Chapter Text
After a little over a week in Phil’s house, Techno is still unable to really trust anything the man or his kids do.
They’re nice, sure, but Techno has learned to not get comfortable with people like that. It never ends well.
Wilbur has already gotten more comfortable with Techno in the house, and Tommy is chaotic. Phil is still kind and patient, but there’s obviously something he’s not telling Techno.
So, Techno’s plan is simple. When everyone else in the house is asleep, he’ll jump from the window and run as far as possible. He’s already learned the window is broken and won’t budge when he tries to open it, which is annoying, but he’s crashed out of them before. The room he stays in is on the second floor anyway, so the drop isn’t too high.
The day goes by normally from the moment he wakes up that morning, getting downstairs as quickly as possible to eat before the food gets taken from him. He showers afterwards, throwing on a faded hoodie that might’ve been black at some point. He braids his long, pink hair and tosses it over his shoulder.
He eats a candy bar he’d stolen from the pantry after skipping lunch. Then, he begins to pack a bag. Techno tosses a couple clothes in, his phone charger and headphones with them. He puts the rest of his hair dye in too, but he doubts that he’ll have a chance to use it anytime soon. Other than that, he doesn’t have much else, except for the snacks he’s been storing beneath the bed.
While Tommy and Wilbur are at school, he goes into the garage and takes a hammer.
He eats downstairs for dinner, silently pushing pasta into his mouth while the others ramble on about their days. Wilbur punched a kid at school, apparently, and Tommy aced some project he had in science. Phil says he’s proud of him, and he tells Wilbur to not get into another fight. There’s not much punishment though, and Techno finds that weird.
Afterwards, even when he thinks everyone has fallen asleep, Techno stays up for another hour before acting on his plan. He supposes being quiet won’t matter much once he breaks the window, but he holds his breath as he stands up from the bed nonetheless.
Techno picks up the hammer from underneath the pillow and brings it up to the glass. He swings it at the edges harshly until he hears it crack, and the glass makes a loud crashing noise that he cringes at, but he continues until the opening is big enough for him to fit through. Some of the glass cuts his arms, but he tries his best to ignore it.
By now, he’s almost entirely sure that at least someone heard it, but Techno doesn’t really have the time to dwell on it. He leaps out of the window, keeping the hammer in his hand just in case.
Techno rolls onto the ground, luckily not feeling any serious injuries, but he knows the marks on his body will be noticeable later on.
He glances up at the dark sky and then back at the house, seeing the lights turning on, and he runs like there’s no tomorrow.
It’s cold outside, he realizes, and his clothes won’t be able to keep him very warm. After a while, Techno let himself slow down to a walk, glancing over his shoulder every couple minutes. He’s almost surprised no one caught up to him yet, but he didn’t join the track team from one of his old schools for nothing.
He turns a corner into an alleyway, shivering as he hunkered down into a corner. He flipped his hood over his head, tugging on the strings of his hoodie to tighten it, but it didn’t do much to help. He even sees his breath when he breathes out.
Techno slips his bag from his shoulders and reaches in to grab a plastic bag that he’d stuffed an orange in. He would have gotten water too, but he made the stupid decision of forgetting to pack any.
He peels the orange, tossing the peel onto the ground for bugs to feast on later. He curls into a tighter ball, regretting now bringing any warmer clothing. If he wants to run from his problems, he should at least do it competently, but apparently even that’s too big of a task for him.
He stays there, crouched in the alleyway, for what seems like hours before he decides to keep moving. He stands up from the cold ground, his legs stiff. As he steps out and turns a corner, Techno hears a car slowing to a stop behind him. He freezes, turns his head, and sees blond hair and blue eyes in the front seat. He takes in a sharp breath of cold air before running like the wind.
He almost falls flat on his face in his panic, but he continues nonetheless until he can hardly breathe. He doesn’t hear the car anymore, but he does hear footsteps hitting the ground at a run. He knows without even turning around that it’s Phil, and if it’s Phil, Techno knows the outcome won’t be good if he’s caught. He knows from experience, after being locked in a dusty closet without food or water for who knows how long as punishment for running away.
He finally slows to a stop when he knows he won’t be able to outrun Phil any longer.
“Techno!” Phil calls out, panting as he catches his breath. Techno only glares at him in return. “Techno, what’s wrong? I couldn’t find you for so long, are you hurt?”
“Let me go,” Techno answers. “I can’t stay with you.” He offers no explanation.
Phil asks for one anyway. “Why? If I knew you weren’t happy, I could’ve fixed it. You just had to tell me.” Techno feels bad for Phil, with that sad expression on his face, but it doesn’t change much.
“I know you’re just faking it,” Techno says softly. “Sooner or later, you’ll get tired of me, so staying will only make it worse when you do.”
“Oh, mate,” Phil breathes, stepping forward to envelop Techno in what appears to be a hug. His arms wrap around Techno’s body, sturdy and sure in ways Techno hasn’t felt in years. He wants to melt into it, he wants to be able to trust this man, but there’s a nagging voice in the back of his mind telling him to stop.
He stays still, almost frozen in time. Phil whispers meaningless words of encouragement into Techno’s ear. Techno shouts something harsh that not even his own ears hear, before shoving Phil off of him. Techno barely registers the look of hurt on Phil’s face, but even more than that, he looks resigned. Techno isn’t sure which is better.
Phil says nothing as he stands up, reaching out his hand before thinking better of it. He walks back in the direction of his car, and Techno trails monotonously behind.
Techno sits in the back seat of the car, as far as he can get from Phil, and they drive back to the house in silence. Techno already wants to leave.