Like a True Friend (Grian x MumboJumbo)

Chapter 4 : Tears in Heaven

TW : Contains dialog about violence.

Mumbo was so surprised. He absolutely didn't plan to find Grian so impacted by a picture. He felt guilty as hell and feeling Grian so weak in his arms just reinforced that feeling. He closed his arms on his friend to try and comfort him, but it seemed he was falling anyways. It was a lost Grian in despair, sinking slowly and only being held up by Mumbo's strong arms. Mumbo felt like he wanted to cry, being so helpless, and at the same time he quite liked the sensation of the smallest in his arms. Which made him feel even more guilty. He could smell his slight perfume and something else, more powerful, a bit more manly. And he liked that terribly. He liked feeling Grian's hair gently tickling his cheeks.

"Why the hell am I enjoying that this much. I'm a fricking horrible person. My friend's in despair and I'm fucking not helping." he thought. He gently lifted Grian without breaking the hug and managed to get him to sit on the couch. He patted the English man's back slowly to try and calm him, which seemed to work a bit. The sobs slowed down and Mumbo heard a soft voice.

- When I... when I was a kid, I was...

Grian bit his lip to stop them from trembling and paused before he continued.

- You don't have to say it if you don't want to, said Mumbo in a comprehensive voice, with a gentle smile.

- I was... different. My uh... parents, they... they brought me to many psychologists, to try and make me more normal kinda. I was...

He paused again, tried and catch his breath again. Mumbo patted his back to comfort him,

- They diagnosed me with a personality disorder. I was... a tough kid to bond with and uh my father, he.. he couldn't.

Mumbo felt a tear dripping on his arm.

- He almost killed me. He... he was so angry and he just kept hitting and he...

Grian's fists clenched, while his whole body just kept shaking, as if his past was too tough, as if he was a terrified little boy again.

- My mom came out to protect me and he hit her... Too hard, too hard.

He began to cry again, and hung back onto Mumbo, the only thing he could hold back onto.

Mumbo felt his heart cracking. Too tough a sentence for such a small child. He was just helpless, and the only thing he could do was just be there, to try and comfort a pain way too big for him, for both of them. And, as his heart ached, he started to understand things. Why Grian never talked about family, why he had such sudden mood switches, and why he was so cheerful and optimistic, sometimes too much. Why he never complained. Because sadly, the ones that suffered the most are often the ones who silence their troubles. Mumbo felt so bad he wanted to disappear. He wanted to go back and forget everything. He knew it was a selfish thing to do but it was so tough to handle. He wondered how Grian managed to get past all of this. He wondered about his own childhood, too. And he made an effort to try and retain the tears, while a wave of emotions fluttered.

And they stayed like this, attached to one another, for long, in the saddest hug they ever experienced. After an hour, Grian felt asleep in Mumbo's arms, comforted. He tried to do the same, not having the courage to move the smallest, but Grian's sentences just kept floating in his mind, and Grian's disfigured face in pain flooded in tears haunted him every time he tried to close his eyes. No way to sleep, the English man was everywhere in his thoughts. The exhaustion finally got to him and they slept like this, embracing each other, through the night.

Mumbo jumped when he felt the vibrate of his phone. He opened his eyes wide and quickly shut the buzzing down, before falling back on the couch heavily. He felt something weird, and realised he was sleeping in his regular clothes. Then he remembered. The shelf, the cries, the hug... As he saw he was sleeping alone in the couch he had a moment of doubt. Like, was this some sort of weird dream ? As he opened back his eyes, he noticed the books on the floor and it erased his doubts. He played back the scene in his head, and remembered the weird feeling he had when he was hugging Grian. It just felt good, and he really liked it. He actually liked it. He felt really bad again, enjoying an awful moment. And then he remembered the story. A chill of fear crossed his entire body and he started panicking, not knowing where his friend was. He rose from the couch, and spun around to get a quick view of the room. All he could see was one of the cats playing with a toy in the cat house. He noticed the room's door was wide open, and allowed himself to go and check it out. He found out a bare-chested Grian, and he instantly felt embarrassed. He coughed slightly to announce his presence, and it startled his friend who turned towards him, his cheeks turning red.

