𝙶𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚍

Moving

"I swear to god Tubbo, if this place ends up being haunted I will beat your sorry ass." Tommy glanced around nervously, clutching his box closer to his chest. This is why he didn't want Tubbo picking out the house.

Tubbo just laughed. "Tommy, you know there's no such thing as ghosts. Now shut up and haul ass, I want my car empty before the sun goes down."

Instead of laughing alongside Tubbo, Tommy grumbled incoherently, brushing past the cobwebs that clung to the doorways. His heart raced unecessarily as the old floorboards creaked beneath his feet.

"I feel like this buildings going to fall apart any second." Tommy said. He tested the next floorboard before leaning his weight on it.

"Shes old, but sturdy." Tubbo grinned proudly. "You're just shifty because youspent all of yesterday watching BuzzFeed unsolved."

Tommy scoffed. "That has nothing to do with it!" He set down his box on top of the others that were stacked precariously in the lounge room. It wobbled for a bit but stilled when Tubbo placed his next to it.

Tubbo straightened up and clapped his hands once. "C'mon, there's only a few to go!" The boys excitement only made Tommy more miserable.

"I still can't believe you'd choose this house of all the places. It's in the middle of a forest, for goodness sake! I feel like I'm going to be abducted any second!"

Tubbo just rolled his eyes and turned, running towards the front door. Tommy quickly followed, uncrossing his arms. "Wait- don't leave me in here alone!"

...

The sun had set when the two had finally moved the last box into the house. The quiet hum of the forest echoed through the living space and enveloped them in a comfortable silence. Books and old records poked out from behind boxes and fragile ornaments sat wrapped on shelves.

Tommy turned to look out the window. The sky had darkened to a deep purple that caressed the tree line. The moon had appeared along with the single star that accompanied it. He sighed.

Tubbo glanced over at him. He was collapsed in an armchair next to an empty fireplace. Tommy repressed a shudder. It just looked unnatural, like something other than fire had died there.

"I can't help thinking some Spiderwick shit is about to happen." Tommy blurted. Tubbo raised an eyebrow.

"You can go to the attic looking for goblins then. I think I'm going to sleep." He turned over in the armchair, curling into a ball that couldn't be comfy.

Tommy glanced towards the ceiling and shuddered. The overall vibe of the house was creepy enough that he didn't need to go looking into the attic.

"No thanks." He muttered. His voice sounded intrusive in the peace of the room.

When he told Tubbo he wanted to move in with him, he'd made a deal. Tubbo could choose the house if he could beat Tommy's top speed run. Tommy could choose if he beat it.

Tubbo beating his record was something he thought would never be possible and yet it happened. And Tubbo being Tubbo, chose the sketchiest house around.

The walls were covered in vines, the yard was weed infested, cobwebs ruled the house and every second floorboard was rotted. It creaked and groaned as if it was caught in a hurricane, even though the air outside was completely still.

Of course Tommy hated it.

And of course Tubbo chose it. This forest was known for its bees, his favourite animal. As kids, they'd spend ages in among the trees, watching them fly in and out of their hives with a sense of motivation neither of them would ever understand.

They'd played in this same wood, kicking balls and eating lunch, for over 20 years. It was where they buried pets and let their imagination run wild. The whole place was one big lake of childhood nostalgia.

Back in the present, Tommy graviatated towards the second armchair. Here he stood in an old (and most probably haunted) house in the middle of that lake. He sat down in the chair and tried to get comfy. His arms ached from carrying boxes and he felt exhaustion from constantly being on edge.

Tommy looked over at Tubbo, who was sleeping soundly despite still being curled tightly around himself. Tommy watched his back rise and fall. If he concentrated, he could hear his friends slow, sleepy breaths.

And to the rhythm of Tubbos breathing, Tommy also fell asleep.

They both missed the eyes watching them from the doorway.