Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Wilbur made his way through the crowded halls toward the front office. There was a new freshman transfer student at the school and they chose Wilbur to show the kid to his classes. He turned the corner and walked through the school lobby, entering the large glass doors at the end of the hall. The office was almost empty.

Wilbur scanned the room, quickly spotting the freshman. A tall, blonde boy was standing nervously in the corner, fiddling with the string on his red hoodie, a blank expression on his face. Wilbur walks over to the boy to introduce himself.

“I’m Wilbur,” the boy looked up at Wilbur. “You’re Tommy right?” Tommy didn’t respond. “Well, I’m the one who’s gonna be showing you around.” Still no response. Wilbur gave Tommy a confused frown. Tommy noticed and quickly pulled out his phone, typing something. Then turned the screen toward Wilbur.

This is fucking stupid. Tommy shifted his weight as he fiddled with his hoodie string. He was standing awkwardly in the office's corner, having picked this spot to avoid interaction. Tommy hates new people, hates explaining his problems to them. But it was school policy that transfer students needed another student to show them around, so here he was.

In Tommy’s peripheral vision, he sees the office doors opening. He raises his head to see the person better. The boy that walked through was stupidly tall, with fluffy brown hair. He also seemed to be a couple of years older.

The boy looked around before spotting Tommy and walking over. He spoke as he got closer. Tommy tried to listen, really, but it was just so hard. When he tried to listen, all the words sounded muffled. The brunette eventually stopped talking and frowned.

Tommy figured he would have to talk to him anyway, so he pulled his phone out and opened his notes app.

i can’t hear.

Wilbur paused after reading the message, and a wide grin formed, realization settling over him. So that’s why I got assigned to him. He quickly brushed his hair from his ear, revealing a pastel yellow hearing aid. As Wilbur did that, Tommy’s eyes widened in surprise.

With little thought, Wilbur signed. His hands moved quickly in excitement, completely oblivious to Tommy’s face, scrunched up in confusion. Wilbur soon stopped, however, when Tommy turned his phone towards Wilbur.

write pls

Wilbur frowned slightly. Although he was a little disappointed, he understood not everyone would know sign language. He grabbed Tommy’s phone and typed back.

Got carried away sorry :p

He turned the phone around so Tommy could read it. When he did, Tommy let out a huff of amusement. Wilbur smiled at that and turned the phone back to himself to continue typing.

I’m Wilbur. I’ll be showing you around today :D

He handed the phone back to Tommy. The blonde nodded as he finished reading and quickly typed a response.

whats yor number ? easuer to talk taht way

Wilbur immediately pulled his phone out and the two exchanged contacts, quickly continuing the conversation in text form.

Why don’t you talk? If you don’t mind me asking.

Tommy read the message and took a deep breath before texting back.

this is all new n shit and i suck at volume 

my foster dad always says i talk too loud 

Wilbur nodded at the first text. He understood the struggle of volume control when you can’t hear yourself. The second text gave him a bad feeling, though. He ignored it for now, reminding himself that not all fosters are shitty and Tommy probably meant little by it.

Well, I don’t care how loud you are. You can always talk around me if you want to :)  

“Thank you.” Tommy said, though yelling would probably be a more accurate description. A wide grin was spread across his face. Wilbur chuckled at that. He then abruptly remembered why he was even there.

Can I see your schedule? I’m supposed to take you to your classes. 

Tommy pulled a wrinkled piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Wilbur. He looked over it for a moment before putting his attention back to his phone.

I know where these are, just follow me.

The two smiled at each other before leaving the office and stepping into the crowded halls.

Chapter Text

Tommy was 6 when he lost his parents. All it took was a stupid mistake to ruin his fucking life. By the time he was 10, he had completely lost track of how many foster homes he’d been in. They considered him a “problem child”. Constantly causing trouble. No one wanted the kid they couldn’t control or contain. They would always eventually get sick of him. It wasn’t his fault they were unable to handle his incredibly smart and charismatic self.

One family had liked him, though. He was there for almost 2 years, and they even talked about adoption. Tommy was finally happy again, wanted by a family that loved him. But alas, as they always say, nothing good can last forever, especially for a kid like him. It only took a single day, one stupid decision that cost him another family, and something he didn’t realize he took for granted his whole life. 

October 16. The day was cold and rainy.  Normally, Tommy would walk to school.. But because of the shitty weather, he asked his foster mom to drive him instead. They neared the end of their street and prepared to turn onto the road that led to the school.

Maybe if the road hadn’t been so wet- if the fog wasn’t so thick, if he had just fucking sucked it up and walked through the rain. Then maybe he could’ve avoided everything.

Tommy watched a car appear out of the fog right as they turned into the intersection. He watched it speed past the red light. It seemed like watching was the only thing he was capable of right now. He was frozen, unable to move, unable to scream. The only thing he could do was squeeze his eyes shut and hope the cars didn’t collide.  

It struck the driver’s side door first.

Someone was shaking his shoulder. He wished they would stop. It was annoying, and he was trying to sleep.

“Jus’ one more minute-” he tried to roll over to get away from the flashing lights. Flashing lights? Why- why did everything hurt so much? He forced his eyes to open just enough to see what was going on.

From his position, Tommy could see feet shuffling around on the wet ground and an ambulance not too far away. The car was on its side, and the windshield was shattered. Glass was scattered all over him. His eyes finally fell on the person who had shaken him awake.

Leaning through the windshield, was an EMT. She seemed to be saying something, but Tommy couldn’t hear much over the ringing in his ears (when had that started?)

“Y’re gonna have to speak up, lady.” The EMT’s expression changed from worried to grim before she turned and ran off. Not long after, more medics appeared and helped get him out of the car. Everything was painful. The glass was cutting his skin and his chest hurt. 

They lifted him into the ambulance and he fell asleep immediately.

The next time he woke, there was only white. Everything was an ugly, sterile white. Groaning, he struggled to push himself up into a sitting position, immediately wishing he hadn’t. He collapsed back onto the bed with a yelp of pain. It seemed like someone had fucking stabbed him. He tried to glance around the place a bit more. Beside his bed, he noticed the call switch. Reaching out, he pushed the button and waited. He stared at the wall, unsure of what to think. He had so many questions. What happened to the car? His mother?

Finally, a nurse entered the room. She started talking to him. At least, he thought she was speaking. He tried to focus harder on the words, but he couldn’t understand anything.

“I can’t-” he paused. He could hardly pick up his own voice. It sounded muffled, as if he was underwater. What the fuck? He focused back on the nurse, who had a sad yet understanding expression on her face. She pulled a pen out of her pocket and turned the paper she was holding toward Tommy. He saw it had a pre-written message on it.

The doctors assumed you would have some hearing loss. This notepad is to help communicate. How are you feeling? 

The nurse handed the pen and pad to him. He took them and sloppily wrote out an answer to her question.

like shit. what happened? 

She held a somber expression before taking the pen back.

You were in a car crash with your foster mother. You have a mild concussion, a broken rib, and, as I assume you’ve guessed, severe hearing loss. There might also be some slight memory issues for the next few days.

but i’ll get better.. right?

All he focused on was the pen against the paper.

Your memory should be back by next week. The concussion will go away, and bones heal. We can’t, however, promise that your hearing will ever be where it used to be.

Tommy sat there, his face blank. A tear dripped down his cheek, but he couldn’t bring himself to wipe it. He remained there unmoving. He jolted when he remembered something important.

my mom? what about her?

The nurse paused before hesitantly bringing the pen to the page.

She didn’t make it.

She looked away as Tommy’s heart sank. The trickle of tears turned into a waterfall. Grief, guilt, pain, exhaustion, fear, and anger flooded his mind all at once. He wanted to scream, to shout. Wail that this wasn’t real, that this wasn’t happening again. He wouldn’t lose another fucking parent, not again. Not after he had finally found one that loved him so much. They were going to adopt him, for fuck’s sake. He’s supposed to be happy! What the actual fuck!

Tommy accepted the nurse’s comforting hand, letting her run circles along his back. She put the notebook in his lap.

Would you like your foster dad to visit? He’s been waiting outside, worried sick.

He nodded and sniffled a bit. At the very least, he still had his dad. Right? The nurse left the room, returning moments later with Tommy’s father. However, they both paused right in the doorway. The two seemed to have a conversion before his dad finished and they walked forward. His dad hesitated, looking around before finding what he was searching for. He picked the pen and notebook up and turned toward Tommy.

I’m so sorry Tom.

He looked up at his dad’s face. Why did he look so guilty? His head fell in realization. Not again. Not this expression. He’s seen this look so many fucking times. They said they were going to adopt him for fuck’s sake! He was going to be happy!

Tommy, as much as I want to, I can’t support you on my own. You know that. 

He didn’t want to admit it, but deep down, he understood. They had loved him; he recognized that. But he thought that at the very least, they wouldn’t throw him back into foster care so quickly. He raised his head up, the betrayal he felt showing. His father- no, his previous foster father glanced away, guilt clear. He wrote one last sentence before walking out of the room.

I already told Puffy. She’s finding you a new home right now.

There it was. Another set of parents, gone. Poor little Tommy, all alone. Again.

Two monotonous weeks later, Tommy was discharged from the hospital. They had given him a pair of hearing aids. He’d chosen for them to be his favorite color, red, as it brought him a sense of comfort. 

His social worker, Puffy, had picked him up and was bringing him to his new foster home. Doing this after two years felt strange considering he had thought he would never have to do it again. 

After arriving at the house, Puffy went up and knocked at the front door. Moments later, a blond guy appeared and greeted her. The two shared some words, Tommy not caring to pay attention to them. Then they turned to him. 

“Hello, Thomas. You can call me Dream.” the man said with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. It seemed to stretch across his face, unnatural. Tommy looked up at his new foster dad, an uneasy sense growing in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t trust this guy one bit.

Chapter Text

MONDAY

The hallways that were once busy were now empty. Only the hall monitors were roaming the school, making sure all students got to their classes.

