Work Text:
It’s been two weeks since Liam found Xavier on the ground and Liam still treats him like he might break at any moment. None of them have brought it up, but the difference is palpable. Everything changed in the way they interact: Liam would always look at him whenever he would stumble; rest against a counter; carry something heavy. His roommate would always stand like he’s ready to jump in at any minute and it’s driving Xavier crazy.
It all came to a head when Liam’s behavior bled into their workplace.
Xavier’s right leg has been bothering him all day, what’s new really, it would be a miracle if neither of his legs were uncomfortable for a whole day. Leaning back against the counters helps, but every time he did so, he could feel the burning of Liam’s eyes on him. After the third time, Xavier stops to lean altogether; the pair of eyes on him becoming unbearable to feel. He doesn’t even dare once to turn around and meet Liam’s gaze.
Xavier goes to the walk-in freezer to get a box of strawberries. As he walks out, Liam immediately sees him and a panic flashes through his eyes ‘’I can take it for you’’ He says as he quickly makes his way closer to Xavier, who takes a step back just as fast ‘’don’t-’’ he exhales ‘’I can take care of myself’’ he says harshly, hoping the words are sharp enough to cut as he maintains eye contact. Xavier doesn’t wait for an answer and walks around Liam, who is still standing there. He doesn’t care that Liam is trying to be nice, being treated like a porcelain doll is making him feel nothing but anger; an anger that has been bubbling inside of him ever since his roommate started to act differently around him. He could deal with it in the apartment, but bringing it to work? where other people could hear? That was the last straw. He could manage Liam seeing him as weak, but if it spread to his coworkers, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself.
It doesn’t take a lot of words to convince Mel to switch stations with him. If he had to stand one more second next to Liam with his big perfect eyes looking at him like he’s about to explode at any moment, he might just ruin any professional façade he had managed to create. So, for the rest of his shift, he stays in prep, not saying a word to anyone and thankfully away from the chaos of the main part of the kitchen and most importantly; away from Liam.
Occasionally Mel would throw some glances his way to check in, to which he would respond with a small nod. Once his shift was finally over, he cleaned up his station and left the restaurant before anyone got a chance to say anything to him. This morning he had come with Liam to work, on account of the fact that Xavier doesn’t own a car and that Liam is too nice for his own good. It’s fine, he can walk it.
Ten minutes after he left the restaurant, he receives a text message from Mel:
He’s worried about you
Xavier can’t help the scoff that comes out of him. Why does Liam even care so much? None of it is his business, and definitely not his place. They both used to fall perfectly into these specific roles, a line neither of them ever crossed. There used to be a perfect balance, and now, because of his own carelessness, that line had been blurred. Absolutely nothing had felt right since that night and it has been driving Xavier crazy. Another text interrupts his train of thoughts:
At least try to talk to the guy when you get home
He feels really bad
It’s not home.
You know what I meant
The whole situation is fucked and should’ve never happened in the first place and now it’s all weird with Liam and now whenever his roommate looks at him, he can only feel the same burning on his skin whenever people feel pity for him and he really couldn’t help but feel so angry about the whole ordeal. He’s had enough of it, of everything.
Xavier doesn’t realize how fast he’s going until he almost walks past his building. He comes to a halt, breathing heavily. The walk had somewhat helped to clear his mind and keep the meltdown he was about to have earlier at bay, but standing in front of his apartment building, he feels everything rapidly creeping its way back up.
Before his brain has the chance to say anything else, Xavier walks forward and makes his way up to the apartment. As he comes in, Liam immediately jumps off the couch and stops himself from moving any closer. ‘’How did you-’’ his roommate starts asking, but he is promptly cut off by Xavier who’s more than ready to be done with the conversation ‘’I walked.’’
‘’you… you walked? but that’s like at least six kilometers-’’
‘’yes and?’’
‘’I saw you today, your leg-”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Xavier starts making a beeline towards his room. ‘’No. We are not doing this.’’ He really tried to get himself out of the situation, but for some reason Liam is being so stubborn about this and doesn’t want to drop it. Xavier doesn’t register anything that his roommate says next, all he knows is that he suddenly stops dead in his tracks and gives Liam what he had been, oh so, trying to prevent: he breaks.
‘’I am so tired of your shit Liam, I am not some fragile thing that can break at any given moment’’ He almost laughs ‘’I’ve been living like this for a long fucking time, I can deal with it without you watching every step I fucking take.’’ Liam looks taken aback, but Xavier had started talking and now it was impossible to keep it from spilling out. ‘’You are not my goddamn babysitter . You can cut this little act of yours like you care so much about me. You barely know me, is this your new strategy to get me to talk to you?? Because newsflash! If it didn’t work for the first months, it sure as hell won’t work now, so just back the fuck off.’’
It doesn’t feel any better getting all this out of his system, as a matter of fact, as Xavier’s eyes land back on Liam, he feels even worse than before. He only lasts about a second looking at his roommate’s devastated face, before he has to turn around and slam the door to his room, the sound of it making him flinch.
About five minutes of silence later, Xavier hears the front door open and close. As he’s lying in bed, he feels himself spiraling, having difficulty to get his breathing under control. He is suffocating.
He doesn’t know how much time has passed, could’ve been a minute or five or even thirty, when the familiar notification sound of his phone catches his attention. He opens it and tries to make sense of the words he is seeing, but everything is blurry. Since when was he even crying?
I’m here
It’s the only warning he gets from Mel before he hears the front door open, and then the one to his bedroom. Xavier lifts his head to see her gentle eyes looking back at him.
‘’Xav…’’ Her voice is soft and warm.
He shakes his head as some tears fall down on his cheek. He finds the strength to stretch out his hand toward her and that’s all the confirmation Mel needs to crawl in behind him and take him tightly in her arms. Xavier instantly relaxes at the pressure she offers him and focuses to match her breathing, not letting another tear fall.
Mel keeps him tight against her chest, hoping it would be enough to calm whatever storm is brewing inside of her best friend’s mind.