Santa, What do You Get Someone Who Just Wants to be Loved?

Chapter 3: The Lights That Lit Your Eyes With Stars

Phil rubbed a hand over his face, sighing as he blearily blinked. Untangling himself from the limbs criss crossing over his chest, he sat up, stretching. Glancing to where he previously lay, he smiled, removing his dying phone from his back pocket.

Snapping a photo of the sleeping boys, he noted the arm wrapped around Tommy's mid from Wilbur in a protective manner, and Techno's in the blondes' hair. After he'd acquired the black mail, he walked into the kitchen, being as quiet as possibly.

Sifting through cupboards, he frowned at the lack of food, the fridge bare except some orange juice, an empty carton of milk, and a handful of free range eggs. The cupboards were no better, stale bread and a few chips along with a couple granola packs, and a half empty tin of hot chocolate powder.

Had Tommy been living on this? Had he been eating or drinking anything other than hot chocolate, mugs piling up in the sink. Judging by his unhealthy appearance the other night, likely so.

Realizing there wasn't anything for breakfast, he grabbed a piece of paper and pen that had been lying around, scribbling out a note and then yanked on his boats and tossed his coat on, grabbing Wilbur's keys from his jacket's pocket and heading out to the brunette's car.

Hopefully the grocery store wasn't wiped clean, considering it was the day before Christmas.

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When he came back, he noticed that Techno was no longer asleep, rather sitting at the table scrolling through his phone absentmindedly. Noticing Phil walk into the kitchen with plastic bags dangling from his arms, he got up to help him put the contents away and carry in the rest of the groceries. Despite it being the 24th, there was still quite a bit in stock as it turned out.

They began to make breakfast in silence, the sounds of bacon and sausages sizzling and the smell of baked beans and potatoes surrounding the atmosphere.

"Phil."

"Hmm?"

"What do we do?"

Carefully turning down the burner that was currently cooking the eggs, he sighed.

"I don't know Techno, I really don't. What I do know, is that we have to be there for him. Let's make this Christmas special, whaddya say?" Phil laughed at the end, before flipping over some of the eggs.

"Sounds like the start of a plan, Mr. Minecraft," Techno replied, and then pushed down the toaster. "I heard there's a skating rink open, we can rent skates and spend the afternoon there," he suggested.
Phil inwardly smiled, knowing Techno had conducted research on activities for the day when he'd stepped out of the house.

"How far?" The eggs were placed on four different plates, alongside a spoonful of beans and a few strips of bacon.

"Not very. Maybe a ten minute drive. It's free admission, it's outdoors, but skates cost a few dollars to rent," -Oh, he most definitely did research- "We can get some hot chocolate after and then do some shopping," the brunette supplied.

The plan now set, Techno went to wake up Wil and Tommy, the grumbles of a few more minutes of wistful sleep floating into the kitchen from the family room.

"Breakfast is served boys," Phil announced, placing down plates heaped with food down on the table. They ate and chatted, avoiding any topic about Tommy's parents. And if Tommy was quieter than usual and didn't eat much, none of them pointed it out.

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"How does everybody feel about going skating?" Phil asked, scraping a plate into the garbage, waiting to see Tommy's reaction. Blue eyes sparked in curiosity at the mention of the winter time activity.