Okay, that’s all your classes and all of the different corridors. The bell is about to ring for second period. Sorry about you missing first period. Also, just text me if you need anything else! :D

Wilbur looked up from the phone and gave Tommy a smile. The duo had just finished their tour around the school and were standing outside of Tommy’s second-period class. The period had only started about 10 minutes ago, so he wouldn’t have missed much of the class.

Oh btw, if you have nowhere else to go for lunch, you can sit with me :P I sit outside so go through the door by the entrance of the lunchroom ;D

He didn’t know what to say, so he thought for a moment before replying to Wilbur’s invitation with a simple thumbs-up emoji.

alr thanks big man. you can leave now

The two looked up at each other, making eye contact. Tommy quickly glanced away, nodding uncomfortably. Wilbur nodded too at the awkwardness before striding down the hallway. He swung back around to wave goodbye before turning the corner. The abrupt movement had made the idiot stumble, causing him to awkwardly hop the rest of the way around the corner.

It had only taken Tommy a few minutes with Wilbur to realize he was a pretentious fuck. He’d known all the teachers they visited, such a fucking teacher’s pet. Another thing, he mentioned his stupid band every five seconds. God, he would look at any object and try to relate it back to the dumb fucking band. Then he had the audacity to invite him to lunch? No thanks, he’ll eat in the bathroom like he did at his old school. 

But before he could even think about lunch, he had to get through his second period. The class was history, which he didn’t think would be too hard, but he had ultimately decided he would hate it purely because Wilbur mentioned he liked it earlier.

He had only taken one step into the room and was already wishing he could turn back into the hall. Everyone’s eyes had turned to him as soon as the door opened and they were all just staring. Thankfully, the teacher hadn’t forced him to introduce himself, simply saying his name to the class (he guessed that’s what the teacher did at least) and pointing to his assigned seat.

After zoning out for practically the entire class, the bell rang. He obviously couldn’t hear it, but since everyone got up suddenly, he assumed that’s what happened.

Now for the thing he’d been dreading the most. Lunch. He still didn’t want to sit with Wilbur, so he wandered around until he found an empty bathroom to eat in. 

God, maybe it was empty for a reason. This was the nastiest bathroom he’s ever had the displeasure of eating in. When he stepped forward, his foot stuck to the floor, and he was hit with the overwhelming stench of weed and shit. Half the stalls had broken doors and there seemed to be mold growing out of the cracks in the wall.

Maybe he should have taken up Wilbur’s offer. Anything would be preferable to this. He lost his appetite at the sight, not like he brought much to eat, anyway. Giving up on the idea of sitting here, he left for the next class.

TUESDAY

Tommy squinted down at his phone in a futile attempt to check the time. The bright morning sun was making it nearly impossible to see the screen. Not that it even mattered, he already knew he was going to be late.

It was only his second day of school and Dream had already decided he didn’t want to drive him. So now he was here, stuck walking the entire way on foot. He had quickly realized that no matter how fast he ran, he was still a mile away from the school, and he had left the house far too late to ever reasonably make it on time.

Tommy looked back up from his phone, noticing a teal convertible pulling over by the curb next to him. He stopped where he was and eyed the car hesitantly. Why are they stopping here next to me? He let out an exasperated sigh when the window rolled down to reveal a brown-haired bitch grinning at him from in the driver's seat. 

Tommy returned his focus to his phone, now noticing he had missed a text from Wilbur.

Need a ride?

He sent a deadpan stare towards Wilbur, thinking through his options carefully. On one hand, he absolutely did not want to ride in a car with the guy. He was annoying as fuck. On the other hand, he’d rather not be late. Tommy knew if Dream got a call from the school saying he was late, he’d be punished for it, even though it was literally Dream’s fault he had to walk in the first place. Yeah, fuck that. He swung the car door open and hopped in the passenger seat.

book it. i dont wanna be late

A shit-eating grin spread across Wilbur’s face as he read the message. Tommy frowned, what the fuck was this guy grinning like that for? He didn’t have to wait too long for an answer. His head jerked back as Wilbur sped down the street. When he said book it, he didn’t mean almost breaking the law. By the time they turned to the school, he felt close to fainting. Wilbur drove like a fucking maniac. 

Getting out of the car, he looked at his phone, realizing they hardly made it on time, with only a few minutes to spare. Starting to walk to his class, he noticed Wilbur following him with a calm smile. The two kept walking until they reached his class. Why is this guy still here? Tommy quickly grabbed his phone again and sent a text to the annoying fuck.

thanks for the ride dipshit, nearly gave me a fucking heart attack

Np! If you ever need a ride again you can just ask :))

He considered the offer for a moment. Putting the thought of Wilbur’s horrendous driving aside, a ride to school sounded much better than the 40-minute walk. 

as long as you dont try to fucking kill me next time

Whatever, I got you here on time.

why are you still here

Making sure you get to your class, duh.

well im here now, so you can leave

Shortly after sending the text, he looked up and flipped Wilbur off. The brown-haired bitch rolled his eyes and waved his hand dismissively before saying his goodbyes and wandering off to his own class.

After sitting (sleeping) through his first few classes, Tommy got to lunch. He was not eating in that stupid fucking bathroom again, so he went to the cafeteria to find Wilbur.

He stepped through the double doors into the outdoor lunch pavilion, quickly spotting the annoying bitch sitting all alone at one of the picnic tables. He made his way to the table and sat opposite Wilbur. They both pulled out their phones and Tommy began to type.

why tf are you all alone bitch boy. you got no friends or smth

Tommy looked up as Wilbur sputtered and laughed before quickly replying.

No, the group I usually sit with had something to do today. So it’s just us :3

He rolled his eyes at the emoticon before setting his phone down. He watched as the pretentious fuck pulled out his nice, fancy lunch bag. Tommy had only brought a bag of chips in a shitty lunchbox he had picked up from the lost and found bin yesterday, but he was fine with it. Wilbur however, was not. He tried to offer Tommy a part of his PB&J with cheese sandwich (wtf). He declined it, obviously. Wilbur then proceeded to pull out a fucking raw onion and bite into it like an apple. (what in the ever-loving fuck)

why the hell are you eating such weird shit 

I don’t have taste buds to put it simply. So I eat weird shit to fuck with people :P

They continued to text the entirety of lunch, with Wilbur driving most of the conversation. He kept googling dumb ice-breakers and Tommy answered them all, sending his own ice-breakers back. After a while, they each started to get bolder with the questions.

the most embarrassing thing you’ve done?

I had an “emo” phase in middle school. My brother still makes fun of me for it ._.

He looked up from his phone with a raised eyebrow and an amused smile while Wilbur thought of his next question. His face concentrated before pausing for a moment. Then he sent it.

How’d you lose your hearing?

Wilbur surveyed Tommy’s face. The boy had frozen in place. Did he go too far? He backtracked and hastily sent another text.

You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I forgot it can be a sensitive subject sometimes, sorry.

no no its fine… i was in a car crash a few weeks ago. you?

I got a really nasty ear infection when I was 10. 

Tommy nodded in understanding. He still looked uncomfortable, though. Trying his best to change the topic, Wilbur scrolled through the list of ice-breakers until he found an excellent question.

What do you consider the perfect meal?

He saw the blonde boy’s expression light up as he thought of an answer. It was kinda adorable how he stuck his tongue out in concentration while typing. There was no hint of discomfort anymore. Wilbur’s glad the topic change worked.

peanut butter and nutella sandwich with clementines and a coke. cant get much better than that

Wilbur smiled and made a mental note of that. 

The bell rang, and he let Tommy know. They both got up and said their goodbyes before heading to their respective classes.

Dream was working late today. Tommy grew excited when he got the text. He finally had an opportunity to search for his hearing aids. Dream had taken them away the day before school started as a punishment. He was convinced that Tommy needed to learn a lesson. What that was, he had no fucking clue. He kept getting the same answer every time he asked: “I’ll give them back when I think you’ve learned your lesson”. It’s absolute bullshit. It wasn’t even the second week of school and he was falling behind. He couldn’t hear, because someone took his hearing aids away!

He had rummaged through almost every drawer and cupboard on the first floor when he felt the house shake slightly. It signified the garage door opening, which meant Dream got home. He immediately stopped and organized everything to look normal before running to his room. He immediately sat at his desk to make it seem like he had been doing homework.

He had just finished spreading some math papers across the desk when Dream appeared in the doorway, casting a shadow across the desk. He saw the man speaking, and tried his best to focus on reading his lips. However, he’s tired and only made out the words “dinner” and “downstairs”. He got the hint and rose up to follow the man downstairs to the kitchen.

He really hoped dinner was good. He was starving after hardly eating any lunch. When they entered the kitchen, both of them headed toward the table. Tommy got a bounce in his step when he saw the McDonald’s bag sitting there. That excitement disappeared, however, when a side of fries was the only thing he got. He looked up at his foster dad.

“That’s it?” Tommy exclaimed. Dream frowned back at him, his mouth moving.

“I can’t hear you, y’know. Someone took my hearing aids.” Tommy sat back in his chair with crossed arms and an agitated glare. Dream picked up the notebook that was sitting on the table and wrote aggressively, an annoyed look on his face.

If you keep this attitude up, you’ll never get those hearing aids back. I went out of my way to get you this food, and this is how you thank me? Be grateful. If you’re hungry, you can grab something from the cabinet. 

Tommy froze, anger and annoyance surging through him, he could feel the tears forming in the corners of his eyes. Calming himself, he grabbed the notebook and wrote back.  Trying his best to hide his watering eyes.

i have homework to finish. ill be in my room

With that, he snatched the fries and stormed towards the stairs. Wiping away his tears with his sleeve along the way.

WEDNESDAY

He’s walking to school again. Preferably, he would have liked Wilbur to drive him, but he was not about to give that lame-ass an excuse to see him. Even if Tommy enjoyed the time spent with Wilbur, he was not about to admit that. 

