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Noelle had been trying to sleep when she heard tapping at her window.
Fear was her first reaction: squeaking, she shot upright and clutched at her duvet, staring with wide eyes out into the darkness beyond the glass. Then, Noelle registered green and yellow stripes. The dark, indistinct, and menacing figure on the other side quickly coalesced into someone familiar.
She sighed in relief, feeling silly for her fleeting panic. Of course it was Kris, knocking on her window in the middle of the night. Who else would it be?
Noelle opened the window. “Gosh, Kris,” she greeted, giggling, “at least send me a text first!”
Kris said nothing. Despite knowing they didn’t need any help getting into her bedroom from the tree they’d climbed—they had been raised by goats, after all—Noelle offered her hand, anyway. Kris took it without comment. The knight, climbing into a princess’ tower. Their skin was cool compared to Noelle’s hand, warmed from her bed.
They had their school backpack with them, for some reason. Kris casually dropped it on the couch as soon as they were inside, as if it was their room and not Noelle’s. Typical. Noelle was about to teasingly rib them about impromptu sleepovers when she glimpsed their face behind their long bangs. It was too pale, even for Kris’ standards, and they had a haunted look in their eyes.
“What’s wrong, Kris?” she asked.
Kris wouldn’t meet her gaze. “My parents are…again,” they mumbled.
Noelle didn’t need to ask what they were talking about. Her heart sank. “Oh—I’m sorry…”
She bit her lip, feeling a strange sense of guilt. It was her own sister who had disappeared and started all this trouble, yet Kris’ family was suffering far more than her own was. She’d overheard Rudy and Carol talking in hushed tones about the situation, suspecting Toriel would finally put her foot down and ask for a divorce before much longer.
“Um…does anyone else know you’re here?” Noelle asked.
“Azzy does.”
Hearing that eased a little of Noelle’s worries. That was good. At least, Asriel wouldn’t worry himself sick over his little sibling disappearing, again.
Without further prompt, Noelle crossed her room and retrieved a spare pillow from her closet, as well as several blankets. Kris had gotten good at hiding it, but they were trembling in the cold of the house, no warmer than the dark night outside.
“Here,” she said, handing them the pillow and blankets. “You’ll sleep on the couch, again, right?”
Kris nodded and settled on the couch without a word. They removed their shoes, but not any of their day clothes, before draping the blankets over themself. After a moment’s hesitation, Noelle returned to her bed. Somehow, she felt lonelier than before, despite the presence of another person in her room.
In truth, Noelle wanted to invite Kris into her bed. They looked miserable, and Noelle knew they usually wanted to be held when they were like this. But ever since Dess had disappeared, it was like an invisible wall had formed between her and Kris; one Noelle had no idea how to climb over, let alone break through. Kris barely even held her hand, any more. She doubted they really wanted her company, anyway. They were only here because they had nowhere else to go.
Noelle waited in the silence, but she didn’t hear the rustling of blankets, footsteps on the carpet, or feel the duvet lift so Kris could crawl in underneath, attaching themself to Noelle’s side like a sad puppy. Finally, she gave up, whispering a “Good night,” before she turned off the light.
Kris didn’t reply.
At least, they slept like the dead. When Noelle closed her eyes, it was like they weren’t even there to begin with. Still, it took her much longer than usual for her to fall asleep.
Noelle woke up several minutes before her alarm, to soft morning light seeping through her window. She was still the only one in her bed. Kris hadn’t moved from the couch. Overnight, they’d rolled themself up into a blanket burrito, with only a tuft of their dark hair sticking out from the top. Despite herself, Noelle admired the sight for a few moments, smiling. At least, Kris staying on the couch meant she’d been able to keep her duvet all for herself.
She shut her alarm off before it could ring, and then she got out of bed, gently shaking Kris awake with a hand on their shoulder. They blinked up at her with bleary red eyes.
“Good morning, Kris,” Noelle murmured in greeting.
Kris’ only response was to yawn.
