Let Me Help | Tyrus (complete!)

Wait, what?

TJ and his friends Reed and Lester stood dauntingly at the end of the hall. Their height and clothes breathed power. People walking down the hall didn't dare look them in the eye.Reed, the fluffier blond, laughed with a cocked head and an air of superiority in his eye. He must have said something funny, because both Lester, the airy brunette, and TJ, the stiffer blond smiled their own ways. Lester, with a wide grin and bellowing laugh, and TJ with a grin that didn't reach his eyes.

"I wonder what they're talking about?" said Cyrus, a smaller boy, to his friends Andi and Buffy.

Andi gave a concerned furrow of their brows while Buffy scoffed and said, "Why? They're mean and bullies. Don't you dare try to fix them like you did with Amber!"

Andi looked away, their hair slightly hanging in front of their forehead, and mumbled: "I don't know what Amber has to do with this..."

"What do you mean? Amber has everything to do with this! Just because you two are a thing doesn't mean she completely left behind her mean gene. Amber and TJ are still twins you know!" Said Buffy, suddenly feeling like both of her friends were turning against her.

"Buffy, I thought you weren't mad at them anymore? TJ apologized for the gun thing, he turned them in" said Cyrus.

"Yeah? Then why is he still talking to them? They put you in danger Cyrus!" Buffy leaned against her locker and sighed heavily, Andi solemnly nodded in agreement.

"Yeah Cyrus, if he really cared about your safety he wouldn't have put you in that situation in the first place and he definitely wouldn't be talking to Rester right now," said Andi.

"Rester?" asked Cyrus. Was this a new slang word he didn't know? He thought Marty had caught him up, but these kids come up with new words every day.

Andi gave a quick chuckle, "That's what Amber and I call Reed and Lester," they leaned in and whispered "We think they're together"

"Oh don't be ridiculous" Buffy rolled her eyes. Cyrus giggled. He thought about how he had come out to Andi and Buffy quietly over facetime last month. They had become more protective than usual after finding out that TJ took him to 'play with death' as Buffy had put it. Andi had come out too, 'Guys, I don't really think I'm a girl or a boy' they had said 'I kinda just feel like Andi. Does that make sense?' It didn't at the time, but after a long facetime session and lots of google searches, they helped Andi realize that they were gender neutral. 'They,' they had smiled, 'that sounds right.'

Just then, Amber appeared next to Andi and kissed them on the cheek. "Hello artsy fartsy, I like your new hat" Andi visibly turned two shades redder and turned slightly, their handmade flower crown now in Amber's hands. They smiled at each other.

Buffy groaned and covered her eyes "UGhhhhh get a ROOM" Cyrus tapped her on the arm, "Don't be mean" he said.

"Andi, we should go, remember that thing?" said Amber. 

"That thing?" Andi tilted her head a bit, Amber shot up her eyebrows, "Oh! Yes, that thing we have to go to right now" Amber said as she pulled Andi away. They were off before saying another word, a blur of blonde hair and flowers.

Buffy rolled her eyes, Cyrus knew she was jealous but he wasn't going to say anything about it. He knew she had Marty to vent to.

"Well," Buffy said, "I should get going too, my mom is picking me up soon and I don't want to keep her waiting.

"Yea, okay" Cyrus half grinned and saw her walk down the hall past TJ, who gave her an apologetic look. He could half see the angry fire in Buffy's eyes. Cyrus walked towards his locker, only a couple down from Buffy's and a little closer to TJ. As soon as he saw Buffy step into her mom's car, TJ made his way over to Cyrus' locker. Cyrus pretended not to notice how he didn't say bye to Rester and how Rester didn't seem to care.

TJ, with his rolled-up sleeves and gelled hair, leaned against the locker next to Cyrus' and smiled at him.

"What?" Cyrus smiled.

"Nothing," TJ said.

"Buffy and Andi are still mad at you" Cyrus slowly looked up from his locker and gave a shy smile. Cyrus felt his heart pick up speed. 

"Yeah, I figured that look she just gave me wasn't one of friendship" TJ joked, letting his head rest against a locker, exposing his neck and collarbone. Cyrus swore he didn't let his eyes linger. He really didn't look.

"Um," Cyrus looked back towards his now empty locker and closed it softly, he hated the crashing sound. "You looked mean over there, it's hard to remember that you're nice now."

TJ stood up straight and frowned, "You thought I was mean?"

"It's easy to think you're mean when you hang out with Rester," Cyrus said, looking him in the eyes, the eyes he swore never made him feel butterflies.

"Rester?" TJ chuckled. Cyrus didn't laugh. He wanted TJ to explain why he was hanging out with them after everything they've been through.

"Look it's hard not being friends after such a long time, but I swear it was nothing serious. They kicked me out of the group chat." TJ slightly kicked the ground and crossed his arms, "Old habits die hard I guess, I'll stop hanging out with them."

"Tell that to Buffy"

"Maybe I will," TJ said.

"You should"

"I will"

"Promise?" Cyrus said.

"Sure underdog, promise." TJ looked particularly rigid that day, Cyrus thought it was all of the hair gel. 

"Pinky Promise?" Cyrus held out his left pinky.

TJ lovingly rolled his eyes "Yes Cyrus I pinky promise" They shook pinkys. TJ didn't understand why his stomach suddenly felt like a hurricane. He didn't understand why he lingered on the feeling of Cyrus' soft skin.

"You can't break a pinky promise. If you do, I can't guarantee your safety" Cyrus grinned. TJ wondered if he really saw Cyrus' nose turn pink or if it was his imagination.

"I won't. I promise," TJ said. Cyrus then heard his phone buzz, it was a text from his dad telling him he was outside.

Cyrus locked his locker and said, "I'm sorry TJ. I wish we could keep talking about your mortality, but I have to go. I'll text you later okay?" Cyrus walked away, looking back before heading out the front doors.

TJ stood there a moment later, the hallway was deserted, he always did seem to be the last one there. Reed and Lester had left, and so had the rest of Jefferson Middle and High School. A stupid idea came into his head, he laughed softly to himself but took out a pen and a piece of paper anyway. He wrote down, "I'm afraid of losing you" and closed his eyes before quickly slipping it into Cyrus' locker and running towards the back door. TJ bumped into a boy about his age, quickly said sorry and walked slower out the door. Jonah Beck seemed disheveled from the encounter, he thought he saw TJ put something in one of his friend's locker, but which one?

//////Authors note/////

Thank you for reading! feel free to follow me on tumblr @/frisbee-camp !! you're in for a wild ride with this fic wow, keep reading! ps i wrote this durning that freaking twenty year old hiatus we had so some of the plot points aren't canon obvi lmao uh HAPPY REEDING! (get it? because of reed? heh,..)