Then it started to rain. 

wilbur

wil

bitch boy

Yes Tommy?

come pick me up i dont wanna walk in the rain >:(

Yeah, sure gremlin, where are you?

He looked up to the nearest street sign and sent the name. While waiting, he found a tree and huddled underneath it. His clothes were fairly damp and he was shaking from the cold when the ugly teal car finally appeared down the street. It had hardly even taken Wilbur 5 minutes to get there, but it was still too long.

He quickly got up and ran towards the car, his arms wrapped around himself. When he reached the passenger door, he promptly threw it open and climbed in. He froze however, halfway through fastening his seatbelt.

Staring out the windshield, this all seemed familiar. He remembered another car. Another street. Another rainy day. He felt helpless and numb all over again. Like his mind had left, and he was watching himself in third-person. 

Wilbur glanced over at Tommy. The boy looked petrified. His eyes were focused on the road ahead and his breaths were shallow. Wilbur scanned around, trying to figure out what caused the boy to have this reaction. He thought back to lunch yesterday. Tommy had mentioned a car crash during their conversation. The puzzle pieces of information snapped together in his mind.

His hand found itself on the boy’s shoulder.

“Tommy? It’s alright, take big breaths.” He knew the other couldn’t hear him, but the words spilled out anyway. Deep down, he was panicking as well.

He was never good at comforting others, always the one being comforted. Whether it be from his brother, dad, or therapist. Then he remembered what his therapist had suggested to calm down. He barely remembered, but anything would help he thinks.

Tommy forced himself to turn toward the driver. It was Wilbur, not his foster mom. This was a different car, a different street, a different day. He tried his best to calm himself, which was difficult, considering he could barely breathe.

He snapped back into his body, his senses returning. He felt a million things all at once. His damp clothes sticking uncomfortably to his skin, his heart beating out of his chest, a hand on his shoulder, tears on his cheeks- god, did he really start crying? He would’ve felt embarrassed if he wasn't so concentrated on calming his rapid breathing.

Wilbur. He tried to focus on him, with his brown eyes and curly hair. His mouth moved along with his hands. Looking down, he saw Wilbur counting on his fingers.

In. One, two, three, four.

Tommy recognized the breathing exercise.

Hold. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.

He followed the counts on his own hands, mirroring the other. Wilbur gave him an encouraging nod.

Out. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight

They continued until his breathing returned to a normal rate. Wilbur picked up his phone and he typed something quickly. Tommy felt his own phone buzz a moment later. His hands unsteady as he pulled it out of his pocket.

You alright now?

Nodding, he wiped his face dry with his sleeve. He tried to answer, but his mind was a fog, and he couldn't think of the right words to say. Deciding to stick to simple responses.

sorry

Don’t be. You had a panic attack, that’s not your fault.

Back at the hospital, a nurse had warned him about the effects of PTSD, about things like dissociation and panic attacks. He didn’t need a warning though, he had already experienced them many times before. All the different times his foster parents had found him curled up in a ball in the corner and shaking, sitting at his desk with a blank stare and tears streaming down his face, hiding in the back of the closet crying. And every time he was just told to stop overreacting, they would yell and scream when he didn’t respond to them. He was taught to apologize for his breakdowns, that they were annoying and unnecessary and that he should just ‘toughen up’.

Another text from Wilbur returned Tommy’s mind to the present. He shook off his thoughts of the past to read what the other had said.

Do you know what might have triggered it?

Tommy thought back to the thoughts that had flooded his mind when he sat down earlier.

when i got in the car, it reminded me of the crash. 

He looked over at Wilbur, who had an unsure expression across his face. He paused hesitantly before typing something and glancing over at Tommy.

Do you still want me to drive you? 

It was now Tommys turn to pause. He considered it. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, he liked Wilbur. He was a good guy, a bit annoying, but still kind. The walk to school was exhausting and tedious anyway. He nodded yes.

Wilbur drove extra carefully that day.

Chapter Text

“-kept looking through the forest for her brother. He had to be here somewhere. Just then- something rustled in the bushes next to her,” the little girl stared up at Tommy in awe, entranced by his story. 

“Tommy, Chloe! It’s time for lunch!” the two looked up towards the voice. Their mother was standing on the backyard porch.

“What happens next? What’s in the bushes?” Chloe crossed her arms and pouted.

“I’ll tell you after we eat, promise.” he gave her a reassuring pat on the head. She cheered, a bright smile on her face as she hopped out of the hammock. Tommy slid out right behind her.

“Last one to mom is a rotten egg!” She shouted before running off. He smiled to himself as he watched the giggling streak of pink hair speed through the grass. He could’ve easily beat her, but he ran just slow enough to let her win.

“Ha! I won!” she boasted, and blew a raspberry at him when she reached the porch.

“I guess you’re a rotten egg.” She turned and skipped to the table. Tommy chuckled as he followed her. There were two plates, each with a sandwich, clementine, and chocolate pudding. He beamed over at his mother.

“Peanut butter and nutella?” he asked excitedly, She gave him a kind nod.

“Yes, I made your favorite,” She ruffled his hair before speaking again. “Make sure Clo eats her fruit before the pudding.” Chloe sighed next to him. She looked up at Tommy, giving him one of those looks that only siblings could give. The kind where you could have an entire conversation without speaking a word. He understood completely. 

“I will. Thank you mom!” 

“You’re welcome. I’ll be painting upstairs if either of you needs me.” The siblings nodded, and she turned back into the house.

As soon as their mother was out of sight, Chloe reached over and grabbed Tommy’s pudding, replacing it with her clementine. The little girl grinned up at him with one of those smiles that could light up an entire room. 

He rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky mom chose my favorite fruit.” 

“You’re the best big brother ever!” Chloe exclaimed through a mouthful of pudding. Tommy laughed.

ONE YEAR LATER

Tommy stepped out into the lunch pavilion to find Wilbur sitting alone again at the same table as yesterday. He pulled his phone from his pocket. 

Tommy: why are you all alone again lameass

Tommy watched Wilbur pick up his phone and laugh at the message. He looked up from his phone screen to glance around the pavilion for a moment. He quickly spotted the boy who had texted him and waved him over. 

Wilbur: My friends had a thing again. They’ll be here tomorrow, I swear.

Tommy: sounds like excuses to me.

He sat down next to Wilbur.

Tommy: yknow, im starting to think you dont actually have any friends

Wilbur: Says the one who’s only friend is me.

Wait- Wilbur thought they were friends? Tommy rolled his eyes at the thought. Just cause he drove him to school, they sat together at lunch, and he enjoyed talking to him, didn’t mean they were friends .

Tommy: we are NOT friends.

Wilbur rolled his own eyes.

Wilbur: Whatever you say gremlin.

Tommy took out his lunch and started to open the bag of chips. Wilbur peered into Tommy’s otherwise empty lunchbox. Nodding to himself, he pulled a second lunchbox from his backpack and handed it to Tommy, who hesitantly accepted it.

Tommy: what the hell is this

Wilbur: Just open it :))

Tommy unzipped the top, and his mouth began to water when he saw the contents. Inside the lunchbox was a peanut butter and Nutella sandwich with clementines and a coke. It felt too good to be true.

Tommy: why are you giving me this

Wilbur: Because we’re friends..? 

Wilbur: You said that’s your favorite meal, right?

He went to push the lunchbox back, but paused when he felt his stomach rumble. He hadn’t eaten a full meal in two days, and now he was being presented with his favorite food. It would be idiotic to decline this.

Tommy: oh

Tommy: well thanks i guess

Tommy reached into the lunchbox and pulled out the food. He unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite; It was fucking amazing. His mind drifted for a moment, to warm days spent running around with a little pink haired girl, telling her stories and sharing chocolate pudding.

He wishes he could stay there forever, back before everything was wrong, back when he still had a family. The familiar buzz of a text message in his pocket abruptly brought him back to his senses. He pulled out his phone to check it.

Wilbur: Do you know them?

He looked up at Wilbur, whose eyes were focused somewhere just beyond Tommy’s head. He turned around to see where the guy was looking. 

Two boys were walking up to their table. Tommy recognized the taller one from his English class, but didn’t really know anything about him. The other boy seemed even more familiar, though. The long brown hair covering his eyes, the burn scar across his face… No way-

“Tubbo?”

“Tommy! Ohmygod- Ineverthoughtidseeyouagain” Wilbur watched Tommy’s paltry attempts at telling Tubbo he couldn’t hear. The boy just continued rambling, completely oblivious to the other’s bewilderment. Wilbur debated saying something before ultimately decided to step in.

“Hey uh… Tubbo? He can’t hear you.” Tubbo stopped at Wilbur’s words, shifting his gaze from Tommy to Wilbur.

“What?” The boy’s smile had fallen, looking confused and upset now. Wilbur couldn’t help but feel a little bad.

“Yeah, um, he lost his hearing. You can text him, though?” Wilbur held his phone out towards Tubbo.

Tommy watched Tubbo take Wilbur’s phone and immediately start typing.

Wilbur: TOMMY OMFG- i have so many questions- how are you???

Tommy: im alright ig, you?

Wilbur: im good !!!!! 

Wilbur: about a month after you left the home my dad got out of recovery, he got alot better so now i live here with him! 

Wilbur: i never thought id see you again big man- are u still in the system? 

Wilbur: and when did you lose your hearing??? 

Wilbur: you gotta catch me up dude

Tommy was a little overwhelmed by the flood of texts. Tubbo always had a habit of rambling and it was a little funny to see that manifested in text form.

Tommy: yeah i almost got adopted actually, but then i lost my hearing and had to move here lol

Wilbur: oh ? what happened :(

Tommy looked around for a moment, searching for something to change the subject. After his episode in Wilbur’s car earlier, just the thought of the accident was enough to send a shiver down his spine. He was still rattled by the morning's events, and he didn't want to revisit them. So he continued to look around, eyes eventually falling on the guy next to Tubbo, who he had hardly even noticed until now.

