Work Text:
2:14am
wil-o-wisp has come online
wil-o-wisp: guys?
wil-o-wisp: srry ik itsl ate
feetwood has come online
feetwood: You should be sleeping, William. :(
feetwood: …
feetwood: Isaac, did you change my name again? >,< @isAHHHc
wil-o-wisp: hippocrit
wil-o-wisp: ik thats speled wrong
wil-o-wisp: b nice 2 me
feetwood: It’s spelled hypocrite. :)
feetwood has changed her name to Norah
wil-o-wisp: thx nor ur thebest
Norah: You’re welcome! ^^
Norah: What’re you doing awake?
wil-o-wisp: uhhhhhhh
isAHHHc has come online
isAHHHc: At least im not the only one awake
Norah: >:(
wil-o-wisp: nor y cant b max @ us for no sleepin wehn ur also awake
wil-o-wisp: mad*
Norah: :(
isAHHHc: Yes I changed ur name norah
isAHHHc: U need a cool nickname
Norah: You’ve been trying to give me a “cool nickname” for years. :/
wil-o-wisp: wellgind smth eventualy
wil-o-wisp: trust
Norah: Wait.
Norah: Don’t distract me! >:[
Norah: William Wisp what’re you doing up? Did you need something?
wil-o-wisp: uhm
isAHHHc: You okay dude?
wil-o-wisp: yea
wil-o-wisp: yea im fine
wil-o-wisp: its just like
wil-o-wisp: i dunno im liek rlly stresed
wil-o-wisp: nlui’s coming over tmrw since he jst got back
wil-o-wisp: n my mom just got discahrgeed ystrday
wil-o-wisp: n ica nt fucking sleep
Norah: Oh.
Norah: I see.
isAHHHc: Did u want us to come over?
isAHHHc: I cant really upset my parents more
isAHHHc: I can sneak out
Norah: Isaac you really shouldn’t be testing things like that, they seemed… really mad. O^O
wil-o-wisp: isa dnt come
isAHHHc: U hate me is what im hearing
wil-o-wisp: u kno thats notwhat i mean t
isAHHHc: I know
isAHHHc: U just dont seem like u should b alone rn
Norah: I can come over. UwU
Norah: I think I know what you’re trying to say, too. I’ll bring some stuff.
wil-o-wisp: y dont have 2 dot hat
wil-o-wisp: idk waht i was thnkiing
wil-o-wisp: shouldtn have botherd u guys itsrlly late
wil-o-wisp: & yr parents r alr crazy worired abt u
Norah: I’ll be there in twenty minutes. <3
Norah: I wasn’t sleeping anyways.
Norah: I’ll leave a note just in case. They’ll understand.
wil-o-wisp has gone offline
isAHHHc: Take care of him
Norah: I will.
isAHHHc: Call me if u need me okay? My parents will just have 2 cope.
Norah: Of course, Isaac.
Norah: I’ll keep you updated.
isAHHHc: Thx
isAHHHc: Stay safe
Norah: I always do.
Norah: Love you. <3 <3
isAHHHc: Love you 2
Norah has gone offline
isAHHHc has gone offline
Walking through Deadwood at night should’ve been scarier than she found it. Norah knew that, normally, people found the dark unsettling and nerve-wracking. Those that had seen what lived in the dark tended to be even more scared of it, not less so.
Yet she found it peaceful.
When the sun had dipped below the horizon and the deep, navy blue, so dark it’s pitch black anywhere there isn’t a glimmer of white stars, has been pulled over the sky above, she finds comfort. It wasn’t quite so bright that it hurt her eyes, nor were there any people walking around to smile and wave at her, or try to engage her in conversation like they knew her personally.
It felt like a little bubble of peace to walk alone at night. The moon was high in the sky, nearly full that night, and it lit up the streets where the streetlamps had long since burned out or never been built in the first place.
