April is sitting on the stairs of the scare building. She didn't go back to her room because the thoughts in her head and all of this situation is buzzing on her. She needs space and air. In a small room like her dorm, she cannot really have that chance. Her head hanging low, she thinks over all what happened right after the event of the Scare Games; Randall's expulsion from the RORs, Sullivan's cheat, Mike's break in the lab, Randall's sudden state of mind.... It was all too much for her. She wished she could do something to help out of all of this. But yet again, she was useless. All she could still do was hearing out everyone's conversations or wait. Nothing more. All that was happening it was in Mike's, Sulley's, Randall's, Johnny's, the Oozma's, the RORs' and even the Dean's hands. And she is there, thinking over these things all at once, and harming herself with stress and worry. She always gets like this in these critical situations or when some things are too much for her to bare. Yet she wished she were stronger. She now holds the sides of her head with her hands as her elbows are standing on her knees. April sighs hardly.

"Why did it have to be this way?....", she mumbles out, holding back sobs and tears.

She then later on hears footsteps behind her coming towards her. And they stop, right behind her. April looks down aside, to see the figure's shadow. 

"Now what?", she says quietly but loud enough for them to hear out.

"Am I that much a sign of bad luck to you, rookie?", Johnny asks out. 

April sighs in response. Johnny can sense that the dragon snake monster's mood is pretty much down. He looks awkwardly around himself, a hand behind the back of his head. He then decides to sit next to her on the stairs. Both Johnny and April don't say anything for a while, not knowing what to say. April on her side, still in shock and stress, wonders what is Johnny even doing here and what he wants with her. She doesn't try to say anything yet, waiting for him to try to explain himself, and also because of all the feelings she got, she doesn't feel like talking much yet. Johnny clears his throat, noticing the silence that was going on since a while now. 

"I heard about the break in inside the lab. Are you worried?", he asks out.

April nods without saying anything.

"You sure do care about that green guy.", he comments.

"So? We're friends.", she finally says, "Or at least I'd like to think so."

Johnny gives out a small chuckle.

"You do know who to choose as friends.", he says.

"Look, he may not be such a great scarer like you, but he is nice and caring. A bit egocentric sometimes, but very kind. He just led a whole desperate team into victory.", April states.

"That of course with the help of Sullivan's cheating. I overheard the very recent conversation with Hardscrabble. They never really had a chance."

"Maybe, but until then, Mike Wazowski just led his team into the final event. Even lost loyally or winning by cheat, he just has proven how far people like him and the Oozmas can go. I would very likely be certain he has a chance to be a scarer, but if not, he still showed everyone that he had guts. He instructed a team who was underestimated to become champions. And that is why I respect Mike a lot. I do consider him as a great friend, even if we didn't see each other often this semester.", April explains.

Few tears start rolling down her cheeks as she still was staring on the ground while talking.

"And that is why I'm so scared for him. I wish for him to be safe. I want him to come back. Yet I'm useless. I can't help out.", she starts sobbing, her arms now wrapping around her legs as her head lowers more.

Johnny notices her starting to cry silently. He frowns in light concern.

"That happens too often. Something bad is going on with someone I like or know, and then I can't do anything about it yet I wish I could. I'm useless. And weak. I'm just a high sensitive, introvert and reserved lizard. Mike is so much more than I. He doesn't stand anywhere and do nothing about anything unlike me. I'm a coward who doesn't wish for trouble and prefers to wait. That might be why I.... I.... my brother.... they.....", she can't find more words as she kept sobbing.

She doesn't expect Johnny to hear out while she says this. Not a guy like him. He might not understand. He could anytime start mocking her or laughing at her. That's probably why he is here anyway. Just to see her desperation. Just to see her blaming herself for most things. Or maybe he'll just get bored and walk away, leaving her on her own crying like a child. That might be it....

April gets chills. She feels a hand stroke on her back softly. She heaves her head up, turning towards Johnny and finally breaking eye-contact with the ground, only to see that it was his hand. He wasn't looking at her, just forward, like trying to avoid eye-contact as he felt awkward about it, but still did it. It kind of feels comforting, but also she is shocked and confused at the same time by what he was doing. Why would he do that? Why to her? He could have just pushed her down like he does with most people on campus that aren't his level of scare. Why would he, out of nowhere, start stroking on her back softly and quietly? 

