Work Text:
It was quiet.
Dennis stood, leaning against the counter as the coffee brewed. He grabbed two coffee cups and sat them on the bench. He filled one up with coffee and set the half filled pot back. He leaned against the kitchen island again, holding the hot mug in his hands but not drinking. The clock ticked over in the lounge room, the tall grandfather clock sitting proudly and fill the room with a steady paced tick tock... Tick tock... Tick tock... He stares out of the window in a trance, letting time slip by him.
Dennis sighs, and looks down at the now cool cup of coffee. He empties it down the drain and washes his mug. He walks into the bathroom and grabs his toothbrush from the cup. Standing on his side for the basin he brushes his teeth, then hops into the showers. He grabs his towel from the rack, dries off and goes back to the bedroom.
Dennis pulls the sheets up on his side of the bead, carefully making sure not to disturb the other side.
Now he stands in front of the Mirror, the balck material of his tie hanging there. He takes a deep breath, before lifting on end of the tie and bringing it around and behind before flipping it through... No that doesn't look right.
He pauses, eyeing himself in the mirror. He looks tired. His eyes are sunken and dark.
He tries again, bringing the tie over, around and pulling it through before tightening it, only look at the jumbled knot in the mirror.
"Fuck!" Tears well up in his eyes, and he brings a fist up to pound on the mirror, cause it to wobble slightly. He undoes the knot, and it now rests around his neck, waiting to be tied.
He tries to breathe in, his inhale wobbly and choked. His eyes sting with tears that he's been desperately trying to hold onto.
There's a knock at the front door.
Dennis furiously wipes away the tears from his eyes, walking quickly to get the door.
Jack Abbot stands on the other side, dressed in a black suit and tie, his face grim. He clears his throat and smiles at Dennis. It's a sad, pained smile.
"Hey kid," He says, voice rough.
"Hey Jack..." They stand for a moment, before Jack looks at Dennis's tie. Dennis looks down, following his eyes. A heavy sigh leaves the younger man.
"Robby would..." He trails off, taking a shaky breathe as he tries to get through a sentence without breaking apart. "Robby used to always tie them for me... I never bothered learning cause he was always there to..."
He's cut off by a sob, and his hand flies to his mouth. Jack pulls the kid in by his shoulders, and they stand in the doorway, just holding onto each other.
Dennis takes a few deep breathes and Jack pulls back slightly.
His hands come up and gently grasp the black material. He brings one end around over and manages tie the tie with surgical precision. He smoothes it down and fixes the collar for Dennis's shirt.
"You nearly ready?"
Dennis shakes his head, sniffling slightly.
"I don't think I could ever be ready for this..." He looks around at the house, quiet and dark and no where near full of the life and love that he was used to seeing. "I'm just going to get my jacket then we can go."
He walked back into the bedroom, glancing at the bed. Robby's side was still unmade, sitting untouched, Dennis could bring himself to touch it. He pulled his blazer over his shoulders, and grabbed his phone and keys.
Jack was waiting by the door. Dennis shut the bedroom light off, and made his way to the front door. Jack started off to the car. Dennis flipped the light for the living room and kitchen off, grabbed the flowers for Robby, and shut the door.
Just the sound of the grandfather clock ticking and a drip from the sink that Robby had brought up and Dennis had been meaning to fix remained after the door closed. The unused mug sat on the bench, the other toothbrush sat dry and the other side of the bed remained unmade. It was quiet.