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Gary’s Paranoia

Summary:

"You’re still here."

"Told you I’d stay, didn’t I?"

OR

After helping Gary come out of an intense hyperfocus, Jimmy finds himself caring more about the boy than he originally thought.

Notes:

hey guys sorry if this is very ooc and you want to kill me

Pls write more smopkins fics much appreciated

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It’s been around a month since Gary forced Jimmy to fight with Russell down in the school basement, and to say the least, not much had changed in the ‘taking over the school’ department; Jimmy wasn’t too worried about what Gary was doing or not doing. At first he had been slightly concerned if Gary was actually going to go through with it but not much had changed at Bullworth other than the usual fighting and errand boy status Jimmy held.

 

The last time Jimmy had seen Gary was when he’d stirred up some shit between him and the preps; not like it was much trouble though. Jimmy quite enjoyed egging Tad’s house, and it was quite amusing to see Russell beat the crap out of the preps.

 

However, something felt off, and Jimmy couldn’t understand what had changed. He had the same routine everyday, wake up, get dressed, get attacked by some kids then run away from prefects to class. Simple. But for some reason, something felt wrong. Something felt missing.

 

It was still early hours in the morning, around the time Jimmy and everyone else usually wakes up for school. Groaning, Jimmy shoves himself up from his worn out mattress to exit his room, immediately welcomed with the familiar view of Trent bothering one of the nerds while Kirby cheers from afar. Algie seems to be trying to involve himself and defend his friend; his bladder seems to be protesting against the matter though.

 

One thing that does catch Jimmy’s eye though is Petey, who is currently standing outside a specific room and looks like he’s trying to communicate with the door. At first, Jimmy thought to just leave him be. Petey can talk to whatever inanimate object he wants to. However, curiosity killed the cat.

 

“What’s up, Petey?” Jimmy questions, startling Petey from his persistent pestering as he swerves around quickly to stare at the redhead. Petey sighs in relief at the sight of Jimmy before turning back to face the door.

 

“Hey, Jimmy.” He mumbles distractedly, knocking on the door once again. What was his problem? Jimmy furrows his brow with confusion before clasping a hand over the smaller boy’s shoulder, resulting in another startle.

 

“What’s up with you and this door? Has it got girls with swimsuits inside of it?” Jimmy teases, noticing the flush that creeps on Petey’s face. He vaguely remembers Gary taunting the younger boy about the topic back when they were all somewhat friends.

 

“Very funny, Jimmy,” Petey sighs, waving a hand dismissively. “This is Gary’s room.” He mutters after a short pause.

 

Oh. Oh! So that’s why Pete looks so disturbed by his own yelling. Jimmy almost thought he was doing a dare with how frightened he looked.

 

“Do I wanna know why you’re trying to break in like a desperate ex?” Jimmy asks with curiosity laced in his tone, arms crossing over his chest. Pete rolls his eyes with tiredness.

 

“Yeah right, Jimmy. That’ll be the day.” Pete grimaces when suddenly his face lights up as if he just had a eureka moment, slowly turning to look at Jimmy with a pleading look in his eyes. Immediately understanding the situation, Jimmy begins to shake his head frantically while holding his hands up beside his head.

 

“Hell no! No way, Pete!” He exclaims, already making a start to run away when Petey reluctantly goes forward to stop him from moving.

 

“Wait! Jimmy, please. I’m worried,” Petey pauses with hesitance before inhaling sharply to continue. “Gary hasn’t come out of his room for over a day and that’s not particularly… normal of him.” He explains, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly and casting a quick glance over his shoulder to stare at the door behind him. Jimmy frowns deeply.

 

“When is Gary ever normal? Seriously Pete?”

 

“I know! Something just… doesn’t feel right. Please, Jimmy! I’ll pay you!” Pete pleads, already making a move to grab his wallet which is stuffed in the back pocket of his school pants. After a few seconds, Jimmy is met with the familiar yet endearing view of $25 coming from Pete’s palm.

 

He could use the money, and it’s not like Petey asks for favours very often…

 

“Jesus, fine! I’ll do it. How am I meant to get in though?” Jimmy takes the offer, making a show of counting the dollar bills with dramatic intent. Petey pulls his lips into a thin line before turning around to twist the knob of the door, revealing its lack of lock. “Why didn’t you just open the door this whole time?” Jimmy asks with a newfound slight annoyance, shoving the money into his back pocket.

