Tommy had barely any clue on how he got here. He remembered his father calling him in for a lecture. His brothers were there as well. The lecture turned into a screaming match, Tommy vs the other 4. Then he remembered running up stairs, slamming his door, locking it, and leaving. He had slipped out the window and ran.
And now he's halfway across town in the parking lot of a Seven Eleven which is open 24/7. He sits outside on the curb, right in front of the store. He was too tired to actually go inside, and he wasn't all that positive he had grabbed his wallet. He sat there, shivering (he had been being dumb and didn't grab his coat), the tear stains on his cheeks making the wind biting cold against his face. He's lost in thought, spiralling, trying to find out how today had gone from okay/meh, to absolutely terrible.
Maybe he shouldn't have skipped 4th Period Math to have a panic attack in a bathroom stall. He was going to go, honestly. But then the panic settled in, and his anxiety roared at him. Plus, it was test day. And he just... had a panic attack for the rest of the period, before continuing on with the rest of his day. It was all fine until he got home, and Phil wanted to have a 'friendly chat' with him, which somehow involved all of his brothers.
He's snapped back to reality when a pair of headlights enter the parking lot. 3 other pairs follow, and Tommy freezes. Connected to headlights are cars, and cars can't operate without people. He really doesn't feel like interacting with his 'friends' who are really just his brother's friends who bully him, even when they are there. I mean, his brother's hardcore bully him as well, so, it didn't even matter, did it?
A giant truck is pulled up, the car sitting sideways in the parking spots. In the back sits a few teens, but sitting shotgun is a female, around his age if he was guessing right.
"Hey, child, what's wrong with you?" The female asks after her window is rolled down, hanging her arm out the window. (He bristles slightly at the nickname, it reminds him too much of his siblings, who would relentlessly call him child).
Her hair is blond, with a light blue ombre, cut short, just a bit past her shoulder. Her eyes are a brilliant green, and shine. On her wrist there are bracelets, upon bracelets, upon bracelets. They seem to full up her whole arm, almost all the way up to her shoulder. Even though it's spring (school just ended today, and it was summer break) it's cold as fuck outside, but she wears a green tank top, and a crop top jacket with barely any fluff that seems warm.
Even with how absolutely horrible he looks, he huffs in annoyance and amusement. "I'm not a child, and nothing's wrong." He replies, adding in an eye roll for affect. None of them seem to believe that, especially the girl, who raises a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. He can sense the other people from the other cars are watching, waiting to see what happens.
"You are definitely a child, child, and something is definitely wrong. We come here almost every single day around this time, and this is the first time you've ever been here. Plus, it looks as if you've been crying, which means someone fucked with you. We either want a name, or we want to know what's wrong. Your choice." The girl replies.
Tommy laughs. "You barely even know me, woman. Besides, it's something I should be used to by now. I just overreacted."
The door swings open, and another girl climbs over the blond to stand in front of him. She has long wavy brown hair, and horns curling out of her head. Her eyes are a dark, chocolatey brown, and seem full of wisdom, even though she looks the same age as him. She wears a deep green crop top, and jean booty shorts over fishnet leggings. Her shoes are normal Converse, which match the other female's now that he can see her whole body.
The blond female wears ripped jeans with her lime green tank top, and a belt that is full of pouches and other things. For storage or some shit.
She leans down, and grabs his face, gently. He shivers after a small flinch, which she frowns at. She pulls out a wipe from her pocket, and gently wipes his face. It helps get rid of the tear marks, and makes his face feel a whole lot better. After that, she cups his face with both of her hands, and she seems to stare into his soul.
She pulls back after a minute, offering a hand. "Come on, let's go get ice cream." She says with a nice smile.
Tommy raises an eyebrow, but takes her hand all the same. She pushes the blond female over, shoves him inside, and then gets into the back of the truck. He finally notices the driver. He has short blond hair with lime highlights, brilliant green eyes to match the blond female's, and a span of freckles across his face. His teeth are pearly white as he flashes a smile, but Tommy doesn't mind that, they are different than his brother's are. He wears a Football letterman jacket for the same school as his brother's go to (he's 14, and is going to high school next year, after this summer). He wears jeans as well, and a singular ear is pierced twice, one a normal tiny silver ball earring, and the other a cross with tiny silver gems.
He starts to drive, not even caring as all 3 of them aren't buckled.
"I'm Clay, but everyone calls me Dream! That's my sister, Drista, on your left! Lani is my other sister, she's the one that helped you clean up your face a bit! In the back, which I'm sure you saw, are George, the brunette with the white clout goggles, Sapnap, with the white headband and slight glow to him, Karl the brunette with the colorful color palette, and Ranboo, with the half and half face, and leather wings! You can meet everyone else after we go raid Dairy Queen for it's ice cream!" The lime green guy, Dream, introduces everyone in this car.
"Okay, big man." Tommy replies, which sends Drista into a fit of giggles, and Dream into a wheeze type of laughter.
"You're funny, child." She says, giving him a light punch on the shoulder.
"Seriously, can you drop that?" He asks quietly, looking into her eyes for the first time tonight. She must see something in Tommy's eyes, for she nods.
"Alright, but don't forget, I am the alpha male!"
This time, Tommy laughs, and Drista counts it as a tiny victory.
Everyone in their friend group knew who Tommy was. How wouldn't they? He was the youngest brother of Technoblade and Wilbur Soot, their sworn enemies. Along with Tubbo Underscore, Fundy Live, 5up Archive, Jack Manifold, Niki Nohachu, Sally Salmon, Jschlatt, Minx Justa, Sheep S, Connor EP, Charlie Slime, Squid K, and a lot of others they didn't care about. Tommy was barely ever seen anywhere besides with them, or alone causing chaos. They all bullied him as well, which concerned them.
