The Lemon Meringue Boy

Part 26

 I assumed my position next to Bill and let him take the lead. It was awkward walking by his side. Normally when I talked to him I instinctively kneeled down or sat, but now that we were walking his minuscule stature was made very clear. 

We continued in silence for a while, listening to the birds. At least I was. I didn't know what he was thinking about. Probably something weird or violent. That's what I always imagine. Eventually we came to a clearing. Bill went to the center and sat down with his eye closed. I sat on a log near the edge of the patch.

"This is the place. Gideon summoned me right here. It wasn't that long ago. I was so ready. Optimistic. I was almost free." I didn't know what to say to that, so I settled on nothing. I didn't expect what he said next; "I've never seen it in color. It's pretty." That was the first time I'd ever heard Bill Cipher say "pretty".

"Yeah. It is." What else was I going to say? I got off the log and sat down next to him. "Do you come here often?" As soon as the words were out of my mouth I regretted it. Bill looked at me with a puzzled face. His eye glinted with unsure amusement.

"Um...Excuse me?"

"I meant like, in the mindscape. Do you ever come visit this place?" I corrected myself quickly. I was praying he didn't get the wrong idea. Don't make it weird don't make it weird don't make it weird! I should've known. This was Bill Cipher. He was gonna make it weird.

"You flirting Pine Tree?" My heart skipped a beat and my eyes darted to him. I could tell that if he had a mouth he would be smirking up a storm. That's when I punched him. HARD. In the eye. He fell over and burst out laughing.

 "You punch like a girl!" he opened his eye. It was watery and puffy and red. I thought about asking if he was okay, but he didn't seem that upset. In fact, he seemed downright hysterical. 

"Oh god, should've seen your FACE! Priceless!" He rolled around on the ground a while longer, his face damp from his watery eye, until his bout of laughter died down. He wiped tears from his eye. Unlike his cosmic tears, these were just water. He looked back up at me, saw my face (scrunched up from embarrassment and anger), and went back into his fit.

"Are you almost finished?"

"Heh. Yeah. Okay yeah." He was panting heavily from the exertion. I remembered that he never had to deal with that before, because he never had to breathe before. 

"The answer to your, heh, question by the way, is yes. I mean, I didn't have much free time between my summoning and my escape but what time I did have I spent in places that the most important stuff happened. Like that weird red room where we made our deal? I've been there quite a few times. Good times, right?" I couldn't believe he brought that up. I glared at him.

"Definitely! I mean, if permanent fork scars up my arm are a sign of a good time I had an absolute BLAST. Now that I think about it, that was the most fun I've ever had watching you destroy my body. In fact, I wish you never left!" Bill flinched at my sarcasm.

"Geesh kid! Okay, so maybe we have some difference of opinion. Personally, I had a great time. To each his own." I had to keep myself from punching him again.

"Mabel saw that note you know. The one about throwing me off the water tower. You're one messed up son of a brick."

"Eh. Tell me something I don't know. I embrace it." Somehow I thought Bill had changed, even just some, but hearing him then I realized just how stupid of me that was.

"Why do you hate me?" to my surprise, tears started to well behind my eyes. Bill seemed just as uncomfortable about my sudden shift of emotions as I was, but he seemed to have no problem coming up with a list.

"Let's see... you're just like Ford but smarter... you've gotten in the way of my plans more than once... you're stubborn... Worst of all, you're clever and caring and sickeningly heroic. That's just a few things." I was taken aback by his answer.

"Bill, those all sound like... compliments." He looked at me funny and seemed to think back over what he said.

"I guess to you they might. They're pretty annoying to a guy who wants to wipe out your entire race." I was astonished. Was Bill really saying that he hated me because I was too likable? We sat in silence for a while.

"So what am I going to do with you?" Bill looked slightly offended.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, now you're here for who knows how long. You don't have any powers. I can't tell anybody about you. Your name is mud to this town. Did you know that they outlawed the baby name William in the entire state of Oregon? What comes next?" Bill actually thought about it seriously, which for some reason I wasn't expecting.

"Listen up fleshbag, 'cause you're not gonna hear this often; I seriously don't know. If I were you I'd probably just kill me on the spot, but something tells me you have some kind of moral against that." I guiltily thought back on my resolve earlier that day. At least this means that Bill...approves? I seriously couldn't tell. If only he knew. 

"All I know is that I don't want to be here and I don't want to be in the void and I don't want to do nothing, but that's most likely a problem. Take your pick."

"So that's it? You're just... leaving it to me?"

"I'm not happy with any of my options anymore, so why would it matter?" He was avoiding eye contact, staring straight ahead. It creeped me out. This seemed like the Bill equivalent of being suicidal. But that was good right? It meant I could carry out my plan without a guilty conscience. Right? Right. 

Without a word I got up and motioned for Bill to follow. He didn't seem like he was in much of a talking mood either. We walked in silence, like we had some unspoken agreement to leave each other be. We eventually got to the tree and Bill put up no fight when I clipped him in. It wasn't right. But it was easy. I had a feeling it wasn't just the leash that I was referring to. 

Without looking back, I left the tree. Without looking back, I left the woods. Without looking back, I left Bill.