Still Searching

Do You Remember it Like Me?

Phil has just finished his morning routine and is making breakfast. One of the better mornings he's had since Tommy was kidnapped. He wants to say it's because of the good weather. That he's forgotten the monster upstairs and his boys are still sleeping. But he knows it's because Techno didn't seem like a monster yesterday. He won't admit that. Because if he does, he'll be tricked soon after in some way or another. On that note though, he had to get his boys up. So he makes his way upstairs and knocks on Tommy's door first.

"Hey starling," he says softly. He creaks open the door. At first he sees nothing out of the ordinary, just Tommy changing into another shirt. But then he swings the door open along with his mouth. There's something carved into Tommy's back. "Tommy!" Tommy turns around with wide eyes.

"Oh hey dad, what's up?" He gives his normal toothy grin. What is wrong with him? Doesn't that mark hurt? Why didn't he say anything about it? Then Phil's questions became anger.

Techno, he thinks. His brows furrow and he marches out of the room. Slamming Techno's door open with Tommy at his heels asking what's wrong. Techno wakes from the loud noise with eyes half open. Then Phil grabs his shirt which wakes Techno quite a bit.

"You marked Tommy!" Phil's teeth shot pain into his head from the pressure from his jaw.

"What are you talking about!" Techno shouts back. Wilbur then walks into the room. Seeing Phil attacking Techno and Tommy trying to stop him.

"What's going on?" He asks and steps next to Phil. He places a hand on his back instead of pulling.

"He carved something on Tommy's back!"

"What! N-no I didn't!"

"Don't lie!"

"I don't have a mark on my back!" Tommy adds. They all stop and look at him.

"I saw it."

"Fine, let me show you." Tommy lifts up his shirt and turns his back to them. He glances over his shoulder and sure enough there is something on his back. "Wait what?"

"I told you."

"W-what, no, I didn't do that. That doesn't even look human." Techno stands up and Tommy fully takes off his shirt. "Did someone touch you while I wasn't guarding you?" He stands behind Tommy. The mark pulses for a moment.

"Other than the beatings, no." Tommy lifts an eyebrow. The said carving wasn't like a dagger tearing through the skin. It is thin light blue lines, it covers most of his back. In the middle of it is a heart with wings on the side. On the side of the wings are vines with leaves. "Could it have been through the experiments?" He searches for an answer from Techno. It makes Phil more than a little jealous. He should be looking to Phil for guidance, not a stranger.

"No, the experiments were blood work. Unless you guys react differently to it." Techno's expression is conflicted. It almost makes Phil want to believe him but it is just so easy to blame this on him. He is, after all, human. Phil glares some more and then picks Tommy's shirt up. He hands it to him.

"Put it on, we're going to the clinic to check it out."

"Wait, what? You can't do that. What if that traces back to Techno?" Wilbur steps forward.

"I. Don't. Care." Phil says, staring right at Techno. Tommy and Wilbur become silent and wilt. Phil grabs Tommy and Wilbur's wrist once Tommy puts his shirt back on.

"Are we just leaving Techno here?" Tommy asks.

"We can't take him into town." Wilbur adds. At one point Phil lets go of their wrist and they stay silent the rest of the trip until they enter the clinic. Since the town was small and hardly anyone got injured they were able to get seen by a doctor almost immediately. Phil has to fill some papers but they are soon all led into a smaller room. The room has a desk, a medical bed, some counters, and is full of color. Each wall a different color and posters cover the wall. Wilbur takes the one seat, Tommy sits on the medical bed, Phil, and the doctor stand.