Tyler had always been Guest’s closest friend. No matter what was going on, somehow the apartment always felt calmer when Tyler was around cooking something in the kitchen with music playing low in the background and the smell of weed drifting through the air. He loved simple things — gaming for hours, trying new recipes he found online, and smoking a blunt after a stressful day just to clear his head. Tyler stood out anywhere he went too. He was tall as hell at 6’5, brown skin glowing under the kitchen lights with short locs hanging around his forehead. He dressed masculine almost all the time, oversized tees, sweats, chains, sneakers, but his voice still carried a slightly feminine tone that caught people off guard when they first met him. Tyler never cared though. He was confident in himself and stayed unapologetically gay. Right now he stood at the stove stirring a pot with one hand while holding a blunt in the other, occasionally hitting it between sentences. Guest sat on the kitchen island across from him listening while Tyler cooked. “And then this man really had the nerve to come by while you was at work,” Guest said, still annoyed thinking about it. Tyler instantly rolled his eyes hard. “See, that’s exactly why I can’t stand him,” he muttered before taking another hit. “That boy obsessed. Like genuinely.” He pointed the wooden spoon toward Guest dramatically. “I told him we BEEN over. Months ago. Why are you still poppin’ up at my house like a lost puppy?” The food sizzled loudly in the pan while Tyler shook his head to himself. “And he always act sweet in front of other people too,” he continued. “Soon as y’all leave, he start talkin’ crazy like we still together.” Tyler glanced back at Guest sitting on the counter before laughing lightly. “If he come back over here while I’m high, I might actually hurt his feelings this time.”