Big Brother Soot

• Filler •

"Put the plates on the table, will you?" Will says, handing me three plates and nodding towards the dining room table.

I nod and set the table carefully, making sure each water glass is full and that none of the cutlery is missing. I refill the jug of water and put it in the center of the table before joining Will and Niki in the kitchen again.

"How has school been?" Niki asks, carrying a bowl of veg into the dining room.

"It's been alright," I nod. "Just a bit stressful"

Niki just chuckles. "Yeah, you could never pay me enough to go back to high school"

"I think it would be fun," Will smiles, brushing his hair away from his face. "Anyway, let's sit down and eat before the food gets cold"

"Yeah, fun," I say, widening my eyes at Niki. "Cause you're a nerd"

"Shut up," Will says, making me laugh.

***

After a delightful dinner of good food and better conversation, I help Will and Niki clear the table and then we decide to chill in the living room for a bit. Will makes hot chocolate and opens a bag of mini marshmallows to put on top. Will sprinkles a few into his mug, but I take the bag into the living room knowing I'm going to devour those mushy things of goodness like there's no tomorrow.

Will connects his phone to the speakers in the living room and plays a random playlist for some background noise as Niki and I curl up on the same sofa. The sky outside has turned a dark navy blue and the sound of nearby traffic starts decreasing in volume.

"How's MCC going?" I ask, sipping my hot chocolate.

"Good," Niki nods. "But it's a bit stressful. I never feel good enough and I always feel like I'm letting my team down"

Niki chuckles at the end of the sentence but I know she struggles with streaming MCC. Her chat are all sweet and supportive, however people on Twitter waste no time to dig into the players and share their unwanted opinions. Most of the tweets contain Niki, but I'm not too worried as Minx will fight off any troll that dares to bully her best friend. I always laugh when I see Minx's replies on that app. She truly is a queen and doesn't give a fuck.

"It's okay," I reply. "It's just a game. I feel like people should spend more time having fun than wasting time worrying about wins and status and all that crap"

Niki smiles at me, her eyes glowing from the moonlight shining through the window.

"I know, Soph. It's just hard when the internet are being dicks"

I nod. "I understand"

Will sits down with us and sighs, taking a long sip of his hot chocolate.

"The internet sucks"

"It's your job," I point out.

"So?" Will says, looking at me. "It still sucks. Thank god I have music and the band"

I trace the rim of the mug with my fingers as I listen to Will and Niki chat about the toxicity online and on different platforms. I did seriously contemplate going into content creation a while back as Will had been doing it, but lately, the trolls online have given me many reasons to get a normal job and leave the socials behind. On the other hand, I do love to stream and connect with people and have a creative job and receive a decent income. I'm still stuck on what to do when I leave school, but Will says I don't have to worry about it too much yet. That I still have time to decide. I will say that Niki has inspired me to become a psychiatrist too, but at the same time I don't think I would be good enough for the job.

"Sophie?"

I shake myself from my thoughts and see Will and Niki staring at me. I feel embarrassment flood my body.

"Yeah?"

"You alright?" Will chuckles. "You just zoned out there"

"Sorry," I sigh, smiling brightly. "Just tired"

Will checks his watch and Niki checks her phone.

"Damn, it's getting late," Niki says, shaking her head. "I didn't realize. I should probably go soon"

"You can stay over if you don't want to drive home," Will says, looking at Niki as he props himself on his elbows.

"I have a sponsored stream to do tomorrow quite early so I really do need to get home. I promise you guys can come over soon and we'll have a proper movie night," Niki smiles, nudging me. "How does that sound?"

"That sounds great," I grin.

Niki stands up and offers to wash the mugs but Will hears nothing of it and takes all three of them himself into the kitchen. Niki rolls his eyes.

"Your brother never lets anyone do anything for him"

"He is pretty stubborn," I shrug with a nod.

Niki looks at me before giving me a big hug. I hug her back, enjoying the feeling of being in her arms. She's just my comfort person to be honest.

"It was really nice to see you," Niki says, stroking my hair. "I know it's been hard, but I'm very proud of you"

"Aww," I mumble, hugging her tighter. "Thanks, Niki. You're the best"

We pull away from each other as Will exits the kitchen. He pulls on his coat, fixes the glasses on his nose and opens the front door for Niki. Niki gives me one last hug and then squeezes me before letting go.

"You don't have to walk me out," Niki says, looking at Will.

"Nonsense," Will replies firmly. "I'll walk you to your car. You can never trust the streets this late at night"

Niki nods and steps out into the street. Will turns to me and puts his hand on my shoulder, making me look at him.

"Don't open the door to anyone, okay? I'll be back in a sec"

I nod. "Alright"

The two of them disappear into the dark street and I shut the door behind them, cutting off the waves of cold air that enter the house. I walk back into the kitchen and break off a few pieces of chocolate from the chocolate bar I've stored in the cupboard. I pop a cube in my mouth and let the chocolate melt on my tongue as I suddenly get a hankering for tea.

I switch on the kettle and prepare a mug with a tea bag in it. When the water is done, I pour it over the tea bag and toss in a teaspoon of sugar. I leave out the milk as I remember the last time I had milk. I vomited everywhere and now milk won't sit right with me.

I take out the tea bag and toss it in the bin. I take my mug by the handle and walk upstairs to my bedroom. I contemplate getting back on Minecraft with Tommy, but then decide to watch some YouTube and relax for the evening as I've already spent enough time glued to my pc.

After brushing my teeth, changing and taking off my makeup, I get into bed and get comfy.

***

A knock on my door makes my eyes fly open and I see Will in my doorway, leaning against the doorframe.

"Hey, sleepyhead"

"Hey," I yawn, sitting up.

I don't remember falling asleep, but the steam rising from my mug of tea on my bedside table tells me I haven't been asleep for long. I rub my eyes and see my laptop shut off and blinking red on my fluffy blanket.

"Sorry, if I woke you," Will chuckles, walking towards my bed. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm back"

"It's fine," I yawn again.

"Alright, well shut your eyes again," Will says, pulling the duvet over me and putting my laptop on the floor. "It's late and you need sleep"

I snuggle down and smile when Will kisses the top of my head. He ruffles my hair lightly and turns off my lamp, eliminating the light from the room.

"Goodnight. I love you"

"I love you too, Will. Goodnight"

***