Chapter Text
“Welcome to the stream everyone!” Tommy grinned, leaning forward. “It’s been a while but as you can see, we have a new addition to the set up.”
He gestured to the green screen behind him, ignoring the growl in his stomach. “Each day that passes I become more like the famous GeorgeNotFound.”
Resting his chin on his clasped hands, he hummed. “We have a lot to do today. I was preparing a little off stream, all the boring stuff that no one wants to do, but I think,” He sits up holding up a finger, “I think that I’ve found a much more efficient way to do things.”
The stream starts off better than he expected, tens of thousands of people showing up to his first stream in weeks. Technically, he could have streamed at Wilbur’s place, but then people would be asking why – besides, he was confident that his face was completely back to normal now.
There were still the odd questions in his chat about where he’d been, but he’d been active on Twitter and had had a few back up videos for YouTube, so he’d only really stopped streaming and the questions were drowned out by the excitement for the stream.
The green screen had been Techno’s idea, and even if Tommy had always liked the realness that came with not having one, he had to admit it was a good idea. He could always just say he moved, but no one outside of Phil, Wilbur and Techno knew even that much and he didn’t want to deal with his friends asking why he hadn’t told them. Everyone knew that Techno had moved, it was a big thing, but even Tubbo didn’t know that Tommy had moved in with him.
He heard a knock on his door and stopped moving in game. “I’m streaming!”
It was curious how he felt none of the worry that usually came with the threat of someone coming in his room while he was streaming.
He groaned at the squeak of his door opening, giving the camera an exasperated look. “I said I’m streaming, leave me alone.”
“We agreed that you’d eat something before you streamed.” Techno’s distinct voice came from behind the green screen and Tommy buried his head in his hands, refusing to look at chat.
He muted himself but kept the camera on, figuring Techno wouldn’t come into frame. “Oh well, it’s too late now. I’ll grab a snack later if I’m hungry.”
“Nope.” Techno said cheerfully and Tommy glared at him as he came into view of the camera, holding a plate of what had to be at least forty chicken nuggets. “I made you dinner.”
Tommy couldn’t hold back his laugh at the sight. “Techno, what the fuck.”
“I was going to put some in the oven –“
“You didn’t.” Tommy interrupted, remembering Techno’s horrible cooking and narrowing his eyes at the chicken nuggets in suspicion. He didn’t think Techno would try to poison him on purpose, but he wouldn’t be surprised if he managed to ruin chicken nuggets.
“– But Wil told me not to, so I just got three boxes of twenty from McDonalds instead.”
He ran a hand through his hair, failing in stopping the massive grin that was trying to take over his face. “You’re ridiculous.”
“You skipped lunch.” Techno shrugged. “We both know Phil would kill me if I didn’t make sure you got at least one hot meal a day.”
Tommy laughed but took the plate from Techno. “I wasn’t about to snitch on you for not making me eat.”
“Well maybe Phil has a point.” Techno looked off to the side and Tommy was reminded just how grateful he was that he got to live with the man. Fuck, he didn’t think his parents had ever gone out just to make sure he had something to eat that night.
He looked at his monitor to distract himself from the thought and held back a sigh when he saw the chat flying past, wondering what Techno was doing in Tommy’s room with food.
“Ugh, now look what you’ve done.” Tommy scratched the back of his neck, nervous. “You know I can’t lie for shit.”
Techno rolled his eyes and leaned over to unmute them, staring at the camera with the most deadpan expression Tommy had ever seen on him. “I live in England now. It is much easier to visit friends when you live in the same country. Stop asking stupid questions.”
Tommy barked out a laugh. “Yeah chat, you heard the man.”
Techno muted them again and ruffled Tommy’s hair, forcing Tommy to bat his hands away. “Wil’s coming over later with Phil. It’s the first official movie night of the house so make sure to wear your best.”
“Joggers and a hoodie, got it.” Tommy watched him leave the camera’s view and hovered his finger over the mute button, biting his lip. “Thank you for the food Techno.”
“Of course, Tommy.”
Tommy smiled and unmuted himself again, hearing his door shut with another squeak. “It’s official guys, Technoblade is a legend in real life too.”
He ended the stream, smiling at his camera for a few more seconds just in case and then stretched his hands above his head. A glance at his phone told him that the others had already arrived, and he hurried to get changed into something comfier before going downstairs and forcing himself in between Phil and Wilbur.