 

“Last time I went into Gary’s room uninvited, he threw scissors at me and called me a dork.” Petey explains, looking around warily at the mention of the said scissors. With a roll of his eyes, Jimmy dismisses the brunette, who quickly runs off to not be late for his class. Looks like he doesn’t care about Jimmy’s education as much as his own.

 

Running a hand over his face to mentally prepare himself for the inevitable chaos he’s about to walk into, Jimmy reaches for the doorknob and twists it, leading him into the room he would’ve avoided most had he known who possessed it.

 

The first thing Jimmy notices when stepping into Gary’s room is the stench. From the moment he opens the door a waft of expired leftovers from Edna’s cooking greets him as it lays comfortably in Gary’s trashcan which rests at the end of his bed. Jimmy doesn’t know how long the leftovers have been there, but it’s definitely been long enough to induce gagging.

 

The second thing Jimmy notices is the scattered pieces of ripped paper and pen markers laid across the wooden floor. There are big letters marked in the piece of paper which lay in the middle of the others, and Jimmy wouldn’t say he’s superb at English but he’s certain one of the words reads ‘SCHOOL.’ Of course it had to do with whatever scheme Gary was trying to achieve inside his head.

 

Speaking of Gary, the boy sits perched on his knees while his eyes frantically skim over all of his paperwork on the floor, and Jimmy can hear faint mumbling coming from him. Jimmy’s not even sure if Gary’s aware he’s entered. Seems like Pete didn’t have to worry about scissors being thrown.

 

Gary’s hands are clasped over his neck in a distressed manner, his hair is tousled and manic, much like his eyes. His eyebags stick out like a knife, the darkness slightly unsettling Jimmy.

 

Unsure of whether to talk or not, Jimmy hesitantly walks over to where Gary sits, a small layer of concern growing within him. Lowering himself to Gary’s level, Jimmy notices that his hands are rapidly shaking, almost as if he’s on a sugar rush; if what Pete said is true though, Jimmy doesn’t think Gary’s eaten for a while.

 

Finally taking notice of the pieces of paper, Jimmy feels a knot tie in his stomach from the precision and perfectionism of it all. Of course, like he expected, it’s all about taking over the school and whatever bullshit Gary was usually waffling about.

 

There’s a sheet of paper which reads ‘BASEMENT FIGHT,’ Jimmy doesn’t think it takes a genius to figure out what that means. The sheet talks about luring Jimmy into the hole to make him fight Russell, and of course it all played out in real life just how it was intended to in Gary’s head. The other papers are full of notes and scribbles of various plans to take over the school, many different cliques being involved. Jimmy notices his name being mentioned several times but he can’t bring himself to care right now as Gary shakes even more profusely.

 

Jimmy vaguely remembers dealing with something like this with one of his ex-stepbrothers who had ADHD; a bit like Gary just with the hyperactivity. It happened a few years ago when Jimmy’s Mom was still madly in love with her husband at the time and insisted Jimmy babysit his stepbrother, and it was the only night he’d ever been actually concerned for one of his new family members.

 

Attempting to recall the old memory, Jimmy slowly manoeuvres himself in front of Gary, careful not to tread on the spread out pieces of paper. From this view, Jimmy can see more clearly how Gary’s eyes dart around the page as if waiting for something to strike out and attack him at any second.

 

Jimmy immediately cringes at himself for his future behaviour, knowing he won’t get anywhere with insults and punches for once. “Gary.” He says as softly as he can, though it still manages to come out as grungy and guarded. No reaction, just the same old consistent mumbling and shaking.

 

Placing his hands on the piece of paper which lay in the middle, Jimmy slowly tries to slide it away but is ultimately restricted as Gary finally moves to grab the other boy’s wrist in order to stop the movement. When Jimmy looks up from the paper, he finds Gary staring right back at him, his eyes manic yet sleep deprived.

 

“Jimmy?!” He hisses out in between his gritted teeth, shaking his head slowly. As if being burned, Gary pulls his hand back to cradle it against his own chest as he rocks back to sit down fully on the floor. Jimmy can’t help but raise an eyebrow in curiosity as Gary looks around his room as if it were unrecognisable. Finally, his eyes land back onto the pieces of paper and a frustrated frown curves into his face.

 

“Jesus, man. What the fuck is this?” Jimmy sighs with slight irritation at Gary’s lack of speech, throwing a hand up to gesture at the papers. After Gary leaves him with more silence, Jimmy decides to pick up the piece of paper which discusses his fight with Russell, waving it in front of the brunette’s vision erratically. “Explain this shit to me, Gary! I mean what the hell?” Jimmy flips the sheet over before flipping it back again and discarding it on the floor.

