Free & Flightless (Trench)

Chapter 11-Tyler

Tyler

Tyler rested his head on Josh's jacket, lost in deep thought. The past 24 hours of discovering..well, a whole outside world he had never known..it was very overwhelming to say the least. Tyler looked around the "Trench", curious and content with the way things were currently going. He was, after all, away from Nico. And that's all he ever wanted, was to be away from "Father".
"What are you thinking about?" Josh asked. It broke Tyler out of my thoughts, and Tyler looked into his eyes curiously.
"Hmm?"  Tyler hummed low in his throat. An F kind of sound, one he didn't mind at all.
"I asked what you're thinking about." Josh repeated calmly. He always seemed so collected and chill, it was refreshing. He still had emotions, unlike the people of dema, who just acted like empty vessels.
Some of them actually were empty vessels, to Tyler supposed it made sense.
He realized he never answered Josh, who was still waiting, his expression tranquil.
"I was thinking about how I'm thankful to be here." Tyler said thoughtfully. Josh eyed Tyler before nodding.
"That's cool. I'm just glad you're out of Dema. It's not the most exciting place." Josh chuckled dryly.
"Why? Have you stayed—I mean, been captured—there before?" Tyler asked, curiosity streaming in him.
"Yeah. It wasn't very fun-a lotta torture went into getting Bandito information about me. My screams echoed the hell around that room." Josh attempted to make a joke about it, but his eyes were so sad and melancholy that Tyler didn't laugh.
"Sorry. That wasn't very funny." Josh said sheepishly. Was he blushing from how horrific his joke was? Tyler shook it off and laughed a bit in response.
"It's alright. I'm sorry they did that to you." The air between the two went from joking to serious in 2 seconds.
"It's cool. I mean, I'm gonna whoop their butts one of these days, but for now it's cool." Josh said. Tyler couldn't help but snicker at how Jos said butts. Josh saw Tyler's expression, and busted up laughing. They both knew they were drawing attention to one another from the Banditos, but in this moment in time? They just didn't care.
After they calmed down, they fell into another fit of laughing.
"Ty, you're—you're hilarious!" Josh howled. Tyler looked up.
"Ty?" He repeated. Josh paused before nodding.
"It's a nickname." Josh explained simply.
"Like Classified?" Tyler asked quietly. Josh hesitated again. This time shaking his head.
"Nah. Nicknames are a specific connection to something the person has done, or a joke. Or from that person's name. Classified? That's not a nickname. That's something you call an enemy. An experiment." Josh said, voice cold. Not towards Tyler, of course. But towards the concept of the Bishops.
"Then call me Ty. I want you to call me something others don't, because you mean something to me that the others don't." Tyler mused, his expression thoughtful.
"How so?" Josh prompted. Tyler looked at him. His brown eyebrows were knitted tight together in concentration and thought. He was absentmindedly chewing on his lip as he stared at Tyler.
"Well, I just mean that if you were to get hurt or die o-or anything like that, I would just...i don't know. I would probably..." Tyler shrugged, because at this moment in time, words were hard. Josh nodded, somehow completely understanding what Tyler was attempting to say.
"Josh!" Brendon scrambled over to Tyler and Josh, frazzled.
"What?" Josh said, quickly standing up. Leader instincts kicking in immediately. Tyler shakily stood up as well, clutching Josh's jacket. It calmed him.
"The bishops." Brendon said breathlessly. Josh was yet again asking the question "what?" In a stern voice.
"What. About. Them?" Josh spat the words, throwing his arms up at Brendon in frustration. Brendon... shrank back? Tyler watched fascinated. Calm Josh had left in an instinct, going from shades of pink for sweet and yellow for safe to grey for seriousness and orange anger.
"They're here. Asking for classified."
Tyler's stomach dropped and in two seconds, Josh and Tyler. Josh actually looked scared, which frightened Tyler even further. 
Josh kept a steady gaze on Tyler, mocha eyes locked into Tyler's eyes.
"Run."

A/N: I'm sorry this took so long!!! I've been distracted by mental health again for long updates but I've got one for y'all now at least. So sorry for grammar and other errors I'm certain this has.
Stay alive ||-//
Side note- UMMM 1K reads on torch Fic??! I'm crying thank you all so much!!