Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

     The bell for dismissal finally rings and Tommy stands up right out of his chair. It was the perfect wake up call since his English class was too boring for him. But something that wasn't boring were his awesome friends. All of them would meet at 3:15 at the same locker number 404 everyday to get ready for their afterschool bullshittery. Ranboo, like always, was the first person there. Drista came not too long after, chewing some cherry bubblegum and switching her bags out. She has a more tattered messenger bag with custom patches that she uses for traveling and other things while leaving her clean school bag in her locker. Purpled and Tubbo were both arriving at the same time since they both have classes in the same hallway. It seemed like they were talking about the existence of aliens again.

     Tommy grinned happily seeing the four, they've been his friends since elementary school, they always seem to put a smile on his face no matter the situation. “So, what do we have cooking up for today? Maybe we can head to that overgrown parking lot near an old Costco.” Drista spoke to Tommy with a smirk on her face. 

     “Ha! Sounds great, but I have other ideas. There's a junkyard by the police station, maybe we can-”

     Tubbo groans a bit, “I know what you’re talking about. That's the one where my dad works. We should head to the alleyway instead since that junkyard is full of cameras, I can't risk getting grounded again. Besides, it's an alley we haven't been to yet, Purpled can bring his boom box and Ranboo can bring the spray paint.”

     “Why can't he just use bluetooth speakers?” Drista asks in a semi-sarcastic tone.

     “Because Punz is using them for a party that he's hosting at his house. Your brother is going to be there Drist.”

     Drista adjusts her glasses and fiddles with the pink racoon tail extension in her hair. “Doesnt Punz still have a thing with Dream? Because if this is another effort to ask him out, I'm going to laugh.”

     Purpled chuckles, “Probably, but who knows.”

     “Alright then chaps," Tommy says clasping his hands together, "We meet up at the alley in about two hours, I have some ideas and I might be able to bring snacks. Any suggestions?”

     Ranboo stands by Tubbo and kisses his forehead, “I think you should try to bring fruit snacks or something. It should be easy to put in your pocket or quick to eat since we don't want to make the same mistake like two months ago.”

     Tommy looked annoyed, “It was one time y'know!"

     “You’re the one who left a banana peel in still water and Tubbo tried to reach in and grab it.” Ranboo sounded a bit stern while Tommy was swearing at Ran like a chihuahua. 

     Tubbo, Drista, and Purpled couldn't help but laugh a little bit. It was hard to keep a straight face when all of them unanimously agreed that Tommy looks dumb when he's angry. Tommy huffed and grabbed his things from his locker. “5:30, at the alleyway. Drista, you're on spray paint duty, bring music Purpled, Ran and Tubs…you keep being you-”

     All of them nod in agreement and each go their separate ways to walk home. Drista and Tommy are neighbors so they walk together. Drista is blasting breakcore in her headphones while Tommy listens to Wilbur’s new album, having an imaginary guitar in his hands. Drista giggles a bit while watching Tommy. He was poorly singing along to the songs and his finger placement for his guitar wasn't the best, but Wil’s been teaching him whenever he isn't at work or on tour. Drista looked over at Tommy and took out one of her earbuds, “When do you think Wilbur is coming home? I haven't seen him in over three months.”

     Tommy looks over at Drista and shrugs, “He comes back when he comes back. He’s a busy guy after all.” Tommy has a wide smile on his face and decides to laugh off the conversation. Drista has noticed how Wilbur and Tommy have acted towards each other in the past. It didn't help that Dream and Wilbur had a situationship for the longest time before they cut things off. Or well…mostly cut things off. Drista has a lingering worry for Tommy in the back of her head, but they won't worry too much about it for now.

     The two split off into their separate houses, Drista is already packing up her things needed for the alley trip. Though forgetting that she had an earbud out, she hears a bit of arguing in the next room over. Dreams room. She leans her ear against the wall to listen in, it's Puffy and Dream talking with each other. She knew what it was. Dream was in college and wasn't doing too great in a few of his classes and he's home super late due to partying and sneaking out with Karl. Drista sighs and leaves her room to grab herself a soda. In the fridge, there's a whole box of sodas with the note that says ‘Dream’s Dr. Pepper, don't touch it.’ Drista chuckled and rolled her eyes before taking a few cans with her and packing them in her bag. She changed out of her decorative Gir jacket and switched to her more muted green hoodie Dream gave her as a hand me down. Its large enough to hide a few things in the sleeves and the pockets are useful. Drista spent the next 30 minutes relaxing before she messaged Puffy that she was going to Tommy’s house before leaving at around 4:30. Drista stood in the yard of Tommy’s house before picking up a pebble and throwing it at his already broken window. It took some time, but Tommy opened the window. “What? It's 4:30 Dristy.”

     “Yeah, and if we’re walking, that shit takes time. Better to be early than late y’know. I know how long it takes for Tubbo to get prepared to go somewhere.”

     Tommy realized Drista made a point and he grabbed his things they needed before heading downstairs and greeting Drista on the front lawn. By the looks of it Philza wasn't home, and Kristen doesn't know about the things Tommy does after school, so it makes sense for Tommy to be out of his house so quickly. “Alright, so we need to head to the police station and find a mostly empty alley. I guess that's when we pick up Tubbo? I'm not sure how close his house is to the station.” Drista pulled out her phone and opened the GPS. 

     Tommy chuckled, “No need for that smiles junior, I remember a shortcut.”

     Drista glared “Last time you gave us a shortcut, we were all nearly hit by a truck.”

     “But it was funny and nobody got hurt.”

     “Touche.” Drista replied. 

     The two made their way to Purpled’s house. They knew Ranboo would meet them there at the location so that Tubbo could travel safely. Getting to Purpled’s was already a 15 minute walk. The duo talked for some of it, but they were more quiet than usual. Tommy was hiding something. Drista could notice Tommy ignoring his constant buzzing phone, him fiddling with the strings of his jacket, the nervous look on his face. She’ll have to talk with him about this later, but not with the others. When the two arrived, Purpled was waiting on the porch eating a pocky stick. They looked at the two and picked up their boombox. “My brother told me to wait out here since he’s setting up his crappy party. I just hope our parents don't yell at both of us.”

     Drista took Purpled’s box of pocky, took a few sticks, and gave them back to them, “I’m sure it’ll be fine. We have enough evidence to prove your innocence. If it helps, you can come over to my house for a bit.”

     “I mean, I suppose that might work? Either way, I'll just call one of you guys to prove I wasn't here. Are we heading to Tub’s house next?” Purpled set down their boombox and put the pocky sticks in their little travel bag. 

     “Nah,” Tommy said with an unneeded amount of confidence “Ran and Tubs will meet us at the location. Mainly because out of everyone, Schlatt trusts Ranboo the most and if we all arrive, he’ll know we’re up to some dumb shit.”

     “For once you actually make a good point,” Purpled spoke in the lighthearted but snarky tone. 

     Drista laughed a bit and Tommy rolled his eyes. The trio soon made their way to the alleyway. As planned, Ranboo and Tubbo were already at the location. Tubbo seemed nervous about something and Tommy noticed it, but for the sake of the group, they won't mention it now. Probably something involving Schlatt. Purpled puts down their boombox and looks through the tapes he brought while Drista sets her bag down and begins to pass out the drinks she took from her fridge. “I took enough for everyone to have one, so don't blame me when you waste it. Also, my green can of spray paint is getting low so I need to get a new one.”

     “You’re the best Drista, thank you!” Tommy already opened his drink and began to chug half the can, “I also brought the fruit snacks you lot asked for, they’re in my bag.”

     Tubbo just put his drink in one of his cargo pants pockets, he’s a bit more quiet than usual. Purpled and Drista were starting to notice this behavior too. Ranboo cleared their throat and fixed their hair a bit. “I did check the place a little bit, there is no sign of us being here before, which is kind of funny if you think about it since we’ve been to so many places.”

     Tommy stretched his arms a bit and smiled widely, his newly replaced braces were shown in the streetlight “What are we waiting for gang? Let’s explore the hell out of this place!”

     The squad walks down the alleyway, Tommy starts talking about how he's excited to see his girlfriend when she's home from her vacation, Purpled remarks on how funny it is that Tommy actually pulled someone. Drista makes a joke that she could be a better girlfriend towards her than Tommy and she laughs seeing how angry he gets. Tubbo is still a bit quiet, but he's taking the time to observe anything that catches his eye while talking to Ranboo about it. The five settle down at a place and Purpled turns on his boombox to play the tape Drista gave them for their birthday. Ranboo points out a few negative symbols on the walls before Drista covers them up with a well done spray paint of the rainbow flag. Drista seems to have a proud expression while everyone is happy that it's covered. “I think we should all take the time to leave our own little art pieces, what do you guys think?”

     The others make their own signs of agreement and carefully take out the spray paint cans from Drista’s bag to create their own art work. Tommy, like most immature boys his age, just draws a penis. Tubbo and Purpled worked together on a nice UFO while Ranboo makes cats. Drista writes words that talk about peace or jokingly insult Dream in some way. Tommy also writes about how hot women are while Purpled tells him that men are better. They argue for five minutes, but it's a dumb argument, so they laugh about it not too long later. While Ranboo is painting small cats and bees, they start to hear something in the distance. Sirens. Police sirens. “Everyone, I think we’ve been spotted. Grab our things, we might need to run.”

     The squad immediately packed their things up in their respective bags and backpacks, their snacks were a lot easier to clean this time. Thankfully, it's only the sound of one car, but one car is enough depending on who’s driving it. As they all try to run off, a gun is fired into the sky and they all stop, Tubbo covers his ears. “Aw fuck!” Tommy shouts “We’re doomed!”

     “Calm down Toms, we’ll be fine. We just have to be great with conversation” Purpled tried talking in a more reassuring voice, it mostly worked. Mostly

     “But talking is Drista’s thing since she doesn't keep her trap shut-” Tommy is interrupted by Drista flicking Tommy on the shoulder, he groaned a bit but thankfully it didn't hurt as badly.

     “You kids shouldn't be here, go home.” The voice was all too familiar, even the faint slur to his voice made him all too recognizable. It was Jschlatt, head of police and Tubbo's drunkard father.

     Tubbo hid behind Ranboo while Purpled slowly pulled out the pocket knife he had hidden in his jacket. Drista was holding the red spray paint can in case she needed to. “You kids have been uh..doing this too much. Get outta here or youre all goin to juvie…”

     “Oh yeah? Don't you have to catch us first?” Tommy spoke with a snarky tone.

     The whole group looked at Tommy as if he was stupid. Ranboo groaned a bit but looked at the cop “Mr..Schlatt, we aren't really doing much harm to anybody and we’re covering offensive symbols. We’re just kids who are having a bit of harmless fun.”

    “You’re kids who have a record of breaking the law and getting my son involved.” Schlatt responded as he drank from his canteen.

    Drista let out a groan as she walked over to Schlatt, the others were quietly begging her not to, but she kicked Schlatt in the knee as hard as she could and started running, causing him to collapse and be unable to catch her. The others didn't question their next moves and started running after Drista. Schlatt struggled to get up, but once he did, he used his walkie talkie to call for backup. The group ran to the nearest street over and tried to hide from the cop cars that were coming close. They found a slightly overgrown parking lot by a mall and hid nearby each other, but in slightly different places. Tubbo and Tommy were hiding behind some bushes, Drista stayed by a car, Purpled climbed a tree nearby and Ranboo hid by one of the pillars holding up the mall entrance. The group waited for the cars to pass by before they met in the middle of the lot. All of them were breathless, sweaty, and exhausted. Tommy looked towards Drista, his hands were clutched into fists, “Drista, we knew that was a bad idea, so why would you hit him??” Purpled had to basically hold Tommy back so he would do anything stupid.

    “It's not my fault most of you were cowards, he was drunk enough that he wouldn't be as much of a problem. We got out in the end right?” Drista glared at Tommy, one of her hands was in her messenger bag as if she was about to pull a weapon. 

    Ranboo stood between the two “Both of you, enough. Despite what Drista did, she helped us get out. But there could've been a much easier way to handle things. The cops wouldn't kill us or anything.”

    “My father would tear us all apart, do any of our parents know that the police here don't like us?? We’re all fucked at this point. I won't be allowed to be around any of you after this.” Tears begin to form in Tubbo’s eyes as he speaks. “This isnt safe anymore, why cant we do something more…i dont know, tame?”

    Purpled zips his head over to look at Tubbo, “Tame? What we always do is pretty tame. Sure, we make graffiti and blast some music, but we aren't getting into fights or trying to kill people. What could be more tame than this? Going to our dead as hell malls or sneaking into those shit college parties my brother hosts? I’ll have you know that those parties end up like shit! College kids thinking of dropping out while drinking their heads off and kissing other peoples girlfriends isnt fucking tame Tubbo!”

    This argument seems to last ages. All of them are talking over each other and yelling nonsense and profanity at each other. After what felt like hours, yet was only thirty minutes, the group settled down. Drista was listening to music with her headphones while drawing on her arm. Tommy was scrolling on his phone, looking at old photos or doom scrolling on a random app. Tubbo had held onto Ranboo and fallen asleep, and Purpled was disassociating while staring at the sky. Soon enough, Ranboo broke the silence by letting out a sigh. “Lets all just go home, We’ve been gone for ages and god knows how our parents are going to feel. I know Tubbo is already in trouble, Drista might get arrested later for basically assaulting a cop, Purpled will probably get grounded, and who knows what’ll happen to me and Tommy. We’re all tired and some of us might even have tests tomorrow.”

