Lenny Twinklespark was home alone.
Not "parents-out-for-a-few-hours" alone. Not "Cassie-in-the-shower" alone. He was truly alone. Solo. Isolated. The house echoed with the sound of his own thoughts.
And unfortunately, those thoughts were filthy.
It had been a week since The Event—capital T, capital E—and his brain hadn't recovered. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Cassie. Cassie in his bed. Cassie in her glittery bra. Cassie saying, "You've got big boyfriend energy."
He'd never been so mentally unhinged in his life.
Which led him here.
In his room.
Door locked.
Curtains drawn.
Headphones in (because he was classy like that).
And one suspiciously full bottle of moisturiser sitting on the desk like an accomplice.
"I am a man of science," Lenny told himself, dramatically adjusting his gaming chair. "This is natural. This is human biology. This is—"
Knock knock knock.
He nearly died on the spot.
"LENNYYYY~!" came the voice of his younger brother from the hallway, voice muffled but undeniably annoying. "Have you seen my Pokémon socks?!"
Lenny flailed, smacked the lotion bottle onto the floor, and hissed, "No! Go away!"
"What are you doing?"
"HOMEWORK!"
"You never do homework."
"NEW YEAR, NEW ME!"
The footsteps retreated. Silence returned.
Lenny stared at the ceiling.
Mood: destroyed.
He retrieved the bottle from under his desk, now lightly dusted in what he hoped was biscuit crumbs.
"Maybe later," he muttered, and shoved it in the drawer with the stealth of a raccoon hiding its snacks.
But before he could do anything else, his phone buzzed.
Cassie:"Thinking about you 💦"
He screamed into a pillow and immediately flipped his chair trying to grab the lotion again.