•I would rather not go back to the old house there's too many bad memories, too many memories there •
|VI|
•••
(This chapter was brought to you by: Danny Smoke in furryland)
This was it. They were ready.
All dressed up. A nice box filled with poetry.
They were gonna do it.
Vi's heart was already in their throat the second the day started, but they had to, to get it over with if anything. To express that they were over that phase, or to help themselves move on. Eight years grieving was a lot anyways.
They sighed, it felt like bricks were in their throat, choking them up. The burden of the box in their arms was so laden with guilt and anguish, they were ready to get rid of it. It might as well have been the one good thing they ever did for themself.
Well.. if they ever got the courage to, that is.
All they could do was reach for the door, yet pull back right in the crucial moments.
Knock. Knock.
Who could've knocked on their door?
Opening the door while juggling the box was a bit difficult, but they managed. To their surprise it was the three skeletons. The Care Bears as they nicknamed them.
"Oh-.. hey?" Vi muttered, tugging at the door a little, still holding onto the box, adamant on not letting go.
"Hey-.. you good?" Blue quickly asked, gesturing vaguely to all of Vi. More so the box they were clutching like it was their dying firstborn.
"Oh uhm yeah," they set the box down on a surface nearby. The shrugged, watching Blue shift around a bit, "So what brings you guys here?"
"We wanted to see what you were doing today to see if you could join us for another brunch maybe?" Dream stepped in front of Blue, smiling sweetly, Vi almost wanted to return the gesture. How could someone be so unsparingly kind? Vi couldn't understand how the three kept on giving even when all they could do at the moment was take.
They spent a moment, choking up in the seconds, "I can't," A pause, "I have to go-.. to a place.."
"Oh yeah?" Ink glanced them up and down a moment, "You're dressed up awfully nice, you gotta date?" Ink didn't think much, or Vi thought so, because he obviously just blurted the first thing that came to his mind. Vi wanted to curl up at that moment.
"I don't have a date," Vi mumbled, suddenly feeling a bit warm in the cheeks, "I'm going to visit a friend, or well, a house..?"
"A house?" Blue questioned, hands twitching up to adjust his bandanna. Vi opened the door a little wider, giving the skeletons their first peek into the house before them.
"Here why don't you guys come inside, I can explain better in the house. Plus, I'd like an excuse not to do it," Vi parted to let the three shuffle inside. A bit embarrassed at the mess around them. The three didn't seem to mind, taking seats on the couch.
"Your house is nice," Ink mumbled, but Vi couldn't help but feel like he was lying. Their house was a dirty mess, depression clutter piled to the walls, glitter ingrained into the fibers of the carpet, various stains from spills of paint and other such things all strewn about.
"You don't have to lie," They huffed and when the room fell into silence, Vi realized they owed the three an explanation, "I'm going to visit my friends old house, to just get it over with, if you know what I mean."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Ink muttered, Blue nodding along with him, loosing friends was very hard, especially when they weren't gone for good, just gone from your life for good. Ink and the others knew first hand, Cross was a valuable team member, but untrustworthy and as much as it was a loss to the team, it was more so a loss of a friend.
"Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything," Vi muttered, having to glance away from the skeletons to compose themself. Blue suddenly stood, holding his arms out, a small frown taking place on his skull.
"You need a hug?" He asked and Vi took a moment to pause.
When was the last time they actually had a hug?
Suddenly they felt smaller, like their carefully guarded shell had been broken and all that was left was the mushy insides. They almost felt exposed, but they -surprisingly- did want a hug.
They let Blue hug them, pulling them close; onto his chest as he was much much taller than them. His embrace was warm; despite the fact he was nothing but bones. Vi felt a lot of emotions in that moment.
This all had to be some sick joke. The second they were almost over everything new people had to show up and be their friends. They knew how this would end. They would get hurt again. They knew they would.
But in that moment, more than anything. They felt comfort. They wanted to believe that things were getting better, they were getting so much better, so rapidly. Their restless demons finally settled in their gut.
It truly felt better.
"You wrote this?" Ink spoke, making Vi snap out from their thoughts. They whipped to face him, only to see him digging through the box they felt sick even looking at, "It's beautiful."
Ripping the poetry from his hands, Vi snapped at him, "That wasn't yours to read!" They trembled looking at the poetry. At the top of the page, written in pretty cursive with their fancy calligraphy pens, To Micheal...
