Lessons

I love you (I wish you didn't)

TW: PTSD (to no one's surprise) kidnapping, violence, mentioned death
Please let me know if I missed any

Techno sat in the tree house, watching the branches rustle in the breeze.

It was a very pretty spring day. Much too pretty for how upset the strawberry blond was.

It's all your fault.

He tucked his knees to his chest and sighed, staring at the ground as if it had the answers.

It didn't, to his disappointment.

There was a knock on the trap door, and Wilbur pushed it up. "Thought I'd find you here."

"Yeah? Are they mad?" Techno asked softly.

Wilbur sighed, and Techno braced himself for the worst. "They aren't mad Techno, just a bit startled."

"They should be mad, should be upset." He muttered.

"What makes you think that?"

"I nearly killed someone Wilbur!" Techno half shouted.

"He would've killed you!" Wilbur retorted.

"I lost Tommy!"

"He got kidnapped!"

"It was still my fault." Techno dropped his head low. "You can't say it wasn't my fault."

"No, I can't, because you won't believe me, but I know you love Tommy, even though you don't show it, and Mumza and Dadza know that too." He put a hand on Techno's shoulder. "We love you, I hope you know that."

He did, and that's what makes it worse.

Lesson 21: you d̶o̶n̶'t̶ deserve to be loved.

The strawberry blond hated the holidays, nothing more, or less than that. Too many feelings, and he couldn't deal with it all.

Most homes let him shut himself into his room, some forced him to be a part of them, no matter how much he begged.

"Hey, Phil?"

"Yeah Techno?" Phil asked, glancing over his shoulder for a moment.

"Would it be alright if I just shut myself in my room for a month and a half?"

"Why?" He flipped a pancake onto the stack, and handed it to Techno.

"It's just-" he reworded it as he took a pancake. "I don't- really like- holidays?" He braced for the shock and maybe something else, but Phil surprised him yet again with a smile.

"That's fine Mate, Wilbur doesn't like all out holidays either, we'll just do whatever you are comfortable with."

Apparently the shock bled into his expression. "Really? You'd do that for me?"

"Well, yeah. We want you to be happy here Techno."

He searched for anything in Phil's eyes, anything that would hint he was lying, or had something worse planed.

"I- is it okay if we don't do a bunch of decorating?"

"Yeah."

"Can we do the tree though, I like the tree."

"Yeah. That's fine."

"I- I don't want presents, just don't like them."

"Alright Mate."

● ● ●

It was snowing a blizzard outside as Kristen and Phil wrapped a string of warm yellow lights around the tree. Techno and Wilbur were unravelling a few garlands, and Tommy was taking out ornaments.

Something he found out he loved just as much as the tree, was the room decorations. Each of them got to pick a little decoration for their bedroom door, and a light to go in their window.

He picked a pair of brass bells for his door, and a light that hung from the top of his window, and looked like several twinkling stars.

He liked the window light. It made him really happy, and warm inside.

Wilbur tried to toss the garland onto the tree, but it ended up falling on top of him, much to his frustration, and everyone else's amusement. Tommy also tried to throw the garland, with a little bit more success in the fact that it did not land on him.

It landed 10 feet away, in the hole in the wall.

Phil gave him his first ornament. It was sitting on his desk with a note.

It is a tradition in our house to get one new ornament a year as a part of each of our collectable ornaments. Your ornaments are landscape.

In the box was a glass ornament with a snowy cabin painted onto it.

Techno smiled and carried it downstairs carefully. He hung it on the tree, next to a light so it shined through the glass.

It looked perfect.

● ● ●

He and Wilbur came back into the house, and Kristen came running over. She hooked a finger under Techno's chin, turning it left, then right, and brushing a bit of blood from his lip.

The gesture reminded him of Puffy.

He smiled weakly at Kristen's worried eyes. They looked a lot like Wilbur's, except more vibrant, and less sad.

"I'm glad we didn't loose you too."

Techno dipped his head when her hand cupped his cheek. "I'm sorry about losing Tommy, and I'm sorry I worried you."

"We'll find Tommy, don't worry." Phil said, his hand on Kristen's shoulder.

"We'll find him."

_____________________________

Brrrrrrr plot twist!

Haha!

Basically Techno and Tommy were on a walk, and someone just snatched Tommy.

Techno beat the second person bloody before Wilbur and Phil pulled him away.

I rewrote this so many times, trying to make the change flow, it didn't work and I was just like: f#ck it. : )

Go read Phil's collection of Strays by ___River____ and give them some love ❤️

Have a great day/night my friends!💙