Chapter Text
It's been a long day at school and Noelle is off to see her father in the hospital, like she does everyday!
…
Today was different.
“Sorry hun, you can't see your father today.” The nurse's voice wasn't her usual annoyed, southern voice, “what? Why not? Is something wrong?” Noelle was confused until the nurse's face(mouth???) changed. “I'm sorry for your loss, Noelle.”
“...what?” Noelle was shocked, frozen like a deer in headlights “your mother already knows, she's at city hall if you want to talk about it.” The nurse continued her work but looked less like her usual self. Noelle panicked, she dropped her bag, and her legs gave out. The room was spinning- everything was distorted
Tears streamed down her face. “Hon let's sit you down…” the nurse helped Noelle to a chair and comforted her for a few moments whilst she sobbed violently. “..do you want to see your mom.?” Noelle shook her head, wiped her eyes, and walked home early that day.
Noelle arrived home, dropped her bag by the door, and ran up to her room. She cried for hours, or at least until her mom got home. Which was pretty late. She couldn't fall asleep. She didn't until her mom checked in on her when she got home, she didn't even know she did that, it would have been the last she expected. Her mother came into her room, sat down on her bed and rubbed her back softly. “I'm sorry Noelle, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you and the nurse had to. I'm sorry I came home so late.”
Now obviously Carol wasn't expecting a response, but she got one anyway. Noelle couldn't form words, she was still sobbing, her throat raw from the hours crying, so she only clung onto her mother in search of comfort. Barely any was found. She fell asleep quickly and her mother crept out of her room.
When Noelle woke up it was already 10 am, Noelle was late. Really late. She had rushed to get ready even though she never wanted to get up, her hair was unstraightened, her hooves unpolished, and no cute accessories or breakfast today. She ran downstairs and to the front door, where she found a note. It was from her mother and it read “Noelle, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you in person but if you want to stay home today you can. I won't force you to go to school today.”
Noelle exhaled a breath and dropped her bag, and slowly went back upstairs. She changed back and crawled into bed. Until it hit her, it wasn't some messed up dream. Her dad is gone. And she will never ever see him again. She spent some more hours crying and sleeping.
She awoke to her phone buzzing at about 1 pm, it was Kris. She slowly grabbed her phone and put it to her ear. “I'm sorry for your loss.” That's all they had to say? They sounded like they had more and like they had also been crying for at least the past 3 minutes but not violently, just soft sniffles or hitches and shaky breaths. Noelle knew that thought was rude and thanked Kris for the condolences. She hung up and went back to bed, until she got hungry.
Toriel called next, she said more than Kris which was much appreciated and asked if she could do anything to help, but nothing could really help.
It was berdlys turn at attempting comfort, he was insufferable. “Now then Noelle, the classes number two, second place, we can't have you going down to Susie's level. So Noelle join me this weekend and I can make this up to you, help you focus on yourself, and forget your dad, what do you say?” Berdlys annoying voice echoed in her head, “No.”
Did she really do that??? Crazy.
Noelle crawled back downstairs and rummaged through the fridge, pantry, second fridge, and freezer. ‘…’ she noticed her mom had already made meals and stored them in the first fridge but grabbed a granola bar and walked back upstairs, she knew she wasn't supposed to eat up there, but was her mom ever around to stop her?
She slowly ate the granola bar and fell asleep, again. She was startled awake by rocks banging against her window, she slowly crept out of bed and looked at her digital clock, ‘2:17 AM’, then out her window. She lifted the window slowly, and realized her mom wasn't home. ‘Whose here at this hour?’ she said aloud, to nobody in particular.
Noelle squinted her eyes and made out a tall, messy figure.
“Susie!? What are you doing here?”
She exclaimed.
“Uhh… I wanted to check in on you?” Susie exclaimed back. “Can I come in..?” By the tone of Susie's voice, she was probably out here a while.
“Oh uh, of course, I'll open the front door. My mom isn't home.” Noelle quickly made her way downstairs in the pitch black and let Susie in.
“Bro how do you see in here?” Susie had been squinting her eyes all the way upstairs.
“Uh I guess I know my way around.” Noelle brought Susie to her room, and quietly closed the door.
“So are you alright? Do you need to talk?” Susie sounded genuinely concerned.
Noelle was hesitant to answer “I…I don't know, I mean, I don't think I am.” Noelle was excited to talk and be with Susie, but she couldn't bring herself to enjoy it.