Tommy: so uh whos the tall guy

Tubbo quickly picked up on Tommy’s eagerness to change the subject.

Wilbur: oh yeah thats ranboo

Wilbur: we’re married :))

Tommy: what?

Wilbur: nah im just fuckin with you, he moved here last year 

Tommy eyed Ranboo. What a stupid name, he thought. Tubbo suddenly turned back towards the table he had come from. The other people sitting there seemed to be calling him back.

Wilbur: oh sorry i gtg

Tommy: its alr lol

Tommy: talk later?

Wilbur: ofc !

Tubbo handed the phone back to Wilbur before jogging back to his table. Tommy would later realize that, while Tubbo had said they would “talk later”, he never actually gave him his number. He decided he would have to find Tubbo again and ask for it tomorrow.

Wilbur: Who was that?

Tommy: a friend from the foster system, we were in a group home together like 5 years ago? we were practically inseparable before i got sent away lol

Wilbur: Sent away? 

Tommy: you saw that burn scar on his face? yeah that was me- we were fuckin around with some fireworks and it kinda exploded in his face. they got rid of me pretty quick after that and we completely lost contact

Wilbur nodded in understanding.

Wilbur: Did I ever tell you I used to be a foster kid?

Tommy gaped up at Wilbur. They had way more in common than he’d originally thought-

Tommy: wait really???

Wilbur: Yeah, I don’t usually talk about it much.

Tommy: used to be- did u age out?

Wilbur: Nah, I was adopted when I was like 13. I’ve been here since :)

Tommy felt a twinge of jealousy- that would’ve been him if it weren’t for that accident fucking everything up.

Tommy: thats lucky

Wilbur: Yeah! It’s a miracle Dad got me when he did- you should meet him sometime, he’d love you :D

Tommy: maybe one day lol

He checked the time, seeing that there were only a few minutes left in the lunch period. He peeled the clementine and devoured it. When he was cleaning up his mess, he felt the vibration of his phone alarm, signaling the lunch bell. He stood up quickly, shoving the empty lunchbox back to Wilbur. Before he made his way inside, he yelled out one last thanks, hoping he wasn’t too loud.

Tommy stared blankly at the math worksheet in front of him. The subject had never made much sense to him and it didn’t help that he didn’t learn any of the math they were currently doing (Having missed several weeks of school due to being in the hospital.) Granted , he was given worksheets while he was in the hospital…he just never did them- but that’s besides the point.

He looked over at the alarm clock on the dresser with a yawn; It was nearly midnight. He’d been struggling to keep his eyes open for a while now, and it was kinda pointless to attempt work when he literally never learned how. He would ask the teacher how to do it, or maybe he could get someone to tutor him. He swept up the papers and shoved them in his backpack before jumping into bed.

With nothing better to do, he pulled out his phone. He was greeted by a notification from Wilbur, who had texted him 10 minutes prior. Sighing, he opened the message.

Wilbur: Look, it's you! https://www.tiktok.com/@theraccoondrivethru/video/7185553277667347718

He clicked on the link with a skeptical look. It was a video of a raccoon eating scrambled eggs.

Tommy: why did you send this to me.

Wilbur responded almost immediately.

Wilbur: It reminded me of you :(

Tommy: how does a fucking raccoon eating food remind you of me??

Wilbur: Cause you’re a raccoon :)

Tommy: im literally not ????

Wilbur: Yes you are, I said so.

Tommy: im to tired for this shit im going to sleep

Wilbur: :(

Tommy: i will literally see you tomorrow

Tommy: good night.

He turned off his phone and rolled over in the bed, trying to find a comfortable position. It wasn’t long before he was fast asleep.

Chapter Text

Tommy’s last statement ended up being false, as he hardly got to see Wilbur at all the next day. He got driven to school again but didn’t see Wilbur at lunch since he had a doctor’s appointment. Which is how he found himself walking over to Tubbo’s lunch table.

The boy turned at Tommy’s footsteps and immediately beamed up at him, excitedly tapping the seat next to himself. Tommy happily sat down, taking the opportunity to look around at everyone at the table. Across from him was a new person, who had shoulder-length hair and a red beanie. Next to them was the tall guy from his English class. Both seemed slightly confused by his presence but waved kindly anyway.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Tubbo holding out his phone. He grabbed it and saw that it was on the new contact screen. Nodding in understanding, he quickly typed in his contact and handed the phone back. It wasn’t long before he received a text from a new number.

Tubbo: HEYA BIG MAN

Tommy chuckled at the text. That was definitely Tubbo.

Tommy: hey lmao

Tubbo: wgat brings u over here?? 

Tommy: the guy i sit with wasnt here today

Tubbo: ohh nice! btw have you met aimsey?? theyre the one sitting next to ran :D

Tommy glanced up at the still-confused-looking Aimsey, who gave him an unsure smile, probably sensing that he was being talked about. 

Tubbo: i could give u their contacts

Tubbo: WAIT WHAT IF I MADE A GROUPCHAT !!

Tubbo’s mouth moved enthusiastically as he (presumably) voiced this idea to the others. They nodded back and Tubbo created the group chat.

The group started by just sharing random funny photos from their camera rolls. Eventually, though, the conversation shifted to Tommy and Tubbo’s time at the group home. The two alternated telling stories from their time together. 

They talked about the time Tommy had been too scared to join the baseball team, so Tubbo joined with him, and how they both absolutely sucked at baseball and quit together. How they always fought over the top bunk, but somehow ended up in the bottom bunk together by the end of the night because one of them couldn't sleep. 

Tommy didn’t realize how much he had missed his best friend. But just sitting there, talking and telling stories, made him realize he never wanted to be away from Tubbo again. Their time apart seemed to melt away with each shitty joke, and he felt himself relax. It was like he was 10 all over again. Innocent and simply enjoying his time with friends.

After lunch, Tommy walked to English with Ranboo. He helped Tommy understand what was going on by taking notes of everything the teacher said and sharing it all with Tommy so he could follow along. By the end of the period, Tommy was glad to say he now had a friend in at least one of his classes. 

FRIDAY

Tommy stared up at the projector. His history teacher was showing them a movie about ancient Roman life. Thankfully, there were captions so Tommy was able to actually follow along and complete his assignment. 

The video suddenly paused and the students started to pack up their stuff. Tommy checked the time and saw the bell was about to ring. He gathered his stuff and shoved it all in his bag, not even trying to read the teacher’s lips as he presumably told them the homework for the next class, it’s not like he would do it anyway. He waits for the buzz of his phone alarm, signaling to follow the rest of the students out of the class and into the halls.

It was still only his first week at this school, but Tommy was already starting to familiarize himself with the routes from class to class. He made his way through the crowded halls, weaving through clumps of students and speeding past the slow walkers. He entered the lunchroom and took his usual path straight to the pavilion. Wilbur was right where he always was, but today, he was joined by a few other guys. Were these the “friends” Wilbur was talking about?

He slowed as he approached the table. Wilbur looked up and waved at him before picking up his phone.

Wilbur: Hey Tommy :) These are the guys in my band, the one I told you about.

Tommy: oh cool 

Tommy shifted his feet nervously. Even though he made fun of Wilbur for sitting alone, he kinda enjoyed their lunches with only the two of them. Wilbur knew how to communicate with Tommy, he understood him. But Tommy had no idea what to expect from these guys.

Wilbur went around the table and introduced everyone. Tommy waved at all of them with an awkward smile, still unsure how to act around these new people. He had been fine with Tubbo’s friends yesterday because when you’re all the same age, anything kinda goes. And it was so easy to trust them when he already trusted Tubbo so much. 

But this was different. He’d only met Wilbur a few days ago. And all these guys were seniors; almost adults. Tommy knew how easy it was to offend adults. Sure, he felt he could trust Wilbur at this point, but that trust did not extend to Wilbur’s friends as it had with Tubbo.

He sat down in the seat closest to Wilbur. Again, the guy pulled out two lunchboxes, handing the second to Tommy. It was the same lunch as last time, the only difference being that Wilbur cut off the crust this time. He must’ve noticed that Tommy didn’t eat it before. 

He began to eat, silently watching the guys interact. He needed to understand them. Every movement, action, expression. Everything added to imaginary files for Tommy to determine their trustworthiness and how he should act around them. It was a practiced routine, and it never failed. 

He knew Dream was a threat the minute he met the man. And it only took a few conversations with Wilbur to decide he was harmless. And now it was his bandmates’ turn to be psychoanalyzed and deemed good or bad by a traumatized teen.

Tommy watched in slight amazement; their way of interacting was… interesting 

The guy across from him, Ash, was exclusively communicating through sign language. He and Wilbur were enthusiastically signing back and forth, but Wilbur still spoke aloud with the other two at the table. Despite how confusing the combination of verbal and nonverbal communication seemed to Tommy, they all seemed to understand each other perfectly. 

It wasn’t long before Wilbur noticed Tommy silently watching them. The boy had a calm-looking expression , but it was practiced… fake. Wilbur could see the apprehension hidden behind those blue eyes. He didn’t miss the way Tommy anxiously eyed the other guys at the table, and flinched every time one of them would make any large movements. 

For a moment, Wilbur could see himself in Tommy. A scared foster kid, observing everyone, calculating the perfect words and actions so as to not upset anyone. Figuring out their limits inside his head and making sure to never cross them. Wilbur remembers how long it used to take him in a new foster home before he even spoke to anyone, always scared of saying the wrong thing and getting sent away.

But Tommy didn’t need to do all that with these guys, Wilbur knew they were good, he just had to figure out how to prove that to the boy. Some kind of way to break down the imaginary wall that Tommy had put up around himself…

Wilbur pulled a deck of Uno cards from his bag, holding it up to the table in an offering gesture. At his bandmates’ happy nods, Wilbur dealt the cards around the table, pausing when he got to Tommy as if to ask if he also wanted to play. Tommy nodded, and Wilbur cheerfully dealt Tommy into the game.