    “It’s not even nine yet,” Tommy replies,  “We can stay out for a bit longer. Besides, the cops won’t catch us. They’re slow and we’re fast, see, easy.”

    Drista looked over at Tommy and removed one of her earbuds, “Most of these cops are probably sober and driving, try to race against a car.”

    Tommy groaned and went quiet. Ranboo was upset that nobody was listening to their advice. They wanted to keep the others safe, but they couldn't do that if no one listened. Purpled came back into reality and carefully nudged Tubbo awake. Despite Purpled dissociating, they remembered half the conversation. “I think the two of us should go home, out of everyone, our parents are the most strict. So it's only a safe bet if we leave early. The rest of you guys can stay, really up to you all.”

    Tommy struggled to collect his words, “Going home is boring, i want to hangout with you guys, it's not fun without the whole group. It's just an hour or two, all of you go to bed too early.”

    Drista shot Tommy a glance before rolling her eyes, he laughed a bit forcefully and nervously. “Point being…i think we should stay a while longer, unless you guys have curfews for whatever reason. I doubt y’all do.”

    Purpled picked up his boombox and looked at Tommy, “Me and Tubbo are going home regardless. I doubt Punz’ party will last another hour and I don't want my mom coming home and wondering where I am and why someone is drunk on the porch. Could you quit being selfish?” Purpled then turned away and began walking home with Tubbo.

    Tommy just sat in his spot, his eyes were a bit wide and one of them was twitching. Drista and Ranboo looked at Tommy to make sure he didn't pull anything stupid. Fortunately, he didn't. A few minutes later, Tommy stood up and dusted the grass off himself. “Drista, let's go home. Purpled is right.”

    Drista frowned, “You aren't selfish, just rash on occasion. I think we all need a bit of sleep, and even then, we can hang out online. I’ll be up for a while since I'm out of melatonin already.”

   Tommy sighed and looked at Ranboo, who nodded in agreement to Drista's remark. He looked back at Drista and chuckled “Y’know, im surprised Ranboo is the smart one.” He said with a smirk as he gave a cocky glance back at Ranboo. Drista held in a laugh. 

   The three of them walked home together and talked along the way. Ranboo split off from the other two so it was just Drista and Tommy again. Tommy began to talk about how he might talk to his girlfriend and take her for a date soon, Drista teased him a little bit and Tommy tried to act masculine about it. This made her giggle even more. As the two approached their neighboring houses, they both went quiet. Tommy tugged at the sleeves of his shirt a bit and Drista just looked at her brother's window, cracked open just slightly. Tommy looked over at Drista and rubbed the back of his neck, “Drista, listen. Can you keep a secret?” Drista nodded.

   Tommy looked back at his house and his eyes began to water up, “I’m scared Drista. I have been for ages. Am I really a bad friend? I-I don't want to be selfish or anything but…being at home is hard. My parents are fine, but my brother is just…a whole mess. He’s coming home tomorrow and I want to show him I've matured at least a bit. And I can't have us arguing or whatever. He’s bringing somebody, so…yeah.” He wiped his eyes and tried to calm himself down.

   Drista gently placed her hand on Tommy’s shoulder, “Everything will be okay, I can promise you that. We have yet to truly break apart, so…Tomorrow, let's just visit Purpled since I have a feeling he might not be allowed to leave his house after school.”

   Tommy chuckled “Yeah, sounds good. It’ll help lighten the mood when I meet Wilbur’s friend. I hope it's not another situationship.”

   Drista bursted into laughter, she seemed to remember when Dream had a whole thing for Wilbur. This made Tommy laugh too. The duo relaxed and waved goodbye before going inside and into their rooms. Tommy just hopped onto his computer and decided to play some minecraft, maybe inviting the others to play along if they wanted to. 

   Tommy’s phone buzzed slightly, somebody messaged him. It was Wilbur. His eyes widened reading the message, his hands began to shake and tremble. He immediately let the others know about the situation and shut off his laptop. It seemed like he needed a moment to process that.

Chapter Text

    Drista was sitting in her English class, it was around 1:30 and she had already finished her assignments for the day. She knew class wouldn't end for another 20 or so minutes, so she laid her head down since her phone needed to charge in her bag. A moment later, there seems to be a lot more chatter in the halls than usual. The teacher gets up to open the door, just to observe the issue. There's a crowd outside the room seemingly surrounding something. People have their phones out trying to record what's going on. It doesn't interest Drista too much, but she slips out the room and tries to go through the crowd. She’s pushed and shoved until she’s near the center. It's a fight. A fight between Purpled and Tommy while Ranboo tries to separate the two. Tommy’s nose is bleeding out and his eye is bruised. Purpled has markings on his neck from Tommy trying to choke him out earlier. 

    Both of them are yelling and screaming profanity at each other while Ranboo is trying to calm the both of them down. Drista rushed to her locker to see what she could find to help stop the fight. She found a large metal lock and even though it seemed useless, to her, anything is useful. She rushed back through the crowd and threw the lock on the ground as hard as she could, creating a loud noise to distract the two. Of course, it hurt other people's ears too but that didn't matter. The three in the middle looked around to find where the lock came from and they looked dead at Drista. She’s pissed off and clearly disappointed. Tommy and Purpled took this time to semi-relax and catch their breath. Before another word could be said about the situation, the SRO’s of the school came in and took the three into a counselor's office to question if they should arrest them or not. Drista swore under her breath and followed. 

    Just before the door was shut, Drista used her foot as a doorstop and came into the room, sitting in one of the seats. The counselor cleared her throat and looked at Drista with confusion. She asked, “What involvement do you have with these three?”

    Drista looked around for a moment before coming up with a half lie “I threw the lock hoping it would hit Tommy in the face, and besides, the officers came in before I could pull off anything, they just didn't notice me since I'm so short.”

    Tommy looked at Drista with a confused look, he knew that if she wanted to hurt him, she would’ve done so already. And her aim isn't awful when she wears her glasses. And her goal wasn't to cause more of a riot. It took a moment for it to click in Tommy’s head that Drista was lying for a reason. Purpled already knew, but he was pissed more people got involved than necessary. 

    The counselor looked at the 4 of them and a thought came to mind, "There's normally five of you, where’s Toby?”

    “We call him Tubbo, but uh...” Ranboo replied, fiddling with their fingers

    Purpled groaned and decided to actually answer the question “He got sick last night, I'm pretty sure there’s an absence from his other classes, so-”

    “I see..” the counselor responded, “So, I want to know what started this fight and what part all four of you had. It seemed like your friend Ranboo had the right idea and Drista wanted to…rile you both up?” 

    Tommy looked at the officers before looking at Purpled. He could feel the sweat forming from the top of his forehead, his heart was racing. The whole reason this started was because of the message from Wilbur that Tommy brought up. Purpled felt like Tommy talked too much about somebody who didn't care enough about him. Tommy took a deep breath and slouched a bit less. “I was talking with Purpled about something relating to my family, apparently he thought I was being selfish. Selfish about what? That's my issue.”

    Purpled laughed slightly, “You just wanted to seem like some big tough guy in front of somebody you hardly met. And the fact Wilbur is telling you this now ? What was he thinking?”

    “It means he's opening up to me like a good older brother, w-we’re supposed to be bonding, you and Punz hardly bond.”

    Drista leaned over to give Tommy a disapproving glance, or a look that said “why the fuck would you say that?”

    Purpled’s eye twitched slightly as their brother was brought up, he slowly looked over at Tommy with a look that screamed “You’re dead after 3 pm.”

    Tommy realized that what he said might make the situation escalate even more. He looked at the counselor with a nervous smile. She gave a disapproving glance to the four before taking a deep breath. “Ranboo, you may leave. You had the right idea to try and separate them. I will talk with you later.”

    Ranboo wanted to retaliate but they held their tongue. He left the room but sat outside the hall, and hugged his knees. They held in their quiet sobs and took the time to calm themself. Ranboo went to their locker and began to look through it, grabbing his phone and seeing if Tubbo talked to him. There was one message he sent, it was from an hour ago explaining he woke up. Ranboo was relieved. Yesterday, Tubbo and Ranboo had a talk with Schlatt after what happened at the alley. Tubbo couldn't handle coming to school after things got a bit violent due to his father being drunk and having an injured knee. Ranboo understood why he wouldn't want to be here today, especially after Tommy and Purpled fought, even Drista got herself in trouble just to make sure they wouldn't keep hurting each other.

    Tommy, Drista, and Purpled walked out the room with one of the SRO’s. Ranboo watched and realized they were going to the office to wait for their parents. All three would be suspended for a few days, leaving Ranboo alone. He was supposed to return to class, but he goes into the office and sits with the three. Drista looks unfazed yet worried. Purpled was dead silent, but he was tugging at the sleeves of his jacket. Tommy’s leg kept shaking. He wanted to avoid having this conversation with his parents. Tommy looked up at Ranboo, his lips began to quiver. Ranboo sat next to Tommy and hugged him, Tommy felt ashamed of himself but he also felt like he needed a slap back into reality. Drista looked over to the three and groaned quietly. “Okay, you both need to tell me the real reason you fought. I swear you too left out something just to make sure you wouldn't be arrested.”

    Purpled looked at Drista and adjusted his sleeves, “Listen, Dris, I'm not the only one who thinks Tommy trying to change himself for some dickhead is a bad idea. I mean come on, Wilbur’s been hiding the fact that Tommy is basically a teen uncle.”

    Drista’s eyes widened slightly, “So that's the issue? The same argument you both had last night. Purpled you didn't need to lash out. You make a point, but there was no need to get violent. Now I have to explain why I'm suspended for a fight I tried to stop.”

    “At least your parents will believe you, you have a better record than any of us combined.”

    “That’s because I'm actually smart in the decisions I make Purpled. Why do you think the cops haven't come by our houses yet?”

    Ranboo was worried that another fight would break out, but Purpled had nothing else to say. “You’re right,” Purpled muttered “You’ve saved our asses a lot, but don't act like you haven't done stupid shit either Dris, you're just a decent liar.”

    Tommy snorted slightly, “At least we know she’s decent and not the best.”

    Drista looked at Tommy and adjusted her glasses. “Better than you can be.”

    Tommy tried to come back at her with a half baked insult, but that made the others laugh a bit. One of the SRO’s told the four to quiet down, so they did. Puffy arrived a moment later to pick up Drista. She looked quite confused about the whole situation. “Hey sweetheart, can we talk in the car?” Puffy said to Drista. 

    “I can explain the whole thing, but-”

    “No need,” Puffy interrupted, “I think it's better to talk about it at home with everyone just to make sure nobody gets upset again.”

    Drista gathered her things, “You sure you don't need to talk to them now?”

    “I can wait a bit, no worries hun, I just don't want to waste too much time here”

    Drista nodded and waved goodbye to the other three. Ranboo looked at Purpled and Tommy and patted both of their heads. “Now that she’s gone, you two try not to pull off anything stupid okay? This was a horrible stunt. Can I know the full situation? I know we talked about it over Discord but I just know the two of you talked privately.”

    “Oh yeah, didn't you fall asleep after I sent the screenshot?” asked Tommy

    “I did, so that's why I want to know.”

    Purpled pulled out his phone and opened his messages with Tommy. “Well, Tommy told everyone about how Wilbur would be coming by this week, and that he wanted Tommy to meet his son. Tommy freaked out and wanted to figure out how to impress Wilbur and his kid. Like taking him to our hangout spots since he wanted to be seen as the ‘cool’ uncle or something.”

    Ranboo blinked a bit before having this unamused look on his face. “You punched Tommy because you didnt- okay…i understand. We don't need more people that we only semi-know to figure out places we hang out or the areas to explore. That's personal to us because we make a lot of memories there. You didn't need to fight about it here, now we’re in a lot of trouble because of that.”

    “I think they’re realizing it slowly-” Tommy remarked.

    Purpled was silent, his thoughts were slowly forming in his head. “Ah.” he said quietly.

    Tommy just laughed. Ranboo let out a giggle but he stopped themself since they felt bad for laughing at such a thing. Purpled sneered at both of them. “No need to call me a dumbass, I'm slightly more aware of that now.”

    “Slightly? ” Tommy blared before laughing even more.

     Purpled groaned and leaned back in his seat, “You suck Tommy.”

    “Suck what? These nu-”

    “Don’t.” Ranboo interrupted. 

    Philza arrived at the building and walked into the office. Tommy’s quiet laughter died out quite fast. Philza didn't look angry, just slightly disappointed. Tommy grabbed his things and stayed quiet for the most part. “I’ll see you both soon, you should go to class Ranboo…hi dad.”

    “Hey kiddo.” Philza responded. 

    The two walked out to Philza’s car and got in, Tommy sat in the backseat, which is odd since he normally sits in the front. Phil adjusted his mirror and started his car, beginning to leave the parking lot. “Look Tommy, I might not fully understand what you're going through, but you didn't need to be violent.”

    Tommy just hummed in response.

    “Tell me what's going on. It’s about Wilbur right?”

    Tommy stayed silent.

