"Tom told me about you and Todd." My mom says as I pack my bags, getting ready to go back to Welton. "Oh... he did?" I feel the colour drain from my face. "Yea he did. I'm very happy for you Neil. He is a very sweet boy." I look up at her and I feel my eyes start to fill with tears. "Yea, Todd is pretty great. Honestly... he's one of the best people in my life." I resume packing. I find the blanket that Todd had made for me. I fold it carefully and place it in my bag. I then take Treddy and it is time for me to go back.
When I walked through the door, the lights were turned off. My mom turned them on and I am shoked to see everyone there. Charlie, Knox, Pitts, Meeks, Spaz, Chris and in the middle of it all, Todd was standing there. Charlie takes me into a massive bear hug. "Neil! I missed you so much!" He says this quite loudly in my ear. I grimace slightly and he lets go. I see Todd and he gives me a slight wave.
Once I was finally able to pry myslef away from a very clingy Knox Overtreet, I walked over to Todd who had been in a corner the entire time. I knew he doesn't really like big gatherings so I wanted to make sure he was okay. "Hey Todd." I sit beside him he smiles. His good old Todd Anderson smile. "Hello Neil. You look good." I smile and chuckle. "You like the new look? I call it 'I've been stuck in a hospital for months on end'." He smiles. I slouch a bit against the wall and lean against him. The sounds of everyone talking over each other and the laugh soon started to overwhelm me. I felt dizzy and just wanted to sleep. "Hey are you okay?" I sigh and nod. "Mhm just tired..." he looks at me worriedly. "Todd I promise I am fine." He nods and gets up. "Where are you going?"
"To tell your mom that you're tired."
"Okay."
I wake up the next morning with the feeling of a headache coming on. I trudge down the stairs to the kitchen.
Down the hall to the right. The room is there. The desk is there. Was it cleaned up? Was there a stain? I try my best not to look down the hall. I take the pain meds and sigh. I will never be able to look down that hall. I feel my moms hand on my shoulder. I flinch a bit. "Are you alright?" I nod. "Yea, just a small head ache." She sighs and gives my shoulder a gentle squeeze. "It'll get better. I promise." She pecks my cheek and walks off. Will it get better?
I hear the phone ringing from downstairs. I am currently in my bedroom, in a blanket burrito with the lights off and the blinds shut. I am trying to get rid of my headache but it did not seem to be working. I hear my mom walking up the stairs. I know it is her because at a very young age I had learned how to differentiate between her footsteps and my fathers. She knocks on my door. I tell her to come in. "Hey... are you feeling any better?" I shrug slightly. "A little."
"Okay. Um Todd just called, he wants to know how you're doing." I smile. "Tell he's more than welcome to come here."
"Okay." She leaves the room. I sigh happily at the thought of Todd.
I wake up to my door opening. I smile when Todd enters my room. I sit up in my bed. "Hey, you okay?"
"Yea, just a small head ache but I'll live. Come sit." He chuckles and makes his way to the bed. He sits down and kisses my temple. "So will you be coming back to Welton?" I nod vigorously. "Hell yea. I want my life to be as normal as possible." He chuckles. "Okay good. Because school's not the same without you. And Mr. Keating's class is somehow boring." He takes my hand and kisses it. "I also miss my room mate."
"I miss my room mate too."