It wasn’t long before Tommy was laughing and smiling with everyone else. 

When everyone at the table stacked draw 2 cards, forcing Wilbur to draw 8, Tommy had burst out in laughter. In response, Wilbur flipped him off, making everyone else at the table join in on the laughter. The game continued like that; Draw 4s met with laughter, met with middle fingers, met with more laughter. With each turn, Wilbur could see another piece of Tommy’s wall chip off. 

By the end of lunch, Tommy had completely lost the quiet facade. He was loud , and he was happy. Who would’ve thought a game of Uno would work so well? 

Tommy was sitting in his last period of the day, math. The teacher, Mr. Slimecicle (or Charlie, as Wilbur had called him on the first day) was going over the homework from the last class. It was the same one he’d had trouble with a few nights ago. 

Once Charlie had finished the lesson, Tommy raised his hand. The man came over and kneeled next to his desk. 

Tommy opened his notebook and scribbled his note before passing it to his teacher.

I need help

Charlie nodded as he wrote back to Tommy.

I was waiting for you to ask. You missed a lot of material in this class and I know you can’t hear me during lessons. Obviously you need help.

Tommy smiled at that. He had been a little nervous that his teachers wouldn’t understand his situation. Of course, all his teachers knew he couldn’t hear, but none of them had brought it up yet, and he had dealt with so many teachers in the past who had just ignored him when he clearly needed help. 

At his last school, he had a 504 plan. Most teachers just chose to treat it as a suggestion to be ignored though, rather than what it really was; a tool. His last family had spent so much time making sure he had every accommodation possible at that school after getting his ADHD diagnosis, and he was so thankful for that. The plan included things like extra time on assignments and tests, the use of different teaching methods when needed, and allowed the use of fidgets when they were otherwise not allowed. But most teachers ignored the whole plan, declaring that Tommy simply didn’t want to learn when all he needed was a different method of learning.

how can i catch up?

I would love to help you myself, but I don’t have the time. I know a few upperclassmen who I’m sure would be more than happy to tutor you though. I’ll ask them and update you next class. 

Tommy nodded, a tutor sounded good. And he was thankful that he didn’t even have to look for the tutor himself.

thank you :)

Don’t worry about the assignment, you can do whatever you want till the end of class 

Charlie smiled and walked back off to his own desk. Tommy settled into his seat and pulled out his phone. He saw Wilbur had texted him earlier.

Wilbur: Hey Tommy, I’m going out for boba with a friend after school, wanna come? She said she’d like to meet you :)

Wait. Wilbur’s friends knew who he was- and they wanted to meet him? 

Tommy considered it for a moment. Meeting more of Wilbur’s friends? He had been cautious about meeting Wilbur’s bandmates earlier, but that worked out pretty well. He supposes it couldn’t hurt… It was only one person anyway.

But then there was the issue of Dream. He had no idea how the guy would handle Tommy going out.  

He remembers foster homes where he wasn’t allowed to have friends at all and other homes where he had to fulfill certain conditions before hanging out with anyone, but he had yet to see Dream’s stance on the matter.

No time like the present.

He left Wilbur’s conversation and went to Dream’s contact.

Tommy: Can I go out with friends after school?

He went back to Wilbur’s contact while he anxiously awaited a response.

Tommy: i just asked my foster dad :)

Wilbur: Great! Do u need a ride?

A notification popped up from Dream:

Dream: Whatever, just be home before curfew.

Curfew? Dream had never mentioned a curfew before. But it was just boba, he probably wouldn’t be out much past 4 or 5.

Tommy: he said yes :) and yeah i do need a ride

Wilbur: Alr! I can drive you, meet me by my car after the bell.

A moment later, Wilbur sent Tommy the girl’s contact. 

Wilbur pulled into a parking spot outside the boba shop and the two exited the car together. Tommy looked around when he entered the shop. It felt…comfy. String lights were lining the walls and a small library area with bean bags and a fuzzy-looking rug in the corner. across one of the other walls was a bookshelf full of board games. There weren’t many people in the shop, but Tommy liked that. The few people who were there were sitting at the booths together, playing games, drinking tea, or otherwise just hanging out.

Wilbur directed Tommy over to one of the booths in the corner. As they approached, Tommy noticed the girl sitting there. She was much shorter than him, with pink dyed hair, and a kind-looking face. She greeted Wilbur and waved to Tommy before getting up and walking to the ordering counter with them.

He glanced up at the menu- why were there so many fucking options? He pulled out his phone.

Tommy: wilbur which one should i get

Wilbur: I usually get the milk tea with brown sugar boba. 

Tommy: what if i order and dont like it tho

Wilbur: You can try mine first and if you don’t like it you can order something else :)

Tommy: ok :)

The teens ordered their drinks and went back to the table to wait. 

When Wilbur got his drink, he handed it to Tommy with a straw. He’d never had tea before, but it always smelled so good when his mother used to make it. Tommy eyed the drink- it looked nothing like his mother’s tea. He probably made a mistake asking Wilbur, who never ate a normal fucking meal, for a drink recommendation. But no one seemed to react much to the drink order, so he assumed it couldn’t be THAT weird. He hesitantly took a sip, nearly choking on one of the boba.

It was fucking nasty. Tommy had no idea what he was expecting but it wasn’t that. How the hell did people drink this shit?? The boba had a gross chewy texture and the tea was way too milky for his liking. He suppressed the urge to spit it out right there and forced himself to swallow it. He handed it back to Wilbur.

Wilbur: You didn’t like it?

Tommy: i was not expecting the boba to be so chewy

Tommy: and the drink wasn’t as sweet as i thought itd be

Wilbur: I get that. Boba’s not for everyone I guess. 

Wilbur: They have lemonade, would you like that?

Tommy nodded his head happily and reached for his wallet. He still had a few bucks saved from his old allowance. Wilbur shook his head at the cash.

Wilbur: Oh, no, I’m paying

Wilbur: I invited you anyway, it’s the least I can do :)

And with that, Wilbur turned to the order counter. Niki picked up her phone a moment later.

Niki: so, Wil told me you don’t know any sign language

Tommy: i mean- i havent really had much time to learn innit? 

Tommy: only really lost my hearing a month ago

Niki: oh

Niki: Well would you like to learn? 

Niki: I can teach you some of the simple stuff if you want :)

Tommy thought about that for a moment. He’d never really considered learning sign language, but it seemed like almost everyone knew it, so it probably couldn't hurt to learn a little.

Tommy: alright

Niki: Okay! Just copy me.

Niki: I’m gonna start with hello

Tommy nodded and watched as Niki raised her hand to her forehead and moved it toward him. It made sense, it was like he was waving hello! He copied the gesture easily.

Niki: Perfect!

Niki: Okay, next one is a bit harder

Niki: It’s ‘my name is’

Tommy nodded again and watched her intently. She extended her pointer and middle finger on each hand and tapped them together. This one was a little bit less straightforward, but Tommy understood and copied the gesture again. Niki beamed at him.

Wilbur walked back to the table with the lemonade. Was Tommy…signing? Niki seemed to be showing him how to fingerspell. Niki glanced up as he approached the table.

‘I’m teaching him Sign!’ She signed with a pleased grin on her face.

‘I can see that’ Wilbur set the lemonade in front of Tommy and sat down. 

Tommy: niki taught me sign language !!

Tommy: im like basically fluent now >:)

‘Yeah, sure dumbass’ Wilbur signed.

Tommy: i dont know what that means so you mustve just made it up

Wilbur rolled his eyes and pushed Tommy’s shoulder playfully, causing the boy to nearly fall over in the booth. Niki laughed at them as she took a sip of her tea. 

Wilbur: So, what’d Niki show you?

‘Hi my name is T-O-M-M-Y’ Tommy signed to Wilbur, clumsily fingerspelling his name. Wilbur smiled at that. Already starting to imagine the day he and Tommy would have full conversations in sign.

Wilbur: Anything else? 

Tommy nodded and signed ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. Both Wilbur and Niki burst out in laughter at that. Tommy looked between the two, completely bewildered. What was so funny? All he did was say please and thank you.

Tommy: what the hell are u guys laughing at ????

Wilbur: Tommy, that's not how you sign thank you.

Tommy: wdym- yeah it is 

Tommy repeated the movement, placing his hand under his chin and moving it outward as Niki had shown him. Wilbur was trying so hard not to laugh.

Wilbur: Tommy, that means fuck you.

Tommy: WGAT?!!?! 

Wilbur placed his hand on his chin and moved it towards Tommy.

Wilbur: Thank you

Wilbur then placed his hand under his chin and repeated the gesture.

Wilbur: Fuck you

Tommy: WHO MADE IT LIKE THAT WHY ARE THEY SO SIMILAR

Niki laughed at the interaction from across the table. She probably could’ve stressed hand placement a bit more when showing Tommy the sign.

The older teens continued teaching Tommy various signs until they had all finished their respective drinks. Tommy waved goodbye to Niki and hopped into Wilbur’s car. 

When Tommy entered the house, he immediately made his way to the kitchen to search the cabinets. Per usual, the only thing that could even be considered a meal was soup. He opened the can and poured the tomato soup into a bowl and placed it in the microwave. He filled his water bottle while it cooked and grabbed a few napkins from the table. He stopped the microwave for one second, not wanting to cause any unnecessary noise. Dream hated unnecessary noise. He quietly carried the soup, water, and napkins upstairs to his room.

He laid out his homework again; A few bio worksheets, a notes packet from history, and an essay outline for English. Yeah, no . He swept the papers to the side, pulling out his computer instead.

Less than 2 hours later, Tommy was asleep on his keyboard, half a bowl of soup next to him, and his computer illuminated the room with the calm colors of the screensaver.

Chapter Text

Tommy was in his childhood home again.

The walls were dull and empty, not from a lack of decoration, but because Tommy simply couldn’t remember those details. Raised voices rang through the house. They were angry. He ran down the hall, toy in hand, he had hoped maybe that could cheer them up-

No. 