    “I want to know more about the situation, but I will tell you this. I know you two haven't had the best relationship. You don't need to change yourself to impress him. I honestly blame myself for it too. I’m aware I'm not really the best father, so I'm gonna try and make things better, okay? You’re still grounded, but it's for a good reason. I don't want you fighting your friends like this. I know you haven't known Purpled as long as the others but that's not an excuse to hit him.”

    Tommy just stared out the window of the car, occasionally glancing back at the front. “So…no going out with the others?”

    “For a week, I’ll need your phone and I'll put a time limit on your laptop.” Phil replied.

    Tommy sighed and hugged his bag. The two arrived at home soon enough and both got out of the car. When they got inside, Tommy set his phone on the table and went upstairs and straight to his room. He laid in bed and grabbed a music player Techno gave him a few years ago. He plugged it into his laptop and began to download song files Drista sent. Once he finished, he laid in bed, grabbed a notepad, and started doodling. He left his laptop screen open on accident but he didn't care about that. Something began to scare him. Would the others go out without him? No, they're all grounded too. Well. Almost. Drista is only in trouble because she lied, Ranboo is safe because he tried to pry him apart from Purpled, and Tubbo is at home recovering from a few injuries. But they can still hang out without him. Would they leave him over something stupid like this? 

    Tommy’s heart started to pound and the doodles on his notepad became just scratches from his pencil. Tears were rolling down his cheeks and onto his bed. He threw his notepad across the room and grabbed his medication bottle, frantically opening the lid and grabbing a few pills. He swallowed three or four to calm himself down before setting the bottle down and laying back in bed. He turned up the volume of his music player until he couldn't hear his own thoughts. Tommy wanted to change out of his slightly blood stained shirt, but he lacked the motivation. He didn't want to look at his scars again either. Twice a day was enough.

    A ping could be heard faintly from his laptop, Tommy groaned since he didn't want to leave his bed. It was a friend request. It mentioned how it came from one of his contacts so that surprised him slightly. Before he took the time to look at the profile, Tommy was called down to talk with his parents. He closed his laptop and walked downstairs. Mumza and Phil were sitting in the living room, Tommy sat across from them. There was a knock on the door before Mumza mentioned how the door was unlocked, when it opened, two people walked through. Tommy’s eyes widened and he got out of his seat. “Wilbur, you're home!”

    Tommy hugged Wilbur immediately, and Wil hesitantly hugged back. He was a bit thinner and pale but he had a smile. “Hey Toms, I brought a guest with me.”

    The two pulled apart and Tommy’s eyes lit up, “Is it who I think it is?”

    Fundy peaked his head out from behind Wilbur, he was even wearing the beanie. He quietly waved at Tommy before fiddling with his fingers.

    “Hi Fundy! Nice to meet ya!” Tommy held out his hand for a handshake, he was excited, but it felt like some of his emotion was forced.

    Wilbur chuckled, “Fundy doesn't say much, but since his 11th birthday is coming up, it felt right for him to meet the rest of his family.”

    Fundy walked up to Tommy and hugged him lightly. Tommy patted his head back, “Aw, you're adorable. I never thought I'd be an uncle.”

    Mumza’s gaze on the rest of her family softened. Philza gently patted her back and kissed her cheek. “Fundy is always welcome here. He can even stay with Tommy if he wants. I'm sure we have a spare room but it probably needs a bit of cleaning.”

    Wilbur chuckled slightly, “I'm sure there's going to be a room regardless. Besides, Fundy mostly lives with his mom, so technically, he's visiting all of us.”

    Tommy looked over to Wilbur, “Who is Fundy’s mom?”

    The whole room goes silent for a moment before Wilbur adjusts with his glasses. “My ex…Sally. She’s doing wonderful and I prefer it if he stays with her. I am busy all the time ha ha…”

    “Oh.” Tommy replied, “Well, I think I’d love to give Fundy a tour of the house.” he said with a smile

    “Actually, I need to talk with you, Toms. It's important.”

    Tommy freezes. To him, that's normally a bad thing, but they haven't talked in ages, what would they need to discuss now. Tommy just hummed and led Wilbur to his room while Fundy stayed with Philza and Mumza. The two sat on Tommy’s bed, Wilbur was twiddling his thumbs while Tommy looked away from him. The room was silent for some time but Wilbur finally broke the silence. “You’re doing great Tommy.”

    Tommy looked up and gave Wilbur a nervous smile. “Heh..odd way to start a conversation Wilb-”

    Wilbur hugged Tommy tightly and began to lightly cry, “Listen to me for a moment. You’re doing great. I want to apologize. For everything.”

    Tommy didn't hug back quite yet and his smile quickly faded. “You’re hiding something. Tell me what you’ve been up to recently. Please.”

    “I’m not hiding anything-”

   “Tell me the truth!” Tommy yells as he shoves Wilbur away, “You’re more pale than a Tim Burton character, and you’re thinner. Do you ever take care of yourself Wil? Do you?? ”

    Wilbur went quiet. His left eye twitched and his face started to form a smile. Tommy looked appalled. Wilbur hugged himself and wiped his tears, “No, I don't. I’ll be honest about that. My gods Tommy you never change. You always keep worrying about me no matter how many times we fight.”

    “Well yeah, you’re my brother, you made a bad decision and I’m gonna be worried about you mate. You've been self destructive for years man, i dont remember how many but it's clear that it's more than three.”

    “How much do you want to know about me Tom? How much? Everything? Will that make you feel better?”

    “You’re scaring me.” Tommy muttered.

    Wilbur went quiet and sighed before getting up and leaving the room. Tommy got up and wanted to speak, but he couldn't. Not a sound came out. Tommy just groaned and kicked the leg of his bed frame, only to regret this action later and swear about how he hurt his foot. He practically just laid back down in bed and yelled in a pillow for two minutes. After all that yelling, Tommy remembered the friend request he got from earlier, so he hurried himself out of bed again and opened his laptop. He took a moment to look at the profile. It couldn't be. It was an old friend of his. Eryn Cyberonix. Tommy grew a wide smile before seeing if he sent a message. Nothing yet, but the request was enough to make his day. Tommy accepted it and sat back in bed, thinking of plans for next week.

Chapter Text

When Drista and Puffy arrive home, Drista sets her phone down on the coffee table and sits on the couch. “I can explain the whole thing in as much detail as possible.”

Puffy just giggled, “I'm honestly shocked, it's your first fight ever since you left soccer. And that was ages ago. What caused this?”

Drista sat up in her seat “Funny story, and I doubt you’d believe me, but I lied.”

“Explain what you mean, and I'll believe anything you say sweetheart but we need to make sure this conversation is full honesty, okay?”

“That works with me.” Drista replied, “If you saw on the slip you got or something…i threw something. In all honesty, I did that to create a distraction to get the bozos to stop fighting. It also gave me an excuse to listen in on whatever would happen in the counselor's office.”

Puffy just blinked slightly before having a bit of a grin, “See, I knew you were smart, but was the risk really worth it? All three of you got suspended.”

“Eh, sorta? I do admit that helping Ranboo instead of being all up and dramatic about it would've been a better call, but it also got some people to stop recording. I'm fine with missing a bit of school but all those missing assignments won't be nice. Or the rumors…or the literal anything that goes on in that building.”

Puffy laughed, “You really are Dream’s sister, I remember all the things he did in high school.”

“Speaking of Dream, where is he?” Drista asked with a confused look.

“Oh, he’s up in his room on the phone with Sapnap. Speaking of a phone, once I asked your friends and principal about said proof, you can have your phone back.”

“Really? Alright then.”

“I trust you Drista, I really do. You can head to your room if you want sweety, I’ll be on the phone and make plans for dinner later tonight. I think it's best if you contact one of your friends just to make sure they're okay.”

“I think they’ll be okay. I do need to call Tubbo and maybe Ranboo. Actually, no, I need to talk to all of them. But I know Tubbo and Ranboo have their phones.”

“You do whatever you need to honey, but don't get into actual fights okay?”

“I won't, I want to avoid it since I have enough trouble with Schlatt.”

Puffy looked at Drista with confusion, “How?”

“Me, Tubbo, and the gang went exploring and uh…i kicked him in the knee because he threatened to shoot us.”

Puffy went silent before getting out of her seat and pouring herself some wine. “I’ll have a talk with him about that.”

Chapter Text

    Tommy had slept in for the day, it was already around one in the afternoon and he still hasn't moved from his mattress. Without his phone, he had a huge lack of alarms in his day. He rolled over slightly to face his window, groaning when he could feel the sunlight on his face. Tommy pulled the covers over his face and tried to get more comfortable until somebody knocked on his door. Tommy threw the covers off himself and rushed out of bed, nearly tripping over himself. He opened the door and leaned on the doorframe. “What up mate?”

    Drista looked at Tommy with an odd look on her face, as if she was appalled, but also tried to hold back a laugh. When Tommy saw it was Drista, he slammed the door shut and groaned, swearing to himself a bit. After a few minutes, Tommy got on a new shirt since he basically wore the other one all day and opened the door again. “I know a question that should be asked, why are you here?? I'm not allowed to go out.”

    “Exactly, you can't go out, but that doesn't mean I can't come in.”

    “That's horrible out of context Drista, is your mother here?”

    Drista snickered, but she nodded, “Yeah, we’re here to check on you and remind you that you're a person.”

    “Is that the real reason?” Tommy looked at her with a confused look.

    “My mom is here to talk with your parents about the whole thing, she brought me along just in case. Oh, and to make sure you don't go insane. After all, isn't Wilbur home?”

    Tommy froze, and that gave Drista her answer. “Yeah he’s home, how’d you know?”

    “There's a random ass kid I've never seen before and Wilbur looks like he's seen better days,” Drista replied

    “I blame drugs,” Tommy said bluntly. 

    “Mh. Odd thing to go to first, i just assumed it's just depression. Unless he's around somebody with a shit ton of well…that.”

    “Anyhow, Mr. Worldwide, can I come in?”

    “Ah! Yeah yeah yeah- Sorry I've been uh- uhhh…”

    “Sleeping? Yeah I know. You smell like it too.” Drista crossed her arms and smirked.

    “You’re embarrassing to be around!” Tommy shouted before covering his mouth, he felt like somebody heard him.

    Drista laughed and walked into the room, sitting on the bed and pulling out her phone. “Group chat has been pretty dead, but Tubbo went to school today.”

    “Why? It's Friday, it's better if he stayed home.”

    “The thing is, his wifi was shut off so he didn't get the message about you and Purpled not being there. I think his dad turned it off for a reason.”

    “Oh that's just..fantastic to know.” Tommy sat at his desk and opened his computer. “My dad keeps forgetting to put the damn limit on.”

    “Eh, let him forget. How else can we chat at night? Oh! And how else can you have late night conversations with your girlfriend?”

    Tommy’s face went red with embarrassment. “AUGH! I cannot with you sometimes!”

    Drista laughed, “I’m only joking ya child.”

    “You’re younger than me.” Tommy blurted

    “Not by much-”

    Tommy just giggled and sat in the bed with Drista. “You’re cool Drista, really, you are.”

    “I don't try to be y’know, I'm just being me. Or a version of me. I don't really know.”

    Tommy looked at Drista with a bit of a sad expression on his face. “Hey mate, either way, you and your family are pretty cool. After all, you and your mum decided to come and visit all of us. You all are very considerate people.”

    Drista fiddled at the strings of her jacket, “My mother works as a therapist, she’s meant to be considerate. She’s a great person and she wants to prove she's there for people. I want to be like her, y'know.” 

    “And so far you’re doing fantastic! You’ve been there for all of us Drist, you and Ranboo worked together to get us to stop fighting. That's awesome teamwork!”

    Drista smiled a bit, “Thanks Tom, I really appreciate it.”

    “No problem,” Tommy said with a smile “Now, I think we should get some lunch.”

    Tommy grabbed Drista by the wrist to bring her downstairs, only to hear a sharp inhale from her. He froze and let go. “Sorry, I got too excited, are you okay?”

    Drista looked at her sleeve for a bit longer than a few seconds. Maybe even a minute. “Yeah, I'm fine.”

    “Alright then, but my mom makes awesome sandwiches! You should try some.” Tommy spoke with a smile before heading downstairs to the kitchen.

    Drista kept a weak smile before looking at her sleeves again. She stared at it for a while. Time had suddenly slowed for her. Tommy almost found out, Puffy doesn't know, and Dream doesn't know. Her heart was starting to beat faster and faster. Drista took a deep breath and went into the kitchen to find Tommy.

    Tommy was helping Kristen make tea and small sandwiches. Puffy was having a small chat with Kristen while the water boiled and Tommy was deciding which tea flavors to use. Philza, Wilbur, and Fundy were talking with each other in the living room. It wasn't often that Tommy’s house was this lively. Drista walked over to Tommy and looked at him with a bit of confusion. There are two tea bag boxes in front of them and Tommy seems to be struggling to pick one. “Tommy? Is everything okay? Need help picking one?”

    “Yeah just- uhhh…which one is better? Peppermint is a good flavor to make, but so is raspberry hibiscus.”

    Drista hummed before reaching for a box of strawberry tea bags. “How about this? Last time you made it, it was really good and my mom has yet to try it.”

    Tommy’s eyes widened and he smiled, “Yeah that's perfect actually!”

    The tea kettle begins to whistle and Drista giggles a bit. Tommy gives the box to his mom before she finishes prepping the tea. “It’ll be ready in a bit, why don't you two get to know Fundy a bit more. He’s a wonderful person to be around and maybe you can talk about your adventures.” 