“So uh, are you sure you're alright?” Noelle felt a shiver run down her spine as Susie said that, she knew she was a terrible liar. She started tearing up. “..I don't know.” Noelle's voice was low, quiet, raw and hoarse. “Could you just stay here..? Please?” Susie was quiet for a moment looking for a response, “of course,”
With that Susie wrapped herself around Noelle and pulled her into a long, tight hug. Noelle hugged back, softly crying into her shoulder. Susie had occasionally rubbed her back or stroked her hair, rocking Noelle back and forth. “Sorry if I'm not good at this comforting stuff…” Susie had continued to rock Noelle back and forth holding onto her like her life depended on it. “It's alright Susie, I'm just glad you're here.” The two slowly crawled into Noelle's bed and stayed.
Noelle had still been clinging onto Susie while she fell asleep, Susie was not letting go even when she knew Noelle wasn't gonna wake up for a while. Susie laid down next to her still clinging onto each other. She had worried that Noelle's mom would come home, but since Noelle said she wasn't home she felt alright.
The morning sun peered through the open window as it shines onto Susie's eyes, with a groan, Susie sits up, with Noelle still clinging onto her. ‘Still?’ she huffed a sigh and laid back down. Tears stained her sweater, while sunlight stung her eyes.
She laid back down next to Noelle for who knows how long, looking around the room for anything to do. Then at Noelle, ‘she has curly hair????’, even though she probably would have noticed that when stroking her hair last night. Susie wasn't always the brightest. But Noelle's tear streaked face in the dim light lit her up, she could count all her freckles like stars. If Noelle was the sky Susie wouldn't ever stop looking up- ‘ANGEL SUSIE!’ she almost screamed it out loud, ‘why are you being so corny???’ Susie could only think of endless possibilities to why she was thinking like this.
As Susie shook the thoughts from her head she slowly fell back asleep, almost, as Noelle awoke. She reached her hand up and caressed Susie's cheek, figuring she was asleep. She wasn't. She slowly opened her eyes and held Noelle's face in her hands. Susie then sat up and held Noelle close. “..You going to school today?” Susie’s voice was groggy and deep, Noelle wasn't sure if she liked it or not. Noelle has been gone for about two days, so it's probably Wednesday? She didn't know anymore.
Noelle slowly shook her head, laying against Susie's chest. Until she realized her mom might be home. She jolted up, put one finger to Susie's mouth as her ears perked up, she didn't hear anything. Which was a good thing about sensitive hearing, Noelle laid back down onto Susie's chest, her nose glowing so bright it helped light up the room.
“Well… are you feeling any better.?” Susie spoke slowly, calmly. This surprised Noelle, it wasn't the mean girl all her classmates knew. It was a calm, gentle monster. “Uh you alright?.” Just then Noelle realised how long she'd been thinking about this. “Uhm.. I dunno”
“Alright well I'm hungry, watcha want?”
“..what?”
“I can make soup, toast, or cereal. Or get something from the store but I ain't got money.”
“..what kind of soup can you make?”
“Uhh….. store bought ones?”
Noelle couldn't help but let out a weak excuse of a laugh at this, “I'll have any type of soup, it’s in the top cabinet to the very right”
Noelle slid off Susie's lap and onto the side of the bed, as Susie stretched and walked downstairs.
As Susie made her way downstairs she started thinking, ‘I wonder what kind of soup she likes’ . She shook the thoughts from her head every two seconds. Then she realized, she froze in her tracks, her face glowing such a bright pink it
basically lit the house up and could probably obliterate the entire dark world. She liked Noelle, more so than she did before, except only now was she admitting it.
Susie and this new realization ran down all the stairs, took out her very old and broken phone, and texted Kris so fast her phone almost crashed.
susiezilla
“KRIS”
Mosslover99
“Ya”
Susiezilla
“UH WHAT IF I ILKED NOELLE WGAT I DO”
“AND WOULD JT BE GAY”
mosslover99
“Well first go to Grammar school”
“Second how should I know”
“Third yes 100%”
susiezilla
“DONT YOU LIEK BERDLY HELP ME OUT”
mosslover99
“NUH UH”
“I literally don't even know what your talking about 😐😐”
“also uh idk tell her you like her or something”
susiezilla
“UR NOT HELPING”
Mosslover99
“IDK MAN”
“WAIT”
“YOU LIKE NOELLE 🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝”
susiezilla
“QUIT IT WITH THE EMOKIS”
“ALSO”
“NUH UH”
“I ASKED IF I DID EHAT WOULD I DO”
Mosslover99
“Ok buddy”
Susie slammed her phone shut, it being a flip phone and all, and put it back in her pocket grumbling at how Kris who was usually good at this stuff isn't when they need to be.