All in all, they've been concerned for the younger boy. And finding him outside one of their favorite hanging spots, looking like he's been crying, in nothing but a shirt and shorts, they decided enough was enough. So, they are taking him to get ice cream, and introduce him to the others. If all goes to plan, they'll have a new friend (dare they think a brother).
When they arrive at the Dairy Queen's, Drista shoves Tommy out of the truck (as soon as it is safe to do so), which elicits a curse from the blond. He glares at Drista, but there's no malice behind his eyes. More like... silent acceptance.
Good...
"Tommy, come here!" Dream exclaims from the other side of the parking lot, and the younger blond obeys. He walks over, and when he's close enough, he feels Dream sling his arm over his shoulder. He doesn't like it, per say, but he doesn't mind it like he does when his siblings or his 'friends' do it.
"Okay, Tommy, meet Skeppy, Badboyhalo, Quackity, Purpled, Punz, Foolish, Corpse, Sykkuno, Rae, and Toast. Guys, this is Tommy." Dream introduces them.
Tommy nods at the group of 10. "Hello." He replies with a small smile.
"Dre! Hurry up! We need ice cream, stat!" Sapnap calls impatiently, waiting with the others in front of the door.
Dream chuckles. "Come on guys." He says, and together they meet with the others and walk inside.
Dairy Queen's is empty besides the workers. It is already midnight, and Dairy Queen's is open 24/7. The group bounds up to the counter, and split into smaller groups of who is paying for who. Sapnap, George, Quackity, and Karl are paying together, Dream is paying for Ranboo, Drista, Lani, and Tommy, Bad and Skeppy are pooling in with Punz and Purpled, as not to cause too much of a fuss. Together, they end up ordering enough ice cream to feed a small army. None of them mind though, one of the adults in their life (the Wastaken family's mom, Puffy) taught them the joy of ice cream, and how it can make everything better.
While everyone else goes out, ordering at least 2 things, Tommy only orders a medium Butterfingers Blizzard. Dream frowns at that, but stays silent. With a few disapproving looks, they shove a few tables together, until they can all sit at one pseudo table. Tommy ends up between Drista and Ranboo, but he doesn't seem to mind. Laughter, jokes, and overall, just conversation ensues, and Tommy stays silent, just eating his Blizzard. That is, until someone redirects to conversation straight towards him.
"So, what happened tonight, Tommy?" Bad asks softly, tilting his head to the side to show he's listening and caring.
Tommy shrugs, swirling his ice cream with his long red spoon. "Just an argument and shit, happens all the time. I overreacted, and ended up leaving for some space. Went too far, and basically got stuck where you found me." He refrains from telling all the details on purpose, and the group can tell.
"What was the argument about?" Rae inquires, trying to keep a steady yet caring tone so she doesn't make the boy's brain assume the worst.
Tommy shrugs once again. "School and shit. I missed a test today that I was supposed to do in Math, it was my last chance unless I want to do summer school. My dad freaked the fuck out, and my siblings just sat and watched, fanning the flames of war or however the hell the phrase goes. It fuckign sucks, because the test would only make my A- turn into an A+, and he's upset I don't have straight A+'s, even though in every other subject from every tri, I have straight A+'s. He likes to focus on the negatives, and not the positives, the bastard."
"Wait- How the hell do you have straight A+'s!?" Sapnap exclaims, all of them genuinely surprised.
Tommy huffs out a breath. "Because Phil either wants perfection, or nothing. No in between."
Drista bumps his shoulder playfully, and offers a bite of her Blizzard. He rolls his eyes, but accepts. His smile comes back, but not a full one. They sigh in relief. Tommy gets more and more into the conversation, letting some of his true side show. They're happy about that, but also a bit sad for the child.
"Who's coming over tonight?" Dream asks as they start to head out.
Drista latches onto Tommy's arm, and the blond boy shoots her a disapproving look. He doesn't make a move to make her let go though, so she stays put. She dares to think that he's even slightly leaning into the touch.
"Tommy's coming over, fight me." She states, and then pulls out 2 Dum Dums from her purse. She passes one to Tommy, a cherry flavor one, which he accepts. Her flavor is blueberry, and she takes no time to stick it in her mouth after unwrapping it. (Drista only gives away her Dum Dums to people she truly loves and trusts, everyone in their friend group has gotten one before, just not this early in their friendship. She must really like Tommy).
Dream chuckles. "Wouldn't have it any other way. Who else?"
Everyone is coming, and so they set off. This time, Drista climbs into the back with her twin, Lani, and Ranboo sits in the front.
Tommy decides to take a leap of faith, and leans on Ranboo. Ranboo, surprisingly (to him, at least) lets him stay that way. Even wraps his arm around his shoulder, and holds him close. Tommy feels safe in the slightly olders arms. He rests, and fully relaxes. He doesn't sleep (he's not that tired), but he does keep his eyes closed.
When they arrive, he's surprised. Dream lives in a giant, fucking mansion. It's tall, wide, and absolutely gorgeous. There are gates out front, and there's a well maintained flower garden, and the driveway is perfect with no mistakes or potholes. They have tons and tons of yard space, with perfectly manicured grass, and Tommy couldn't feel more out of place.
Except... except...
Drista's holding his hand, and dragging him inside. He still has his cherry flavored Dum Dum from earlier that the girl had given him. Lani is talking animatedly about something or other (an invention or something, maybe?), and everyone else is having fun while talking and so forth. And it's calming and welcoming to him. He doesn't know why though, and that bothers him just a bit.
