STATIC → newt , tmr [EDITING ; VERY SLOW UPDATES]

chapter v

Tiago opened the front pocket of his backpack to pull out the necklace he'd stashed in there. He dangled it on front of his face for a few seconds, watching it swing back and forth, before he clutched the pendant and held it to his mouth. He started whispering in Italian, small things that he wanted to tell his parents and sister who he knew were watching over him. The necklace was the only thing he had left of his sister's, and Tiago made sure to treasure it dearly. He used to pray with the necklace, when he was younger, but he grew out of his Christian faith as he got older and experienced the harshness the world had to offer. Now he just used the necklace as something to connect him to his family.

Tiago was so immersed in talking that he didn't notice someone coming down the stairs until they were at the bottom. He stopped immediately, looking up to find Newt standing there, his arms folded across his chest and eyebrows raised.

"Still don't need help, or were you planning to just stay here until Jorge and Teresa get here?"

Tiago didn't miss the smugness in his voice; Newt clearly liked being right. Tiago was stubborn enough to ignore him. He closed his eyes again, wincing when his leg twitched, and muttered a quick goodbye to his family. He turned his hand, kissed the back of it, then shoved the necklace back into his backpack.

"What language was that?" Newt asked, his voice significantly softer than before.

"Why do you care so much?" Tiago asked, finally looking up at him.

Newt shrugged. "I don't, just wondering."

Tiago narrowed his eyes. Newt was confusing him. He suddenly remembered how Newt had helped him while Jorge was removing the glass from his leg, and his face fell into something softer. He cleared his throat, wanting to get this over with as fast as possible.

"Thank you," he muttered, "for, uh ... for distracting me before."

Newt furrowed his brows for a few moments, seeming confused at Tiago's sudden apology. Tiago sighed at the thought of having to relive the memory, until Newt let out a small huff of amusement.

"Oh, when Jorge was performing an emergency surgery?"

Tiago shook his head, his own quiet laughter escaping him. "Yeah, that."

Newt shrugged. "No problem. I've been told I, uh, have a knack for calming people down. I was known as the mediator when we―" He cut himself off, a frown overtaking his features. "Yeah, everyone calls me the mediator."

They were silent for a few moments. Tiago made an uncomfortable face, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth, before deciding he should get up. He struggled for a few moments, using the wall as support and trying not to put too much pressure on his injured leg. He managed to lean against the wall, eyes closed as he felt fatigue spin his mind. When he tried to push off the wall towards the next flight of stairs, he misjudged the weight on his bad leg and stumbled forward slightly. He reached an arm out to grab onto the railing, but he hit a solid body before he could. Tiago grunted at the impact before glancing up, locking eyes with Newt, who looked worried.

"Alright?" the blond said quietly, his hands on Tiago's arms. Tiago nodded, using Newt as support to stand upright again. "Need help now?"

Tiago let out a breath, shaking his head. He clicked his tongue. "You're impossible, y'know that?"

Newt shrugged, a small smile overtaking his features. "I've been told." He didn't let go of Tiago's arm, moving to stand beside him. He let Tiago lean against him, wrapping an arm around the older boy's waist to help some more. "Good?"

Tiago nodded, wincing slightly when they ascended a few steps. "Hurts like a bitch."

"Maybe you should've let me help in the first place."

"Shut up."

― ➶ ―

ahhhh this chapter took so long, and it's mainly filler :( i worked on this like 5 separate times, and i managed to write half the chapter just today, which explains the lack of motivation i had. and even today, i started at about 11:30am and it's now 2:30pm, so 4 hours just to write 1,000 words D:

i'm sorry this took so long. i was incredibly unmotivated, all my friends moved away for university, i'm kinda struggling in a long distance relationship, i had a week-long trip away from home and didn't have my laptop, so there were a lot of factors that prohibited me from updating.

once again, i'm super sorry, but i hope you enjoyed!! this was all just filler material, and it was incredibly boring, but hey, there was a cute little bit of newtiago fluff at the end there to make up for it. anyway, don't be shy, tell me what you think in the comments!! i'm so happy that people actually read this story lol, it took a lot to convince myself to actually publish it and i love it so much. we'll get back to the action next chapter, because that's when we meet up with thomas and brenda again, so look forward to it!

don't forget to wear a mask (if it's required where you live) and continue to keep yourself and others safe in the pandemic !!