A Spirit Between Us (bxb)

Chapter 15 - Balancing reality.

The familiar, absolutely horrifying sound of Finn's alarm ripped through the air like a chainsaw, violently yanking both boys out of their slumber. They'd made the brilliant decision to stay up until the early hours, talking about the most useless things imaginable like gossipy teenage girls: debating which teachers they liked the least, discussing absurd hypothetical situations, and getting into a surprisingly heated argument about who would last longer in an apocalypse. After way too much back-and-forth, they grudgingly agreed that Archie would survive longer, purely on the grounds that Finn would trip over something and get eaten first.

Now, after barely any sleep, they felt like actual zombies. Finn slapped the alarm to shut off the obnoxious beeping and groggily sat up, his hair a mess. Archie groaned from beside him, his face buried in the pillow before he adjusted himself, propping up on his elbows with a look of pure exhaustion.

They exchanged a glance, but Finn quickly looked away, trying not to focus on how annoyingly good Archie looked with his bedhead and sleepy eyes. His heart did a little flip, and he scrambled out of bed, desperately needing a distraction.

For the next half hour, they went through the motions of getting ready for school, both in complete silence, too exhausted to even bother talking. The occasional groan or yawn was the only sound that broke the quiet, as they sluggishly moved around the room like two people who had made several bad life choices in the last 24 hours.

At one point, Archie bumped into the wall trying to put on his shoes. Finn snorted but was too tired to make a joke.

Finally, the silence broke as they made their way downstairs and into the kitchen for breakfast, courtesy of Finn's mom.

"Morning, hon. How are you feeling? Is your throat any better?" she asked, her voice warm but laced with concern.

Finn gave a tired nod, rubbing at his neck. "Yeah... it's still a bit tight, though."

His mom hummed in response, eyeing him like she was considering calling in backup. "Are you sure you should be going back to school so soon? Maybe take another day to rest?"

Finn plopped down at the kitchen island, Archie quietly sitting beside him, still half-asleep. "Nah, I'm fine. I was just... stressed... right?" He glanced at Archie for support, hoping for some kind of confirmation.

Archie, barely functioning, nodded as if on autopilot.

Finn's mom raised an eyebrow, her gaze darting to Finn's dad, who was cooking up some bacon and eggs like it was a food network show. "Alright, if you're really sure..." she said, though her tone suggested she wasn't entirely convinced.

As Finn stifled a yawn, his dad looked over his shoulder. "So... are you going to introduce us to your friend there?"

Archie blinked, as if suddenly realizing he was in someone else's house. "Uh... my name is Archie, sir."

Finn's mom sat down across from them, clearly intrigued. "How did you two meet? I don't think Finn's ever mentioned you before, but you seem close."

Both boys shared a quick, panicked look. How do we explain this? 'Yeah, your son casually followed me home because he's haunted by an evil spirit, and I talk to dead people. Totally normal.'

Finn cleared his throat. "Uh, we have history together." He paused for a second, thinking he'd nailed it, then immediately overthought it and panicked. "I-I mean the subject! History class! Not like... you know."

Archie, in the midst of drinking some orange juice that Finns father had placed in front of him, nearly choked. Finn's mom just gave him a curious look while he mentally kicked himself.