Maybe it was just because she knew that, right now, it was safe. Or that the normal threats of Deadwood couldn’t possibly be worse than the things she’d experienced. Maybe it was because her mind was focused on the worry she held for William.
It took her twenty minutes to walk from her house to William’s, same as it always did. She didn’t knock on the front door, not at this hour, nor did she go for William’s bedroom window. She snuck around the side of the house, careful to avoid any twigs or bushes that could give away her arrival, then dropped down into the window well that would allow her entrance to the Wisp households basement from outside.
The rocks at the bottom crunched loudly beneath her feet and she winced. That was one way to announce herself to William, who she knew before she’d even looked would be perched somewhere in the basement waiting for her.
Inside, she indeed saw William curled up on the armchair, already angled toward the window. He was biting his thumbnail nervously and curled in tight on himself. He jumped when she landed, his wide, frantic eyes turning on her before his frame sank with relief.
Norah waited patiently for him to unlock the latch and pull the heavy window open with his noticeably shaking hands. He opened his mouth to greet her once the space between them was nothing but open air, then shut it without a word.
She climbed in, feet hitting the carpeted floor with a thud. Her own soft voice filled the silence. “Hey, Will,” she said, smiling. “I, uh, brought the things you left at my place.” She tugged the wolf printed backpack she’d brought along off her shoulders, then dropped onto the couch where William silently trailed behind her and sat in his designated spot.
He didn’t protest her obvious assumption, so she was going to run with the idea that she wasn’t grossly overstepping and making him uncomfortable. She pulled out the regression supplies he’d had her stash in her closet, setting them out on the pull-up coffee table for him to grab as he wanted.
He’d always had her hold onto anything he or the rest of them bought for the coping mechanism, having said that her parents would never go through her closet like his might. Both their parents worried– not like Isaac’s, who would tear apart his room looking for something incriminating at the drop of a hat, or Lui’s, who couldn’t control multitude of his nosy little siblings– but William’s were more likely to snoop if they thought they might find something they could help him with. Norah’s would never.
(The first thing William ever bought for his regression was an adult pacifier.
It was plain and black and easy to hide. It came with a protective shield that meant he could shove it into the back of his nightstand drawer with a tissue overtop and assume it would never be found.
Then he told his friends. And William loved his friends, he really did. They were the best friends he could ask for, because they didn’t care. Norah took her time to research it and find everything she could on the topic. Isaac offered to watch him if he ever wanted someone around while he was regressed, since he’d babysat his little sister all the time. Lui showed up at the next hangout with a bag of toys his siblings had long since abandoned and practically dropped them in William’s lap.
His collection of little gear only grew after that. He only bought himself a couple more things– a bottle and a sippy cup, both purchased from the grocery store with his allowance. But his friends kept giving him gifts. Softer clothes for his regression, kids dishware, snacks specifically angled toward little kids and babies, the list went on.
Within a few months, William had too much stuff to feel safe keeping it in his room.
He loved his parents. Really, he did! He couldn’t ask for a better mom and dad, they were always there for him when he needed them, and they wanted nothing more than for him to be happy and safe and comfortable. But he didn’t think they’d understand this. This was a step too far into the weird. It was the same reason he never explained his therianthropy to them, or let them see him doing quads. He didn’t want to weird them out.
Which led to this: “Norah?”
Norah, the last one remaining at his house after a sleepover because her parents were still at work and she didn’t want to be home alone, looked up from her book, “Yeah?”
“Can you…”
He hesitated, fidgeting with the hem of his hoodie sleeves. He didn’t really want to ask this of her, but as much as he loved his parents there was always the possibility they got worried enough about him that they snooped through his stuff. And he really didn’t want them to find any of this.
“Can you hold onto my little gear?” he asked, all at once in a rush of air, “Just– y’know my mom, she loves me but she tends to snoop when she’s worried, and if she ever found any of this I think I might have to die.”
“William, don’t say that!” Norah scolded. He winced, but didn’t take it back. “I guess I can, my parents don’t… snoop.”
