Free & Flightless (Trench)

Chapter 18-Josh

Josh didn't like secrets. He didn't like talking about things, either. He liked the nice in between of comfortable silence. But that wasn't really a thing in the Bandito camp. Since it was basically just a group of people spending time around one another 24/7, everybody got to know each other's' secrets. And everybody was out for one another. Everybody.
Tyler had somehow made it to beside Josh in the long trudge to a new location for the Bandito camp, and Josh could feel Tyler's curious stare practically burning through the side of Josh's head. Josh almost wanted to slap him silly and tell him to run back to his daddy Nico.
But Josh was too nice to say that.
For now.
Josh pulled his olive green hoodie up, yanking the cinch of it so he could hopefully block people out of his view and hearing. He was..annoyed to say the least. It was like anger was boiling inside of each vein coursing through his body.
The Banditos walked relatively silently, waiting for something unfortunate or dangerous to occur, since that was usually the way with the Banditos. But Josh was still very intimidated, more than he thought the others were. Beside him, Josh could hear Tyler huff in occasional and flustered sounds, most likely from the uphill layout the Banditos were currently scaling.
"I don't get it, Josh." Tyler muttered from beside Josh. Josh's head whipped up, and he furrowed his eyebrows, slightly annoyed at his friend's outburst. Why was he so skiddish? He was what, twenty? Eighteen?
"What?" Josh snapped, ruder than he intended to be. Tyler made a small and worrisome sound, causing Josh to yank down his hood to see Tyler.
Tyler had tears streaming down his face. And he didn't seem like the crying kind of guy—more of a solemn sorrow. Josh immediately stopped in his steps, eyebrows furrowed in both confusion and worry.
"Woah, relax. What's wrong?" Josh asked, glancing at the Banditos in front of them—who were still walking. Tyler wildly shook his head, his hair becoming a mess of beautiful brown. Josh looked at his friend expectantly. It hadn't been long that he'd known Tyler, but it'd felt like..forever, really.
"N-nothing," Tyler stammered. Josh felt a sudden jolt through his head—not as bad as yesterday—but still concerning and painful. He chomped down on his teeth, unintentionally gritting them.
"Okay, what's wrong with you?" Tyler asked now in response. Josh shook his head, so disoriented he stuttered.
"I-I-I-I've got a migraine," Josh said, racking a hand through his slightly shaven hair. Tyler looked at him and Josh waved it off, dismissive of his health.
"Probably just that Nicolas Bourbaki," Josh joked lightly. Tyler seemed to stiffen at that name. But Josh had come up with it on the fly just then, so why'd he flinch?
"Heh..." Tyler chuckled awkwardly, smiling stiffly.
"Back to you, Joseph." Josh joked lightly, desperate to lighten the extremely tense mood. Tyler looked at Josh. His tears were dried now. How odd.
"Right. I, uh, I'm fine. I was just thinking." Tyler lamented, shrugging like it was all the same to him.
"Too much?" Josh prompted. Tyler nodded, remorsefully, watching Josh pop his neck in two consecutive movements.
"Yeah. Too much." Tyler muttered, seeming to be lost in thought. There he went, being a example of what he just said. Josh rubbed his temple. Josh's emotions were more uneven than a fan girl waiting for a band's hiatus to end (nod to me lmao), going from being annoyed to desperate to joking to annoyed again. And in pain all the while. Another jolt of pain shot through Josh's head.
"Damn, these headaches!" Josh practically howled the words, gritting his teeth. He felt Tyler pat his shoulder, and Josh slowly turned, looking expectantly at his friend. Tyler was looking at him.
"Your teeth are too perfect to mess up." Tyler commented, as if to say relax, don't grit your teeth, everything is fine. Tyler sure was new to the whole conversing thing.
But then again, after such a long time, Josh was too. Blamed his anxiety for it. That's always the easy way out, after all.
Suddenly, a cold hand held onto Josh's. Josh stiffened, the coolness reminding him of the Niners.
It was just Tyler's hand holding Josh's. Comforting, platonic, everything Josh had wanted. Just a friend he could be comfortable in his own skin with.
Maybe I can get out of here, this damn world, take Ty with me, Josh thought to himself. The thought's occurrence caused another wave of migraine-ness to shoot through his mind, but Josh didn't flinch. He began walking, instead. Tyler quickly followed suit, swinging the two's arms back and forth like a small child fascinated by the ordeal.
Josh laughed lightly, and watched Tyler's face light up. It wasn't because of the swinging though.
It was because Josh had laughed.
***
The Banditos had decided to set camp up at a desert-like area with a lush and green forest only a few feet away. It was an unexplainable natural phenomenon, in Josh's not so humble opinion.
The Banditos instantly set up tents, surrounding some stones somebody had decided would be where the bonfire was. No matter what the situation was and how dire it was, the Banditos always followed traditions as closely as followed.
"We are short ten tents!" Somebody called—Jenna, Josh realized.
"People will have to roommate up, I'm afraid," somebody else responded. Josh internally facepalmed. He liked his life minimal and tidy, and last time he was stuck with nobody less than a slob. A complete and utter slob.
And then there was the time that he was stuck with Brendon. Brendon and his sequin suits..Josh could shudder at the thought of it.
"Alright, just put random people with whoever." A ginger, Debby, Josh realized, called.
People were named off and assigned. The higher in rank you were, the more likely it was you had a tent with your name embedded in it. Josh was one of those instances, JOSH DUN messily sewn into the side of the tent entrance. Josh went into it, thankful he'd been promoted and that'd he spend the night alone.
Josh set up his small collection of things, unrolling his sleeping bag and shimmying happily into it, all the while closing his eyes. When a small throat cleared itself. Josh peeked one eye open, annoyed to no end.
Tyler Joseph stood there clutching a pillow.
"I was told to find somewhere to sleep," he said shyly. Josh groaned, before shifting over so there was room for Tyler.
"Fine," Josh muttered.
He heard Tyler get a extra sleeping bag of Josh's from the corner, and before he knew it, he felt Tyler's warmth through the two sleeping bags separating them.
Josh slept better that night than he had in months.

A/n: oh, i was taking a bath
(Like that's why I wrote this was cuz i was in the bath tbh)
I'm back y'all. Not that I was ever gone! Heh.