There were two couches and technically they would have a lot more room if they spread themselves out across both of them, but Tommy thought it would be better if they were all snuggled on the same one – not that he’d ever admit that to them. One just had a much better view of the screen than the other, and he wasn’t about to sacrifice that just because he had to sit closer to his friends.
“Hi guys.” Tommy yawned. “How are you?”
“Someone’s sleepy.” Wilbur teased, poking his side. “I’m good, I uploaded today.”
“Duh. I knew that.” Tommy had watched the video as soon as it came out.
Phil laughed at the two of them. “My day was pretty boring. How was your stream?”
“Good!” Tommy sat up, a brief burst of energy going through him at the reminder of the stream. “It was nice to stream again; most people were pretty chill.”
“Did the chicken nuggets help?” Techno called from where he stood next to the microwave, presumably making popcorn.
Tommy smiled involuntarily; he hadn’t come anywhere close to finishing them, but he hadn’t been able to stop grinning the whole time he was streaming. “Yeah, I’d forgotten how exhausting streaming is.”
“You are possibly the biggest child I know.” Wilbur said, poking him again. “Seriously, I can’t believe you eat chicken nuggets.”
Tommy gasped, poking him back. “How dare you, chicken nuggets are the best thing the world has ever made.”
“Child.” Wilbur mocked.
“I hate you.” Tommy declared, leaning back into the chair and crossing his arms. “You are my least favourite person.”
Wilbur threw an arm over Tommy, pulling him into a hug that he could easily escape if he wanted to. “Aww, I know you love me really.”
“I don’t.” Tommy said, but he didn’t remove himself from the hug and leaned into Wilbur fully, bringing his feet up so they were tucked under Phil’s legs. “Hurry up Techno or we’re going to start without you.”
Techno snorted but plopped down next to Wilbur, reaching over to pinch Tommy’s cheek with the hand that wasn’t holding the bowl of popcorn. “Is the poor child grouchy?”
“Stop it.” Tommy rolled his eyes. “Phil is literally the only one here I like and respect.”
“Thanks Tommy.” Phil patted his ankle and then let his hand rest there. “Have we decided what to watch?”
“Wilbur said he wanted to watch Up.” Tommy lied, fighting against the desire to close his eyes but eventually giving in.
Sitting up slightly, Wilbur ignored Tommy’s mutter for him to ‘lay the fuck back down’ and protested. “I absolutely did not. We have seen that film at least fifty times; I hated it the first time I saw it and I still hated it the last time I saw it.”
“You were crying.” Techno added and Tommy reached out blindly for a fist bump, grinning when the action was reciprocated.
Wilbur laid back again, and Tommy could hear the smile in his voice as he curled into his chest again – it wasn’t his fault he was tired and Wilbur was comfortable. “You’re a liar Techno, we all know it. Besides, I wanted to watch that new film, you know the trailer I put into the group chat?”
Tommy stayed silent. He’d seen the trailer and he’d stopped breathing the instant the mother had started shouting at her child – it had taken a long shower and a conversation with Tubbo to distract him and get his heart rate completely back to normal.
There was a pause and for a minute Tommy thought they were just going to put on Wilbur’s film but thankfully, Techno had a better idea. “We can just continue what we were watching on Netflix.”
Tommy opened his eyes, silently praising Techno for being Techno. “That’s a good idea.”
Besides, the episodes were only about twenty minutes long each and he knew that Techno found them easier to pay attention to than full length films.
Techno put the show on and Tommy found it was getting harder and harder to stay awake, his head getting heavier by the second. Soon enough he gave in and closed his eyes again, putting his full weight on Wilbur and sighing when the other started carding his fingers through Tommy’s hair.
It had only been a day since he’d seen Wilbur and Phil, but he’d gotten used to being able to see them whenever he felt like it, so finally moving into the new house and not being able to walk a few meters to see them had taken some getting used to.
He forced his eyes open again, determined to make the most of the time he had with them but Wilbur’s hand in his hair really wasn’t helping and he struggled to keep them more than half open.
Phil rubbed his ankle. “Go to sleep Tommy, we’re staying for a while.”
“Yeah, we’ll wake you if we need to leave Toms.”
Tommy yawned again and snuggled more into Wilbur. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
He was awake just long enough to hear Techno turn down the volume.