“I was just… fuck. I dunno, I don’t wanna make you go home alone, but if your parents aren’t there right now it would be the perfect time, right?”
She shrugged. He could see the discomfort in every line of her body.
“Maybe I can hang out at your place until they get back?”
“...Yeah, okay,” she agreed, reluctantly. “I’ll need to call them and let them know. You can pack everything up and meet me by the door?”)
They valued privacy to a fault. It made sneaking out really easy, she had to admit.
And given that William rarely managed to regress on his own, she figured it really was alright that she had to bring him his things if he felt like he needed them. She was okay with being there for him, either to take care of him or just provide a shoulder to lean on while he did his own thing. And when she couldn’t– too busy studying for the test on Friday, or so locked into a book she wasn’t checking her phone, all her friends knew how to jimmy open her locked window to get inside.
“Did you want to do something?” she offered, setting the now empty bag off to the side. He’d shuffled over to her side and leaned on her midway through her unloading the bag, and didn’t seem interested in moving any time soon.
He shrugged, shifting anxiously, “Dunno,” he muttered. His hands were wrapping around each other, constantly fidgeting and pulling on the skin, “I feel– bad.”
“Yeah?” she frowned, leaning back against him to match the pressure, “Wanna talk about it?” he shook his head, hair hitting her neck. “Okay, that’s fine. Uhm… we can watch a movie? D’you want me to get you something to eat or drink?”
She waited, patiently, for him to answer. She’d found that, sometimes, William needed a little more time to think through what he wanted to say and get the words out when he was regressed. Even when he wasn’t, both he and Lui tended to stutter and pause while talking, working through their words. She could wait.
“A movie?” he tugged at the sleeves of his thin hoodie, pulling on the frayed strands of torn cuffs, “Pop?”
She cracked a smile. At least he wasn’t feeling so bad that he didn’t want to do anything. She could handle this, “Of course. Why don’t you pick out a movie and I’ll fill you up a drink?” she offered, slowly moving to get off the couch so he had ample time to adjust to the lack of physical touch, “Did you want a bottle or a sippy?”
He made a face, nose scrunching up in embarrassment, then ducked his head so his hair was covering his expression, “Bobba,” he mumbled, “Can I, uh… can I come with?”
“If you want to.” she nodded, grabbing Will’s bottle off the table where she set it with everything else. It was originally a plain clear baby bottle with a black lid, but somewhere down the line her, Isaac, Lui, and William had coated it in stickers to the point it was near impossible to see any liquid inside it.
Behind her, the couch squeaked with the little’s movement. William stumbled to his feet, thumbnail finding its way into his mouth again. When she turned around to take his hand and saw it, she grabbed the equally black and sticker attacked pacifier from the tabletop. The safety shield came off with a quiet snap, and she left it on the table.
“That’s yucky, kiddo,” she reminded, reaching for his hand to pull it from his mouth. A soft whine broke from his throat, until she replaced it with the nub of the pacifier, “You ready to go? You wanna hold my hand?” He nodded, taking the outstretched limb. She could feel how badly he was still shaking, the clamminess of his palm against hers. She didn’t know what happened to get him so worked up, but dangit if she wasn’t going to help him relax.
Going upstairs at night was always a risk, especially when she wasn’t supposed to be there, but Norah had been in the Wisp household when she shouldn’t have been a lot of times in the past, even moreso in the months since the Shtriga. She knew which floorboards creaked, how to open doors without them groaning, and which lights could be turned on safely.
With that knowledge in mind, it was easy to guide her younger friend up the steps and into the kitchen, where only the soft, warm light of a nightlight above the sink lit the room. The curtains had been drawn over the windows, blocking out the moonlight and streetlamps, but once her eyes adjusted she was able to get around with ease.
Will didn’t seem interested in letting go of her hand, so she led him to the fridge, leaving the bottle on the counter so she could pull it open and fish out a thing of pop to fill it with. It was only once she had it all out on the counter before her that she realized she’d need two hands to open the lids.
