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Tommy had been in the foster system for years.
Ever since he could remember, he’d been bouncing from home to home. A few months here, several months there. Three whole years in one before the family had to move out-of-state. That had been a really sad day
Some would say being a foster kid sucked.
Tommy would agree. He, like practically every other foster kid, pretty much had it rough.
But unlike other kids, Tommy had an outlet. A way to keep stability.
It started when he discovered the apartment.
Tommy was 10 and bored, having been sent out by the current foster parents to “go do something and be back by dinnertime”- apparently, that family had thought it was the ‘80s or something. Either way, he’d ended up wandering around town, until he’d found the slightly-run-down place.Definitely abandoned, but liveable.
Tommy fell in love with it instantly. The next day, he brought Tubbo along.
“So this place is just...here?” Tubbo asked, as Tommy grinned like a maniac.
“Yup!”
“And...you want to move in?”
“I mean, no one can stop me from using this as a base of operations. More privacy, too.” Tommy shrugged.
Tubbo tried flipping a light switch, which did nothing. “There’s no electricity. And probably no water.”
“Don’t care, it’s mine now Big Man. Now c’mon, you gotta see the rest of the place- I found a whole chair in one of the rooms!”
Over the next few months, Tommy and Tubbo slowly brought more and more things into the place. Tommy’s toy dog, Walter, multiple blankets and pillows, even an old mattress at one point. In fact, a blanket fort was built up inside the main area of the apartment and only came down a year after Tommy had found the apartment after Tubbo’s parents found out about the hideout and got the ratty old apartment up to actual living standards.
Not that Tommy stayed the night often. After all, he still usually had a foster family or a curfew. But it was still fun, hanging out with Tubbo in their “secret base”.
~~~
Tommy was 15 when he got his first computer. Which, thankfully, ran on electricity paid for by Tubbo’s parents.
(Actually Tubbo’s parents were probably the main reason he was doing quite well for a foster kid, he owed them for quite a few things like clothes and his phone case. Although he’d paid for the computer himself via his “allowance” from the Underscores and various odd jobs).
Tommy was elated. Tubbo, too. The boys came home late for dinner that joyous day.
(Tommy’s foster family was very confused but only got vague answers to where the blond had gone and what he’d done.)
~~~
Tommy was 16 when he started getting big on Twitch and YouTube.
He was lucky, for the most part he’d been able to stay in town for the last year or two so he’d been able to come to his apartment and stream every now and then, or make a new video.
And the best part?
No one, besides Tubbo and his family (and a few select friends who also streamed) knew.
Tommy and Tubbo had a jolly old time with that.
Tubbo invested in a voice changer, which they used to “prove” Tommy had parents- on streams or videos, at least. The duo convinced a friend to let Tommy pretend was his after Tommy slipped about Walter. And they faked Tommy meeting up with Tubbo, pretty convincingly too.
That video had gotten quite the reaction., from Wilbur complaining he wasn't invited to the fans all but exploding Twitter.
When the two weren’t streaming or making videos (or that one time Tommy was in a house an hour away for two whole weeks), they’d taken to hanging out at Tubbo’s house. They’d done it before they’d found the apartment and the still did. The onl difference was what they talked about and the fact they often just sat together in silence, scrolling through Twitter.
It was great.
But all things had to come to an end, and the paradise Tommy’d created for himself was no different.
~~~
“Ugh, already? I just got out of the hospital!’ Tommy complained.
Tommy’s most recent foster had…..Well, it was definitely not on the “favorite places to be” list. Definitely a one-star rating. Maybe even a zero-star rating, if those were a thing. Tommy would be leaving a bad review for that house, the busted ribs and multiple bruises he had were more then enough for that.
Lauren sighed. “I know, but the home is full. And I think you’ll like the guy I found. His name is Phil Watson, and-”
Linda kept talking but Tommy was cracking up inside. Phil? Phil? What a coincidence, his next foster father had the same exact name as his Internet father-figure.
“-ommy? Tommy?”
“Oh yeah, sorry, what’d you say?”
Linda just sighed again. “Just...get ready to go, yeah?”
Tommy nodded, watching Linda leave the room to give him privacy. He honestly just needed to put on his shoes.
And message Tubbo, of course.
Grabbing his phone, Tommy opened up Discord and started typing.
TommyInnit: yo big man
TommyInnit: I’m getting fostered by a guy with the same name as Phil
Tubbo: really?
Tubbo: ur out of the hospital arleady?
TommyInnit: yep
TommyInnit: Next video: “Getting fostered by Philza minecraft, not clickbait?!”
Tubbo: lol yessss
Tubbo: lemme know how it goes tho, srsly, Goo d luck!
TommyInnit: will do, big man
Tommy grinned and shoved his phone into his pocket, before slipping on his shoes and grabbing his sole bag.
Hopefully he wouldn’t be stuck with this “Phil” guy long so he could get back to streaming. After all, he had fans waiting.
~~~
The house looked nice from the outside. A white picket fence surrounded the property, with several trees in the yard. A few flowers dotted the walkway leading up to the large two-story house, which was painted a nice, normal brown. A forest-green Toyota sat in the driveway.
In short: normal enough.
Tommy eyed the house over before hopping out of the car, wincing a bit when he landed a bit too hard on the leg that had gotten sliced with some flying glass shards that should not have been flying.
Linda led the way up the walkway, Tommy following. “Ready?” She asked.
Tommy nodded. Linda rang the doorbell.
A minute later, the door was opened.
By none other than Philza Minecraft himself.
“Hello, mates-” the man started to say, before he caught sight of one TommyInnit and his mouth started moving like a fish.
Tommy hid his surprise under his online persona’s boisterous attitude. “‘Sup, big man.” He greeted.
“Tommy-” Linda gave him The Look, which Tommy ignored.
Phil sputtered for a minute,before regaining some composure.
“What the fuck, it’s too early for this-”
“Surprise?”
~~~
A day or two later, Tubbo woke up to see a short video titled, “Living with Philza Minecraft is 1000% Funnier IRL” in his DMs.