Back To The Old House

part four

(Sorry about the wait for this one 😅)

The two weeks William stayed with Theodore and his family were nothing short of bliss. Despite the frightfully cold weather that stopped them from enjoying their usual exploration of the world around them, they spent every waking moment in one another's company.

The boys walked upstairs after dinner, and it wasn't until William hesitated before following Theodore into his room that reality began to hit them both.

"What is it?" Theodore asked, looking at his friend in confusion.

"I go back tomorrow, Teddy," William said softly. "I should probably begin to pack my things."

Theodore's heart constricted. William must've seen something in his eyes because he did his best to look positive. "It's alright. Next time you can come to me in London."

Theodore smiled weakly. "You'd be throwing me in at the deep end. It's an awfully big city."

"I mean, we were going to go there together one day anyway, weren't we?" William joked lightly. "I'm just there first. And against my will."

"You'll show me around, won't you? The way I did for you when you moved here?" Theodore asked.

"Of course, I will." William smiled. "I'll show you all my favourite places and introduce you to my friends. We'll have a wonderful time, I promise."

He held out his hand, all fingers but one closed into a fist but the pink one, which William held out towards Theodore.

"Pinky promise." Willliam insisted. Theodore frowned, and William smiled. "Here, hold out your hand so that it looks like mine." Theodore did so, and William wrapped his pinky around Theodore's. Instinctively, Theodore did the same. "If I break this promise, you can break my finger."

"What?" Theodore asked, pulling his hand away.

"You've truly never heard of a pinky promise before?" William laughed. "That's why we use pinky fingers. I make this promise on the condition that if I break it, you can break my pinky."

"That's horrid!" Theodore said. William looked at him with infinite amounts of fondness in his eyes.

"No one ever actually breaks fingers, Teddy. It's just a silly rule. No one really pays any attention to it."

"I should hope not," Theodore said.

"Will you help me pack?" William asked, trying to distract from the promise. Theodore nodded, and William dragged him into Sammy's room, where William had set up his belongings neatly in one corner of the room. Theodore couldn't help him smile. He knew his best friend and knew that he would not want to disrupt anything in Sammy's bedroom no matter how far away he was.

William hauled his bag onto his bed and looked at Theodore, a small smile tugging at his lips.

With that, the two boys began to pack.

~

The following day, the boys got the bus to the nearest town with a train station. The whole way there, they were quiet. Dead silent, as if their behaviour would convince the world somehow to grant them a miracle, a way for William to stay longer. A scenario in which he did not have to return to London.

Theodore had been surprised to find how easy William made it to slip back into an old routine. On milder days when it was not too cold, they would go outside and run as they usually would. They were, of course, bundled up in warm clothes but enjoyed themselves nonetheless. They still spent time reading books, happy to exist in one another's company without talking constantly. They played board games, and on the occasions when there was enough snow, they hurled snow at one another across the garden.