 

Furrowing his brow, Gary makes a move to stand up but subsequently fails as he tumbles back to the ground with exhaustion. It’s only then does Jimmy remember Pete’s words again. If Gary’s been in here for over a day with eyebags as prominent as his, Jimmy’s almost 100% certain he hasn’t slept at all.

 

Feeling the frustration in his chest waver, Jimmy inhales sharply and makes a move to haul Gary up from the floor, slinging the brunette’s arm around his shoulder and letting him rest his weight on him, ignoring Gary’s tired complaints. “Where are you taking me?” Gary demands, trying to pull away from Jimmy who only shakes his head.

 

“I’m taking you to bed, man, chill out.” He mutters, sitting Gary down on the edge of the said bed. Gary’s lips only curl in disgust as he waves his hand dismissively.

 

“At least take me to dinner first, Hopkins. Where are your manners?” He grumbles, though slightly laughing at his own joke. Jimmy only rolls his eyes exasperatedly. He almost debates whether he should get Gary into comfier clothes rather than the usual uniform; that idea quickly falters at the site of Gary’s state. Jimmy also doesn’t fancy getting murdered today.

 

“Cmon just lay down and go to sleep,” He insists, urging Gary to move up and rest his head on the pillow but the brunette only shakes his head frantically. “Why the hell not?!” Jimmy asks, throwing his hands up.

 

“Because I know you’re just here to kill me. I know you hate me!” Gary slurs due to the sleep deprivation, pointing a wobbly finger at Jimmy, causing him to scoff in annoyance. When was the last time this guy took his meds?

 

That’s when Jimmy notices an orange capsule stand out from the bin under Edna’s leftovers. Of course Gary just had to throw his medication in the bin and pour rotten food all over it. Of fucking course. Sighing, Jimmy crosses his arms over his chest.

 

“Why would I wanna kill you, Gary?” He asks with an unimpressed manner. Luckily for him, Gary doesn’t seem to pick up on it as he looks around warily before waving his hand to bring Jimmy down to his level instead of standing.

 

“Let me tell you a secret, James,” Gary pauses to catch his breath, and Jimmy can tell he hasn’t brushed his teeth within the last 24 hours as well. “Everyone is out to get me. And you know how I know?” Gary whispers as if revealing the true meaning of life, his gaze looking dramatically serious.

 

Jimmy suddenly feels a twinge of pity turn in his chest. He was always familiar with Gary’s paranoia, but he never knew just how paranoid he was. How would you be able to stay calm and collected all the time if you thought the whole world was out to get you?

 

Deciding to indulge Gary, Jimmy raises his brow in mock concern. “How do you know, Gary?” He asks skeptically, tilting his head as if talking to a child. Gary looks at Jimmy dead in the eyes before whispering again.

 

“It’s the way they all look at me.”

 

Jimmy furrows his brow, nodding for him to go on, understanding that he won’t get this much information about the way Gary’s mind works again. “How do they look at you?” He reluctantly questions, sitting down next to the other boy.

 

“Like I’m crazy. Don’t stand too close to Gary! Be careful of what you say to Gary in case he freaks out! Gary’s a nutcase!” Gary rambles, waving his hands around dramatically, and Jimmy notices his eyes grow wider the more angry he becomes. “They all hate me.” He finishes with a sigh, his leg beginning to bounce up and down restlessly.

 

“Pete doesn’t hate you, even though he has every right to since you’re a complete ass towards him.” Jimmy remarks with a hardened tone, only partly cautious of Gary’s reaction to such a comment. Gary only scowls before letting his head drop between his knees, his hands resuming their previous position clasped behind his neck. Jimmy sighs exasperatedly as he carefully clasps his hands over Gary’s shoulders to pull him upwards.

 

Gary shakes Jimmy’s hands off, glancing at him with a disturbed expression. “Will you just go to sleep?” Jimmy mutters. Gary scoffs laughingly, rolling his eyes as if Jimmy’s request was the hardest thing in the world. Looking over to the door, Jimmy runs a hand down his face before turning to look back at Gary. “If I guard the door and make sure no one comes in and tries to kill you, will you go to sleep?” Jimmy asks almost pleadingly. He regrets not just leaving Pete to handle Gary’s mess, but he almost feels a sense of protectiveness over Gary for some reason, something he hasn’t felt for a while.