He knew what was at the end of the hall. He had seen it so many times. He willed himself to stop running, but no, he had no control over this body. He was merely an observer.

The voices fell silent as he reached the doorway. The scene should've set off every alarm bell in his head. His mother was standing in the kitchen with a knife in one hand and a small bottle in the other. No, he had been too naive to understand then.

“Momma?” She looked down at her son, a look of pure horror in her eyes. Tommy just continued on though, not picking up on his mother’s visible panic. “Where's Daddy? I wanted to show him my toy.” He held up the small car that he had scribbled on with sharpies. As if that would help anything now. He was far too late this time. Coming earlier also wouldn't have changed much though. He knew that.

“Tommy, you shouldn’t be here.” She warned. But Tommy persisted, making his way around the kitchen to continue looking for his father. It was like hide and seek! No. Why couldn’t he just listen to his mother? He tried with every ounce of his body to stop. But it was inevitable, this was just how it was supposed to go.

That’s when he saw it. 

On the other side of the island, at his mother’s feet, was his father’s bloody corpse. The man was sprawled across the tile floor, a glistening red hole in his gut. He rushed to his father’s side, shaking his arms in a futile attempt to wake the man. He pleaded up to his mother for help, still not grasping the full situation just yet. Tommy still hadn’t noticed the blood on the knife. 

“MOMMA WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” He sobbed, not understanding why his mother wasn’t helping. She was swaying a bit, she looked tired.

And before Tommy could even react, his mother was falling to the floor, the knife and small orange bottle dropping from her hands. 

Tommy gasped as he sat up at his desk, he hugged himself to stop the shaking. He felt dried tears on his face. Despite having the same dream haunting him almost every other night for the last 10 years, it still hurt the same each time. 

Over the years the dreams morphed into something else. A wild exaggeration of his younger self’s interpretation of it all. At this point he couldn't even tell what he had actually seen that afternoon, the dreams were getting harder to separate from memory and it all kind of blurred at the edges, merging fabricated memories and reality. Sometimes he would watch his mother push the knife through his father’s chest, and sometimes they were both already on the floor by the time he got there, but it always ended the same. 

He turned his phone over, the screen lit up with the time 4:37 and a text notification caught his eye at the bottom of the screen. It was from Wilbur. He clicked on the message.

It was another tiktok. He rolled his eyes at the video, this time it was a raccoon in a random drive-thru with the message “Seems like you tbh”. He saw it was only sent 5 minutes ago.

Tommy: why are you awake dumbass its almost like 5 am

Wilbur took almost no time in answering.

Wilbur: I could ask you the same thing

Tommy: i had a shit nightmare

Tommy: whats your excuse?

Wilbur: Insomnia

Tommy: ah

Tommy understood the feeling, having had many of his own sleepless nights for the same reason. 

Wilbur: I was just about to get up actually

Tommy: why

Tommy: its saturday 

Wilbur: I need food.

Tommy: fair enough

Tommy: well, you have fun with that- im going back to sleep

Wilbur: Sweet dreams 🥰

Tommy: oh fuck off

Wilbur turned off his phone and rolled out of bed. He grabbed his hearing aids off the nightstand before stumbling downstairs to the kitchen. His brother was at the table, surrounded by towers of papers. Did anyone get any sleep last night? The man looked up at Wilbur as he entered the room. He looked more exhausted than Wilbur felt. Dark eyebags partially covered by messy strands of pink hair. 

“Late night?” Wilbur spoke as he turned on the coffee maker.

Techno groaned in response. “Who made midterms a thing?” Wilbur shrugged as he took a mug from the cabinet and placed it in front of the machine. “Why are you up so early?” Techno pushed aside the papers, presumably deciding he was done for now, giving Wilbur his full attention.

Wilbur took his time starting the coffee maker before turning back towards Techno to answer. “Anxiety got bad last night.” Techno eyed the coffee, then Wilbur. The brunet sighed, already knowing what his brother was about to say.

“Wil, the coffee literally makes it worse. Why do you insist on drinking it?” Techno scolded. 

Wilbur sighed annoyedly, “‘Cause, unlike my meds, it doesn’t make me feel like a soulless shell of a person.” He picked up his finished cup and went to take a sip. 

“Don’t tell me you're flushing your meds again too- You’re really not helping yourself here.” Techno ran his hands down his face before seemingly coming to a decision. He stood and crossed the kitchen, taking the mug from Wilbur's hand. “Look, I can’t force you to take your meds, but I’m not gonna sit here and watch you make it worse with caffeine.” 

“NO! GIVE IT BACK!” Wilbur reached out for the mug, but it was too late, Techno was already pouring it down the sink. “TECHNO!”

“Neither me nor Phil want to deal with you giving yourself an anxiety attack.” Techno placed a teabag in his own mug and pressed the hot water option on the coffee maker.

“I hate you.” Wilbur dramatically dropped onto one of the island stools, laying his whole upper body across the countertop. “Techno, make me food.”

“What?” Techno raised an amused eyebrow at the brunet's quick mood change.

“You took my only source of energy. The least you can do is make me breakfast.” Wilbur responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Techno rolled his eyes.

“You are so dramatic.”

“I want pancakes, thanks!” Wilbur grinned widely. Techno just rolled his eyes again and turned to get the ingredients.

The next two weeks were pretty much the same as the last. Tommy tried not to sleep in all his classes, he ate lunch with Wilbur and his friends almost every day (and with Tubbo every other day), and he stole all of Ranboo’s english work (though Ranboo insisted he gave it to Tommy willingly).

The rest of the school was approaching midterm exams, but Tommy was exempt from them, having only arrived at the school two weeks ago. While his classmates were busy preparing for their exams, Tommy sat in the back of the class watching YouTube.

After his short lesson with Niki earlier that month, Tommy had gone straight to youtube. He had really enjoyed the little bit of sign Niki had taught him, and thought it probably wouldn't hurt to learn more. He started off with the basics, watching a video titled: 25 ASL signs you need to know | ASL for beginners . He continued watching whatever videos were recommended, eventually finding a channel he liked with a free asl course. He had been working his way through their youtube playlist over the last two weeks and he was actually learning pretty fast.

It was a Thursday, and Dream was working late again. Tommy had been using every opportunity he could to search for his hearing aids but he was still unsuccessful at finding them and Dream had yet to tell Tommy what he had to do to get them back. He was honestly starting to think he’d never see them again. 

He had gone through every other room in the house, and he was now standing in front of the last room; Dream’s office. If Dream wasn’t at work or sleeping, he was in his office. Tommy wasn’t allowed in there, and Dream didn’t work late very often, so this might be his only chance to check the room for a while. 

The inside of the office was a mess of papers and computer cords. Tommy peered at the documents, none of them made any sense. Tommy realizes he never actually learned what Dream did for work, not that he cared that much anyway. He started with the desk drawers, ruffling through each one while also trying not to move the contents too much to where Dream would notice someone had been looking through them. 

It had been an hour and Tommy had gone through every single drawer, and he still had nothing. He took a step back and scanned around the room for any other possible hiding place. His eyes caught on the bookshelf. He recognized one of the book spines. His foster brother had the exact same one a few years ago, it was one of those fake books with a hidden compartment inside. 

He pulled it off the shelf and opened the cover. Inside, the pages were cut out and replaced by a small door. It had a keyhole to unlock it. Tommy remembered seeing a key in one of the drawers earlier. He went back to retrieve it and stuck it into the lock. It slid right in and the door popped open.

Holy shit.

His hearing aids were actually inside the box. 

He eagerly snatched them and shut the book, hastily putting it back on the shelf and placing the key exactly where he found it before retreating back to his own room. Dream had texted that Tommy was on his own for dinner (as usual) so he tossed the hearing aids into his backpack and went downstairs to make some food. He had to try extremely hard to hide his happiness when Dream eventually came home.

Tommy practically bounced to Wilbur’s car the next morning, he couldn’t have been happier to finally have his hearing aids back. He could hear Wilbur’s car engine rumbling in the driveway and his music blasting when he opened the door to get in. It was honestly a little overwhelming. Tommy reached towards his hearing aid to turn down the volume as he climbed into the car. Wilbur seemed to notice, as he quickly lowered the volume in the car. 

The older fumbled with his phone for a moment before handing it to Tommy with a kind smile. “Here, pick a playlist.” It felt weird to finally hear Wilbur’s voice after knowing him for almost 3 weeks. 

“Oh, thanks!” Tommy looked down at the phone in his hands and scrolled through the playlists. 

He would have thought after all of Wilbur's talk about music, that he’d at least have good music taste, but Tommy didn't recognize a single artist on any of the playlists. After coming to terms with the fact that he wasn’t gonna find any music he actually knew, he shuffled the first playlist that slightly interested him. Wilbur pulled out of the driveway as the song started.

Chapter Text

School with hearing aids was a whole new experience. Tommy was actually able to hear the bell for once, no longer having to rely on his phone alarm. Lunch was quite overwhelming now with all the noise, but it was worth it to be able to communicate with his friends better. 

Today Tommy was sitting with Wilbur and his bandmates and they were all talking about a new song they were working on. Even though none of their weird music lingo made much sense, Tommy admired the collective enthusiasm amongst the four of them. He wishes he could actually watch them play sometime, he had no idea if they were even any good.

“Could I come watch you guys someday?” All eyes turned towards him..

“Of course!” Wilbur responded cheerily. “Our next practice is tomorrow at my house!” Tommy paused. Tomorrow was Saturday. Dream always made Tommy do chores on Saturday. Maybe he could wake up early and do all his chores beforehand?

“Oh, what time?” Tommy kept a trained expression as he waited for an answer.

“4 to 5, I can also drive you if that's an issue.”

“Alright that sounds fine, I just gotta ask my foster dad.” Tommy responded hopefully as he pulled out his phone to text Dream. 

Tommy: can i go to a friends house tomorrow?

Tommy: its at 4 and i can do all my chores beforehand and he can pick me up

…

Dream: I’ll see.

