Az said.

The two then made their way to the convenience store, but Rose stopped just outside it.

“Wait here.” She said before entering the store.

Az patiently waited and it wasn’t long before she was back, only she had a pack of cigarettes in her hand and something else.

“Here.” Rose handed Az something-

“What the-" Az gasped upon realizing that it was a condom.

“Shh. I’m pretty sure I know what’s gonna happen on Friday and if there’s any advice this old lady can give is that you should ALWAYS use protection. Lest you end up making me a grandma or something.” Rose said to a wide eyed Az.

“Now, put that in your back pocket and have fun, ok?” Az nodded.

The two returned home and Az returned to his room where he patiently awaited the arrival of the next day.

.

..

Az had been asleep for some time, but the sounds of people talking awoke him.

He kept his eyes closed, but nothing could stop him from hearing what was being said.

“She my sister, Radhi! I can’t just let her roam the streets.” Gloria said, in a suppressed shout.

“I know, but I’d prefer it if you could provide some numbers. How long is she planning on staying. She is an adult, so will she be paying rent-“

“Paying rent? She got evicted, Radhi!” Gloria yelled.

“I know, but look at it from my perspective. She’s practically a stranger and I have to just accept that she’ll be living in my house?”

“My house?”

“Our house. I meant, our house. Anyway, she didn’t even tell us why she was evicted…”

Az’s mind quickly became accustomed to the yells and Az soon found himself within sleeps sweet embrace.

.

..

Az awoke with a yawn and he prepared himself for the day.

His mind kept conjuring images of what Zoey’s party might be like.

He made his way downstairs, but saw no sign of his mother.

Radhi stumbled by, fully dressed for work.

“Where’s mom?” Az asked as he grabbed an apple.

“Your mom and aunt went job hunting. I’m sure they’ll be back before you return from school. Speaking of school, I heard you’re going to a party today.” Radhi said as he downed a large mug of scolding hot coffee.

“Yeah, one of my classmates asked if I wanted to come and I said yes.” Az said.

“Cool. Hopefully you’ll come out of that shell of yours.” Radhi said.

“What do you mean?” Az asked as he and his father slipped into their shoes.

“I dunno. You’ve always had this weird air about you. Like you hold back a lot of your feelings and stuff. There’s nothing wrong with letting loose every once in a while. Although I won’t lie, your personality has proved rather convenient for me as a parent. But your childhood is about to end, I don’t want you to regret not having fun when you should have.” Radhi said with a gentle smile.

Az remained silent as he tried digesting his father’s wisdom.

“Anyway, have fun.” Radhi said before leaving for work.

Az locked the door before leaving for school.

His steps felt a little lighter for some reason, but he paid it no mind as he walked.

Holly boarded the train at station G02 and the two stood next to each other as the train sped along.

“Are you going to Zoey’s party?” Az asked.

“Zoey’s having a party?” Holly asked.

“Yeah, I thought you knew.” Az said.

“I didn’t… ah well, I’m sure she’ll let me know if she wants to hang out.” Holly said with a pained smile.

Az and Holly disembarked from the train once it arrived at station G03.

They then made their way to school.

Az entered his classroom and was greeted by a rather enthusiastic Ryan.

“Yo, excited for today?” Ryan asked.

“I guess.” Az said as Ryan pulled out his phone.

“Hey, let’s exchange numbers. I wouldn’t want my newest friend to get lost.” Ryan said.

The two exchanged numbers before the school day commenced.

.

..

The last siren rang, signalling the end of the school day and Az excitedly packed up his things before storming out of the classroom.

He powered walked toward the train station, but the sounds of rapid footsteps caught his attention.

He turned around to find an exhausted Holly.

“Why… why are you walking so fast?” Holley asked as she gasped for air.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize that me walking faster wouldn't make the train arrive any earlier.” Az said as he offered Holly his hand.

Holly placed her small hand within Az's and he held it until she regained her composure.

“Are walking so quickly because you’re excited about Zoey’s party?” Holly asked as they walked.

“Maybe." Az said, but he remembered what his father said about being bit more relaxed and so he took a deep breath.

“I’ve never been to a party before.” He confessed.

“Oh? I have been to one or two and I can tell you this, their not that great.” Holly said.

“Were Either of them organized by your parents?” Az asked.

Holly lowered her head, seemingly embarrassed by Az’s question.

“Yes.” She whispered.

“I see. Listen, how about you and I hang out on Saturday? Then I could tell you whether Zoey’s party was any good or not. We could also just hang out.” Az asked.

Holly looked up in thought.

“Mmm… tomorrow’s Saturday, right?” Holly asked.

“Yep.”

“I might not be able to hang out. My dad is pretty strict and stuff so we’ll have to wait for a school event or something.” Holly said.

“Ok, no problem.” Az said as he let out a sigh of relief.

He didn’t want to have fun without Holly and even though he didn’t know her well, he knew that spending time with her wouldn’t be a bad thing.

The two then boarded a train and dropped off at their respective stations.

Az then made his way home, but was taken aback when he entered the house and it was empty.

He rushed into his room, got changed and called a certain number.

[Hey, Az. Is something wrong?]

Gloria asked as Az slipped a certain something into his back pocket.

“No, not really. Just wondering where you are.” Az said as he slipped into his new shoes.

[Oh, your aunt and I are just having a few drinks together. Don’t worry, we’ll be back before you know it.]

Gloria said.

“Ok.” Az said as he locked the door.

He ended the call before ordering a taxi to take him to the front of the school building.

Az called another number.

[Yo, Azizi. Where are you?]

Ryan asked.

“I’m on my way. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.” Az said.

[Cool. Oh and trust me, you’re gonna remember this night for the rest of your life.]