She pursed her lips, looking to Will. He was still at her side, clammy hand in hers, but his attention was elsewhere, gaze darting around the dark room with tense shoulders. The pacifier in his mouth was at an odd angle, and she got the feeling he was chewing on it more than he should be, “Will,” she prompted, voice quiet, “Think you can help me open these? I need two hands.”
He turned back to her with wide eyes– less frantic now and more nervous, like he was trying to take in as much information as he could– then nodded. They worked quietly, with him steadying the bottles and her twisting the top off, only making noise when Will began giggling at her spilling pop on the counter and hissing out a pseudo-swear.
With the pop bottle returned to the fridge, and his bobba in her hands, the two of them fled back to the basement on gentle feet. He didn’t let go of her until she got them both settled down onto the couch, at which point he curled into her side and reached for the bottle of cold pop.
“Drink it slow, okay?” she reminded him, “If you drink it too fast you’re gonna hurt your stomach.” He nodded seriously, before happily taking it from her. She took the pacifier in exchange, grabbing its sanitary cap off the table to keep it clean, “Did you have anything in particular you wanted to watch?”
Will, with the tip of the bottle in his mouth, hummed. Thankfully, she was expecting that response, and had already been coming up with a list of potential options for him to choose from at the back of her mind.
He needed something simple and cheerful, because if it got too serious then he’d get anxious again, which was the opposite of what either of them wanted. He seemed young– even younger than he usually got when she took care of him. As far as she knew, this was his first time regressing since the Shtriga, so it was to be expected, but still…
The Wisp family had a huge collection of DVDs, and still owned a bunch of things from William’s childhood on their shelves. Norah had spotted new cases appearing on the designated kids movies shelf the last few months, but had chosen not to point it out to William. She didn’t know if his parents knew, or if they’d maybe just heard the group talking about wanting to watch some of those movies and picked them up at the store. Maybe it was Isaac and Lui buying them, even.
She had most of the titles in that collection memorized, so she didn’t have to get up quite yet. William was still clinging to her arm, leaned heavily into her side, so it worked out.
“What about The Muppets?” she suggested, eyeing the tall Walmart brand bookshelves that were full of so many movie cases the shelves had begun to warp. Will’s nose scrunched, and he shook his head, “Dora?” Another head shake. She hummed in thought, “Blue’s Clues?”
She watched him carefully, seeing his jaw working and knowing he was chewing on his bottle, before he pulled it from his mouth to say, “Movie?”
She smiled softly, “Sure,” she agreed, “We can do a movie. What about… Lilo and Stitch? Robots?”
She kept listing movies off the top of her head, both old and new. By the time they settled on Madagascar, Will had been getting poutier and antsy, going from comfortably wedged into her side like he was designed to slot there to peering around the room anxiously.
Norah left him on the couch to grab the DVD and slot it in as quickly as she could, repeatedly glancing back at his curled up form to ensure he wasn’t too scared of being alone. He slotted right back against her once she returned, and the movie started up.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket a few minutes later. With William sufficiently distracted by the colorful pictures on screen and the safe volume of voices, she pulled it out to see Isaac pinging her in the group chat.
3:20am
isAHHHc has come online
isAHHHc: @Norah
isAHHHc: How is he?
Norah has come online
Norah: Better, I think.
Norah: He’s pretty anxious… I think maybe he had a nightmare or something.
Norah: We’re watching Madagascar, and he’s got a bottle of pop. ^^
isAHHHc: Oh good
isAHHHc: Not the anxiety obviously
Norah: Obviously. >,<
isAHHHc: Hes calming down?
Norah peered up from her phone to look at Will. He was enraptured by the screen, and only drew his attention away when she stared for a beat too long, to look back at her with those still wide, childish eyes.
“You’re alright,” she murmured, “Go back to watching, I was just checking.”
He frowned, fidgeting with the bottle he’d taken more to twisting in his hands than drinking from– a good thing, for certain, given that he’d already gotten halfway through it.