    Tommy and Drista looked at each other, both tried to hold in their laugh. Drista covered Tommy’s mouth and said, “I think Fundy will be very entertained.”

    The two sit at the couch across from Philza, Wilbur, and Fundy. Fundy was drawing on a small notepad Philza gave him as a welcome gift. Drista watched Fundy draw with a smile. Tommy fiddled with his thumbs a bit. “Ah! Hey you two, how've you been?” Philza looked at Drista and Tommy and sat up in his seat.

    Drista looked up at Philza, “We’ve been okay, we’re actually here to see how Fundy and Wilbur are doing. Like Tommy, I haven't really met Fundy, nor have I seen Wilbur in a while.”

    Philza got up from the couch, “I think I should allow you both to talk with Wilbur then. Think of it as a nice reunion.” He then walked over to the kitchen to talk with his wife.

    Drista looked over at Wilbur. He had a smile on his face, but it didn't feel real, not to Drista at least. Tommy was beginning to shake his leg slightly. The area was a bit quiet before Wilbur decided to break the silence. “How long has it been? Three? Four months? Both of you have grown a lot since then.”

    “If a lot can happen in a minute, who knows how much can happen in a few months.” Drista replied.

    Wilbur’s smile went thin and he hummed slightly. He felt like Drista’s tone had a tad bit of venom. If so, she probably wasn't aware of it. “You make a good point about that. How’ve you both been? Are your little outings going quite well?”

    Fundy looked up at Wilbur before looking at Tommy and Drista. “Can I hear about them, I like adventures,” he said with a smile.

    “I kicked a cop in the leg-” Drista spoke before Tommy nudged her.

    “That’s…I'm pretty sure that's a felon Drist.” Wilbur spoke with a more stern and parental tone.

    “He was drunk on the job, threatened us with a gun, and all we were doing was spray painting in an alley. Nothing more nothing less. Kids being kids. What I did was self-defense.” Drista’s eyes were now locked with Wilbur’s, quiet rage was becoming a blazing fire in her eyes.

    “Drista is right, but we got out in the end and that's what matters, am i right mate?” Tommy was trying to make an attempt to lighten the mood since he knew there was basically an elementary school kid with them.

    Wilbur relaxed in his seat and Drista took a deep breath. “Other than that, nothing interesting has happened lately. Just general bullsh- crap that teenagers do y’know?”

    Wilbur laughed a bit, Fundy did too. Tommy chuckled nervously while Drista stayed quiet. Fundy cleared his throat a little bit and showed Tommy and Drista the drawing he's been making. “Its of my family, do you guys like it?”

    Drista looked at Fundy with a smile, Tommy just awed at him, that certainly made her day. “I like it quite a lot, and I know Tom does too.”

    Tommy looked at Drista, he tried to make a comically funny frown. “Driiiiiiiiisstaaaaaaaa, don't call me that. It's not manly.” His tone was meant to sound half seriosu, but it was obvious he was joking with Drista

    Fundy just laughed in his seat. Drista giggled and so did Tommy. Wilbur just watched the three laugh and he quietly chuckled. He won't admit it, but he missed this. He’s always out with his band so being able to see his family have fun showed him a sliver of light in his life. Tommy looked over at Wilbur, his laugh died down slightly, but he’s just happy to see Wilbur in a good mood. He missed this. Both of them missed all the happy times they spent with each other before it felt like everything went to hell.

    When the tea was ready in the kitchen, Kristen brought out cups for everybody and poured everyone a glass. Everybody basically gathered in the living room to take the time to chat and reunite. Puffy got to meet Fundy a bit, Philza and Wilbur joked around a bit, and Tommy and Kristen talked. But Drista’s phone began to ring. She asked if she could excuse herself and walked outside and to the front porch before looking at her phone. It was Tubbo. Drista accepted the call and put her headphones in. “Hello?” She asked.

    “Hey Drista, um, my dad kinda wants to speak to your mom. She hasn't picked up for some reason.”

    “She usually silences her phone when she visits friends. What does Schlatt want to do with my mom?”

    “A search or something. Just…he’s sick of all the stunts and outings we’ve had so he's going to try and see if he could get the rest of you all in jail a bit. I doubt prison, but I don't know. I’m just here to explain what might happen in a few days.”

    Drista stayed quiet for a bit before groaning a bit. “Thanks for telling me, but I can't let her know about this.. I don't want my mom to think I'm purposefully putting myself and you guys in danger. I'm not. I care about you guys.”

    Tubbo hummed quietly, “Take what I say with a grain of salt, there's a chance he might not go through with this. Mainly because he can be forgetful.”

    “Alright,” Drista replied “Stay safe Tubs, I'm gonna go back inside. I’ll see you at school soon. Maybe.”

    “Yeah, you too.”

    Drista just hung up the phone and went back inside. She just hoped next week wouldn't be an issue.

Chapter Text

    Ranboo grabbed the keys to his house and unlocked the door, they were just happy the school day was over. “Mom? Mother? Are you both home?” 

    The house was a bit quiet, there was a note on the fridge saying that the two were at their monthly business meeting and they left 40 bucks for Ran to buy themselves dinner somewhere. Ranboo smiled softly and took the note and cash. Ranboo then went upstairs to his room and laid in bed, pulling out his phone and began messaging Tubbo about his day. They like checking up on Tubbo. He knows everything has been rough recently, so he wants to make sure Tubbo knows that he has someone to talk to.

    He hasn't gotten many responses, but that's okay. Ranboo got up and began to boot up their PC setup. They thought about doing a small Minecraft stream to sort of pass the time until they were hungry. About 20 minutes into their game, Tubbo messaged them. They paused the stream and it was a message about Schlatt. Ranboo picked up their phone and looked over it, Tubbo explained how Schlatt might come over and try to convince each of their parents about why the others should be put in jail for a bit or pay a fee. It was also stated in the message on how Tubbo called Drista about it and Drista will talk to her mom about the issue. Ranboo replied that they'll talk to their moms when the time is necessary. They set their phone down and continued the stream until they got hungry. Ranboo ended his quick stream, grabbed his money phone and keys, and went to his car.

    As he turned it on and drove somewhere, he passed by Tommy’s house, internally they were questioning if they should bring Tommy with them, but later they saw Purpled sitting on the sidewalk. As they approach him. Ranboo rolls down the car window and turns off their headlights, Purpled looks tired. He was holding a half used cigarette and trying to hide it from them. Ranboo sighed and asked if Purpled wanted to go out with them to eat somewhere. Purpled agreed and put out their cigarette using the sidewalk. They got up and sat in the passenger side of the car. Purpled leaned into the seat of the car and fiddled with the strings of his jacket. Ranboo drove off to a Sonic and parked in one of the spots. They put the car in park and turned down the AC. “What happened?” Ranboo asked.

    “Just another argument with my family, nothing much I suppose. It wasn't horrible, I was just overreacting. It's not great knowing your kid got suspended because they punched their best friend.”

    “I get that, but it seemed like more happened. Was it Punz?”

    “Sorta…both of us kinda snuck out but for different reasons. My mom is also mad since I stole her cigarettes. I don't want to drink or do the dumb shit my brother does, but that feeling of not being sober just calls to me for some reason. I have to do something…Hell, thinking about what I did makes me feel like an ass because I-” Purpled goes dead silent. They look over at Ranboo and just sigh. Ranboo looked confused, but shrugged it off

    “Well, do you want anything to drink? Any food?”

    “Two large tots and a large root beer with a sweet cream drizzle with it. And I suppose a medium water to balance it.”

    “You don't need to balance it, I’m not your mom.”

    “You’d make a really good parent though RB.”

    “Debateable.” They reply.

    “You basically take great care of us and the rest of the group quite easily. The real question is, who takes care of you?”

    Ranboo goes silent. Purpled has a good point, he doesn't really have many people care for them since they're the “sensible one.” It doesn't help that Ranboo has no siblings. It's just them. “I can take care of myself. I'm about to have a job soon, I can drive. All that crap.”

    “You’re going to break yourself RB, please…You can only take this so far. You need somebody that you can talk to. I have a dumb feeling you bottle your feelings more than Lani, and she’s already a wreck because of the rumors about her and Drista.”

    “I’m…I’m doing fine Grayson. Please trust me on that. I go to therapy twice a month, I’m gonna be okay.”

    “You’ll be okay the second you let everyone else know you can't handle everything. Take a break and worry about yourself. Hell, you haven't even thought of your own food for tonight, only mine.”

    Ranboo sighs and rolls down his window to order his and Purpled’s food. The two sat in silence for a moment before the food arrived. They eat and continue to chat in the car until the sky grows darker. Ranboo drives down to the neighborhood and parks in front of Purpled’s house. “Well, do you want to head inside?”

    “Can we drive around just a bit longer? If that’s okay with you.”

    Ranboo thinks on it for a bit, “Actually, come to my house for a bit. My moms would love to see you.”

    “Yeah…that sounds nice actually,” Purpled replied.

Chapter Text

    A few days have passed since the fight. The group has done much better in recent times. Purpled and Tommy haven't argued in ages, which was a bit of a good change. Tubbo was doing a lot better but wouldn't come out of his house much after school. It seemed like Schlatt grounded him. Nonetheless, all of them have gone back to bonding like normal. Ranboo had been worried sick about Tubbo, but he urges them that he’s okay. 

    Tubbo is sitting in his biology class, working on the notes his teacher gave him. Class wouldn't end for another hour and a half, so once he finished, he would probably listen to some music and nap. A sudden knock on the door caught Tubbo off guard and he went up to open the door. There stood someone. Someone he faintly remembered. “Is this room 318?” said the stranger.

    Tubbo nodded and led them to the teacher before sitting back at his desk. The teacher looked up and pulled out her attendance roster. “Eryn Cyberonix? Take a seat wherever, I'll add you to the seating chart.”

    No wonder the name was familiar. Tubbo looked back at Eryn and smiled a bit. Eryn came over and sat down next to Tubbo. “Eryn?? You moved here? How long ago?”

    “Not too long ago, but you seem familiar. Do you know someone named uhh…Tommy? I think that's what they changed their name to.”

    “Yeah, it's me, Tubbo, or Toby, it's awesome to meet you again.” Tubbo replied with glee

    Eryn smiled and pat Tubbo’s head, “Hey mate, how ya been all these years?”

    Tubbo blushed slightly “I’ve been alright, my dad has yet to change but whatever. Does Tommy know you go here now?”

    “I told him that I moved back into town, but I didn't know I'd be at the same school as you guys. After all, I left back in like 6th grade. I’m a bit surprised he hasn’t said anything about me moving back in town. Or maybe he wanted it to be a surprise.”

    “Fair enough,” Tubbo replied.

    “So, what are we working on?” Eryn asked.

    “Just some notes for a new unit we’re learning, I suppose. I’m almost done with mine so you can copy them in a bit.”

    “I forgot to grab a paper then.” Eryn said with a chuckle

    “I’ll get it for you,” Tubbo says with a smile.

    He then gets up to the back of the class to grab a note paper for Eryn. Tubbo was thinking about why he was so giddy about Eryn being here. They haven't seen each other in forever and haven't kept in contact since Eryn didn't have a phone until after he moved. Maybe he was just excited to see an old friend. Tubbo grabbed the paper and sat back down at the desk before giving it to Eryn. 

    “Thanks mate, are you alright? Your face is slightly red.” Eryn said as they moved a bit closer to Tubbo.

    “I’m fine!” Tubbo yelped.

    Some of the other classmates looked at Tubbo, either because they thought something happened or because they wanted to laugh. Regardless, Tubbo tensed up and pulled out his phone. He wanted to block out everything by blaring music into his ears. Eryn had an odd look on his face. He wasn't really pleased with people giggling at Tubbo for acting like that. As if half of those people haven't done something similar before. Eryn just pat Tubbo’s back and stayed quiet, he felt a bit bad since he's the one who moved closer. Eryn thought he scared him a bit. 

    Tubbo yawned slightly and laid his head down. He was facing towards Eryn, but honestly forgot he was since he started to dissociate. Eryn worked on copying the notes needed before finishing up and getting on his phone. “Hey Tubs? Can I uh…what’s your Discord username? I was able to get Tommy’s a while ago, but I never got any of the others.”

    Tubbo snapped himself back into reality, “Oh yeah, sure. I can give you the others too. If that's what you want.”

    Eryn nodded, “That would be much appreciated actually. Thank you.” He smiled and opened the app, allowing Tubbo to type in the usernames. 

    Tubbo felt oddly happy around Eryn, he still couldn't understand why. But he needed to wait a little bit. Tubbo wanted to try and get to know Eryn again before rushing head first into things. And besides, even though it's platonic, he still wants to talk with Ranboo about this. Wait, what was he thinking? 

    Eryn waved his hand in front of Tubbo’s face a bit, hoping to catch his attention. Tubbo handed back his phone and fiddled with their fingers. The class for the most part was quiet, the only people making noise were Tubbo and Eryn. It's just a Tuesday and the class was ahead of their work. The two sat in silence for a bit before Tubbo took out his headphones, giving one earbud to Eryn. “We’ve got videos of the shit we did while you were away, do you want to watch?”

    “Sure, I bet there's one where Tommy trips over himself.”

