Fallout and Future

Chapter 4: Another Sleepover

A/N: CWs found at bottom

The friends(?) shared stories and spoke casually as night set in. Basil and Kel argued lightheartedly about the best Captain Spaceboy issue (Aubrey still swore the Mutant Bunny run was their worst), Aubrey talked about taking care of Bun-Bun, and, before any of them had even realized it, closing time had arrived. Gino gave them all a harsh glare as they shuffled towards the door, Basil and Aubrey having eaten far too much, while Kel had already begun to plan his midnight snack.

Basil reached for the handle of the door, being at the front of the group, but heard Kel speak behind him. "Hey, you don't have to accept, but seeing as it's your first day back, why not have a sleepover with us? Your house, seeing as my mom's been a bit uppity lately." Basil froze, hand gripping the cold metal bar.

"W-well..." He wasn't sure he wanted them so near to the place he'd tried to end it all, but he had no right to worry them. I shouldn't - can't - deny them anything. "Alright." Basil was thankful he faced away from his friends, face angled downward to avoid his reflection being caught by the glass doors.

Their silly debates continued, the path ahead being illuminated by street lamps, but Basil felt markedly less at ease now. He'd never liked the night all that much, even less so since he'd made up Something. The hallucinations were nowhere near as intense as they used to be, but he still spotted bright eyes and teeth glinting at him from the shadows. Aside from that, he didn't like the idea of his friends being within range for him to hurt them, but this was what they wanted. And it's what I want, too. He admitted guiltily.

As Basil tried to soothe himself, remembering Carlsen's advice that life isn't built on who deserves what, he realized Kel was waving his hand in front of his face. "Oi, Pluto to Basil, you there?" He asked. Aubrey looked at the flower boy with yet more concern evident in her gaze.

"Y-yeah, sorry, was just spacing out." Basil shook his head, trying to clear his mind. "Oh, we're almost here!" He tried to keep his friends from worrying about him, rapidly changing the subject and jogging up to his front door. Aubrey and Kel exchanged a worried glance, but decided not to bother him further.

Basil unlocked the door with a shaking hand, peeking inside. He spotted Polly standing over the counter, replacing the batteries in a flashlight with an anxious expression on her face. She looked up, breaking out into a relieved smile. "Oh my goodness, Basil! You're alright!" His caretaker immediately set down the light and rushed over to envelope him in a neck-high hug.

"S-sorry, Polly. I didn't have a phone or anything..." He replied guiltily.

"Wait, you don't have a phone?" Aubrey raised her eyebrows. "Damn, dude, we've gotta fix that." Polly finally took notice of the presence of Basil's friends.

"My goodness, Aubrey? Kelsey? It's been so long since you've been around!" Polly greeted them. Even if they hadn't been present since the Incident, it wasn't like Basil had friends around often, so it was always a memorable event.

"Uh... yeah. It has." Aubrey exhaled awkwardly, putting her hands on her hips and avoiding Polly's gaze.

"Yup! We'd like to sleep over, if that's cool with you!" Kel was significantly less awkward.

"That's a wonderful idea, Kel. You two can either take the couch or Mrs. Altenstein's old room." Polly said cheerfully, leading everyone inside.

Aubrey thought back to the time when Basil was her only friend, and she spent long days hanging out at his house. She'd water his flowers occasionally, and he'd show her how to use his camera. Really, his home hadn't changed much since then, although the friends had beyond measure. And, well, his grandmother was dead. She cursed herself mentally; she'd have to apologize for not showing up to the funeral later, but didn't want to bring down the mood.