[OLD] the music freaks oneshots

★ 12: Comfort

ships : drew x henry
genre : angst
cw : alcohol
sequel to "Attachment"
requested by Cat-con

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"Here's my room," Drew said as he opened the door to his bedroom. "Well, of course, you know that, as you've been here plenty of times, but-but you know... So, uh, what brings you here? A-alone?"

"What, can't I visit my good friend?" Henry replied as they both walked in. He had decided he'd swing by Drew's house to hang out with him. Drew has also been looking on edge lately, and Henry wanted to check in on him.

"So, uh... did you have any plans for today? I-if you don't, we could just... watch a show... or something..."

"Sure, that's fine."

While he was busy setting up the TV in his room, Henry decided to snoop around. He saw colorful posters of shows and movies on the walls, a shelf stocked with figures, books, and other things Drew liked to collect, and a bed that could unnecessarily fit more than one person. But something under that bed caught his eye. Curious, he decided to investigate. To his shock, he found a brown glass bottle that reeked of alcohol. He slowly stood up, holding it in his hand.

"Hey, Drew... what's this?" he asked.

"What's what?" Drew replied, turning around to face him. When he saw what Henry was holding, he froze.

He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. His eyes were focused on the floor, his breathing was faster than usual, and he was squeezing his wrist, his nails digging into his skin.

Henry stepped closer to him. "Look, I'm not mad or anything..." he said. He was actually kind of mad. He felt what he thought was a mixture of anger, sadness, and fear that he wasn't very familiar with. "I just..." Much like the fidgeting boy, Henry was at a loss for words. "How long has this been going on for?"

"I started sometime after I ended things with Zoey. So, uh... around two weeks, I guess."

"I'm guessing that's why you started?"

"Y-yeah. One night, I was wandering around the house, and I... I may have stumbled upon where my parents store the alcohol. I-I was curious, okay! And after that... y'know..." Drew explained with a shaky voice. "It's not like I drink every night, though. I control myself... mostly..." His nails were probably scarring his wrist at this point. Henry quickly grabbed hold of his arms to stop him from hurting himself.

"Hey, dude... calm down," he said, looking straight into Drew's eyes. His rapid breathing slowed, but he looked like he was on the verge of tears. He bit his lip to try stopping himself from crying.

Henry sighed, let go of Drew's arms, and sat on the edge of his bed. He patted the spot next to him. Drew sat next to Henry on the spot he gestured to.

"You can talk to me about it," Henry said with a gentle grin on his face. He wasn't the best with comforting words, but he'd say he's a good listener.

After a moment of quiet, Drew spoke up. "Okay. Well, I... I loved her. I felt like we could have had a future together. A-a happy one. A really happy one.

"After I found out about the, uh, other guy, I thought I could stay away from her, but then she came back to me and I... I gave in. We started this whole on-again, off-again relationship. You know about that." Henry nodded in response. "Of course. When I finally gathered the courage to fully end things with her and cut her off from my life, I..." His breathing quickened. "I felt relieved, but I also felt really sad. She was a big part of my life, and I feel... empty without her." Tears were already streaming down his face, and he broke down, sobbing. Henry rubbed circles his back, quietly speaking words of comfort to his friend.

Once Drew calmed down, he sighed. "I'm sorry. I bet I seem gay right now or something," he muttered.

Henry was a little shaken by this. Gay? Of all the words he could've used? Never mind that, he should be here for his friend.

"Well, it's fine to show emotion. It's not... gay or anything," he said, patting Drew's shoulder and giving it a slight squeeze. "And... I don't see anything wrong with being gay. People can love who they love."

Drew let out a small laugh. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry."

"Oh, I got this idea to help you stop. Any time you feel like... drinking," Henry said the last word hesitantly. "You can call me. I can take your mind off it."

"Would you really stay up at night... for me?"

"Well, I'm used to it." Both boys laughed.

"Just... Why would you do this?" Drew asked, meeting Henry's eyes. His eyes were red, and he looked like he could start crying again at any moment.

"Why wouldn't I? You're my friend. Friends help each other," Henry said.

They gazed into each other's eyes for a few seconds, smiling.

"This'll sound a little weird, but... can I hug you right now?"

"Oh, sure." Henry held his arms out and Drew hugged him.

"Thank you," he said as they stayed in their warm embrace.

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author's note :
This lasted way longer than I thought it did. Also, school starts in about a week for me and I hope I can finish most of the remaining requests before then. Damn, I might have to start reusing emojis for titles soon. I would've used a beer bottle emoji, but I thought that didn't really fit the title. (update: well i'm not using emojis for the titles anymore lmao)