𝘖𝘏 𝘈𝘕𝘈 - 𝘛𝘖𝘔𝘔𝘠𝘐𝘕𝘕𝘐𝘛

nine.

he sometimes wished the sun no longer shone so that nobody would have to look at his face.

a phone alarm greeted tommy's dreams, waking him from a mostly restless slumber. his hands found their way to his face, fingers pulling down on skin in an attempt to snap out of his tired state.

"today's the day," he mumbled between fingers, afterward climbing out of his bed and starting towards his closet. his bones felt weak with every movement they made.

after sleepily changing into his signature white and red shirt, he grabbed a duffle bag and set it atop his comforter, packing his bags with a couple changes of clothes. his phone rang in between gathering socks.

"hey big t," he spoke upon answering the phone with a yawn, "what's up?"

"morning, tommy! are you packing already?"

"i just finished with my clothes, all i need is my laptop, charger and toothbrush. what about you?"

"i woke up and packed an hour ago cause i was excited. do you wanna walk to school together?" the eagerness was evident in his voice - it almost made the blond laugh.

"yeah, i'll wait outside yours in five."

"pog! later, tommy!"

he hung up shortly after, packing the rest of his belongings and setting his luggage by his front door for when he'd later need it. with an apple disregarded in his backpack from the kitchen, tommy waved his parents goodbye, muttering a quick 'toby's bringing me waffles, we're walking to school together' regarding breakfast.

he found his best friend sitting on the steps of his house when he arrived, greeting him with a smile and an o7 salute, grin growing wider as it was happily returned. at standing in front of his friend, tommy's gaze shifted downwards upon realizing that tubbo's arm was extended out towards him, hand offering a peanut butter and jelly sandwich sat in a ziplock bag. he forgot the brunette had a habit of occasionally bringing him snacks when he felt like making one.

"i'm good, thanks. mum made me scrambled eggs and toast." tubbo shrugged and took a bite of the food as they started their way to school.

"i puf my hearft and soul in this sandwhiff," he joked through a full mouth, earning a laugh from the blond.

"okay, tubbo."

six minutes into walking to school and tommy's legs began to grow weaker, muscles aching whilst his balance gradually strayed from the sidewalk. his friend seemed to catch onto his movements after a while.

"tommy? you alright, man?"

"yeah," he immediately responded out of habit, "i think the eggs were undercooked or something."

"do you want to stop for a bit? we're not gonna be late or anything."

"i'm okay, just- can we walk a little slower?"

his friend nodded with a quick 'yep,' the two advancing towards school at a more leisure pace. he said his goodbyes to tubbo once they had arrived at the building, starting towards his first period with a hazy mind.

===

the final bell had rung and tommy felt like he was bound to collapse at any given moment. the apple from this morning sat alone in a stray bathroom trash can, left for the janitors to dispose of after hours. he found a bench near the school's entrance and sat down - heaven to his legs, really - waiting for his parents to pick him up. they pulled up a minute later and tommy nearly stumbled over himself while standing.

"ready for today, buddy?" his dad asked as they began to drive home.

"can't wait, dad! toby talked about it all the way to school, he's definitely excited, too."

his mom chuckled, "it's good you two are going together. just don't break anything in wilbur's house, 'right? i know how much chaos you two can wreak."

tommy let out a laugh and nodded, watching as their house had soon come into view through a tinted window. they exited the car and entered the house, his dad shooting a quick 'want a snack?' before tommy grabbed his luggage. he shook his head.

"i'll ask wilbur to get us some fast food on the way to his house."

"haven't even seen him yet and you're already picking money from his pocket? i thought we raised you better," his mom teased, prompting another laugh from the boy. he was about to justify himself but was interrupted by a phone call.

"big w! where you at, man?"

"i am approximately.." there was a silence between them - tommy figured that wilbur was checking a gps. "four minutes from tubbo's house, so i'll come grab you in eight, alright? gogy will be at my house about an hour after we get there."

tommy grinned and nodded, despite wilbur not being able to see it.

"got it, big man! see you in eight!"

he hung up and glanced towards his parents with a thumbs-up, the three sharing a smile. he kinda felt bad that only two of them were genuine.