    “Oh trust me, there's plenty of that. There was a time Drista bruised Tommy’s arm by accident because she threw a can at him. That was funny.”

    Eryn giggled softly, he liked seeing Tubbo happy. The two basically watched their clips and videos until the bell rang for the next class. Eryn got out of his seat and stretched a bit. Tubbo was packing up his things. “Hey Rynnie?”

    “Well that's a new one, what's up Tubs?”

    “Whats your next class?”

    “Some sort of geometry class?”

    “I know Drista has math as their 3rd period but I don't remember what teacher. It’d be funny if you had Tommy for your last class.”

    Eryn chuckled slightly, “That would be funny. I'm not really in a class with people I recognize in my 1st period, which really sucks. But it’s fine, I prefer it if people don't bother me. And before you say anything, it's people I don't know.”

    Tubbo nodded, “Understandable, I don't like it when random people come up to me too. Freaks me out.”

    “Do you have an upstairs class or downstairs class? I can walk you there if you want.” Eryn picked up his backpack and wore it over one shoulder as if he was being “a high school cool guy.”

    Tubbo chuckled, “I’ve been here longer than you, I can walk you to class if you want me to.”

    “We should get going, after 3rd is lunch, right? Or is it before 3rd? Either way, I hope we have lunch together, it would be nice to see the others.”

    “You make a good point,” Tubbo responded.

    The two walked to Eryn’s next class, taking the time to catch up slightly and update each other about their lives. Inside, Drista was peaking out the door, she recognized the voices that were outside the classroom. She got up out of her seat and walked over to the two. “Holy shit. Eryn??” Tubbo and Eryn looked at Drista and smiled, “Yep, he’s back in town.” Tubbo says as he wraps an arm around him. “Both of you should take the time to chat, my class is upstairs so I need to go.” Drista and Eryn waved goodbye as Tubbo left.

    “The teacher doesn't have a seating chart yet so you can sit anywhere, though there aren't that many seats since it's a big class.”

    “That’s fine with me, I’ll probably just stay by you to cheat off you.” Eryn chuckled quietly and Drista scoffed. “Yeah yeah, I'll have you know I have an 80 in this class and I'm pretty sure that will go down soon due to the recent test.”

    Eryn hummed and began thinking to himself. “Wanna know what advice I follow? Assume it's a 70 until it's in front of you.”

    Drista seemed confused but also mystified “That’s… interesting? I’ll consider it, but has it helped you?”

    “Actually it does, I don't want to think I got an instant 100 since not everyone is that perfect. Plus, sometimes I forget to study anyway. A 70 isn't the best but it's way better than anything below it. I'm pretty sure it's average.” Drista just blinks a bit before heading to her seat, “Alright then nerd, choose a spot.”

    Eryn sat in the seat diagonal of Drista but also behind her, he doesn't like being in the front. He pulled out a small notebook and began to doodle as the other classmates began to walk in. The teacher got up to close the door and began his lesson after taking attendance. Drista passed Eryn her notes and a blank copy for him to write on. Eryn took the notes and tried not to giggle when he noticed she wrote in black glitter pen. Drista looked to Eryn and stared daggers into his eyes. This only made Eryn laugh slightly. Positivity was contagious, so Drista ended up with a smile on her face too. Once Eryn was done, he passed back the notes to Drista and went back to drawing in his book. Occasionally he would look over the math notes and see what they were learning. Before his transfer here he already learned this unit, so he was slightly ahead of the others as of now. Drista looked back at Eryn for a second to see what he was up to. They tore off a corner of their paper and wrote a small note before passing it to Eryn. They tore off a corner of their paper and wrote a small note before passing it to Eryn. Eryn took it and read through it, she asked about what he was drawing and seemed curious. Eryn just passed her his notebook and told her that she’s allowed to add to it to compare artstyles.

    The teacher began to pass out the daily work for the class and Drista closed the book, she groaned quietly as she received the paper, Eryn was already working on it. Drista passed back the notebook and started on her own classwork. Eryn decided to open the book and see what Drista drew, next to a random drawing of a person he sketched, Drista drew them a friend. The difference in artstyle interested Eryn. Drista’s was more scratchy and had a 2010’s cartoony look with no pupils are iris in the eyes while Eryn drew more realistic style with a hint of his own personality. He liked the photo and carefully snuck a picture of it and sent it to Tommy.

    Eryn and Drista didn't do much during class other than work when they needed to. Around the last 10 minutes of class, the two turned to each other and began chatting and catching up. Drista talked about the little adventures they went on from her perspective and Eryn talked about how he met some friends at his other school but his relationship with them wasn't the best. The bell rang and Drista grabbed her things and ran for the door, before realizing she left Eryn behind. She came back hurriedly and tugged at Eryn’s sleeve. “All of us sit at a specific spot in the courtyard, I should probably show ya.” Eryn nodded, packed his things, and followed Drista into the court yard. 

    As the two approached the rest of the group, Tommy was talking with Ranboo about how he met up with Wilbur over his suspension and met his new nephew. Tubbo and Purpled were arguing over a bag of chips. Drista and Eryn sat down and Tommy hugged Eryn tightly, the two instantly started a conversation and Tubbo laughed a bit. Drista and Purpled looked at Tubbo for a moment before looking at each other with a smirk. Both of them tapped Tubbo’s shoulder and he turned to the two. “Whats with the look on your faces?” Purpled giggled slightly and made a glance towards Eryn before looking back at Tubbo. “I think bathtub has a crush.”

    Tubbo blushed heavily and playfully shoved Purpled, Drista started laughing. Ranboo looked over to the three and Tubbo nervously waved. Ranboo replied with a smile and glanced beside Tubbo for a second, “What are they giggling about?” 

    Tubbo’s face grew a bit more red, “They uh- Well- TheythinkihavesomesortofcrushonErynbutIdon’thahahaha-”

    Ranboo gently pat Tubbo’s head and gave him a smile, “You’ll need to slow down a bit bud, you know i can understand when you speak fast.”

    Tubbo took a deep breath before peeking over at Tommy and Eryn for a moment. “I uh…Drista and Purpled think I like Eryn. I mean I don't think I do?”

    Ranboo held Tubbo close, “You can have crushes Toby, its fine-”

    “But we’re together Ran, we have been for 2 years. I mean like…I'm not sure if this was dating or…”

    “It’s more of a friends thing though, or something platonic. If you like Eryn, go talk to him.”

    “But he just got back home and I'm pushing this too fast.” Tubbo replied. “I mean, we were friends in the past but he's been gone for so long and I-... I’m not sure at this point.”

    “I can always help you out, I’ll make sure Purpled and Drista don't give you any trouble.”

    Tubbo nodded as Ranboo as with Drista and Purpled while Tubbo sat next to Eryn. He was fiddling with his fingers and shaking slightly. Eryn took notice of this and waved a bit at Tubbo. “You alright bee?” Tubbo’s face went red at the nickname, he’s been called that before, but coming from somebody he “like liked", that was different. Toby tried to get a word or two out, but he just kept stuttering. Eryn gently held Tubbo’s hand and pulled him a bit close. “Do you just want to stay by me for a bit?”

    Not a word could be heard from Tubbo, only incoherent mumbling. Eryn giggled a bit and patted Toby’s head. Tubbo groaned and laid his head on Eryn's shoulder. Eryn blushed slightly at the sight. Eryn looked at Tommy for a moment and Tommy just gave him two thumbs up. Ern gave him the bird. Tubbo was quiet and relaxed, basically half asleep on Eryn. Both of them didn't move an inch, the others were quietly watching to see what would happen. The group was interrupted moments later by the bell for lunch to be over. Tubbo came back to reality and sat up, Eryn was blushing and the others in the group just sat there looking at each other. Eryn finally decided to break the silence. “I think Tubbo likes me.”

    “No duh, dummy,” Tommy replied, “Tubbo looked sooo cozy-” He was interrupted by Tubbo gently hitting Tommy’s head, Tommy swore in response. 

    Drista threw away her empty lunch tray and grabbed her things, “Well, now we head to our last class. Do you know what you have Eryn?”

    “History, not sure who the teacher is but it’s in room uh…809?”

    Ranboo looked over at Eryn, “Oh hey, I have that class. I can take you there if you want me to.”

    Eryn let out a sigh, “Finally, another person I know in my class.”

    Ranboo chuckled, “Since you joined a bit late, i think you might get a pass on our upcoming test. If not, I’ll let you use my notes or we can study at home.”

    Eryn shrugged, "I'm fine with anything, I'm even fine with excuses to leave my house. I still haven't finished unpacking.”

    As the crew walked to their classes, Tommy followed Eryn and Ranboo. He tugged on Eryn’s bag to get his attention, once he did, Eryn turned to see Tommy smiling. “So, Rynnie, I think you should come with us on our little escapades. After all, this was semi-inspired by you. You liked exploring places.”

    Eryn chuckled, “Yeah sure, I'd love to come with you. Mind if I visit your house first? If you don't mind Toms.”

    “Oh I'd love for you to come over! My family remembers you pretty well, so I hope they like your company.” Tommy smiles widely, hugs Eryn, and runs off to his class. He has enough tardies.  Eryn and Ranboo walk into their class room and sit in their seats. Eryn sits next to Ranboo and looks around the classroom.

    “A classroom that doesn't smell like body odor and shame. I have to give points for that.”

    Ranboo just chuckled to Eryn’s remark. “I think you’ll like this class. In a way- Despite the fact that this is a final period, this class is pretty calm. Though group work is a disaster on occasion.”

    “Why’s that?” Eryn replied, “Nobody really looks that competitive.”

    “You’d be surprised.”

    “If you think about it, all history classes are the same. There isn't anything new. It might be considered new because school districts might hide past history to make themselves more clean on paper or because of internal shame.”

    Ranboo just looked at Eryn with astonishment. “Wow- You sound like Drista. Only more formal-”

    Eryn just laughs in response. The teacher comes into the room and takes attendance. Eryn starts doodling in one of my notebooks. Ranboo hands him the notes he needs and Eryn groans slightly. “Whats the point of a history class? I've always wondered that since, as I've mentioned before, they aren't really that useful in giving  decent knowledge. Is it to put someone on the same level? It's different from science, english, and math. Math is important.”

    “I think it's meant to show how the world started. I will admit, high school history isn't uh…that great? Have you considered joining the debate team?”

    “Depends, when are try outs?”

    “Next week, I think you’d make a great member of the debate team. You bring your receipts often.”

    “I just had to make a lot of arguments with a lot of people. I'm sure it's something a lot of people can do.”

    “Some people are horrible with arguments. Go look on twitter.”

    Eryn chuckled to the response, later on the teacher soon began her lesson. Eryn, like before, copied down the notes he borrowed from Ranboo and watched the clock. His leg was starting to shake. Time began to feel a bit slower and Eryn kept checking the clock every 5 seconds. Ranboo started to notice Eryn's behavior. They looked over at him and gently tapped the corner of his desk. “Everything okay Eryn?” Eryn looked up and nodded.

    “Just anxiety? I'm not sure, this happens suddenly on occasion. I have medication for it but I forgot to take it today. I think I’ll be fine.”

    “If you need to leave for some time, just ask the teacher for a hall pass.”

    “I’ll think about it a little bit, but it really depends.”

    Ranboo looked at the board to see what the teacher was discussing before putting their attention back on Eryn. “Today is just a bit of a review day, and it's a simple class, I'm sure you can take a small nap.”

    “Thanks man…” Eryn laid down his head and drifted to sleep. It was easy for him since he was in a comfortable enough environment. Ranboo kept an eye on them until the bell rang for dismissal. Ranboo gently tapped Eryn's shoulder to wake them. Eryn groaned and looked up, realizing it was time to go. Eryn packed all of his things up while Ranboo waited, when he was finished, Eryn put on his bag and walked with Ranboo. The two walked to Tommy’s locker, number 404. Drista and Tommy were chatting with each other before the two noticed Ranboo and Eryn. Purpled and Tubbo arrived shortly after. “I’m assuming you all meet up here after school?” Eryn asked the others.

    Tommy nodded in response, “Yep! We all live relatively close to the school, so walking is the best option for us. Maybe we can see where you live.”

    “Well, I'm not back at my old house, it's probably a lot farther now. One of you can stay with me for a bit and I can show you around. Tommy? Do you want to? I'm not sure they’ll let Drista in.”

    “Why don't your parents allow girls in the house?” Drista asked

    “Because they don't know im gay.” Eryn replied.

    Purpled burst out into laughter, Tubbo giggled a bit with them. Eryn rolled his eyes jokingly. “I guess I’ll just follow the rest of you until I get to Tommy’s, then I'll show him the place. I’ll give the rest of you the address later, don't worry.”

    The group agreed and began their normal walk. Ranboo and Tubbo departing first, then Purpled, then Drista. Finally, it was just Tommy and Eryn. They walked down the familiar street and talked for some time, they took more time to catch up and chat about their day. The two stop at a small single story house. Eryn gets his house key from his pocket and unlocks the door. Tommy follows close behind and looks around in awe. “Wow Ryn! You lot are quick with unpacking.” 

    Eryn let out a soft sigh, “It was one of the things we had to prioritize when we moved here. So I basically had my parents on my ass for some time now. It was annoying, but my room is in a decent state, do you want to come see it?”

