The Year We Had (MCYT AU)

52: Rest

"Hello?" Wilbur asked, bringing the phone to his ear groggily. He'd been dozing off to the ambient tune of another nature documentary in the common room with his roommate, who was more invested in his notes.

"Wilbur, we got the call." Scott said, and he sounded like he was rushing around.

"What?" Wilbur sat up a little straighter. Fundy stared at him, eyebrows furrowed, pen still pinched between his fingers.

"Tommy and Phil. We got the call. I'm going now." Scott said. "Don't get your hopes up, but I wanted you to know."

"Where?" Wilbur asked breathlessly, his veins full of adrenaline.

Scott hesitated slightly. "I'm not supposed to--"

"Scott please." Wilbur said, gripping the phone and sitting at the edge of the couch.

Scott sighed. "There's a house. On Burwood street. Supposedly it belongs to an elderly couple, but they've been dead for a year, and there's still a lot of activity going on. Golden Elephant members have been spotted nearby."

"Holy shit." Wilbur knew the exact house. He could almost picture it in his mind. "I'll meet you there."

"You will not." Scott said firmly, and Wilbur heard a door closing. "I'm telling you as a courtesy. I'll give you a call as soon as I have news, okay? Stay at school."

Wilbur swallowed thickly, his fingertips tingling. The adrenaline was already in his veins, ready to go. "Okay. Sure. Thank you."

When the call ended, he jumped to his feet.

"Is it Tommy?" Fundy asked, his eyes widening.

Wilbur nodded. "I need to go. Right now."

"I'll come with you." Fundy said immediately, following Wilbur out of the room.

"No, stay here." Wilbur barely spared him a glance. He was already bursting into his dorm and collecting up his shoes. He hurriedly tied them, his heart racing in his chest. "I need you to go and find Techno. Tubbo as well. Make sure that they're in the loop, but make sure that they stay here. No use all of us getting in trouble."

"Wilbur--" Fundy began again, and Wilbur turned on him quickly.

"What, Fundy?"

He turned around, and Fundy put a hand on his shoulder. "Bring him home. Okay?"

Wilbur smiled, and it was the first time he had felt hope in a long, long time. "I'll do my best."

---

The house was a lot more respectable than Tommy had expected.

It was so normal. There was a television on the wall, and a dining table with plates of food. Just like a regular house. You'd never know what was going on in the basement.

He wasn't inside for long. Scott's arm was supporting his weight enough for him to limp outside into the night air. His body ached, but the feeling of the fresh air against his skin soothed him.

It was bright outside, despite the dark night sky. There were cop cars and ambulances with flashing lights, and FBI cars with their lights on, lighting up the house. Tommy could hear the chatter on radios, and the reporters somewhere behind the barrier. He sucked in a deep breath, and his lungs thanked him for it.

"You doing okay?" Scott asked, concern woven into his tone. "The ambulance is only a little further. Then you can lie down, sound good?"

"Okay." Tommy said, but it was a whisper. He stared up at the night sky, and the stars stared back at him. His stars. Wilbur's stars. The stars that his family lived beneath. He was out. He was free.