When they enter, there are 4 adults in the living room(?).
One of them has long white curls, which look fluffy, like wool. Their eyes seem to be like a kaleidoscope, a different color at different angles. They wear an outfit similar to one of a pirate captain, a hat and everything. They even have an eyepatch. Horns similar to Lani's curl out of their head, and Tommy guesses the 2 are related, somehow.
The next one has long green hair in a braid down their back, and their skin has a green tint to it. They wear clothes akin to a workshopper, along with a painter's mask. From what Tommy can see of their face, there seem to be pitch black freckles sprinkled across, and their eyes are a deep black, no white or anything.
The 3rd has a mask on that covers their whole face, top of the head included, besides the eyes. The mask is a mix of red, black, and yellow, which compliments his deep brown eyes. He wears a black sweatshirt with red accents, and white leather jeans. He also seems to slightly glow, like Sapnap.
The final one has eyes that are purely white, no pupil, no color, whatsoever. Their hair is a floofy brown, and has a king's crown nestled in it. They wear a long, pink, strawberry dress, along with a cape that's the bit flag. Sunglasses are hanging off of the top of their shirt, neatly folded, and complementing nicely in a way you wouldn't expect.
"Hey kids!" The one with kaleidoscope eyes says warmly as they enter, a cup of what smells like to be tea held in their hands.
"Hey papa! Tommy, these are our parents, or, some of our parents. Puffy, she/her, she's my papa, along with the twins and Foolish. Eret, they go by all pronouns, and are the parent of Ranboo. Sam and Ponk are married, both he/him, and are the parents of George, and Quackity, along with Eret. Guys this is Tommy, he/him, and they/them." Dream introduces.
Puffy smiles a warm smile, as does Eret. Ponk and Sam seem to be smiling, though it's hard to tell when Tommy can only see their eyes.
"It's nice to meet you Tommy! Are you spending the night?" Eret asks brightly, and warmth seeps into every crevice of Tommy's body at her voice.
Drist nods immediately, latching onto his arm once again. "Yes, he is. Fight me." She declares, sticking out her tongue. Inside her head, she knows she's acting clingy. But this boy is internally crying out for help, and she'll be damned if she just leaves him behind.
Puffy chuckles. "Alright my duckling, we get it. Off you go now, we know we adults aren't fun. Call us if you need anything."
"Okay papa!" Lani says sweetly, and then Drista starts to drag Tommy away.
Up 2 flights of stairs, to the 3rd floor. Past to many doors to count, until they arrive at a door which is simply labeled Simps Only. Tommy chuckles at the name, and Drista counts it as a tiny victory.
"Welcome, to the simps only club. Where only simps and simp fans are allowed." Toast says dramatically as he opens the door, a grin on his face not hidden well, even with his mustache.
Inside is... Tommy can't even begin to describe it. The room is big, like, arched ceilings, tall windows, wide and grand big. There's stuff everywhere, and yet, it's all neat. Bean bags, chairs, couches, loveseats, different furniture items, gaming setups, board games on tables, a tiny pool, 3 snack bars, you name it. It's the ultimate room for a teenager, and it's the ultimate room for a teenager and his friends. Tommy can't even feel more ecstatic and warm because he gets to be here. A sacred place for friends and family.
"Whoa." He breathes.
"Let's get this party started!" Dream exclaims.
Tommy grins, a piece of his old, true self free.
For once, he let's go. He let's go, and he can't remember a time he felt more at home (even when he got his fist binder, or T shot, he never felt this.... Nice and perfect and wonderful).
When Tommy goes home the next day, phone buzzing due to the new group chats (one for all of them, one for the newly Freshman), stuffed full because Sam and Puffy insisted a boy needs a full proper meal to grow, and having gotten a full night of rest without his binder on, he feels great.
(He didn't trust his family enough to sleep without his binder. Wilbur, Techno, and Tubbo were respective, of course. But Phil wasn't always on his side, sometimes purposely slipping up to get a reaction, or to get him to obey. Nothing happened besides that one incident where he almost lost a binder because Phil 'forgot they were near the garbage disposal' and almost shredded them. But he wasn't willing to take any chances. No one even noticed at the Wastaken household. And if they did, they didn't say anything, giving him the time to come out on his own terms. He was happy about that).
When he gets home, he silences his phone. He stands on the porch, hesitating, before entering the house. When he does, he can see his 'brothers' lounging in the living room, watching TV. Phil is pacing in the kitchen when he enters, and only looks up when Tommy clears his throat.
"Teresa! There you are! I was worried sick honey!" Phil exclaims, rushing forward to engulf Tommy in a hug.
Tommy goes stock still, before gently shoving Phil off of him after a few seconds in the awkward hug.
"We've talked about this, it's Tommy now." He states, trying to sound firm, but he notices as his voice wavers a bit.
Phil completely glances over what he says, bringing a hand up, and slapping him across the face. "We were all worried sick about you! We didn't know if you were still alive!"
Tommy scoffs, rolling his eyes, and bringing his hand up to rub his cheek. "Yeah, worried sick enough to be watching TV calmly in the living room." He mutters, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Thomas-" Phil starts, but stops with a sigh.
"Just, go to your room. I expect you to stay there, or no TV privileges for a week, I might even take your phone, so be careful. We wouldn't want you to be off the grid all summer, now would we?"
Tommy nods, and bolts upstairs. He clutches his phone to his chest, not trusting anything until he's in his room, and his door is locked. With a sigh, he curls up on his bed. He pulls upen the gc, and sees that they've started a conversation on... peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?