When he woke the show was still playing but a glance to the others showed that they’d all fallen asleep as well.
Removing himself from Wilbur’s arms, he stood, stretching his arms above his head and wincing as his back cracked. He paused the show and then walked over to the kitchen to get a glass of water, chugging it down and pouring another one.
Phil was slouched in the corner of the chair and Techno was leaning on Wilbur – Tommy eyed them for a moment before sighing and walking to the cupboard they kept spare blankets In and grabbing a few.
He wasn’t that tired anymore but everyone else looked to be in a deep sleep, so he spread the blankets over them as best he could and went to his room to grab his phone.
He had a few tweet notifications and a message from Tubbo.
‘TECHNOBLADE??
TOMMY YOU DIDN’T TELL ME TECHNO WAS GOING TO VISIT
THIS IS VERY STRANGE
CALL??’
The messages had been sent a few hours ago and it was well past midnight now, so Tommy vowed to message Tubbo in the morning, knowing he was asleep. He also wanted to talk to Techno about what he was allowed to tell Tubbo; he didn’t want to lie to his best friend, but he wasn’t sure how much Techno wanted him to keep secret.
Rubbing a hand across his face to wake himself up properly – it was practically morning anyway – Tommy sat down to start the edit on his next video. Technically, he should probably do some work for college, since he had a bit of catch up to do from the time he’d missed, but he really didn’t want to.
Phil had been the one to sort out his switch in colleges and make sure he could continue what he was doing before – he’d missed about a two weeks of it but luckily it seemed that his new college was a week or so behind his old college, so he didn’t have that much to do.
Besides, whatever Phil had said to them had convinced his teachers to give him a little slack in terms of handing work in.
The time sped by whilst he was editing his video and before he knew it, there was light streaming in through his windows.
He saved his progress and went downstairs to start making food; Techno had wasted money on food for him yesterday, which meant that Tommy owed him.
He tried to keep as quiet as possible – there wasn’t a wall in between the kitchen and the living room like he was used to – not wanting to wake the others up before the food was ready.
Unfortunately, it seemed it wasn’t meant to be as the pan he was using for the bacon slipped and he instinctively reached to catch it, burning his hand on the metal. “Fuck!”
The pan clattered to the floor, forgotten as he clutched his hand instead.
Unbidden, tears rose and he gasped at the pain.
Water. He needed water.
He moved to the sink, stumbling a little over the fallen pan but getting there without another incident.
God, he was so stupid. Why on earth would he try to catch a burning hot pan? What was wrong with him?
He turned on the cold water with his free hand and tried to calm his breathing as he held his burnt hand under it.
“Tommy?”
Shit. He’d woken Phil. He’d been sleeping and Tommy had woken him up and now he was going to hate him.
He turned around, trying to make himself as small as possible.
“Phil, I - I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, it just - it fell and I – I’m sorry –“
Phil held his hands up. “Hey, it’s okay Toms. I’m not worried about that; I’m worried about you.”
“I didn’t mean to.” Tommy sniffed.
“I know, I know.” Phil walked towards him slowly and Tommy kept his eyes on the man’s hands. “I’m not mad, I promise.”
Tommy watched as Wil stood up from the chair as well, looked between them and then poked Techno awake. He could feel the anxiety building in his stomach and hastily wiped away the tears that had fallen, wincing as the burn on his hand pulsed.
His eyes darted back to Phil as he stepped forward again and Tommy leaned back against the sink.
Phil’s foot caught on the pan and Tommy’s eyes widened as he bent down to pick it up by the handle. He relaxed slightly when Phil just placed it on the counter before reaching back down for the fallen bacon.
Tommy watched as Techno came back into the room with the first aid kit, shocked when he realised he hadn’t noticed the other leaving.
“Tommy,” Phil said, voice low, “Can I see your hand?”
Tommy looked in between him and Wilbur, who nodded at him, and then to Techno, who was frowning in the way that Tommy had learned meant he was worried.
Phil was smiling at him. Patient and kind and not angry.
Tommy held out his burnt hand and tried to calm himself down as Phil took it in his own, studying the burn carefully.
He was being ridiculous – he knew none of them would ever hurt him, knew that they’d die before they raised a hand to him. But he still felt his hand shake in Phil’s and he wasn’t sure what he was scared of.
No. That was a lie. He knew exactly what he was scared of and he knew he had good reason to be.