Noelle giggled. “Um—if you want, you could join me and my parents for breakfast?” she offered. “I know Mom and Dad would be happy to see you…”
She expected Kris to refuse, but instead, they slowly nodded agreement.
After Noelle got dressed—Kris politely turned away, even as she insisted despite warm cheeks that it was fine—they both headed downstairs. Noelle in front, Kris shadowing her. It was an odd reversal from their childhood, when Kris would bolt ahead of her, though still linger long enough for her to catch up. Noelle didn’t complain, though.
Neither Rudy nor Carol was surprised by Kris’ sudden appearance, and they both greeted Kris warmly. Kris only replied with a couple of glances as they tentatively took a seat at the dining table, sitting with bowed shoulders and their hands in their lap.
“Well, I don’t know ‘bout your mother, Noelle, but I’m certainly glad Krismas has come early!” her father joked, laughing heartily as he served up breakfast: cinnamon waffles, still warm from the iron.
“Don’t be like that, dear,” Carol said, coolly, over her cup of coffee. She was all dressed up for work, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. “It’s good to see you here, again, Kris. It’s been a while.”
Kris only nodded, hesitantly fiddling with their food.
They kept quiet throughout the conversation, mostly contributing with a small gesture or noise of acknowledgement when directly asked a question. Noelle ended up answering in their steed. She didn’t mind; she’d done it before, when Kris had clammed up during previous social interactions.
Carol finished breakfast first, as she always did. She bid Rudy farewell with a quick kiss on the lips, and Noelle with one on the cheek. She gave Kris a farewell, too, lightly patting them on the head between where they might’ve had horns or antlers, if they were a monster. Kris blushed.
Noelle and Kris finished breakfast soon after. Kris had only eaten a few bites of theirs, to her dismay. Rudy brushed it off with a smile, like he always did.
After that, Noelle and Kris left for school. Asriel was at the gate, waiting for them. As soon as Noelle pressed the button to open it, Asriel was on Kris, admonishing them with things like “You shouldn’t just run off like that, Kris!” and “Mom and Dad were seriously worried!”
If Kris felt any guilt, they didn’t show it. They silently plastered themself to Asriel, burying their face in his sweater. Eventually, Asriel ran out of steam and switched to hugging them back, stroking their hair reassuringly. Noelle watched from a distance, trying not to let the jealousy she felt show on her face.
The three of them walked to school together. Kris trailed behind Asriel, head bowed like they were ashamed by the way he held their hand, as if they were still a small child, and not a pubescent teenager. Noelle kept to a steady trot, slightly outpacing Asriel’s walking speed. She could thank the cross-country practice with Jockington for that.
“Don’t worry—Mom and Dad made up, this morning,” Asriel told Kris. “They said they’re really sorry for scaring you off like that. They promised it won’t happen again.”
Kris didn’t look like they believed him, and frankly, Noelle didn’t either. Still, she said nothing, while Kris only nodded.
At school, Asriel told Kris to go to class ahead of them, and then he turned to Noelle. “Thanks for looking out for Kris,” he said, smiling kindly at her. His face looked identical to his mother’s. “You didn’t lose any sleep because of them, did you?”
“O-oh, no, not at all!” Noelle stammered, waving a hand placatingly. “Um, my parents said…it’s okay if Kris comes over again, any time. They’re always welcome.”
Asriel’s smile was relieved. “Well, if they’ve gotta run somewhere, I guess your house is better than the forest. And I’m sure Kris appreciates it, too.”
Kris didn’t seem that way, to Noelle’s eyes, but if Asriel said it, then it had to be true. He’d always been the person who knew Kris better than anyone else, after all. So, despite her worries, she smiled and nodded along.
That ended up being the start of a trend: Kris sneaking into Noelle’s room, on nights when home was too much to handle. Noelle tried to convince herself she was happy enough to be able to support Kris during a difficult time, even as she fell asleep each time wishing they were snuggled up against her side, like they’d never left to begin with.