Apparently, Sapnap had been eating one when Dream was trying to have an important conversation with him. It was a long time ago, like, Freshman year for them. It was pre DNF, which seems weird to Tommy. George and Dream are too much... together and flirty and just... everything to think about what they would be like not together. It's like... a piece of the puzzle is there, but in the wrong spot, so you can't find space for the last piece, if that makes sense.
As the summer goes on, Tommy gets closer and closer to his new friends and their families. And farther and father from his blood family. They don't seem to mind all that much, they are just... suspicious. Tommy doesn't care about that though, letting more and more of his true self show as time goes on.
He learns little stuff about his new friends, and some big stuff.
Skeppy has an older sister, Samira, but everyone calls her Sam.
Eret, Quackity, and George were all adopted by Sam, and Ranboo was adopted by Eret.
Puffy is, biologically, Dream, Drista, and Lani's aunt, but she adopted them when they were little.
Drista doesn't have horns, her hair is silky and soft like wool, where Lani does have horns like Puffy, and Dream has tiny stub horns on the top of his head.
Bad hates cursing, and will correct you on your language, but, if it came down to it, and cussing was the only way to get his point across about protecting the people he loves in any way shape or form, he would cuss without a second thought.
Sykkuno and Corpse are a thing, as are Karl, Quackity and Sapnap, Dream and George, and Bad and Skeppy.
Lani and Drista are, in fact, twins by birth. They don't look like it, besides their face structures.
They do have other friends, who aren't officially a part of their friend group, but still friends.
Tommy meets Wisp, Deo, Bitz, and Luke, and can tell they are platonic soulmates. The others seem to tell as well, for they decide to become platonic boyfriends. It means no one else can get in the way of their relationship. Of course, they can still have friends, it just means Tommy trusts them as much as his friends (who soon thereafter become dubbed his family).
Corpse, Sykkuno, Rae, and Toast are known as the 4 Amigops around school.
Dream, Sapnap, and George are known as the Dream Team around school.
Dream Team + Karl and Quackity are known as the Feral Boys.
Karl has another friend group, called MrBeast Crew, which includes MrBeast (real name Jimmy or something), Chris, and Chandler.
Karl, Quackity, and Sapnap have a ship name, Karlnapity.
Dream and George have a ship name, DreamNotFound (no clue where that came from).
Bad and Skeppy have a ship name, Skephalo (Bad's full name is Bad B Halo).
Corpse and Sykkuno have a ship name, Corpskunno.
Foolish is a hybrid with a golden totem, which myths say can help you cheat death (Foolish swears it's real, Tommy believes him).
No one knows why they call Puffy, Papa, but she adores it, so they do it anyways.
Age is a complicated matter in the AwesamPonk family.
Sam is an engineer, Puffy is a retired sea captain, Eret was king for a while in another country (before he adopted Ranboo), and Ponk is a doctor, they pay for the mansion and such together, and all live there.
Tubbo might be, by blood, a cousin of the Wastaken's (that makes Tommy sad, because it means Phil cheated on his mom at some point, since Tommy and Tubbo are the same age, and were always proclaimed 'twins'. Even though Tommy knew it wasn't true, it doesn't stop the pain and hurt).
He came out to them, and learned A. They are super supportive, and B. Eret is really helpful when it comes to dysphoric moments and so forth.
But, summer also brought a few bad things.
His family didn't believe he had friends. And neither did his brother's friends. They teased him relentlessly (more like bullied), and he decided he was going to prove them wrong. Even if it got him in trouble because their groups were enemies. He had friends who cared, and 'friends' who didn't. He knew exactly which side he was picking once school came around.
And come it did.
Tommy hums as he gets ready. He knows his family despises his humming, but it's something his mother taught him before she left. Specifically, the melody. And he never wanted to let it go.
He gets dressed in a red hoodie (one of Drista's or Bad's, he believes, most likely Bad's because of how big it was on him), ripped jeans, black Converse high tops (a gift from Puffy as a later birthday present, since he told them his birthday was back in April and it was already June), and charm bracelet. He had a charm for each of his friends, each charm custom made (if needed). Usually, he wore it on his ankle, so it didn't draw attention. Today, he wears it on his wrist, hiding it for now in the sleeve of Bad's hoodie.
He pulls on his backpack, but he notices it's a bit heavier than usual. When he goes to check what's inside, he's brought to tears (of happiness). There's a tiny box, which holds a tiny gift from each of his friends. He doesn't have enough time to put on everything, so he pulls on one fo Drista's bracelet (which also has a cherry flavored Dum Dum, score!), one of Skeppy's masks (a cyan colored one with a mouth with a tongue out), and an extra charm from Lani, this one a pair of lips with a sucker in its mouth (it's painted and everything, so you can see).
He tucks the gifts safely back into his backpack, then heads downstairs and out to the waiting car. He sits in the back with Tubbo, Wilbur riding shotgun while Techno drives. No one even looks at him, not truly, but they do tease him. He ignores them, electing to text his friends as they drive.
They arrive within 15 minutes til Homeroom. Tommy stumbles out of the car, and begrudgingly walks with his brothers to the courtyard. He stops to look around, and slowly, his brother's friends start to surround them. He pushes past them, to the front of sorts, so he can see.
"Aww, is Tommy lost without his friends?" Jack Manifold sneers, and it gets a laugh or a snort from the others.
Tommy rolls his eyes. "They're either late or already inside, dickhead. They said they would be here, and they will."
"Tommy, can you just-" Wilbur doesn't get to finish because suddenly, someone is barreling into Tommy.
Tomm catches Drista easily, and laughs as he hugs the girl.
