Among Us (boyxboy) [ON HOLD]

Chapter 53 - A Chance

Please don't put on a smile when you're sad or exhausted. I won't do you any good. And nobody else either, for that matter. And don't pretend you're alright when you clearly are not. People will notice and they'll think there's something you're hiding. Don't give them any more reason to watch you. It won't help you in any way. But maybe, if you want it and you work with them, they'll be able to help you. Don't disregard them simply because they do not understand. Let yourself be helped. And don't suffer alone.

I know how hard this is. I have spent enough days watching you hurting.

...I apologise, that was insensitive.

But it is the truth none the less. You'll suffocate, Duncan. Sooner or later you won't be able to hold it in. I do not want to find you in that state.

Please accept anyone that wants to help you, even if their intentions might not be the same as yours.

Oliver pulled me along, took turns, ran straight again and took some more turns and I followed. I didn't know where he was going. I also didn't care. This was the first time in far too long that I felt exhilarated and my heart was beating again, not because it had too but because it had reason to.

When we stopped, I swayed. It was like my feet didn't know how to stand still anymore.

"Go on." Oliver said, smiling warmly.

I looked around then. We weren't in the city centre anymore. Instead we stood in front of a little cafe on the outskirts, close to where the woods would start. I hadn't really been here before, since it wasn't a very popular location, especially since the disappearances and murders had happened.

I pushed the door open and a penetrating squeak rank through the room.

I noticed her immediately. She sat with her back to us, apparently stirring a drink, but it wasn't hard to recognise her, at least not to me. It was then that I realised how much I had actually missed her. I hadn't seen her since that time right after the town hall. They hadn't let me, claiming it would hinder my progress.

I ran over and before she could even react, I had engulfed her in a side hug that must have looked very uncomfortable.

"Duncan!" she exclaimed, then laughed and hugged me back.

Ten minutes later we sat there, comfortably laughing and chatting about unimportant things and it almost felt as if everything was alright.

Only it didn't last long. Someone eventually mentioned something that everyone immediately associated with out current problem. There wasn't any way to avoid the topic for long, not anymore.

"I'm sorry I couldn't see you for so long. My mother wouldn't let me out of her sight. And she said seeing you was ... bad for me."

She only nodded and smiled.

"Oliver told me." which reminded me of a question I had wondered about when we'd sat down earlier.

"How did you two...?" I let the question trail out and instead gestured between the two of them.

"I looked for her. I know how much she means to you so I figured especially now you could use all the support you can get."

I swallowed hard. These were my friends and I couldn't feel more thankful for them.

"You don't look good, you know." Citty said then, almost hesitantly.

I winced, then nodded. I knew I didn't. My eyes were red rimmed all around and then faded into a sickly dark colour, my lips were usually slightly bleeding from my constant biting on them and I had scratch marks all over my body, my own poor attempt at keeping it together. It almost seemed as if the only way for me not to break down was to hurt myself. It was sickening and it was embarrassing. I wanted to be stronger than this.