"Ink.." Dream glanced at Ink with a bit of worry, before looking to Vi. He had long since stood alongside Blue.
"I'm sorry Vi," Rubbing the back of his neck, Ink apologized, his sockets shifting from dazzling stars and sparkles to swirls and droplets, "I got ahead of myself. It's just... you created something and I love all kinds of art, it's hard to hold myself back."
Vi bit their tongue for a moment, holding off before speaking, "I'm.. sorry too, I overreacted just some of the stuff in there is really... personal," Vi let out a laden sigh.
"You don't have to share it with us," Dream muttered, gently hugging Vi's side. Vi was almost confused how skeletons could be so damn warm, but they really didn't mind. His hug was even more comforting than Blue's. They could almost feel themself relaxing in Dream's arms, he was so kind, they felt undeserving and cruel for just existing.
"Thanks Dream," Vi mumbled, returning the hug gently. They almost yearned for the next time they would get a hug while they were getting the hug. They hadn't realized how touch starved they were until then; living as a recluse was tiring and yet they couldn't even talk to people on their own.
"I suppose we should be getting out of your hair then?" Dream pulled back, Vi almost wanted to hold him tighter so he couldn't leave them.
"You don't have to go," Vi mumbled, holding their hands in front of themself, "You could come with me?" They proposed, quietly.
"You want us to come with?" Blue started out of surprise, sockets widening before he broke out into a grin.
"If you want to, that is?" Vi whispered, biting their lip and shying away. Maybe they were being too imposing, maybe they need to back off. I mean were the care bears really their friends?
"Sure! Point the direction!" Dream smiled gently, Vi couldn't understand for the life of them just how he managed to be so graceful in every movement, like an angel barely gliding across the floor as they sparkled and spoke 'be unafraid human'.
•••
Pulling into the steep driveway, they saw a car and the lights on inside the house. Dream had so graciously offered to drive the group, while Vi wanted to do the initial approach alone, they did want to see if they could invite the others with, that was if Pluto still even lived in Mike's old place.
Vi tottered out of the car, taking baby steps towards the door. They sucked in a breath, box tucked under their arm. If all else fails they were gonna ask to bury the box on the property.
Knock. Knock.
They felt miserable for a moment. All the past memories bubbling up. Oh how much they hated everyone's parents. They almost wanted to hate their friends, though they couldn't. Just to find closure.
"Ya got guests, space boy," There was a skeleton, Vi almost bolted right then.
"Oh if this is the wrong house I can-"
"Vi?"
Tugged into a hug, they didn't even realize until they felt Pluto's cold hands.
"I'm sorry I didn't come around sooner," Vi mumbled, pulling away from Pluto a moment before being pulled back into a hug.
"You better be, you dick."
"What's going on here?" The skeleton asked and Pluto finally pulled away, Vi was shamefully glad for a moment to breath.
"This is Fell, my roommate, and Fell this is my best friend, Vi," Pluto gestured the two to each other and awkwardly Vi nodded to Fell who nodded back, "So why don't you come in and stay a while?"
"Oh well I really should be going home, I have friends in the car, I don't want to intrude," Vi's wording came out quickly, slurring most of their words together but Pluto seemed to understand from the get go.
"You have friends?" Pluto muttered incredulously and Vi scoffed in turn.
"Y'know that's not the first time people have said that to me and I'm starting to think it's offensive," Vi muttered, putting a hand to their chest and turning their head away.
"Sorry sorry," Pluto laughed for a moment, "You can bring them in for a bit, if you want to, that is."
Vi nodded, retreating back to the car for a moment to usher the three into the house, Fell murmured aloud, "Damn, you really got all the Star Sluts?"
"The what whats?" Vi whipped around to look at Fell confused, watching Blue die with laughter.
"Star Sluts- It's a long story-," Fell couldn't suppress a chuckle, grin only growing wider. Pluto was baffled alongside Vi.
"Does every skeleton suddenly know each other?" Pluto asked and Fell more or less agreed, "The fuck you nodding for?"
"I mean yeah, we all pretty much know each other, though not all on good terms." Fell glanced at Dream a moment who shied backwards sheepishly. He knew what Fell was implying and could only laugh awkwardly at the implication.
"How is that possible?" Vi started to question, staring at the porch confusedly, Blue stepped behind them giving them a pat on the shoulder. The touch sent a warmth through their shoulder.
"It's best not to question that, alright?" Blue muttered, an amused smirk smack dab on the center of his face annoyingly so.