"I saw you yesterday, ya dork." He snorts, and Drista laughs as well.
"Be glad that's all she did. I had to convince her to not bring confetti cannons since it's our first day of Freshman year." Lani pipes up with a fond eye roll.
Drista starts to drag Tommy, and Tommy follows. Tommy waves to his brothers and their friends quickly, before turning back to Drista. They walk over to the others, and hugs and greetings are given.
"He's fucking friends with Dream and his group?" Technoblade asks lowly, a dangerous edge to his tone.
"They are the only people we told him to avoid." Wilbur hisses.
The group of L'Manburgians watch as Tommy slips into their group seamlessly. As they walk inside, Skeppy turns, and flips them off, while Sapnap waves with a manic grin, and a warning with the fire sparking on his fingertips.
"He's smiling! When's the last time you saw him smile?" Tubbo points out, still angry, but also a bit curious.
"When we used his pronouns when he came out almost 3 years ago." Niki pipes up with a small smile.
They continue to stare, all of them angry (besides Sally and Niki, who are just happy for him).
Tommy feels at home, walking down the hall with his friends. People stare and whisper, but he doesn't care. With Drista by his side, a cherry flavored Dum Dum in his pocket, and the knowledge that his friends won't leave him, he feels... perfect.
It's when Tommy, Drista, Ranboo, Purpled, and Lani a Sophomores, Dream, George, Sapnap, Karl, Bad, Skeppy, Sykkuno, and Rae are Seniors, Toast, Corpse, Quackity, Punz, and Foolish are juniors when he (accidentally) opens up.
It's a normal Saturday. The school year just started, and it's the weekend, and it's still really warm out. So, they go to the lake. They stick to one side, and on the other side, are the L'Mans. They stay away from each other, but the L'Mans are eyeing Tommy. It's been a year, and they are still pissed about his friend choice (it seems they will always be pissed about it). There are adults on either side, but thankfully, Phil is at work, so on the other side are Iskall EightyFive, (Fundy's dad), Callahan D (the father of Niki, Sally, and Friend who are adopted sisters), and Alyssa I (mother of Minx and Jack, siblings).
Tommy runs up to get snacks, in the lodge at the lake, where he runs into the twins, Wilbur and Techno (not Drista and Lani). Like, he legit runs into them. He wasn't looking where he was going, and the twins had walked out of the lodge as soon as he was trying to walk in. He ends up on his butt, the other 2 end up staring down at him, angry.
"Watch where you're going Tommy." Wilbur hisses.
Tommy stands, dusting himself off. "Sorry." He grits out, forcing a smile.
He goes to move past them, but Techno grabs his shoulder. Without a word, Techno drags him off, to the woods surrounding the lodge. They don't go far, but the twins take him to a big tree, and Techno roughly shoves him against it.
"Tommy, I still can't believe you made friends with the only people we told you not to!" Techno hisses slowly, and Tommy has to hold back his flinch.
He hates it when Techno's angry. He's a good fighter, and a good talker. Not as well as Wilbur, but still good. He's going to college for his English degree after all.
"At least they care." Tommy hisses right back, and that earns him a slap from Techno (it's better than what he can do).
"You do not know how much we've all sacrificed for you." Wilbur says, his words seemingly calm, but Tommy can hear the way he wants to manipulate him practically drip off of them.
Tommy rolls his eyes. "Sure, you constantly hurt me, emotionally and physically, and try to manipulate me because you're 'sacrificing' things for me. That's exactly how it works." His reply is sarcastic, and that one earns him a punch.
"You have a week, Tomathy. Or we finally tell dad about what you're doing." Wilbur says, and they stalk away.
Tommy brings a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose, and leans his head back. He waits for a bit, before he's sure the blood has stopped. His nose isn't broken (Techno has broken his nose a few times before), but he can feel how it's slightly bent.
"Fucking assholes." He mutters.
He totally forgets about the snacks, and heads back to his friends. He mutters under his breath about how stupidly unfair it is that his brothers are Wilbur, Techno, and Tubbo. He mutters about how much he hates them, and wishes he was in a different family.
He doesn't even realize he's reached his friends until there's someone carefully grabbing his face. He flinches back, but relaxes when he hears Corpse hum a bit under his breath. His voice is deep, deeper than Techno's, and it calms him.
"What happened?" He asks quietly, taking a towel to wipe away the blood on his face, straightening his nose so it doesn't heal weirdly, and then rubbing the red handprint on his cheek.
"Just Techno and Wilbur being assholes. Again. I'm lucky he didn't break my nose this time." Tommy replies, without thinking.
"This time?" Corpse inquires, but there's a dangerous edge to his tone as he leads Tommy over to Sykkuno, Bad, Rae, Lani, and Purpled, who aren't in the water, and are instead lounging on towels and beach chairs.
"Shit-" He mutters, before sighing, "yeah, this time. They're still really upset I'm friends with you guys. Though, they started doing this just anytime I did something wrong."
"Why don't you leave us, then?" Sykkuno asks from his towel, scooting over so Corpse can sit himself and Tommy down. The others in the water start to notice Tommy's return (and the prominent red handprint on his cheek), so they start heading back, making it in time to catch Tommy's reply.
Tommy snorts. "That shouldn't even be a question. You guys are the first ones by far who have treated me with kindness and love. You guys don't care that I'm trans, and actually help. Your parents are helpful, and don't dead name me like Phil does to get me to obey. You guys are funny, and nice, and caring. The only other people who have treated me this nice are Sally, Niki, and my mother, who divorced Phil and moved away. You guys don't hurt me, or manipulate me, or even like, question my sanity. It's nice, and I love it." He goes into a small rant, not even remembering that he's supposed to be keeping this a secret, or noticing that his other friends are within earshot.
