"This is the third time this week. If you keep crying wolf, nobody will believe you." The man in white expressed to the young boy in a rushed tone. The boy was done with this. He wasn't lying, and his statements were not mere posh in the pan; they were true! He really had seen the Transgaurd insignia on that hybrid's clothes, and he really had shot a rifle and rode on a motorbike and tamed a wild dog! Why didn't anyone believe him? Only Techno seemed to, and Techno... well, Techno was a zombie piglin. Nobody ever believed zombies or piglins, and especially not both.

"Listen. I know kids like you have big imaginations, but-" A blonde boy rushed in at that moment, snatching the other boy up in his arms and glaring at the man. "Wilby isn't lying!" He claimed as the other struggled confusedly in his arms. "Tommy-" The man started. Tommy shushed him. "Wilby. Isn't. Lying. Come on Wilby, don't waste your time here. Tell dad instead." "Wilbur, come on, you-" Wilbur (the first boy) glared at the man in white before taking Tommy by the hand and dragging him out. The door slammed shut behind them.

"Wilby, I'm sorry, I just didn't want him to-" Wilbur merely patted Tommy on the head, ruffling his hair. "You did fine. And plus, that guy was way too adamant about me being wrong. I'd rather get ignored by father than called a liar by some stupid psychiatrist- scientist- traitor- whatever the fuck he is." Tommy nodded like he knew what any of that meant, looking intrigued at the last few words. "What does fuck mean? And and- what about stupid?"

Wilbur looked over at Tommy, realizing what he'd said. "Those are, um... bad words that father will wash both of our mouths out with soap for if he hears us using them." There was a slight pause, then- "What if I shouted them at the top of my lungs?" Wilbur's eyes filled with a trace of "son of a bitch-" as Tommy started screaming "FUCK!" At the top of his lungs no less. Edging away from the boy, he tried to run. He got exactly fifteen and a half feet away when their father rushed down the hall and picked the boy up. "Tommy, what's wrong?" He heard the man ask. Quickly slipping down the hall, he didn't hear the answer. Phil coming in his room later with a belt in hand was answer enough.

———

"Tommy? What are you doing on the roof at this hour?" The blonde didn't look at them, sighing as the stars shined overhead. "Do you think stars ever feel so... heavy? So completely unfazed and yet like they're carrying so much. Sometimes I swear they could just... you know." He didn't specify. Techno sighed, hoisting himself out the window to sit besides Tommy on the roof. The blonde's eyes were filled with the stars he saw above, yet they weren't shining. Techno watched for a minute before letting down his pink hair and lying down. The shingles were cold and pressed into their side at funny angles. They didn't know how anyone could bear sitting like this in movies, even if it was on a set.

The silence only broken by their breathing, Techno realized they had no answer. The stars were... crazy, to say the least. So complex and yet so simple. It was hard to assume for them. "I guess... stars are really complicated, Tommy. Every star has its own problem or imperfection. We don't really know what they're like or who they were." Tommy nodded once. "Then you'd agree that joining them would be difficult, yes?" Techno looked over at Tommy. The blonde's eyes were on Techno already. He looked away. Techno did too. "...Yes, it would be difficult to join them up there. They probably don't want us there for a long long time anyways." There was a sigh from Tommy, just one. He climbed down to the end of the roof and slid in the window. Techno watched before following. That had been... weird.

———

"Bad, can I ask you something?" Eret's voice. The demon turned away, nodding slightly. "Go ahead." Eret sighed slightly before taking his chance. "Why keep Skeppy, of all people? He's... you know." Bad turned to face Eret then, red eyes almost piercing the brunette. He didn't dare stare back. "Because I love him. He's my best friend, Eret... My best friend who I would do ANYTHING for. Don't you get that? I mean... you were friends with-" "Okay yes, yes I get it. I just... I thought you might not want him here after what happened with Phil's kid.

———

"Hello, Techno. Do you have the time to discuss with me about something?"

The voice sounded through my door as though it were a muffled radio, a million miles away and yet close enough that I could discern what it was saying through the static. I contemplated saying no.

"Sure."

A familiar figure opened the door, standing framed in my darkened doorway for what felt like hours. Then they sighed, entering quietly.

"I apologize for it being so late. I lost track of time."

I barely followed, my head swimming with items off a list of reasons why this was already going to be horrible. I nodded politely.

"No problem. You know I am always here to talk to, Theseus."

He didn't look so sure. It was then that I noticed his stressed face in the dim light that the hallway provided. He looked like he had been crying.

"Is something wrong?"

My voice seemed to scare him for a second, like he hard forgotten I was there.

"Tommy?"

I don't know how it happened. One second, he was just sitting there upright, and the next he was sobbing in my arms as I whispered whatever consolation I could offer to him.

"It wasn't my fault, Techno... He... he made fun of me. He called me a freak and said I deserved to be emotionless. I didn't mean to do it, I was just— I got so mad and I... I hit him, Techno."

The admission came like a fleet of raindrops, fast, melodic, challenging. It brought forth many questions that I couldn't prioritize.

"Who? Who did you hit, Tommy?"

It was the only thing I could ask at the moment, the first thing I wanted to know lest I had to apologize to them. Or beat them into the ground. Either/or. He trembled in my arms, shaking his head.

"Please tell me?"

He stared at me for a while, tears still rolling down his cheeks before he hesitantly nodded.

"It was Jack... But I swear I didn't mean to, Techno! I meant to push him away, I—"

I shushed him, trying to think. Jack... Jack was known to say some pretty rude things, but he would never call someone a freak. He would probably say he hated them, at worst, and then joke about their mother. Or maybe I just wasn't there if/when Jack did call people freaks. Whatever the case, it didn't sound all too plausible. At least, not without context.

"Are you sure you didn't just blow it out of proportion, Tommy? I'm not saying I don't believe that something happened, I'm just saying that—"

"You don't trust me..."

He cut me off, placing the words in my mouth. His words. I wasn't going to say that. I was going to say what I thought, which was that he might have heard Jack wrong, or that Jack said something different.

"No, Tommy, I was just saying—"

"Forget it. Never-mind. Sorry I bothered you."

He shoved me away as he stood, backing towards the door. My legs felt heavy as I stood too, the bed creaking in my wake.

"That wasn't what I was going to say, if you would just let me—"

"Leave me alone, you fat pig!"

I stood rooted to the spot, staring at his blurry figure. My breath caught in my throat, and my face heated up from a, in hindsight, premature embarrassment and anger.

'He hates you~' 'He's the pig!' 'What a dick.' 'ASSHOLE!' 'Monster.' 'Kill him!' 'BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!' 'KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM—'

"I can see why he called you a freak. There's no use pretending any differently. After all, you look like just what you are."

His lip trembled. That I could make out. I was fairly certain that I was shaking too. If I hadn't been doing so all along, that is. My gaze softened, and I sighed.

"Listen. Why don't we start over? I'm sorry that I said what I said and— wait!"

He was already gone. I called after him, hoping he would return. Yet he never did.

(So, hey, guys. I'm sorry that it's been quite a few months since I last posted anything. I got caught up in life once more, and it's probably been figured out that I'm a procrastinator with a low attention span by now. That definitely doesn't help. However, I return and bring with me... this! I hope you enjoyed, and if I feel motivated, I'll put out another chapter soon. Peace out!)