They could change their mind at any time. The instant they realised how useless and how – how fucking incompetent and spoiled he was, he’d be kicked out. And how could he blame them? He was practically tricking them at this point, manipulating them into thinking he was worth their time and money.
“It doesn’t look too bad.” Phil stepped next to him and guided his hand under the water again. “We’ll put some cream on it and then wrap it and you should be fine.”
Tommy didn’t reply and refused to look at Phil, trying to hold back the sob that was building in his chest. Biting his lip, Tommy stared at the wall in front of him – his hand barely hurt anymore due to the cold water, yet for some reason his chest still ached.
He felt someone stand on his other side and a quick glance told him it was Wilbur, holding the first aid kit. “Hey Toms.”
“Hi Wil.” Tommy choked out. “Good morning.”
“Not the best start if I’m honest.” Wilbur tried to joke.
Tommy shrank into himself a little more. “I’m sorry.”
“No that’s –“ Wilbur cursed under his breath. “That’s not what I meant. You’ve got nothing to be sorry for, it was an accident.”
Tommy looked at Wilbur to assess his honesty, the tension in his shoulders releasing a little when he saw the sincerity in his eyes.
Phil took his attention again when he spoke. “C’mere Toms.”
He hesitated for a moment, one hand still under the water, but Phil’s arms looked far too inviting to resist and the idea of a Phil hug was overpowering.
Curling himself up so he’d fit, Tommy tucked himself under Phil’s chin and gripped onto the front of Phil’s shirt, no longer able to hold back his sobs.
“You’re okay.” Phil whispered into his hair. “We love you. You’re okay.”
The arms around his waist calmed his racing heart more than he thought anything else could, the ache slipping away along with the thoughts that were clouding his head.
Eventually his tears stopped and he pulled away, wiping at his face. An apology creeped on the tip of his tongue but he forced it back – apologising wouldn’t change anything. “Thank you.”
“Anytime Toms.” Phil ruffled his hair. “Why don’t you go with Wil so he can sort out your hand? Techno and I will finish making breakfast.”
Nodding, Tommy followed Wilbur as he led the way to Tommy’s bedroom, looking for Tommy’s permission before entering.
Tommy sat next to Wilbur on his bed and gave him his hand, feeling ready for a nap. He opened his mouth to but closed it again when he realised he didn’t know what to say.
Wilbur was the one to break the silence. “Does it hurt?”
“Not really.”
He was being honest – as long as he kept it still the pain was nowhere near as bad as it had been.
And honestly? He’d had far worse than a small burn on his hand. He knew he was just overreacting and looking for attention, just like he always did.
Wilbur opened the first aid kit and grabbed a cream from it. “That’s good.”
Tommy watched as Wilbur applied the cream to his hands with careful movements, muttering an apology when Tommy winced and then wrapping it tightly.
For once the silence wasn’t uncomfortable and helped Tommy completely relax, leaning into Wilbur with a small smile.
“It looks kind of cool.” Tommy joked, turning it over in front of his face.
Wilbur huffed out a surprised laugh. “Yeah, I guess it does. I’m not sure Phil would agree though.”
“Nah Phil knows what’s cool.”
Wilbur laid down and tugged on the back of Tommy’s shirt so he did the same. “Are you sure about that?”
Gasping dramatically, Tommy held his injured hand to his chest. “I can’t believe you’d say that about the one and only Philza.”
“You’re just a Phil stan.”
Tommy scoffed. “Everyone is a Phil stan at heart.”
“True.” Wilbur sat up. “Come on then, can’t wait for you all day.”
“You’re the one that forced me to lay down.” Tommy exclaimed, indignation making his voice higher.
Wilbur shook his head and left the room, calling over his shoulder. “I remember different.”
Grumbling, Tommy stood up to follow Wilbur out of the room, trying to hide the large grin that was covering his face.
“He was supposed to be safe here Phil.” Techno buried his face in his hands, guilt making him nauseous. “He wasn’t meant to ever get hurt again.”
“Accidents happen Techno.” Phil said, placing a hand on his back.
“It’s my job to protect him and I’ve failed. It’s as simple as that.” Techno stood and started pacing, but his eyes kept darting over to where Wilbur and Tommy had left.
Phil shook his head. “No, he might live with you, but Tommy is all of our responsibility.”