 

Logically, Jimmy knows Gary can defend himself with words if needed, however Gary definitely didn’t seem fit for a verbal fight at the moment since his words were slurring enough as it is, and he absolutely wasn’t prepared for a physical fight. Not that anyone would actually try and break in to start a confrontation with Gary, most people steered clear of him because of his sociopathic attitude, but Jimmy knew Gary wouldn’t rest until reassured that no one would be able to get him; even just for an hour or so.

 

Gary’s mouth curves downwards as he begins an inner conflict with himself before ultimately shuffling backwards on the bed to rest his head against the headboard. “Go.” He mumbles, waving his hand dismissively which Jimmy takes as a sign to leave the room. There are only a few kids left inside the dorm such as Trent, Davis and Russell. Jimmy’s not certain that they ever go to class.

 

Russell looks over and offers a friendly nod. He wasn’t that bad anymore, especially since he’s laid off from bullying so many kids. Of course there’s the odd wedgie and shove, but Jimmy hadn’t seen anything get too violent.

 

“What’s up, guys?” Jimmy asks, walking over to the trio as their attention turns towards him. Davis looks at Russell warily, contrasting Trent’s friendly attitude as he waves cheerfully.

 

“Not much. Hey, what were you doing in Gary’s room?” Trent questions, cocking his head to the side and crossing his arms over his chest. Suddenly, he grins playfully as he says “Oh~ I know! I see your game, Jimmy.” He winks flirtatiously as Davis smacks him around the head.

 

Jimmy laughs with amusement as he shakes his head. “Nothing like that, Trent. I have higher standards than that.” He insists, gesturing to himself in an arrogant manner. Trent laughs wholeheartedly while Russell nods seriously.

 

“Yeah, Trent! My little buddy knows his standards!” He exclaims with a sudden loudness which none of the boys are prepared for as he pulls Trent into a headlock; Jimmy almost gets worried he’s startled Gary.

 

Speaking of the latter, Jimmy glances back to his door before an idea pops into his head. He’s almost 100% sure the other boy hasn’t eaten in God knows how long, and Jimmy vaguely remembers him being prone to being hangry after not eating.

 

“You guys have fun.” Jimmy waves the trio off, the only sign of acknowledgment being Davis waving distractedly as he eggs Russell on about Trent’s headlock. After opening the door to go outside, sighing with relief, Jimmy revels in the fact it’s not Karl nor Seth guarding the boys dorm today. Of course, he still has to tread lightly, but with the familiar face of Max MacTavish, Jimmy feels a light weight go off of his shoulders.

 

“What are you doing, Hopkins?! Get to your designated class!” As Max makes a move to run over to him, Jimmy holds his hands up in mock surrender.

 

“Dude, chill! Mr Crabblesnitch let me off my classes today!” Jimmy lies, holding an arm out in defence of himself against Max’s attempt to grab ahold of his ear. Max arches an eyebrow and crosses his arms over his chest.

 

Really? Nice try, Hopkins.” He grumbles, making a move to grab him again while Jimmy backs up. Glancing over the prefect’s shoulder, Jimmy notices a familiar face, which can only be distinguished as Seth Kolbe, beginning to make his way over. He needs to be quick.

 

“I’m serious! I ate too much of Edna’s food last night and my digestive system is all messed up!”

 

Max scowls with dislike. “Then why aren’t you in… the bathroom?”

 

“I needed some fresh air! My toilet doesn’t smell so great if you know what I mean.”

 

Scoffing with frustration and partly disgust, Max rolls his eyes before turning around and waving dismissively to Seth, who now stands at the entrance to the boys dorm. Seth throws his arms up in a gesture as if to say ‘What the hell?!’ To which Max only replies with a shake of his head.

 

Thankfully, the two prefects seem to be way more interested in each other than anything Jimmy’s doing for once as they walk away to the girls dorm while Seth prattles on and Max listens. Just as they reach the girls dorm’s entrance, Jimmy makes a run for it and easily slips past the two, grabbing his bike swiftly before he makes it out the entrance.

 

He distantly remembers Gary mentioning how he used to love chocolate when he was a kid, and when Jimmy asked why he doesn’t like it anymore, Petey replied claiming that Gary’s convinced it’s been poisoned somehow. Apparently, poisoned Chocolate is a massive cliche in movies and Gary can’t find it in himself to trust it anymore. Jimmy has faith that he can convince Gary to eat it though since he doesn’t exactly know what else Gary likes. Now that he thinks about it, he’s pretty sure he’s never seen the boy eat anything around him.