Norah: Looks like it.
Norah: I’m hoping he falls asleep during the movie.
isAHHHc: Yeah. Thatd probably b for the best
isAHHHc: U don’t need me to come over? Ur parents will notice if ur gone in the morning right?
Norah: Uhm.
Norah: No, probably not? They don’t like to open my door unless I answer. Hopefully they’ll just… think I’m really invested in a book and wait for me to come out on my own. I left a note on my bed? ^^;
isAHHHc: If u need to b back at a certain time so they dont notice my folks get up early
Norah: Maybe.
Norah: Mine will probably notice that I’m not out of my room by nine or ten.
isAHHHc: Ok. If wills still asleep by then i can come over
Norah: I’ll let you know.
Norah: Thank you.
isAHHHc: No problem :)
isAHHHc: Tell the little guy I said I love him
Norah: I will. Get some sleep.
isAHHHc: Yes maam
isAHHHc has gone offline
She set her phone back at her side, turning to Will again. She was startled to see him peering back at her, unblinking, “Okay?” he asked.
“Yeah! Yeah, Isaac’s a little worried, that’s all,” she soothed, “He says hi, and he loves you.” Blush bloomed over the little’s pale cheeks before he ducked his head, “We looove you,” she teased, reaching over to muss up his hair with a giggle. He whined, swatting her away, but she could see the smile he was trying to hide.
With that, Norah let him return to his movie, leaning her head on his. He didn’t doze off during Madagascar 1. Instead, he finished his pop and traded it back for his pacifier at the start of Madagascar 2, and began to softly snore twenty minutes later.
She repeated the movie once it ended, just to keep the background noise going. She would’ve gotten up to put something else on if she wasn’t sure it’d wake the boy beside her. With a little slow, awkward shuffling she managed to grab the book she’d brought with her from the far end of the coffee table to keep herself occupied and help her block out the noise of repeating voice lines.
She should’ve been sleeping– normally, by that point, her eyes would’ve gotten too heavy to stay open for reading and distracting herself anymore, and she would’ve dragged herself into bed to stare at the ceiling for another half an hour before her brain shut itself down. But with an activity to do, with someone to look after, she kept herself awake.
She didn’t want to sleep, anyways. Not with the dreams that awaited her.
Over the next five hours, Will slept, curled up against her, and she read. Only twice did she have to wake him from a nightmare that had him whining and squirming in his sleep, and much to her relief he’d looked to her both times, then closed his eyes again.
(A quiet whine drew Norah’s attention from the book on apes she was reading. She blinked into the room, now lit only by the light of the TV. At her side, William wiggled like he did when he was restless and couldn’t get comfortable.
She looked down at him, heart twisting at the sight. There were faint tear tracks careening down his cheeks. His face was twisted up in this awful combination of fear and sadness.
“Will,” she whispered, setting her book down so she could reach around and shake his shoulder, “Will, wake up.” With a sharp jolt that had her flinching back, Will’s eyes split wide open with fear, more tears falling. A desperate whine broke from the back of his throat.
She pressed into him a little harder, shoulder to shoulder, hip to hip.
“It’s alright,” Norah soothed, “Just breathe, everything’s fine.” He looked to her with those wide eyes, and she could see the confusion, the childish fear, the innocence behind them, and wondered what exactly he was thinking. What he was dreaming about, “Just breathe.”
He took an exaggerated breath, and with the exhale relaxed his muscles so he was dead weight propped up against her. She watched him until his eyes fluttered closed again and his breathing evened out.)
With the blackout curtains on the basement window closed, it still felt like night by the time the sun was well on its way into the sky and her phone buzzed again. She’d gotten over halfway through her book– it really was quite fascinating. She’d read other books on the topic or similar topics, but this one had plenty of information she’d never heard before– by that point, and Will was still sleeping soundly.
8:01am
isAHHHc has come online
isAHHHc: @Norah
Norah has come online
Norah: Hello. Will’s still sleeping.
