Breathe

discovered.

Because Clay had fallen asleep early the night prior, he woke up at a reasonable time. He sat on his bed for a few minutes, thinking about the beautiful new house in which he found himself. The blankets and pillow the boys had managed to scramble together (so as to avoid Clay digging around in the back of his U-Haul for sheets) were strewn around the bed, some on the floor, and one even behind the mattress somehow. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror opposite, and for the first time in a good minute, he saw his expression for how it really was- not ghastly from travel or tainted by the tinge of pain from the blades. Here he was, in the natural light flowing from the window, untouched by the pain of his past. He was just Clay.

He stepped out of bed and strode over to the mirror, touching his reflection. His green eyes looked... clear. They shone like emeralds. His hair, though messy from his rest, was wavy and wild, like it had been tossed in the wind of the sea. His freckled cheeks were rosy, and for the first time, he was almost happy with himself.

Clay chuckled a bit and walked into the bathroom to wash his face. The cool water woke him up a bit more, which was nice considering he was a little "hungover" from how long he slept. He dried his face off with a towel and looked at his reflection again, this time under the lights of the bathroom. Now, the beauty and light he had seen previously was gone, replaced with a bitter, cold version of him. Clay was no longer Clay, he was now some sorrowful ghost that was doomed to ponder forever, never to find any answers.

Sighing, he wandered downstairs, where Nick was eating a pear. Clay walked in front of Nick and watched as some of the juice dribbled down his chin. Laughing, Clay got a napkin and handed it to Nick, who flushed in embarrassment. The two boys just stared at the house for a bit, in complete awe of how big it was. In the morning light, the house gleamed like the Emerald City in Oz. The windows let in so much light that no artificial light was needed; the interior of the house was incredibly well lit.

Clay turned back to Nick and stared at him for a minute. The light made him look beautiful. If only it made him look beautiful, too-

"So, unpacking today ?" Nick broke the inevitable silence between them. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Clay agreed.

"Unpacking."

The two got to work unloading the truck and bringing all of Clay's belongings inside the house and up to his bedroom. Nick helped with the obvious things, like putting shirts in the closet and the monitors on the desk. Clay had to do most of it, though, because he liked things to be a certain way. His monitors had to be set up in a certain way, and his jeans had to be put on the very bottom drawer, rather than the middle, where Nick kept them. So Nick spent most of his time laying on the bed talking to Clay whilst Clay unpacked.

"These ideas for Minecraft But are crazy, man," Nick laughed as he swiped through Discord, looking at the ideas for Clay's newest video. "Minecraft, But I can only use my middle finger. Minecraft, But gaps are the only things that heal you. Oh, that would be like UHC. Minecraft, But water is poisonous. Minecraft, But..."

Clay stopped listening. He heard Nick's voice, but tuned it out. The thoughts in his head were company enough right now.

He unpacked his desk first. It took up the most boxes, so Clay figured that getting it out of the way would clear up the most space. He put the monitors onto the desk, then taped the LED lights around the perimeter of his desk, rather than on the wall. He was planning on buying more strips to go on his wall as well, but he wanted to switch it up for now. He positioned his keyboard, mouse, mouse pad, and microphone stand. He pinned his sound-proofing cushions on the wall and put his hard drive and backup CPU on the floor beneath his desk. He put together his chair, with a little help from Nick, and rolled it perfectly under his desk. His headphones went gently on the keyboard, and a stuffed Creeper plush from George sat on his seat.