 

It takes around half an hour for Jimmy to get to the food shop, buy the chocolates, and get all the way back to the boys dorm while narrowly avoiding Seth and Max. The trio of bullies seemed to have grown bored of standing around doing nothing so they’re gone by the time Jimmy walks into the dormitory.

 

The door to Gary’s room creaks open quietly as Jimmy lightly pushes it, peering in warily to be met with the sight of the former curled up under the duvets, deep in his long awaited sleep. However, even in sleep, Gary doesn’t look entirely at peace; the scar on his face tampers with his soft expression, and Jimmy can’t help but wonder how he earned it.

 

Placing the box of chocolates on the bedside table carefully, Jimmy stands awkwardly by Gary’s bed, unsure of what to do next. He made a promise to guard Gary’s bedroom, and Jimmy really doesn’t want Gary to wake up just to find out he lied. The hatred would only be fuelled more, and Gary’s already done enough.

 

So Jimmy stays, albeit reluctantly. He’s surprised how Gary doesn’t wake up to the sound of his slingshot being repeatedly used as balls fly towards the walls in the room, he must be a heavy sleeper. Suddenly, Gary stirs and Jimmy can feel his whole body freeze mid-slingshot. Daring to look at the previously sleeping boy, Jimmy finds that the boy is definitely awake, though very groggy.

 

Gary rubs his eyes sluggishly, using his right forearm to support his weight as he slightly sits up. It takes a moment for his vision to come into focus before he looks at Jimmy, memories from earlier suddenly flooding back to him, grimacing at the thought.

 

“You’re still here.” Gary mutters with curiosity, looking Jimmy up and down. He hadn’t expected Jimmy to keep his word, assuming he would’ve just gone to ride around on his skateboard outside or gone to bunk off with some girl.

 

Jimmy shrugs with disinterest, putting away his slingshot. “Told you I’d stay, didn’t I?” He murmurs, refraining from a sarcastic comment he so desperately wanted to make.

 

Gary arches an eyebrow. “You said you’d guard my room, not stay with me.” He corrects, fully pushing himself up to lean his back against the headboard, similar to Jimmy’s position. Jimmy turns his head to look up at Gary, who seems to be way more settled down than earlier.

 

“I got bored, jeez. A thank you would be nice.” Jimmy says, crossing his arms and elevating one of his legs. Gary sneers, and that’s when Jimmy knows the normal Gary is back.

 

After a few moments of silence, Gary begins to skim his room, his eyes lingering on the discarded pieces of paper before he notices the box of chocolates on his bedside table. His brow furrows with confusion as he cautiously takes the box into his lap.

 

“Chocolate? Are you asking me to make out with you or something?” Gary asks, a disturbed look on his face as he glances accusably at Jimmy. Jimmy rolls his eyes as a faint smile forms on his face.

 

“Nah. I only save that trick for special people, not you.” Jimmy reassures, Gary’s expression a mix of relief and annoyance. He resorts to simply looking down at the box with a massive amount of uncertainty plastered across his face. Jimmy frowns. “Man, what’s with you? Why aren’t you trying to tear my head off?” He throws his hands up in a confused gesture. Gary rolls his eyes.

 

“That’s saved for later.” He utters, his fingers beginning to drum against the box of chocolates, and Jimmy’s reminded of his tendency to fidget. His restlessness has been significantly worse ever since he stopped taking his meds, Jimmy remembers picking up on it the day Gary lured him into the hole to fight Russell. He’d been completely jittery and on edge the whole time.

 

Jimmy pulls his lips into a thin line before remembering he doesn’t actually care to sugarcoat anything he says unless it’s extremely important. “You’re acting like a complete nutcase, man. Why the hell did you stop taking your meds?” He questions.

 

Gary scowls in distaste, looking up warily to meet Jimmy’s gaze. “Geniuses don’t need medication. I don’t need medication.” He insists through gritted teeth, directing a finger towards himself. Jimmy sighs exasperatingly.

 

“That’s what someone who needs medication would say.”

 

Gary looks as if he’s about to punch the other boy, his fist clenching and unclenching. “Did you think you could just bring me some shitty chocolates, which I don’t even like, and I’d suddenly forgive you?” He asks, setting aside the chocolates. Jimmy frowns with confusion.

 

“Forgive me for what? What did I do, man?!” He urges, lightly whacking Gary on the shoulder. Gary only groans with frustration, throwing the duvet off of him and wobbling out of bed, letting his arms steady himself as he finds his balance before turning to face Jimmy.

