The Fire In Our Hearts (TomTord)

Merited Tears

Tom rubbed his eyes and yawned. He rummaged around in the pantry for a while before pulling out the materials for smores.

He assemble two smores and shoved them in the microwave, not caring that smores weren't even close to a healthy breakfast.

He narrowed his eyes slightly as he felt Edd and Matt's eyes following him from the table. Tom carried his 'breakfast' to the table and sat down hesitantly.

"Hey Tom, how about we go out for dinner today" Edd asked, his gaze unwavering. "Uh, sure. Want me to invite Tord?" Edd and Matt looked at each other for a second before turning back to Tom. "No, Tord's working today".

"Where are we going?" Tom asked, and Edd replied "that new restaurant downtown"

"Okay...." Tom replied and got up to put his plate in the sink. He could feel two sets of eyes watching him as he did so.

All day, whenever Tom would be in the same room as Edd and Matt he was uncomfortably aware of them frequently glancing over at him. At least Edd spoke to him though, Matt had been quieter than Tom had thought possible.

The hours crawled past and Edd dragged Tom and Matt to dinner. One of them at each of Tom's sides at all times, like he was a prisoner.

Even when the waiter had seated them, a suspicious silence looked over their table.

No one spoke for the whole meal. Even the waiter could sense how uncomfortable it was around them. He brought the cheesecake Edd had ordered and scurried off without a word.

"Okay, what the hell is going on?" Tom finally demanded.

"Tom" Matt finally spoke."what?" Tom asked exasperatedly. "Tom, we know what's going on here" Matt told him.

"Alright. Tell me, because I don't" Tom said. "Oh, I think you do" Edd said, folding his hands in front of his mouth like every stereotypical villian ever. "You like Tord don't you"

Tom sat dumbfounded for almost a minute. He was both shocked at the realization that the two had been whispering to each other and watching him all day for that reason and embarrassed that his friends would say something like that.

Therefore, his response was to sit in silence looking troubled.

"We heard you and Tord singing yesterday" Edd chirped and his and Matt's serious attitudes vanished.

"You were listening?!" Tom asked, now thoroughly embarrassed. "So you do like him!" Matt sang and Tom sputtered "n-nothing I don't!" Waving his arms infront of him.

Edd grinned widely and pushed the peice of cheesecake towards Tom. "Here, go give this to Tord."

"I bet you're just dying to be alone with him!" Matt giggled and Tom's face went red. "I am not!".

Tom asked the waiter for a to-go box and headed towards Tord's house after dropping off Edd and Matt at the house. "What am I even doing?" He thought to himself and almost immediately answered back "being stupid".

Tom walked up to Tord's door but when his fist was centimeters away from the door, a crash came from inside.

Tom rushed in and set the box of cheesecake on a table. "Tord?!" He called, worried.

Tom turned at the sound of faint crying and followed it to what he assumed was Tord's room. There sat Tord, crying on the ground. Broken candles and matches lay scattered at the other end of the room.

Tom dropped to his knees and hugged the shaking figure. Tords sobs only got harder.

"My therapist wants me to go back to Norway" he wispered.

He tried drying his tears with the backs of his hands but the streams of sorrow refused to cease. "She wants me to continue treatment. I couldn't get over it, I wasn't strong enough" he sobbed.

"I'd rather drown than go back!" Tord cried. "I hate those sessions." He shouted clutching onto Tom "I hate all of them" his voice dropped to a whisper again.

Tom couldn't bring himself to sat anything, so he hugged Tord tighter and waited for the heartbreaking sobs to fade away.