Drista sucks in a sharp breath, before walking forward, and hugging Tommy. Tommy hugs her back right away, processing his words, and internally cringing. Drista doesn't let go, just clings tighter, as Tommy seems to realize what he just said. Tommy clings to her shirt, and holds back his breakdown. He buries his face into Drista's shoulder, and Drista doesn't mind.
"George, Sap, Corpse, Toast, Bad, Skeppy, Karl, Quackity, with me please." Dream states firmly, and the boys mentioned stand and follow. He walks over to their parents first, a fake grin plastered on his face.
"Papa, Eret, Ponk, Sam, would you kindly follow us? We would like to have a civil conversation with Tommy's brothers and their friends." Dream asks.
The parents take one look at the teenagers looks, of fake kindness and anger, and so forth, and agree right away. They can tell something is up, with how angry the boys are. And since it has to do with Tommy's family, they assume they found out something about the boy that wasn't all that pleasant.
By the time they make it to the other side, where the L'Mans are, all of the teens are out of the lake and waiting. Standing in the front are Technoblade, Wilbur, Tubbo, Fundy, and 5up.
The teens stop to face them, while the adults go to talk to the other adults. The adults got along just fine, but they all loved their kids and would do anything (to a certain extent) for them.
Dream still has a fake grin plastered on his face, his hands folded gently in front of him. Quackity, George, and Karl are wearing similar looks, with Bad still looking overall friendly, Skeppy with a frown on his face along with his diamond parts on him glowing, Sapnap's anger clearly shown on his face, and Corpse's mask still firmly in place.
"Can we help you?" Wilbur asks, an eyebrow slightly raised.
"Hi, and yes! We would actually like to talk to Technoblade, Wilbur, and Tubbo alone, please!" Bad explains/asks, his tone friendly (but if anyone was looking close enough, his white eyes are swirling with anger).
"Whatever you have to say to them, you can say to all of us." Schlatt replies, voice firm, and hand holding Wilbur's tightly from behind the taller brunette.
Dream nods, walks forward, so he can stare Technoblade head on. "Let me make myself clear," he starts, voice dropping dangerously low, "If you hurt Tommy in any way, if you even touch him or think to manipulate him, I know of many people who will sting right back, whether it be physically, mentally, or legally. Do you understand?"
Techno scoffs, but there's a low sense of fear stirring behind his pupils. "And what can you do, green teletubby?" He asks.
Dream wastes no time, grabbing Technoblade, and flipping him on his stomach. Dream kneels down on his back, digging his knee straight into a soft spot in the center. He leans down, a sneer on his face. "Do I need to prove myself more? Because this is me holding back, for the sake of legal reasons, and because our parents will protest if I do anything more without the right motivation." He hisses.
Techno grits his teeth, but nods. "Yes, it is. Now get up."
Dream stands up, wiping off fake dust from his pants.
"Now, does everybody else understand?"
Everybody nods, but before they can leave, Slimecicle poses a question.
"Why did you bring the others? If you were just here to threaten us, then what was the point of them being here?"
Dream grins, a wickedly sharp grin. "They were just in case this turned into a full out brawl. You guys could've made me snap, and I don't like going into fights alone." He replies honestly, and then they leave, no looking back.
Puffy, Eret, Sam, and Ponk apologize to Alyssa, Callhan, and Iskall (who don't blame them), before they follow their kids back.
"Dream, what the hell was that? Is there a reason you just threatened them?" Puffy asks as soon as the 4 adults have caught up with their children.
"Tubbo, Techno, and Wilbur have been hurting Tommy, way before we even met him. The bloody nose and handprint? That was them. And apparently, they've done worse before." Dream explains with a sigh.
"One of these days, I'm killing Philza Minecraft." Eret states plainly, taking off their sunglasses quickly to wipe at his eyes, before putting them back on her face (all in one swift motion).
"You and me both." Sam replies with no hesitation.
"I'll bring the car." Ponk adds.
"I've got the alibi." Puffy is the last to supply.
When they get back, they decide the beach day is over. Tommy clings to Drista the whole way home, and when they arrive, he finally feels safe enough to break down. He manages to hold it until they make it to the Simps Only room, but after entering, there's no holding him back.
He latches onto the closest person, who is (surprisingly), Rae. Rae doesn't hesitate to wrap him up, cradling his head with one hand, the other resting on his back. He sobs into her chest, body racking, heartbreaking sobs. Karl walks over, and rubs soothing circles into his back.
"I hate them, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them..." He mutters over and over again, his crying never faltering.
Everyone else moves around, doing different things. Drista starts to play soothing music, Dream turning on the tv with the volume down to 2 for white noise. Bad, Skeppy, Corpse, Sykkuno, Toast, Lani, and Punz start to make a nest of sorts, to hang and cuddle. Purpled calls Tommy's platonic boyfriends (they hadn't come to the beach because each had different events preplanned, but hearing that their boyfriend is distressed? They don't even hesitate to drop everything and come over).
The 4 boys arrive after Tommy's finally stopped crying and muttering. They let themselves in, and the instant Tommy sees them, he starts crying again. The 5 boys hold each other (or really, the other 4 hold Tommy), and let Tommy cry once again. It takes less time for him to stop crying, but by the time he's done, he's tired.
They all are tired. Going to the lake takes it out of you. The group of them move around until they are comfortable in the nest they've built, and fall asleep. Tommy is surrounded by his platonic soulmates, and his family, and he's never felt any safer.
