𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐍𝐀 - wilbursoot

𝐟𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐲

"come on, wil. please?" vienna made her way into the passengers seat. wilbur made his way into the driver's side, his head shaking and hiding a smile.

"i already told you, it's a surprise!" he put the keys in the ignition and started up the car.

about ten minutes into the drive, vienna asked again. wilbur gave her a playful glare and smiled. "i'm taking you to meet some of my mates. 'promise they're good guys."

vienna had never been fond of meeting new people, particularly groups of people. for wilbur, she would try. how bad could it be after all?

except, what if they hated her? what if they thought she was annoying? or too quiet? not enough? her leg began bouncing a million times a second as her thoughts increased, a habit her anxiety caused her to pick up.

wilbur noticed her bouncing leg. his expression faltered and he placed a hand on her knee to ease her anxiousness. "we don't have to go if you're too anxious to. i'm sure they'd understand and we could always do it another ti-"

"it's okay, wil," she cut him off. "really. i'm sure i can handle it."

they were now outside an office building. it seemed much like the one wilbur described that he worked at, only it was further away. laughs and conversations could be heard from inside as they stood outside the door.

vienna took one last calming breath before wilbur knocked. he gave her a reassuring look to which she gave a weak smile. the door swung open to reveal a brunette man and a few others sitting on the couches behind him.

"wilbur! it's nice to see you mate. come in, come in!" vienna put on a tight lipped smile and wilbur quickly took her hand before walking inside the office.

they all greeted wilbur and introduced themselves to vienna, her doing the same. once everyone was sat and comfortable, one of the guys, who she presumed to be alex (although she couldn't quite remember), shot the first question. "so are you guys a thing or what?"

the other guys let out hums and yeahs of curiosity while wilbur and vienna just laughed a little. wilbur gave them all stern looks. "no, no we're not a 'thing,' but no funny business boys."

they all laughed and let out ooos, making vienna laugh nervously and bury her face in wilbur's shoulder. another guy, who she presumed to be will, perked up. "do you guys fancy each other or something?"

wilbur looked down at vienna. her head was still slightly buried in his shoulder. "yeah, something like that."

alex spoke up again. "then why don't you guys just date already!"

vienna started to pick at her bottom lip. wilbur noticed and took her hand to prevent her from doing it any further. instead, he let her play with his fingers. her fingers intertwined his and she waved them a few times.

"let's change the subject, yeah?" wilbur offered. to vienna's surprise, they did. subjects varied and she enjoyed every single one of them. they all seemed like great guys.

although she didn't talk much but, she enjoyed listening to their conversations about funny little topics and old stories of times they'd hang out with wilbur. she could tell wilbur was enjoying his time with them, too.

around 9:30 pm, they mutually decided to part ways. everyone said their goodbyes and gathered their things before exiting the office.

wilbur and vienna sat in the car, wilbur holding the biggest smile on his face. "it felt good to see them again. what'd you think?"

vienna gave a small smile. "can i show you one of my favorite quotes?" wilbur gave a small nod, and so she proceeded. "it's from the one i read you back home. you weren't quite paying attention at this point, but i read it anyway."

she pulled out her phone and went to her gallery. she pulled up a photo of that page, seemingly in blue light. she handed him the phone and he read.

anxious.

uneasy in a room
filled with others
smothered by crowds
anxious from the noise
heard in raging halls
bouncing off the fucking walls

i wish to be alone
hidden behind silence
isolated by peace
away from everything

he handed her the phone back with a quirked eyebrow. "there's more to this then? you wouldn't just show me a quote and not give me a little more about."

"you're right. i didn't just show you this because it's my favorite quote, more of why it is. it's my favorite because i resonated with it for the longest time. i was afraid to leave my house, to hang out with people, to go to the store, all of it. my anxiety was always in control of my life and i missed out on so many things. if i did go out, i'd want to leave. i wanted to spend my days alone in the comfort of my home. but then you came along and you changed that."

she paused to look at him. he hummed, urging her to go on. she did.

"i don't know. that day we met was my first time out in a long time. i met you and suddenly i didn't want to go home. i wanted to spend time with you. now, we spend even more time together. today, i was fine. i liked listening to their stories and you guys talking. i'm less anxious around you. thank you for that. you help me be better."

wilbur's heart melted. "oh vienna, you're already better on your own. and i feel like... i feel like as much as you've taught me about myself, i've also taught you. i know i have, you just told me." they both laughed a little. "you opened my eyes to new possibilities and emotions i didn't know i'd feel again. thank you for that."

author's note
long chapter ah ha ha i kinda like this one
also, that poem is from empty bottles full of stories by r.h. sin and robert m. drake :)