    Tommy looked at his phone to check the time, “Oh yeah, yeah. Let me message my parents. Speaking of which, where's your mum? Or your dad?”

    “Out working, but they’ll be back soon. I'm sure they’ll remember you quite well when they see you.”

    “If not, I'm happy to make an introduction again!”

    “You’re a person who can easily be remembered, trust me.”

    Tommy laughed a bit, “Are you going to show me your room?”

    “Yeah yeah, hang on.” Eryn set down his bag on the couch and walked to his room. He opened the door and showed off his desk set up with his laptop and LED lights hung around. He even had a transgender flag hung up on the wall near his desk. “It’s a bit of a mess, but my skateboard is in my closet.”

    “The big one i gave you before you moved?”

    “Well, it's big enough for me to ride safely without falling off all the time. I wanted to use it on my way to school today but that's probably going to happen next week. Right now I’ve just been trying to settle in.”

    “I get that mate, no worries. While we hang out for a bit, why don't we plan our next adventure this weekend? I'd be happy to bring you along”

    “That would be nice actually, thanks Tommy.” Eryn said with a smile.

    “Anything for my best mate, I wont let anything happen to ya.” Tommy replied, smiling back at Eryn.

Chapter Text

    It’s around six pm, the streetlights in some areas were cutting on as the sun was setting, and the bugs in the ground were chirping like usual. Eryn was taking a walk through the neighborhood, looking around to see if he could find Tommy’s house. He didn't feel like getting his parents to drive him so he decided to walk. Besides, it was nice to be outside every once in a while. Eryn wore a black hoodie with a skeleton pattern bleached on the front and back of it. He wore a pair of black combat boots and navy blue cargo pants to match. He wanted to wear his black pair originally but he decided against it. He was carrying a small travel bag with water, bandaids, a few snacks and a portable charger; he expected today’s outing to last quite a while. As he walked, he finally came up to Tommy and Drista’s houses. He forgot the two were neighbors for a moment. 

   Eryn observed all of the windows and noticed one that was cracked and held together with silver duct tape. He then looked at the ground, picked up a rock, and threw the rock at the window. It hit, causing one of the cracks to grow. The sound of loud profanity could be heard from the window until it was opened. “Oi! Watch where you- Oh hi Eryn! Come on in!” It was Tommy. Eryn thought about that for a moment, but it makes sense for Tommy’s window to be broken.

   Tommy unlocked the door of the house and let Eryn in. “You’re here early, i havent even finished getting ready yet. Purpled found this awesome plaza a few blocks away. You have to see it!” Tommy was excitingly rambling to Eryn and Eryn listened to every little bit. “Y’know, you seem to be pretty interested in Purpled, how long have you both been friends?”

   “Since middle school, we’ve been best friends from 6th grade till now. We’re still going strong!”

   Eryn chuckled a bit, “I heard about your fight though, is everything alright with you both now?”

   “Oh yeah, everything's fine. Just a bit of a misunderstanding and what not. And uh…other things.”

   “I see, question, did you get a girlfriend? I heard Tubbo mentioned a while ago. I'm proud of ya!”

   Tommy nervously laughed. “Well uh..the thing is…we broke up a little while ago. I haven't told anybody since I didn't want the group to panic about it. I was talking with her about it before you came here and uh…well…i dont know. It feels like 2 years down the drain.”

   “It’ll be okay mate, I promise. I’m sure there’s someone for you, and if not, that's okay too. Dating isn't a requirement, y'know.”

   “I mean i get that but uh- ugh..yikes man…i don't really believe in my chances.”

   “Aw, don't beat yourself about it man. How about we call the others and head to the plaza. Don't tell anyone, but I brought pliers and shit to cut small wires.”

   “Uhhh…i don't think we need something like that. But that sounds good for emergencies.”

   “Lots of places can be full of cameras, trust me on that.”

   “Well, you make a good point. Later on, I'm going to see if I can call Ranboo and see if he can drive us to the plaza today. Drista is next door if you want to talk to her. Or! We can bring her here. That sounds better actually.” Tommy was full of glee as he was getting himself ready for the hangout. Eryn called Drista about coming over while he waited for Tommy. Some time later, Drista knocked on the door and Eryn opened it. She was wearing a sage green sweater with brown overalls with various patches and pins decorating it. Drista even wore a black and light green raccoon tail extension. She normally wouldn't have one for an outfit like this, but she felt bold. She had a green kerchief to match the outfit. She was holding her messenger bag a bit nervously. Eryn looked a bit confused. “Everything okay?”

   “There's a lot going on right now. I haven't really slept the past two days if I'm going to be honest with you.”

   “Insomnia?” Eryn asked.

   Drista nodded in response. Tommy came down the stairs from his room to greet Drista. He was wearing his usual white t-shirt with red shoulders, a pair of torn dark jeans, and his slightly busted up converse shoes. He was wearing a black beanie that Wilbur gave him with a few pins of his own to decorate it. “Heya Dris! You alright?”

   Drista pulled out a monster energy can from her bag and opened it, “I should be okay for a little bit i suppose. My brother was finally talked to about his partying habits. Also, Karl came over so I had to listen to that all night.”

    “Yikes…” Tommy said as he and Eryn looked at each other. Both of them had faces of light disgust. Drista drank a few sips of her drink before offering it to the two. “No thanks, I prefer Pipeline Punch.” Eryn said. Drista sneered. 

    “Both of you are losers, I like RedBull and Zero Ultra.” Tommy had a cocky look on his face.

    “Okay, now you’re just being weird.” Drista said as she took another sip. Tommy just laughed a bit. The three of them talked until a car honk could be heard outside. Tommy opened the door and saw Ranboo with their car. Purpled was in the passenger side and Tubbo was in the back on his phone. Purpled got out of the car the moment they saw Tommy. He walked up to the porch and greeted the rest of the group. They were wearing their normal purple hoodie, thus the nickname they gave him, they were also wearing a pair of black pants and creased purple sneakers. Purpled look at Tommy and they made quick eye contact. Drista and Eryn looked at each other and smirked slightly. “Is everyone ready? I have the location memorized so we should get there in more or less than 20.”

    “Sounds good to me.” Eryn says, having his hands in his pockets. The group joined Tubbo and Ranboo in the car. Thankfully, Ranboo’s mothers gave them one of those larger vans that can hold six people. Ranboo and Purpled sat in the front, Tubbo and Eryn sat behind them, and Drista and Tommy sat all the way in the back. As they drive, Purpled puts on the group playlist they made. Tommy and Drista are poorly singing along in the back. Eryn and Tubbo chat with each other a few times as they go. The group goes silent the second they arrive. Ranboo turns down the music and turns off the headlights. “Wow, this place is a lot bigger than I thought. Are you sure this is a plaza or a damn mini-mall Gray?”

    “I don't really know the difference.” Purpled replied.

    Ranboo parked his car and everyone proceeded to get out. They all started looking around the overgrown parking lot. Weeds growing through the cracks of the concrete and road. Drista took a few pictures of the flowers she saw. As the group walked towards the entrance of the plaza, they all looked in awe of the size. Eryn was looking around to see if he could find anything unusual. “Guys, we need to be careful.” he pulled out his pliers from his pack and walked over to the camera. Eryn grabbed a few bricks laying around, stood them up, and proceeded to cut the wires to the camera. “Im sure our faces weren't shown for too long, but we need to check if there's an alarm system. You never know.”

    “Wow, you're really prepared.” Tubbo said to Eryn.

    “It's good to be prepared bumblebee, you never know what could happen.” Eryn got down off the stack of bricks and stood by Tubbo.

    Tubbo blushed slightly at the nickname. The group proceeded into the entrance of the plaza; it wasn't well guarded since the chain was held by a fragile lock that Ranboo easily broke. The sun was nearly gone, so they all pulled out a flashlight. The windows of the place were smudged with dust and spray paint of previous trespassers. Drista rummaged through her bag and grabbed a can of hot pink. She walked over to a blank wall and wrote “D the Cat was here.” That was the name she would leave behind to show she’s been there. Eryn was searching to see if he could find more active cameras. Most of them were dead or covered in too much dust, but Eryn wanted to be sure. Tommy was rummaging around in one the old stores to see what he could find of the place. Taking a few pictures and making dumb faces. Tubbo basically stuck to Ranboo and Purpled, who were talking about theories on why this place was left to rot. The group slowly formed back together when they saw a broken escalator nearby. They all proceeded to head upstairs and explore all the rooms. The upstairs definitely had a bit more than the downstairs. 

    As they walked, Tubbo was taking the time to look around and see if he could notice anything interesting on the walls. He froze in place for a second, not because he found anything offensive on the wall, that was an everyday occurrence. It was a working camera too high to reach. Tubbo signaled this to the rest of the group and they all began to panic slightly. Eryn was looking around for a ladder he could use. Drista took in a deep breath and gripped her spray paint a bit tightly. “What if it's fake? What if they don't actually observe the place?”

    “You might have a good point?” replied Ranboo, “But I don't think a camera having a red light is a good sign.”

    The camera stopped moving and looked at the group of teens, a small red light could be seen flashing softly. It was on and watching. They all backed away slightly and looked at each other. Tommy looked through one of the broken windows of the plaza and saw a faint flash of police lights. Tommy pointed it out to the rest of the group and they all rushed downstairs to find hiding spots. Tommy and Purpled stayed together while the rest of the group split up. Purpled did their best to try and calm Tommy as best as possible. They held them close and gave them as much reassurance as possible. The cops grew closer until a small group of four arrived. Two more guests also entered the building. “Alright, we got enough evidence to prove guilty. Try not to be violent folks, it's bad enough I had to bring my daughter.” Tommy knew that voice all too well, it was Officer Jschlatt. 

    “Was this just a poor excuse to make sure I wasn't home alone? I can find Toby myself, dad.”

    “I understand that kiddo, but your brother and his friends shouldn't be uh…doing this sort of thing. It's illegal and I'm here to make sure those jerks learn their lesson. Now come on Lani, you stick with me. Everyone else split up or do groups of two. And avoid violence.” Jschlatt looks around and inhales the smell of fresh spray paint. He takes out a canteen he's been hiding and takes a small sip of whiskey. “Yep, they're still here.” 

    As the officers search for the kids, everyone is still hiding spots all silent. Tommy is afraid he’ll blow he and Purpled’s cover. Eryn and Drista both have items for self defense, Tubbo went back upstairs to hide a bit deeper into the plaza. Ranboo was beginning to panic. Their heart was racing faster and faster. They groaned and came out of their hiding spot. “Hi..hello officers. Um…it's better to be honest I suppose.” Lani sighed seeing Ranboo and pulled them aside for their own conversation. Sadly, he was put in handcuffs despite what Lani asked. Schlatt and the rest of the cops continued looking. One by one, they found each of the teens. Except for Tommy and Purpled. The two were hiding in an old clothing store in one of the old dressing rooms. Purpled was still trying to keep Tommy calm, but it understood why he was upset. Tommy was beginning to calm down when he saw flashlights from the cops get closer.

    The cops opened the door and the lights flashed in the two’s faces. They were pulled out of their spots but Tommy began to run out the place. Schlatt noticed this and pulled out his gun. Lani tried to stop him but the gun already fired. Two shots.

    Tommy collapsed onto the ground and wailed. Both of his legs were injured from the shots. The others heard the shots, they froze with fear. Eryn ran over to Tommy and held onto him closely. Lani immediately called an ambulance. Eryn was trying to stay with Tommy but he was pulled away from him for the ambulance to take him away. Tubbo watched as everything unfolded and looked straight at his father. He had no guilt in his eyes. Not one bit. Tubbo began to charge at him but was held back by Drista. The two were separated and put into handcuffs. Lani rushed over to Drista and hugged her tightly. As the ambulance arrived, he was pulled into the bed. Purpled tried to get out of his cuffs and follow him but he was too slow.

    The drive felt long. Tubbo and Drista were put in one car while Purpled, Eryn, and Ranboo were put in another. Schlatt was driving the car with Lani in the passenger seat. Drista had leaned onto Tubbo and did her best not to cry. Her phone was beginning to bus in her bag, which was kept on the floor of the car. Drista could reach it, but she would need her hands uncuffed to use it properly. They reached the station shortly after and they were brought into the questioning room. Lani was told to watch Drista’s bag. Schlatt was looking at Tubbo and Drista, disappointment in his face. “Toby…why do you hang around these people? We put camera’s up for a reason and yet here you are still breaking into places. I hope you have finally learned your lesson kiddo. You and your friend here. Honestly, your mother won't take too kindly to this, Claire.”

    “It’s Drista, since you know me so well.” 

    “Whatever kid. Either way, we have enough footage to show your mother that you need to stay in juvie and serve your time for the countless amounts of trespassing you’ve done. I’ve warned you kids dozens and dozens of times. I hope Tommy understands what he’s done too-”

    “You shot him!” Tubbo yelled, slamming his hands against the table and getting out of his seat. Tears were forming in his eyes.

    “Tobias Smith, you calm yourself right now young man!”

    Tubbo went silent and sat back down in his seat. Drista gently rubbed Tubbo’s back. “Look, officer, aren't you getting tired of this by now? We don't do anything that genuinely harms anyone. We just like to go exploring.”

    “Ha! Remember last week? You technically assaulted a cop, young lady. And the rest of your friends know trespassing is illegal. After all, one of you cut the cameras off.”