Tommy's brothers and their friends keep their promise. They don't hurt Tommy once, leaving him alone, even when he accidentally angers him. But, his brothers also keep their other promise. After 5 days, and Tommy is still friends with his friends, they tell Phil.
When Tommy gets home (he had been hanging after to watch the football practice with the others, Dream, Sapnap, Skeppy, Deo, and Bitz were players), he's not prepared.
The instant he steps inside, closes the door, and takes his shoes off, he feels a hand grab his arm, hard. He looks up to see Wilbur, a grin full of malice on his face. Wilbur drags him to the kitchen, where the rest of the family is waiting. Techno and Tubbo look smug, while Philza is just pissed.
When they enter, Wilbur lets go to go stand beside his twin and younger brother. That's when Philza's attention snaps to him. That's when he knows something really bad is going to happen.
"Teresa Michelle Charlotte Minecraft, what the hell were you thinking young lady!? Making friends with 'Captain' Puffy and 'King' Eret, and 'Awesamdude', and 'DropsByPonk', and their offspring! Do you know how terrible that looks on us!? You become friends with the one friend group that is your brothers biggest enemy! Especially since you know DropsByPonk is my enemy in the realm of doctors and nurses!" Hestarts to rant. He continues to go off on a tangent about how terrible Tommy is, and the whole time, Tommy is trying to tune him out.
After an hour of his crap, Tommy can't take it anymore. He leaves the kitchen, ignoring the shouts of protest, and goes upstairs to his room. He can hear as his family follows, but he's high off of adrenaline he has no idea that he had, and doesn't care. He walks into his room, and pulls out his side bag. He quickly stuffs it with clothes (mostly clothing items he stole from his true family or his platonic boyfriends), his laptop, and all his chargers.
"Do you have anything to say for yourself, young lady!?" Phil asks as he shoulders past them, back down the stairs shoulder bag slung over his shoulder.
"I'm done." He says simply, trying to hold back the tears threatening to fall, the adrenaline starting to wear off.
The other 4 stare, surprised.
"What?" Techno asks quietly.
"I'm fucking done! I'm done with this family! I'm done with you guys! I'm done with never being perfect enough for your standards! I'm done with the dead naming! I'm done with your shits promises! I'm done getting manipulated! I'm done getting hurt! I'm done with all this shit!" He exclaims back, finally letting out his pent up emotions.
He walks past, slipping on his shoes by the door, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, and leaving. And just like that one day so long ago, he runs. He runs to the Seven Eleven, and doesn't stop until he's inside. The cashier nods at him as he enters, out of breath and shaky. They hang out here often enough that everyone knows them, even him, now.
He shakily opens his phone once he's caught his breath, and calls the first contact. Drista. She picks up right away, and Tommy relaxes when he hears her familiar voice, with a Dum Dum sucker still in her mouth.
"Yo, Tommy. What's up?" He can hear the jingle jangle of her bracelets, and the truck in the background.
"I need you or someone to pick me up. As soon as possible." He replies, not even noticing as his voice is too quiet and wavering and shaking.
"Where?" She asks almost right away.
"The Seven Eleven. I'll explain everything once you guys get here." He replies, and hangs up as soon as he gets confirmation someone is coming.
He buys a coke, to help his hands from shaking. He waves at the cashier as he leaves, and finds himself sitting on the curb. Just like last time. Except this time he's wearing a coat, it's not that cold outside, and he knows his true family is coming.
He stands when he sees the familiar truck lights pulling into the parking lot. He doesn't even wait for them to park, just for them to slow down. He hops into the truck bed, where he finds his platonic boyfriends, Drista, Lani, Purpled, and Ranboo waiting. He instantly sits between Luke and Wisp, making himself comfortable, Luke wraps an arm around his waist, while Wisp holds one of his hands.
"Hey, honey, can you tell us what happened?" Deo asks softly, the truck going slow enough that it gives them time to talk, and enough space to simply whisper is needed.
"They-" He takes a deep breath, Wisp rubbing soothing circles with his thumb, "They told Phil I was friends with you guys. He was ranting for an hour before it got to be too much, with the dead naming and insulting you guys and just... everything. I packed some things, and left. I just... ran here on pure instinct. I don't want to go back."
"You don't have to go back, bubs. We swear. Puffy and Eret and Ponk and Sam will fight tooth and nail for parental rights, if you want them too. We all will fight tooth and nail to make sure you never have to go back." Bitzel reassures.
Tommy nods slowly, processing the words. He's too exhausted to cry, from years and years being abused and expecting great things from, and dead naming, and having to be everything. He's exhausted. So, instead of crying, he falls asleep.
Around him, the other occupants of the vehicle are wide awake.
"Have you called the others?" Ranboo asks Lani, who nods slowly.
"I have. Told them it's a living room meeting. They'll be there. Bad and Skeppy's parents, Antfrost and Red should be there as well. GamerBoy, Astelic and James (Charles) can't make it, but Jack(septiceye), Mark(iplier) , and Poki(mane) can."
"They send their regards though." Purpled adds.
"I'll bring him up when we arrive, you guys stay down and I'll come down after he's settled into the nest." Deo says once they get close to the house.
No one argues, and they set the plan into motion.
When they enter, everyone else is already in the living room. Deo brings Tommy upstairs, and Lani doesn't start the meeting until he's down, and sitting with his other platonic boyfriends.
"As you can see, I've called a living room meeting. The matter is urgent." Lani starts, her face set and serious.
"What's wrong, duckling?" Puffy asks from her spot on the couch, slightly worried.
So, Lani explains the Tommy situation. She explains from point 1, back when they first officially met him, all the way to today. The tells, the signs, the information they've learned. By the time she's done explaining the confrontation today, she's got pissed off teens and adults surrounding her.
