Work Text:
Cassidy looked up from his book as he heard a door in the apartment close just a little bit too hard. It wasn't a slam, that was for sure, but it was louder than it should have been. Turning around, he saw Elliot walking away from the bedroom, grimacing at the noise the door had made, clearly not meaning to shut it so aggressively. Cassidy reached up and turned up the volume of his hearing aid, which had been lowered to help him focus on the book he was reading. "Is something wrong?"
Elliot sighed. "I'm sorry. I just don't understand why nobody showed up to my 'Mirage Loves His Friends' party! I can't stop thinking about it. Did I do something? Are they mad at me? Do they not consider me a friend?!" He plopped down onto the sofa with another sigh, yanking off his shoes and chucking them in the corner of the room.
"Sounds like you're OVER-thinking about it, in my opinion." Elliot had been grumbling about something ever since he'd gotten back home and Cassidy felt a twinge of guilt growing inside him for not asking about it earlier. "You know we could have a party here, just the two of us?" He scooted closer to his boyfriend, trying to cheer him up with some playful flirting.
Either it flew over his head or he deliberately chose to ignore what Cassidy had said. His shoulders sunk even lower. "The only person who showed up was the new kid, Mara. Vantage. She doesn't even know me but she's been more friendly to me than my actual friends. Do you think I'm unpopular? She said I was unpopular. Crypto, Renee, Ramya, Natalie, not even Path showed up."
"You are popular, I'm just not sure if you're popular with the people you want to be popular with." Cassidy furrowed his brow. Those words came out much harsher than he intended them to. He shook his head slightly and continued, "What I mean is that one of those friends who you listed is hardly even a friend. You don't even know Crypto's real name or anything about him. He's never even been all that kind to you. Everyone else must have their reasons. You know Ramya has her shop to tend to and maybe parties just aren't their kind of thing."
Elliot sighed again and placed his head in Cassidy's lap, laying on top of his book. "They could have at least told me they couldn't make it. I don't know why Path of all people didn't come. What could he be doing? He's a robot!"
"Hey, you shouldn't assume things, he could have a new girlfriend."
A smile spread across Elliot's face finally. "God, I hope not. He was a wreck when Ash "dumped" him." He shifted uncomfortably, reaching underneath himself to see what was stabbing him. He retrieved the book and grinned. "Oh. Is this yours?"
"Yes, you dork," Cassidy leaned over and planted a kiss on his forehead. "Come on, I think you deserve a drink. My treat."
"Cass... I own the bar."