"Wh-What are you-", she starts, lightly blushing about it.

"Shh, now, now. Try to calm down right now.", Johnny interrupts her, "You can't start a conversation with that state of mind. Just calm down for now."

April's eyes widen of surprise by his words. She can't believe what he just said and what he is doing. Is the smarmy snob really just comforting her? Just like that? Without even setting traps on her? What is he trying to do? What's the point? April wipes her tears of her face with one hand and looks up at Johnny who stays impassive, still stroking his hand on her back. 

"That's the least I was expecting of you. Why are you doing that?", she asks.

Johnny shrugs.

"First, we are in the middle of the night. Seeing you not following the curfew and staying here crying for a long time and not get sleep can leave you a tired face tomorrow. You wouldn't want to get thrown out of the scare program by Dean Hardscrabble because of a sleepless night, huh?", Johnny starts, smirking.

April frowns, a bit confused by this sudden statement.

"Second, since we are in the middle of the night, I think it's a bad idea to be crying so loud like a baby just to find the rest of the campus, having not entered the lab to cry out the green guy's name, not having slept well because of all this mess you are crying about. Seriously control the tone of your voice when you start crying.", he chuckles, joking around.

April gasps out lightly, disgraced by this next statement.

"Hey! That's not nice, you cocky-", she burst out, getting angry.

Johnny covers her mouth with his hands, shutting her mouth up. 

"I was initially just messing with you, but don't do that. We'll get trouble.", Johnny whispers to her, "And I wasn't finished yet."

"Okay. Sorry.", April nods, her voice muffled as she said this.

So now Johnny let go off her mouth, finishing what he was saying.

"And lastly, I see a desperate, nervous and scared little monster, just right on the stairs of the scare building, sobbing for someone who decided on his own to enter inside a testing door. And then you are blaming yourself in front of me if you just can't help on that. Only because you don't or can't act on anything like it. I don't know about your brother not what happened and I won't ask you for now. But, believe me, like I said before, the beac- err Mike Wazowski decided on his own to enter this door. You probably wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Trust me, most things slip out of our control. And sometimes, the best thing to do is nothing. Because sometimes you can mess it up even more. You aren't a coward. You never really acted like one. Especially the few times you stood up on me. You shouted at me for my actions, even knowing that most people wouldn't say or do anything about it. Also Sullivan. I heard you didn't denounce him for your neck wounds. That is also not cowardly of you, because instead of searching the adult's assistances, you decided to handle it yourself in a way. A monster like you isn't a coward, rather careful.", Johnny tells, now catching her gaze.

April listens to all his words, her mouth dropped by what he says and how he somehow understood her actions and intentions better than herself. Which is a surprise coming from a careless bully like him. What just happened to him to be just nice and caring with April? And why on her?

"And, trust me on that, Mike is surely not scary nor suited to be a scarer, but, and I hate to admit it, he sure showed me that he truly is a stubborn and decisive monster. And he is also very smart for a small guy like him. He won't let himself get caught by the humans. He surely will find a way out, if ever he stops thinking of doing anything stupid. I can bet on many things I possess that he will come back, with his limbs still on his tiny round body.", he assures. 

April feels much less overwhelmed. Her stress is dissipating and she feels herself more relaxed somehow. She wasn't expecting the Jaw monster Johnny Worthington the 3rd to be saying such things like these. And that are also warming. She kind of enjoys his company right now, better than she ever felt before. Not stern, anguished nor nervous around him any longer now, cooling down her attitude she used to have on him and not believing any longer of him setting traps into conversations, trusting his sincerity, she smirk up at him cheekily. 

"You can bet on what for example?", she starts.

"What?", Johnny raises an eyebrow up.

"Can you bet on your past winning competition rewards maybe?"

"I see what you are trying to do right now....", he smiles, shaking his head.

"Come on, maybe your shirts? Your fraternity house? Your team? Your reputation?", she teases him, elbowing him on his arm.

"Hey, don't push it. I was trying to be nice.", he rolls his eyes.

"Then try to catch me, you bull horns.", she pushes on him, standing quickly up and starting to run around the campus.

"Hey, that's not smart of you. There are students sleeping here."