Susie made her way over to the top cabinet to the- was it left or right? Susie took a guess and went right, she found the soup! But what soup did Noelle like? Susie looked through the options, tomato, vegetarian chicken noodle, ramen, vegetarian chicken and stars, and many more. Wait, why was ramen there? She paid no mind. Susie picked the easiest one to make, well at least the easiest to her, and opened a can of vegetarian chicken noodle soup, set it in a glass bowl, and set it in the microwave for however long it took to cook.
The second the microwave beeped, Susie jolted up and took the bowl upstairs. Noelle had been silently looking out the window, she somehow didn't notice Susie opened the door and set the almost burning hot soup on her desk, only when Susie set a hand on her shoulder did she notice she was there. “...” Noelle looked up at Susie with a pitiful look in her red and swollen eyes, “why did you come to check on me..?” Susie didn't have an answer, she couldn't just say that she had nowhere to go, she couldn't say she had a major crush on her and couldn't sleep because of Noelle for the last three months, and she DEFINITELY couldn't say something to lighten the mood.
“...I was worried, ya know. I've lost people too and I know how it hurts, even if they hurt you.”
“Thanks.. wait, what do you mean ‘even if they hurt you?’”
“Uh how about we talk about that later, okay jingles- wait NO-I mean Noelle-” Susie's face has brightened at least 5 times
Susie had been cut off by a wholehearted laugh that filled the room even if it sounded like a giraffe was being thrown off a 12 story building. Noelle was laughing, whether it was with her or at her, it was nice to hear. Through giggles Noelle repeated the name before her giggling calmed down, she smiled back up at Susie, who was now blushing and rubbing the back of her neck. “How long did it take you to come up with that?” Now Susie wasn't gonna say she's been waiting to call her jingles for the last three months, obviously, so she lied, AGAIN. “Uh I thought of it downstairs” she gave a nervous grin at Noelle who leaned in to wrap her arms around the sides of Susie.
“Thank you,”
“For what?”
“Everything.”
Susie didn't know how to respond, what was she saying thank you for? What did she mean ‘everything’?? This was so confusing for poor old Susie. But Susie decided to change the subject and had mentioned the soup.
“Uh I put your soup over there” Susie, still a flustered morning mess, pointed to the not too hot for lizards but scalding hot for mammal monsters on the desk and also realized she didn't get Noelle a spoon.
“...”
“...”
Both had stayed silent for a while, at least a good fifteen minutes, and just sat, staring at each other.
It was nice.
Until it wasn't.
Susie looked away, her phone buzzed in her pocket, it was Kris. Noelle couldn't read what it said but it looked urgent, especially Susie's strange expression. Something between joy, worry, and sadness, almost anger- but she got up, looked at Noelle one last time and said goodbye. Angel how she wished she could look at Noelle just a bit longer.
As Susie left Noelle stared at the bowl on her desk, she felt sad, it felt like Susie, the warmth had left and so did her appetite. The thoughts had come back and words the nurse said stuck with her. “I'm sorry” and “loss” it's driving Noelle crazy, insane even.
It replayed over and over and over and over and over and over and it didn't stop, Noelle huddled into the corner of her bed as the thoughts swallowed and took over her mind.
As time passed(like her dad LOOOOLLLL) and the morning came, the voice didn't stop.
It's.
Too.
Much.
Where is ️C̵͉͋̔͞ā̤̓̍͘-mom..?
It’s 7:34 am.
It's early.
Where.
Is.
Mom.
She should be home by now, work couldn't be this long. Could it? Where is Kris? Where is Susie? Where is her dad?...
Where is Noelle?
Where is she? Is this really her room? Is this really her house? Is this really reality?
Hours passed until Noelle jumped off her bed and onto the floor. ‘Was my bed always this high?’ she didn't know. She slowly walked downstairs, into the kitchen, and looked at the counter, nothing. The fridge, something.
Medication, and a note. The note that was as long as a small letter read ‘noelle dear, please take this medication. As much as I h̶a̶t̶e̶ dislike Susie, she had told me that something bad was happening and you've barely eaten, gotten out of bed, or taken care of yourself and I'm very disappointed to know you haven't been going to school. I let you miss one day, not the whole week.’
The medication was called ‘floxetine’, also known as anti depressants. Great. Her mother thinks she's depressed, which she probably is, her mom's disappointed, and Susie is gone.
She took the medication and looked for something to eat. She dug a box of crackers out of the pantry and sat down on the couch, as she ate she had a feeling of unease. She didn't know how to describe it but it felt odd. It felt like a new voice was in her head, telling her a way she could visit her dad.
Her sister.
Hm.
She pondered if she should listen or do what her mother would prefer.
She was tired of what her mom preferred. Perfection, petite, polite, clean, Dess could never.
Dess…
Maybe she should visit them.
She'll think it over.