Freak (Troyler AU)

Chapter Sixty-Four

*Troye's POV*

"Troye? Tyler's downstairs, what are you doing?" I'd been expecting someone to come up for a while now, surprised that it took as long as it did. It's been nearly half an hour since Tyler got here, you'd think they'd either send me down or send him up as soon as he got here. What was he even doing down there? Helping my mother bake? 

"Just doing my hair!" I called, trying my best to sound cheery despite my current state. Apparently he bought it, considering his casual response. I wasn't surprised, I'd been faking happiness for years and they believed it. Well, maybe they didn't believe it, but they didn't ask questions either.

"Well hurry up, aren't you worried about Sage saying something to him and messing everything up? You always seem to be." He laughed after he spoke, walking away from my closed door, thankfully without opening it. Had he opened it, he would have known what I said was a lie. I finished my hair hours ago, along with choosing my outfit and basically every little detail I could ever worry about. I mean, with my sporadic sleep schedule lately, I didn't even bother trying to fall back into a peaceful slumber after waking up from a nightmare at 5am.

It was the first one I'd had in months, getting a full night's sleep something I'd started to take for granted. However, after waking up covered in sweat with my heart racing in the worst way possible, I made a mental note to appreciate every single night I went without one. It was similar to the ones I'd always had, mostly about accidentally exposing my secret and having everyone completely shun me. Sometimes they even went to the extent I got sent away to some type of weird experimenting facility so they could 'research' it. It didn't take that path tonight, yet I'd still found myself even more upset when I woke up. I think because it was Tyler it all seemed more serious, especially given our current situation. All that happened was me accidentally replying to his thoughts out loud, but his over-dramatic hateful reaction to learning my secret had been the part I couldn't stand. I couldn't even stomach the thought of Tyler hating me like that, hence the unsettled feeling I'd had in the pit of my stomach all day.

That was why I answered the phone when he called, despite my better judgment. I'd been ignoring him for a few days now, mostly to sort my own thoughts out and try to figure out a way to get rid of the awkwardness that had fallen over us. I didn't want to do something stupid and mess it up even worse, so I figured ignoring him and not saying anything at all would be better. I could just tell him I'd been busy and put off speaking until I knew exactly what to say. Except now he was waiting downstairs, and I was out of time, yet I had no idea what I was going to do.

"It's not like she could mess it up any worse than I already have." I muttered under my breath, remembering what my father had last said before leaving. I was sat on my bed leaning against the headboard, hugging my knees tight to my chest as I looked over at the door, knowing I should get up and head downstairs before they start to really wonder what's keeping me. 

Despite my decision to head downstairs I still found myself dragging my feet slightly, not overly excited to see how things would be around Tyler now. Of course I missed him, how could I not? He was literally all I could think about these last few days, the urge to just give in and contact him unrelenting and insisting. But I missed the him I was used to, the one I could be casual with and not worry about over-thinking everything I said. I couldn't be sure, but after his passive aggressive tone on the phone earlier, I doubted the Tyler waiting for me downstairs was that Tyler.

I was halfway down the stairs when I saw him for the first time, only the back of his head considering he was sitting on the couch facing opposite me. He didn't look up to greet me, but I tried not to read too much into it, instead just taking advantage of the moment to study his faded hair. I'd told him once before I liked it best vibrant just after he dyed it, but honestly I always liked it. He could pull off anything really.