"Not so many since most are in the lab. What? Is the big dark fur scarer scared of losing?"

Johnny now smirks pretty deeply and frowns devilishly, getting up from the stairs and pointing at her.

"That, is the first and last time you are acting not so carefully, Slyther.", he says, positioning on his four limbs and starting to charge against April who immediately starts running around the campus, faster than ever.

April laughs, amused by this chase game she challenged on Johnny. And it kind of amuses him too, since she can hear him laugh too while running after her. She slaloms through poles and trees, trying to distract Johnny's a bit. But she knows how fast he goes, since she looks behind her a couple of times and can see that he slowly starts getting closer. It was the first time for April to be having such fun with someone else than her family. And especially someone like him. A smarmy guy who usually doesn't really take on friends nor shows sympathy for anyone. And it felt great. Johnny is the first person she ever got so much fun with and amused herself greatly. He was the first one other than her family to ever having tried to comfort her. It was new and awesome. At a certain moment, April doesn't pay attention on her way, being lost in her happy thoughts, since she then trips over a rock and loses balance, falling on the ground and rolling. She laughs out, surprised by this fall and knowing that she is in trouble and that Johnny is nearby. Johnny soon reaches to her, standing on top of her with his hands aside of her body to prevent from her to escape. He smirks down at her.

"I guess I caught you. You should probably try to practice more sports. You are too slow to me.", he teases out.

"Okay, you win.", she giggles out, only to look up to Johnny and realize he is on top of her.

She stops laughing, looking shocked up at him and blushing red. Johnny tilts his head aside, confused by this sudden change of expression.

"What?", he asks.

"Uhm.... you are....", April says, not knowing what words better to chose to not make this situation too awkward.

Johnny then notices, understanding what she means as he looked at her and also on the ground, getting up.

"Oops, sorry. Right.", he mumbles, a bit embarrassed by that as he let out a small blush and clears his throat with a fist in front of his mouth.

April stands up, still embarrassed and feeling awkward about what just happened right now. She and Johnny don't say anything for a bit, trying to forget this. Then April, having shaken of that thought, speaks.

"Johnny?"

"Hm?", Johnny answers the call, turning around with no more blush on his face but curiosity.

April walks up to him, standing now right in front of him, and looks straight up at him.

"Did you really mean all you said? All of it?", she asks. 

Johnny smiles lightly down at her.

"I did. I'm usually not the type to trust, but really, believe me on it.", he says tenderly.

"You never lied on anything then?"

"Who do you take me for?", he laughs at that wary sentence, "I wouldn't talk seriously if I were lying or pulling up something behind it."

April smiles up at him, trusting his words. She went for it and immediately hugs him. Johnny stands there, all surprised by this act of hers. He wasn't that used to hugs, and that was the first time since very long. Yet he doesn't know how to react to this, blushing lightly.

"Thank you. I knew you weren't that bad.", April whispers.

After this, Johnny gives out a weak chuckle.

"You're welcome, rookie.", he says softly, a sad frowning expression on his face as he thinks about something.  

But then he leaves that thought away and lets go of April, who looks a bit tiredly now. She rubs her eyes with one hand.

"Hey now, tired aren't you?", Johnny asks.

April nods, groaning a bit.

"Okay. By the look on your face I think you'll need some help to get back to your dorm, I presume?", he asks again.

"No, no.", April shakes her head slowly, "I can do this.... I'm not that tired.... I need to stay awake for Mike...."

She starts walking away, waving at Johnny.

"Good ni-", she starts but then falls limp on the ground.

Johnny stares at her, eyes widen, stunned of this sudden dropping. 

"Oookay?", he says to himself, walking towards her. 

He bents down to her and searches in her trousers' pockets. He finds the key to her dorm in one of these. He then picks her up in his arms and brings her inside the dorms building. He walks up the stairs and corridors, looking up for her dorm door, with a tiredly sleeping snake dragon monster in his arms. When he finds the entrance, he opens the door with the key and enters inside the dorm. There she finds her bed and puts her on it, pulling the blanket on her. He then puts the keys on her drawer and starts walking out of the dorm. As he reaches the door knob, he glances for the last time at April, sighing and smiling lightly.

"Goodnight, Slyther.", he whispers, finally walking out and closing the door behind him.