    Drista sighed. “I know that sir, but-”

    “You and I are going to see your mother while the others are questioned. You won't need to put your cuffs on or anything, but Toby will be staying here and will be questioned by another officer. Now get in my car, your stuff stays with Lani.”

    “Can I bring my phone?”

    Schlatt groaned a bit, “Fine.”

    The two left the questioning room and Drista grabbed her phone from her back. She talked to Lani for a moment before leaving the station. Lani wished she could've stayed a bit longer. As Drista got in Schlatt's car, she texted her mother about the situation. She could tell Puffy was worried about her. As they arrived, Schlatt came up to the door and knocked gently. Puffy opened the door and leaned against the door frame with a bit of an upset look on her face. Jschlatt cleared his throat, “Look Miss…Puffy, you never really told me your name, um…this kid, Drista? A, assaulted a cop, kneed me- got me in the kneecaps. In addition to the fact that she has also broke into and vandalized private property. So we, logically speaking here, we need to put her away. Not permanently, just enough that she learns her lesson.” Schlatt pulls out his phone and shows the images from camera footage.

    Drista muttered under her breath, “The kneeing was last week.” Schlatt gently nudged her. 

    Puffy let out a sigh and pinched her nose, “Honestly, Officer Schlatt, I don't see exactly what's vandalized about this ‘private property.’ And I don't agree that she deserves to be arrested for this. Her being stuck under custody for this long is punishment enough. Don't you see how scared she looks? And for all I know, you scared her into resisting arrest and kicking you. She’s a child for Christ's sake. I don't see her hiring a fly unless she was terrified. Now then, are we done here? Can I have my child back, officer?”

    Schlatt let out a groan, “Well ma’am, if you must know your child had spray painted graffiti on the building and the "private property" is government owned. Had I actually reported this, your child would be facing some hefty fines as well as juvenile time. The only reason why I am suggesting juvie is to teach her a lesson. She also assaulted an officer, which again, is a felony.”

    “Bring my child inside this house Jschlatt. I want to hear the full story from her side first without you trying to correct her.” Puffy glared at Schlatt for a moment before looking at Drista, her gaze softened and she let out a sigh. “You’re shaking again dear, come in and eat hun…”

    Drista softly smiles and walks into the house. Schlatt follows along. “You are aware of what she's done right? Her and the rest of her friends.”

    “She was acting in self defense and you know this. I’m just glad that my daughter isn't hurt. Where are her things? I saw her leave with her essentials bag.”

    Jschlatt groans and holds his face in his hands, “My daughter, Lani, has the bag. But it needs to be thoroughly searched to be sure she wasn't going to try anything.”

    “I checked her bag before she even left the house. I always do when i get the chance.”

    “Oh. So you knew she had the spray paint with her.”

    “She has hobbies, and all the messages she leaves are positive. Claire doesn't write anything offensive, and if they're offensive to you then I apologize. These are kids being kids.”

    Drista fiddles with the strap of her overalls. “Look…mom, can we visit Tommy in the hospital?”

    Puffy looked at Drista with worry before looking at Schlatt with a bit of anger in her eyes. “What did you do?”

    “Somebody was resisting arrest, so I had to act with force. All the other kids, like Drist here-”

    “You don't get to call me nicknames.”

    Schlatt rolled his eyes, “Point being, Tommy was resisting arrest. Everybody else cooperated, to a point, but he had to act out. I did what I had to.”

    Puffy kept glaring daggers at Schlatt before grabbing her keys and Drista’s hand. Puffy got in her car, allowing Drista to sit in the passenger side. Schlatt got into his car too. She started the car and made her way to the hospital. Drista tried to calm her mother down since she knew driving in a bad mood could cause problems. The three end up arriving and Puffy immediately gets out of the car. Drista following along. Schlatt just parked his car and watched from afar before coming into the building himself. Puffy and Drista walked up to the counter and asked to see what room number Tommy was in. As soon as they got it, Drista bolted off. Someone in the waiting room looked up and followed her. A tall figure with pink hair tied into a bun. Drista paused for a moment and looked up. “Techno??”

    Technoblade looked at Drista and his eyes widened. “Drista!” The two hugged and Drista began to cry a bit. “H-He’s in room 819…down the hall.”

    “We’ll talk in a bit, kiddo.” Techno pats Drista’s head and walks off to Tommy’s room. He gently knocks on the door and opens it.

    “Tommy? Tommy!” Techno rushes over to Tommy. “Hey..it's okay, it's okay. I'm here now. I'm here now..”

    “Uncle techno…?” Tommy says with a quiet voice. “Fuck man…it hurts…so much…”

    Techno stood by Tommy’s bed and carefully held his hand, “I’m here kiddo…I’m here. Where are your friends?”

    “The cops…we- he- I-” Tommy sounded like he was on the verge of tears again.

    “Hey…it's going to be okay. It's alright. I'm here now. Can you tell me what happened? I wont do anything..”

    “You’ll kill the guy and get me in more trouble..”

    “I’m not going to worsen the issues of my nephew, alright kid? Now what happened?”

    “I was shot in my legs by that FUCKING cop! OW!” Tommy tried to move his legs but failed miserably

    “Hey hey hey, try not to move your legs right now. Are the bullets still in your body?”

    Tommy shook his head, “It just hurts…Where are the others?”

    “I found Drista in the waiting room, she seemed worried sick. Her mother is in the waiting room.”

    “The others must be with the cops then…goddamn it. This was supposed to be Eryn’s first hangout with us in years. I-I just…just…ugh…”

    Technoblade carefully pats Tommy’s head. “I know, but you're still going strong. You and Brutus.”

    Tommy giggled slightly, “Theseus and Brutus…I forgot you gave me and Drista those names. And hey, I’ll have a cool new scar.”

    Technolade laughs, “That’s the spirit. Now focus on resting, I’ll let Drista and you talk.”

    Techno held up his fist and Tommy gave him a fist bump. Technoblade left the room and let Drista come in. Drista sat down in a seat next to Tommy’s bed and sighed heavily. She felt guilty about the whole situation. “Dristy? You alright? Ow crap…”

    “Yeah, I'm fine just…worried about you. Are you still bleeding?”

    “I don't know…It still hurts a lot to move them but I think the bleeding stopped. Gee, i don't know if i can be in the hospital for long…”

    “What makes you say that? We’ll visit when we can.”

    “It’s not that, just…my medication being in my room, the thought of what happened today, everything. It keeps coming back to me. It’s all my fault. It's all my fault.”

    “Schlatt was the one who fired the bullet. He knew what he was doing. Nothing was your fault. There's footage of us after all, all we did was trespass and that's not too bad. We didn't cause any destruction and the person who did the most was me and Eryn. He cut the cameras and I used spray paint. My mom can come in and visit you any day you need. She's a therapist after all. Maybe Purpled can visit you. You two like hanging out.”

    “Grayson? Ah well…I do like his company, can you check on the others? I’m worried about Tubbo. Lani had to watch the whole thing too, all of us did. Sweet XD I feel awful.” Tommy started to bite at his nails, Drista walked over and held his hand. 

    “Am I a bad friend Drista? I try not to be, but I just want to know…” Tommy sounds like he’s on the brink of tears again. Drista gives him a gentle side hug.

    “You’re not a bad friend, we just have a horrible cop on our asses all the time. Once you get discharged, maybe we'll skip school and get ice cream.”

    “That…actually sounds nice. Thank you Drista. You should really see how the others are doing.”

    “I will, I will. I’ll make sure all of us visit. I do hope your recovery goes well. Don't do anything that could worsen your injury.”

    “I won’t Drista, I promise. Thank you so much.”

    Drista just smiled back and left the room, going to see her mother. Except Schlatt and Puffy were arguing in the waiting room. Drista groaned and gently tapped Puffy’s shoulder. “Mom, can we go now? We need to head to the station.”

    “My plan was to head there anyway sweetheart. You can wait in the car.” Puffy gave Drista the keys and Drista walked out to the parking lot. She got into the car and immediately called Purpled. She waited for them to answer, nothing. Drista instead called Lani, who, after a moment, picked up. “Hey Lamby, you okay?”

    Lani giggled over the phone, “Hi-ya Dris, are you alright? Did everything go well?”

    “Mhm, Tommy is doing okay. I think he’s going to hate being in there alone all the time though. We’ll make sure to visit him often.”

    Lani’s voice softened, “I can understand that, but um…do you think this will affect your insomnia? I know that on occasion when something like this happens it's way harder for you to sleep at night. Like the time Dream-”

    “Threw up violently because he wanted to overdose. Yeah, I know.” Drista cut off Lani, but also finished her sentence, “He wasn't…in the right state of mind. I didn't blame him for that. I know it was a few years ago, but it still haunts me. I can never tell if he's in a better state, or if he's gotten better at hiding his issues.”

    “You two should hang out more often, maybe bond a bit more. I know he's got college but y’know…he’s a smart guy who loves his family. Maybe Cita will hang out with you? How long has it been since you’ve seen your sister?”

    “Been a while, actually. She moved out with her boyfriend a few years ago anyway, but I’ll give her a call at some point.”

    “Is my dad still out and about?”

    “Currently he's arguing with my mom, but I see her coming from the building. Is Tubbo okay?”

    “I think? He’s going to be super grounded at the end of this mess. My dad might try and pull him away from you guys.”

    “And right when he gets a boyfriend, great.”

    “What?” Lani sounded confused.

    “Only joking, but Toby met an old friend of his and instantly fell for the guy.”

    Lani laughed a bit, “That sounds like Tubbo, I cant blame him.”

    He’s locked in the house a lot more, so I can see why he wants to be in a relationship. I'm just afraid it might blow apart.”

    “I can get that. I’ll call you back Lambs, see ya soon.”

    “Love you,” Lani replied before hanging up. That put a smile on Drista’s face. Drista looked outside of the car window and seemed confused about why Puffy suddenly disappeared. Drista looked at her phone, confused on why the digital clock on her screen wasn't moving. Her breathing became heavy until Puffy opened the drivers side of the car and got in. “You okay Claire?”

    Drista looked at her phone and it was suddenly the correct time. She let out a groan and nodded towards Puffy. “I just need a nap when I get home. And I need to make sure that all my friends are okay.”

    “I talked to Schlatt, you all can go home for a bit but um…Toby will be grounded for some time and it's possible you all might be on house arrest.”

    Dristas eyes widened, “God fucking damn it…”

    “Language sweetheart. Let's get you home.” Puffy looked at Drista and she handed Puffy the keys. She fully started the car and began to drive home. “We’ll be making a pitstop at the station to grab your things. Maybe you can say hi to Lani.”

    “Yeah…That sounds like a good idea.”

    Puffy looked over at Drista for a moment, “Claire, sweetheart, you're wide eyed and pale, are you alright? Have you taken your medication?”

    “I’ll be okay mom, I just need to focus on making sure everyone else is okay. Or just…do something?”

    “There isn't much you can do right now. Schlatt will be brought to court for this soon.”

    “What if he’s seen as innocent. The other cops didn't question his decision.”

    Puffy let out a sigh, “I understand that sweetheart. Let's grab your things and head home.” 

    The two end up driving to the police station, Lani is waiting outside. Drista comes out of the car, kisses Lani on the cheek and carefully takes her bag. The two talk for a moment or two before Drista goes back into the car and drives home. Lani waves goodbye before having a bit of a sad expression on her face. She looks at the police station sign nearby and sighs. Knowing her own father did this leaves a bad taste in her mouth. Schlatt ends up pulling into the parking lot shortly after and rolls his window down. “Get your brother and get in the car, we’re going home.”

    Lani sighs and goes inside the station. She looks at Toby, who's in the waiting room, and gently holds out her hand. Tubbo looks up and gently takes it, avoiding eye contact. They both walk to the car and sit in the backseat. Tubbo stares out the window while ignoring his buzzing phone. Lani just sits and waits for the upcoming lecture. As Schlatt drives off, he lets out a sigh and carefully rolls down his window, "I'm disappointed in you Tobias. I hope you understand that. I have told you time and time again that you shouldn't be pulling this bullshit with your idiotic friends. I didn't want to shoot your friend, but here we are. You need to find a much more safe and legal hobby to do, like hiking. If you like exploring so much just go on hikes and I wouldn't have to pull this shit. For the next month, you immediately come home from school. I don't want you near any of those kids.” 

    Tubbo remained quiet, not even acknowledging what Schlatt said. Schlatt noticed this and pulled the car over. He parked and turned his head over to Tubbo, “Tobias. Listen to me for just a second. I'm sick and tired of you ignoring me just because you're in a bad mood. I'm just trying to help you.”

    “By shooting my best fucking friend dad? Are you fucking joking? You are a piece of shit and you know it! I’m tired of you and I'm tired of your repetitive bullshit!” 

    “I am trying to protect you from these god awful people Toby. I am sick and tired of you-”

    “Ruining your reputation at your job? I am aware of that. Let's just go home and you can hit me there.”

    Schlatt rolled his eyes and pulled his car back onto the road. 20 minutes later, the family arrived at home. Lani got out of the car and went inside. As Tubbo got out, Schlatt grabbed him by the ear and pulled him inside to the living room. Schlatt shoved him to the floor and slammed the front door of the house. Toby tried to move away from Schlatt but he was grabbed by the arm. “You don't have any sort of permission to give me any sort of disrespect. You are my son in my house. Do you understand that? Does this sort of thing ever get through your thick skull!?”