“But –“
“Techno, Tommy’s gone through some shit and I doubt we’ll know the full effects of that for years to come. Of course there are things that we know not to do, and things that we wouldn’t do anyway, but there will be moments that blindside us because we won’t expect them, like today, and all we can do is let him know we love him and stick with him.”
Phil was earnest and Techno knew there was truth in his words. “I just hate that he got hurt.”
“We all do.”
Techno sighed. “I better start breakfast.”
“Not a chance.” Phil laughed. “I’ll start breakfast and you concentrate on not making any fires.”
“I’m not that bad.”
“No comment.”
“I’m afraid to say that Tommy has succumbed to his injuries.” Wilbur said as he entered the room.
Laughing, Tommy pushed him from behind. “Shut up Wilbur.”
“Sometimes it’s like I can still hear his voice.”
“Wilbur is a bitch. Wilbur is a bitch.” Tommy chanted. “Wilbur is –“
Throwing an arm over his shoulder, Wilbur finally gave in with a laugh. “Gremlin child.”
“What’s for breakfast Phil?” Tommy asked, stomping down the guilt that came with the question.
Pausing in cooking, Phil studied Tommy for a moment before speaking. “Bacon and eggs. It should be ready in a minute or so.”
Techno hummed. “Does that count as cannibalism?”
“I don’t know, are you actually part pig?” Wilbur asked, sarcasm coating his words.
Techno shrugged, walking over to Tommy and ruffling his hair, making it clear what he was doing before he did so. “I’ve never had a DNA test, so technically, I could be.”
“You –“ Wilbur shook his head. “That’s somewhat worrying.”
“I can kind of see it.” Tommy said, tilting his head at Techno.
“Breakfast’s ready!” Phil called, interrupting whatever Techno was going to say. “Come and get it before I give it to the dog.”
Techno’s eyebrows furrowed. “We don’t have a dog.”
Face lighting up with a grin, Tommy turned to Techno. “We should get one.”
“Breakfast?”
“A dog.” Tommy practically skipped towards the kitchen. “Imagine the likes a dog would get.”
Wilbur followed him. “It’s not a bad idea.”
“What’s not a bad idea?” Phil asked.
“Getting a dog.” Tommy said cheerfully.
Techno groaned. “Absolutely not.”
“Actually,” Phil started with a thoughtful look, “A dog would be helpful.”
Techno threw his hands up. “How on earth would a dog be helpful?”
“Let me do some research.” Phil said, handing them an each a plate. “Obviously, it’s your decision, but wait until I send you a few links before you say no.”
Techno groaned again, knowing that that meant he was inevitably going to give in. “Fine.”
Tommy cheered. “Yes! We’re getting a dog, Wil!”
“Yes!” Wilbur shouted back. “So many likes!”
“Nerds.” Techno muttered, handing out cutlery.
Tommy stuck his tongue out at him and shared a grin with Wilbur before starting to eat his breakfast. He hadn’t realised how hungry he was and he gladly ate through the pain that came with using his fork with his injured hand.
It was annoying that he had to work out some other way to pay back Techno for the food yesterday and Phil for the breakfast that morning, but in that moment he revelled in the calm atmosphere as they ate their breakfast, making the occasional joke at eachother’s expense but never maliciously.
It was strange. He’d gotten used to avoiding eating with others because of how uncomfortably tense it got with his parents, but it hadn’t been like that once in the last few weeks and it was somewhat disconcerting to see the stark difference between the two families.
And no one had made a single comment about the mess he’d made this morning – in fact, all Phil had done was asked if his hand was okay, no hidden anger beneath his words.
Tommy had gotten used to analysing every word for that anger, needing to know the exact mood and tone before he responded and when he did, speaking as though he were walking on broken glass, careful and controlled.
There was none of that anymore and Tommy was scared he would get too used to this weird, new normal and yet, he still couldn’t bring himself to make sure he wouldn’t – to leave.
Despite all effort to not, he’d found himself attached to the home he’d created with Techno – the way he had a shelf just for his snacks, the way he was excited to come home from college every day, the way he wasn’t constantly worrying about getting enough donations on streams so he’d be able to pay the bills.
He wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be normal – wasn’t sure if that was the same way Tubbo felt or if he’d just gotten extremely lucky but either way, he was reluctant to give it up so soon after getting it.
In his pocket, his phone chimed and he took it out to see another message from Tubbo.
‘You alive??’