"I cannot wait to cause their downfall." Eret says, not caring as he lets insanity slip into their voice.
(No Legal Action Writing Cause I Fucking Suck At It)
All it takes is a simple explanation to the court, with provided information from Sally, Niki, and Tommy, and they've won. Tommy decides he wants to be adopted by Eret, and Eret's delighted to have 2 sons. And Ranboo's delighted to have a brother.
They celebrate by having a family party. They party until it's not fun anymore. They dance, do home karaoke, play board games and card games and video games. They eat ice cream and pie and various other deserts. Tommy learns how to do more family stuff. Tommy gets to fall asleep in the arms of his family and his platonic boyfriends. And now he has the knowledge he can do it whenever he wants, whether or not he has straight perfect grades and the perfect college application and whether or not his brothers are pleased.
Of course, it's not all uphill from there. The Minecraft family might've been taken down legally, but the children still went to school. Tommy still saw them, and everything didn't stop right away. And Phil sometimes appeared, dead naming him and trying to coax him back. At times, he still had meltdowns. Sometimes it was because of his sensory, or because his old family tried to do something, or just a nightmare, or even just being left alone.
He couldn't help the meltdowns, but his family understood.
He remembers the first time he told them he got panic attacks. He had accidentally casually mentioned what really happened the day that they met, with how Phil was upset that he didn't have perfect grades. He told them about why he really skipped 4th period that day. They took it in stride, explaining a bit about how nto all of their lives had always been this good. He didn't mind. He was glad someone could help him.
He also remembered when he told them about what happened with the binder that one time. And all the dead naming (which was part of Phil's manipulation, apparently). He had to make sure Eret promised not to murder Phil, and spent the rest of the day with them talking about his feelings and such.
He got to heal. Of course, healing doesn't fix everything. He still flinches at certain things. He still spirals. And he still has meltdowns. But he learns it's okay. Because in his old house, he wasn't allowed to be traumatized and have problems. Here? He was encouraged to talk about them, and get help and so forth.
He's never wished for anything more.
"Baby! Where are you!?" Luke calls from downstairs in their house.
Venus, their daughter, was at Gray's house (son of Ranboo). Deo, Bitz, and Wisp were already in the car. They were all on their way to the mansion, their old home. It was their monthly meetup with the rest of their family (official, with the 5 of them being platonic husbands). Everyone could be there that month, and they were excited. Venus was hanging out with Gray since Ranboo had already booked a babysitter and their babysitter had had a family crisis.
"Coming!" Tommy calls, quickly and nimbly rushing down the stairs. When he reaches the bottom, he kisses Luke's cheek, before rushing out to their car. Luek chuckles, following Tommy. He locks the door, and then slips into the driver's seat.
They are a bit late, but they make it. When they arrive, they're a bit surprised to find the house empty. They head upstairs, to their old hangout room. They enter, and are instantly surprised.
"Guys..." Tommy trails off, tears of happiness welling up in his eyes.
They've decorated the room, and they're all there to celebrate them.
"What? Your 5 year anniversary was a week ago! You expected us to do nothing?" Drista replies, her old grin lighting up her face. She pulls out a cherry flavored Dum Dum, and Tommy takes it without thinking, unwrapping it and sticking it into his mouth.
"People who say high school relationships don't last are bullshit." Quackity declares, hand pointed up and eyes closed, but there's a smile on his face.
Skeppy raises his glass. "Hear hear! To Tommy, and his family, along with our high school relationships that people swore would never last!"
About halfway through the party, Punz has an idea.
"Hey, guys! We should head down to the old lake!" He exclaims, and is met with whoops and cheers in reply.
They pack up, bringing the wine and the beer they hadn't used yet. When they arrive, they pick their old spot and party. Purpled plays music from his bluetooth speakers, and everyone just celebrates.
They are interrupted though, when Purpled stops the music, and points across the lake. There, staring at them, are the L'Mans. Older and adult looking.
"You know what-" Tommy starts, standing , grabbing 2 beers, and starting to walk to the other side.
When he arrives, the others are wary. He moves before they can, offering a beer to Technoblade, who's in the front.
"No hard feelings?" He asks, a smile on his face.
Techno stares down at the beer for a few seconds, before looking up into Tommy's eyes. His eyes narrow.
"Never." He snarls.
Tommy just shrugs, turning around, and starting to walk away.
"Your loss." He calls over his shoulder, and that's when Techno notices the wedding ring.
"Wait!" Wilbur exclaims, seeming to notice it as well.
Tommy turns, raising an eyebrow as he takes a swig of the open beer.
"When did you get married?" Wilbur asks.
Tommy smiles fondly. "5 years ago. I'm married to my platonic soulmates."
He turns, and doesn't look back. He leaves the L'Mans dumbfounded (besides Niki and Sally, who made up with him and the rest of them). The group stands there for a while, just watching as Tommy moves and has fun with his family. Then they leave.
The groups never see each other again.
When the 5 husbands get home, they're all tired. They get dressed into their pajamas, and head to bed. They'll go pick up Venus tomorrow, but for right now, they just lazily lay with each other.
"What would have happened to us if we had never met?" Tommy asks quietly, stuck between the warm body of Deo and the cold body of Wisp (who's a snake hybrid).
"I think in any universe, we were destined to be. Even if not as platonic husbands, and as brothers, or just friends, or family. We were always meant to be. That's why we're platonic soulmates, is it not?" Luke replies, his voice hazy with sleep.
"Yeah, you're right." Tommy mutters, before falling asleep to the breathing of his platonic lovers.