- Oh um hey, I'll be here in a sec.

- Sorry, didn't mean to intrude, I just wanted to uh... check on uh... Well I'll wait outside, sputtered Mumbo, feeling his cheeks burning.

He quickly got away from the door and silently facepalmed. "Stupid, stupid, stupid Mumbo" he thought to himself. He felt so dumb, not knowing how to react, whereas he knew acting normal would be the best way to help Grian to forget all this.

- Hey, uh... if you want to take a shower it's right around there, I'll give you a towel, interrupted Grian, slowly entering in the living room

Mumbo was really grateful that his friend did not make the situation more uneasy, and he followed him to the bathroom, grabbed the towel he was handed, and Grian left the room stating he would make some breakfast. Mumbo went in the small shower and as water fell on his face he allowed himself to relax a bit, just before way too many thoughts rushed to his mind. His eyes watered, not being used too that many conflictual emotions. "How was Grian now ? Would their relationship be weird ? Are there more secrets to come ? Would they hug again ?" He froze hearing this last thought. "What the fuck is going on with me ? Stupid me c'mon. I'm making it even weirder, fuck, let's try to be cool about it". And on this glimpse of hope, he turned off the water, got out of the shower and dressed himself quickly. Being clean helped him gain a little more self-confidence, as if it had partly washed out the previous events. He pushed the bathroom door, and instantly noticed a warm pancake smell.

- Whoa, smells good in here ! he said semi-enthusiastically.

- Haha yea, figured I could try and make a lil' special something, Grian answered calmly, with a soft smile.

Of course, Mumbo had noticed that his smile was a bit off, but he decided not to pick on it, and instead sat at the table where smoking hot pancakes had just been served. His friend sat on the opposite side, and both of them stayed silent for a few seconds, before Grian broke it.

- Listen uh... I'm really sorry, about...

- Itch okhay, Mumbo tried to answer with his mouth full, accidentally spitting some pancake across the table. He managed to get a timid laugh from his interlocutor.

- No but really, I mean I clearly drank too much, I wouldn't want to bother you with whatever, plus, it's old stuff you know, Grian declared calmly. I think I might be too sensitive when I'm a bit too drunk. He paused, and managed to raise a smile, but it looked forced, and ever so sad. He shuffled his hair, and continued.

- But I really wanted to thank you, like for taking the time to comfort me. I really appreciate it.

He was staring at Mumbo with such a sincere gaze, the American couldn't help but being reminded of a strange feeling. Those eyes. Staring at him, getting to the bottom of his soul, he could get lost in them forever. So intense, even with this new glimmer of blue like an ocean of sadness, it still fascinated Mumbo. A comprehensive smile shone on his face, and he answered

- Hey, no problem. I mean any time, I am not bothered. Like, erm... really glad if I have been of any help dude. I mean it. And if you wanna talk about it I'm okay.

The smaller guy seemed reassured, and a bit embarrassed. He decided to try and cheer up the atmosphere, adopting a joyful tone. It wasn't quite his usual self, but fair enough, Mumbo was glad he tried to be back to normal. They chatted a bit while finishing their breakfast, and prepared themselves to go to the Minecraft Con.

When everything was finally packed, they hopped into the car, and as the engine started, the radio turned on, and the song filled the car.

"Would you know my name, If I saw you in Heaven ?"

Hearing the tune, Mumbo turned towards Grian and noticed his smile. Ever so sad. Mumbo's heart cracked again. And almost as a reflex, he wrapped his arms warmly around the frail guy's waist.

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If you're wondering, it's an Eric Clapton song, youtube.com/watch?v=JxPj3GAYYZ0

Sorry if this chapter was a bit more dramatic, wanted to try and go more in depth in the character's past. For those of you wondering, Mumbo's past might come in future chapters, stay tuned ! Hope you liked it anyway.

See ya soon,

Mysaat