Who Wants to be Batman?

Keefe: Is This What it Feels Like to Get Dumped?

My Imparter rings. Fitz.

"Hey there," I say.

"Did you ever, you know, like me?" He asks nervously.

"Um. You mean as a friend? No. I like you as a brother."

"Oh. No, not like either of those."

"Um. You mean, like, with you and Sophie?" Fitz blushes.

"Possibly," he looks away.

"Aha! So you admit it! But no, you're definitely only like a brother to me. Why are you asking me this?"

"Well, according to Biana, you've made yourself no longer, well, single I guess," he mumbles, sounding nervous, embarrassed, and something else that I can't quite put my finger on.

"Wait. What? How does she know?"

Oh, right. Linh.

"I don't actually know," he says. "But I have to stop. My dad is calling me."

"No he isn't!" But he's already gone. What is up with him? He seemed... more distant or something. I wonder why. I set my Imparter down. Well, I know how Biana knows. My Imparter rings again. Sophie.

"Hey there Foster," I smirk. Does she know?

"Hey. Uh, are you alright?" She looks worried.

"Yeah.... Why?"

"Um. Tam is a complete train wreck," she says.

"What's a train?"

"A human thing. But that's besides the point! It means he's mentally--and probably physically--breaking down! He hung up on me after I called him about this. Oh. Also Fitz is also freaking out. It may be better is you don't talk to him." She looks nervous.

"Why shouldn't I talk to my best friend?" That comes out more angry than I want it to.

"He.... I don't think he's okay with the whole you and Tam thing. Because you're both boys or something. I... I'm sorry, Keefe."

"No. No. I'll be fine. I just lost my best friend because he's an idiot. Yeah, totally fine," I laugh and sign off. Somehow I expect a call from Dex, so I wait a little bit. Then it sinks in. My best friend has dumped me because I kissed a boy. Breaking down is not an option. Tam needs me. I call him.

"Hey. Are you okay? Sophie just told me you hung up on her. Do you need me to come over to your house?" He shakes his head.

"I'm not even at my house. I just. Can't. Deal with anyone right now." He says, completely deadpan.

"And he speaks!" I try to lighten to mood a little. It doesn't work "Well, where are you then? Supposedly I'm good at comforting people. I think it might be an Empath thing, but then my dad is stone cold and he's an Empath, so... maybe not."

"In the woods near my house." He says. "You can come on one condition."

"And What is that?" I lighten up. Just a little.

"I get to do a shadow reading on you." Oh. Yikes.

"Anything for you," I say, after a while. I hang up. Okay then. I am going to go comfort Tam. And try not to think about Fitz. Oof. But this doesn't work, because suddenly memories come flooding back. When Fitz and I met. The first day of school. Studying. Base Quest. Sophie Foster.

I fall onto my bed, trying not to cry. I've officially started my breakdown process, and am failing to stop it. Okay, first things first. Let's get to Tam before I die of grief, or something.

***

Tam is slowly levitating down from his perch in the tree. I follow his movement with my eyes. He's avoiding them. Foster described his situation well. He looks bad.

"How long have you been here?" I ask putting my hands on his shoulders. He shrugs and looks away.

"I don't know."

"Are you okay?"

"Too many questions. But, yeah. I'm just kinda dying here."

"Yeah, I know." He looks at me.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't you have to do this shadow reading?" I don't want to talk about it. He nods, but doesn't pry. Good.

"Okay then. Welp," he puts his hands on my shoulders and closes his eyes. An icy cold washes over me. Tam looks adorable when he's concentrating. He nods, and mumbles something incoherent.

"I'm done now," he says.

"What is my brain like?" I kick the dirt.

"Um, well, it has a healthy amount of shadowness, a little much, but you have enough light in there to be not evil or whatever."

"Would you care to speak in my language here, Bangs Boy?"

"Oh," he rolls his eyes. "Well, you have a lot of secrets, but not so many that I would, well, reject you or something." It's his turn to fidget.

"Ahhh, okay then, Mr. Trust Issues," I laugh. He punches me lightly. "So, are you okay?"

"Um. No," he looks down, as if sitting there looks appealing. Maybe even burying himself to hide.

"What would make you feel better?"

"Oh, I don't know. How about none of this ever happening?" He shrugs.

"Yeah, except for this," I point between us, my finger moving back and forth. He shakes his head.

"No, even this. I can't deal with it." He looks like a depressed doll of some sort. He needs comforting. I hug him, and he snaps, crying into me, like a five year old or something. I remember Fitz, and start crying too. We're a mess, hugging each other like the world depends on it or something. 

Like if we break apart, we'll die.