INTERLUDE // Tubbo X Reader

24

Between the cupcake Maya had brought you and Mrs. Mears praise about your performance, you held off the imminent cloud of bad mood for the rest of the day and tried to pay attention in your remaining classes. It worked only so well though - every now and again your mind would unhelpfully supply the thought that Toby was moving - or he had already moved.

Not even Maya giving you a dramatic retelling of how some kid in her violin class got absolutely destroyed by the teacher on your walk home could lighten your mood.

"But anyways, so he says that, right, and Mr. Heinly just kind of looks at him with that face that he makes and says 'Ryan I want you to think about what you just said and try again' and I was trying so hard not to laugh dude..." She said, grinning at you. The smile fell somewhat though when she noticed that you were barely paying attention to the story, more focused on your feet passing over the ground. "Still?"

"Sorry." You said, genuinely feeling bad that you weren't as invested in the conversation as usual. You just couldn't bring yourself out of this mood enough. "I know I've probably been a real drag all day, but-"

"I get it." Maya said, winding her hands around the straps of her bookbag and shrugging. "I know you were really looking forward to seeing him today, and I can't blame you, especially after last night. It sucks, mate, you've got every right to be a little bummed."

You smiled, hit in that moment just how good of a friend Maya was. You had really struck out when it came to picking new friends here - Maya was possibly the best friend you had ever had and you had only known her for about two months now. But who else would bring you a celebratory 'you made out with your crush' cupcake?

"Maybe he'll show up tomorrow." Maya supplied. "And then you can ask him out and he'll say yes, and you can go get food after school or something and kiss him again and then fifteen years down the line you'll be married and having kids and Kieran and I can be the cool aunt and uncle and our kids can be friends."

You smiled at that - it was a nice little white picket fence dream. Still, you weren't sure how much of a reality it would be if you never saw Toby again.

"Will he though?" You said, voicing your worries aloud. "What if he moved away already and didn't say anything? He did say that he was moving around now, that's why we had to look for someone to replace him for a second. What if he's just gone now and I never see him again?"

Just thinking about it made a pit open up in your stomach - what if this was it? What if those kisses above the stage were all you got, then what? It would be cruel to leave now, just when you had gotten some inclination that your feelings were requited. And with no closure in any sense of the word.

"He wouldn't just up and leave." Maya said. "There's no way he wouldn't have said something to you beforehand. That would be a total dick move - there's no way he's gone. He's probably just sick or something. Really inconvenient time to be sick though."

You nodded along - Maya was probably right. You were just being irrational. Toby was such a sweetheart, there was no way he would just leave you hanging like that. It was just anxiety getting the better of you again.

Your footsteps slowed to a stop as you reached the point in the walk home where you and Maya parted, and she came to a stop next to you, turning to face you. "Try to cheer up, yeah?" She said. "I promise it'll all work out."

Even though there was no way she could possibly know what was or wasn't going to work out, you found yourself nodding. "Thanks Maya."

She reached up to ruffle a hand through your hair before turning on her heel and heading down the road towards her house. "Seriously, don't worry so much about it dude. I'll bring you another cupcake tomorrow." She called over her shoulder.

"You really don't have to!" You said, heading off in your own direction. You knew she would probably bring you one anyway, because she was just nice like that. It was no wonder that she had managed to keep Kieran for so long - anyone would be lucky to have her.

You started down the pavement to your own home, just listening to the crunch of your feet as you walked. Hopefully tomorrow would be better... but again, you couldn't help but fear the worst. It was a war in your head - one side using reason, siding with Maya - of course Toby wouldn't just up and disappear without saying anything, he was too sweet for that. But the other side - the side that was terribly afraid that you were never going to see him again - kept playing out the worst possible scenarios.

You thought about pulling out your headphones and trying to distract yourself from all the thoughts but decided against it. There was something peaceful in just the sounds of the homes as you passed them. You could hear the TV coming through the open window of one and the sound of a vaccum from another.

It wasn't long before you were almost to your house, your steps slowing just a tad as you approached. You took a few deep breaths, dispelling the bad mood as best you could before you went inside - you really would prefer if your mum didn't ask about it. You didn't want to have to explain.

Even if you did have to explain though, you were sure she wouldn't quite get it. You didn't know if you could put the feeling in your chest into words.