    Tubbo’s breathing was heavy, he was making eye contact with his father but didn't say a word. Schlatt let go of Tubbo and sat at his kitchen table, sipping at his canteen. Tubbo quickly ran upstairs, rushing into his room and getting a small bag together. His phone, a charger, some snacks he kept, and a water bottle. Tubbo opened the window of his room and climbed out, closing it as soon as possible and started to run. He ran until he found any sort of familiar house. It took some time, but he ended up collapsing at the porch of Purpled’s house. He laid there for about half an hour until Punz opened the door. He saw the teen sleeping on the porch and picked him up carefully, setting him on the living room couch. Punz sat in the living room on his phone until Tubbo awoke. “You awake kid?”

    Tubbo lifted his head up and rubbed his eyes, getting a good luck at Punz, “Oh fuck, was i kidnapped?”

    Punz laughed slightly, “No no, you came here yourself.”

    “O-Oh right. Ohh…hey Punz. Um…is Purpled home yet?”

    “Not yet, mom is grabbing him from the station after a loooong lecture. Are you hungry? You straight up clocked on the porch, and that's concrete. I fixed up your hand already, so you're welcome..”

    “Thanks I guess…” Tubbo got up from the couch, a bit too quickly for his body to handle. Punz sat Tubbo back down.

    “I’ll tell Purpled you’re here, but stay seated or something. I'm not sure how far you ran but you sound like you’ll collapse any second.”

    “I-I’m…I’ll be fine? Maybe? Fuck, I’m just cold, and a bit hungry.”

    The front door was unlocked and opened by Purpled's mom, with Purpled next to her. The two were chatting for a bit until they both noticed Tubbo on the couch. “Grayson, go ahead and talk with your friend, me and Luke will leave you be.”

    Punz and his mother left the room, Purpled sat on the couch next to Tubbo and gave him a tight hug. “Hey man, are you alright?”

    Tubbo nodded, trying to fix up his hair, “Mhm, just a bit light headed and tired. I ran all the way here only semi aware that this is where you lived. I know Tommy and Drista’s house is nearby too. Maybe we can go see Ranboo later?”

    “Maybe, my mom is super upset about what happened today. None of us really did anything so im sure our punishments wont be that severe.”

    “Once my dad isn't drunk out of his mind, maybe I’ll get my ass beat again. I'm surprised I'm not dead ha ha…”

    “Oh Tubs…you can stay the night for a bit. Maybe we can see if you can stay at Eryn’s house.”

    Tubbo’s eyes lit up slightly at the mention of him, “That would actually be nice. I’ll stay with him for a few days, if he allows."

    Purpled raised an eyebrow, “Did he mention that his parents don't know he's gay?”

    “Good point, Gayson.” Tubbo said with a smirk.

    Purpled blushed from embarrassment, “Oh you mother fucker!”

    Tubbo burst out into laughter, holding his chest a bit and tears pricking his eyes. Purpled looked at this and smiled a bit, happy he could make Tubbo feel better about their current situation. As Tubbo’s laugh died down slightly, Purpled went into the kitchen and grabbed some snacks for Tubbo. “You want anything Tub?”

“No no…i brought my own things, I just need…something? What do I need?”

“If you have water in your bag, you should probably drink it. And plus, if you have Eryn's address, we should get going in a bit. I’ll ask my mom to drive but she’s already in a bad mood so we’ll see how that goes.”

“Y-Yeah…yeah. Um…” Tubbo was fiddling with the sleeves of his shirt, he had been thinking about Eryn recently since the incident. He was just hoping everything would be alright with him. Maybe even stay by him, comfort him, and-

“Toby?” Purpled spoke, slowly waving his hand in front of Tubbo.

“I’m here, I’m here- Don't worry about me ha ha.”

Purpled sighs, “Daydreaming again? You looked like you were spacing out miles from here.”

“A little bit? I was just thinking about Eryn. I want him to be okay. This was something really cool we planned out yet it went to complete shit. Maybe I can just keep him company since I know my dad will freak out enough that I'm gone. I'm sure he wouldn't check Eryn’s house.”

“He…might, but we don't know for sure Tubs. I’ll go ahead and get my mom real fast and we can head that way.”

Purpled went up to talk with their mom for a moment, a few minutes she and them came to the living room to get their things ready for the upcoming car ride. Tubbo made sure he had all of his things, Purpled made sure that Tubbo was okay. The three left the house and got into the car, Purpled’s mother turned the engine on and Tubbo gave her the address. She was happy that it was an area close by. As she drove, Tubbo just stared out the window, Purpled was rubbing his back. It was only ten minutes on the road before they pulled into Eryn’s driveway. All three got out of the car and went up to the porch. Tubbo knocked on the door and waited. Eryn opened the door, revealing the newly put on bandages he had on his face from the incident. “Oh, hey bee. What brings you here?”

“Can I stay the night here? Purpled was only dropping me off.”

“Yeah of course, Ranboo is actually over right now. They’re in the kitchen at the moment, make yourself comfortable.” Eryn said with a smile.

Tubbo waved goodbye to Purpled and his mother as the two left. Tubbo walked into the house and smiled a bit. “Can I put my things in your room?”

“Yeah that's fine, do you want me to get an air mattress for you? I'm not entirely sure you’re okay with sleeping in the same bed as me.”

“I’d actually prefer sleeping with you.”

Ranboo peaked their head out as Eryn began to blush. Ran giggled for a moment, “You both are getting along nicely, that’s good.”

Tubbo tried to hold back their laughter as Eryn’s face grew a slightly deeper red. Eryn rolled his eyes a bit but smiled, “You can laugh Toby, I won't be mad at you for that.”

“Yeah yeah, I know. I do want to say, how come you’re over Ranboo?”

“Eryn was worried sick about you since you didn't really answer any of our calls.”

“You both called me?” Tubbo looked at his phone and realized he missed quite a lot of notifications. “Oh fuck…I’m so sorry. I had an argument with my dad.”

Eryn’s realization finally kicked in, “That would explain why Purpled dropped you off. Either way, you’re still staying the night.”

“Where’s Ranboo’s car?” Tubbo said as he looked at the two of them. 

Ranboo adjusted his hair slightly, “Towed at the moment, but I am getting it back soon. My moms dropped me off here while they went ahead and grabbed it. I’m not sure how long I’m staying but if you both want me to stay the night with you I can make it happen.”

Eryn pulled Tubbo a bit close and held the shorter one's waist, basically caring for him like a stuffed animal, “Honestly it’s up to you Ran, I’m not sure if Tommy is near his phone but I might give him a call. I might even talk to Drista and Purpled.”

Ranboo nodded, “That’s fine with me. Where are your parents Ryn?”

“Asleep in their room.”

“Ah,” Ranboo replied. “Alright then.”

The three of them walked over to Eryn’s room. Tubbo set his things down and sat on the bed. Ranboo sat in a beanbag chair Eryn had in the corner of his room. Eryn sat at his desk and pulled up Discord, hoping that at least someone they knew was online. Drista had her status as ‘do not disturb’, Purpled was online, Tommy’s status remained offline, and Lani was also online at the moment. Eryn was thinking about who to call and decided on Drista. He rang their account waiting for them to pick up. Tubbo and Ranboo looked over and Eryn connected his laptop to a small bluetooth speaker. When Drista picked up, she sounded exhausted. “Hey Eryn…what’s up?”

“Everything okay Drist? I have Ranboo and Tubbo here with me right now.”

“Yeah, just…Schlatt I suppose? He fought with my mom earlier, I’m trying to sleep but I can't. Today was a fucking disaster.”

Eryn sighed a bit, “I get that, trust me. I’m sure things will get better. Maybe we’ll visit Tommy in the hospital.”

“Tommy looked so…scared. I talked with him earlier today and my gods he was frightened. He doesn't want to be in that building alone and he cant hardly move since both of his legs are casted."

Tubbo softly hums, “Hospitals aren't the greatest place to be, it's terrifying if you think about it. The place could be cold, you’re surrounded by folks who may or may not be dying. And Toms doesn't have his medication. I’m scared his anxiety will get to him.”

Drista groans over the phone, “I’m scared of everything! I’m pretty sure he ends up getting the bulk of the blame for all of our adventures when we inevitably go to court. All of this crap just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”

“When I get my car back, I’ll visit him,” Ranboo said. It was clear all four of them were going to be in a bad mood for quite a while. The sound of a creak could be heard from Drista’s side before she mutes herself. The other three sigh or groan. Puffy must've heard her yelling. Tubbo starts to chew on his nails a bit before Eryn carefully holds his hand. 

Ranboo thinks to themselves, “Okay, I think we should just focus on making sure Tommy is okay and that none of us go to prison. Maybe our parents just have to pay large fines and we can forget some of this happened.”

“I won't forget…” Tubbo mutters under his breath. 

When Drista returns, they all get a notification from Purpled in a group chat. It was a photo of him hanging out with Tommy. All of them let out a sigh of relief. “Does anybody else think that they're dating?” Drista said.

Tubbo just started to giggle at the remark. Eryn just sent an emoji of a ring and Purpled sent a simple “fuck you” in response. They all laughed a tad bit at the message.

Drista would continue her call with Eryn for a bit until she had to go, Ranboo ended up leaving once their moms returned. This all left Eryn and Tuboo alone. They all laughed a tad bit at the message. Drista would continue her call with Eryn for a bit until she had to go, Ranboo ended up leaving once their moms returned. This all left Eryn and Tuboo alone. The two were sitting in Eryn’s bed just looking at their phones, Tubbo set his down on the nightstand and held onto Eryn. He wrapped his arms around the other's torso and nuzzled into his back. Eryn tensed up, but relaxed after realizing it was just Tubbo. The room was quiet, the only thing that could be heard was the quiet sound of Tiktok playing Eryn's phone and the boys’ breathing. Tubbo held Eryn more closely and Eryn set down his phone. He turned over to face Tubbo and gently patted his head. “I think you should take a nap bumblebee, you look exhausted.”

“I’ll be fine Ryn, I want to stay awake and be around you.”

Eryn chuckled, “Uh huh, sure. Even if you fall asleep, I’ll still hold you. Sleep well okay?”

Tubbo softly smiled and yawned, “Thank you Eryn. I love you.”

“I love you too,” Eryn said as he kissed Tubbo’s forehead. The two ended up falling asleep just moments later. Finally, a moment of peace.

Chapter Text

An alarm started to go off on Drista’s phone, she groaned as she checked her phone. Time for school. Wait. Drista double checked the date and looked at the calendar hung in her room, spring break had just begun. Drista rushed out of bed and burst into Dream’s room, who was still asleep. The sudden sounds of Drista slamming the door open made him jolt. “Oh you have to be kidding me, what now Claire? I’m trying to sleep.”

“It’s spring break for me, dumbass!” Drista squealed excitedly.

“Okay, and?” Dream rolled over in bed and tried to go back to sleep.

“Ugh…the point is, I’m home more often. You and I can finally do sibling outings more!”

“Mhm…” Dream was barely paying attention.

Drista groaned a bit and fiddled with her hair, “Could you at least act like you care? We’ve been hanging out less and less because of your stupid college friends.”

Dream sat up in bed and faced Drista, “Don’t insult my friends, okay? You do dumb shit as well, I'm sick of hearing how the cops almost kicked your ass. Cool story in the future, but right now, it's annoying. Go back to bed, it's seven in the morning.”

Drista went quiet before going on her phone and walking back to her room. She laid back down in her bed and checked any notifications she missed. Apparently Tommy was online at a point since he finally got his phone. But this early in the morning? Drista laughed a bit to herself. She noticed the only other person she knew was online was Tubbo. Drista sent a check in message and Tubbo replied with a photo of him and Eryn cuddling. Drista replied with an unneeded amount of gay flag gifs. Tubbo replying back with eye roll gifs, this made Drista’s day a bit better. They set their phone down for a moment and just laid in bed, staring at her ceiling. They were counting the amount of times their ceiling fan went in circles. At least over five by now. Drista sighed and decided to see if she could try and sleep. Before she could, her phone began to ring a bit loudly, it didn't help that it was almost next to her ear. She jumped slightly and groaned before answering the phone, not even looking at who was calling her. “Claire speaking, what’s up?”

“Drista! How are you?” yelled the brit, Drista instantly knew who it was.

She laughed and put Tommy on speaker, “Hey Toms it's not even 7:30 yet, why are you up? And I thought you couldn't call people.”

“Eh, doesn't matter. My wounds are still healing, but I got to be in a sick wheelchair last night. I’ll be heading home in a few days so I can heal at home.”

“Our two weeks of spring break have started, so you have plenty of time.”

“Spring break?! Gosh, I completely forgot about that- Thanks for reminding me.”

“Try not to yell so loudly, I'm sure some people are still trying to sleep. Anyhow, I do want to ask you something if you’re alright with that.”

“Ask away Dristy,” Just from his tone of voice, you could tell Tommy was smiling.

“Are you and Grayson dating?”

There's silence on the other side of the line, before there's a large amount of stuttering. It seemed that question caught Tommy off guard. Drista was trying to hold in her laughter, “Are you alright Tommy? Was it too much?”

“What? No- I can handle anything you give me. I just erm…don't really have an answer for that? Ha ha…”