Norah: He had a couple nightmares but went right back to sleep after them, thankfully.
isAHHHc: Thats good
isAHHHc: Im heading that way so u have time to walk home ok?
Norah: Okay!
Norah: I heard Mr. and Mrs. Wisp getting up about an hour ago, so you can come in through the front.
Norah: I don’t want to wake him by getting up to unlock the window.
isAHHHc: Wont his parents yell down at him or something?
Norah: Oh.
Norah: Yes, you’re right. Okay, I can unlock the window.
isAHHHc: B there in a few mins
Norah: Okay!
isAHHHc has gone offline
She waited patiently for the quiet tap tap of Isaac’s arrival before she risked moving. She was slow and careful, and froze when Will shifted away from her. She stood there long enough that there was another quiet tap tap on the glass, but all her young friend did was roll over and lean against the back of the couch in her absence.
Norah reached through the curtains to flip the latch, trying to avoid the bright sunlight shining in and beaming right into Will’s eyes like she knew it would. Isaac was crouched on the other side, and he gave her a tired smile when they made eye contact. He still held himself tense and uncomfortable these days, like he was in pain but pushing through it.
“Hi, Isaac,” She said, making space for him to crawl through to the cozy underground room, “How’re you, uhm… how’re you feeling?” His shrug was the same as it always was when she asked that in lieu of a proper greeting these days.
“Fine,” he dismissed, voice as hushed as hers, “You should get going, right?”
She hesitated, “Yeah… Yeah, I should. Uhm, he–” she cut herself off. She didn’t need to prepare anything for Isaac, they were best friends. Their whole group of them knew how to handle Will when he was little. She forced herself to take a breath and not worry– or, at least, not word vomit her worry all over Isaac at eight in the morning, “Let me know how he is when he wakes up?”
“You got it, Nors.”
She nodded, then dragged herself out into the sunshine and up from the window well. Birds were chirping outside, the sun lighting up the streets. Cars were on the streets again, leaving for work or early morning plans. Her parents will be starting breakfast, as they make an effort to do on days they don’t work first shift.
…
William woke slowly. The world came to him in flashes and blurs, quiet sounds trickling in around him. Absently, he acknowledged that it was odd to wake up like this– ever since the shtriga, even before then, when he managed to sleep he would wake up with a start, nightmares still weighing heavy on his chest.
Yet, this time, part of him was more interested in going back to sleep than waking up. He was curled up against somebody, and they were warm, and they had a consistent, deep breathing pattern that was oddly soothing. He wanted to stay here forever.
He blinked his eyes open– they were crusty and dry, like they always were when he slept too hard– and squinted out into the basement. Why was he in the basement? With somebody? Who was he with?
He became aware, with a suddenness that had the grogginess of sleep still clinging to him dissipating in an instant, that there was a pacifier in his mouth. The night before came back to him all at once– memories of being so exhausted and stressed that he’d started regressing alone, in his dark room, and had texted the group chat in a fit of childish fear.
Norah coming over and taking care of him. Finally managing to sleep, and the faded impressions of nightmares that he’d been able to brush off with the comfort of his big sister figure sitting beside him.
Blush bloomed hot on his cheeks, and he spat out the pacifier, watching it topple off his lap and onto the dirty basement floor. Beside him, the person he was leaning on stirred, and he became immediately aware that it wasn’t Norah. Which led him to looking up at Isaac’s face.
“Mornin’, sleeping beauty,” the other teen quipped, grinning, “Sleep well?”
He ducked his head, burying his face in his hands and groaning with embarrassment, “What time is it?” he muttered into the soft fabric pressed against his skin.
“Uhh…” Isaac shuffled around beside him. William heard the quiet click of him unlocking his phone, “Half past eleven. Norah’s–” there was a commotion upstairs, the distinct footsteps of his father and faint talking, “--Upstairs, she had to leave and come back so her parents wouldn’t know she, y’know, snuck out.”