 

“I know you hate me! I know you said all that stuff about me behind my back! Just admit it!” He accuses, his hands beginning to shake again, replicating his earlier state. Jimmy scoffs, moving to get out the bed causing Gary to take a step back.

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about! I never said anything about you behind your back! Why would I?!” He exclaims, gesturing to himself and Gary, whose eyes dart around the room frantically as if looking for an escape. He knows he doesn’t have a valid reason, Jimmy can tell. When Gary doesn’t give any signal that he’s going to talk anymore, Jimmy continues.

 

“You were my friend, man! I trusted you! Sure, I thought you were a little crazy, and I still do, but I never spoke shit about you! If I didn’t like you I wouldn’t have hung around you. I’m not a loser.” Jimmy insists, stomping over towards Gary who stays frozen in place. Jimmy’s expression softens, and he sighs defeatedly. “You should eat those chocolates before they melt into your bed and leave a shit stain.” He says, throwing a thumb towards the box of chocolates which lay carelessly on the bed. Gary glances over to them before looking back at Jimmy.

 

“You’ve poisoned them.”

 

“I didn’t poison them.”

 

“Where did you get them from?”

 

“The goddamn Yum Yum market.” Jimmy groans with frustration.

 

“In town?”

 

“Yes, in town.”

 

After a few more seconds of silence, Gary walks past Jimmy to sit back onto the bed and finally opens the box of chocolates. He picks one of them up hesitantly, inspecting it thoroughly before taking a small bite. Jimmy waits almost nervously for the boy’s reaction until Gary takes another reluctant bite. Jimmy can’t help but smirk proudly.

 

“It’s not laced.” Gary mumbles with only a little embarrassment. Jimmy huffs, sitting back down beside the boy.

 

“No. It’s not laced. I don’t even know how to do that.” Jimmy confesses, shrugging with exaggeration. By a ton, Gary seems to relax and begins eating the rest of the chocolates one by one comfortably. “Gary, I don’t hate you, Y’know?” He admits, the moment of silence shared between the two being enough of a warrant for Jimmy to confess.

 

“Yes you do. I’m not stupid. I heard you say you hate me down in the hole.”

 

“Yeah because I was mad at you. And I still am to be honest but I don’t hate you as much as I want to.” Jimmy insists. Gary frowns deeply.

 

The bedroom is quiet for a long while after that, the only sound being Gary’s chewing. Of course, the chocolates aren’t everlasting and Gary has to throw the box in the bin full of Edna’s leftovers soon enough. Neither of them say a word for a little while longer.

 

“I’m tired.” Gary says, his leg beginning to bounce rapidly. Jimmy rubs the back of his neck with uncertainty, looking around the room distractedly.

 

“Okay, uh, you wanna go back to sleep?”

 

Gary scoffs. “Your intelligence never fails to amaze me, Hopkins.”

 

Jimmy rolls his eyes, though he can’t help but laugh quietly. Even Gary can’t hide the smirk that creeps on his face.

 

“You want me to go outside and guard your room again?” Jimmy asks with slight amusement, noticing the way Gary’s eyelids begin to weigh heavy.

 

Much to Jimmy’s surprise, Gary clenches his jaw and shakes his head dubiously. “You can stay in here, I guess.” He says as if Jimmy had been pleading with him desperately to bask in his presence. Jimmy only rolls his eyes, but he can’t find it in himself to say no.

 

If it were anyone else, he probably wouldn’t have even bothered buying food or even guarded the room. It’s always been different with Gary. No matter how many times he acted like a complete asshole, Jimmy had never cut him off until the fight with Russell. When Gary was the one to turn on him.

 

“You wanna change out of those clothes into something more comfy or?” Jimmy queries. Gary shakes his head.

 

“No. Not right now.” He answers, standing up to walk to the other side of the bed and lying down almost immediately. Jimmy hums enthusiastically at the concept of Gary getting more sleep and being able to play with his slingshot some more. He makes a move to rest up against the headboard like earlier, looking down at Gary, whose head comfortably lays atop a pillow with a sleepy expression.

 

“Stop staring, homo.” Gary barks while his eyes remain shut. Jimmy rolls his eyes with a fond smile on his face.

 

“My bad, Gary.”

 

“Wake me up in an hour.” He asks, the grogginess of his voice slurring his sleep ridden words. Jimmy hums noncommittally.

 

He doesn’t wake him up in an hour.