Tommy bit his lip at the response before turning back to Wilbur, “I just texted him, he said sure!” He lied, a forced smile plastered across his face. God, why did he do that.

Wilbur doesn't seem to notice anything amiss. “Okay great! See you tomorrow!” Tommy smiled and nodded back nervously.

Even though Dream didn’t exactly give him a clear answer about going to Wilbur’s, Tommy still thought finishing his chores early couldn't hurt. He had woken up at 8 that morning, and had completed his chores by noon. Now it was 3 and he was pacing outside Dream’s office, trying desperately to find something to calm his nerves. 

He finally knocked on the office door after another lap and waited anxiously for a response. After a few moments the door swung open. 

“What.” Tommy lip-read. Dream looked annoyed as hell, Tommy shrunk back a bit.

“I- I just wanted to ask about my friend’s house again-” Tommy prayed he wasn’t talking too loud right now, Dream already seemed irritated enough. “I already did all my chores too I just-”

Dream cut him off, “Yeah fine whatever…” Tommy missed the second half of the sentence because Dream had turned back into his office before he had finished speaking, making it virtually impossible for Tommy to read his lips. He quickly decided it couldn’t have been that important though. If Dream wanted him to know what he said, he wouldn’t have turned away like that. Anyway, he said yes. That’s all Tommy really cares about anyway. He mumbled a quick thanks before the door was shut in his face.

Now to wait for Wilbur…

Tommy made his way down the hall back to his room. He hadn’t changed out of his pajamas yet, but if he was going out in an hour he should get changed. After going through his (fairly empty) closet, he settled on a simple t-shirt and jeans, nothing too crazy. He also grabbed a warm looking hoodie on the way out, remembering that it is December now and the weather’s cold. He shoved his hearing aids in the pocket of the hoodie, briefly catching a glance at himself in the mirror as he left his room, his hair was a total mess. He ruffled it until it looked slightly presentable and continued out into the hall. 

Tommy was just pulling on his shoes when Wilbur's car pulled up outside. He opened the door, and was immediately met with an extremely cold gust of wind that blew straight through his hoodie. He shivered a bit as he ran to the car, making a mental note to try and ask Dream for a heavier jacket. This hoodie was not getting him through winter. He was practically an icicle by the time he reached the car, sighing in relief at the warm interior when he opened the door. Wilbur chuckled at him as he turned out of the driveway. 

Tommy quickly understood now why Wilbur was always so willing to give him a ride, he only lived a couple minutes away!

Despite the close proximity though, Tommy could tell Wilbur’s side of the neighborhood was much nicer. He wasn't sure when the shift had occurred, but every house around him now was noticeably larger than Dream’s, many of them having gates leading to the door and large pillars supporting the front porch. Tommy wouldn’t be surprised if some of them had a third floor or a guest house (Tommy knew only the richest people had guest houses).

After another street or two, Wilbur pulled into one of the long driveways and into a fancy-looking three car garage. Suddenly all of Wilbur’s nice clothes and extra lunches made a lot more sense. 

“You live here??” Tommy exclaimed as he hopped out of the car. 

“I mean- uh- yeah I guess..” Wilbur trailed off sheepishly.

“Where's the movie room? I bet you have a movie room..” Tommy teased.

“Uh well actually-”

“Don’t tell me you actually have a movie room-” Tommy gasped. “YOU GOTTA SHOW ME!” He grabbed Wilbur’s sleeve, prompting the older to show him the way. Wilbur sighed as he led the boy into the house. The doorbell rang as soon as they got inside though, and their house tour was promptly abandoned.

Wilbur led Tommy to the kitchen and told him to stay there while he went to answer the door. He looked around a bit while he waited. It was maybe one of the biggest kitchens Tommy had ever been in, with a massive island in the center with one of those stoves with the big vent above it and various expensive-looking kitchen appliances lining the counters.

He could faintly hear the door open, and what he assumed were Joe and Mark’s voices down the hall. Wilbur re-entered the room, his bandmates trailing close behind him with instruments in hand. He shuffled around the kitchen for a moment collecting various snacks before turning back to Tommy.

“The basement’s over there.” Wilbur gestured to a door across the room.

“You don’t practice in the garage or something? Doesn't your family care about the noise?” Tommy questioned as Wilbur handed him a bag of pretzels. He silently took it as Wilbur turned back to the fridge to get drinks.

“The garage? In this weather? Nah, the basement has much better acoustics. Plus, Dad and Tecnho don't mind the noise too much. They're not even home right now, so we don't have anything to worry about.” Wilbur smiled.

Tommy thought for a moment about how much Dream would hate a band practicing in the house, even in the garage he’d probably say they were too loud. Wilbur’s family seemed so chill though. They were just so… different.

Wilbur nodded his head in the direction of the basement door again once he had gathered a sufficient amount of snacks, prompting Tommy to follow him downstairs.

The basement felt quite small despite the large square footage. (this was probably due to the music equipment scattered all around the carpet and the dark tiles plastered along the walls.) Wilbur dropped the snacks and drinks on a small table before walking over to the guitars hanging on the wall. Tommy surveyed them; A teal electric, a cream colored one with a wyoming sticker on it.. Interesting choice, and two pretty looking acoustics. Wilbur picked up the teal one and plugged it into one of the many amps as the rest of the band set up their own instruments. Tommy sat down in a comfy bean bag and watched as they fiddled with the small knobs and switches on their guitars. Feedback rang through the basement once all the guitars were plugged in and turned on. 

Wilbur turned to Tommy with a grin. “You ready?” Tommy nodded slowly. Wilbur turned around to his bandmates and said something. Tommy couldn't quite hear it but they all nodded and turned back towards him.

Before the boy could even process anything, Mark was shouting. “ONE TWO THREE FOUR!” 

Drums were pulsing through his body and the whole floor vibrated with noise. It was fucking wonderful. He had to adjust his hearing aids a bit when they had started, but now he could hear them so clearly. Wilbur’s voice rang above it all. “WHAT’S THIS? THE CONSEQUENCES OF MY ACTIONS!” Tommy sat in awe. He didn't know what he was expecting but these guys were good. Like he could imagine them playing in arenas one day. Their chemistry together totally came through in the music, each instrument complimenting the others perfectly. 

The song seemed to end as quickly as it had started, and Tommy clapped and cheered loudly. 

“I see you hated it,” Wilbur chuckled. “You up for another?” Tommy had never nodded his head so hard. Wilbur smiled at the boy’s excitement. 

The impromptu basement concert continued on like that until they literally ran out of songs to play. And despite the nonstop playing for over an hour, Wilbur was hardly tired. Sure, his voice felt a little fried, having not done any actual warmups beforehand, but Tommy had fun so it was all worth it.

The rest of the band had finished packing up and were saying their goodbyes when Wilbur turned to Tommy. “I guess it’s time for me to take you home.” The boy’s whole demeanor shifted when “home” was mentioned. Wilbur could’ve just brushed it off as plain disappointment, but he could tell it was deeper than that. He guesses he could delay going home a little bit… “Or you could stay for dinner, your choice.” Tommy’s expression immediately lit up again. 

“Really?!” The boy bubbled.

“Yeah, I’m sure Dad and Techno wouldn't mind much. They’ve been wanting to meet you anyway.” Wilbur replied with a soft smile. 

“Okay!” Tommy seemed to be jumping at the opportunity to spend more time here instead of going home. 

“They’ll be home soon with the food.” 

Tommy looked around the basement and his smile fell yet again. “How soon? We gotta clean this all up before they get home, I don't want you getting in trouble, I made most of the mess anyway, it shouldn't take too long it's just-” Tommy was growing frantic, sure there were a few chip bags and cans on the floor, but it was hardly anything to be this concerned about. He cut Tommy off before he could spiral anymore.

“Tommy. It’s okay.” Wilbur reached out towards Tommy. The boy flinched back at first but quickly accepted the hand after a second. “They won’t be mad, we can clean up after we eat if you really want to, okay?”

“You sure?” Tommy looked uncertain. 

“Yes I’m sure.” Wilbur reassured. He thought for a moment before speaking again, “How about we check out that movie room?” A little light returned to the boy's face and he followed Wilbur upstairs.

Tommy was sitting on the floor of the movie room flipping through dvds when he was suddenly hit in the head with a pillow. He turned to Wilbur.

“OI DICKHEAD WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!?” Tommy threw the pillow back at Wilbur, who only chuckled and caught it. “You made me lose my spot!” Tommy gestured annoyedly at the bin of dvd cases in front of him.

“Oh whatever, you can keep looking through those later. Food’s here.”

“Why couldn't you just say that?” Tommy questioned as he stood up. 

“Cause, throwing pillows is a lot more fun.” Wilbur gave a cheeky grin. 

The banter continued all the way to the kitchen. 

A blond man with the most piercing blue eyes Tommy had ever seen was waiting at the island with a few pizza boxes. He had a kind smile that grew when he saw Tommy.

“You must be Tommy! I’m Phil, Wil’s dad.” He signed as he spoke, then held out his hand for Tommy to shake, which Tommy accepted hesitantly. “Here, help yourself to some!” The man gestured to the now open pizza boxes; Wilbur had already helped himself to some.

“Oh- uh thank you Mr… uh-” 

“Phil. You can just call me Phil.” 

“Phil.” Tommy smiled apprehensively. The name felt weird in his mouth. He had never really addressed an adult by their first name before, especially not someone else's parent.

Another man entered the room as Tommy circled around the island to the box of cheese pizza. He looked up at the new face. He was taller than Phil, but not quite as tall as Wilbur, he’d probably guess the man was around his own height. He had large muscles and… long bubblegum pink hair? (which somehow made him even more intimidating than he already was) He waved to Tommy and followed the boy around the island to also get himself some food. 

Tommy took a seat at the table with his plate, picking the spot closest to Wilbur. He waited for everyone else to sit down before eating. So far, this family didn't seem like the type to care all that much about respect and manners, but he didn't feel like taking any chances today; so he waited. 

