Good Things Fall Apart

Sonder

Krrt! "Felix to Victor. Over."

Victor rolls over in bed, head pounding. Dehydrated from all the crying, probably. He reaches for his walkie and pulls it to his lips.

"This is Victor. Over."

He pauses, and then it buzzes again. "Are you prepared to accept a new mission? Over."

Felix is doing a Transatlantic accent like he's in a shitty movie from the '40s. Despite the boulder on his chest, Victor manages a chuckle. He props up onto his elbows. "How involved is this mission?"

Silence.

"Over," he adds pointedly.

"Your task is quite simple," comes Felix's voice immediately. "I simply need somebody to accompany me to Brasstown for an afternoon of coffee consumption and general shenanigans. Over."

Victor looks at his phone, wonders for the hundredth time why Felix can't just text him—call him, even—and sees that it's only 2 PM. Today has felt like an eternity, from the conversation with Mia, to talking with Benji, to...

His parents. After he'd recovered from his meltdown out in the hallway, he had carefully crept back inside, but neither of them were on the couch anymore. Hushed, frustrated voices sounded from their room, but Victor couldn't actually make out what they were saying—nor did he want to—so he snuck into his room and stuffed a pillow over his face.

"I don't think I've had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of General Shenanigans yet, but it would be an honor. Over."

The line comes on but is silent for a second. "That was damn funny, Salazar. Meet me in the hallway in five. Over and out."

Victor psychs himself up to get out of bed; it's never been such a gargantuan task. He's still in his clothes from before but he'd sweat through his shirt during the talk with his parents, so he switches it out for a blue one and looks at himself in the mirror. He's definitely looked better; his eyes are a bit bloodshot, his lips chapped. His hair sticks up in tufts from being shoved between pillows. With the remaining three minutes he has, Victor tries to tame the dark hair and applies some lip balm. His mouth smarts as he rubs his lips together, dry and cracked.

He peeks out of his room to ensure that his parents aren't in the living room. When he's sure the coast is clear, Victor tiptoes to the door; he feels guilty about leaving the house without telling anybody, but he doesn't really care about keeping his parents in the loop right now. That mode of operation isn't exactly working out so great for him.

"Hey, buddy," Felix says as Victor closes the door behind him. "Rough morning?" he guesses.

Victor shrugs and takes a deep breath. "Guess you could say that. You?"

"Ah, you know. Same old."

Felix slings an arm around Victor's shoulder. The whole walk to Brasstown, Victor lays out the situation, pausing awkwardly whenever someone passes who might overhear. He tells Felix about his parents' news, about his coming out (which explains why he wasn't stable enough to talk to Felix the previous night), the conversation with Mia, and then how things somehow got even worse with his parents. Felix says nothing the whole time, just nods and hums along.

Victor finishes his update a block from the café and they both stop. Instead of removing his arm, Felix turns to face Victor and adds the other, pulling him into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry," he whispers.

Victor hugs him back. "Thanks."

"I don't want to sound too stereotypical," Felix says as he separates from Victor, "but things really will get better. The only way to go is up."