Broken String

LIII

"Hey, good morning."
Todd has just walked out their bedroom when he runs into Brett, who is coming out of Eddy's room in his grey chequered PJ's with a serious case of bed head.
"Good morning." he replies. "Did you help him up?"
Brett looks back towards the room, then blinks quickly.
"Oh. Um, no. He's still asleep. I thought maybe he wants to come along to the con. I'll check again in a bit."
It hits Todd at once, even though Brett has clearly carefully worded that to sound like he was only in there to check on him. That blink, that glance to the door.
Wait. 
"You slept there?"
The words leave his mouth before he can stop them, before he can tell his brain that maybe they're not the right ones to say, because Brett cringes and backs away slightly.
"Um, yeah. Just... you know. To help out." 
Todd manages with superhuman effort to keep his eyebrows in place. Wait. He's slept there? The whole night? I mean, those boys have shared a bed five million times of course, but never when Brett's bed has been just three metres away.
Is Eddy that bad? Or... 
He almost giggles at the thought. No way. No, no way.
Right? No way?
He realises he's been staring at Brett for way too long, because he is there in front of him shuffling from foot to foot, looking ridiculously awkward.
"That's real nice of you, Brett." Todd manages to tell him in his normal tone. "I hope... I hope he's okay?"
Brett shrugs.
"He isn't. But then who would be?"
"True. God knows I wouldn't be okay. Shit, bro. The guy is being a trooper if you ask me."
Because he has been. Eddy has been upbeat through everything he's been through this past week, he's made jokes, he's gone out to pizza with them, he seems to be carrying on living despite it all. Todd is not sure if he would have the strength to do that. But surely there is more to that than meets the eye? And Brett knows more about it too, he can see that clearly in his large, sombre eyes. He knows him well enough to know he won't share it with him, though.
"He is." Brett says quietly. "I'm... yeah. I'm in awe of him."

Another fight to keep the eyebrows where they belong. When has Brett ever said anything remotely like that? 
"Yeah, me too." he says quickly. Okay, so clearly he needs to give him an out and soon, because he's never seen Brett looking more awkward than this, and he has no idea how long he can keep his own eyebrows from flying to the ceiling and making it all more ridiculous than it already is. Look, if it helps Eddy that Brett sleeps there, who is he to judge that anyway?
"So, I'll make scrambled eggs and bacon, you want?" he says, the out an invitation on a silver platter, then watches as the relief pools on Brett's face at his closing of the subject. 
"You're going to get us all fat, Todd." 
Todd grins. 
"I'll stop if you get too much of a paunch, Bretty Bang. See you in a second."

He's lost in thought as he walks to the kitchen and turns on the grill automatically, then opens the packet of bacon and arranges the slices neatly on the oven tray. He throws it in the oven and starts cracking eggs into a bowl, whisking them brusquely before his thoughts have a chance to spiral out of control. Because what the hell is going on with his friends? And what can he do to make any of it any easier?