Will Them Into Existence

Try, try again

Groaning and laying a heavy arm across their head, Wilbur closed his eyes tightly against the tell-tale beeping signaling an all-too-abrupt end of sleep. They sighed and lifted their other arm away from the comforting warmth of his blankets, flailing without sight and reaching for the snooze button. Finally making contact, he slammed his hand down, eagerly awaiting the returning silence that would follow.

Instead of the expected blissful quiet, the alarm blared on, Wilbur's eyes swirling despite the dark as they yanked themself up out of bed. Once again slamming the top of his alarm clock to the same result, they frowned and stood up, holding onto his bed. Now standing in front of his nightstand, they rubbed an eye, tapping their foot lightly on the carpet and once again moving an arm towards the snooze button.

Im the darkness of their room, the red numbers from his alarm clock stood out brightly, '4:14' illuminating the walls. Blinking, Wilbur dropped their arm. A malfunction, it must be. Even though his alarm wasn't set to go off for two more hours, a power surge or something must have come through and messed the settings up. They nodded, shaking their hands by their sides and taking a step away from the clock and towards his bedroom door. He'd go wake up their brother, who could help fix whatever had gone wrong.

Except, as soon as Wilbur stepped closer to the door, the sound of voices greeted them.

"Lila, lovey, your clocks gone off. You'll be late for work." Rustling, like someone moving weighty cloth, and then, "Sorry, Sash, I'll get it."

Stopping in his tracks, he turned back towards the clock and looked around, hands grasping the hem of their shirt. The incesante beeping stopped, and Wilbur squeezed their eyes shut, stepping back towards his bed and pulling the covers up to his chin. Maybe, it would all be a dream.

——————

"Wilbur," A voice said, gently knocking on the door. "You okay?"

Wilbur jolted up from the state of not-quite-asleep that they had been in, looking over to their alarm clock with a frown. The digits, still stuck at 4:14, molded around a crumpled topping glass panel, the front of the machine that housed the snooze button practically shattered. They swallowed and continued climbing out of bed. "Yeah, yeah, sorry, I uh- I think my alarm clock is messed up."

He walked to the door, resting his hand on the handle and intending to gently pull it open. The door, however, did not get the memo, as it pulled completely from the hinges, handle still grasped in Wilbur's hand.

On the other side of the now-empty doorway, Tom stood wide-eyed, eyes darting between Wilbur, the door, and the doorframe. "Wil-"

"Oh my god- I literally don't-" Wilbur started, grabbing their arm with their free hand and shaking it. "I don't know how I did that, I'm so so-"

"Wil!" Tom said louder, setting his hands on either of Wilbur's shoulders. "Calm down. Calm down, it's okay. Deep breaths."

"But, I-"

The shorter shook his head, smiling encouragingly. "It was an accident. You don't even know how you did it. It doesn't matter. Just a door. Okay?"

The green haired teen inhaled in small spurts, leaning into their brother's hands. One deep breath later, and the door tumbled out of his grasp, landing on the carpet at the pair's feet with a soft thump.

Wilbur looked at Thomas, frown settling onto their face. "I don't- I really don't know what's wrong with me, Toms."

The shorter's eyebrows knit together, and he squeezed his brother's shoulders again lightly. "What are you talking about?"

"Earlier this morning, I- well, I thought I heard my alarm. I tried to turn it off. But then I noticed that it was way too early." Wilbur said, looking down at their sock-clad feet and stretching the him of their shirt. He cleared his throat. "I thought maybe there had been a power surge. I was going to go wake you up, but- but it stopped. I heard Lilian and Sasha."

They looked up, eyes crinkled in worry. "But that can't be possible, right? I mean, they- they live on the second floor. I couldn't have heard their alarm. It's not- it's not possible."

The blonde closed his eyes for one anxiety-filled second, and then took a deep breath. "Can I see your alarm clock?"

"I- I mean, I guess. Sure. But why?"

"I'll tell you if I'm right." Tom hummed, squeezing Wilbur's shoulders one more to for reassurance and pulling back.

He stepped into the taller's room, avoiding the door with a wince as it lightly hit the wall behind him. He stopped in front of his brother's dresser, gingerly picking up the fractured alarm clock and twisting it around in his hands. He whistled lowly under his breath, glancing towards his brother who still stood waiting by the door, and setting the clock back down again.

"Yeah, uh, I don't think I can fix that." He said lightly, walking past his brother and into the kitchen. "But, I'll tell you what," He plugged a blender into the wall, rinsing and cutting a few fruits as he talked. "I'll make you another one after school! No harm, no foul."

Wilbur shuffled into the kitchen, now changed for school. "Ah, Tom, you don't have to do that." They sat at the bar, tracing invisible patterns onto the counter. "It's my own fault."

Tommy spun around, smoothie cup in hand, and set it in front of his brother. "Nonsense, Wil! You know I like to fiddle. And besides, we're in this together." He spun around again, watching his brother while they sipped the drink out of the corner of his eye.

They hummed happily, shooting him a thumbs up and dusting their pants off as they stood. "I have to finish my calc homework before we leave. Thanks for this, by the way, it's delicious!"

The blonde waved them off, leaning against the counter and looking at the ingredients laid out. Banana. Strange, considering that their brother could never stand the fruit before.

———-

THE LONG AWAITED SECOND CHAPTER YAYYY!