“Right, yeah,” William nodded, fidgeting with his nails, “When, uh, when’d you get here?”
“Little after eight?”
William blinked up at his friend, “You got up that early? …For me?”
Isaac shrugged, like it wasn’t a big deal in the slightest, “Yeah, man, of course.”
The door to the basement swung open slowly, creaking on its hinges. William tensed, eyes darting toward the shadow that was making its way into the basement. Then Norah’s distinct flats came into view and he slumped with relief, “Norah?”
Norah’s feet stopped, then her head bent down to look at him around the ceiling obscuring the top of the stairs, “William, you’re awake!” She bounded the rest of the way down the stairs, and he saw that she was carrying a laundry basket in her hands. There was a bag of chips on top of it, and the black water bottle William always used.
He squinted at her, “Is that my laundry?” he croaked, frowning with confusion, “Why’re you– why do–” he stuttered, failing to come up with the words, “What?”
“Uhm, well,” Norah shuffled on her feet, still holding the basket. Her hands flexed on the handles, knuckles turning white, “You were still sleeping, and just… I know you struggle to do things like this when you’re, y’know, stressed out and having a– a not great time, so… I thought I’d just help out, get it started?” she winced, “Sorry, maybe that’s overstepping, I just–”
“No, no,” he cut her off before she could spiral. The embarrassment of his friends having to come over and take care of him in the middle of the night blended with them knowing that he was struggling, enough that he hadn’t done his laundry in weeks. The clothes he was wearing now he’d been shrugging on for the last few days, because at this point every article of comfortable clothing he had left was dirty, “It’s… fine. Thanks, Norah.”
She lit up, “No problem!”
“She cleaned up the basement, too,” Isaac said, “I wanted to help but, uh,” he gestured vaguely toward William. The youngest jerked back, realizing he was still leaning heavily on his friend like he was a pillow. The reaction brought a laugh out of the older teen, “Yeah. We didn’t wanna wake you. You, uh… you feelin’ any better, though?”
He shifted, awkwardly. Was he? William had never been very good at identifying his own emotions, but… well, he didn’t feel like he was going to shatter into a million pieces or break down crying like he did last night, “...I guess?” he shrugged, “Sorry. And thanks. For coming over.”
Norah returned from the laundry room, bag of chips and water bottle in hand but the laundry basket left behind, “Don’t apologize,” she scolded gently, “We want to help, okay? Whatever you need.” She came around to her armchair, curling up in it.
“Yeah, man. You’d do the same for us.”
William ducked his head, fidgeting with his sleeves, “Right. Uhm. Anyways,” His voice came out as a crackling squeak. He cleared his throat, “Isaac, do, uh, do your parents know you’re here? Do my parents know you’re here?”
He hesitated, “I think so? I mean– my parents know I’m here, they’re always up pretty early, for work and stuff? So I just, like, told my mom on my way out. She seemed okay with it. I came in through the window, though, so…”
“They know,” Norah said, handing over the now opened bag of potato chips– barbeque, his favorite. Did she have to go buy these? His parents stopped buying him junk food like this so it couldn’t’ve been in the cabinet– and his water bottle, full of fresh ice and water by the sounds of it, “They didn’t seem upset, or anything? At least?”
“That’s good.”
“Cool,” William’s voice cracked. He kept his head ducked through the embarrassment. Norah and Isaac struck up a conversation around him, and when he finally felt like he wasn’t going to implode if he thought about the way his friends were helping him, he let himself interject.
They stayed until that evening, a combination of silently enjoying each others company and chatting. Isaac and Norah dragged him out of his unmotivated shell to help him clean up his room and finish the laundry she’d started while he was sleeping, which was nice.
When they finally left, Norah with the wolf printed backpack over her shoulders and Isaac with a tupperware of dinner from William’s mom, they gave him tight hugs and reminded him that they were always there if he needed anything.
He had the best friends, he was sure of it.