The family shared about their day as they ate. Tommy kept to himself though, not quite sure how he might fit in their conversation. 

“I was showing Tommy the movie room earlier.” Tommy perked up at the sound of his name. “I was thinking we could watch a movie or something after dinner?” 

“Oh that sounds like a great idea!” Phil beamed and turned to Tommy. “What sort of movies do you like, Tommy?”

“Oh uh, I don't know, I haven't seen that many movies before.” Tommy replied sheepishly. He hadn’t ever been allowed to watch movies before his last foster home. 

“Oh, well we gotta fix that! Wil, d’you have any ideas?” 

Tommy awoke with a heavy weight on his shoulder. He shifted slightly under the soft blanket currently laid over himself before opening his eyes. It didn't take long to adjust to the low light, as the TV was off leaving the movie room in relative darkness, and he quickly found the source of the weight. 

Wilbur was fast asleep in the most uncomfortable looking position next to him. His head rested at an odd angle on Tommy’s shoulder and he had one arm hanging off the side of the couch and one leg hanging over the back. Despite the unusual position, Wilbur seemed quite peaceful in his sleep, so Tommy decided to stay unmoving so as to not accidentally wake him.

He looked around the room a little more. Techno and Phil were nowhere to be seen. Tommy could deduce he and Wilbur must've been asleep when the movie had ended and either Tecnho or Phil turned it off before leaving the room.

Tommy could not remember falling asleep- hell, he didn't even remember when he got the blanket that was currently wrapped around him. How long had he been asleep? He spotted his phone sitting on the coffee table next to the sofa and tried his best to reach it without disturbing Wilbur.

After stretching his arm as far as his body allowed, he was barely able to reach the phone. He grasped the edge with his fingertips and pulled it off the table. Just when he thought he had succeeded though, he felt the phone slipping from his fingertips and falling to the floor. It landed on the carpet with a soft thump and he felt Wilbur stir a bit at the sound. Tommy swore under his breath.

After a few moments Wilbur opened his eyes with a confused expression. “Wha’ was ‘at?” He slurred sleepily.

“I just dropped my phone, it's alright.” Tommy reassured. He leaned off the couch and picked his phone off the floor. Wilbur groaned at the loss of his pillow and sat up. 

“What time ‘s it? How long was I asleep?” Wilbur rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as Tommy turned on his phone.

The screen glowed brightly in the dark room displaying the time. 9:21 pm . Tommy’s heart dropped. It was so fucking late. That’s when he noticed the notifications at the bottom of the screen. 4 missed calls and over 20 missed messages… all from Dream.

oh fuck.

Tommy shakily unlocked his phone to read the messages.

Today, 7:44 PM

Wrap up whatever the fuck it is you’re doing because you need to come home immediately.

7:44

You have some explaining to do. 

7:44

Don’t you fucking ignore me Thomas.

7:45

You know what you did. 

7:45

Ignoring me isn’t doing anything but making this a LOT worse for yourself.

7:46

Thomas you are on THIN FUCKING ICE.  

7:46 

Answer me.

7:47

Now.

7:47

If you don’t respond in the next minute Thomas- I swear to god.

7:48

This is my last warning, you ungrateful piece of shit.

7:49

I do so much for you and this is how you treat me?

7:50

You broke into MY office and stole MY property.

7:50

Then when I gave you a chance to redeem yourself and apologize you fucking ignore me.

7:51

How would you feel if I just started going and taking your shit from you?

7:52

It’s all mine anyway since it's in my house.

7:52

I could do whatever I want with your “belongings”

7:53

Answer my calls.

7:55

If you aren't home in the next hour you can say goodbye to everything in your room.

7:57

I’ve already started tossing shit in bags. Don’t test me.

8:00

I’m sorry Thomas I’m just so worried about you

8:20

Please come home

8:21

I’m not even mad

8:22

If you come home right now we can just forget about all of this and everything can go back to normal

8:23

Tommy stared at the screen. He could feel his heart beating through his chest. Those last few messages seemed nice but Tommy knew Dream better than that. 

He considered his options. He knew whatever was waiting for him at the house was not gonna be friendly, but it was really the only place he could go. If he tried to run he’d just end up back with Dream since he was his legal guardian. He couldn't tell anyone either because he didn’t want to risk getting moved again. He finally felt like he belonged here with these friends and if the authorities got involved in any way he would probably never see any of them again. No, he’d just have to deal with Dream and whatever punishment he might have for him. 

Tommy swallowed hard and spoke before he could change his mind, “Uhm Wilbur I need a ride home like- right now.”

“Is everything alright?” Wilbur looked concerned and he was eyeing the phone. Tommy promptly turned it off before Wilbur could see the messages

“Yeah everything’s alright, it’s just a little late and I should've been home by now.” Tommy forced a smile.

“Oh, okay.” Wilbur smiled back, “Let’s get going then, don’t want you staying out any longer than you already have.”

Tommy nodded and followed Wilbur to the door to retrieve his shoes and say a quick thanks to Phil for having him. Wilbur let Tommy borrow a jacket of his, since it was a lot colder now that the sun had gone down. He tried to refuse but Wilbur insisted.

The drive was short and quiet and Tommy’s nerves were through the roof the whole way. He had no idea what to expect. Was Dream still upset? Had he actually forgiven Tommy? It was unlikely but it was probably better to focus on the best possible scenario rather than death spiraling.

When they arrived, he quickly thanked Wilbur for the ride and the jacket before exiting up the pathway to the front door. He paused for a moment before knocking. He turned around and saw that Wilbur was waiting for him to get inside safely. He was starting to get cold and there was no point delaying the inevitable. He reached his hand up and knocked hard.

Chapter Text

Due to recent events, this fic will be going on hiatus.

i'm not quite sure if or when i will bring it back, but i will update again if i make any major decisions.

i just don't know if i can keep writing these characters right now, idk if thats forever, or if i just need some time to think about everything.

i hope you all understand.

lots of love, socks <3

Chapter Text

Summary:

Tom meets phil and techno and they all have dinner. Tommy falls asleep during the movie and wakes up with a sleeping wilbur next to him and a blanket over him..? (this is the start of the “brothers” phase of their friendship) Tommy panics because he is out past curfew and he has missed calls from dream. Wilbur immediately takes tommy home. dream found out tommy took his hearing aids behind his back, hes fuckin pissed and beats Tommy (yeah he’s also physically abusive, did i mention that ha ha.). Next day at school wilbur finds tommy. Tommy looks like shit, bags under his eyes, he’s wearing a weird ass scarf/bandana or sum (Wilbur finds later that he's covering bruises). Tommy tells Wilbur they cant hang out anymore, tells Wilbur to not try to contact him anymore and walks away. One miserable week later, wilbur receives a flood of texts from tommy at like 11 pm. grades came in, dream is mad that tommy got bad grades, tommy tells dream its because he cant fucking hear the teachers and that it’s his fault for taking tommy’s hearing aids, dream snaps at this. Dream locks tommy in his room and says he’s grounded for the weekend. (tommy is not allowed out of his room and he doesnt get any food all weekend) tommy crawls out the window and runs down the street, he texts the first person he can think of: wilbur.Tommy says he fucked up and needs a place to stay. Wilbur immediately drives to pick tommy up and bring him to his house. Tommy stays there for the weekend.  After like way too many days, Dream finally realizes tommy isn't in his room and he texts and calls Tommy, demanding him to come home immediately. Wilbur finds tommy having a panic attack and looks at his phone and sees the texts from dream. Wilbur finally realizes all the things he shouldve probably put together sooner (dream is a shitty person). He helps Tommy calm down and asks him all the questions he should have asked earlier. Tommy tells Wilbur all about Dream, about the foster system, details about the car crash that made him deaf. Wilbur finally sees Tommy's bruises. Wilbur immediately tells Phil and the cops and he is also put in contact with Tommy's social worker. Tommy stays with phil for a day while waiting to be put with an emergency foster (this is where Sam comes in) and Dream is put in jail. While Tommy stays with Sam, sbi are preparing to adopt him. (setting up a room for him, getting adoption papers n shit). They surprise Tommy and he says yes ofc. the end 😋

Chapters:

Chapter 7: Shut down, lose everything, forget what you know,believe what you see

dream beats tommy, tommy going to school again and tells wilbur to not talk to him again

Chapter 8: I miss the way things used to be

shows the miserable week (alternating povs) focus a bit more on his classes ?

Chapter 9: with breathless words and bloody knees

(wilbur pov) starts with the texts of tommy running away and wilbur helps tommy

Chapter 10: Cause in a weird way, I deserve this

shows what happened in chap 9 (tommys pov, argument w dream, running away, texting wil)

Chapter 11: I would sleep better on your floor than i would ever in my bed

a little bit of fluff to cheer them up <3 (cute scene where tommy is sleepy or sum and says sum really sweet in sign language and wilbur like fangirls over it idk) yes omg like wil is just like “omg so cute” and tom is just “stfu wil im tired”

Chapter 12: And now I am talking way too fast and a little bit louder than I should,

back to angst with dream again. everything is revealed. Ends with wilbur telling phil to call cops/cps

Chapter 13: thank you for understanding my side of the story the best that you could

tommy and phil bonding time while waiting for emergency foster and intro to sam

Chapter 14: if you need a little sunshine you can borrow some of mine

tommy’s time with sam (over like 1 month so a lot of timeskips) winter break (there is definitely a christmas bit with sbi) some tommy & sam bonding too – he gets hearing aids at some point during this?

Chapter 15: Even my public defender didn't have all that much to say

dream goes to court, court chapter yipee

Chapter 16: Sitting there smiling <3 or someone who will love you like you deserve

happy ending with tommy being adopted

Chapter 17: And if you're happy, well then, you're happy

like a little bonus scene/epilogue. Timeskip a few months later and shows how happy he is now– setting is wil and techno’s high school graduation :]