Tommy bit his lip. He still hadn’t asked Techno what he could tell his friend but now was as good a time as ever.
He sent Tubbo a quick message to stop him from worrying.
‘I’m alive. Give me a few and I’ll explain.’
“Techno?” Tommy asked, pushing around the crumbs on his plate with his fork.
Beside him, Wilbur and Phil’s conversation stopped and Tommy shifted in his seat. He’d always been good at talking but that rarely included talking about anything serious.
Techno finished chewing. “Yeah?”
“Tubbo messaged me after the stream yesterday.” Techno didn’t speak, perhaps sensing that Tommy wasn’t finished. “He wanted to know why you were there.”
“Okay.” Confusion coloured Techno’s voice.
Tommy dropped his fork to wring his hands together, wincing at the clang it made against his plate. “Well, you see, I was just wondering, uh, how much exactly he’s allowed to know?”
“Well, however much you want to tell him, I guess.” Techno shrugged. “It’s up to you Toms, he’s your friend and I know you’re close to him. It might be nice if you had someone like that to talk to, but it’s your choice.”
“Oh.” Tommy said.
What was with these people and confusing him at every turn?
“Tommy?” He turned to look at Phil. “What did you think Techno was going to say?”
Was this another one of those things that was normal to other people? Or was Techno’s answer weird?
Tommy wrinkled his nose, unsure. “I don’t know. I just, I didn’t want to cause trouble?”
Wilbur looked far more horrified than the situation warranted when Tommy glanced at him, so Tommy ignored him and looked back to Phil, who wasn’t much better, but was at least smiling.
“Right.” Phil blew out a breath before fixing Tommy with a serious look. “You need to know something Tommy, and it’s really important that you listen and believe me, okay?”
“Uh, okay.”
Phil placed his hands on the table and leaned forward. “The only reason that you would be causing trouble, is if Techno, Wil or I had done something wrong in keeping you away from, from that place, and we’ve done nothing wrong. If anyone ever tells you to keep something secret or, or threatens you to, then you should always tell one of us. Even if it’s one of us that does that – and I can promise you that that will never happen – you should tell someone you can trust. Whether that’s Tubbo or someone else entirely.”
Tommy wasn’t sure his heart had ever been so full. Phil had said a lot and the implications, God the implications were enough to make him question everything.
But it made sense. That was the biggest thing: everything Phil had said had made sense.
“It’s your life.” Wilbur added. “You have the right to tell who you want about it and none of us have any sort of claim over that.”
That was the final straw. Tommy felt tears rising and he wasn’t sure why – for some reason he’d been crying more in the last few weeks than he had in years – he wasn’t upset about what they’d said, if anything it was the opposite, but there was a strange feeling in his chest, almost like loss.
He wiped his eyes furiously. “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I’m crying.”
“It’s okay.” Phil stood up and walked over to where Tommy was sat, holding out his arms out. “Hug?”
Tommy laughed wetly and stood up, burying his face into the crook of Phil’s neck.
“Group hug!” Wilbur cheered and latched himself onto Tommy’s back, waving Techno over.
Techno joined them without complaint, wrapping his arms around all three of them. Tommy wasn’t sure how long they stood there for, but when they parted, his tears were long gone and a shaky smile had taken their place.
“I’m going to go call Tubbo.” He said, voice full of more confidence than he truly felt.
Wilbur apparently noticed. “We’ll be here if you need us.”
“I know.” Tommy said, and he did know; he was more confident in that than he was in almost everything else. “Thank you.”
He turned to go, dodging Wilbur’s attempt to ruffle his hair only to walk into Techno’s own attempt.
When he got to his room, he opened his messages with Tubbo and sighed – he really didn’t want to do it over text.
‘Facetime?’
They hadn’t called with video since Tommy had left home, partially so he could hide the fact that he wasn’t home and partially because of the injuries that had still covered his face.
It only took about thirty seconds for Tubbo to respond – just enough time for Tommy to almost convince himself that he should just make something up.
‘Okay. I’ll call you.’
His phone rang and he steadied his nerves, holding up his phone with his uninjured hand and answering it with the other.
“Hey Tubbo.” He caught his image in the corner of the screen and wrinkled his nose. “Wow, I’m a mess.”
“Well I wasn’t going to say it, but…” Tubbo’s face loaded on screen, a small smile covering an otherwise worried expression.
