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— 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐍 𝑭𝑰𝑵𝑨𝑳𝑳𝒀 managed to drag Layla away from looking at all of his baby photos with his mother, he led her up to his room.
He gestured for her to sit on his bed — which was perfectly made, and Layla jumped at the opportunity to investigate once she sat down.
Now, the redhead wouldn't consider herself a nosy person, but looking into a person's bedroom — where they slept and spent their free time lounging, creating a safe space just for them; it was like looking into a piece of their mind.
A person's bedroom was solely theirs, and while Layla hadn't been in many people's bedrooms — not even Will's since at least middle school before their parents agreed that a girl and boy shouldn't be in a bedroom alone together — she felt like it was kind of a huge deal. It was personal.
His walls were a dark black, lined with posters of different rock bands that Layla had never heard of before. His dresser sat perpendicular to his bed; sleek, black-painted wood shining from the street light peeking through his blinds. A lamp sat dangerously close to the edge of the dresser, an obviously well-read book placed right in front of it.
His closet was opposite the dresser, a basic white sliding door hiding his wardrobe from her eyes.
The sound of Warren closing his door made her pause her perusal of his room, and she smiled when she noticed a basketball hoop posted on the back of his door.
He rubbed his neck awkwardly, avoiding her eyes as he mumbled. "Welcome to my room."
Layla only continued to stare at him until he finally looked up, meeting her eyes.
The soft smile was still on her face as she spoke. "I like it." She whispered just loud enough for him to hear.
Warren shot her a small and awkward smile. "It's not much to look at, but I kind of like it that way. It's simple, you know?"
Layla nodded like she understood. "Yeah."
And she did. While her room was the complete opposite — stuffed to the brim with childhood memorabilia she could never find herself letting go of and little trinkets she found randomly, she liked to think that she understood Warren. And his room definitely matched him. So in a way, she understood the simplicity behind how he'd designed his room.
"I didn't know you liked basketball." She nodded towards the hoop, hoping to hear the story behind that.
And she did, as Warren snorted. "I don't." He said, moving to sit next to her on the bed. Though unlike how she sat at the edge of the bed, he had no problem making himself completely comfortable — stretching out his legs as he sat up against his headboard.
"It was just the only excuse 10-year-old me could come up with when I was angry at the world and wanted an excuse to throw shit at my door." He said, before smiling softly. "My mom would never dare let me ruin the furniture like that though, so throwing a ball into a hoop attached to my door was the next best thing."
Layla smiled at his words. Like she said, personal.
Before she could respond to his story though, he nodded toward his drawer. "Top drawer, all the way to the right. The letter is in there."
Layla didn't move for a second, letting the gravity of what he was entrusting her with sink into her bones.
Eventually, she moved to copy Warren — stretching her legs out and leaning against the headboard. She looked at him, sending him a soft smile, before reaching over and retrieving the letter.
She heard Warren take a deep breath, as he softly thanked her and took the letter out of her hands.
For a moment, all they did was look down at the plain white envelope. Warren's thumb rubbed against the faded stamp stating that the letter was from the maximum security prison before flipping it over and looking at the seal instead.
Layla looked over at him to see his jaw clenched tightly, and she gently reached her hand out to grab one of his.
He took it quickly, squeezing her hand ever so softly.
"Whenever you're ready." She said gently, not wanting to push him. Even if he changed his mind and decided not to read the letter, Layla would still stay for dinner and hang out with Warren. She would not let the letter change anything between them — whether he read it or not.
She was here for Warren, plain and simple.
The pyrokinetic took another moment, before opening the envelope and moving the letter to be directly between the two of them.
"You can read the letter too if you want." He said softly, not daring to look at her, and Layla heard what he really meant.
Read it so I don't have to repeat it.
Layla nodded but remained quiet, and after a breath — they began to read.
Son,
I hope this letter finds you well. I know I haven't been the greatest at communicating with you, and for that — I'm sorry. I won't make excuses for why this is the first letter you've received from me. The truth is that I was scared. Afraid that you were angry at me, and would tear my letter up before you could even read it. And that fear is still there. You might have done exactly that with this one. I wouldn't blame you.
I've made many mistakes in this lifetime; my greatest one being taken away from you and your mother. I hope she's okay too. I hope she's managed to find happiness, and that you've been taking care of her just as I'm sure she's been taking care of you. You two are all the other has, and I'm sorry for being the reason for that. But I'm glad neither of you were alone in the wake of my imprisonment.
I want you to know that I've been trying to be a better person. Trying to be the husband and father that you and your mother deserve. I know it's too late to make up for all the lost time, but I can still do something about the future. I received news today that a judge has agreed to look over my case again, and that I might actually be let out of prison early for my good behavior.
It's not definite, but my lawyer has expressed that my circumstances are looking good. I wanted to let you know, because it's due time that I start acting like a father again, and own up to my actions.
I don't deserve to ask anything of you, but if you read this — I beg you not to tell your mother yet. I know it broke her heart when I was arrested. And I don't want to break her heart again by telling her I'll be getting out early, only for my case to fall through.
If everything goes smoothly and I receive an earlier release day, I'll write a letter to your mom. Until then, please take care of each other.
Love, Dad
Layla immediately looked at Warren after she finished reading the letter.
It was a lot to take in, and she wasn't sure how Warren would react. What she did know though, was that she was going to be there for him no matter what.
She waited for him to say something, but he never got the chance.
A light knock on the door pulled both of their attention and a moment later — Winona's voice came through.