Tommy laughed and tried to straighten his hair somewhat, only succeeding in making it messier. “That’s so mean.”
“You’re the one that said it!” Tubbo’s smile suddenly turned into a frown. “Wait, where are you?”
Tommy scratched the back of his neck. “That’s kind of part of what I need to tell you.”
“Oh my God, have you been kidnapped?”
His nerves eased immediately and he grinned. “What the fuck? No, nothing as bad as that. Why would I call you if I got kidnapped?”
“I don’t know, because I’m your best friend and your hero?”
“Tubbo, you’re suggesting that if I get kidnapped, I should call you and not, like, the police?” Tommy furrowed his eyebrows. “Yeah, that seems smart.”
“I think I could probably save you.” Tubbo grinned at him and Tommy wondered why he’d ever considered not telling him the truth.
Tommy leaned back into his chair. “Thanks big man, I’ll keep it in mind.”
“So, what did you want to tell me?” Tubbo asked, and despite the casual tone to his voice Tommy could see the worry in his eyes.
“Uh,” Tommy rubbed his eyes before sitting up, “You know how Techno moved to England?”
“Yeah, I remember Twitter freaking out.”
Tommy took a deep breath – just because he wanted to tell Tubbo the truth, that didn’t make it easy to do. “I moved with him.”
“But you already lived in England.” Tubbo frowned at him and Tommy took pity on him; it probably wasn’t Tubbo had expected Tommy to tell him.
“I left my parents’ house and moved into Techno’s new one.”
“I feel like I’m missing something.” Tubbo admitted. “You moved in with Techno? Why?”
For some reason the idea of admitting to Tubbo that he got kicked out sent shame down his spine – Tubbo knew him probably better than anyone, easily looked past the image he put up, but Tommy still didn’t want to disappoint him.
But he knew Tubbo deserved the truth.
He sighed. “I got kicked out.”
He watched Tubbo’s face carefully, searching for any signs of disgust and feeling embarrassingly relieved when he found none. “Oh. Oh. Is that why we stopped face timing for a bit?”
Tubbo always had been more perceptive than he was given credit for. “Yeah, I’m sorry man. I just didn’t want to worry you.”
“Nah, don’t apologise.” Tubbo leaned forward suddenly. “You weren’t like, out on the streets, were you?”
Tommy shook his head. “I uh, I was kind of injured when I left and I wasn’t really thinking clearly? So I went to Brighton and ended up calling Wil. He let me stay with him while Techno found a place.”
“You were injured? Dude, your parents –“
Tommy interrupted him before he could get too worried. “It was mostly from kids from college.”
“No offense, but that doesn’t make it any better.” Tubbo sighed. “Are you okay now?”
“I’m as perfect as normal.”
Tubbo tilted his head. “Then why’s your hand bandaged.”
Of course Tubbo had noticed. Tubbo always noticed.
“Stupid accident this morning.”
“Promise?” Tubbo crossed his arms. “Because if Techno’s been pulling shit, I won’t hesitate to beat him up.”
Tommy laughed. “I promise. Although the idea of you fighting Techno is hilarious.”
“I’d do it.”
“I know you would.” Tommy could see the stupid fond smile he was wearing and tried to hide it with no avail. “Techno’s been good though, Wil and Phil too.”
Humming, Tubbo leaned back in his chair. “You guys always were like a family.”
“Yeah?” Tommy liked to think the same, but if Tubbo thought so, then it had to be true.
“Yeah.” Tubbo smiled at him and clapped his hands once. “So when can I come visit?”
“I’ll ask Techno. I think our place is only like, a half hour walk away.” He wasn’t going to tell Tubbo how that had been one of the first things he’d checked, along with how far away it was from Wilbur’s and Phil’s homes.
Tubbo hummed. “For the record, this is so much worse than if you’d been kidnapped.”
“Dude!” Surprised laughter escaped before he could stop it.
“I’m just saying, on like, a scale, being kidnapped is way lower.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“Thank you.” Tubbo grinned.
“I meant it in a bad way.”
“No you didn’t.”
Tommy wasn’t about to admit that Tubbo was right but he suspected that the large grin on his face gave him away.
He should have known he had nothing to worry about from telling Tubbo. They spent the next hour catching each other up on the things they hadn’t had the chance to talk about and Tommy didn’t stop smiling the whole time, feeling lighter than he had in months.